Anesthesiology Head Quits
UC Irvine New University
Oct. 2

Peter Breen, embattled head of UC Irvine’s Medical Center’s Anesthesiology Dept., announced his retirement on Friday, Sept. 15.

The announcement came amidst an investigation by the state medical board. The most likely reason for the inquiry, according to the Los Angeles Times, is a wrongful-termination lawsuit, which involves improper pre-operational procedures.

The lawsuit focuses on such issues as the forging of signatures on patients’ pre-operation charts.

Breen, who has stated that he is “not at liberty to talk,” left his position following a heated debate during an Anesthesiology Dept. meeting at which his colleagues questioned his leadership, according to the Times.

Carrying On a Nobel Tradition
UC Berkeley Daily Californian
Oct. 4

UC Berkeley physics professor George Smoot, 61, was awarded a Nobel Prize on Tuesday.

The prestigious $1.3 million accolade in physics was bestowed in recognition of his work that sheds light on the Big Bang theory via mapping tiny temperature variations in the universe that were created during the event.

Smoot, who is part of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, is the eleventh recipient of the prize from the lab. He received the prize in conjunction with John Mather of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

The two will formally receive their award in Stockholm, Sweden on Dec. 10.

Feminist studies major makes cover of Ms. Magazine
UC Santa Cruz Currents
Oct. 2

It was only Diana Tsuchida’s first day as an intern with the Feminist Majority Foundation, so when a manager took her aside and asked if she would consider posing for the cover of Ms. magazine, she did not hesitate.

After the magazine’s original plan for a cover photo failed to come through, staffers at Ms. contacted the Feminist Majority Foundation to make other plans. The Foundation has owned the magazine since 2001.

“Their plans had fallen through, and they needed someone that day,” said Tsuchida, a UC Santa Cruz fourth-year majoring in feminist studies. “The managing editor told me they were looking for someone who looked ‘modern’ and ‘racially ambiguous.’ It was my first day, so I said, ‘Okay.’ ”

The photo shoot took place that afternoon, and next thing she knew, Tsuchida was on the cover of the Summer 2006 issue of Ms. a women’s magazine available worldwide. Tsuchida is pictured with a gasoline pump held to her head to illustrate the cover story, “Crude Awakening: How U.S. War Policies Sell Out Women in Favor of Big Oil.” The article details a connection between the politics of oil and women’s rights in the Middle East.

“It was weird. I’d never read the magazine, so I wasn’t very invested in it. It didn’t really hit me until I started to get calls from my family and friends,” said Tsuchida, a San Jose native.

Hill Holds High Volume
UC Los Angeles Daily Bruin
Oct. 4

UCLA’s residential housing occupancy has reached its highest level since the school was founded in 1919, causing long lines, overcrowded dormitories and other headaches.

With more than double the number of triple dorms this academic year, both freshmen and returning students have been inconvenienced.

The decision to increase the number of triple rooms from 832 to 1,746 is due, in part, to the nearly 10 percent increase in freshmen since the 2005 academic school year.

Renovations have also caused UCLA to lose an entire residential building this year, which further compounded the problem.

In addition, this is the first year the school has allowed seniors and second-year transfers to apply for residential housing. UCLA housing services has stated that such students will be barred from the dorms in the future.

No room transfers are available, as all available housing is sold out.