Berkeleyan

News Briefs

03 August 2005

Next Berkeleyan will be August 25

This is the second summer edition of the Berkeleyan. We will resume our regular, weekly publication schedule on Thursday, Aug. 25, during the fall semester's Welcome Week.

Three graduate students die in I-80 crash

Three graduate students in chemistry were the apparent victims of a tragic freeway accident on Saturday, July 16, on Interstate 80 in Berkeley.

The students were Benjamin P. Boussert, 27, a sixth-year graduate student from Baton Rouge, La.; Jason L. Choy, 29, of Bowie, Md., a student completing his seventh year of a Ph.D. program in chemistry and molecular and cell biology; and Giulia A. Adesso, 26, a visiting scholar from Italy conducting research at Berkeley while pursuing a Ph.D. from the University of Lecce. The three were passengers in a Toyota that slammed into a burning truck that had crossed the center divider into the eastbound lanes on I-80 near Ashby Ave. at around 2:30 a.m. At this issue's deadline the Alameda County coroner's office had yet to confirm their identities, pending DNA analysis and comparison of dental records.

The College of Chemistry held a memorial event for the three students on Friday, July 22. On Aug. 20, an additional memorial event — for Choy — will be held so that his parents, who live on the East Coast, are able to attend. Boussert and Choy will be awarded posthumous Ph.D.s by Mary Ann Mason, dean of the Graduate Division.

Nominations open for Chancellor's Outstanding Staff Awards

The annual Chancellor's Outstanding Staff Awards program, honoring staff who have made exceptional contributions to the university or community, is now accepting nominations.

The award recognizes individuals or teams of staff whose work is above and beyond normal expectations and has had a positive impact on such areas as student services, customer relations, operational effectiveness, mentoring, staff development, or community service. All members of the campus community are encouraged to submit nominations. To be eligible for the award, staff must have completed at least one year of employment at the university and cannot hold academic or executive tier titles. Award winners will be honored at a special ceremony
in early November.

The deadline for nominations is 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 7. Applications are available at csac.chance.berkeley.edu. For further information, contact Bobbie Joyner (643-4315, joyner@berkeley.edu).

'Hiroshima Stories' at I-House

"Hiroshima Stories," a commemoration, presentation, and ritual in observance of the 60th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, will take place on Saturday, July 30, at 7:30 p.m. in the International House Auditorium. The event will include performances and contributions by the Living Arts Playback Theatre Ensemble, Somei Yoshino Taiko Ensemble, and Genyukai Berkeley Okinawan Music Ensemble, and personal stories shared by survivors of the bomb and its aftermath.

Admission is $10 for the public; residents, members, and alumni of I-House may attend for free. International House is located at 2299 Piedmont Ave. at the top of Bancroft Way. For information, call 642-9461.

$40-million gift will fund new biomed center

The campus has received its largest-ever international donation: a $40-million gift from the Li Ka Shing Foundation to establish a research center focused on new scientific fields that could provide solutions to today's major health problems.

In recognition of Li's generosity, the university will name the new facility the Li Ka-Shing Center for Biomedical and Health Sciences.

The Li Center will replace Warren Hall, current home of the School of Public Health. Groundbreaking for the $160-million research building, one of the cornerstones of the campus's Health Sciences Initiative, is slated for 2007, with construction to be completed in 2009. Upon completion it will house the Henry H. Wheeler Jr. Brain Imaging Center, part of the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, as well as scientists tackling the complexities of cancer, brain diseases, infectious diseases, and stem cell biology.