January 06, 2005

FAMILIES OF SLAIN PRIVATE SECURITY CONTRACTORS SUE FOR NEGLIGENCE Los Angeles Times, Jan. 6 -- The families of four American men who were killed in Falluja last March face at least one major hurdle in their suit against a high-profile private security firm, said Duke law professor Scott Silliman. Full story

OP-ED: UNEARTHING HOLY LAND FAKES (Raleigh) News & Observer, Jan. 6 -- Duke religion professor Eric Meyers considers what should be done about rare and display-worthy antiquities whose original context is impossible to determine because the items may have been excavated illicitly or purchased illegally. (free registration) Full story

EPILEPSY STUDY GIVES INSIGHT TO MOOD DISORDERS Fox News, Jan. 5 -- New solutions for learning and mood disorders caused by epilepsy may be a step closer to reality. Producing more brain cells might help, Duke research shows. Full story

SOCIAL SECURITY UNDERESTIMATES FUTURE LIFE SPANS, CRITICS SAY New York Times, Dec. 30 -- James W. Vaupel, director of the program on population, policy and aging at Duke, says life expectancy in the United States is far from any natural or biological limits. Full story

COLUMN: PRECIOUS MEMORIES (London) Guardian, Jan. 6 -- Vivienne Parry considers the reliability of memory with help from Duke researchers Scott Swartzwelder and Aaron White. Full story

THIS YEAR'S FORECAST: PARTLY GLOOMY Chronicle of Higher Education, Jan. 7 -- What can the world expect for the year ahead? Duke law professor Erwin Chemerinsky was among the scholars queried. (See fifth item.) Full story

DNA'S MR. FIX-IT HHMI Bulletin, Fall 2004 -- Why worry about the integrity of DNA? Duke biochemistry professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator Paul Modrich warns that even a single DNA base change can lead to disease or tumors. Full story

OP-ED: IS THERE A BLAIR IN THE DEMOCRATS' HOUSE? (Raleigh) News & Observer, Dec. 31 -- Discouraged Democrats should take a fresh look at Franklin Roosevelt, "whose sole political method was constant experimentation," says Divinity School professor David Steinmetz. (free registration) Full story

MOVIE FROM DUKE ARCHIVES ADDED TO FILM REGISTRY (Durham) Herald-Sun, Jan. 6 -- A 1941 movie from Duke's film archives that shows a slice of daily life in Kannapolis, N.C., has joined an elite list of historically important cinema. Full story --Also, Duke News: Film In Duke Collection Named To National Film Registry (with film excerpt and video of archivist's comments) Full story

DELLINGER MAKES THE COVER (Raleigh) News & Observer, Jan. 3 -- Walter Dellinger was on the cover of Education Week last month. Dellinger, the former acting U.S. solicitor general and current Duke law professor, is arguing on behalf of an Alabama high school coach who says he lost his job after complaining that his female athletes did not have the same facilities and financial support as the boys. Full story --Also, Education Week: Justices Hear Case on Title IX Retaliation (free registration) Full story

BOOK REVIEW: ANNIE PROULX'S STORIES FROM THE EDGE (Raleigh) News & Observer, Jan. 2 -- Melissa Malouf, a novelist who teaches English at Duke, reviews Annie Proulx's "Wyoming." Full story