Radical Reforms Are Contemplated by Bio Department
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UNIVERSllY OF CAliFORNIA SAN DIEGO THURSDAY, MAY 12,1988 VOLUME 64, #12 Physicist Radical reforms Seaborg are contemplated praises• LBJ by Bio department By J. BERESFORD-HOWE was considered yesterday and By SUSAN E. HYLEN today by the department's Under SIll/! Wrltn Spurred by a professor who graduate Curriculum Committee. was angry over troubles that his Saier is primarily responsible Glenn Sea borg, winner of the undergraduate T As had been for bringing the debate to the 1951 Nobel Prize in chemistry getting credit for classes taken at department. and chairman of the Atomic other universities, the biology "It came to my attention sitting Energy Commission (AEC) department is nearing a radical aroun~ with my T As," Saier says. under three U.S. administra reform of its advising and transfer "Every single one of them had tions, praised ex-president Lyn policies. horror stories about problems don Johnson's efforts at arms with the advising system and Among the changes under control negotiations in a faculty getting credits. One excellent consideration: seminar lecture last Monday. student who was a T A for Bio "I don't think it is generally • Elimination of the Biology One was taking that class his last understood how much was ac One, Two and Three require quarter here because he couldn't complished during Lyndon John ment; the classes would become get credit from another school," son's presidency," Sea borg said, "highly recommended," not man Saier says. pointing out that Johnson is datory. Saier says he talked with other remembered mostly for the Viet • Full credit for basic biology, Biology Department faculty and nam War and the Great Society. physics and math classes taken found similar stories. Irritated, Seaborg, who was retained by at other universities; currently, he compiled a case history docu Johnson after President Ken the department rarely gives stu menting fifteen students' cases, nedy's death as the chairman of dents credit for studies elsewhere. each highly critical of the de the AEC, detailed Johnson's • A shift in the advising partment's communications with , system which would assign all efforts to adopt a treaty to its students. students to a faculty advisor but I prevent the spread of nuclear '1The staff advisor] seemed weapons. Pa,., • the fifth annual Sun God festival, which originated as allow any faculty member to advise any student. Students now almost happy in informing me I Sea borg said that after Ken a celebration near the Sun God, will be held this year at the that I would have to take another nedy', death, Johuon', "main Mite, I 11th fteId from 4."" to 11 Ad8y MaV \8W mostly see a staff advisor when I tryina to transfer credits ph,... and math course ... I had ,I agenda WII the cutback of fIS related story on page 11 I • nom other univenities or departments. already taktn a year sequence of sionable material ... a politically both," one student told Saier. explo~ive issue" that Kennedy • Institution of orientation sessions for transfer students. "They do not give a damn about had been willing to postpone the signing of the Non-Prolifera force and a non-proliferation me." until after the coming elections. tion Treaty (NPT), including the treaty. In 1966, Johnson an • According to biology Pro The policy was important for alternative concept of a multi nounced that the NPT was to be fessor Milton Saier and Depart Another student, attempting safety reasons, he continued, but lateral (multi-nation) force given top priority. ment Chair Richard Dutton, a to transfer a Genetics class from controversial because of the (MLF) within NATO. A com Further delay occurred be consensus for these changes Ohio State, reported that, "the expected unemployment caused bined force was advocated by cause of the arguments that emerged at an a\l-day biology advice to me seemed to suggest by decreasing production of many allies as a control over inspection of peaceful nuclear department meeting Saturday, the lack of hope in even trying to plutonium and enriched uranium- nuclear forces, but according to facilities by the International May 7. 'submit a petition to transfer 235. Johnson decided that the Sea borg, the Soviet Union was Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) "The changes will be very much credits ... [the advisor] told me pr-oblem "had nothing to do with very opposed to the Germans could lead to leakage of commer along the lines of what we talked that nobody has ever been able the election," and dealt with it as having "a finger on the nuclear cial secrets, Sea borg said. about at the meeting," Dutton to transfer [their] class, not even one of his fint steps in office, trigger... He explained that some Euro said. from a UC system school." according to Seabor•. Sea borg said the issue even pean countries wanted to initiate A final list of recommendations "One of our real problems," Seaborg also related the ob tually came to a choice for their own standards and self based on that meeting and subject Biology Department Chairman stacles Johnson faced in seeking Johnson between a multi-lateral See SEABORG, pale 7 to approval of the entire faculty Richard Dutton acknowledges, "is a lack of communication between students and faculty." There are no students on URI defense funding cap eliminated . biology department curriculum committees. Still, Dutton defends ornia, which has 13.2 percent. at Scripps, are still very pessi the informal gathering of student But researchers The result was an 57.3 million mistic about whether there will opinion as a legitimate method cut in URI funding to UC feel money be enough funds to renew the of student' input. campuses for fiscal year 1988. projects tht were mothballed this "We have become aware in the Because the DOD funding is the will be tight year as a result of the cap. "We last few weeks that the method main source for basic science don't know where we are going for advising and transferring research at universities, this left ' 0 By CYNTHIA CHESY get funds for next year because credits is not satisfactory and in many university research pro SIll/! Wrltn of the lack of stability of DOD some cases is quite unsatisfac jects, especially in California, funding." Vallis said. tory," Dutton says. "Student Although the 14 percent geo hanging in limbo. The idea behind the URI grants See PROFESSOR, palf 3 graphical cap the University Now, next year's disbursement was to provide stable funding for Research Initiative (URI) under of DOD funding to UCSD and five years. However, according the Department of Defense other universities will be admin to Abarbanel, even with the cap (DOD) was overturned by the istered solely by congress in the lifted there is still no guarantee House of Representatives for context of their efforts to try t that the research programs will Inside... fiscal year 1989, UCSD research balance the federal budget. get the amount of funds needed ers are skeptical about receiving Dr. Henry D.1. Abarbanel, a to pay the technicians and sufficient funds next year. UCSD scientist and the principal research scientists or buy the Opinion 5 The recent legislation is a direct investigator for one of the groups materials for the research pro- The '80s - result of the congressional lobby that received a URI grant, testi jects. • Decade of the ing efforts of UC and other fies before a house subcommittee To compound the problem, apathetiC student? university scientists, researchers two months ago about the "the University takes off 40 to 45 10 and administrators. The earlier harmful effects of the cap. After percent of the URI funds for , ••tur.. Dr. Henry 0 .1. Abarbanel is bill, passed in December of 1987, hearing the news he is optimistic overhead costs," Vallis said. "We Image proceSSing - optimistic about the future: "It had placed a 14 percent limit on about the future: "Next year URI are requesting that the overhead restoring art from the past will be business as usual. We URI funds available to anyone funds will be shared by all be waived, but that has not been approved. We don't know where are expecting 80 percent of [the state, will now only affect re states. .. it will be business as 18 funds that] we are requesting search through this year. usual. We are expecting 80 we are going to get funds for next -,. year." Women..'s tennis - for 1989." Other researchers The cap was arbitrarily based percent of[the fund that] we are are worried, however, and do on the state with the greatest requesting for fiscal 1989." There were II UC research fmishes 3rd at Nationals not feel that funds will be so number of scientific and engineer Other scientists, such as Geoff programs directly affected this with 5-4 loss forthcoming. ing doctoral graduates - Calif- Vallis, a research meteorologist See DEFENSE, pale 7 ThumJay, May J1, 1988 3 2 Thursday. May 11. 1988 NEWS NEWS Levinson (San Diego Union), Sig Mikelson (Adjunct Professor at SDS U. former President of CBS News), A.S. too send 18 Apply for Ron Miller (Channel 39), and Mark Saylor (Los SHORTS Angeles Times·San Diego County Edition). The Guardian roundtable discussion will be moderated by Hugh Friedman, professor of law at the University of San to Educational Editorial UCSD Neurobiologists awarded 53.3 Diego. Topical areas will include: the changing role of the Positions million to investigate nervous systems press; the impact of the changed role of the press; the value of increased scrutiny of personal issues; the Rights conference by Friday. Six UCSD biologists were awarded a $3 .3 million National Institute of Health grant to investigate the press' ethical responsibilities; and the legal implica mittee.