June 6 - On a melanoma mission; first in-person year for second years
Section 1
Anteaters, remember to vote: The 2022 primary election is tomorrow, June 7. Don’t let others decide for you. Make your voice heard. UCI has two election day voting centers (Newkirk Alumni Center and University Hills Community Center) and a ballot drop box (at Campus & West Peltason drives). Info: https://www.ocvote.gov/voting
UCI ANNOUNCEMENTS AND NEWS
“We’ve made a new chemical that’s never been made before. We show how the drug works. And we show that the drug slows cancer growth,” says UCI Health’s Dr. Anand Ganesan. Photo by Steve Zylius/UCI
Melanoma researcher covers all the bases
Dr. Anand Ganesan probably won’t be hanging from a ceiling à la Tom Cruise in “Mission Impossible,” but the UCI Health dermatologist and School of Medicine professor of dermatology and biological sciences does compare part of what he does to a plot device in the 1996 action thriller. “You know where the guy opens the switch box, there are all these wires coming down, and he’s trying to figure out which wire to cut to stop something bad from happening? That’s kind of what we’re trying to do: Cut the right wire to short-circuit cancer,” says the co-director of the Biotechnology, Imaging & Drug Discovery program at the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Returning to in-person classes for their second year at UCI opened up myriad opportunities for, from left, Harleen Thandi, Cassandra Sweet and Alan Le. Photo by Steve Zylius/UCI
How three second-year students navigated their first in-person year
After spending their first year as UCI students taking courses remotely, Cassandra Sweet, Harleen Thandi and Alan Le are among thousands of second-year students who adapted through the hurdles and challenges of the 2021-22 school year with grace, persistence and Anteater pride. Like most second years who spent the entirety of their first college year online, the three students experienced university life in-person for the first time this school year. Here is a quarter-by-quarter report on their experiences.
High-touch support for low-vision patients
When macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, glaucoma and other eye diseases impair vision so much that it affects daily life, people often feel a sense of loss and despair. But there is help, say the low-vision specialists at the UCI Health Gavin Herbert Eye Institute.
UC NEWS AND GENERAL NEWS
COVID booster in NBA cut infection risk 57% during omicron wave
Booster vaccination was studied among 2,613 National Basketball Association players and staff who were regularly screened for infection during the omicron variant surge, according to a research letter published in JAMA.
EVENTS
S22 SOARing Through Finals
Wednesday, 9 a.m. (sponsored by Student Outreach and Retention)
De-Stress Fest (Therapy Dogs and Free Snacks!)
Wednesday, 11 a.m. (sponsored by Center for Student Wellness & Health Promotion)
Personal v. Business Travel
Wednesday, 11 a.m. (sponsored by ConnexUC)
Visit today.uci.edu to see and submit event listings. Events of general interest will be shared in UCI Digest two days before they occur.
UCI IN THE NEWS
Note: Some news sites require subscriptions to read articles. The UCI Libraries offer free subscriptions to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Orange County Register and The Washington Post for students, faculty and staff.
OC trauma surgeons and medical professionals wear orange to protest against gun violence
KCBS (video), June 3
Cited: Dr. Theresa Chin, UCI Health trauma surgeon
Latest U.S. Covid-19 Surge Moves West as Pressure Eases in Northeast
The Wall Street Journal, June 6
Cited: Bernadette Boden-Albala, director and founding dean, Program in Public Health
LA Crime Targeting Rich Shifts Mayor Race to Billionaire Caruso
Bloomberg CityLab, June 3
Cited: Charis E. Kubrin, professor of criminology, law and society
COMMENCEMENT CORNER
#IamUCI: Q&A with Class of 2022 graduate Claudia Flores
Claudia Flores has a penchant for dad jokes, adventurous hikes and twisting her ankle. “Literally every single time I go hiking, I sprain my ankle,” says the first-gen transfer student. She grew up in Santa Clarita and graduated from Palmdale High School and College of the Canyons before heading to UCI, where she helped lead the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and the chassis, body and ergonomics squad on UCI’s Baja racing team. She will earn a B.S. in mechanical engineering.
Graduating this year? Share your UCI story and photos! Tag us with #IamUCI on Instagram and Twitter.