Napster co-founder Sean Parker donated $250 million to establish a cancer research center at UCLA and five other centers nationwide, UCLA officials announced Wednesday. Parker, chairman of the Parker Foundation, which funds several cancer research organizations, said in a press release he hopes the grant will assist the six cancer research facilities in developing immune […]
Author Archives: Deanna Necula
UCLA alum’s nonprofit uses new technology for Niger Delta cleanup
A nonprofit organization founded by a UCLA alumnus is working to clean up a massive oil spill in the Niger Delta using recently developed technology. A United Nations Environment Programme report published in 2011 revealed individuals living in the Niger Delta were drinking water contaminated with quantities of benzene, a carcinogen, that were up to […]
UCLA scientists explore using virtual reality for diagnoses, surgeries
Video game companies and airline industries alike use virtual reality to explore alternate environments. Now, UCLA scientists are working to turn virtual reality into a tool that can help doctors better understand the human body. Almost 1,500 patients have already received prostate cancer diagnoses using virtual reality technology, improving the diagnosis accuracy by more than […]
Fukushima disaster prompts history professor to investigate Japan
Katsuya Hirano grew up in Hitachinaka, Japan, where he said the government led citizens to believe nuclear energy was harmless. Now, after several nuclear accidents, the public is less willing to believe what Hirano calls the “safety myth.” The 2011 Fukushima disaster prompted Hirano, a history professor, to investigate what he thinks is purposeful coordination […]
UCLA scientists develop method to predict diseases by testing saliva
UCLA scientists found evidence that a single drop of saliva can diagnose and predict cancer, post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder and other health problems. Researchers use salivary diagnostics to detect biomarkers in saliva, such as RNA and proteins, that can identify health concerns. “(Salivary diagnostics) is now one of the hottest areas of biomedical […]
LGBT Campus Resource Center discusses findings of external review
LGBT Campus Resource Center officials and members of the UCLA community discussed the initial findings of an external investigation intended to suggest additional resources for LGBT individuals on campus. Raja Bhattar, director of the UCLA Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Campus Resource Center, said the External Review Committee was tasked with assessing how the center has […]