Author: Peggy Townsend
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Pipe dreams
Three huge clay sewer pipes carved by alumnus Tom Franco and a team of artists are now gracing Danville’s art gallery in an exhibit curated by a fellow Slug.
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Environmental, social changes shift how elephant seals communicate
UC Santa Cruz Ph.D. candidate Caroline Casey retraced biologist Burney Le Boeuf’s scientific footsteps and discovered the seals’ threat calls no longer had geographic distinctions. Instead, as the northern elephant seal population had increased, the males’ calls had grown more individualized and complex.
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Creating a culture shift in fieldwork
A workshop designed by a UC Santa Cruz professor and Ph.D. student aims to help scientists learn how to prevent and deal with sexual assault and harassment in field settings, where researchers often work in harsh conditions and close quarters miles from help.
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Sounding it out
Alumnus Alexis Harte’s long career as a singer/songwriter has included original albums and songs for TV and film, and his company has become a pioneer in scoring and sound design.
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Fire in the belly
Alumna Caroline Carpenter was the first woman to graduate at the top of the Los Angeles Fire Department Academy—a testament to determination and grit.
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Instruments of good
Introductory physics students test their knowledge and get exposure to the wider world in a class project in which they create musical instruments to be donated to kids in need.
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The bone whisperer
Forensic anthropologist Alison Galloway will retire from teaching this year, but her wisdom will live on through new online course that teaches both technical skills and the things you don’t find in textbooks.
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Dancing into a community
The Pagkakaisa Dance Troupe, which promotes Pilipino cultural history and performs traditional folk dances from the Philippines, helps students build both camaraderie and stronger ties to their heritage.
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Campus environment led alumna to pursue architecture
Urban designer and planner Barbara Maloney (Stevenson, ’71, psychology) said working in higher education is “endlessly interesting,” involving not only issues like sustainability and town-gown relations but also transportation and new ways of learning.
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Homegrown help
New ag tunnels will allow the UC Santa Cruz Farm and Garden to provide a year-round supply of healthy, low-cost produce to dining halls, food pantries, and market pop-ups on campus as part of the effort to address food insecurity.
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Alley-oops for the OLLI Hoops
For this basketball team made up of women in their 60s and 70s, getting exercise, enjoying camaraderie, and learning a new skill has been a slam dunk.
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Surfing into the history books
If the right conditions arrive this winter, alumna Sarah Gerhardt could be among the first women to compete in the Mavericks big-wave surf contest.