VOLUME 49, ISSUE 30
T H U R S D A Y, F E B R U A R Y 4 , 2 0 1 6
WWW.UCSDGUARDIAN.ORG
UC SYSTEM
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
2016 GRAMMY PREDICTIONS ILLUSTRATION BY DAVID G JUAREZ\/UCSDGUARDIAN
Study Finds Pollutants in Fish Across Globe According to research author Amro Hamdoun, the high variability could lead to more toxic fish at supermarkets. BY Ming-Ray Liao
Want to know who Kanye will interrupt at this year’s Grammy Awards? Read on to discover the UCSD Guardian’s picks for the 2016’s big winners in four major categories. WEEKND, PAGE 6
DEBATING D-I ATHLETICS
Identifying pros and cons OPINION, pAGE 4
FENCING Northwestern Invitationals Sports, Page 12
FORECAST
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sustainability management, which takes the ideas of sustainability and applies them to the management practices. Spicci explained how that interdepartmental collaboration makes the program unique. “It ties in the engineering department at National University with the business school to fully encapsulate ‘the Three Es,’” Spicci told the UCSD Guardian. “Equity, economics and the environmental components [are] all wrapped into one program.” Laura Fandino, the director of Environment and Sustainability at UCSD Extension, emphasized that students gain hands-on experience throughout the program.
Researchers at Scripps Institute of Oceanography at UCSD found that though the amount of persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic pollutants in fish has declined 15 to 30 percent per decade over the last 30 years, it remains highly variable across species and locations. Corresponding Author and Associate Professor at Scripps Stuart Sandin explained that the variability in PBT concentration meant that species of fish in different parts of the world were equally likely to contain significant amount of pollutants. “I expected to see fishes caught near coastlines to have higher concentrations [of pollutants] than those caught in the middle of the ocean; instead, there was still a lot of variation at each of those locations,” Sandid told the UCSD Guardian. “Every group of fish from the top of the predators down to those that eat lower on the food chain all showed possibility of having very high concentrations.” Contributing Author and Associate Professor of biology at Scripps Amro Hamdoun said that the variability in pollutant concentration could result in more toxic fish being sold at the supermarket. “The huge variation means that it’s very hard to generalize what amount of pollutants you’re going to be exposed to when you buy a piece of fish,” Hamoun told the Guardian. “When you go to the supermarket to buy a piece of fish, you can potentially have 180 times more pollutants in one fish than another fish.” The team published their findings in PeerJ on Jan. 28, basing them on review research of approximately 2,500 different academic literature and governmental reports. They aimed to learn more about the distribution of these pollutants by looking for patterns across species, geography and five suites of chemicals that make up the PBT designation. Hamdoun added that the variability problem does not have an immediate solution as it is difficult to differentiate between types of seafood. “This is going to pose a new challenge for us in how we label seafood,” Hamdoun said. “We label all kinds of things about seafood — whether it’s farmed or wild, sustainable or not sustainable — and of the things we haven’t yet figured out how to do is to designate clean or dirty.” The Stockholm Convention — a
See SUSTAINABILITY, page 3
See FISH, page 3
University Creates Loans for Undocumented Students BY Promita Nandy Contributing Writer
O
ver 3,000 undocumented students in the UC system will have access to $5 million of financial aid through the DREAM Loan Program for the 2015– 16 academic year, according to a Jan. 28 press release from the UC Office of the President. The UCOP will distribute funds based on need throughout the UC campuses, giving AB 540 — undocumented students — access to thousands of dollars in federal loans. UC President Janet Napolitano expanded on the goal of the DREAM Loan program in the recent UC press release, explaining that it is an investment in the future of our country. “By reducing barriers and expanding access to higher education for undocumented students, the University of California is investing not only in the future of these students, but also in the future of our state and nation,” Napolitano explained. After Napolitano proposed the DREAM Loan Program in 2014, the state Legislature authorized it by passing SB 1210. However, funding was not made available until the 2015– 16 academic year. According to UCOP Media Specialist Kate Moser, UCOP secured the state funding in summer 2015 and spent some time adjusting the systemwide loan
program so that they could best serve students. Students can apply loans to their expenses for the 2015–16 academic year as well as future years, if they maintain part-time enrollment status at a UC school. Although the exact amount students may receive from the program is determined individually by each UC campus, they can receive up to $4,000 per year from the program and a maximum of $20,000 before they graduate. For this academic year, the interest rate on these loans is 4.29 percent. Prior to the DREAM Loan Program, undocumented students were eligible for Cal Grants, UC grants and scholarships as well as a few private loans. However, the funds for the new program are dedicated specifically to AB 540 students. A.S. Associated Vice President of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Daniel Juarez pointed out that AB 540 students may not necessarily receive documentation after graduating, which will make it difficult for them to pay back their loans. “Sometimes accessing jobs is not as easy for undocumented students once they graduate,” Juarez explained. “Just because they graduate doesn’t mean they’re gonna be given documentation right away, so the ability
See DREAM, page 3
VERBATIM DISCRIMINATION AGAINST ATHEISTS DOES EXIST IN THE UNITED STATES, ALTHOUGH IN SOME MINOR WAYS. IN A COUNTRY THAT PROMOTES FREEDOM OF RELIGION, PEOPLE SHOULD BE ABLE TO EXPRESS THEIR RIGHT OF NON-RELIGION WITHOUT BEING SUBJECT TO SARCASTIC REMARKS...”
- Marcus Thuillier
ACROSS THE GLOBE OPINION, PAGE 4
INSIDE BLACK HISTORY MONTH . 2 TRITON TO WATCH .......... 8 CROSSWORD/SUDOKU.. 10 SUPERBOWL PREVIEW .. 11
UCSD EXTENSION
School Establishes Joint Sustainability Program The courses train students in both the practical and theoretical side of the discipline. BY Rebecca Chong
Contributing Writer UCSD Extension and National University recently revealed a new, joint program in Sustainability Management that aims to provide interdisciplinary training and learning in business, sustainability and engineering. The program, introduced on Jan. 27, offers both the practical training of UCSD Extension’s Sustainable Business Practices program as well as the theoretical learning of National University’s Master of Science in Sustainability Management. Students also have the option to have a oneclass-a-month schedule.
Sarah Spicci, the director of Continuing and Professional Education at National University’s Division of Extended Learning, explained how the collaboration between the two institutions creates a versatile and expansive program. “The [partnership] was a perfect fit: They had the certificate, we had the masters — the practical and theoretical side rolled into one … giving a potential student a robust, well-rounded education,” Spicci explained. “All of these speak to a great opportunity for a potential student, both in terms of increasing job competitiveness and a great learning experience.” National University is the first institution in the San Diego region to offer a graduate program in