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The Regents of the University of California
 

INTERNATIONAL SHOWCASE

Computer scientist Deborah Estrin introduced her work in embedded network sensors to a global community of business, political, intellectual and other leaders last month at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. The independent forum consults with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. Estrin is director of the UCLA Center for Embedded Networked Sensing, which is funded by the National Science Foundation. Embedded networked sensing uses tiny sensors and actuators about the size of matchboxes that can be densely distributed within a natural or man-made environment to monitor temperature, water and structural changes to help protect the environment.

SUICIDE RATE WORRIES

Challenging recent claims linking antidepressant use to suicidal behavior, a new UCLA study shows that American suicide rates have dropped steadily since the introduction of Prozac and other serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drugs. In research published Feb. 1 in the journal Nature Review: Drug Discovery, authors Julio Licinio and Ma-Li Wong, both UCLA psychiatrists, caution that regulatory actions to limit SSRI prescriptions may actually increase death rates from untreated depression, the No. 1 cause of suicide. “The recent debate has focused solely on a possible link between antidepressant use and suicide risk without examining the question within a broader historical and medical context,” Licinio said. “We feared that the absence of treatment may prove more harmful to depressed individuals than the effects of the drugs themselves.” Licinio is a professor of psychiatry and endocrinology at the David Geffen School of Medicine and a researcher at NPI.

IN THE RUNNING

The regents decided Jan. 20 that UC should submit a competitive proposal to the Department of Energy to continue its 60-year management of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Deadline for submission is Feb. 9. “Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and its employees are a critical part of the UC system and provide a tremendously valuable scientific contribution to our nation,” said President Robert C. Dynes.