Doc Joe is a psychologist and attorney who has consulted with and advised people of all ages. Katy Ann is a licensed marriage and family therapist who, like Doc Joe, has counseled and advised people of all ages. The discussion and advice offered in their column is not offered as a clinical recommendation or as a substitute for clinical treatment. Rather, Doc Joe’s and Katy Ann’s comments are intended to stimulate thought, often with a sense of humor. Sometimes they agree; sometimes they don’t. So, read on… This question is one of the most challenging types of questions that we get. It’s one in which there are many layers. It’s a question of truth and honesty. DJ & KA Dear Doc Joe and Katy Ann, Is honesty always the best policy? I am 23 years old, working at the Capitol in my first post-graduate job. Last February, while doing an internship, I met Dan. A week after we met, we began dating. It seemed to be going really well. My... ...
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Daily Archives : November 21, 2012
Cybercrime vs. cybersecurity
Many people rely heavily on the internet for running their daily lives. And every day, the number of internet-dependent people increases. From studying, socializing or shopping, many technologically savvy individuals use their computers or mobile devices to run errands and to entertain themselves. While technology has vastly improved our lives, countless dangers lurk on the internet. Cybercrime is on the rise and has already affected many individuals and companies. Stu Sjouwerman, founder of KnowBe4, a site dedicated to cyber security awareness and training, stated that it has been a challenge to compete with the dynamic “industry” of cybercrime, but it is a challenge that Sjouwerman welcomes. “There are people in Eastern Europe who go to work, punch the clock, work all day, get health benefits, leave at 5 p.m., and what they do is steal your identity or hack into your network,” Sjouwerman said. Cybercrime has completely professionalized over the last few decades, in contrast to when only a handful of individuals had the time and money to hack into... ...
Read More →West Village inspires creation of Dubai’s Sustainable City
After visiting UC Davis West Village during its initial development in 2010, Faris Saeed, a Middle Eastern housing developer, was inspired to create a sustainable city near Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Saeed is CEO of a Dubai-based company, Diamond Developers. He visited Davis because he supported and donated to the University’s Middle East/South Asia studies program. That was when he first saw West Village during its initial planning stages. UC Davis West Village is known as the nation’s largest zero-net energy community. It opened to the public in October 2011. On Nov. 9, Saeed traveled to Davis again to sign an agreement of cooperation between Diamond Developers and the Regents of the University of California on behalf of UC Davis. The agreement stated that the University and Diamond Developers will collaborate in terms of research and training for the Sustainable City. “The plan is a collaboration around the establishment of an environmental research institute and a social research center,” said Suad Joseph, UC Davis professor of anthropology and... ...
Read More →Women’s Basketball Preview
Slug: 121121_sp_WBasketballPreview Edit: HRS RT Notes: Teams: UC Davis vs. Navy; at Houston Baptist Records: Aggies, 0-2; Midshipmen, 1-2; Huskies, 1-3 Where: Sharp Gym — Houston, Texas When: Friday at 3 p.m.; Saturday at 11 a.m. Who to watch: UC Davis graduated five players last year, each of them with their own legacy. With some of the top-scorers in the Aggies’ history leaving, UC Davis needed someone to put points on the board. Enter Sydnee Fipps. The sophomore showed promise last year but never truly got the opportunity to display her full capabilities. Fipps has stepped up in big ways for UC Davis two games into the season, setting a career-high of 19 points scored in the season opener, then shattering that mark with 26 points in the ensuing games. UC Davis has dropped both of the games, but Fipps’ 45 points on the season is an encouraging statistic for the Aggies as they look for different ways to replace the holes left by last year’s graduating seniors. Did you... ...
Read More →College campuses seeing double
Meet James Oakley, a fourth-year English major. John Oakley, an international relations major, also attends UC Davis. They share friends and an apartment, but what brings them together? They share the same DNA. James and John both attend UC Davis. But not all twins go to the same university. Identical twins tend to possess more similar interests, while fraternal twins may look and behave in completely different ways. However, each embodies a unique individual beyond the mere identity of a twin. “I suppose we’re the stereotypical idea of identical twins,” James said. “[As kids] we were always interested in the same things, always interested in teamwork; the two of us together to accomplish one goal.” Going to the same school was a benefit for the boys because they were automatic roommates and instant friends. “Just having a companion [is the best part], and I’m fortunate that he’s interesting, that he has a personality,” John said. Fraternal twins, on the other hand, customarily lead very different lives, and may not even... ...
Read More →News in Brief: Memorial Union closed for Thanksgiving
According to Building Services and Risk Management with Campus Recreation and Unions, the Memorial Union (MU) will adjust its hours for the Thanksgiving holiday. The building will be open Wednesday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and will be closed Thursday to Sunday. The ASUCD Coffee House and the UC Davis Bookstore will be closed all four days. — Muna Sadek ...
Read More →Column: The End is nigh
A disheveled hobo roams the streets bearing a sign with a single, solemn message: “The end is nigh.” By day, this man may look like some crummy bum that you’d be loath to give change to for fear of him using it to purchase copious amounts of crack cocaine — but when darkness falls, he dons an ever-shifting ink blot mask to simultaneously strike fear and confusion into ne’er-do-wells and rapscallions. Yeah, it’s a scene straight from the opening pages of the comic, Watchmen, but this may very well become a reality in the approaching days as we round the bend toward the highly anticipated end of the world — coming to theatres near you Dec. 21, 2012. It’s a harrowing occasion for most. Couldn’t the Mayans have been a little more lenient with their predictions? At least let us ring in Christmas and the New Year before we get apocalypsed on. And what exactly does this catastrophic event consist of? I’d like to know what I’m up against here.... ...
Read More →Reports question UC’s financial practices following passage of Proposition 30
Amid celebration over the recent passage of Proposition 30, which prevented a trigger cut of $250 million to the University of California, there has been an outcry about the UC system engaging in interest rate swaps that could allegedly lose the system much of the money it stood to retain.The passage of Prop. 30, which increases taxes on California’s highest earners and prevents planned spending reductions to education programs in the state, allowed for a sigh of relief from many UC students who were worried about the possibility of a $2,400 increase in tuition.However, a report written by UC Berkeley students Charlie Eaton, Jacob Habinek, Mukul Kumar, Tamera Lee Stover and Alex Roehrkasse, titled “Swapping our Future: How Students and Taxpayers are Funding Risky UC Borrowing and Wall Street Profits,” criticizes the UC’s handling of finances, although it is also raising eyebrows. The report alleges that the interest rate swaps that the UC Board of Regents have been engaging in with banks have already cost UC almost $57 million, with... ...
Read More →Cleaning ourselves to death
Bacteria are everywhere! They’re even in geothermal vents and other extreme conditions of hot and cold. They’re responsible for many terrible diseases like cholera and the bubonic plague. Staphylococcus aureus, a species often associated with food poisoning, has a size close to 0.6 microns in diameter, small enough to fit approximately 1,000 individual cells on the point of a pencil. What’s the takeaway message? Bacteria are abundant, hardly detectable and wildly dangerous — we should kill as many as possible to protect ourselves! Or should we? Not all bacteria are pathogens. In fact, if one were to consider the proportion of harmful bacteria that the average person interacts with per unit time compared to the total number of bacteria encountered, the overwhelming majority of bacteria could be considered harmless. Many hand sanitizers advertise to kill approximately 99 percent of bacteria living on any surface. People frequently use hand sanitizers to combat the spread of the common cold and the flu. However, these antibacterial agents are arguably ineffective against the pathogens... ...
Read More →Column: Banned books
Greetings, bibliophiles: have you ever wondered about the history of naughty literature? Fifty Shades of Grey isn’t the only text to ever be banned in American public libraries. Let’s take a look at some others that have been deemed too spicy for public consumption. Homosexual plot, sexually explicit narration and offensive language are the top reasons given for banning books in schools. The 1748 novel Fanny Hill, by John Cleland, was the number-one seized piece of literature from United States mail during the height of the Comstock era. Comstock supporters believed that an author who described breasts as “two hard, firm, rising hillocks” shouldn’t be allowed to pervert America’s youth. Cleland’s descriptions of Fanny’s hills (and her adventures into prostitution) didn’t only shock 18th century readers, but more contemporary readers as well. When Fanny Hill was challenged again in the early 1960s, the decision was overturned by the Supreme Court — who ruled that the book wasn’t altogether offensive. Fanny Hill might have been the last novel to be federally... ...
Read More →CSU delays vote on proposed fee increases
On Nov. 13, the California State University (CSU) Board of Trustees indefinitely postponed a vote on three proposed fee increases for the CSU system. The fee increases, which were removed from the agenda to be considered at a later date, would have gone into effect beginning in fall 2013 if they were passed. The fee hikes are intended to increase new student enrollment in the CSU system by encouraging students to graduate in a “timely manner,” according to a CSU press release. According to the press release, the three proposed increases include a graduation incentive fee, a third-tier tuition fee and a course repeat fee. The graduation incentive fee would charge an additional cost per unit for students who have already taken 160 units. Starting in 2014, this cap would be lowered to 150 units. Eighty percent of CSU majors require 120 units, so these fees would apply to “super seniors,” or students who do not graduate in four years. The third-tier tuition fee would place fees on each additional... ...
Read More →Better odds for lung cancer patients
Medical scientists are constantly looking for a cure to the world’s deadliest diseases. One of these diseases holds the Center for Disease Control’s number two deadliest disease title: cancer. Of the different types of cancer, lung cancer is one of the most common and has a death rate of more than 150,000 people per year. UC Davis researchers aim to change that. Recently, a team of UC Davis researchers found a protein on the surface of lung cancer cells that could prove to be useful in developing effective cancer treatments. “We have been studying proteins on the surface of leukocytes for years,” said Dr. Joseph Tuscano, co-principal investigator of the study and professor of hematology and oncology in the UC Davis Department of Internal Medicine. “We developed antibodies against [the protein] to treat cell lymphomas.” Leukocytes are white blood cells that defend the body against diseases. There are five different types of leukocytes, including B cells. Lymphomas are cancers that affect the immune system, most commonly found in lymph nodes.... ...
Read More →Women’s volleyball preview
Teams: UC Davis at Pacific Records: Aggies, 16-14 (10-7); Tigers, 20-10 (9-9) Where: Alex G. Spanos Center — Stockton, Calif. When: Saturday at 7 p.m. Who to Watch: Sophomore middle blocker Victoria Lee established herself as a legitimate force on this Aggies squad the last time these two teams matched up together. The 6-foot middle blocker not only posted a career-high 10 blocks in the match, but she also had a team-best .500 hitting average to go along with seven kills. Not only is this the final match of the season for the Aggies, but it will also be the final match in which Lee will play without heavy expectations on her shoulders. Lee and fellow sophomore middle Katie Quinn have both established a precedent for themselves this season and with senior outside Allison Whitson graduating, the Aggies will be looking to fill that offensive void elsewhere. Look for solid play from Lee on Saturday night and for years to come. Did you know? Attention Aggie fans. For those planning... ...
Read More →News in Brief: Square Tomatoes Crafts Fair on Sunday
On Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Square Tomatoes Crafts Fair will take place in Central Park. In addition to the fair, vendors and volunteers will be participating in a parody of “Gangnam Style” by PSY, called “Square Tomatoes Style.” Founder of the fair Sally Parker and volunteers will begin singing and dancing at 1 p.m. to their own lyrics. Organizers are still looking for people to spoof PSY and the man in the yellow pantsuit from the music video. A practice session will be held in Central Park on Friday at 1 p.m. and everyone is welcome to participate. The fair will feature live music and food vendors such as Kathmandu Kitchen, Pachamama Coffee Cooperative, Purros Churros and Thai Recipes. The crafts fair is usually held once a month. The December fair will be on Dec. 16. — Claire Tan ...
Read More →UC Davis Book Club
This winter will mark the first full year of the UC Davis Book Club, a group that offers a setting in which to enjoy both new and classic literature — The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The Unbearable Lightness of Being have been among their diverse choices — in a relaxed and pressure-less environment. The club, founded in early 2012 by third-year environmental science and management major Alyssa Obester and third-year biological sciences major Annelise Olivero, aims to provide an enjoyable alternative. Once every month, members gather for a short meeting to casually discuss the book they’ve read and vote to determine what the next one will be. All members, even newcomers, may bring book suggestions, and all the possible choices are written on a board. After weighing the options and looking over synopses as a group, the final choice is selected through a vote. This past month’s winner was the The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, a best-selling novel that has been compared favorably to the works of... ...
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