USC in the News 10/16/2009

The New York Times, in a widely carried Associated Press story, highlighted USC's participation in the Great California ShakeOut, a statewide earthquake drill that included nearly 7 million registered participants. USC's Health Sciences Campus staged a mass casualty drill with mock victims, the story noted. "People really do learn things by doing that they can't plan for by just thinking," Mark Benthien of the USC College and the Southern California Earthquake Center at USC told The Desert Sun. The event "is picking up some momentum and more people are becoming aware of it," Benthien said in the North County Times. The triage drill at USC was also covered by China Central Television (China), ABC News Los Angeles affiliate KABC-TV, Fox News Los Angeles affiliate KTTV-TV, CityNews Service, KCRW-FM, the Daily Breeze, the Ventura County Star and La Opinion.

Telegraph (U.K.) cited research by Nathanael Fast of the USC Marshall School and colleagues which found that bosses who don't feel like they can handle their jobs are more likely to bully their subordinates. "When people in high-power positions feel incompetent they tend to respond with aggression toward others because it makes them feel superior," Fast told The Orange County Star. The Sault Star also cited the research.

BusinessWeek quoted Warren Bennis of the USC Marshall School about Michael S. Dell, the founder and CEO of the computer company Dell. "He's got tremendous challenges ahead of him, because he's in an industry that itself is undergoing rapid, sweeping change," Bennis said.

Associated Press reported that a chemical spill at a building on the University Park campus was small and not hazardous.

Associated Press reported that USC football player Stafon Johnson, who was injured in a weightlifting accident, made a surprise appearance at a USC football team meeting yesterday.

The State Journal-Register ran an op-ed by Richard Reeves of the USC Annenberg School on President Obama being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. "The prize, one hopes, will give American moral standing a boost after revelations of torture and such in recent years," Reeves wrote. "Ironically, though, it will probably increase the xenophobia of the American right. Mouthy conservatives are going to see this as proof that Obama is not one of 'us.' They're going to say he's one of 'them' -- them being most anyone who does not speak English as a first language and some who do."

The Press-Enterprise stated that USC has expressed interest in operating the Western Sustainability Institute, an international organization aimed at promoting energy and water conservation.

Long Beach Press-Telegram featured Jason Robert Brown of the USC School of Theatre and his musical "Songs for a New World," which is debuting tonight at the Center Theater in Long Beach. "I think there's a journey to the piece, and at times that journey gets dark, but I think that it's ultimately a very positive show," Brown said. "It's very much a piece about people trying to find their way on their own initially, and, ultimately, together. I think it posits that everything's sort of impossible by yourself, but it's marginally doable if you band together."

La Opinion reported that USC and Edison International are co-sponsoring a science competition, in which students submit projects devoted to solving energy and environmental problems. Winning teams will earn trips to USC's Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island and Southern California Edison's Big Creek Hydroelectric facility in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Capitol Weekly cited Dan Schnur of the USC College in a column about Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger refusing to sign hundreds of bills in a bid to convince legislators to resolve several outstanding issues.