Tomorrow is the deadline

From UCnet: Colleagues:

Respiratory virus season is approaching. If you haven’t yet received your flu vaccine, please remember that all covered students, faculty, other academic appointees, and staff are required to get vaccinated against influenza or opt out using a form supplied by their location. President Drake has extended the compliance deadline from Nov. 1, 2024, to no later than Dec. 1, 2024. (Individual UC locations may choose to enforce an earlier deadline.)

If you are planning to travel over the Thanksgiving holiday or winter break, keep in mind that it takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies that protect against flu to develop in the body. We also strongly encourage everyone who is eligible to get a COVID-19 booster vaccine in the coming weeks. For questions about vaccine policy at your location, contact your health care facilitator. 

For general questions or comments regarding the UC Policy on Vaccination Programs, contact vaccinepolicycomments@ucop.edu. 

Michael V. Drake, M.D., UC President

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Source: https://ucnet.universityofcalifornia.edu/employee-news/from-president-drake-uc-students-faculty-and-staff-are-required-to-get-a-flu-vaccine/.

Watch the Morning Regents Meeting of Nov. 13, 2024

We are belatedly finishing our coverage of the Nov. 12-14 meetings of the UC Regents. (Almost finishing; we have yet to cover the afternoon of Nov. 13.) As blog readers will know, we have already covered Nov. 12 and Nov. 14. It just takes time to review the recordings.

The meeting opened with public comments. Comments were received from various unions at UC concerning the upcoming hike in the cost of health insurance. There was also a series of anti-Israel comments focusing on divestments. In some cases, the calls focused on military divestment or, more generally, ethical investment. There were also complaints about campus antisemitism. Other topics included nonunion staff pay, basic needs of students, opposition to a proposed increase in tuition for non-California students, and concerns about undocumented students. One comment that was phoned in was largely unintelligible.

After public comments, there were statements by Regent Chair Reilly, President Drake, and faculty representative Cheung. All referred to the recent election and the potential challenges UC would face as a result. Drake also noted the budgetary challenges facing UC. And Cheung took note of the increase in health insurance costs. 

Regent Pérez - who has been one of the more influential Regents - announced that the November meetings would be his last. As we noted in an earlier post, the governor recently nominated a new Regent.

At Finance and Capital Strategies the main items of concern were increased costs of upgrading UCLA's cogeneration plant. Regent Makarechian pointed to what appeared to be a guaranteed price from the contractor. He asked what it means to have a guarantee if the price can be raised. UCLA blamed the cost increases on a delay of one year caused by the SCAQMD regarding smog standards. Makarechian insisted that such increases would not occur in private sector contracting. Regent Pérez indicated that if UCLA had come to the Regents with its SCAQMD problem, various members would have been able to help expedite the project. 

There was a series of reports related to UC's proposed capital and regular budget. Under the terms of the so-called compact with the state, UC didn't get the cut that had been proposed for the current year but now faces a bigger cuts in the coming fiscal year. To deal with the upcoming cut, the proposal is to charge out-of-state students who are newly enrolled higher tuition. 

Other issues: It was noted that UC seismic standards are higher than state standards. But sometimes, when leased space is needed in an area, there are no buildings that meet the UC standards even though they do meet the state's requirements. In such cases - the reference was to health facilities in particular - exceptions are allowed.

Finally, there was an actuarial review of the pension plan, which is 84.7% funded on a market basis but 82.5% on an actuarial basis (which involves 5-year smoothing). The health plan, which is not prefunded, nonetheless requires an actuarial assessment. Both plans each have an unfunded liability of around $20 billion. If all assumptions continue, the pension would be fully funded in 17 years.

Academic and Student Affairs featured a discussion of AI with examples of its use in agriculture, wildfires, and protection of infrastructure from cyber attacks. The meeting concluded with a review of UC diversity with regard to students, largely measured by progress in graduation rates.

As always, we preserve recordings of the Regents since they have no policy on retention. The general link for the morning of Nov. 13, 2024 is at https://archive.org/details/regents-academic-and-student-affairs-11-13-2024.

The board meeting with public comments is at:

https://ia801905.us.archive.org/25/items/regents-academic-and-student-affairs-11-13-2024/Regents-Board%2011-13-2024.mp4.

Finance and Capital Strategies is at:

https://ia601905.us.archive.org/25/items/regents-academic-and-student-affairs-11-13-2024/Regents-Academic%20and%20Student%20Affairs%2011-13-2024.mp4.

Academic and Student Affairs is at:

https://ia601905.us.archive.org/25/items/regents-academic-and-student-affairs-11-13-2024/Regents-Academic%20and%20Student%20Affairs%2011-13-2024.mp4.

Making the List

From UCLA Newsroom: Thirty-eight UCLA faculty members and researchers have been named among the world’s most influential scholars in the sciences and social sciences. The annual Highly Cited Researchers list, compiled by the international data and analytics firm Clarivate, identifies scholars whose work has been cited most often in papers published by other researchers in their fields over the past decade. Those chosen for the 2024 list have authored multiple studies that rank in the top 1% in the number of scholarly citations worldwide.

“We celebrate these Highly Cited Researchers whose exceptional and community-wide influence shapes the future of science, technology and academia globally,” said Bar Veinstein, president of academia and government at Clarivate. “We honor not just their scientific achievement but their impact on driving innovation and addressing wider societal challenges to help transform our world.” ...

Current UCLA researchers named to the 2024 list, along with their primary field or fields of study, are:

Nasim Annabi, chemical and biomolecular engineering

Aditya Bardia, medicine

Matthew Budoff, medicine

Jun Chen, bioengineering

Timothy Cloughesy, medicine

Giovanni Coppola, psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences

Michelle Craske, psychology

Xiangfeng Duan, inorganic chemistry

Bruce Dunn, materials science and engineering

David Eisenberg, biochemistry

Richard Finn, medicine

Gregg Fonarow, medicine

Edward Garon, medicine

Daniel Geschwind, neurology

Jonathan Goldman, medicine

Sander Greenland, statistics and epidemiology

Ron Hays, health policy and management

Steve Horvath, biostatistics and human genetics

Elaine Hsiao, integrative biology

Yu Huang, materials science and engineering

Riki Kawaguchi, neuroscience

Baljit Khakh, physiology and neurobiology

Yuzhang Li, chemical and biomolecular engineering

Aldons Lusis, medicine

Carol Mangione, medicine

Emeran Mayer, neurobiology

Ilan Meyer, law

Bengt Muthen, education

Aydogan Ozcan, electrical engineering

Mason Porter, mathematics

Antoni Ribas, medicine 

Yair Rivenson, electrical and computer engineering

Lawren Sack, ecology and evolutionary biology

Michael Sofroniew, neurobiology

Marc Suchard, human genetics

Tommaso Treu, physics and astronomy

Zev Wainberg, medicine

Yang Yang, materials science and engineering

---

Full release at https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/2024-ucla-scholars-most-highly-cited-researchers-in-world.

Scandal Grows

On and off in this blog, we have referred to the scandal and controversy at the Harvard Business School regarding seemingly-fake behavioral results of one academic. The Atlantic carries a story dated Nov. 19 that suggests the scandal runs deeper, and covers more individuals and institutions. You can find it at:

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/01/business-school-fraud-research/680669/

If you can't get access through that link, let yours truly know. But here is an excerpt from the beginning of the article that gives the flavor:

...Business-school psychologists are scholars, but they aren’t shooting for a Nobel Prize. Their research doesn’t typically aim to solve a social problem; it won’t be curing anyone’s disease. It doesn’t even seem to have much influence on business practices, and it certainly hasn’t shaped the nation’s commerce. Still, its flashy findings come with clear rewards: consulting gigs and speakers’ fees, not to mention lavish academic incomes. Starting salaries at business schools can be $240,000 a year—double what they are at campus psychology departments, academics told me.

The research scandal that has engulfed this field goes far beyond the replication crisis that has plagued psychology and other disciplines in recent years. Long-standing flaws in how scientific work is done—including insufficient sample sizes and the sloppy application of statistics—have left large segments of the research literature in doubt. Many avenues of study once deemed promising turned out to be dead ends. But it’s one thing to understand that scientists have been cutting corners. It’s quite another to suspect that they’ve been creating their results from scratch... 

Of course, publish-or-perish has long been around as an academic incentive plan. The idea that it's not just publishing that is the way to succeed, but also publishing what the author terms "flashy findings" is the route to reward, isn't new either. What is new, or at least newer, is that academia is facing political and social critiques that it seems ill-eqipped to deal with. Scandals of this type don't help.

Nostalgia Isn't What It Used to Be

Yours truly was searching for notable thank-yous and looked deep into the past - 2010 - to find the final thank-you ad from Meg Whitman - remember her? - after she lost to Jerry Brown. Imagine what the thank-you would have been had she won! Anyway, here it is:

Or direct to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQmi2FYlKhI.

Happy Thanksgiving. And thanks for reading. And apart from reading, you can listen below:

Or direct to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22R_Qir7k8o.

Not a Good Way to End the Fall Quarter

UCLA is already under a temporary injunction for the fall related to last spring's events. There is still pending an investigation by the Dept. of Education. Now comes this from Ha'Am:

On Monday, Bella Brannon, Editor-In-Chief of Ha’Am, filed a Petition for Consideration with the Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC) Judicial Board, alleging that the Cultural Affairs Commissioner discriminated against Jewish students during the Fall hiring process for staff positions. The petition claims that Alicia Verdugo, the current Cultural Affairs Commissioner, rejected all applicants who identified themselves as Jewish based on their presumed association with Zionism, even though their applications did not mention Zionism or Israel.

According to evidence filed in the petition’s appendix, Cultural Affairs Commissioner Alicia Verdugo directed their subordinates to “please do your research when you look at applicants,” as “lots of zionists are applying.”* The evidence also illustrates that they informed their co-workers that they would “share a doc of no hire list during retreat.”  

The petition contends that every student who indicated their Jewish identity in their applications for Cultural Affairs Commissioner (CAC) staff was rejected. When asked, “What is an issue (social, political, etc.) that is relevant to you, and how would you like to address that through CAC?” one rejected applicant allegedly responded, “An issue that’s relevant to me is the right to express one’s religion because, as a Jewish student at UCLA, it is imperative that I have the right to express my identity.” When asked whether the applicant would be able to attend the staff retreat, another rejected student responded by explaining “I keep Shabbat, so would need to follow Jewish observance.” 

Alleged documents regarding the CAC’s hiring policies detailed: “We reserve the right to remove any staff member who dispels antiBlackness, colorism, racism, white supremacy, zionism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, misogyny, ableism, and any/all other hateful/bigoted ideologies.” Notably, antisemitism is not mentioned.

While most of the listed “isms” in the policy describe forms of discrimination, Zionism differs as it represents a political movement affirming the Jewish people’s right to self-determination in their ancestral homeland. None of the rejected  Jewish applicants explicitly identified themselves as Zionists, mentioned Israel, or expressed any particular views related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in their applications. 

The petition argues that none of the students accepted to CAC during the Fall 2024 hiring discussed Judaism in their application, implying that every student who openly expressed their Judaism was denied. This pattern raises serious concerns about the CAC Commissioner Verdugo discriminating against Jews under the guise of Anti-Zionism. Eighty percent of American Jews indicate, according to PEW Research, that “caring about Israel is an important or essential part of what being Jewish means to them,” so discrimination against Zionists still raises serious concerns, especially when it is institutionalized as a hiring policy. 

The Petition for Consideration highlights these concerns, arguing that: “By rejecting Jewish applicants and citing Zionism as a disqualifying factor, despite the applicants never explicitly referencing Zionism or their relationship to the State of Israel in their applications, Alicia Verdugo demonstrates their conflation of Judaism with Zionism. In doing so, they have intentionally created a correlation between Jewish and Zionist identities to systematically discriminate against Jews, a correlation they imposed, even though many Jewish individuals naturally consider Zionism an intrinsic part of their identity. ”

On October 9, 2023, two days after Hamas invaded Israel, murdered 1,400 civilians, and took 250 hostages, the CAC released a statement expressing that they “honor the Palestinians on the frontlines taking their land and sovereignty back!” The statement also read: “Palestinians should be recognized for their care for the oppressed, and not levied with accusations that conflate the political ideology of zionism with Judaism… Judaism is separate from the political movement of Zionism. Establishing this distinction is important to the safety of Jewish and Palestinian individuals alike.” 

In their statement, CAC purports to distinguish between Judaism and Zionism, yet they cited Zionism as a disqualifying factor for employment, simultaneously rejecting all openly Jewish applicants. When asked to respond to the allegations, Verdugo shared the following statement: “The Cultural Affairs Commission (CAC) is an organization that has historically, and continuously, stood with marginalized and vulnerable populations. As such we do not tolerate or endorse hateful rhetoric or actions of any kind from the world, the university, and especially our staff members. As CAC aims to continue being an organization that fights for the protections and inclusion of marginalized, we will continue to hold our staff to a standard that puts the safety and needs of the communities we serve first.” Verdugo did not respond to follow-up questions, including: “Zionism is included in the alleged list of ‘bigoted and hateful ideologies.’ Can you please provide the CAC’s position on why Zionism is included in the list?” and “Do you consider Jewish students to be a group you serve to uplift?” 

USAC President Adam Tfayli did not respond to our request for comment...

Full story at https://haam.org/evidence-suggests-jewish-students-denied-from-cultural-affairs-judicial-board-petition-claims/.

The allegations if proved would be violations of federal and state law. Although the university takes the position that student government and the entities it supports are separate and independent, the university grants them recognition and collects student fees for them. It would be best if UCLA dealt with its problem now before the incoming chancellor takes office, rather than leaving the problem to him. And it would be better to deal with the matter internally before external authority is invoked.

===

*Call for destruction of Israel by woman at encampment identified as Alicia Verdugo: 

https://ia600408.us.archive.org/27/items/newsom-4-3-24-snow-survey/UCLA%20USAC%20Cultural%20Affairs%20TV%20statement%20at%20encampment.mp4.

NIH Pick

Of special interest to colleagues in the medical and public health fields:

From the NY Times: President-elect Donald J. Trump said on Tuesday evening that he had selected Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford physician and economist whose authorship of an anti-lockdown treatise during the coronavirus pandemic made him a central figure in a bitter public health debate, to be the director of the National Institutes of Health... 

If confirmed by the Senate, Dr. Bhattacharya would lead the world’s premier medical research agency, with a $48 billion budget and 27 separate institutes and centers, each with its own research agenda, focusing on different diseases like cancer and diabetes. Dr. Bhattacharya, who is not a practicing physician, has called for overhauling the N.I.H. and limiting the power of civil servants who, he believes, played too prominent a role in shaping federal policy during the pandemic.

Dr. Bhattacharya is one of three lead authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, a manifesto issued in 2020 that contended that the virus should be allowed to spread among young healthy people who were “at minimal risk of death” and could thus develop natural immunity, while prevention efforts were targeted to older people and the vulnerable...

More recently, amid widespread recognition of the economic and mental health harms caused by lockdowns and school closures, Dr. Bhattacharya’s views have been getting a second look, to the consternation of his critics, who have accused those entertaining his ideas of “sane-washing” him. Perhaps the most notable reflection has come from Dr. Francis Collins, the former director of the National Institutes of Health. In 2020, Dr. Collins called Dr. Bhattacharya and his co-authors “fringe epidemiologists.” Last year, Dr. Collins suggested that he and other policymakers might have been too narrowly focused on public health goals — saving lives at any cost — and not attuned enough to balancing health needs with economic ones...

Last month, Dr. Bhattacharya hosted a forum on pandemic policy at Stanford, saying he had hoped to bring together people of different views who would “talk to each other in a civil way.” But the forum itself became the target of attacks — a development that Stanford’s president, Jonathan Levin, called “dispiriting.” ...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/26/us/politics/jay-bhattacharya-nih-trump.html.

Help Wanted - Regental Style

SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON THE SELECTION OF A PRESIDENT AND BOARD OF REGENTS (CLOSED SESSION)

November 14, 2024

TO THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA: CONSIDERATION OF MATTERS PERTAINING TO PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH CRITERIA AND POTENTIAL APPLICANTS

Board vote: Regents Anguiano, Batchlor, Beharry, Chu, Cohen, Elliott, Hernandez, Kounalakis, Leib, Makarechian, Pérez, Reilly, Robinson, Salazar, Sarris, and Sures voting “aye.” 

=====

CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY

The University of California, the nation’s preeminent public research university, seeks an exceptional and visionary leader with a commitment to public higher education to be its 22nd President. The President will provide leadership for the University’s ten campuses, six medical centers, three affiliated national laboratories, and statewide agriculture and natural resources program. The UC system comprises 295,500 students, 25,400 faculty, 173,300 staff, 2.6 million alumni, and an operating budget of $51.4 billion.

The following criteria for the role of the President of the University have been established based upon broad consultation with advisory groups of faculty, students, staff, and alumni. While a candidate may not be able to demonstrate excellence in all of these areas, a successful applicant is likely to meet many of these standard attributes. Although a terminal degree and exceptional academic administrative experience are preferred, the Board of Regents also welcomes and encourages candidates who have achieved noteworthy success in their respective fields outside higher education.

Academic Excellence

 Knowledge of the academic enterprise. Possesses understanding of and appreciation for the University; its distinctive culture of shared governance; its teaching, research and public service mission; and the context of the student body.

 A commitment to the recruitment and retention of exceptional faculty, as well as senior management personnel committed to professional development, employee engagement, equitable compensation, and making the University an employer of choice.

 A commitment to engaging faculty, students, and represented and policy-covered staff when formulating plans to understand their unique challenges and needs through dedicated meetings and other forums.

 Capacity to engage with health system leaders to mitigate risk, leverage UC’s impactful health sciences enterprise, and take advantage of opportunities in the rapidly changing healthcare environment while balancing the clinical and medical education missions.

 Familiarity with an academic health system, national research laboratories, and/or other entities similar to those housed in UC.

 Experience with the strategic investment of resources in emerging fields where the University of California may demonstrate and leverage its intellectual dynamism for the benefit of the State, the nation, and the world.

Leadership

 An inspirational and visionary leader with passion and the ability to effectively communicate the value of the University to the State, inspiring stakeholders to be committed to sustaining and growing the University’s excellence; a proven ability to deliver impactful presentations to diverse audiences, including the press, government officials, other key stakeholders, and the public at large. 

 A forward-thinking leader who has the ability to articulate a clear vision and rally the University community under a shared mission, inspiring confidence and trust with both internal stakeholders and external partners, allowing facilitation in strategic planning within the changing state, nation, and global landscape.

 Ability to manage the various components of UC’s mission – education, research, and public service – when making decisions and aligning resources, policies, and initiatives with the university’s strategic goals, ensuring that UC remains a leader in addressing societal challenges.

 Ability to demonstrate resilience in the face of the pressures of overseeing one of the largest public research university systems; capacity to effectively identify and/or manage and mitigate crises and controversies and make tough decisions in times of crisis while ensuring collaboration and maintaining trust.

 Ability to lead UC’s efforts to address issues critical to its stakeholders by capitalizing upon its myriad strengths while appreciating and respecting the unique histories, challenges, and opportunities of each campus and UC location (e.g., engaging with academic, community, and legislative leaders in developing climate action solutions and addressing technological changes in higher education such as remote learning, adoption of digital systems and artificial intelligence tools, and system-wide cybersecurity).

 Deep understanding of the social, political, economic, business, and legal landscape within California, and the political acumen and experience to be an effective advocate and spokesperson for the University with the Governor, state and federal leaders, and the public.

 Ability to successfully advocate for public funding and secure the financial resources from both private and public sources that are necessary to support and enhance the University’s impact and ensure that an accessible and affordable education is available to qualified California students.

 A bold and collaborative leadership style that reflects humility, compassion, and thoughtfulness, and the ability to work well as part of a team.

 An adaptive and collegial leadership approach that will leverage UC’s system of shared governance and a demonstrated track record of consulting with multiple constituencies in developing plans and proposals and managing progress toward achieving agreed upon goals.

 Ability to promote a sense of belonging within the University community and a demonstrated, measurable track record of advocacy for and advancement of diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion.

 A commitment to leading a university that serves the diverse population of California and protects free speech and academic freedom while fostering an inclusive and safe environment.

 Commitment to taking a proactive stance on issues of power and inequality, ensuring that policies and practices promote social justice and equity across the University system and speak to all; the ability to be a champion for marginalized voices and a leader who can address systemic issues within the institution.

 Experience working with large Boards as a thought partner and innovator, while respecting the fiduciary responsibility of the Board for the institution and prioritizing the ethical responsibility of the University of California as a public institution.

 Experience with sustainability practices and the ability to provide informed and decisive leadership to meet or surpass UC’s ambitious sustainability goals across all areas of university operations, including the elimination of greenhouse gas emissions systemwide by 2045.

Management

 Experience leading large, complex institutions in either academia, industry, government, and/or the public, non-profit sector.

 Demonstrated experience in designing and implementing effective, large-scale organizational systems, with a focus on streamlining processes, fostering collaboration, and promoting adaptability in complex environments.

 Experience working with diverse teams to manage positive and productive organizational change within a large, complex, and dynamic environment where success is achieved in partnership and collaboration with students, faculty, and staff rather than solely through direct authority.

 The ability to manage competing demands and make difficult decisions to ensure a stable university infrastructure.

 Broad management and executive experience, understanding of complex budgets, and the skills to manage and allocate resources effectively. Experience leading institutions through economic challenges under conditions of fiscal constraint and uncertainty.

 Demonstrated capacity to partner effectively within a multi-campus and organizationally diverse university system and serve as an effective spokesperson for the university across stakeholder groups (alumni, faculty, governor, legislature, public, staff, and students).

 A proven history of developing high-performing teams and cultivating environments with a shared sense of mission and culture that encourages entrepreneurism, inclusion, transparency, belonging, excellence, and collaboration.

 Experience working with organized labor and policy-covered employees, with a history of fostering positive labor-management relations, and a commitment to successful collective bargaining and equitable workforce policies.

 Ability to ensure compliance with laws, regulations, policy, and ethical principles and to serve as guardian of the public trust.

 Commitment and demonstrated experience fostering a positive workplace and campus climate that reflects the values of the University.

 The capacity to enhance the University of California’s current organizational structure in a manner that creates a cohesive and well-integrated system that prominently champions the contributions and strengths of each individual component institution, leveraging their collective resources to heighten the system’s reputation and impact and promote a compelling vision for the future.

Personal Characteristics

 A commanding presence and strong interpersonal skills with exceptional listening and negotiation skills applied across a broad spectrum of constituents and stakeholders including students, faculty, staff, unions, alumni, state and federal government officials and legislators, business leaders, and other higher education leaders, both in California and nationally.

 Inspiring, visionary, and collaborative leader who can influence others to achieve common goals by engaging and developing robust relationships with stakeholders and maintaining a visible and active presence across UC locations, throughout California, and nationally.

 A genuine passion for and recognition of students and their centrality to the University’s mission and a dedication to the University of California’s commitment to educational access, affordable education, and student/alumni success.

 Commitment to prioritizing the public service mission of the University.

 Commitment to academic freedom and expanding the frontiers of academic inquiry.

 An engaging leadership style that will activate the university’s 2.6 million alumni in diverse ways and uplift volunteerism, advocacy, and philanthropy for the benefit of the university and the state.

 Commitment to integrity, excellence, and transparency in all University affairs and to developing and enhancing public trust in the University and higher education.

 The capacity to assume a position of significant stature within the State of California, nationally, and globally as an effective thought leader in higher education and in addressing the grand challenges impacting society and humankind in changing and uncertain times.

 The ability to adapt to and lead, innovate, and strategize in a rapidly changing technological environment, recognizing the need to navigate the complexities of digital transformation and artificial intelligence in higher education. 

Source: https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/aar/novj.pdf.

Road Charging Electric Buses Coming to UCLA

Electric buses have been around for a long time, as the image here of "trackless trolleys" in Laurel Canyon illustrates. However, UCLA will be introducing a modern version in time for the 2028 Olympics. From the UCLA Newsroom:

UCLA Events and Transportation has received significant funding from the California State Transportation Agency’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program. A $19.85 million grant received in collaboration with CALSTART — a nonprofit dedicated to accelerating clean transportation — and wireless charging provider Electreon will enable UCLA’s BruinBus fleet to transition to 100% electric and expand service, and will fund California’s first in-road electric charging system, all in time for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“This transformative grant will significantly enhance our transportation network, providing a cleaner, more efficient BruinBus fleet that aligns with our commitment to sustainability and innovation,” said Tony Lucas, executive director of UCLA Events and Transportation, noting that reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing transportation access are key priorities.

BruinBus routes link major student residential neighborhoods, the Westwood Village commercial district, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, academic buildings and many other university facilities. BruinBus routes also connect passengers to seven other transit agencies. The grant will be used to expand UCLA’s current fleet of five all-electric buses and an all-electric passenger van by adding another eight all-electric buses.

In addition, funds will be used to build a new transit hub between the UCLA bus depot and the planned UCLA/Westwood station. This hub, set to open in 2028, will connect directly to L.A. Metro’s D Line light rail extension. The extension will bring riders within two-thirds of a mile from the UCLA campus and be the first-ever direct rail connection from downtown Los Angeles to Beverly Hills, Century City and Westwood.

“The new transit hub and extension will be a game-changer for connectivity in Westwood,” said Clinton Bench, director of UCLA Fleet and Transit. “It will make it easier for everyone to travel between UCLA and key destinations throughout Los Angeles, especially as the city prepares to host the Olympics, thereby fostering a more integrated and accessible urban landscape."

This grant will also support California’s first electric road system. Inductive charging coils will be installed below the road along transit routes on Charles E. Young Dr., roughly between the Westwood Plaza intersection and Murphy Hall, allowing for the wireless charging of electric passenger shuttles and heavy-duty buses while the vehicle drives. Additionally, static wireless charging will be deployed at passenger pick-up and drop-off locations and transit depots, including the new UCLA transit hub, to charge while vehicles are stopped. This mixed-use approach to wireless charging will allow UCLA to reap the environmental benefits of an expanded electrified fleet while minimizing vehicle downtime for charging and minimizing the size and weight of the vehicle’s battery.

“By integrating advanced charging technology into the UCLA transit system, we are setting a precedent for the entire state,” said Jared Schnader, CALSTART senior director and bus initiative lead. “If adopted widely, this innovation could revolutionize transit electrification, enhancing efficiency and sustainability across California’s transportation infrastructure."

Stefan Tongur, Electreon’s vice president of business development, said this project follows the successful deployment of the nation’s first public EV-charging roadway in Detroit, Michigan, which launched in November 2023.

“The world needs innovative, scalable solutions with transformative impact to advance electrification, and this project demonstrates California's commitment to a more sustainable, efficient and accessible future,” Tongur said. “Electreon is proud to be working with UCLA and CALSTART to bring our advanced EV charging technology to the region’s transit system, ushering in an increasingly electric future for all.”

Source: https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/ucla-receives-nearly-20-million-for-electric-transit-projects.

Cautionary Guidance

"Approaching Storm"
Grant Wood (1940)

From Inside Higher Ed today: At least three universities have encouraged their international students and employees to come back from the winter holiday break ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, due to concerns that he could use his first days in office to issue executive orders blocking them from returning.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Office of Global Affairs shared a holiday break travel advisory—noting that it was not a requirement or official policy—recommending that such individuals return by Inauguration Day...

Other institutions, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Wesleyan University, sent similar notices to their international students... “The safest way to avoid difficulty re-entering the country is to be physically present in the U.S. on January 19th and the days thereafter of the spring semester,” wrote Wesleyan’s Office of International Student Affairs in an email last Monday...

Full story at:

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/global/international-students-us/2024/11/26/international-students-told-return-campus-jan-20.

Olympics

Excerpts from an email notice circulated by a north campus department:

As you know, the Olympics are coming to UCLA in Summer 2028! Our campus will be the location of the Olympic Athlete’s Village, Olympian residence, and training for the Olympics and Paralympics. While we are very excited to be part of LA28, we want to inform you well in advance of the anticipated impacts... from June 19 to September 16, 2028:

As of right now, there will be no programming, events, or classes on campus during this time, unless deemed absolutely critical...

All classes and programming should expect to move online, be rescheduled, relocated, or cancelled. We are already working with... groups that have summer programming to plan ahead for 2028.

All staff and faculty should expect to work remotely, as applicable.

There will be little to no parking on campus. Getting to campus may require getting to an offsite location and shuttling into campus.

There will be heightened security and screening for those entering campus...

There will be no access for ...faculty, staff or students to the following areas:

• Parking Structure 4, Parking Structure 7, and Parking Lot R
• Luskin, Pauley, Wilson Plaza, Carnesale, Sunset Canyon Rec, and all Housing Facilities.

...No doubt there will be many updates to these anticipated impacts over the next four years and we will keep you well informed of them...

Question

As blog readers will know, the Regents recently voted to raise tuition for non-California students. 

Here are two straws in the wind:

From the NY Times: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology announced on Wednesday that it would eliminate tuition costs next fall for all undergraduate students whose families earn less than $200,000 per year — following a national movement to try to make higher education more accessible. For students whose families earn less than $100,000 per year, the university will also cover all other costs, including housing, dining, fees and an allowance for books and personal expenses...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/21/us/mit-free-tuition.html.

From the Dallas Morning Herald: Students whose families make less than $100,000 annually will get free tuition and waived fees at any of the academic universities in the University of Texas System, the board of regents announced... The initiative is an expansion of the Promise Plus Program, a needs-based financial aid program approved by the board in 2022. The UT System expects that more than 7 million Texas families will meet the income requirements for the new program, officials said...

Full story at https://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/2024/11/20/a-game-changer-ut-system-announces-free-tuition-for-qualifying-texas-families/.

Question: With the competition cutting tuition - others are likely to follow MIT and the U of Texas - while UC raises tuition, what will be the consequences? Just wondering...

The FAFSA Drama Continues - Part 19 (it's just about out)

From the Washington Post: The Education Department on Thursday officially released the federal student aid application for the 2025-2026 academic year, ahead of schedule and after an extensive testing period to avoid another tumultuous rollout of the financial aid form.

Since the beginning of the week, the department quietly made the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as the FAFSA, available for all families to fill out during a final round of testing. The financial aid form traditionally goes live in October, but the department pushed the launch date to Dec. 1 to allow a small number of students to complete the application and identify any problems. Congress on Thursday approved legislation requiring the Education Department to release the financial aid form on Oct. 1 moving forward...

The Education Department is trying to redeem itself after the disastrous launch of the redesigned FAFSA this past December. Technical glitches, inaccurate calculations and bureaucratic delays prevented students from completing the form and receiving timely financial aid offers...

Full story at https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/11/21/fafsa-financial-aid-form-release/.

AI Hallucinations

UCLA Distinguished Professor Eugene Volokh reports on a seeming case of AI hallucinations, an issue increasingly becoming an issue in the writings of students and (gasp!) faculty:

From the Volokh Conspiracy: Minnesota recently enacted a law aimed at restricting misleading AI deepfakes aimed at influencing elections; the law is now being challenged on First Amendment grounds in Kohls v. Ellison. To support the law, the government defendants introduced an expert declaration, written by a scholar of AI and misinformation, who is the Faculty Director of the Stanford Internet Observatory. Here is ¶ 21 of the declaration:

[T]he difficulty in disbelieving deepfakes stems from the sophisticated technology used to create seamless and lifelike reproductions of a person's appearance and voice. One study found that even when individuals are informed about the existence of deepfakes, they may still struggle to distinguish between real and manipulated content. This challenge is exacerbated on social media platforms, where deepfakes can spread rapidly before they are identified and removed (Hwang et al., 2023).

The attached bibliography provides this cite:

Hwang, J., Zhang, X., & Wang, Y. (2023). The Influence of Deepfake Videos on Political Attitudes and Behavior. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 20(2), 165-182. https://doi.org/10.1080/19331681.2022.2151234

But the plaintiffs' memorandum in support of their motion to exclude the expert declaration alleges—apparently correctly—that this study "does not exist":

No article by the title exists. The publication exists, but the cited pages belong to unrelated articles. Likely, the study was a "hallucination" generated by an AI large language model like ChatGPT….

The "doi" url is supposed to be a "Digital Object Identifier," which academics use to provide permanent links to studies. Such links normally redirect users to the current location of the publication, but a DOI Foundation error page appears for this link: "DOI NOT FOUND." … The title of the alleged article, and even a snippet of it, does not appear on anywhere on the internet as indexed by Google and Bing, the most commonly-used search engines. Searching Google Scholar, a specialized search engine for academic papers and patent publications, reveals no articles matching the description of the citation authored by "Hwang" that includes the term "deepfake." …

This sort of citation—with a plausible-sounding title, alleged publication in a real journal, and fictitious "doi," is characteristic of an artificial intelligence "hallucination," which academic researchers have warned their colleagues about. See Goddard, J, Hallucinations in ChatGPT: A Cautionary Tale for Biomedical Researchers (2023) ….

I also checked the other cited sources in the declaration, and likewise couldn't find the following one, which was cited in ¶ 19:

De keersmaecker, J., & Roets, A. (2023). Deepfakes and the Illusion of Authenticity: Cognitive Processes Behind Misinformation Acceptance. Computers in Human  Behavior, 139, 107569. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.107569

Indeed, a cautionary tale for researchers about the illusion of authenticity (though an innocent mistake, I'm sure). I e-mailed the author of the declaration to get his side of the story; he got back to me to say that he will indeed have a statement in a few days, and I will of course be glad to update this post and likely post a follow-up when I receive that.

Source: https://reason.com/volokh/2024/11/19/apparent-ai-hallucinations-in-misinformation-experts-court-filing-supporting-anti-ai-misinformation-law/.

The matter is beginning to be picked up in other news sources, e.g., "Stanford professor paid $600/hr for expertise accused of using ChatGPT," SFGATE: https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/stanford-professor-lying-and-technology-19937258.php.

More Election Analysis

At the Marschak lecture last Tuesday, Professors Lynn Vavreck and Chris Tausanovitch discussed the outcome and meaning of the 2024 presidential election. There doesn't appear to be a recording available. But Vavreck's opening argument was that the era of "New Deal" style campaigning was over and that from now on there will be social/cultural campaigns. Yet she seemed to indicate that "economics" was (still) important - which was the essence of the New Deal.

My own sense of it was that while dismissing the outcome as just a fluke (Trump won in 2016 and 2024 and almost won in 2020) is a mistake, there is a broader sense of continuity. What the New Deal brought in was the notion that the federal government - in the person of the president - was important to the average person's welfare. That was not the case in the the 19th century when - except for the Civil War - the central government was much less important and much smaller. 

What was clearly a matter of the average person's welfare in 1932 was the collapse of the economy and mass unemployment. Roosevelt was especially good at communicating to the public that he was working on what was adverse to the general welfare - using radio, the new electronic medium of the day - even if he hadn't solved the problem, e.g., unemployment was still high in 1936 and even in 1940, when he won re-election. When the problem was looming war and then actual war he continued to win elections (1940, 1944).

Basically, voters want a sense that "things" are under control (or will be put under control) - with the specific things that matter varying as the world presents them. The economy is likely to rank high among those things, but what other aspects of the economy are important can vary. In the Great Depression, the thing - really the only thing - that mattered was unemployment. In 2024, it was that an uptick in the cost of living outpaced the nominal wage gains of many folks, even though the unemployment rate was relatively low. Trump was clearly better than Biden at presenting himself as the solution to things that seemed to be out of control - prices, wars, border, street crime, campus disturbances - using more contemporary social media as his communication mechanism. 

He promised to fix all of them without specifying how he would do so in many cases. But then so did Roosevelt in 1932; he promised just to work on the problem and to try alternative remedies until he succeeded. His incumbent opponent effectively said the problem would just go away if one were patient. That was not a winning message. Incumbent Hoover - shortly before the election - sent the Army in to attack the Bonus Marchers, a demonstration of World War I veterans who were camped out in Washington, DC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkmo4ygPTjc, The Army attacking veterans was not a normal situation. Things were out of control, a bad look for an incumbent.

It may be that in this understanding of the lesson of 2024, the question of social/cultural issues becomes one of diversion and framing. The TV ad to which folks pointed in the recent election was the Trump they/them-you spot. In the ad, while Trump is portrayed as favoring bigger paychecks, the announcer says "Kamala Harris is for they/them. President Trump is for you." Earlier in the ad, Harris is reported saying she favored transgender surgery for prisoners. So, what is the ad about really about? One interpretation is that it all about anti-transgenderism. But another interpretation is that it is a message that Harris is concerned with something other than what is important to you. And what is likely to be more important to median voters than what they earn?

Or direct to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xGBKdpY0rs.

Basically, the political challenge in an election is to convince enough voters that you are the solution to the problem they are then facing and your opponent isn't. Harris was the quasi-incumbent in 2024, which made it difficult for her to say she was the solution to a problem that cropped up during her term. Similarly, it was difficult for Trump in 2020 to say to voters that he was the solution to COVID and its effects when he was the incumbent. Absent COVID, Trump would probably have won in 2020 since the economy - both in terms of prices and unemployment - was doing well and it would have been difficult for Biden to make the case that things would be even better than they had been.

What all this means for higher education, public higher ed, and UC in particular remains to be seen. But in some sense, the political challenge is to make the case that higher ed, public higher ed, and UC are part of the solution. I know that some colleagues dislike the idea of higher ed as a path to an improved position in the labor market. But that is how the median voter sees it. Thus, issues such as tuition, student debt, and job outcomes have to be a major element in how the university represents itself. In some sense, the university is always the incumbent so if it seen as doing a poor job on those dimensions, it will run into difficulty. Doing a good job there, in contrast, is what allows the university to undertake basic research and research into areas that may not be of concern to the median voter, but may be of important value to society.

Updated Subway Construction Notices

 

Westwood/UCLA Station Construction 

Summary  

Metro contractors will continue construction activities for the future Westwood/UCLA Station within UCLA Lot 36. Activities may require temporary lane closures to access the Wilshire Bl deck panels. Work includes excavation, hauling, bracing i, lagging, station ventilation installation, and utility support. The SOE removal and concrete work will continue for a year. 

Concrete activities have started, and to reduce impacts to stakeholders, Metro contractors will implement temporary traffic closures. The restrictions impact westbound Wilshire Bl traffic lanes between Westwood Bl, and Veteran Av, the west leg crosswalk on Wilshire Bl and Gayley Av, and southbound right turn pockets would be restricted at Gayley Av/Wilshire Bl (dual right turns impacted), and Westwood Bl/Wilshire Bl.

Piling for the smaller two entrances for the UCLA Station is anticipated in early December, with construction work beginning on the northeast entrance (former Chase Bldg structure location). This work will continue through January 2025. Work will occur at night from 9pm to 6am and on continuous weekends, Friday to Monday. There will be a southbound directional closure on Westwood Bl between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl. Parking lot in this area will be maintained with a flagger. Vehicles coming southbound on Westwood Bl will be detoured to Gayley Av or Glendon Av. There will be no right turns available from Lindbrook Dr onto Westwood Bl to proceed southbound. The west leg crosswalk will be closed at Wilshire Bl and Westwood Bl, but three others will remain accessible. 

Date: Ongoing through Fall 2025 

Work Hours: Weekdays and Weekends 

5am to 4:00pm and 7:30pm to 5am 
 

Hauling: 6:30am to 5pm (See haul maps below.) 
 

Support of Excavation, Soil Nail Wall, Struts work, and Lowering of Structural steel  

Dates: Ongoing through January 2025 

Work Hours:  

Week: 9am to 3:30 pm and 7pm to 6am 

Weekends: 7am to 4:30pm and 7am to 4:30 am, and continuous weekends Friday to Monday. 

Temporary Traffic Control: Intermittent closures 

Phase 1- Weeknights, 9pm to 6am and continuously Friday to Monday from 9pm to 6am 

• The Westwood southbound lane and right turn pocket restricted between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl. 

• Two westbound Wilshire Bl lanes will be restricted between Glendon Av and Gayley Av 

• The west leg crosswalk on Wilshire Bl and Westwood Bl will be restricted.  

• One northbound lane on Gayley Av will be restricted from Wilshire Bl to Lindbrook Av. 

• The north leg crosswalk at Wilshire Bl and Gayley Av will be restricted. 

• The eastbound left turn pockets between at the intersection of Gayley Av and Wilshire Bl will be restricted.  

Phase 2- Weekdays, 7pm to 6am, Sunday, 7am to 4:30pm, and Friday to Monday continuously from 7pm to 6am 

• The Westwood southbound left turn pocket and one lane will be restricted between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl. 

• Three westbound Wilshire Bl lanes will be restricted between Glendon Av and Veteran Av. 

• A southbound Westwood Bl right turn pocket will be restricted between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl. 

• A southbound Gayley Av right turn pocket will be restricted between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl. 

Phase 3:  Weekdays, 9am to 3:30pm 

• Three westbound Wilshire Bl lanes will be restricted from Glendon Av to Veteran Av 

• A southbound right turn pocket at Westwood Bl between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl will be restricted. 

• A southbound right turn pocket at Gayley Av  betweem Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl will be restricted. 

Traffic Control:  9pm to 6am 

• Wilshire Bl will have intermittent lane reductions in both directions between Glendon Av and Veteran Av.  

• Left turns for Wilshire Bl may be closed at different times at Gayley Av, Westwood Bl, and Glendon Av.  

• Some intermittent crosswalk closures may be implemented. Three crosswalks will be open at each intersection at all times.  

• Gayley Av may have lane reductions between Lindbrook Dr and Ashton Av.  

• Westwood Bl may have lane reductions between Lindbrook Dr and Ashton Av.  

• Glendon Av may have lane reductions between Lindbrook Dr and Wilshire Bl. 

• Trucks will continue to use the driveways on Veteran Av and Wilshire Bl. Staging of trucks will occur inside the yard. The right turn pocket at Gayley Av and Wilshire Bl will be restricted, as well as the lane closest to the curb along Wilshire Bl between Gayley Av and Veteran Av. Hauling is expected between 9am and 3:30pm ongoing through November 2023. 

• Some intermittent sidewalk closures may be implemented in the work zones. The sidewalks on the north side and south side of Wilshire Bl will not be closed at the same time.  

Noteworthy  

• All work has received necessary permits and approvals.  

•  Access for pedestrians will be maintained outside of construction zones.  

•  Access for the Fire Department and emergency responders will be maintained.  

•  Parking restrictions will be implemented in the immediate area of the work zone.  

•  Construction is dynamic and schedules are subject to change.  

•  24/7 Hotline: 213-922-6934  

Wilshire Bl: Instrumentation Work  Summary  Contractors will continue installing instruments, maintaining equipment, and installing dewatering well risers to support construction of the Westwood/UCLA Station. This work will be done on Wilshire Bl between Veteran Av and Westwood Bl.  Date: Ongoing through Winter 2024 Work hours: Monday to Friday, 9pm to 6am   Traffic Control:   Eastbound Wilshire Bl  Eastbound Wilshire Bl lanes will be reduced between Westwood Bl and Veteran Avenue intermittently.  Both left turn pockets lanes may be closed intermittently for eastbound Wilshire Bl traffic at Westwood Bl and Gayley Av.  Crosswalks may be restricted. Access to three other crosswalks will be maintained at all times.  Westbound Wilshire Bl  Westbound Wilshire Bl lanes may be reduced intermittently between Westwood Bl and Veteran Av.   Westbound Wilshire Bl left turn pockets may be closed intermittently at Westwood Bl and Gayley Av.  Crosswalks may be restricted. Access to three other crosswalks will be maintained at all times.  Sidewalks may be restricted between Westwood Bl and Gayley Av intermittently.  Permanent sidewalk closed while work continues from Gayley Av to Veteran Av on the northside of the Wilshire Bl.  Southbound Gayley Av  Southbound Gayley Av lanes may be reduced intermittently.  There may be temporary restrictions for right turns from southbound Gayley Av to westbound Wilshire Bl.  If an intersection crosswalk is restricted, other nearby crosswalks will remain open for access.  Southbound & Northbound Westwood Bl  Southbound Westwood Bl lanes may be reduced intermittently.  Northbound Westwood Bl lanes may be reduced intermittingly.  There may be temporary restrictions for right turns from southbound Westwood Bl to westbound Wilshire Bl.  There may be temporary restrictions for right turns for northbound Westwood Bl to eastbound Wilshire Bl for traffic.    Crosswalks may be restricted. Access to three other crosswalks will be maintained at all times.  Noteworthy:  All work will receive the necessary permits and approvals.  Access to driveways, residences & businesses will always be maintained unless notified in advance.  Access for pedestrians will be maintained outside of construction zones.  Access for the Fire Department and emergency responders will be maintained.  Parking restrictions will be implemented in the immediate area of the work zone.  Construction is dynamic and schedules are subject to change.  24/7 Hotline: 213-922-6934