UO E-clips, Sept. 17

UO arena project faces a new obstacle (The Oregonian): Berkeley had its tree-sitters, who protested construction of a complex for California's sports teams. Now, Eugene has a potential alley-sitter. But it's not clear whether his fight to save McArthur Court will have an impact. Jonathan Bowers, a 33-year-old fifth-year senior who majors in journalism at Oregon, appealed the Eugene City Council's decision to vacate and sell to the university an alley and a street parcel needed for its basketball arena project. Bowers, who filed the appeal earlier this month, says his ultimate goal is to preserve McArthur Court as Oregon's arena.

Behind bad baby milk, an ethical gap in China's business (Christian Science Monitor): Beijing - As Chinese officials warned Tuesday that contaminated milk powder may have sickened more than the 1,200 babies already identified, the scandal revealed more than a recurrent regulatory problem, Chinese and foreign experts suggested. Rather, they said, it pointed to a deeper malaise in Chinese society where private profit often trumps the public good as the country races to create a market economy that has outstripped government regulators. … Skeptics are not convinced by such moves. "Central regulatory reform is only part of the problem," argues Richard Suttmeier, a University of Oregon expert on Chinese product safety. "There is nothing you can snap your fingers at and solve."

IMLS awards $18.2 mil. to libraries, others -- The Library Journal (New York) (The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded national leadership grants totaling $18.2 million to libraries, library schools, museums, and other cultural institutions. In almost all cases, recipients are responsible for raising additional funds. … The University of Oregon Libraries, Eugene, and other members of the Orbis Cascade Alliance were awarded $38,844 (matching amount $21,094) to continue the planning process for a 31-member archives consortium. Academic libraries in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington are the beneficiaries.)

Researchers track cool-water habits of Willamette fish (The Oregonian): HARRISBURG -- The research boat chugs down a side alcove in the Willamette River, wires dangling into the water from long poles jutting off its bow. Suddenly, a flash in the water. Josh Williams, an Oregon State University student positioned at the bow, jabs a long-handled net into the depths and pulls up a glistening cutthroat trout. The trout, briefly stunned by an electrical charge from the wires, is an unwitting participant in a research project that may change the shape of the Willamette River in years to come. The fish, about as long as your forearm, has a tiny monitor in its belly that tracks the temperature of the water where it dwells. Researchers led by Stan Gregory, an OSU professor, are using the fish to test their suspicion that unassuming side channels in the river are critical cold water refuges for fish, especially in the heat of the summer. If the suspicion holds true -- and data from the fish suggest it is -- cities and others that pour warm wastewater into the river may be able to make up for their impacts by restoring such areas. … (The project is to) serve as a guide to sites on the river where restoration of channels and underground flow will provide the greatest value. The Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board also provided $450,000 to Gregory and colleague David Hulse of the University of Oregon to map the cool-water refuges.