HEARTY HEROICS: Greg Hoeger, captain and assistant fire marshall at UC Davis, found himself in the right place at the right time Nov. 11 in Berkeley. Dining at Spenger's Fish Grotto, Hoeger, there with his family, rose to the occasion when a nearby diner, Liselle Clark, suddenly passed out with her heart appearing to stop. Hoeger quickly administered CPR, getting her heart rate up. Eventually, the paramedics arrived and she was taken to a hospital where she recovered fully. Her husband, Walt Clark, later described Hoeger as "the one man who did not hesitate to react. The one man who took charge and helped save my wife's life." As for Hoeger, he described it as an "opportunity of a lifetime" to put into practice his 27 years of training. "It all came together at that moment, and my daughter still talks about it." ...

MAGIC BUS: In the next couple weeks the city of Davis will test a new, modern two-story bus with increased seating capacity, the Enviro500 or "Deuce." Unitrans will give one of these buses a real, operational test drive from Jan. 17 to 27. Check www.unitrans.com or call 752-BUSS for the latest information on when and where the bus will be running on campus and around town. ...

TWO-FOR-ONE: Alum Dan Hawkins is the new head football coach at the University of Colorado after a successful stint at Boise State. He faces the challenge of renewing the scandal-plagued CU football program. Hawkins, who played and began his coaching career at UC Davis, may bring something extra special to CU — his son Cody Hawkins, an elite quarterback prospect now finishing high school. Hawkins replaces Gary Barnett in a football program that has not seen a winning season since the early 1990s. Hawkins' replacement at Boise State, Chris Petersen, is also a UC Davis alum. ...

DNA TESTS: Mary Lynn Christian of Lovettsville, Va., turned to the UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Lab when she found her cat, Cody, dead and mangled. She suspected a new neighborhood dog, Lucky. The lab reported a DNA match with Lucky, which is one in 67 million likelihood. Christian wanted Lucky declared dangerous, but county officials said the DNA match is not enough, according to the NBC Today Show. ...

CHANGING NAMES: The Davis City Council voted unanimously last week to remove a California pioneer's name from a city street because of concerns about his treatment of American Indians in the 19th century. Some in Davis had complained that the name of John Augustus Sutter — who had mistreated Native Americans, according to historians — was not an appropriate street name. The council changed the name of Sutter Place to David Risling Jr. Court, in honor of a former professor of Native American studies at UC Davis who died last year. Jack Forbes, professor emeritus of Native American studies at UC Davis, was among those who lobbied for the change. ...

SUDDEN LOSS: Steve Cassal, a University Writing Program lecturer at UC Davis, passed away of a heart attack on Dec. 21, 2005. His death came as a shock since only the day before, Cassal, 52, had been on campus submitting fall quarter grades. Donald Johns, lecturer for the UWP, told the California Aggie, "It was a great loss for future students, a devastating blow, and it was especially hard for those of us who didn't check our e-mails over break. He could have succeeded in a number of fields, but he chose teaching and academia, which can be a highly competitive area. Even still, he was always a complete professional." In 2000, Cassal, who got his doctorate in English at UC Davis, won the teaching award for outstanding graduate students. ...

ARTFUL SUBJECTS: San Francisco artist and long-time UC Davis faculty member Gyongy Laky has a new exhibition, The Difficult Subjects of W: War-Waste-Want-Women, on display in the Nelson Gallery's Project Room through March 19. Laky has long been a national leader in the incorporation of natural and found materials in sculpture.