A UC Davis fire crew is working on the outskirts of Yosemite National Park today (Aug. 22), assigned to structure protection in the face of a forest fire that had grown to almost 54,000 acres.

The 5-day-old fire on the Stanislaus National Forest threatened some 2,500 structures around the town of Groveland on Highway 120. The campus firefighters are working in the Pine Mountain Lake subdivision, according to Nate Trauernicht, campus fire chief.

Trauernicht said the state called up the UC Davis crew late Wednesday afternoon (Aug. 21). Capt. Steve Dunn, engineer Cess Mercado and firtefighters Derek Carthy and Erich Schultz headed out in Cal EMA fire engine 364. UC Davis houses the state-owned engine and uses it in routine operations — until the state needs it. When that happens, UC Davis provides the crew.

The campus firefighters are part of a force that numbered almost 1,400 as of 8 a.m. today, battling a fire that was only 2 percent contained after jumping a fireline the day before. No cause had yet been determined for the fire that started Aug. 14.

The fire was burning in the Tuolumne River Canyon, and on the canyon's flanks. On the southern side, flames straddled Highway 120, the northern route in and out of Yosemite, about 100 miles southeast of Davis. Nine structures had burned.

We're still a 'Cool School': top 10 three years in a row

UC Davis is among the 10 “greenest” universities in the United States for the third year in row, as declared by the Sierra Club magazine.

Sierra has been publishing its “Coolest Schools” rankings for seven years, saluting institutions “that are helping to solve climate problems and making significant efforts to operate sustainably.”

UC Davis broke into the top 10 as No. 8 in 2011; claimed the “No. 1 Cool School” title last year; and came in at No. 4 this year.

This “agricultural-education powerhouse churns out research that helps shape California’s water laws and push new farming practices into the mainstream,” Sierra says of UC Davis in the 2013 “Coolest Schools” feature, in the magazine’s September-October issue.

UC Davis West Village is America's biggest planned zero-net-energy community, the magazine continues, and the university’s climate action plan has already cut campus emissions to below year-2000 levels.

Sierra also touts UC Davis’ recycling, composting and reuse, all of which combine to divert more than 60 percent of would-be trash from the landfill, “and the Aggies aim to lift that percentage to 100 by 2020.”

For the latest rankings, Sierra examined 162 academic institutions viewed as making a difference for the planet in all categories of “greenness,” from food sources for the dining halls and what’s being taught in the classrooms, to what’s powering the dorm rooms.

As for the last category, UC Davis is doing something so cool that it’s hot: Steam vapor formerly lost to the atmosphere will heat the Tercero 3 residence hall project (set to open next year).

Preorders due for poster calendars

Soon the 2012-13 campus poster calendar will run out of days, so now’s the time to order the new edition, folded or rolled.

Sold by UC Davis Stores, the calendars cost $1.59 each and are eligible for the 10 percent departmental purchase discount.

Folded calendars will be delivered for free. If you order rolled calendars, you can pay to have them delivered for $2.99 (for the shipping materials, per order), or you can pick them up at the Memorial Union store.

For the order form, if you didn’t already receive one, contact Sarah Brodberg by email: sabrodberg@ucdavis.edu.

When the calendars arrive from the printer, folded copies will be available for purchase at all stores on the Davis and Sacramento campuses, and rolled copies will be available at the Memorial Union store, while supplies last.

Questions? Contact Brodberg, (530) 752-5924 or sabrodberg@ucdavis.edu.

Road trip! Bloodmobiles on the way

The BloodSource bloodmobiles are taking another summer road trip to the Quad, for an ASUCD Blood and Marrow Drive, 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, Aug. 27 and 28.

Participants will receive $5 Togo’s cards and MyBloodSource rewards points (redeemable online for Baskin-Robbins coupons, movie tickets, T-shirts and more).

Remember to bring your photo ID, and drink plenty of fluids and eat something before donating.

For more information or to volunteer, contact Heather Sharp by phone, (916) 453-3046, or email, heather.sharp@bloodsource.org. 

Mini-Medical School in Spanish

The UC Davis Health System is taking sign-ups for its sixth annual Spanish Mini-Medical School.

It is the only program of its kind in the nation: a half-day school in Spanish, for middle-aged and older adults, and their caregivers, offering them the opportunity to learn about critical health issues and to discuss these topics with Spanish-speaking health care professionals.

“With the projected growth in the number of Latino seniors in California, it is vital that we develop innovative outreach programs that help to address health disparities,” said Ladson Hinton, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and interim director of the Latino Aging Research Resource Center.

This year’s program is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 7, at the MIND Institute, 2825 50th St., Sacramento.

The program includes:

• Sergio Aguilar-Gaxiola, clinical professor of internal medicine and director, UC Davis Center for Reducing Health Disparities — “Opportunities for Latinos to Obtain Health Insurance under the Affordable Care Act.”
• David Copenhaver, assistant professor and director, UC Davis Cancer Pain Program — “What is Pain? A Quick Check-In.”
• Lorena Garcia, assistant professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences and a researcher with the Latino Aging Research Resource Center — “Obesity and Diabetes: Latinos in the United States.”

The school is free and open to the public. Space is limited; registration can be arranged by telephone, (916) 734-5243, or on this Facebook page.

Sponsors: Alzheimer’s Disease Center, Center for Healthy Aging, Center for Reducing Health Disparities, and Clinical and Translational Science Center, all part of the health system; and Sunrise Senior Living, Primrose and Norwood Pines Alzheimer’s Care Center.

A click away

UC Davis Fire Department: See the video that debuted this week at Fire-Rescue International, the annual conference-expo of the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

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