In Brief

Former Chair of TSRI Board Honored by Plaza Naming
The Honorable Paul G. Rogers, former chair of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) board of directors who spent 24 years as a representative to the U.S. Congress, was honored June 12, as a plaza at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) campus was dedicated in his name.

The naming of the Paul G. Rogers Plaza came as the result of passage of the fiscal year 2001 budget for Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, which urged the director of the NIH to honor Rogers in this way. The Honorable John Edward Porter, who chaired the House Subcommittee when the bill was crafted and passed calls Rogers, "a champion's champion in the fight for better health. He truly is 'Mr. Health.'"

Former U.S. Congressman from Florida (1955 to 1979), Rogers served as chair of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health and Environment from 1971 to 1979. During that time, he co-sponsored numerous legislation ranging from the National Cancer Act and the National Sickle Cell Anemia Control Act to the Community Health Centers Act and the National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Act.

The recipient of numerous awards, Rogers currently represents a cross-section of health and environmental clients, including corporations, associations and individuals, at the firm Hogan&Hartson. He continues to take an active role on the boards of many organizations, including Research!America, the National Osteoporosis Foundation, Friends of the National Library of Medicine, the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, the Institute of Medicine Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine, and the National Leadership Coalition on Health Care.


Second Annual Health Fair Shapes Up
Human Resources is pleased to announce TSRI's second annual Health Fair, to be held on June 27, 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM, on the walkway in front of the Immunology building. A variety of health and wellness topics will be addressed including fitness, nutrition, parenting, safety, and more. There will be on-site health screenings, chair massages, interactive demonstrations, raffle prizes, and food samples from your favorite local restaurants. All TSRI employees and graduate students are invited to participate in this fun and educational event.


Energy Conservation Tip: Turn Off Water Baths
Cell Biology Staff Scientist Mary Morrison sends News&Views this energy conservation tip: "Labs should turn off their bench top water baths overnight. Almost no one needs a bath to run overnight, and most modern baths heat up quickly once turned on again in the morning. The small inconvenience of having to remember to do this is outweighed by the big energy savings!"


GCRC Is Looking for a Few Good Arms
The General Clinical Research Center (GCRC) is in need of participants for the Normal Blood-Drawing Program, which provides blood samples to TSRI investigators. Volunteers are paid for their participation.

Especially needed are men who do not take medications (including over-the-counter products) routinely. Individuals from ethnic minorities are particularly encouraged to participate in order for the results of these studies to be meaningful to all populations.

If you are interested in participating, want more information, or know of a reliable employee who is available during 7 to 9 AM on weekdays, please call Alice Cupples at the GCRC Core Laboratory tie line 354-2284 (no need to dial "9" before the number when calling from on campus). If you leave a message, please include your name, phone extension, and mail drop so staff can send you an application.


Golf Tournament Registration Tees Off
TSRI's sixth annual golf tournament will be held on Wednesday, August 8, at Encinitas Ranch Golf Course, featuring 18 championship holes on the bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

The tournament format is a four-person team scramble. There are 144 spots available on a first paid, first play basis. You are free to form your own team, but you do not have to form a team to register. Simply submit a registration form and you will be placed on a team. (Please submit one registration form per team).

Each team must be comprised of at least two TSRI employees. If the event becomes overbooked, preference will be given to TSRI employees. However, as in years past, family and friends will be accommodated as much as possible.

The fee of $65 per person includes dinner following the tournament. Trophies for the top teams, doormats (last place), prizes for the closest to the pin, longest drive, and other prizes will be awarded! To request a registration form, contact Victoria Granados at x4-2909 or e-mail granados@scripps.edu. Be sure to include your mail drop and phone number. Registration forms are due, with fees paid in full, on July 18th.


Elvis Promises to Return for TSRI Picnic
Elvis has been spotted several times on campus, promising to return next month with his buddy James Dean for this year's TSRI picnic, the Roof Top Sock Hop, which will be held from 3:30 to 7:30 PM on Friday, July 13, on the roof of the Immunology building.

"He's not the peanut butter and bacon Elvis from the 1970s, either," one unidentified source was quoted as saying. "He's the old Elvis from the 1950s—young, gyrating, singing—the STAMP Elvis!"

This year's crazy team competitions, which carry prizes for first, second, and third places, will feature giant tricycles, bowling, human hamster wheels, and a giant slide. Team signups must be submitted no later than Friday, July 6. Registration forms are available from Tina Dostalek, x4-8438, and from the picnic website.

The picnic website also offers more information about the picnic—including ticket sales (from Monday, July 2 to Wednesday, July 11), gourmet catered food, games for children and adults, prizes for the most authentic 1950s attire, raffles, palm readings, balloon sculptures, hula hoop competition... and an Elvis Presley look-alike contest.


Look for next News&Views July 2
Look for the next issue of News&Views Monday, July 2. The deadline for submissions to News&Views, which is published weekly during the academic year and every other week during the summer, is Wednesday at noon for the following Monday's publication.