Introducing Our New Blogger, Mickey Rowe

by Mickey Rowe, UCSB research biologist.

This is officially my first blog contribution. I'm no neophyte on the net; e-mail has been my primary means of communication since 1988.

I wrote my first web pages in the early 90s, when Mosaic was the only web browser anyone used.

And "anyone" wasn't a whole lot of people...

But I've resisted the blogosphere until now. I've generally felt my life to be full enough not to go looking for such added distractions. I was drawn to the Central Coast News Mission by another local blogger. The local aspect has reeled me in...

Many of you may know my name from having seen it attached to letters to the editors of The Lompoc Record. Generally when I write there, I'm responding to something someone else wrote.

Here, I'd like to initiate conversations. But I'll save that for later. Since blogging has developed a history, I'll bow to the wisdom of some who have come before me. In particular, David Ciaffardini suggests that blogs that aren't kept short aren't read.

I'm unlikely to keep all of my posts short. But I'll try to reveal myself and my concerns mostly in small, tolerable doses. I hope to give readers some things they'll like and some they won't... but above all, my aim is to make people think. I hope some will return the favor. --Mickey P. Rowe, mrowe at lifesci.ucsb.edu.

What Are Taxpayers Entitled To Know?

Photo by: Scott Jacobs
Gotta stay alert and watch what the state government does with our money at all times, especially when it comes to stem cell research in our own backyard.

Basic facts here courtesy of the blog, The California Stem Cell Report.

The Santa Barbara, Merced, Riverside and Santa Cruz UC campuses have applied for "type three" grants for specialized stem cell training programs. Yet the California stem cell agency created by Proposition 71 says this application information is secret.

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) is organizing a $45 million effort to create a cadre of stem cell researchers through grant programs.

Type three grants offer training at "one or two levels of education." Each grant can support up to 6 trainees, with a budget of no more than $500,000 per year.

But the names of the applicants have been kept secret by the CIRM.

CIRM's claim to secrecy is based on language in Prop. 71 that says CIRM "working group" records are not public. A working group is scheduled to make recommendations later this month to the Oversight Committee on which applicants should receive grants.

Following approval, only the successful applications would become public.