Digest -- U.Va. news daily

Governor taps Menaker as a top scientist
Apparently, the timing was right for Commonwealth Professor of Biology Michael Menaker. One of the world’s leading experts in the field of biological timing, Menaker was recently recognized as one of Virginia’s six Outstanding Scientists of 2003. “These recipients are at the cutting edge of their fields, from cancer cures to the protecting the Chesapeake Bay, and from transportation safety to particle physics,” said Gov. Mark R. Warner. “Their creativity, contributions, and dedication are aimed at making life — in Virginia and beyond — better for us all.” The General Assembly recognized the winners Feb. 18, and the awards will be formally handed out April 1.
(Top News Daily, Feb. 12)

Photo by Tom Cogill

Dr. D. Casey Kerrigan

Women’s knees pay high price for high heels
Dr. D. Casey Kerrigan (above) does not wear high heels. She’s seen too much pain.
Not foot pain, mind you, but knee pain — more specifically, osteoarthritis, also known as “wear-and-tear” arthritis. The debilitating condition is twice as common in women than men, and Kerrigan, the newly recruited chairwoman of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, says high heels are at least partially to blame.(Top News Daily, Feb. 11)

Ed Smith retires after nearly 50 years at Health System
Ed Smith began his U.Va. career driving a bakery truck during his summer vacations back in the 1950s. He recently concluded it as one of the U.Va. Health System’s most respected administrators, with a retirement party that lured back former associates to honor an old friend. In between, he crossed more than 103,000 miles of Virginia roads, engaged in a tug-of-war with the Secret Service, and did recon on student demonstrations, among many other things.
(Top News Daily, Feb. 10)

Mem Gym, Onesty Hall to be renovated
Venerable old Memorial Gymnasium will receive a thorough facelift, courtesy of a gift of more than $1.5 million from an anonymous donor. The gift will push U.Va.’s wrestling facilities into the upper echelon in the country and will give the Cavalier women’s volleyball program a major boost. The gift will also pay for renovations at Onesty Hall.
(Top News Daily, Feb. 17-18)