Digest -- U.Va. news daily

Photo by Matt Kelly

U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode, right, speaks with rally attendees.

Goode, Bell address Bush supporters at Rotunda rally
Confronting Saddam Hussein is like being in a room with a rattlesnake, U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode told a crowd gathered at the Rotunda for a rally to support President Bush. You certainly hope he can be defanged and slithers away, Goode said, but chances are you’re going to need that hoe. (Top News Daily, Feb. 26)

Islet cells offer hope for people with diabetes
Doctors at the U.Va. Health System soon will have a new weapon in the battle against type I diabetes: pancreatic islet cell transplantation. They have set a goal of performing the first such procedure in Virginia by the end of the year. Although not yet the optimal treatment for the majority of diabetes patients, the therapy shows promise for reversing the effects of the disease, which mostly affects children. (Top News Daily, Feb. 24)

Training caregivers for aging population
Some 6,000 Americans will celebrate their 65th birthday today. And another 6,000 tomorrow. Less than 10 years from now, that number will increase to about 10,000 each day. Who’s going to care for all of these people? U.Va.’s School of Nursing has stepped up its training of gerontological nurse practitioners with the addition of Courtney Lyder to be the first holder of the U.Va. Medical Center Professorship in Nursing. The Board of Visitors established the chair in 1999 with a gift from the U.Va. Medical Center in honor of its shared centennial with the Nursing School. (Top News Daily, March 5)

Tibet Web site combines several areas of University’s expertise
The idea is simple but revolutionary: create a Web site that combines the best of scholarly material on all things Tibetan. The Tibetan and Himalayan Digital Library, directed by religious studies professor David Germano, is the first of an ambitious series of digital communities being envisioned by the University Library and the Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities. It brings together two major U.Va. strengths: digital technology and the program in Tibetan and Buddhist studies.(Top News Daily, Feb. 25)