Farm Report

CAMPUS NOTEBOOK   The Campus Construction Plan Gets a Facelift Responding to community criticism of a draft plan for the next decade of campus construction, University officials submitted a revised proposal to Santa Clara County in November. The new version incorporates suggestions made by the public and for the first time establishes a geographic boundary for academic growth. "No other university in California has a plan this comprehensive," says Larry Horton, '62, MA '66, director of government and community relations. At the same time, Stanford announced two sites on University land that could be suitable for a middle school requested by the Palo Alto school district.   Before a Heart Attack -- a Shot of Alcohol? For those who like a tipple of wine, the latest results from Stanford scientists will be as easy to swallow as a well-aged red. Researchers have found that small amounts of alcohol may reduce damage during heart attacks. Attacks -- really blockages -- starve heart cells of oxygen and nutrients, causing them to die. A dose of alcohol apparently protects surrounding cells, which are normally exposed to toxins released by dying cells. The experiments -- so far tried only in rats -- showed that the rodents were protected after ingesting alcohol for 10 to 20 minutes immediately before an attack.   A Gathering of African-American Leaders It was like a who's who of black Americans. Nationally known figures including John Hope Franklin, former chair of President Clinton's Initiative on Race; Charles Ogletree, '75, MA '75, a Harvard law professor and member of Stanford's board of trustees; and Condoleezza Rice, Stanford's former provost, gathered on campus November 11 to 13 for a major conference on race -- African-Americans: Research and Policy Perspectives at the Turn of the Century. The group discussed such issues as police profiling, affirmative action, how blacks are represented in the media, black political participation and African-American religious and community life.   And for His Next Job: Editor of Science Professor, government regulator, University president -- and, soon, editor. Donald Kennedy, who was Stanford's president from 1980 to 1992 and is now a professor of biological sciences, has been named editor-in-chief of Science, the prestigious peer-reviewed journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C. Kennedy, who will assume the post on June 1, will remain a tenured professor, maintain his campus office and continue to teach during his first year as editor. "At the end of that year, my plan is to retire from Stanford," he says, "although I might well be recalled to teach a course."   For This Mr. Smith, It's Time to Leave Washington During seven years at the Department of Education, Marshall Smith saw firsthand the political realities of Washington. After four years as the department's undersecretary, the former dean of the School of Education took over as acting deputy secretary in August 1996 and was nominated by President Clinton in 1997 to become deputy education secretary. Twice Clinton asked the Senate to approve Smith's nomination, but the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee never acted. Now Smith is leaving politics, making good on a long-held desire to return to Stanford. At Education, Smith focused on policies to ensure that all children, especially those living in poor areas, have access to quality schools.   Helping Decide Microsoft's Antitrust Fate If Microsoft is punished for creating a monopoly, a Stanford faculty member may play a role in deciding what the software giant's penalty should be. Timothy Bresnahan, a professor of economics who researches competition among high-tech companies, led a committee that was preparing recommendations late last year. The options range from splitting up the company to forcing the executives to rewrite contracts with customers. The group, which includes experts from universities across the country, is to present suggestions to the Justice Department early this year. Microsoft-watchers predict that the penalty will call for restructuring the company or its products.   An Overhaul for Medical School Facilities The Board of Trustees has endorsed a plan to revitalize the 40-year-old facilities at the School of Medicine. The $185 million, five-year plan calls for building a teaching facility, overhauling Lane Library and renovating existing research space in three buildings. Both the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, which licenses medical schools, and a group of vocal students had criticized the school for its inadequate facilities. Architects were scheduled to complete a conceptual design by the end of December.   The Women's Center Director Steps Down Four months after she became the Women's Center's first full-time director, Fabienne McPhail is stepping down for personal reasons. McPhail joined the 27-year-old center as part-time director in 1997 and stayed on when the position became full-time in early September. About 2,500 people each year use the center for events and services such as tutoring, brown-bag lunches with professors, rape awareness week activities and the women's leadership awards. Morris Graves, the associate dean of students, was expected to select McPhail's successor by mid-December.