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Toyota, radiation, orangutans
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April 5, 2011
Part-less auto factories may close
A shortage of auto parts from beleaguered Japan is likely to force the shut down of Toyota factories across North America, affecting thousands of workers. Sudheer Gupta, an associate professor of technology and operations management in SFU’s Beedie School of Business, studies supply chain management and can provide comment on the impact of impending shut-downs on both the company and its workers.
Sudheer Gupta, 778.782.7157; sudheerg@sfu.ca
Reduced radiation
SFU nuclear scientist Kris Starosta has found "a constant and steady decline" in the level of radioactive iodine-131 in rainwater in the Lower Mainland. (This is tied, of course, to emissions from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan). He has also tested for iodine-131 in seaweed, and says: "If you eat six kilograms of dried seaweed, that would put your exposure on the same level as a flight from New York to Los Angeles.” (Starosta now is available only after 1 p.m. today.)
Kris Starosta, 778.227.0823 (cell); starosta@sfu.ca
Hanging with the orangutans
SFU primatologist Birute Galdikas has spent more than 40 years in the forests of Borneo researching and rescuing orphaned orangutans – that work is now the focus of new 3D IMAX film opening Friday. Janie Dubman, one of Galdikas’ student volunteers, has seen a preview of Born to Be Wild and will be keenly watching to see how audiences are affected. “After spending time and getting to know them as individuals, watching the orangutans on a big screen is pretty powerful,” says Dubman, who graduates with honors in biology in June. Dubman has spent the past two summers with Galdikas in Borneo and is heading back May 9, this time to begin research in the field. She can talk about the film as well as her experiences at the orangutan refuge. (Note: Galdikas is currently in L.A.)
Janie Dubman, 778.378.2279 (cell); jda9@sfu.ca
Sarah Whitaker, Orangutan Foundation International, 1.310.694.1616; ofioffice@gmail.com
A shortage of auto parts from beleaguered Japan is likely to force the shut down of Toyota factories across North America, affecting thousands of workers. Sudheer Gupta, an associate professor of technology and operations management in SFU’s Beedie School of Business, studies supply chain management and can provide comment on the impact of impending shut-downs on both the company and its workers.
Sudheer Gupta, 778.782.7157; sudheerg@sfu.ca
Reduced radiation
SFU nuclear scientist Kris Starosta has found "a constant and steady decline" in the level of radioactive iodine-131 in rainwater in the Lower Mainland. (This is tied, of course, to emissions from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan). He has also tested for iodine-131 in seaweed, and says: "If you eat six kilograms of dried seaweed, that would put your exposure on the same level as a flight from New York to Los Angeles.” (Starosta now is available only after 1 p.m. today.)
Kris Starosta, 778.227.0823 (cell); starosta@sfu.ca
Hanging with the orangutans
SFU primatologist Birute Galdikas has spent more than 40 years in the forests of Borneo researching and rescuing orphaned orangutans – that work is now the focus of new 3D IMAX film opening Friday. Janie Dubman, one of Galdikas’ student volunteers, has seen a preview of Born to Be Wild and will be keenly watching to see how audiences are affected. “After spending time and getting to know them as individuals, watching the orangutans on a big screen is pretty powerful,” says Dubman, who graduates with honors in biology in June. Dubman has spent the past two summers with Galdikas in Borneo and is heading back May 9, this time to begin research in the field. She can talk about the film as well as her experiences at the orangutan refuge. (Note: Galdikas is currently in L.A.)
Janie Dubman, 778.378.2279 (cell); jda9@sfu.ca
Sarah Whitaker, Orangutan Foundation International, 1.310.694.1616; ofioffice@gmail.com