RTI International, one of the Triangle's biggest employers, said today it opened its 10th foreign office in Beijing, China to conduct research and collect data for U.S. government agencies and other potential clients.

RTI's research expertise spans technology and social sciences, but the nonprofit organization's largest areas of research are in the areas of human sexuality, drug use, as well as alcohol and tobacco. RTI's Beijing office will focus on on public health, air quality monitoring and energy technology, among other other areas.

The organization opened its China office this month with one RTI employee and several temporary local workers, but RTI has had ongoing projects in China before establishing a permanent office, said RTI spokesman Patrick Gibbons.
 

UNC-Chapel Hill scientists are streaming live video of coral reefs and marine life as part of their work this week at the world's only undersea research lab.

Between now and Wednesday, you can see the video at http://www.ustream.tv/aquariusreefbase or below this text.

Chris Martens, William B. Aycock Distinguished Professor of marine sciences, and Niels Lindquist, professor of marine sciences based at the Institute of Marine Sciences, are studying the emerging problem of acidification of the ocean and its effect on coral reefs. Their team includes a postdoctoral researcher, a graduate student and three undergraduates from UNC.

The scientists are at working at Aquarius, a laboratory 63 feet underwater near the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, where scientists can stay for up to 10 days.

The aquanauts blog during missions and post pictures on the Aquarius homepage. Follow them on Twitter, @reefbase.

Live broadcast by Ustream

A new University of Missouri study has revealed that exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) through diet has been underestimated, and indicates that the controversial chemical accumulates more rapidly within the body than previously thought.

So-called biodegradable products are likely doing more harm than good in landfills, according to research released today from N.C. State University.

The spending freeze President Obama called for in his Tuesday night State of the Union address would largely spare higher education.

Obama's  proposed five-year discretionary spending freeze would spare education and research, which are too critical to the nation's future to sacrifice, he said.

"Cutting the deficit by gutting our investments in innovation and education is like lightening an overloaded airplane by removing its engine," he said. "It may feel like you're flying high at first, but it won't take long before you'll feel the impact."

Obama indicated a desire to invest in biomedical research, information technology and energy. He proposed paying for those initiatives by cutting oil company tax breaks, reports the Chronicle of Higher Education.

This sits well with higher education backers.

"We agree with the president that the nation needs to take strong action to reduce budget deficits, and that as we do so, we must continue to direct additional resources toward research and education to ensure America's economic competitiveness and global leadership," said Robert M. Berdahl, president of the Association of American Universities, in the Chronicle of Higher Education. "It is our hope that sustained investment in research and education, even as we reduce deficits, is something Democrats and Republicans can agree on."

But as the Chronicle reports today, that investment may not go over well in the Republican-led House of Representatives.

Read on.

North Carolina State University hopes its research will develop a better hazmat boot.

For the 17th straight year, IBM has been granted more patents than any other company.

Another breakthrough in efforts to find alternatives to using embryonic stem cells in research. Scientists have converted cells from human testes into stem cells that grow into other human tissue. This method is theoretically superior to using embryonic stem cells because the cells can be obtained directly from the men the new tissue will be used to help. Wouldn't it be nice if such progress ultimately makes the divisive embryonic stem cell debate moot? (Thursday, Page 6A)