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Student Center Reduces Carbon Footprint and is Certified Green

The United States Green Building Council awarded the UC Irvine Student Center with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) gold certification.

UCI’s Student Center is the first in the state of California to receive LEED gold certification.

The original plan for the new student center was designed to qualify for the basic LEED rating. The expansion of the Student Center exceeded energy performance by 35 percent and incorporated plumbing fixtures that use 42 percent less water than conventional systems.

The rating puts UCI at the top of the list, tied with four other U.S. campuses for the highest number of LEED gold certifications at a single institution of higher education.

UCI now has three LEED gold certifications for new construction.

Study Determines Internet Dating Reflects Racial Stereotypes

A UC Irvine study discovered that users of Internet dating Web sites conformed to racial stereotypes in their choice of partner.

The study analyzed profiles of people from the age of 18 to 50 in cities across the United States between September 2004 and May 2005.

UCI researchers found that Yahoo Personals users were not, in fact, color blind. According to the study, white male users preferred Asian and Latino women to African-American women as dating partners, while white women preferred African American and Latino men over Asian men.

Researchers attribute the preferences to racial stereotypes commonly found in the media.

“Stereotypical images of masculinity and femininity shape dating choices and continue to be perpetuated in the mass media,” said Cynthia Feliciano, UCI assistant professor of sociology and Chicano/Latino studies.

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