When children finish reading “Kupe and the Corals,” author Jacqueline L. Padilla-Gamiño, an assistant biology professor at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), hopes they understand that “we're all connected” to life in the ocean and that all living things “need to be careful with one another.” “Kupe and the Corals” (Taylor Trade Publishing, August 2014) is written for children 8 to 12 years old. It is the story of Kupe, a boy on a voyage to discover and learn about the coral reef in the coastal waters near his home in Tahiti and its connection to a host of sea animals. The book was funded by a $25,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) as part of its ... Read More
College of Natural and Behavioral Sciences
Going Underground to Understand the Universe
By Laurie McLaughlin A half-mile underground, an enormous steel tank is filled with 50,000 tons of water surrounded by light-detecting devices. It serves partly as a giant target for cosmic particles–like protons, electrons, and neutrons–raining down on Earth from the sky. One type of particle, the neutrino, has been somewhat of a mystery to physicists until recent decades, but its activity helps explain how the sun and stars continue to shine. “We don't realize it, but trillions of neutrinos travel through our bodies every second,” said California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) professor of physics James Hill, who has been studying this very tiny phenomenon for more ... Read More
Tak Yee Poon ‘Goes the Extra Mile’ for CSUDH and its Students
Tak Yee Poon's friendly demeanor and prowess in providing such support as building innovative webpages or webserver maintenance is well known to those who periodically seek his expertise. But for those he works with on a daily basis, it's his unmistakable passion for helping faculty, staff and particularly students that provides the true meaning of the words “Outstanding Education Support” engraved on the plaque of his 2014 Staff Award. “I understand what they [students working on campus] are going through in trying to balance work and classes, especially during mid-terms and finals,” said Poon, the university webmaster in California State University, Dominguez Hills' (CSUDH) Office of ... Read More
Kaiser Internship Offers Kinesiology Students Unique Experience
Nicole Chambers and Wendy Barrios, seniors studying kinesiology at California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), will have a significant advantage when applying for post-graduate healthcare programs, and invaluable work experience that is often hard to acquire at the undergraduate level. The students, who both are earning their Bachelors of Arts in Physical Education, with the pre-physical therapy option, at CSUDH, were chosen as the first recipients of the new Kaiser Permanente Mobility Technician Internship, which was launched in the fall 2014. Developed through a partnership between CSUDH's Division of Kinesiology and Recreation and Kaiser Permanente South Bay Medical ... Read More
Alumnus Patrick Mitchell’s Quest for a Healthier America
“Eat your fruits and vegetables!” Growing up, you probably heard that line more times than you can count, and with good reason. Fruits and vegetables are the cornerstone of a healthy diet as outlined by countless state and federal nutrition programs, including the Michelle Obama-spearheaded “Let's Move” campaign and the California Department of Public Health's (CDPH) “Network for a Healthy California” initiative. California State University, Dominguez Hills alumnus Patrick Mitchell (M.A., Class of 1980, applied behavioral science) knows that better than anyone else. He's among the primary research scientists at the CDPH working to improve nutrition among low-income California ... Read More