Researchers Isolate Chocolatey Goodness

An international team of researchers led by scientists from UC Davis, Harvard University and Germany’s Heinrich-Heine University has located the heart-healthy chemical in cocoa and some chocolate products.

Researchers hope that the findings will lead to new dietary and medicinal methods for maintaining a healthy heart. To obtain results, scientists studied urine samples from the Kuna Indians, who live on an island chain off the coast of Panama. The Kuna people are known to consume three to four cups of cocoa per day and have very low instances of high blood pressure or other heart problems.

UCSF, USF Partner for Dental Program

UC San Francisco and the University of San Francisco have announced that they will join forces to create a program that will offer joint doctor of dental surgery and master’s of business administration degrees.

The program would be one of only 10 nationwide, and its goal is to provide dental students with an understanding of fundamental business concepts applicable to any organization.

College Graduates Lack Basic Skills

According to a new study released on Jan. 19 by the American Institutes of Research, 20 percent of college graduates from four-year universities and 30 percent of community college graduates lack basic computational skills, such as being able to tell whether or not they have enough gas in the car to make it to the next station.

The study was conducted across 80 institutions and found that a student’s major or type of school — technical or academic, public or private — was not a good indicator of his or her skill level.

White students outperformed every other ethnic group. In addition, graduates whose parents attended college showed more skill than graduates whose parents did not attend college.