The gridiron Causeway Classic is still two weeks away, but Aggies have already claimed victory in the Causeway Classic Blood Drive.

UC Davis beat California State University, Sacramento, in the ninth annual competition, which pits the two universities against each other to see which can turn up more blood drive participants.

This year, BloodSource tallied 1,444 Aggies, compared with 1,315 Hornets. The two universities had been knotted with four wins each, after Sac State’s win last year. So, now, the perpetual trophy will return to Davis.

“Because of this friendly, but spirited competition between neighboring rivals, 2,759 total participants represented at both schools and thousands of life-saving pints of blood and blood products were collected,” said Felicia Roper of Sacramento-based BloodSource.

She noted that nearly half of the UC Davis donors were giving blood to BloodSource for the first time.

“Students, staff and faculty all came out to support this drive and it was wonderful to see some familiar faces as well as new ones.”

Surface water coming in February

The campus has extended its timeline for introducing a new domestic water supply, now estimating the water will start flowing from taps in February.

The water, drawn from the Sacramento River and treated, will flow through a pump on campus before tying in to the distribution system. A contractor is still working on the pump station and is also responsible for the tie-in along California Avenue in front of the Cowell Building.

The pump is just east of there on the south edge of Russell Field, near Parking Lot 15 and the Marya Welch Tennis Center. The pump house project also includes restrooms.

The campus has joined with the cities of Woodland and Davis to bring in the new water supply. The water is already flowing in Woodland and Davis, and the campus is preparing similarly to the way the cities did for their safe transitions from 100 percent well water.

The campus has completed flushing its lines, to rid them of sediment, and will add a corrosion inhibitor to the water supply and adjust the pH to guard against discolored water.

Also, remember, we’re still in a drought, so please incorporate water-saving techniques into your daily routines and help the campus fulfill its commitment to further reduce water use.

More information on the surface water project is available online.

Campus gas lines undergo inspection

Campus and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. crews are inspecting the campus’s gas lines this week and next week.

A contractor for PG&E is inspecting one of the utility’s main lines through the campus today and Wednesday (Nov. 8-9). The line zigzags through the southwest portion of the campus.

At intervals of 10 feet or so, workers drill a small hole above the pipe, insert a probe that tests for any corrosion in the line, then fill in the hole — in a process that takes only a few minutes. The crew includes a traffic control team, for those instances when drilling is required in a road (Old Davis Road, La Rue Road and Dairy Road).

The campus utilities crew notes that neither PG&E line (the other one runs through the center of the campus) has ever had a leak.

The campus maintains 27 miles of smaller gas lines that branch off the PG&E lines to serve boilers, radiant heaters, lab equipment and emergency generators. Normally, the campus tests 10 percent of its lines annually, but this year the entire system is getting a once-over not only to test for leaks but to see how the system could be expanded to serve the campus’s future needs.

If you ever smell natural gas on campus, please call the Facilities Management Customer Support Center, 530-752-1655. For technical questions about the inspection work, contact water and gas superintendent Joel McCoy by email or phone, 530-219-1304.

Check out what’s new in Box

UC Davis’ Box cloud storage service is getting an upgrade, and you can check it out starting today (Nov. 8). Upon logging in, you will have the option to test the new interface.

Or, open the new interface here, https://ucdavis.app.box.com/on/allnewbox. To go back to the old interface, click on the help icon (question mark in a circle) in the upper right-hand corner, then click "Need to switch back to the old Box experience?”

About 36,000 UC Davis faculty, staff and students use Box, typically to store, share, and/or manage work online. The upgrade will be installed on all accounts in early January.

Jeremy Phillips, who directs information technology for the Division of Social Sciences and helps oversees Box at UC Davis, said the revision creates a “more streamlined and capable version of the web interface,” including:

• Improved search
• Improved gallery view options (“great for photo libraries!”)
• Improvements to Box Notes
• A cleaner, more modern layout

Watch this 2 1/2-minute video to see a preview of the changes.

— TechNews

A contest for bakers and tasters!

Staff Assembly presents its Holiday Bake-Off: Bars Edition! The bake-off, now in its second year, is for bakers and tasters!

First, Staff Assembly needs a maximum of 48 bakers. They’ll do their baking in advance, then bring their bars to the bake-off for the people's tasting! Bakers register here.

If you’re not a baker, you can sign up to be a taster. Tasters register here. The tasters will choose their favorites, and the top five bars will go to the three judges, who will choose the winners.

Bakers are asked to check in at 10:30 a.m. with two dozen bars for the people's tasting (cut these bars into bite-size pieces, approximately 96 of them) and three complete bars for the judges. The people's tasting will start at 11:15 and the winners will be announced at 12:45 p.m.

More information, including rules and guidelines.

Med Center a ‘Consumer Choice’ for 17th time

The UC Davis Medical Center has been selected for the 17th time as a Consumer Choice Award winner by National Research Corp.

“The Consumer Choice Award is one of our most valued recognitions, because it is based on the trust and loyalty of those who have many choices for their health care,” said Ann Madden Rice, chief executive officer of the medical center. “It is a strong validation of our leadership in excellent, patient-centered care.”

NRC determined its award winners by surveying health care decision makers in 300,000 U.S. households between October 2015 and September 2016. Respondents rated their local hospitals on multiple quality and image ratings.

Out of 17 hospitals in the Sacramento region, the UC Davis Medical Center received the highest composite score based on ratings in each of four areas: best overall quality, best image and reputation, best doctors and best nurses.


Commencement regalia, Apple products going on sale

UC Davis Stores announced sales on commencement regalia and select Apple products.

• Commencement regalia — For faculty members, graduate students and others who would rather buy for the long term, instead of renting. $100 off official University of California doctoral regalia and 25 percent off black doctoral gown packages. Package must include gown, academic hood and a tam. Note: Black gown options are for faculty only. Graduation candidates are required to wear blue and gold regalia at commencement. Orders placed during the sale will arrive in time for use in spring 2016 commencements. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15, lower level of the Campus Store, Memorial Union.
• Apple — One-Day Causeway Classic Sale, with prizes and refreshments. Up to $200 off select Mac and iPad models, and up to $175 off all discontinued Apple products. Friday, Nov. 18, TechHub in the Campus Store, MU. Interested buyers are invited to submit preorders to ensure easy, no-wait pickup.

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