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The ATLAS building, the University of Colorado at Boulder's new technology learning center, has become the first facility in the CU system to attain a gold rating, one of the nation's highest for green building design. The Alliance for Technology, Learning and Society, or ATLAS, building has achieved the U.S. Green Building Council's gold rating under its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.

There's good news for children growing up in bad neighborhoods in a comprehensive study led by nationally renowned University of Colorado at Boulder sociology Professor Delbert Elliott.

The horrific school shootings in Bailey, Colo., and Lancaster County, Pa., this fall prompted calls from some citizens to fortify schools with fencing and metal detectors but more effective safety strategies are available, according to a University of Colorado at Boulder school violence expert.

The University of Colorado at Boulder will hold its winter commencement ceremony on Friday, Dec. 22, at 9:30 a.m. in the Coors Events/Conference Center on campus. Guests should plan to be seated by 9 a.m. and early arrival is strongly suggested due to possible traffic delays. Guests also are asked not to bring large purses or bags to the ceremony, and people entering the center may be subject to search. The university ceremony is free and open to the public.

Inspired by the sleek and efficient propulsion of squid, jellyfish and other cephalopods, a University of Colorado at Boulder researcher has designed a new generation of compact vortex generators that could make it easier for scientists to maneuver and dock underwater vehicles at low speeds and with greater precision. In addition, the technology - seemingly inspired by the plots of two classic sci-fi films - may soon allow doctors to guide tiny capsules with jet thrusters through the human digestive tract, enabling them to diagnose disease and dispense medications.

Even a small-scale regional nuclear war could produce as many fatalities as all of World War II, disrupt the global climate for a decade or more and impact nearly every person on Earth, according to two new studies by University of Colorado at Boulder, Rutgers University and University of California, Los Angeles researchers.

Editors: Pfeffer will give a presentation at 5:45 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 11, at the AGU meeting titled "Disappearing Glacial Ice: A Global Synthesis." Despite growing public alarm over the shrinking Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, it is small glaciers and ice caps that have been contributing the most to rising sea levels in recent years, according to a new University of Colorado at Boulder study.

PHOTO OPPORTUNITY Starting at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 9, hundreds of Colorado youngsters will compete in the annual FIRST Lego League science and technology state tournament at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Competition will take place at the Balch Fieldhouse and will last through 3:30 p.m. An awards ceremony will occur at 4 p.m.

Nobel laureate Tom Cech will kick off a new lecture series at the University of Colorado at Boulder Dec. 13 spotlighting RNA science that features two distinguished Yale University experts in the fields of molecular biology and biochemistry.

University of Colorado at Boulder Chancellor G.P. “Bud” Peterson today announced that the first meeting of the Steering Committee on Strategic Planning: Flagship 2030 will be held Saturday, Dec. 9, from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Eaton Humanities Building on the CU-Boulder campus.