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For those contemplating giving a loved one the ultimate Christmas gift -- having a star named after him or her -- think twice, says University of Colorado at Boulder astronomy Professor Ted Snow.

The next time you’re out on the golf course and your partner begins bragging about his hot-shot fund manager and his high return on investment, be skeptical. Be very skeptical. That investor is probably better off in equity index funds, and his fund manager is likely to know it. “I was clueless about this index fund vs. actively managed fund idea four or five years ago,” said Donald Lichtenstein, a professor in CU-Boulder’s College of Business and Administration. “Then I started reading and listening to good advice.”

December marks the time of year when children behave better than usual because Santa Claus is checking a list from his North Pole home to find out who’s naughty or nice. According to Michael Bell, an English professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Santa’s real name was Saint Nicholas and he was drawn from a bishop of the Greek Empire during the fourth century A.D. “If he’s real, there are a couple of legends explaining how he came about,” Bell said.

Friends of the University of Colorado Libraries and RTD are teaming up to offer a free Seniors Day at Norlin Library on Jan. 7. Transportation to the event is free on any RTD bus and on BoulderÂ’s HOP and SKIP shuttles. The HOP stops on Colorado Avenue just east of the libraryÂ’s east entrance, where the tour will begin at 9 a.m. Seniors can pick up their free ride coupons from Jan. 2 through Jan. 7 at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd., the Meadows Branch Library, 4800 Baseline Road, or the George Reynolds Branch Library, 3595 Table Mesa Drive.

Neil Ashby, professor of physics at the University of Colorado at Boulder, has been named co-chair of the campusÂ’ Sexual Harassment Committee, according to Chancellor Richard L. Byyny. Ashby replaces former Co-Chair Jane Bock, professor of environmental, population and organismic biology, who recently stepped down from the committee. The other co-chair is Shari Robertson, administrator in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Administration.

The earth's interior may contain three to five oceans of water locked within billions of crystals that could help regulate the level of water on the surface of the planet, a University of Colorado at Boulder geologist says. Ten years ago, Professor Joseph Smyth discovered that a mineral called wadsleyite, located 250 miles to 350 miles below the earth's surface, could contain water. The wadsleyite does not contain liquid water, but the elements needed to make water bound up in crystals in solid form.

A report released today by the University of Colorado at Boulder summarizes the activities and findings of the first 18 months of the campusÂ’ Sexual Harassment Committee under the current sexual harassment policy. The report, covering the period of Dec. 1, 1995 through May 31, 1997, was submitted to Chancellor Richard L. Byyny by committee Co-Chairs Shari Robertson and Neil Ashby.

Larry Singell, the dean of the College of Business and Administration at the University of Colorado at Boulder, will relinquish his position and resume teaching economics before the 1998-99 academic year begins. Singell will have served five years as dean when he steps down. During his tenure as dean, the college has developed a Real Estate Center, the Center for Entrepreneurship and numerous courses and student services.

CU-Boulder MBA students who designed a business plan to fund emerging companies in the healthcare industry won first place in the Bank One Business Plan Competition last night on the Boulder campus. The competition was the culmination of a class taught by Juan Rodriguez, professor of electrical and computer engineering and chairman of Ecrix Corp., Steve Lawrence, professor in the College of Business, and instructor Mike Befeler, a principal and founder of Storage Systems Marketing Inc. Rodriguez is a co-founder of both Storage Technology Corp. and Exabyte Corp.

New data from a University of Colorado at Boulder instrument on board the Galileo spacecraft now at Jupiter indicates one of its four large moons, Callisto, has oxygen on its surface and another, Io, continues to emit hot volcanic gases.