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Illinois Featured Content

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  • New drug destroys breast cancer, all secondary growths in mice by almost 100%

    Jul 23, 2021 12:00 pm

    IFL Science (London, July 23) Researchers from the U. of I. discovered a compound that targets human metastatic breast cancer cells and all their metastases in mice, resulting in almost complete tumor regression. 

  • Fighting Illini Tokyo Olympics Central

    Jul 23, 2021 11:00 am

    Nine former Fighting Illini student-athletes are representing their countries in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Follow the here.

  • Illini runner helping change how IHSA athletes will look in competition

    Jul 22, 2021 11:00 am

    WMBD-TV (Peoria, Ill., July 21) Ayah Aldadah testified before the Illinois House of Representatives in support of a law that will allow high school athletes to compete in hijabs and extra layers due to their religious beliefs. 

  • Nowlin named NCAA Woman of the Year nominee

    Jul 22, 2021 9:00 am

    The award recognizes graduating female college athletes who have exhausted their NCAA eligibility and distinguished themselves in academics, athletics, service and leadership throughout their collegiate careers.

  • New COVID-19 guidance calls for all Illinois college students to be vaccinated

    Jul 21, 2021 3:15 pm

    Chicago Tribune (July 20) U. of I. spokesperson Robin Kaler says masks were required during summer school, but will be optional in the fall for those vaccinated. 'Science is showing us that vaccines are the best way to protect our students.'

  • New approach eradicates breast cancer in mice

    Jul 21, 2021 10:30 am

    A new approach to treating breast cancer kills 95-100% of cancer cells in mouse models of human estrogen-receptor-positive breast cancers and their metastases in bone, brain, liver and lungs; shrinks even large tumors to undetectable levels.

  • What are the implications of the recent Supreme Court public school speech case?

    Jul 21, 2021 8:00 am

    The opaque ruling in the public school speech case Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. shouldn’t deter school officials from disciplining students who engage in cyberbullying, harassment or cheating, said media law expert Benjamin Holden.

  • Heavy June rain brings late emergence of mosquitoes in Illinois

    Jul 20, 2021 11:15 am

    The Center Square (July 19) 'When you have a very heavy rainfall event like we have seen here in Illinois over the past couple of weeks, it’s not unusual that after that you would see large numbers of mosquitos,' says U of I's Chris Stone.

  • Hansen named to Bednarik watch list

    Jul 20, 2021 11:15 am

    This is the fourth career watch list for Illinois linebacker Jake Hansen, who was named to the Bednarik, Butkus and Nagurksi watch lists last season and a Butkus Award semifinalist in 2019.

  • The physiological consequences of workplace incivility

    Jul 20, 2021 10:45 am

    Study explores how workplace dynamics can affect an individual’s ability to respond to an uncivil act in a way that de-escalates conflict and downregulates stress responses.

  • How can the world prevent emerging infectious diseases, protect food security?

    Jul 20, 2021 10:00 am

    Postdoctoral researcher Valeria Trivellone describes how climate change, globalization, urbanization and trade in wildlife all contribute to the emergence of new infectious diseases and worsen food insecurity.

  • Influential US climate report moves ahead — under new leadership

    Jul 19, 2021 4:45 pm

    Nature (July 16) The fact that the fifth U.S. National Climate Assessment is finally under way comes as a welcome relief to many scientists. 'We’re behind and we need to get to work,' says U of I's Donald Wuebbles, a lead author on the 2018 report.

  • 2020 deadlier than previous five years, even with COVID-19 numbers removed

    Jul 19, 2021 4:15 pm

    Compared with the previous five years, March through November 2020 saw an increase of more than 450,000 deaths – and more than 176,000 of those were not from COVID-19, according to an analysis of data from the CDC.

  • The environmental lessons of COVID-19

    Jul 19, 2021 10:15 am

    The Global Carbon Project estimated that, due to worldwide COVID-19 restrictions, carbon dioxide emissions dropped by 2.4 billion tons, or 7 percent, in 2020 - an unprecedented decline. 

  • Basketball season tickets available now

    Jul 19, 2021 9:15 am

    Coach Underwood's fifth Illini squad returns three starters and six of its top nine players from last year's rotation, including Kofi Cockburn, Andre Curbelo, Trent Frazier, Da'Monte Williams and Jacob Grandison.

  • Cockburn announces return to Fighting Illini

    Jul 17, 2021 10:30 am

    The Illini now return three starters and six of its top nine players from last year's rotation, led by Cockburn, who enters his junior season as a national player of the year candidate.

  • With droughts escalating, scientists look to CRISPR gene editing

    Jul 16, 2021 9:45 am

    Genetic Literacy Project (July 15) Led by U of I Professor Stephen Long, researchers have found that by altering the expression of a single gene, they can produce a model crop that uses water 25% more efficiently with no loss of yield. 

  • Making air traffic safe for real-life George and Jane Jetsons

    Jul 15, 2021 2:45 pm

    'Because these flights will operate in major metro cities...there's going to be a lot of potential for interaction between the urban air mobility flights and the commercial air traffic,' says aerospace engineering alumna Heather Arneson.

  • Chemical reactions break free from energy barriers using flyby trajectories

    Jul 15, 2021 10:00 am

    Researchers are first to use mechanical force to access new chemical reaction pathways along energy surfaces. The technique could help researchers produce fuels, fertilizers, pharmacueticals and other materials more efficiently. 

  • 2001 Big Ten title team reunion set for Aug. 28

    Jul 15, 2021 9:45 am

    Illinois went 10-2 in 2001 and finished the regular season with a seven-game winning streak to clinch the Big Ten title. The Illini had their best regular-season record since the 1983 Rose Bowl team.

  • Study: Idea sharing increases online learner engagement

    Jul 14, 2021 9:30 am

    Business professor Unnati Narang found that online learning engagement can be increased by nearly one-third by simply prompting students to share course ideas rather than personal details in the form of icebreakers and social introductions.

  • Illini pitchers Hoffmann, Lavender selected on day three of MLB draft

    Jul 14, 2021 9:30 am

    Andrew Hoffmann was selected in the 12th round by the Atlanta Braves and Nathan Lavender was selected in the 14th round by the New York Mets.

  • Daily Illini veterans fondly recall the building where they launched their careers

    Jul 14, 2021 9:15 am

    Late nights under deadline. Smoky rooms. Protesters. Eagerly awaiting the roll of the presses. This is part of the history of Illini Hall, which for many years housed the offices of The Daily Illini but is now slated for demolition.

  • 2022 will be a year of change in Illinois politics

    Jul 13, 2021 3:00 pm

    WTAX-FM (July 12) Delaying Illinois' primary to June 28 will allow for Census-delayed congressional map. Professor Brian Gaines says the new date won't really benefit any candidate. But the map, drawn by Democrats, are a different story.

  • Prof. Ting Lu wins €1M Future Insight Prize for turning waste into food

    Jul 13, 2021 10:15 am

    'The winners of this year’s Future Insight Prize have created a ground-breaking technology with the potential to generate a safe, sustainable food source while reducing environmental harms associated with plastic waste and traditional agricultural methods.'

  • Interview with alumnus, astronaut Lee Archambault

    Jul 7, 2021 6:00 pm

    'The research is phenomenal. The instruction is outstanding. The faculty we have here is second to none. This is an engineering program that was always great and it’s even better than it was when I was here. It continues to improve.'

  • Major revamp of SNAP could eliminate food insecurity in the US

    Jul 12, 2021 1:45 pm

    Expanding SNAP benefits and eligibility could eliminate food insecurity in the United States, suggests Craig Gundersen, professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics.

  • Professor's new book: Chasing subscription dollars is bad for journalism

    Jul 12, 2021 1:30 pm

    CNN Business (July 9) With media outlets chasing subscription dollars over advertising dollars, content and coverage skews toward affluent and urban customers who are willing to pay. 

  • Illinois Athletics incentivizes vaccinations with suite sweepstakes

    Jul 12, 2021 1:30 pm

    Get a COVID-19 vaccination before the upcoming football season and you'll have a chance to win a Memorial Stadium suite for the Illinois football season opener against Nebraska on Aug. 28.

  • COVID-19 infections are rising again in parts of Illinois. Here’s where and why.

    Jul 9, 2021 11:15 am

    Chicago Tribune (July 8) 'If you wanted to evolve the virus to be as dangerous as possible, the perfect situation would be to have a large unvaccinated population together with a vaccinated population,' says physics professor Nigel Goldenfeld.

  • Legendary Illini Track & Field Coach Gary Wieneke passes away

    Jul 9, 2021 11:15 am

    On May 22, the new track surface at Demirjian Park was dedicated as Gary R. Wieneke Track. The naming was a joint gift among several of Wieneke's former Fighting Illini student-athletes to show their loyalty and admiration for their head coach.

  • Program eases path to PhDs for those underrepresented in quantitative biology

    Jul 9, 2021 9:00 am

    A bridge program streamlining a path from a master’s degree at Fisk University, a historically Black university in Nashville, to a doctoral degree at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, has received an NIH training grant.

  • How to make cities more livable? Selectively remove pavement

    Jul 8, 2021 11:30 am

    Next City (July 8) Professor Mary Pat McGuire writes that roads and parking lots take up about 30% of city surface. It pollutes waterways through rapid run-off, contributes to flooding, and raises temperatures through the urban heat island effect. 

  • Remembering when the Rolling Stones came to Champaign

    Jul 8, 2021 10:00 am

     Mick Jagger "looked up at the shape of Assembly Hall (now the State Farm Center) and said, ‘I feel like I’ve been swallowed by a giant clam.’”

  • Illini Basketball alum Steve Lanter gives $2.5M to Ubben project

    Jul 8, 2021 9:15 am

    Expansion will add 40,000 square feet and remodel much of the existing building. New coaches' office spaces,  a grand entry, two new half courts, new strength and conditioning space, bigger locker rooms and a state-of-the-art sports medicine area.

  • Carolina Silverbell is latest state champion tree on campus

    Jul 7, 2021 9:15 am

    'Having champions on campus shows the ability of our grounds professionals to carefully tend to their needs over many decades of time, ultimately allowing them to grow into the great specimens that we often take for granted.'

  • In fossilized dinosaur poop, scientists find hidden treasure

    Jul 7, 2021 8:30 am

    CNN (July 2) 'Insect fossils of this type, preserved in three-dimensions like this, are practically unheard of from the Triassic (period), so this discovery is very important,' says Sam Heads, director of the Center for Paleontology at the U. of I.

  • New book argues local newspapers bear brunt of media's increasing elitism

    Jul 6, 2021 11:45 am

    A new book by U of I journalism professor Nikki Usher examines how the news media, and local newspapers in particular, are becoming increasingly focused on serving wealthy, white and politically liberal news consumers.

  • Protein ‘big bang’ reveals molecular makeup for medicine, bioengineering

    Jul 2, 2021 9:00 am

    A new study from Illinois researchers maps the evolutionary history of protein domains over 3.8 billion years. 'This could help identify, for example, why structural variations and genomic recombinations occur often in SARS-CoV-2.'

  • 120 Illini student-athletes named Big Ten Distinguished Scholars

    Jul 2, 2021 9:45 am

    Distinguished Scholar Award recipients have each earned Academic All-Big Ten recognition and earned a minimum GPA of 3.70 or better during the previous academic year.

  • U of I receives APLU award for COVID-19 testing program

    Jul 1, 2021 2:30 pm

    The APLU honored the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign for its COVID-19 testing protocol with the first Research Response to Community Crisis Award.

  • Black and Latinx hairdressers exposed to high levels of phthalates

    Jul 1, 2021 11:15 am

    Environmental Health News (July 1) 'It's really concerning because a lot of hairdressers are reproductive-age women, and there's lots of research out there to suggest that there are risks from prenatal exposure to phthalates,' says Professor Susan Schantz.

  • Where have all the entry-level professional jobs gone?

    Jul 1, 2021 9:30 am

     'It’s far cheaper for a big law firm to hold an online meeting with lawyers in India and have them write a legal document overnight while the partners in the U.S. are sleeping than to pay young lawyers in the firm to write it.'

  • Illinois artist's virtual 'Museum of Us' lets everyone tell their stories

    Jul 1, 2021 8:00 am

    Artist Jorge Lucero invited people from around the world to meet via Zoom and share an object that was important in their lives – turning the grid of video teleconferencing boxes into a cabinet of curiosities.

  • Illinois college athletes can now hire agents, sign endorsement deals

    Jun 30, 2021 11:30 am

    Chicago Tribune (June 29) '(Name, image and likeness) legislation represents the most dramatic, meaningful change to come to the collegiate model since the adoption of athletic scholarships back in the early 1950s,' U of I Athletic Director Josh Whitman said.

  • Frequent COVID-19 testing key to efficient, early detection, study finds

    Jun 30, 2021 9:30 am

    Study: The chance of detecting the COVID-19 virus increases with more frequent testing, no matter the type of test. Used every 3 days with rapid reporting, both polymerase chain reaction and antigen tests can achieve 98% sensitivity.

  • Illini to host Notre Dame in Big Ten/ACC Challenge

    Jun 30, 2021 9:00 am

    2021 Big Ten/ACC Men's Basketball Challenge pairings have been announced, with Illinois set to host Notre Dame on Nov. 29. Illinois was victorious in its most recent Big Ten/ACC Challenge contest, has a 9-13 all-time record in the Challenge.

  • How do July 4 celebrations affect wildlife?

    Jun 30, 2021 8:45 am

    'Fireworks can incite flight responses and disorientation in (birds)... In one documented example, birds flew so far out to sea that there was no possibility they would be able to make the return trip,' writes Professor Sam Sander.

  • Consistent bedtime routines in infancy improve children's sleep habits through age 2

    Jun 29, 2021 2:45 pm

    Consistent bedtime routines and activities such as reading books and cuddling with caregivers beginning when infants are 3 months old promote better sleep habits through age 2, a recent study suggests.

  • Illini athletes dominate Team USA roster for Tokyo Paralympics

    Jun 28, 2021 9:45 am

    18 Illini have been chosen to represent Team USA in the Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, and that number could rise as the women's wheelchair basketball team has not yet been selected.