blog posts Bridging the gap between medicine and literature Feb 14, 2018 10:15 am 'Nowadays, you have a separation between the humanities departments and the sciences, but up until the 18th century that was not the case,' says Professor Stephanie Hilger Oncology dietitians rarely ask cancer patients about food insecurity, study finds Feb 14, 2022 9:00 am Despite awareness that many cancer patients are food insecure, most of the registered dietitian nutritionists interviewed by U of I researchers said they did not use a validated tool to screen patients for it. Social media as good a barometer of public health attitudes as traditional phone polling Feb 15, 2018 10:45 am 'People aren’t afraid to go public and crowd-source their health concerns.' Illinois psychology professor Dolores Albarracin Future of US citrus may hinge on consumer acceptance of genetically modified food Feb 15, 2019 4:45 am The battle to save the citrus industry is pitting crop producers and a team of agriculture researchers against a formidable brown bug, the Asian citrus psyllid, which spreads the disease. Project tracks how stories of racial violence spread, were reported Feb 15, 2023 8:30 am Professor Ryan Cordell is leading a project to examine how stories of racial violence circulated in late 19th century and early 20th century newspapers and how those stories relate to trends in contemporary social media. Livestock donations to Zambian households yield higher income, improved diet Feb 16, 2016 12:15 pm Giving livestock to poor families in Zambia increases household income by about 25 percent. And, communities that receive livestock report more dietary diversity. Study links prolonged sedentary time to distractibility in obese, overweight adults Feb 17, 2021 8:45 am Adding to the evidence linking sedentary behaviors and cognition, the study found that individuals who spent more sedentary time in bouts lasting 20 minutes or more were less able to overcome distractions. Study examines Teach For America’s impact on costs, hiring Feb 19, 2016 10:30 am A new study led by T. Jameson Brewer examines Teach For America’s influence on teacher hiring practices and costs at five major school districts in the U.S. Emancipated blacks often targeted for relocation to the tropics Feb 19, 2018 11:00 am Every significant emancipation of black enslaved people came with efforts to move the freed people off the continent, says Illinois professor Ikuko Asaka Portrayals of doctors in comics have become more realistic, nuanced Feb 20, 2018 9:45 am In contemporary comics, doctors finally get away from being stark heroes or villians, more lilely to show human uncertainty, ethical struggles Illinois part of new center focused on vector-borne disease Feb 21, 2017 10:00 pm The CDC is providing $10 million over five years to the new Upper Midwestern Center of Excellence in Vector Borne Diseases. Of that, $1.8 million will fund work at Illinois, led by Dr. Marilyn O’Hara Ruiz at Vet Med. Graphic images may not scare smokers off cigarettes, says study Feb 22, 2016 9:45 am Graphic warning labels on cigarette packages, like these approved for use in the U.S., may not have the desired effect, according to a University of Illinois study. Water filtration membranes morph like cells Feb 23, 2022 1:15 pm The new study by Grainger Engineering researchers is the first to demonstrate nanoscale morphogenesis in a synthetic material. The study is published in the journal Science Advances. Project will help researchers explore big data in HathiTrust digitized library Feb 24, 2016 10:45 am A project funded by the Mellon Foundation, will help researchers use a vast amount of digitized texts without violating copyright laws. Start-up aims to bring high-speed wireless communications to the subsea industry Feb 24, 2017 8:15 am OceanComm, a start-up founded by an Illinois alumnus and a professor in the Coordinated Sciences Lab, developing a new technology that uses ultrasound to wirelessly transmit data from the ocean floor. Short-term climate modeling forecasts drought for Southeast US Feb 25, 2021 9:15 am Drought forecasting, typically performed at the multi-decade scale, is getting a makeover by Illinois researchers who focus on short-term models that stress the urgency of drought risk in the U.S. to help inform policymakers now. Study links responsible behavior in high school to life success 50 years later Feb 26, 2018 8:45 am Above and beyond other factors known to influence life success, responsible behavior and interest in high school correspond to economic and career success 50 years later Paper: Carbon taxes could create new winners and losers among countries Feb 26, 2019 9:00 am A global carbon tax would create new sets of economic winners and losers, with some countries holding a distinct competitive advantage over others, says Professor Don Fullerton. Scientists seeking rare river crayfish aren't just kicking rocks Feb 27, 2018 8:30 am Scientists use an established method, kick-seining, and a newer technique, environmental DNA, to study a rare crayfish in the Eleven Point River Giant sloth tooth in Belize tells story of creature’s last year Feb 27, 2019 2:45 pm Anthropology professor Lisa Lucero and colleagues discovered the remains of an extinct giant sloth. An analysis of the sloth tooth offers insight into the climate and environment of the region 27,000 years ago. Children’s education included 'mechanical literacy' in the industrial age Feb 27, 2024 10:30 am In her new book, information sciences professor Elizabeth Hoiem examines how children’s literature and material culture responded to industrialization and shaped the class politics of playful learning. Clouds are brighter near Antarctica. How does that affect climate? Feb 28, 2018 10:15 am Brighter clouds reflect more sunlight back to space, which 'means the energy balance over the Southern Ocean is different than the energy balance over everywhere else' Paper: Videos help medical students master physiology concepts Feb 28, 2018 12:30 pm Creating short videos that explain information presented during physiology lectures makes teaching easier for medical educators and learning easier for their students Study: Pro-worker ideas in political platforms resonate with voters Feb 28, 2022 9:00 am A study that covered 54 countries and more than 1,100 political parties found that parties whose manifestos contained a greater percentages of pro-worker ideas were more appealing to voters. Is conservation aid preventing deforestation? Mar 1, 2016 1:15 pm Study finds conservation aid alone has not been able to counteract deforestation pressures, and in some cases may have even exacerbated forest loss. Hand-picked specialty crops ‘ripe’ for precision agriculture techniques Mar 2, 2017 10:45 am “A hundred acres of corn may have a value of just $800,000, while the same number of acres planted in strawberries may be worth $7.5 million. Yet, strawberry harvesters use little to no precision agriculture techniques..." Study maps landmarks of peripheral artery disease to guide treatment development Mar 2, 2020 8:45 am A new study from U of I researchers identifies major landmarks of peripheral artery disease recovery, creating signposts for researchers seeking to understand the disease and develop treatments. Study offers clearest picture yet of how HIV defeats a cellular defender Mar 4, 2016 10:15 am A new study offers the first atomic-scale view of an interaction between the HIV capsid – the protein coat that shepherds HIV into the nucleus of human cells – and a host protein known as cyclophilin A. Job of a Congress member not one size fits all, authors find Mar 6, 2018 11:00 am Researchers defined five distinct ways legislators go about their jobs: ‘policy specialist,’ ‘party soldier,’ ‘district advocate,’ ‘party builder’ and ‘ambitious entrepreneur’ Study: Eating avocados daily improves attention in overweight, obese persons Mar 6, 2020 9:30 am A diet including daily avocado consumption improves the ability to focus attention in adults whose measurements of height and weight are categorized as overweight or obese, a new randomized control trial found. Giant reed is a photosynthetic outlier, study finds Mar 7, 2016 12:00 pm “We confirmed that giant reed uses C3, a less efficient type of photosynthesis, and yet it’s really productive. We just had to find out how.” Pediatric onset multiple sclerosis study examines baffling, often-overlooked disease Mar 7, 2019 1:15 pm Children often present with very different symptoms than adults, such as vision changes and memory and attention deficits, complicating diagnosis. Measuring the full economic impact of natural disasters Mar 8, 2018 12:45 pm The ripple effects from a disaster can be significant if major industrial chains are disrupted when infrastructure is comprised Study: Impact of food waste campaigns muted, but point toward right direction Mar 8, 2019 9:45 am New research indicates that the impact of a food waste-education campaign produced a modest reduction in the average waste per diner in an all-you-can-eat dining setting. Cheap, nontoxic carbon nanodots poised to be quantum dots of the future Mar 8, 2021 2:45 pm Illinois researchers have demonstrated that economical carbon-based quantum dots emit enough light when excited to eventually replace the expensive and toxic metal quantum dots used in many health and electronics applications. Study: Medicare prescription drug benefit reduced elderly mortality by more than 2% Mar 9, 2017 11:15 am A new paper co-written by a University of Illinois expert in health care economics provides the first evidence that the increase in drug utilization attributable to Medicare Part D saved lives. Veterans see positive changes in emotional resilience after intervention Mar 9, 2021 8:30 am A six-week training program designed to strengthen resilience against emotional distress in military veterans was associated with positive changes in brain function and increased confidence in their ability to regulate emotions. Study: Private investment in California’s solar industry increases climate vulnerabilities Mar 9, 2022 11:45 am Solar energy development in California depends on large-scale infrastructure to attract private investment, but that makes it more vulnerable to climate extremes, according to a study led by urban and regional planning professor Sean Kennedy. Spending on public higher ed overlooks net benefits as investment in state’s future Mar 10, 2016 10:00 am Considering higher education funding as an investment that lowers state welfare and prison costs, generates tax revenues and leads to economic growth in the future could reframe the debate. Scholar: 'The Wire' accurately depicted how public schools help vulnerable students Mar 11, 2019 10:15 am What HBO's popular TV show got right and wrong in its depiction of how a large, urban public school functions in a community. 'Hunker down' stress genes boosted in women who live in violent neighborhoods Mar 11, 2021 9:45 am The chronic stress of living in neighborhoods with high rates of violence and poverty alters gene activity in immune cells, according to a new study of low-income single Black mothers on the South Side of Chicago. Study yields new cyclic compounds, some with pharmaceutical potential Mar 12, 2018 8:45 am One of the newly generated compounds interferes with the binding of an HIV protein to a human protein, an interaction vital to the virus’s life cycle Mutations in noncoding genes could play big role in regulating cancer, study finds Mar 12, 2019 2:00 pm Professor Kannanganattu Prasanth led a team that found that certain genes that don’t code for proteins could play an important regulatory role in breast cancer. Paper: Changes in NFL mirror changes in modern workplace Mar 14, 2018 10:30 am As the nascent NFL emerged from the company-sponsored teams of the early 20th century, it has maintained its connection to work and the workplace Historian’s new book tells neglected history of black gay men Mar 15, 2016 12:30 pm Black gay men were largely missing in both black and gay history, so Kevin Mumford, who specializes in both, set out to tell their story. Study links sulfide-producing bacteria and colon cancer in African-Americans Mar 15, 2017 9:30 am A new study reveals that African-Americans have measurable differences in the number and type of bacteria that live in the colon – and those differences are related to their higher-than-average colon cancer risk. Why do we lose muscle as we age? Mar 16, 2017 10:00 am The good news is that Beckman researcher Marni Boppart is on the job, examining why muscle loss occurs and looking for ways to rejuvenate muscle. Two hormones drive anemonefish fathering, aggression Mar 16, 2020 8:45 am Because of similarities in brain structure between fish and humans, the findings offer insight into the fundamental nature of parental care, U of I researchers say. Greenhouse gas emissions in Global South countries linked with IMF lending policies Mar 19, 2024 12:45 pm Sociology professor Matthew Soener's study found that Global South countries' greenhouse gas emissions rose after borrowing from the International Monetary Fund using a structural loan, and rose even faster with additional loans. Team nebulizes aphids to knock down gene expression Mar 20, 2017 8:00 am The new method of delivering “interfering RNA” in a mist will likely speed the process of discovering the function of many mystery genes in insects