blog posts Tucked away in rural Illinois: Site of America’s first town founded by a free Black man Feb 12, 2021 10:45 am Chicago Tribune (Opinion; Feb. 12) A great-great-grandson of town founder Free Frank McWorter, now a retired Illinois professor, said he wonders: How many Black people are part of the national story? Without photosynthesis, ozone, and a molecule called Rubisco, we wouldn't exist Feb 18, 2021 11:15 am NOVA (Feb. 17) Groundbreaking U. of I. researchers have spent decades teasing apart the workings of photosynthesis. They explain why Rubisco is not perfect, but it is arguably the most important enzyme on the planet. Study produces staggering estimate of soil depletion from Midwest farming Feb 25, 2021 9:00 am NPR (Feb. 24) Other soil scientists are skeptical. Illinois professor Michelle Wander says the study relies on a series of assumptions to fill in gaps in the data, and those assumptions probably overestimate topsoil loss. Could learning to dance the minuet or fandango help to protect our brains from aging? Mar 30, 2017 3:15 pm New York Times (March29) Illinois researchers look at the effects of several different types of exercise on the wiring and the function of older people’s brains. You don’t have to type anymore: Welcome to the golden age of voice dictation Apr 9, 2024 1:30 pm The Atlantic (April 8) 'For a long time, we were making gradual, incremental progress, and then suddenly things started to get better much faster,' says U of I electrical and computer engineering professor Mark Hasegawa-Johnson. Alum's $50M gift establishes Siebel School of Computing and Data Science Apr 26, 2024 10:30 am Forbes (April 25) 'By supporting cutting-edge research and fostering innovation, we hope to empower future generations of leaders in technology and society, driving positive change in our world,' said benefactor Tom Siebel. Book feeds climate doubters, but scientists say its outdated conclusions mislead May 5, 2021 10:45 am Inside Climate News (May 4) '(Author Steven Koonin) just takes potshots. He pulls one figure out of context and then makes a whole chapter on it,' says Don Wuebbles, a world renowned atmospheric scientist at the U. of I. Illinois leads nation in tornadoes this year, nearly twice above state average May 9, 2023 2:00 pm WGN-TV (Chicago, May 8) – A study from Illinois suggests that twisters are most frequent in the state between April and June from 3-7 p.m. How much noise is too much when you're working in a coffee shop? Jun 5, 2018 10:00 am Raconteur (June 4) Illinois professor's research found that moderate levels of noise in coffee shops can help creativity, but when noise levels exceed 85 decibels, information processing and creativity drop Cesar Pelli, alumnus and designer of Petronas Twin Towers, dies Jul 22, 2019 1:45 pm New York Times (July 20) Pelli, 92, an Illinois alumnus whose towers altered the silhouettes of the skylines around the world, died Friday at his home in New Haven, Connecticut. When will U of I's rapid saliva test for COVID-19 see wider rollout? Sep 4, 2020 11:15 am Daily Herald (Sept. 3) Locations, personnel and equipment are the short answers. 'It's a bit of a race for which one of the locations can pull all the things together first,' says Ron Watkins, managing director of Shield Illinois. Beyond CA Gov's recall vote: Case for legislative reform instead of judicial intervention Sep 10, 2021 12:15 pm Verdict (Sept. 10) 'It is pretty clear that courts aren’t going to insert themselves...into the California gubernatorial recall process. But that doesn’t mean the process shouldn’t be reformed,' writes College of Law Dean Vikram Amar. Each day, the U of I conducts roughly 2% of COVID tests in the U.S. Sep 11, 2020 12:30 pm CBS News (Sept. 10) Professor Marty Burke and colleagues designed an aggressive testing program to allow the university to reopen this fall. Some experts say it should be a model for the rest of the country. Amazon taps U. of I. as artificial intelligence race heats up Sep 11, 2023 11:30 am Chicago Sun Times (Sept. 22) “We want the system to have a sort of brain, a knowledge base … so that it can be more knowledgeable than a lot of humans, for example, and the conversation can be more informative,” says AICE director Heng Ji. Exercise increases your focus, and a short brisk walk will do Nov 2, 2015 11:00 am Fast Company (Nov. 2) - A study from Illinois found that physical activity increases cognitive control. U.S. firm to build world’s largest GenAI platform exclusively for health Nov 8, 2023 2:00 pm The Hindu (Nov. 8) Vizzhy Inc. has decided to invest over $12.5 million in a center to investigate metabolic diseases led by Narendra Ahuja, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Illinois. UI School of Art and Design seeking $111 million for expansion Nov 15, 2023 10:00 am News-Gazette (Nov. 14) The $111 million request would cover both this addition and renovations to the original Art and Design building, which has not seen a major overhaul since its construction in the late ’50s. Researchers struggle as Illinois Soybean Association turns away from universities Nov 27, 2018 11:00 am Herald & Review (Decatur, Ill., Nov. 26) – Nathan Kleczewski, a field crop pathologist at Illinois, sees long-term risks in the Illinois Soybean Association’s shift away from funding university research. Chicago tech's diversity problem starts in college Dec 2, 2021 9:15 am Crain’s Chicago Business (Dec. 1) Dean Rashid Bashir says diversity is a real challenge. 'We need to work harder with high schools, community colleges to prepare the students (with) the STEM and math background to get admitted into our college.' Ant that drinks the blood of its own young to survive named the world’s fastest animal Dec 12, 2018 11:15 am ABC Australia (Dec. 12) According to a study by the University of Illinois, the Dracula ant (Mystrium camillae) can snap its jaws 5,000 times faster than the blink of a human eye 'Juiced ball' report finds manufacturing subtleties affecting MLB baseballs Dec 13, 2019 10:30 am New York Daily News (Dec. 11) 60% of the surge in home runs was attributable to a decrease in drag and 40% to a change in 'launch conditions,' says Alan Nathan, Illinois' expert on the physics of baseball. Student housing has a new mantra: Bigger is better Feb 14, 2024 9:00 am The New York Times (Feb. 9) Core Space’s Hub opened a block from the U. of I. in 2021, catering to students by offering a rooftop sun deck and pool, a barbecue area and a fitness center with a sauna. Affordable, adaptable houses for first-time homeowners Apr 22, 2021 10:30 am Forbes (April 21) The U. of I.’s Solar Decathlon 2020 entry focused on a growing market of young professional homeowners seeking an affordable home that can adapt to their growing needs. It's called the ADAPTHAUS. Big universities face admissions dilemma if Supreme Court kills affirmative action Jun 9, 2023 11:00 am Crain’s Chicago Business (June 9) 'The biggest pressure point that we face right now is due to timing because the decision is going to come out this month and we will open admissions in September,' says U of I's Andy Borst. Scare tactics: Scary first proposal increases chance less extreme version is accepted Jul 26, 2019 11:00 am 'Presenting a fear appeal more than doubles the probability of change relative to not presenting anything or presenting a low-fear appeal,' says Illinois professor Dolores Albarracin Meat on the menu, not the agenda, at COP27 climate conference Nov 15, 2022 12:45 pm Reuters (Nov. 15) Activists at the climate summit in Egypt will pressure policymakers to acknowledge the role of meat, dairy in global warming. Livestock are responsible for about 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a U of I led study. U of I's Discovery Partners Institute testing wastewater to monitor COVID outbreaks Dec 23, 2021 10:15 am Crain's Chicago (Dec. 22) Health departments are using wastewater to identify hotspots of the virus, detectable in human waste nearly from the onset of infection. U.N. resolution, smart city concept, Ohio train derailment twisted into baseless plot Feb 27, 2023 11:45 am PolitiFact (Feb. 24) 'The claim that the U.N., which has no power anyway, wants to force victims of environmental disasters to live in panopticon societies is absurd on its face,' says U of I professor Robert Olshansky. The campus tour for high school students has gone digital Mar 9, 2021 1:00 pm U of I has asked prospective students not to come in person, and instead use online tours. The policy aims to keep current students safe, says admissions director Andy Borst, 'and hopefully we are demonstrating that we prioritize our students.' A double emergence of periodical cicadas isn’t cicada-geddon—it’s a marvel Mar 12, 2024 11:00 am Scientific American (March 11) 'I’ve been looking forward to this for years,' says U of I entomologist Catherine Dana. 'We have two different broods emerging in the same state, and that’s a very rare thing.' Jimmy Kimmel's joke about Melania Trump's accent hurts all immigrants Apr 11, 2018 3:30 pm Chicago Tribune (April 10) Illinois professor Annie Abbot writes that the Kimmel/Hannity Twitter spat about Melania Trump reflects the wrong reasons for laughing at someone’s accent Chicago mayor-elect Brandon Johnson joins picket line at Chicago State University Apr 11, 2023 12:15 pm Crain’s Chicago Business (April 10) 'It would certainly be consistent with Johnson’s values to be out there, and this is probably a departure from what we’ve seen, quite frankly, from other mayors,' says U of I labor expert Robert Bruno.. Nitrate levels in the Illinois river - from farm fertilizer, treated wastewater - have fallen May 24, 2016 11:45 am AG Web (May 23) - Illinois researchers believe one likely factor, the use of newer, more robust varieties of corn, could make the drop a long-lasting one. IBM joins effort to build $200M AI, cloud, quantum discovery accelerator at U of I May 27, 2021 11:00 am 'These technologies are going to change the future. We want to be at the forefront of that with a world leader like IBM and making that impact,' said Grainger College of Engineering Dean Rashid Bashir. As the suburbs go, so goes America Jun 7, 2023 3:45 pm The New York Times (June 7) 'Since 1970, the share of Black individuals living in suburbs of large cities has risen from 16 to 36%,' write Alexander W. Bartik and Evan Mast, economists at the U. of I. and Notre Dame. As teacher shortage worsens, Illinois schools cast wary eye on fall reopening Jul 12, 2022 10:15 am Chicago Tribune (July 12) 'When teachers are saying, "I can go to Amazon and make $22 an hour – I’m out of here," how do we respond?' says Nancy Latham, associate dean for the College of Education at U of I. The short, spectacular life of the viral room-temperature superconductivity claim Aug 9, 2023 11:15 am Science (Washington, D.C., Aug. 8) 'I appreciate that the authors took appropriate data and were clear about their fabrication techniques,' says U. of I. physics professor Nadya Mason. Still, she cautions, 'The data seems a bit sloppy.' Obama to urge rejection of 'authoritarian politics and policies' in speech Aug 31, 2018 2:30 pm The Hill (Aug. 30) Obama will receive the University of Illinois' Paul H. Douglas Award for Ethics in Government during a ceremony on Sept. 7 Colleges learn how to suppress coronavirus: Extensive testing Oct 2, 2020 12:15 pm New York Times (Oct. 2) '(U of I is) showing how you can keep a state school open during this pandemic, and that’s something people can copy - if it lasts,' says Carl Bergstrom, a University of Washington infectious-disease expert. My Thanksgiving: How testifying for Native Americans made me a witness to history Nov 28, 2022 10:45 am Salon (Nov. 24) 'I’m a scholar of Native American history,' writes Frederick Hoxie, a professor emeritus of history, law and American Indian studies at Illinois. 'But my real education came from working with Native people in the present.' UW Madison students will test twice weekly for COVID next semester Dec 15, 2020 9:45 am Wisconsin State Journal (Dec. 12) – The campus recently signed a contract with Shield T3, a subsidiary of the University of Illinois, to significantly increase its testing capacity with rapid, saliva-based tests. 3M plant in Illinois was nation's worst emitter of climate-killing ‘immortal’ chemical in '21 Jan 3, 2023 11:30 am Inside Climate News (Dec. 29) 'Any emissions of CF4 are going to drive further climate change and lead to things that are going to affect our planet for many, many thousands of years.' says Professor Donald Wuebbles. Perennial rice: Plant once, harvest again and again Mar 27, 2023 10:45 am NPR (March 27) – Illinois crop sciences professor Erik Sacks, who helped develop perennial rice over the last two decades, discusses how perennial grains could bring huge environmental benefits and be a boon for farmers. Baseball has served as a means of assimilation for waves of U.S. immigrants Apr 13, 2016 12:30 pm Jewish Journal (April 7) - Illinois' Adrian Bourgos says Latinos benefited from the rich baseball history in the Caribbean nations. NASA funds research on hydrogen-powered aircraft May 15, 2019 12:45 pm U. of I. researchers are leading a newly funded project from NASA to develop a novel approach for all-electric aircraft. Denial of institutional racism linked to anti-Black prejudice, U of I study says May 24, 2022 11:00 am UPI (May 23) 'The denial of structural racism appears to be a big barrier to racial equity because it allows for more victim-blaming explanations of systemic inequality,' says doctoral student, study leader Jacqueline Yi. Proceed with caution on central bank digital currency Jun 2, 2021 10:15 am Washington Post (June 1) 'There is a legitimate market for privacy of transactions,' says U. of I. economist Charles Kahn. 'Bitcoin is in this market. The providers of stored value cards are in this market. To a certain extent, PayPal is in this market...' Hunger expected to explode throughout America because of COVID-19 Jun 12, 2020 1:45 pm YourSun.com (June 11) 'It took 10 years for food insecurity rates to recover to pre-(2009) recession numbers, but by the end of 2020, we will have wiped out any gains in hunger we made,' U of I professor Craig Gunderson said. COVID-19 took a big toll in Illinois. Will deaths surge again? Jul 20, 2020 11:15 am Chicago Tribune (July 20) – A group that includes U of I researchers Nigel Goldenfeld and Sergei Maslov finds that Illinois could run out of hospital beds by the fall if the state doesn’t limit the number of so-called super-spreader encounters. People tend to overestimate or underestimate COVID risk Aug 12, 2021 11:15 am The Conversation (Aug. 12) Professor Sheldon Jacobson writes that emotion is a big part of how you assess risk - and why it's so hard to be objective about pandemic precautions.