News Bureau

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Time is running out to employ a mitigation strategy that would avert severe global damage from climate change, a University of Illinois energy policy expert says.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - As mutual funds continue to gobble up a larger portion of equities, the influence they exert over corporate governance has likewise increased.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A labor dispute serves the NCAA's interests better than an antitrust lawsuit, which could potentially cost the governing body for college athletes millions of dollars in monetary damages, says a University of Illinois expert in labor relations and collective bargaining in athletics.

A Minute With™...

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - New research from two University of Illinois economics professors who study election trends analyzes how polarization on social issues affects competing candidates' economic platforms.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Raising the minimum wage in Illinois to $10 per hour would reduce income inequality, increase consumer demand and grow the state economy, according to a new study from a University of Illinois labor expert.

The U. of I. Flash Index fell in February to 106.8 from its 107.2 level in January. The index has remained in a narrow range from 106.5 to 107.2 since July of last year, demonstrating how slow the recovery from the recession has been in Illinois.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A seemingly innocuous proposal that would allow litigants to withhold evidence during the pre-trial phase of a lawsuit could make it easier for large corporations to conceal information in lawsuits, according to a University of Illinois expert in civil procedure.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A little more than a third of the world's population lives on less per day than the amount of money most Americans spend on their morning cup of coffee. That fact alone should make understanding and alleviating poverty crucial to the development of sustainable marketplaces, a University of Illinois business professor says in a recently published e-book.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The viability of the bioenergy crops industry could be strengthened by regulatory efforts to address nonpoint source pollution from agricultural sources. That, in turn, means that the industry should be strategic in developing metrics that measure the ability to enact positive changes in agricultural landscapes, particularly through second-generation perennial crops, according to a paper by a University of Illinois expert in bioenergy law.

A Minute With™... employment and labor relations professor Michael LeRoy

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - With the hangover from the Great Recession still lingering, the specter of job loss continues to loom for most workers.

A Minute With™... Peter Schiffer, a professor of physics and the vice chancellor for research

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Global business leaders must adapt their behavior to the country in which they are doing business or risk being perceived as ineffective and unable to handle complexity, change and ambiguity, says a paper co-written by a University of Illinois business professor.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Firms can manage their sourcing better by developing relationships not only with their suppliers but also with their suppliers' suppliers, according to two papers co-written by a University of Illinois expert in supply chain management.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Mounting state budget deficits as well as debt from underfunded pensions have prompted calls for the repeal of Illinois' prevailing wage provisions for publicly financed construction projects in order to save taxpayer money.

A Minute With™... finance professor Jeffrey R. Brown

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - In addition to its already well-documented negative direct effects on a person's well-being, materialism also wields an indirect negative effect by making bad events even worse, according to a paper co-written by a University of Illinois expert in consumption values.

A Minute With™... Robert Bruno, a professor of labor and employment relations

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The number of lawsuits generated by so-called "patent trolls" is wildly exaggerated, and is mostly the byproduct of a slight change to a federal law, says a new paper co-written by a University of Illinois expert in technology and legal issues.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The ever-increasing adoption of digital surveillance technologies by local police departments may dramatically improve the efficiency of criminal investigations, but it also creates the opportunity for abuse and misuse, a University of Illinois expert in criminal law and information privacy says.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Although it may not receive high marks these days as a public body, Congress should actually be empowered so it can uphold the constitutional checks and balances that help to curb overreach by the other two branches of government, a University of Illinois expert in administrative law says in a newly published paper.

A Minute With™... UI economist Craig Gundersen

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - As older workers increasingly contemplate delaying retirement or putting it off entirely, they should also consider the financial-planning options available in Social Security, Medicare and employment-based retirement plans such as IRAs and 401(k) accounts, says a University of Illinois expert on taxation and retirement benefits.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Congress should minimally modify - and not, as petroleum-related interests have increasingly lobbied for, repeal - the Renewable Fuel Standard, the most comprehensive renewable energy policy in the U.S., according to a new paper from two University of Illinois researchers.

A Minute With™...  former coach Don Hardin and sports economist Scott Tainsky, both  faculty members in recreation, sport and tourism

A Minute With™... law professor Sean M. Anderson 

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A study co-written by a University of Illinois pension policy expert warns that the financial risks facing the government-sponsored corporation that insures all private-sector pension plans in the U.S. are much greater than commonly thought.

A Minute With™... Steven Ashby, a professor of labor and employment relations

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - An empirical study of employee benefits litigation from 2006 to 2010 reveals that cases involving long-term disability claims accounted for over 60 percent of all federal cases among five broad categories, including health care, life and accidental death, and pension cases.

A Minute With™... Christopher Z. Mooney, the director of the Institute of Government and Public Affairs

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Casinos in the state of Illinois want to keep their roulette wheels spinning 24 hours a day, but a leading national gambling critic warns that round-the-clock gambling could be disastrous for the Land of Lincoln.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A disagreement among state courts on the subject of drunk-driving homicide can be resolved by requiring the prosecution to prove in these cases not that the driver's intoxication caused the fatal accident, but merely that it contributed to the causal mechanism behind the accident, says a forthcoming paper by a University of Illinois expert on criminal law.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - When evaluating the performance of a brand in a certain territory, it might be more appropriate to evaluate it against its local competitors as opposed to its performance in other territories, according to research from a University of Illinois expert in business strategy.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Although planning for a comfortable retirement is a mainstay of public discussion, far less attention has been paid to the tax consequences of generating retirement income, says a University of Illinois expert on taxation and retirement benefits.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The contrasting incentives of employers and employees under the Affordable Care Act ultimately may result in increased employee harassment and retaliation claims, two University of Illinois law professors say in a paper they co-wrote.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A new book from a University of Illinois expert in crimes against rare books tells the real-life story of the biggest score in rare-book theft and the dogged hunt for the perpetrators by the special investigator of the New York Public Library.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Thanks to a new $2 million investment, a drug that spurs cancer cells to self-destruct while sparing healthy cells is on the road to human clinical trials. The compound, known as PAC-1, has so far proven safe and has promising anti-cancer effects in cell culture, in mouse models of cancer and in pet dogs with spontaneously occurring lymphomas and osteosarcomas.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The economy in Illinois may have finally emerged from the depths of the Great Recession, but it hasn't rebounded fast enough to reach pre-recessionary levels of output, wages and employment, according to a new study from a University of Illinois labor expert.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - In order to keep pace with the burgeoning demand for renewable energy, forest management policy in the U.S. must change to address environmental sustainability issues, according to an article by a University of Illinois expert in bioenergy law.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - When Web surfers sign up for a new online service or download a Web application for their smartphone or tablet, the service typically requires them to click a seemingly innocuous box and accept the company's terms of service and privacy policy. But agreeing to terms without reading them beforehand can adversely affect a user's legal rights, says a new paper by a University of Illinois expert in technology and legal issues.

A Minute With™... Don Fullerton, a finance professor and energy policy expert

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Budget and pension woes in Illinois are inextricably linked to giveaways to "Big Gambling," a University of Illinois expert in legal policy says.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -Well-intentioned policies to make achieving tenure more family-friendly actually have negative consequences for the salaries of college faculty members, a study co-written by a University of Illinois labor and employment relations professor shows.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Obama administration's controversial proposal to "means-test" Medicare recipients is ostensibly aimed at generating more cash for the government from those who can afford it - or squeezing more money out of upper-income seniors, depending upon one's point of view. But according to a University of Illinois expert on retirement benefits, the Medicare program is already means-tested.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - When designing product lines, one important decision marketing and manufacturing managers must consider is whether to use common or product-specific components. While the use of common components can reduce manufacturing costs, firms have traditionally shied away from that strategy over concerns of intensifying what scholars call "product cannibalization."

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - For companies with employees around the globe, the challenges of distance, diversity and technology may threaten team cohesiveness among their long-distance workers. But according to a new study by a University of Illinois business professor, out of sight doesn't necessarily have to mean out of mind for virtual teams.

U. of I. President Bob Easter has joined 14 other state university presidents in endorsing an alternative pension plan for employees within the State Universities Retirement System.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The quality of the social relationships that newly hired people develop with other employees in their work groups is critical to newcomers' job satisfaction, learning their responsibilities and their ability to fit in to the workplace culture, a new study suggests.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The stereotype of lawyers being bad with numbers may persist, but new research by two University of Illinois legal scholars suggests that law students are surprisingly good at math, although those with low levels of numeracy analyze some legal questions differently.