EPA decides to reject the latest science, endanger public health and ignore the law by keeping an outdated fine particle air pollution standard

After a 5-year review, the EPA is leaving US standards for fine particle air pollution unchanged, even though recent studies suggest that tightening them could save thousands of lives yearly.

H. Christopher Frey, Glenn E. Futrell Distinguished University Professor of Environmental Engineering, North Carolina State University • conversation
May 1, 2020 • ~9 min

How the Trump administration accidentally insured over 200,000 through Obamacare

The idea, says our experts, was to shut down Obamacare. But it didn't work out that way. This could take on more importance as the number of uninsured swells due to coronavirus.

David Anderson, Health policy research scientist, Duke University • conversation
April 28, 2020 • ~7 min

Lethargic global response to COVID-19: How the human brain's failure to assess abstract threats cost us dearly

Human beings have difficulty assessing distant threats.

Cristian Capotescu, Doctoral Candidate, Department of History, University of Michigan • conversation
April 27, 2020 • ~6 min

BP paid a steep price for the Gulf oil spill but for the US a decade later, it's business as usual

The Deepwater Horizon disaster set new records for holding polluters to account. But it had much less impact on laws regulating offshore drilling or US oil dependence.

David M. Uhlmann, Jeffrey F. Liss Professor from Practice and Director, Environmental Law and Policy Program, University of Michigan • conversation
April 23, 2020 • ~8 min

A decade after the Deepwater Horizon explosion, offshore drilling is still unsafe

The BP Deepwater Horizon blowout on April 20, 2010 triggered the largest offshore oil spill in history. Ten years later, post-spill reforms are being undone and the Gulf of Mexico remains vulnerable.

Donald Boesch, Professor of Marine Science, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science • conversation
April 10, 2020 • ~9 min

Broad Institute races to enable coronavirus testing

Facing a pandemic, scientific and administrative teams across the Broad Institute raced to enable coronavirus testing in a matter of days.

Leah Eisenstadt • harvard
March 30, 2020 • ~19 min

How to maintain physical and mental health during coronavirus

There are plenty of ways to keep your mind and body active and healthy during the outbreak.

Nita Bharti, Assistant Professor of Biology, Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Pennsylvania State University • conversation
March 19, 2020 • ~8 min

From border security to climate change, national emergency declarations raise hard questions about presidential power

Declaring an issue is a national emergency lets presidents act quickly and with few constraints. But once they get this kind of power, it's hard to take it back – and it can produce bad policies.

Daniel Farber, Professor of Law, University of California, Berkeley • conversation
March 9, 2020 • ~9 min

Surveying the quality of life at MIT

A new survey of MIT students, faculty, and staff will inform initiatives to improve the work-life experience on campus and at Lincoln Laboratory.

Robyn Fizz | EVP Connect • mit
Jan. 28, 2020 • ~6 min

New drug-detecting tool could help save lives

The landscape of the illegal drug trade changes constantly, particularly amid the current opioid crisis. Law-enforcement officers regularly find or confiscate pills, powders, and other substances and need to know their composition as quickly as possible to determine legal charges and sometimes to issue lifesaving warnings. Carfentanil is a case in point. This cousin to […]

Caitlin McDermott-Murphy • harvard
Nov. 13, 2019 • ~7 min

/

32