In the News

  1. October 29, 2020
    • Emily Toth Martin

    “The magnitude, the speed of this increase is unlike any we’ve seen since the spring,” said Emily Toth Martin, associate professor of epidemiology. “However, the increase in testing alone does not explain this rise. This rise supersedes any sort of adjustment that you would expect based on testing patterns, so we are convinced there is a rapid change in the spread across Michigan.” 

    WXYZ (Detroit)
  2. October 29, 2020
    • J. Alex Halderman

    “I’m worried that the Georgia system is the technical equivalent to the 737 Max. They have just made a last-minute software change that might well have unintended consequences and cause even more severe problems on Election Day,” said J. Alex Halderman, professor of electrical engineering and computer science, on the latest election technology being used in Georgia.

    PBS NewsHour
  3. October 28, 2020
    • W. Carson Byrd

    “A lot of institutions are going to be thinking, we need more students who can pay tuition by going for upper-middle-class students, for example, who are predominantly white. That’s all well and good if you’re thinking from a tuition standpoint, but not from an equity standpoint,” said W. Carson Byrd, scholar in residence at the U-M National Center for Institutional Diversity.

    Inside Higher Ed
  4. October 28, 2020
    • Photo of Melissa Borja

    President Trump is by far the “main source of the rhetoric that stigmatizes Asian and Asian American people,” said Melissa Borja, assistant professor of American culture, whose analysis of tweets from this year’s presidential, vice presidential and U.S. Senate candidates shows that while both parties have criticized China’s initial handling of COVID-19, only Trump and Republicans have actively used scapegoating language.

    HuffPost
  5. October 28, 2020
    • Headshot of Paul Resnick

    As foreign and domestic actors find new ways to spread disinformation ahead of the election, people should be extra cautious of election-related emails, says Paul Resnick, professor of information and director of the Center for Social Media Responsibility: “If you’re thinking, ‘This might be a phishing attack,’ you’re already halfway to safety.”

    The Detroit Free Press
  6. October 27, 2020
    • Headshot of Scott Ellsworth

    “We are looking for any and all Black massacre victims. We don’t know yet what we have and who we have,” said Scott Ellsworth, a lecturer in Afroamerican and African studies and a member of the physical investigation committee searching for the remains of victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre — one of the worst and least-known incidents of racial violence in U.S. history.

    The Washington Post
  7. October 27, 2020
    • Headshot of Wally Hopp

    “If you’re asking for a bailout, how can you take bonuses? Bonuses are optional. They don’t have to give them. … The optics of it are definitely not good,” said Wally Hopp, professor of technology and operations, commenting on executive bonuses at Beaumont Health and the Henry Ford Health System shortly before their hospitals laid off thousands of workers and sought $375 million in COVID-related bailouts.

    Michigan Radio
  8. October 27, 2020
    • Alexandra Rosati

    Research by Alexandra Rosati, assistant professor of psychology and anthropology, and colleagues suggests that older male chimpanzees follow a pattern that researchers also see in humans — preferring to have positive relationships with a few good friends. Like humans, as chimps get older, they develop more mutual friendships and fewer one-sided friendships.

    The New York Times
  9. October 26, 2020
    • Sara Adar

    Research by Sara Adar, associate professor of epidemiology, and colleagues found that older adults living with 10 decibels more noise near their residences during the daytime had 36 percent higher odds of having mild cognitive impairment and 30 percent higher odds of having Alzheimer’s disease.

    Medical Xpress
  10. October 26, 2020
    • Nancy Fleischer

    Months after being infected by COVID-19, 1 in 4 Michiganders said they had not fully recovered and reported facing lingering illness, heightened anxiety and economic uncertainty, according to research by Nancy Fleischer, associate professor of epidemiology: “We knew that the pandemic has caused a lot of stress, and harms the mental health but just seeing the extent of it has been really striking.”

    Bridge Magazine