In the News
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March 31, 2021
“Imagine trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube that rearranges itself every time you blink. That’s what hackers are up against with MORPHEUS. It makes the computer an unsolvable puzzle,” said Todd Austin, professor of electrical engineering and computer science, whose research team developed a computer chip that works by reconfiguring key bits of its code and data dozens of times per second, turning any vulnerabilities into dead ends for hackers.
DBusiness Magazine -
March 31, 2021
“No amount of lead is deemed safe and your vulnerability is often exaggerated by when in your life you’re exposed to it. So if you are a young child that’s going to have to live with the lead you’re exposed to as a child if it’s high, that’s a far more worrisome problem,” said Terese Olson, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, on high levels of lead found in Benton Harbor’s water supply.
The Detroit News -
March 31, 2021
“I can go into a shelf and grab a jar off the shelf and look at a river in someplace in southeast Asia in the 1800s. I can know exactly what the fishes were eating. I can know about the chemical composition of the water they lived in,” said Randy Singer, assistant research scientist in ecology and evolutionary biology and curator of the Museum of Zoology’s fish collection, about the challenges of bringing biological specimen records online.
National Public Radio -
March 30, 2021
Whatever the roots of the dumpling may be, its contemporary manifestations are a hybrid of several culinary traditions, says Miranda Brown, professor of Asian languages and cultures: “China may be a dumpling lover’s heaven (but) it is not its original homeland. … It’s now everyone’s food. It’s 100 percent Chinese, Korean, Armenian, as well as Turkish. China is a nexus of influence. But that’s food history; these recipes tend to get around.”
AsiaOne -
March 30, 2021
“If we have anything to learn from the history of the 1918 influenza pandemic … it is that a premature return to pre-pandemic life risks more cases and more deaths. And today’s Americans have significant advantages over those of a century ago. … Most critically, we have multiple safe and effective vaccines that are being deployed,” wrote J. Alexander Navarro, assistant director of the Center for the History of Medicine.
MarketWatch -
March 30, 2021
“When those people say, ‘Well, people made a choice,’ 30 years ago, that choice was different than what it is now; 40 years ago, that choice was different than it is now. This is a racial issue, this is a gender issue, this is a class issue,” said So’Phelia Morrow, a doctoral student in social work and sociology, commenting on student debt forgiveness and the choice to pursue higher education no matter what the cost.
Vox -
March 29, 2021
Daniel Clauw, professor of anesthesiology and director of the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center, is concerned that COVID-19 could exacerbate chronic overlapping pain conditions: “I think it will trigger the development of this symptom complex in a subset of people that get COVID, and make the symptoms of pain, fatigue, memory problems worse in many people that had pre-existing problems that were more affected by the pandemic.”
The Guardian (U.K.) -
March 29, 2021
People who receive a flu shot are less likely to test positive for COVID-19 and even if they do, they have fewer complications, says Marion Hofmann Bowman, associate professor of internal medicine and cardiology: “It is possible that patients who receive their flu vaccine are also people who are practicing more social distancing and following CDC guidelines. … It is also plausible that there could be a direct biological effect of the flu vaccine on the immune system relevant for the fight against SARS-CoV-2 virus.”
International Business Times -
March 29, 2021
“They don’t want to be the arbiters of free speech. But they have to be,” said Cliff Lampe, professor of information, who believes Facebook would like to return to its pre-2020 hands-off approach, but public pressure to crack down on online extremism will likely win over.
The Associated Press -
March 26, 2021
Gun violence is not a partisan issue nor is it a debate about gun control, says Marc Zimmerman, professor of public health and psychology: “Maybe some of the questions might be access to firearms. But, it may also have to do with our mental health systems and … access to mental health care.” Patrick Carter, associate professor of emergency medicine and public health, says, “We don’t need just people at the table who are sort of traditional advocates for safety. We also need gun owners at the table.”
WXMI/Grand Rapids
