Social Sciences

A successful collaborative effort between the University at Buffalo, the New York State Historic Preservation Office (NYSHPO) and the City of Buffalo is expected to result in the establishment of the first National Register Historic District in the City of Buffalo since 1986: the University Park Historic District.

A telephone-based group education and support intervention provided to spouses of veterans with mild to severe dementia saved an average of $2,768 per patient over six months compared to "usual care," a study conducted by a University at Buffalo researcher has show. However, those savings dissipated during the following six months and by the one-year assessment the savings were lost.

Need help choosing a New Year's resolution? Research from the University at Buffalo can provide some direction. Below is a summary of useful health and wellness tips assembled from studies published by UB researchers in 2010.

Simply boosting teenagers' self-esteem when they haven't earned it can be harmful, according to a University at Buffalo researcher who has found a link between overconfidence and lower mathematics achievement in 34 countries.

Computer science might not be the obvious major for students looking to change the world. But two teams of University at Buffalo students are proving that programming can translate into compassion.

Anyone familiar with the Route 16 corridor in Cattaraugus County can cite its many attractions: inspiring natural beauty, friendly inhabitants, a plethora of recreational opportunities -- including kayaking, fishing, hiking and horseback riding -- alpaca, bison and dairy farms, maple sugar festivals and rodeos, and arts, cultural and historical tourist sites. But they know the drawbacks of the area as well: occasional dangerous terrain, low per capita income, inaccessibility and poor signage -- just to name a few.

Ricardo Ortiz of Georgetown University calls Ramon Soto-Crespo's work "some of the best …being done now in U.S. Latino literary criticism." The Modern Language Association agrees. It will award Soto-Crespo, PhD, of Buffalo, associate professor of American studies and director of Latina/Latino Studies at the University at Buffalo, one of its major distinctions: an honorable mention for the MLA's Eighth Annual Prize in United States Latina and Latino and Chicana and Chicano Literary and Cultural Studies.

Now that the term "interdisciplinary" is practically a prerequisite for federal research funds, geographers are finding that their expertise is a sought-after commodity. That's because geography just might be the most interdisciplinary field in the academic world, according to Sharmistha Bagchi-Sen, chair of the Department of Geography in the University at Buffalo's College of Arts and Sciences.

Drinking plays an important and sometimes unexpected role from one day to the next in young couples' romantic relationships, according to a new study by University at Buffalo and University of Missouri researchers.

Powerful, localized snowstorms can snarl traffic for hours or days, as Western New York saw this week when a section of the New York State Thruway closed for 24 hours. That's exactly the kind of scenario that University at Buffalo engineers hope to prevent when they complete a computer simulation of the area's roadways.