UB in the News

Sarbajit Banerjee, assistant professor of chemistry, was interviewed on Northeast Public Radio's Academic Minute about his research on vanadium oxide. Vanadium oxide, a synthetic compound with unique, temperature-sensitive properties, could one day be used in the coatings of "smart" windows that reflect heat from the sun only on hot days. An article also appeared on Inside Higher Ed.

Andre Filiatrault, director of MCEER, UB's national center of excellence focused on multi-hazard engineering headquartered at UB, is quoted in USA Today, Christian Science Monitor, Wall Street Journal, the Associated Press and Slate magazine following yesterday's 5.8 magnitude earthquake in central Virginia.

Phillips Stevens Jr., associate professor of anthropology, was quoted in an article in the Toronto Star about "man hugs." Anthropologically speaking, he said, the increasing manifestation of public man hugs in the West is evidence of cultural change from aloof stoicism to the sensitive metrosexualism.

An article in USA Today about new research that suggests that the downsides of excessive drinking aren't enough to make college students stop quotes Laina Bay-Cheng, associate professor of social work, who conducted focus groups with young people ages 14 to 17 and found that when teenagers drink, they think they can blame their actions on alcohol.

An article distributed by the Associated Press reports that by the time they graduate, every student in the UB medical school will have gotten a lesson on the human cost of medical errors thanks to Mary Brennan-Taylor, an adjunct research instructor of family medicine whose mother died from hospital acquired infections and the use of numerous medications.

An article in the Toronto Globe and Mail about the death of a Japanese exchange student who fell to her death last week after losing her balance and falling over Niagara Falls reports on people who have survived the plunge and quotes UB physiology professor David Pendergast. Only a rare combination of luck and location explains how three people who went over the falls came out alive, he said.

An article in TIME Magazine reports on research by psychologist Lora Park that shows women's interest in romance may be getting in the way of them pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math, fields in which they are badly underrepresented. "Women are exposed to sociocultural messages about the importance of being attractive and sexy and especially attuned to these goals in young adulthood. That's precisely the time that women start to show less interest in STEM fields," she said. Her research also is the subject of articles in Live Science.

Mark Frank, professor of communication, was interviewed on NPR's Morning Edition for a story about plans by Boston's Logan International Airport to become the first in the nation to require every single traveler to go through a quick interview with security officers trying to spot suspicious behavior. The goal, the article notes, is not so much to identify terrorists in 30 seconds, but to sort out higher-risk passengers for more screening.

An article in England's Daily Mail reports on research conducted by UB sociologists Erin Hatton and Mary Nell Trautner that found that the portrayal of women in the popular media has become increasingly sexualized in the past four decades. Their research is being widely reported, with article also appearing in the Huffington Post and Chicago Sun-Times. The study also is being picked up in other international press outlets, with articles appearing in the French Tribune, as well as Verslas, a Greek news site, and Sante, a French health blog.

David Schmid, professor of English, was interviewed on Wisconsin Public Radio about the politics and motivations behind the riots in England. A lot of commentators are getting it wrong, he said, and the situation is not going to improve until the underlying social issues behind the riots are addressed.