University of Arizona in the News

The New York Times July 21, 2022
Hip, woke, cool: It's all fodder for the Oxford Dictionary of African American English

The new Oxford Dictionary of African American English, edited by scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. will collect the definitions and histories of words that originated in the African American vernacular. Differences in language evolve from separation, said Sonja Lanehart, a professor of linguistics at the University of Arizona and a member of the dictionary advisory board. Those barriers can be geographical, like oceans or mountains, she said, but they can also be social or institutional. "In this country, descendants of Americans who were enslaved, they grew up, they developed, they lived in separate spaces," she said, "Even though they were geographically all in, say, Georgia, their lives and communities within those spaces were very different."
The Washington Post July 21, 2022
Extreme heat wreaks havoc on roads and railways. Experts say we need to adapt.

Buckled roads, warped train tracks and expanded bridges are a stark reminder of the need to adapt our infrastructure to a warming planet. Heat can impact all types of physical infrastructure, but roads, runways and railways may be among the most vulnerable, said Ladd Keith, an assistant professor of planning and chair of sustainable built environments at the University of Arizona College of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture. "Any kind of prolonged extreme heat outside of that past climate will push the physical infrastructure into dangerous territory," he said.
CBS News July 20, 2022
The devastating economic toll of severe heat waves

Disastrous heat waves are becoming increasingly more common with global warming – killing people, damaging infrastructure and straining energy supplies. A growing body of research shows that extreme heat has long-lasting effects not just on population health but on local economies. A recent study detailed in Wednesday's edition of The Conversation by University of Arizona professor of economics Derek Lemoine estimated the effects of a global temperature increase of 2°C, which the world is projected to hit in the coming decades, will decrease agricultural profitability for the Eastern U.S. 60%.
The Conversation July 20, 2022
How record-setting heat waves in cities across UK, US and mainland Europe could punish economies already reeling from inflation

Derek Lemoine, an associate professor of economics at the University of Arizona, writes that while heat is punishing on a personal level, it also has significant impacts on the broader economy.
KGUN July 19, 2022
University of Arizona program offers fast track to teaching degree

University of Arizona's Pathways to Teaching program offers a fast-track 17-month route for students to earn a bachelor's degree in elementary education.
The Atlantic July 19, 2022
The Webb Telescope's least pretty images are still marvels

Now that the James Webb Space Telescope is up and running, astronomers want to use it to spot compounds such as oxygen, methane and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere's of exoplanets – or, better yet, more than one in the same atmosphere. "If you, like, took some water and some methane and put them in a box and left them at room temperature on Earth, they'd actually combine into carbon dioxide, and you wouldn't expect there to be any methane left over," said Megan Mansfield, an astronomer at the University of Arizona who will use Webb to study exoplanets. "The only reason we have methane in the Earth's atmosphere is because it's constantly produced by life."
U.S. News & World Report July 18, 2022
How to master needed college writing skills

Since college students typically have to write in a variety of styles, high schoolers can benefit from working on their versatility, and consider the specific kinds of work they may have to do in college based on their interests. University of Arizona associate professor of English Shelley Rodrigo, senior director of the writing program, suggests parents encourage their students to read and write about things that interest them, adding that a student's interests don't have to be academic – they can come from unlikely sources.
The Wall Street Journal July 17, 2022
What a good night's sleep can do for your heart

The American Heart Association last month added sleep to its list of factors critical to heart health, alongside seven others such as diet, physical activity and blood pressure. The recommendation reflects widening scientific consensus on the role sleep plays in preventing heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and obesity. "Sleep systematically removes you from the external environment to allow your body to do things it can't do as efficiently when it's plugged into the world," said University of Arizona associate professor of psychiatry, psychology and medicine Michael Grandner, who leads the Sleep and Health Research Program.
Newsweek July 15, 2022
Toddler shows dog how to use slide in adorable video: 'This is friendship'

A video of a toddler showing his pet bulldog how to use his slide has been lighting up social media. In 2017 a study by researchers from the University of Arizona found that dogs and two-year-old children show similar patterns in social intelligence.
The Atlantic July 15, 2022
Mother Nature dissents

With record heat in Texas that is testing the state's power grid, a California wildfire that has threatened an ancient grove of sequoias considered a foundation stone of the national-park system, and persistent drought across the West that is forcing unprecedented cutbacks in water deliveries from the Colorado River, the summer of 2022 already is shaping up as another season of extreme and dangerous environmental conditions. "In a world where facts are no longer the currency, it actually is very hard to make arguments in favor of doing what seems very logical," said Kathy Jacobs, the director of the Center for Climate Adaptation Science and Solutions at the University of Arizona. "People are questioning really fundamental scientific principles and/or just choosing to ignore them. This post-fact world we are operating in makes dealing with this problem much more difficult."