University of Arizona in the News

Inverse Nov. 13, 2020
Scientists think they've finally discovered what happened to Mars' water

New University of Arizona-led research updates our understanding of how water escaped Mars – not like a leaky faucet but with a sudden splash.
The Atlantic Nov. 13, 2020
The third surge is breaking health-care workers

Hospitals have put their pandemic plans into action, adding more beds and creating makeshift COVID-19 wards. But in the hardest-hit areas, experts say there are simply not enough doctors, nurses and other specialists to staff those beds. "The winter is traditionally a very stressful time in health care, and everyone gets taken down at some point," said Saskia Popescu, an infectious epidemiologist at the University of Arizona.
The Boston Globe Nov. 11, 2020
CDC confirms that your cloth mask may protect you, not just others

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says wearing cloth masks not only keeps people from unknowingly transmitting the virus, it keeps people from inhaling the virus from the air. Saskia Popescu, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the University of Arizona, tweeted, "We know that even fabric masks offer some variable protection for the wearer, but I think the bigger issue is that the CDC has to reiterate this to get people to wear a mask."
The New York Times Nov. 11, 2020
Strangers on a phone, theatrically speaking

The latest show from experimental theater duo 600 Highwaymen, "A Thousand Ways," is a triptych whose first part, "A Phone Call," is a product of digital alienation. That first part (currently presented by Canadian Stage in Toronto, Arizona Arts Live in Tucson and the Singapore International Festival of Arts) is entirely distanced. As with online performance, people can get tickets to participate in "A Phone Call" from anywhere.
Arizona Daily Star Nov. 10, 2020
Wildcats make history with No. 7 spot in AP's preseason poll; Aari McDonald makes watch list

The Associated Press released its preseason poll Tuesday morning, and the Wildcats women's basketball team was ranked No. 7 overall — the program's highest preseason ranking ever. An hour later, senior guard Aari McDonald was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale award watch list. McDonald won the award last season as the best shooting guard in the country. Coach Adia Barnes said it felt "so great to make history. … I look back at how far the program has come in such a short time."
The Arizona Republic Nov. 9, 2020
Should you host a Thanksgiving gathering? Here's what AZ experts say about holiday safety

To figure out how holiday gatherings can be adapted so that possible transmission of COVID-19 is less likely, The Arizona Republic spoke with University of Arizona experts Charles Gerba and Kelly Reynolds.
The Conversation Nov. 9, 2020
A new method guides astronomer to yet-undiscovered exoplanets

University of Arizona astronomers Daniel Apai and Jeremy Dietrich write that new methods of analysis can guide discoveries of new planets, help complete maps of planetary systems in the solar neighborhood and inform future searches for life.
CNN Nov. 8, 2020
People of color are more likely to live without indoor plumbing even in the richest US cities, study says

According to a team of geography researchers from King's College London and the University of Arizona, many U.S. citizens still live without indoor plumbing – even in the richest American cities. From 2013 to 2017, more than 1.1 million people in the U.S. did not have access to a piped water connection, the study says, with almost half of them living in the country's 50 largest cities.
Arizona Daily Star Nov. 7, 2020
Poetry Center evolves from quaint to nationally prominent in 60 years

The University of Arizona Poetry Center is a gathering place with lively discussion, sharing experiences and exchanging ideas. It is a space where academics pour over can't-be-found-elsewhere materials, and everyone is welcome to explore recordings, books and exhibits. Leading poets will discuss the future of poetry and speakers will toast the center and share its accomplishments during an online fundraiser at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 17.
Smithsonian Nov. 6, 2020
NASA snags its first asteroid sample

NASA's University of Arizona-led OSIRIS-REx mission has successfully stowed the spacecraft's Sample Return Capsule and its abundant sample of asteroid Bennu.