The people of UNLV put their expertise to work every day in Nevada and around the world conducting research that solves problems, creates opportunities, and answers the profound questions of our time.
This was certainly true in 2022. Throughout the year, Rebel researchers tackled a variety of difficult topics, from the intricacies of the human brain to the breadth of deep space. They also discovered a new form of ice, found evidence of our region’s volcanic history in the receding shoreline of Lake Mead, debunked a widely held view of the human brain and evolution, and improved our understanding of human health throughout history. lifetime.
Below are just a few of the many 2022 news stories that highlight the impact of UNLV research.
great minds
UNLV and the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health received $11.3 million in continuing grants from the National Institutes of Health in February to advance neuroscience research in southern Nevada. Since 2015, researchers from the two organizations have partnered to investigate diagnostic methods, health disparities, and therapeutic interventions related to neurodegenerative disorders, including work to better understand commonalities between the disorders.
Las Vegas Review-Journal, KVVU-TV: Fox 5 Vegas, Nevada Business Magazine, KSNV-TV: News 3, MSN, Las Vegas Weekly
A great discovery
In March, UNLV scientists reported the discovery of Ice VIIt, a new form of ice that could provide clues to our understanding of distant, water-rich planets. The team also created a new method to measure the properties of high-pressure water.
Daily Mail, Popular Science, Gizmodo, Futurism, Technology Networks, Mashable, Sunday Guardian Live, KNPR, KVVU-TV: Fox 5, Asian News International, Science Daily, SciTech Daily, Scientias
adventures in space
Throughout the year, UNLV researchers highlighted their out-of-this-world discoveries.
- UNLV astrophysicist Bing Zhang was involved in a study by an international team of scientists that revealed an evolving magnetized environment and surprising source location for fast radio bursts in deep space – observations that defy current understanding. Sky & Telescope, CNN, Space.com, Yahoo!, Earth.com, Science Alert, Radio Caracol.
- Science Alert covered a new paper, from UNLV astronomers Anna Childs, Rebecca Martin, and Mario Livio, seeking to determine whether red dwarf systems had enough ingredients that we think started life on Earth.
- Geoscientist Libby Hausrath is part of NASA’s Mars 2020 science team, and her research focuses on the types of rocks and soils the rover will gather to send back to Earth for future study. She discussed her work with KLAS-TV, CNN and NASA.
- In November, Zhang and his colleagues made headlines again for reporting the discovery of a unique cosmological gamma-ray burst that challenges prevailing theories about how violent cosmic explosions form. This “oddball” outburst led the team to propose a new model, or source, for certain types of FRBs: CNN, Inverse, Innovation News Network
smoking break
From Italy to China to France, dozens of news outlets around the world picked up news of a UNLV study that revealed that male smokers, who are demographically more likely than women to smoke cigarettes, are also exposed to a significantly increased risk of osteoporosis. , bone fractures and premature death. The research team, led by Qing Wu, a researcher in the UNLV School of Public Health and the university’s Nevada Institute for Personalized Medicine, analyzed nearly 30,000 cases of broken bones reported over the past three decades and found that smoking increases the risk of breaking a bone by up to 37%.
HealthDay, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Health Chosun, IatroNet, KSNV-TV: News 3
big brains
A UNLV-led team of anthropologists made international headlines this summer for a paper that takes aim at a popular scientific claim that modern humans underwent an evolutionary decline in brain size around 3,000 years ago. The evidence doesn’t support it, according to anthropology professor Brian Villmoare, who doubled down on saying it may not have happened in the last 30,000 or even 300,000 years.
Discover Magazine, Haaretz, Advanced Science News, Frontiers Science News, Yahoo!, Europa Press, IFL Science, Laboratory Equipment
volcanoes in the valley
Rocks not seen since the Hoover Dam was built in the 1930s are now exposed along the shrinking shoreline of Lake Mead. A UNLV study revealed that many of the rocks contain ash from volcanoes throughout the Southwest that rained down on the region up to 12 million years ago. The researchers are determining how often southern Nevada was inundated with ash to prepare for future events from active distant volcanoes.
Newsweek, KSL NewsRadio, Deseret News, CNN, AccuWeather, Fox Weather, UPI, Independent UK, Inside Climate News, Las Vegas Review-Journal, KLAS-TV: 8 News Now, MSN, KNAU News Talk: Earth Notes, KJZZ
population forecast
The Center for Business and Economic Research released its annual population forecast in August, which found that southern Nevada is still on track to add more than 1 million residents in the next few years, bringing the population to an estimated 3.39. billion by 2060. CBER Director Andrew Woods and Research Director Stephen Miller told reporters they expect strong economic activity, such as an anticipated high-speed light rail project and new hotel rooms, to fuel growth. population growth. As the population of southern Nevada ages, they also predict a shift away from reliance on the hospitality sector toward other industries, such as health care.
KSNV-TV: News 3, KVVU-TV: Fox 5, KTNV-TV: ABC 13, City Cast Las Vegas, The Regulatory Review, Telemundo
women in science
Women have embraced the live chat feature during Zoom classes much more enthusiastically during the pandemic than men, according to research led by UNLV psychology professor and gender development expert Rachael Robnett. The study, published in the journal PLOS ONE this fall, found that women were significantly more likely than men to say that the live chat feature made class fun, helped them feel more comfortable participating in discussions, facilitated learning and would be a welcome addition if incorporated post-pandemic. The researchers hope the data could be a key to expanding access to STEM disciplines for underrepresented groups as universities incorporate technology into hybrid and face-to-face courses.
Miscellaneous: Problems in Higher Education, Lab Manager, Science Journal, Higher Ed Dive, Phys.org
Unprecedented Physics Finding
Tired of high electricity bills and power grid outages? Do you dream of an efficient bullet train system between southern Nevada and California? A group of physicists at UNLV may have a solution for that. A team at UNLV’s Nevada Extreme Conditions Laboratory is bringing science closer than ever to a usable, reproducible material that could one day revolutionize the way energy, people and goods are transported. The research may also one day change the way everyday technological devices, from laptops to MRI machines, are powered.
yahoo! (twice), KTNV-TV: ABC 13, Nevada Independent, KSNV-TV: News 3, KVVU-TV: Fox 5, Science Magazine
Research Summary
Throughout 2022, reporters regularly called on UNLV faculty to provide insights on newsworthy topics in health, science, business, society, and more. Each opportunity focused research and reinforced the important role university professors play in helping us understand and make sense of the world around us.
Health
- Nursing professor Jennifer Vanderlaan’s research on water births gained national attention via The Daily Beast and Yahoo!. Vanderlaan also did a live interview with KNX News Radio about the rise in home births, and nurse midwife Kate Woeber spoke to Forbes about c-section recovery.
- Sports psychologist Brad Donohue spoke with Inverse about psychology-backed strategies for reaching fitness goals.
- Science Daily, Medical Xpress, Technology Networks and ANI News covered a new study led by UNLV neuroscientists Rochelle Hines and Dustin Hines that brought science one step closer to developing targeted drug therapies that can reduce seizures, sleep disorders and related symptoms common in people. with intellectual disabilities. The Hinese were also quoted by the High Times, Las Vegas Weekly and Healthline (twice) about the impact of psilocybin and other psychedelics on health.
- Kinesiology professor and acting department chair John Mercer believes running underwater could be key to healing injuries. He spoke to KNPR about the investigation into him.
- The New York Times interviewed English professor Melissa Carrion, who studies the rhetoric of health and medicine, for a story on laymen’s vaccine research.
- School of Public Health professor Jennifer Pharr shared her research on the impact racial disparities have on drowning deaths, especially during cutbacks to the swim program and lifeguard shortages: MSN, New York Daily News
Culture and society
- History professor Elizabeth White Nelson studies trends in popular culture through the centuries, and her research-based comments were collected by CNET, The Michigan Daily, Teen Vogue, WRAL-TV, Indy Week, Sputnik, and Newsweek. about Valentine’s Day.
- Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies Tyler D. Parry shared his research experience on the history of jumping the broom, a black wedding tradition, with The New York Times, HITC, and MadameNoire.
- Katherine Walker, an English teacher with a background in the history of magic and the occult, spoke to Today about the origins of Halloween and to the History Channel about the storied past of exorcisms.
Business and Sports
- Brett Abarbanel, director of research at the International Gaming Institute, explained to NBC News how the legalization of sports betting has led to an overall increase in betting. She told The Hill and Yahoo! that Super Bowl LVI played a role in the skyrocketing numbers of sports betting.
- Law professor Jean Sternlight shared her research on the ways emerging technology is changing the US legal system with The National Desk and KATV.
- Newsy interviewed sports marketing expert Nancy Lough about the ways a new NCAA rule allowing college athletes to earn money off their names, images and likenesses has changed the landscape of the game, especially for women.
Sciences
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