Watching for ‘bright lines’ during the Trump presidency
In a study spanning the first 18 months of the Donald Trump presidency, the non-partisan Bright Line Watch research group found large areas of agreement as to what constitutes critical democratic principles, but little agreement over which have been violated.
Researchers turn liquid metal into a plasma
For the first time, researchers at Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) have found a way to turn a liquid metal into a plasma and to observe the temperature where a liquid under high-density conditions crosses over to a plasma state.
Does awe lead to greater interest in science?
In a recent study, participants who watched awe-inducing nature videos or virtual reality simulations consistently reported greater interest in science and greater awareness of gaps in their knowledge.
When parenting teens, keep calm and don’t carry on
In a new study, Rochester psychologists found that mothers and fathers who were less capable of dampening down their anger are more likely to resort to harsh discipline aimed at their teens, and that fathers in particular were not as good at considering alternative explanations for their teens’ behavior.
Male Y chromosomes not ‘genetic wastelands’
The Y chromosome is one piece of the genetic puzzle that is notoriously difficult to sequence. Rochester biologists are finding new insights into the processes that shape the Y chromosome.
With data science, Rochester’s laser lab moves closer to controlled nuclear fusion
One of the biggest challenges to controlled nuclear fusion has been the lack of accurate models to predict increased fusion energy yields. Now a Rochester team of more than 50 scientists has used “big data” to triple fusion yields.
Earth’s inner core is much younger than we thought
Rochester researchers have gathered the first field data that show the Earth’s inner core is only about 565 million years old—relatively young compared to the age of our 4.5-billion-year-old planet.
Study suggests how high blood pressure might contribute to Alzheimer’s
New Rochester research may help explain the connection between high blood pressure and Alzheimer’s disease, and it’s all to do with how the brain pumps away waste.
Common test of mental state understanding is biased
A new Rochester study has shown that a widely accepted test for assessing a patient’s ability to understand the mental state of another is biased against the less educated and against racial and ethnic minorities.
White fans like white NFL players more and black players less since anthem protests
Writing in the Washington Post political scientist Bethany Lacina shows how the gap in the popularity of black and white NFL players with white fans has increased since 2016.