Experts Matter. Find Yours.
Connect for media, speaking, professional opportunities & more.
Fifty years ago, the first computer-to-computer connection was made through ARPANET, the precursor to the modern internet. What will the internet look like 50 years from now? That's the topic of a new report by Elon University's Imagining the Internet Center and Pew Research. The report, "The Next 50 Years of Digital Life," is part of a series on the future of the internet and features insights from 530 technology pioneers, innovators, developers, business and policy leaders, researchers and activists. They were asked to respond to a series of questions about how individuals' lives might be affected by the evolution of the internet during the next 50 years. “In just 50 years the internet grew from a handful of interlinked computers to a worldwide network connecting billions of active users across all corners of the globe,” said Kathleen Stansberry of Elon University’s Imagining the Internet Center, the lead author of the report. “This vast experiment in human collaboration has not been without cost, but these experts believe that by enacting thoughtful reform today the vision of the internet as a tool of equality and enlightenment can still be realized.” Overall, 72 percent of these respondents said they hope and expect that the next 50 years might bring significant change for the better; 25 percent say they fear there could be significant change for the worse and 3 percent said they expect there will be no significant change. You can find a list of key themes from the report here, and the full report, including scores of comments from experts, here. If you're interested in talking with Professor Stansberry about the report, please reach out to Owen Covington, director of the Elon University News Bureau, at ocovington@elon.edu or (336) 278-7413. Professor Stansberry is available for phone, email and broadcast interviews.
Minority of Twitter users responsible for vast majority of political tweets
Associate Professor of Law David Levine recently lent his expertise to a Washington Post article looking at who is posting tweets about U.S. politics on the popular social media platform. The Oct. 24 article by reporter Marie Baca examined a recent report by the Pew Research Center that found that 10 percent of U.S. adult Twitter users generated 97 percent of tweets mentioning national politics. Those who were most prolific accounted for just 6 percent of all U.S. adult Twitter users, but authored 73 percent of all political tweets, the report found. "It can be quite dangerous if you’re not taking a step back and saying, ‘What do I know about the sources of this information and who or what is behind it?’” — David Levine, associate professor of law Levine, who is the founder of the "Hearsay Culture" radio show about modern technology issues, noted that Twitter users who find themselves in an echo chamber populated by others who mirror their views could take less time to determine the origin or assess the truthfulness of information they receive in that chamber. “It can be quite dangerous if you’re not taking a step back and saying, ‘What do I know about the sources of this information and who or what is behind it?’” he said. “It’s very easy psychologically, especially if you’re coming into it with a particular perspective, to go along with it.” If Professor Levine can assist with your reporting about social media and online extremism, please reach out to Owen Covington, director of the Elon University News Bureau, at ocovington@elon.edu or (336) 278-7413. Professor Levine is available for phone, email and broadcast interviews.
Higher education must rediscover the 'service ethic' of teaching
Earlier this autumn, Otterbein University hosted the Democratic National Congress for a debate of its presidential candidates. All eyes from across America and around the world were on Otterbein and it was with that attention that the school’s president John Comerford weighed in with his thoughts on how leaders need to prioritize higher education. “Today the nation’s attention will shift to Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio, as we host the next Democratic presidential primary debate. Questions will abound — of the candidates, between the candidates and, afterward, about who may or may not have “won” the night, all in the service of helping voters decide who might be best suited to lead. An important question that should be asked and won’t, however, isn’t for the candidates at all but for higher education: “Are you ready to lead?” Sadly, the answer is, “No.” Make no mistake, I fully expect plenty of discussion about higher education at the debate — its high costs, student debt, workforce shortages and the difficulty of change. I just hope the candidates don’t hold back in calling to account higher education itself simply because we happen to be their hosts. There is plenty of blame to go around with the challenges in higher education today, and higher education institutions themselves own a fair share of it. Perhaps no issue contributes more to higher education’s affordability problems than institutions’ — and parents’ — preoccupation with “prestige.” Exclusivity and selectivity are thought to be hallmarks of quality, which fosters a system that rewards institutions for perpetually raising admission standards and prices. The problem with this is that test scores — the most frequently-used metric for a student’s academic strength — generally track with a family’s income. Students from higher-wealth families have higher test scores and more frequently gain entrance to “selective” institutions, which steadily become less and less diverse. To essentially segregate students by their parents’ income this way, however, is un-American and does nothing to enrich an education or advance quality in research or instruction. It is the inevitable product, though, of a mindset that “selective” and high rankings are the top priorities in higher education. This is a falsehood that needs to be turned upside down…” October 15 – The Hill The rest of the op-ed is attached – and it is well worth the read. But if you are a journalist covering this topic or wish to learn more – then let us help. John Comerford is an expert in higher education, regional and national topics. He is the President of Otterbein University and is available to speak with media regarding higher education in America. Simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.
Is Donald Trump playing nuclear chicken with Turkey?
As Elvis Presley used to sing “Wise men say, only fools rush in…” and it seems America’s hasty retreat from northern Syria and its seemingly unprepared rhetoric with Turkey may have landed America in a bit of a pickle. Unbeknownst to most, the United States has an arsenal of nuclear weapons in Turkey, and senior officials are now scrambling with what they can or may have to do. “And over the weekend, State and Energy Department officials were quietly reviewing plans for evacuating roughly 50 tactical nuclear weapons that the United States had long stored, under American control, at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey, about 250 miles from the Syrian border, according to two American officials. Those weapons, one senior official said, were now essentially Erdogan’s hostages. To fly them out of Incirlik would be to mark the de facto end of the Turkish-American alliance. To keep them there, though, is to perpetuate a nuclear vulnerability that should have been eliminated years ago. “I think this is a first — a country with U.S. nuclear weapons stationed in it literally firing artillery at US forces,” Jeffrey Lewis of the James Martin Center for Non-proliferation Studies wrote last week.” October 14 - New York Times It’s quite the conundrum, and if you are a journalist covering this escalating issue – let our experts help. Dr. Glen Duerr's research interests include comparative politics and international relations theory. Glen is available to speak to media regarding this topic– simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.
Corporate board diversity: Tokenism, or true change?
As corporations face pressure to increase gender diversity on their boards, there are those that simply add a single female director to appease critics, and those that make genuine and successful efforts to diversify. Mark Mallon, assistant professor of strategic management, is part of a research team that has explored factors that can differentiate between what is a token effort, and one that adds more female directors to a corporate board. Research recently published by the team found that U.S. firms with more top female managers and with a female director serving on the nominating committee are more likely to see additional female board appointments. The article titled “Beyond tokenism: How strategic leaders influence more meaningful gender diversity on boards of directors” appeared in Strategic Management Journal. “We also found that boards and nominating committees with younger members amplify these effects, and result in boards that have greater female representation,” Mallon said. “These of course aren’t the only factors that can contribute to greater gender diversity on corporate boards, but they are important ones.” Professor Mallon is available to talk with you about this research, which hopefully can add to your coverage of the efforts by corporations to change the composition of their boards to better reflect the broader population. If Professor Mallon can assist with your reporting about corporate governance, please reach out to Owen Covington, director of the Elon University News Bureau, at ocovington@elon.edu or (336) 278-7413. Professor Mallon is available for phone, email and broadcast interviews.
Gene therapy and the next frontier of medicine
Genetic testing today is mainstream, marketing to consumers who want to know where in Europe they came from or what types of hereditary diseases they could develop. For around $200 you can trace your family tree to learn your origins or identify genetic abnormalities that could signal disease. James Dahlman, assistant professor in the College of Engineering’s biomedical engineering department, specializes in genetics and believes these genotyping services can be helpful, as long as they are used responsibly. “If you’re going to start making medical predictions, you have to be careful,” said Dahlman. “Most people are not equipped to interpret statistics correctly, which can lead to negative predicting and ethical dilemmas. In a few years, genetic counselors will be in high demand so folks can make better decisions about their health.” Dahlman is fascinated by genetics, citing gene therapy as the most interesting field in the world. And it’s a field that he is revolutionizing through his research. Gene therapy is an experimental technique that uses genes to treat or prevent diseases, including hemophilia, Parkinson’s, cancer and HIV. It can help manage a number of diseases by leveraging genes instead of drugs or surgery. Although gene therapy shows promise, there are still risks involved, including unwanted immune system reactions or the risk of the wrong cells being targeted. That’s where Dahlman’s research comes in. Dahlman’s lab focuses on drug delivery vehicles, which are nanoparticles. The nanoparticle delivers gene therapies to the right place in the body to fight disease. It’s critical that the gene therapies only target the unhealthy cells to avoid damaging healthy ones. Dahlman is laser focused on ensuring the nanoparticles know what paths to take to reach the correct organ to start the healing process. “The issue with genetically-engineered drugs is that they don’t work unless they get to the right cell in the body,” said Dahlman. “You can have the world’s best genetic drug that's going to fix a tumor or eradicate plaque, but it’s not going to be effective unless it travels to the right organ. In my lab, we design different nanoparticles to deliver the genetically-engineered drugs to the correct location.” The field of genetic therapy is fascinating – and if you are a journalist looking to cover this topic or have questions for upcoming stories – let our experts help. James Dahlman is an Assistant Professor in the Georgia Tech BME Department. He is an expert in the area of biomedical engineering and uses molecular biology to rationally design the genetic drugs he delivers. This research is redefining the field of genetic therapy. Dr. Dahlman is available to speak with media – simply click on his icon to arrange an interview.
Making Children's Mental Health and School Safety a Priority
The U.S. Department of Education announced $71.6 million in grant awards to enhance safety in schools and improve student access to mental health resources. The grants will allow local leaders to tailor their approach to school safety and mental health in ways that meet their students' individual needs and their particular school's unique challenges. "This is a strong step towards helping children across the U.S. who have experienced traumatic events. We know from previous research that traumatic experiences, even those in early childhood, affect an individual at any time in their life," says Elizabeth Dowdell, PhD, RN, FAAN, professor at Villanova's M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing. "In healthcare, assessing, identifying and treating trauma has become a major public health challenge since trauma exposures frequently go unrecognized and unaddressed." The same is true in the educational system. For many children, adolescents, and adults, trauma results from an event, series of events or set of circumstances which are perceived or experienced to be physically or emotionally harmful or life-threatening. The landmark Adverse Childhood Experience study (1998) found that, in a population of 17,377 adult participants, 63% experienced at least one trauma exposure as a child and 20% experienced more than three trauma exposures. The experience of repeated trauma is sometimes referred to as toxic stress, which can have damaging effects on learning, behavior and health across the life span. These exposures included physical and sexual abuse, neglect and household dysfunction. Increased stress from family violence and chaos is trauma and, when combined with injury, is the leading preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. The lasting adverse effects from the trauma can affect a child's functioning and well-being, specifically mental and physical health, social, emotional and spiritual well-being as they age and develop. "Healthcare is shifting to a trauma-informed framework that focuses on what happened to the person rather than what is wrong with them and recognizes that individual's strengths and resilience. Schools are ideal locations for identification of traumatized children and the implementation of services to help them," says Dr. Dowdell. "School districts have to create physical safety and psychological safe places where all children can learn."
As we approach the first anniversary of the legalization of cannabis and prepare for the introduction of legal edibles, CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO) is releasing new data that suggests that the dangers of cannabis-impaired driving are misunderstood by many. It shows that approximately 1.2 million Ontario drivers have, at some point, driven high after consuming cannabis. Seventy-two per cent report waiting three hours or less to get behind the wheel, with 27 per cent feeling very or somewhat high when they did. “We know that driving under the influence of cannabis affects your ability to drive safely and increases your risk of getting into a crash,” said Teresa Di Felice, assistant vice-president of government and community relations at CAA SCO. “The research has shown us that young Canadians are more at risk of a vehicle crash even five hours after inhaling cannabis.” The research also shows that over half of Ontario drivers who use cannabis are “poly-users,” meaning they typically pair cannabis with another substance. Alcohol is by far the most common substance paired with cannabis. Cannabis-infused edibles are another option that may further complicate matters when it comes to drug-impaired driving. Twelve per cent of non-users indicated they were very or somewhat likely to try edible cannabis products after it becomes legal. “It is crucial to continue to explore and understand what impact the legalization of edibles may have on Ontario’s roads. If Ontarians choose to consume edibles, they should be aware of its delayed psychoactive effects and the impact on their ability to drive,” said Di Felice. CAA’s focus is to ensure that road safety, public education and enforcement remain at the forefront of the management of cannabis legalization. The statistically representative study, commissioned by CAA and conducted by Dig Insights in late June 2019, surveyed 1,510 Ontarian between the ages of 19 and 70 who have a valid driver’s license. ��
Facebook Buys Startup Building Neural Monitoring Armband
Facebook has talked a lot about working on a non-invasive brain input device that can make things like text entry possible just by thinking. So far, most of the company’s progress on that project appears to be taking the form of university research that they’ve funded. With this acquisition, the company appears to be working more closely with technology that could one day be productized. Circuit Seed for continuous analog signal processing and Corelogika for discrete digital logic could greatly enhance the success of commercialization of Armband. These are building blocks to build low power high performance circuits that result in products that are smaller, very low power consumption, increased sensitivity and accuracy and they are insensitive to process variation and temperature that are challenges for other devices. Since they use standard CMOS digital processes with no extensions, the designs are less complex, fewer bill of materials resulting in lower cost, higher yields and better margins. For more information, please contact: Lesley Gent Director Client Relations, InventionShare™ lgent@InventionShare.com (613) 225-7236, Ext 131 Or visit our website at www.CircuitSeed.com
Experts available to discuss vaping and new tobacco products
A host of new tobacco products, including e-cigarettes like JUULs, have entered the market in recent years, bringing new public health concerns with them. Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are studying the health and societal impacts of emerging tobacco products. UNC-Chapel Hill experts are available to discuss topics including e-cigarettes’ health impacts, their failure as smoking cessation tools, the differences in how smoking and vaping affect the body, and e-cigarette explosions and the resulting chemical burn injuries. If you’d like to speak with an expert, call (919) 445-8555 or email mediarelations@unc.edu. Dr. M. Bradley Drummond is an associate professor of medicine at UNC School of Medicine and the director of the Obstructive Lung Diseases Clinical and Translational Research Center. He can discuss the health consequences of these new tobacco products and how they vary from traditional cigarettes. He can also discuss how these products exacerbate other conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma and other chronic lung diseases. Dr. Adam Goldstein is a professor in the UNC department of family medicine, the director of tobacco intervention programs at UNC School of Medicine, and a member of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. He can discuss the potential drawbacks versus any potential benefit of using these products as smoking cessation tools and can share evidence-based strategies to stop smoking. He can also speak to trends in teen tobacco use. Dr. Ilona Jaspers is a professor of pediatrics and microbiology & immunology, director of the Curriculum in Toxicology, and deputy director of the Center for Environmental Medicine, Asthma and Lung Biology all at the UNC School of Medicine, and professor of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. She can discuss the current scientific understanding of the health effects of vaping or juuling, a subject on which she has published widely. Kurt Ribisl is a professor and chair of the department of health behavior at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and the program leader for Cancer Prevention and Control at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. Ribisl specializes in tobacco policy and regulation and can speak to taxation, advertising and marketing of new tobacco products and recommendations for preventing youth access. Robert Tarran is a professor of cell biology and physiology at UNC School of Medicine, a member of UNC Marsico Lung Institute, and a member of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. He can discuss the science of vaping, including how e-cigarettes impact a person’s lungs, including their genes and what happens to the lung’s immune system. He can also speak to the varying toxic effects of different e-cigarette flavors. Rebecca Williams is a research associate at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is a leading expert on internet tobacco sales, age verification, technology and emerging tobacco products, including the wide variety of vaping devices available today. Her research has shown that online e-cigarette vendors routinely sold to minors, a finding that underscores the need for regulations requiring and enforcing age verification for the online sale of e-cigarettes. She can discuss the sales and marketing practices of websites that sell emerging tobacco products, and underage access to these online products.
