Featured Post from University of Delaware

Potential health crisis in the wake of deadly storm and flooding in Derna, Libya

Sep 14, 2023

1 min

The number of fatalities and missing persons continue to mount after a storm caused massive flooding in the town of Derna, located in the northeast region of Libya.

While search and rescue will remain the most urgent priority in the near term, addressing acute health needs will be a major factor in the wake of this disaster, said Jennifer Horney, founder and director of the epidemiology program at the University of Delaware.

The collapse of two dams are likely to cause long-term water borne diseases of all types.
With little existing health infrastructure in the area, treating and managing health will be extremely difficult.
Safe food and water will be scarce.
There is a strong possibility of infectious disease outbreaks and the spread of communicable disease.

Other experts from UD's Disaster Research Center who can comment on the flooding in Libya:

Tricia Wachtendorf: Disaster relief and donations, and alignment post-disaster – i.e., making sure donations that aren't needed don't flood the supply chain. Wachtendorf can also discuss evacuation decision-making, volunteer efforts, disaster response and coordination.
Sarah DeYoung: Dealing with unsolicited infant formula donations, and infant and maternal health. Can also discuss pets in emergencies, infant feeding in disasters and decision-making in evacuation.
Jennifer Trivedi: Long-term recovery and challenges for people with disabilities during disaster.

Connect with:

Jennifer Horney

Professor and Director, Epidemiology

Jennifer Horney's research focuses on the health impacts of disasters and public health emergencies including climate change.

MeaslesEpidemiologyepidemicCOVID-19Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response

Tricia Wachtendorf

Director / Professor, Disaster Research Center / Department of Sociology & Criminal Justice

Prof. Wachtendorf expertise lies in the social, organizational, and decision-making aspects of disasters.

evacuationsMulti-organizational coordination and responses in disastersTransnational crisesImprovisation and adaptationCommunity-based approaches to preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation

Jennifer Trivedi

Assistant Professor, Anthropology; Core Faculty Member, Disaster Research Center

Prof. Trivedi's research explores disaster vulnerability, response, recovery, resilience and decision-making.

Disaster Resilience‎Disaster ResponseDisaster VulnerabilityDisaster RecoveryHurricanes

Sarah DeYoung

Associate Professor, Sociology & Criminal Justice

Prof. DeYoung's expertise is in maternal and child health in crisis and disaster settings, with a focus on infant feeding in emergencies.

Evacuation Decision-makingCompanion Animals in DisastersMaternal & Infant Health in DisastersRefugee & Immigrant Well-beingPsychological Sense of Community

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Oct 26, 2026

1 min

Two years after the 2024 election, where does civil discourse stand?

Election season has brought the expected vicious political campaign ads, heated online disagreements and difficult dinner table conversations with family and friends. But the University of Delaware’s Timothy Shaffer says there’s still room for civil discourse. Shaffer, UD’s inaugural Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Chair of Civil Discourse, studies how people can engage across significant differences while maintaining the relationships and democratic institutions that make disagreement possible. As chair of UD's SNF Ithaca Initiative, Shaffer works with students, educators and civic leaders to develop and practice constructive engagement across differences. He can comment on the following through the lens of the first midterm election since the vitriolic 2024 general elections. • What has changed since 2024: How have the past two years affected the way Americans talk about politics, disagreement and democracy? • Polarization and dialogue: Is political disagreement itself the problem, or is the greater challenge engaging constructively across differences? • The role of disagreement: Why civil discourse doesn't require consensus and how listening to competing perspectives can strengthen democratic engagement. • Politics and personal relationships: How to navigate political differences with family, friends, neighbors and colleagues without letting disagreements become personal. • Social media and the 2026 election: How online environments shape political conversations, what Shaffer expects as Election Day approaches, and how people can engage more constructively across differences. To reach Shaffer and arrange an interview, visit his profile page and click on the "contact" button. Interested reporters can also send an email to MediaRelations@udel.edu.

Oct 21, 2026

1 min

Blood Clots Can Sideline Elite Athletes. Could Microrobots Offer a New Approach?

Blood clots have sidelined or ended the careers of several elite athletes, drawing attention to a potentially life-threatening condition. The University of Delaware's Sambeeta Das is part of a team that has developed tiny, magnetically guided robots that could offer a new approach to removing such blockages. The list of athletes affected by blood clots includes NBA champion Chris Bosh, whose career ended after recurring clots; tennis great Serena Williams, who survived two life-threatening pulmonary embolisms; San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, who was shut down in February 2025 when deep vein thrombosis was discovered in his right shoulder; and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, whose recent diagnosis of blood clots in his lungs has drawn national attention. In a published study, Das and her colleagues demonstrated that magnetic microrobots could mechanically break apart clusters of human liver cancer cells and clear them from narrow channels designed to model blood vessels. The robots used mechanical forces rather than drugs or chemicals to disperse the clusters. The research offers an early proof of concept for using microrobots to remove unwanted cellular material in confined spaces. Das can discuss how the technology works, its potential application to blood-clot removal, the challenges of targeting blockages inside the body, and what further research is needed to explore its use in patients. To contact Das and arrange an interview, visit her profile and click the “Contact” button. Reporters can also email MediaRelations@udel.edu.

Oct 20, 2026

2 min

From Baseball to Business: The Science of Team Success

The ingredients that create a World Series team often mirrors how units achieve success in business. How did they get there? The University of Delaware's Kyle Emich says the answer goes beyond assembling a roster of star players. Emich, a professor of management, says that how players combine their strengths, respond to opponents and create opportunities together can be just as important as individual talent. The same is true in business, where a collection of talented employees doesn’t automatically translate into a high-performing team, he said. One example is the approach that the 2026 Milwaukee Brewers’ took during their postseason run. Rather than relying exclusively on home runs and individual star power, the team created opportunities through a combination of speed, patience at the plate, timely hitting and pressure on opposing defenses. A stolen base, a walk or a defensive mistake might seem like a small event on its own, but the effects can build as players’ actions interact. These interactions matter, he says, because teams are not simply collections of individuals; their performance emerges from how people and their activities affect one another within a larger environment. The same is true in business as well as baseball. Businesses may recruit exceptional employees or invest in promising technologies such as artificial intelligence, yet fail to realize their potential if their processes, team structures and working practices don’t support those strengths. Emich can discuss: • Beyond Moneyball: What baseball’s emphasis on statistics and individual talent reveals about the limits of evaluating people in isolation. • Building better teams: How coordination, complementary strengths and the interaction among team members contribute to performance. • Strategy and competition: What baseball teams’ adjustments to opponents can teach business leaders about responding to competitors and changing conditions. • Technology and the future of work: Why adopting artificial intelligence or other new technologies is not enough without considering how people, processes and technology work together. To reach Emich directly and arrange an interview, visit his profile page and click on the "contact" button. Interested reporters can also send an email to MediaRelations@udel.edu.