Adversary or competitor? Do the two depictions represent a significant difference in attitude? If so, will that difference be manifested in U.S. policy toward China under a Biden presidency? This was the issue addressed in an online panel debate, "Time for a reset? U.S.-China relations during the Biden administration" co-organized by the Miller Center at the University of Virginia and the Center for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai on Jan. 11.
China Global Television Network
Charlottesville Daily Progress
The National Academy of Inventors has named two UVA School of Medicine researchers as fellows, citing the duo’s pioneering work in treating disease and improving research through innovation. Robin A. Felder and Boris Kovatchev, who often partner with the UVA Licensing and Ventures Group, are among 175 inventors invited to join the academy. Kovatchev is also a professor with the UVA School of Engineering.
The New York Times
“We were the canary in the coal mine,” said Jalane Schmidt, a UVA professor who was involved in the 2017 activism. She compared the current political moment to the aftermath of the Civil War, framing the choice for Biden’s administration as either committing to sweeping change akin to Reconstruction or going along with the type of compromise that brought its end.
The Street
(Video) We were thrilled to learn about SharpRank.com, a platform that rates gambling analysts based on their picks. The founder of Sharp Rank, [UVA alumnus] Chris Adams, joined Bull Market Fantasy to talk about sports betting and why his service is filling a major need for the gambling industry.
helloBARK!
Kenny is a Labradoodle working as a therapy dog at the University of Virginia. This charming Labradoodle can be found at the University of Virginia’s School of Nursing, helping to brighten the day of students, staff and visitors at the hospital.
CBS 19 News (Charlottesville)
UVA Health has launched a 12-week program called I-Heal that is designed to help patients recovering after a stroke. Participants in the program get an iPad and other technology to help them check their vitals, like blood pressure.
Charlottesville Daily Progress
(Photo essay) The deconstruction of Sponsor’s Hall began late last week to make way for the new Frank M. Sands Sr. UVA Inn at Darden and Conference Center at the Darden School of Business. Construction is scheduled to be complete in 2023 and will include a landscape-transforming arboretum and botanical gardens.
The New York Times
“No matter how you slice and dice the data, whether you’re looking at the cabinet or at White House staff, you’re going to see the same commitment to diversity,” said Kathryn Dunn Tenpas, senior fellow at UVA’s Miller Center.
CBS 19 News (Charlottesville)
UVA researchers at have discovered something that may explain racial disparities in colorectal cancer. UVA Health scientists found that one side of the colon ages biologically faster than the other in both African-Americans and people of European descent. However, the right side ages significantly faster in African-Americans, making them more prone to developing colorectal cancer, even at a younger age.
BBC
Aswin Punathambekar, UVA professor of media studies and author of “From Bombay to Bollywood: The Making of a Global Media Industry,” says that the UK has always been ahead of the US when it comes to casting actors of Indian origin. "Even in a popular TV show like ‘The Great British Bake Off,’ there have been Indian contestants and even winners. And actors like Archie Panjabi and Sanjeev Bhaskar – they play mainstream roles and not just Indian characters," he notes.
Space.com
For the first time, stars snacking on their stellar neighbors outside the Milky Way have had their orbits fully mapped. Using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, astronomers have identified two pairs of stars beyond the galaxy that are consuming their companions. Jasmin Washington is a co-author of the new study and a graduate student at the University of Arizona; she was an undergraduate at UVA during the project. Washington and her fellow author, Hannah Lewis, a UVA graduate student, presented the results Jan. 12 at the 237th meeting of the American Astronomical Society.
ichmond Business Journal
Creators need a place to gather, to bounce ideas off each other and to find support as they build new things. Lumastic can be that place, said [UVA alumnus] Drew Lytle, company co-founder and CEO. Together with co-founder and CTO Keith Stolte, Lytle has created a virtual workplace for freelancers, side hustlers and entrepreneurs. On Lumastic, creatives can find the human interaction and feedback that has long been a part of office life but is often missing for people who work solo.
“On Point” (WBUR Public Radio, Boston)
(Audio) President Joe Biden signs 17 executive orders in his first hours in office. We dig into what they say, where Biden might succeed and what policies will meet resistance. Among the guests is Barbara Perry, director of presidential studies at UVA’s Miller Center.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
“Cholesterol has been very well studied as an important factor in a large number of viral infections,” says Peter Kasson, a UVA scientist who studies the physical mechanisms of viral disease. “The interesting thing is that cholesterol’s role in viral entry varies a lot between viruses.” It’s not clear exactly how cholesterol aids SARS-CoV-2, but understanding that process could offer clues about the biology of infection, says Kasson, who was not involved in the research.
Teen Vogue
Micah Mazurek and Gerrit Van Schalkwyk, professors at the University of Virginia and University of Utah, respectively, described two separate studies they conducted that confirmed the positive influence of social media in neurodiverse teenagers’ and adults’ lives.
Nature
In 1985, William Pearson at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville and David Lipman at the NCBI introduced FASTP, an algorithm that combined Dayhoff’s matrix with the ability to perform rapid searches.
Bloomberg
(Video) Barbara Perry, the Gerald L. Baliles professor and director of presidential studies at UVA’s Miller Center, discusses the spiritual tone in President Biden’s inaugural address.
Deutsche Welle (Germany)
The switch in tone between President Trump and President Biden is undeniable. “Biden said he is the president for all Americans – that’s not talk we heard in the last four years,” J. Miles Coleman, a political analyst with UVA’s Center for Politics, said.
CNBC
Biden used the word 11 times throughout his address. “What was fascinating to me about it was that he started and ended with democracy,” said Bill Antholis, the director and CEO of the Miller Center, a nonpartisan affiliate of UVA that specializes in presidential scholarship. He attributed the theme of Biden’s speech to the Capitol riot and the events that preceded it. “I think this was a very different speech than the one that would have been written if Trump had conceded on the morning of Nov. 4,” he said.
CBS 19 News (Charlottesville)
A group of UVA researchers are offering resources to help teachers address issues of racial injustice in the classroom. The initiative called “Educating for Democracy” uses the way U.S. history is taught to properly explain current events.