Now, one might think that the more walkable your area is, the healthier and happier the population would be. But a new study argues that healthy doesn’t always equal happy. Conducted by the University of Virginia and published in Applied Psychology, the study found people who live in walkable cities are generally healthier than those who live in cities dominated by cars — but they aren’t any happier. This flies in the face of studies that show exercise can ward off depression, as well as the notion that the more active you are, the happier you are.
(By James D.W. Zehmer, Restoration Project Supervisor at the University of Virginia) The Rotunda, centerpiece of Thomas Jefferson’s Academical Village and symbol of the University of Virginia, has been subjected to intervals of construction, renovation, rebuilding, restoration and repair since the institution began offering classes on March 7, 1825. Interspersed through the periods of repair and maintenance are six major interventions. First, of course, was the original construction period (1823-27), resulting in Jefferson’s vision of a half-scale interpretation o...
This weekend, most Americans are gaining an hour of sleep by turning back their clocks as daylight saving time ends. But, a newly published Cornell study finds, they could stand to lose much more in the time exchange. Examining crime rates from 2005-08, Nicholas Sanders, assistant professor in the Cornell University Department of Policy Analysis and Management, co-authored a study with Jennifer Doleac, an assistant professor in the University of Virginia Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. They found robbery rates are lower during DST. Standard Time brings a seven percent increase i...
A sign reading "This business serves everyone" is placed in the window of Bernadette's Barbershop in downtown Lafayette, Indiana, March 31, 2015. The store is one of several who display a sticker stating "This business serves everyone." Indiana's Republican Governor Mike Pence, responding to national outrage over the state's new Religious Freedom Restoration Act, said on Tuesday he will "fix" it to make clear businesses cannot use the law to deny services to same-sex couples. "Both same-sex couples, and religious believers committed to traditional...
A Twitter-fueled furor erupted on Thursday after the Renaissance Society of America said that the database firm ProQuest had canceled the group’s subscription to a key collection of texts. Bethany Nowviskie, director of the Digital Library Federation and a research associate professor of digital humanities at the University of Virginia, said she hoped the controversy would lead to a focused discussion on private companies’ role in academe. "It’s a clear reminder that the private companies to which we have ceded control of our shared cultural heritage do not hav...
John Kasich decided to be more aggressive during this week’s third Republican presidential debate — just as it seemed most of the rest of the candidates decided to be the grown-ups in the room. Unless you count the fighting between the candidates and CNBC moderators. “[Mr. Kasich] got more attention,” said Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. “He increased both name ID and his favorability score, but if you’re asking whether he’s in the top tier, the answer is no.”
Are the news media reporting the campaign, or making and breaking the campaign? That is a key question coming out of the third Republican presidential debate, a faceoff in which one moderator from CNBC, which televised the debate, likened a GOP campaign to a comic book and several candidates and analysts protested that the journalists are becoming too much of a player in the story. Campaign officials were annoyed with too many questions probing candidates’ quirks and personalities. An analysis from Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a website of the University of Virginia’s Center ...
The "renaissance of marriage" in America will depend not only on renewing conservative values but also economic and social policies that support the poor, W. Bradford Wilcox said at the World Congress of Families Thursday. The University of Virginia associate professor of sociology is nationally respected for his research on marriage and relationships and as the director of the National Marriage Project.
"For a long time, we were worried about the unjust and uneven distribution of greenery in cities—and it is still true in more disadvantaged neighborhoods," says Timothy Beatley, an urban planning professor at the University of Virginia. "What's new about the discussion is the very recognition that those investments in nature could ultimately serve to displace people from them."
Sound business intelligence from Rajkumar Venkatesan, the Bank of American Research Professor of Administration at the Darden School of Business.
Poverty is the most important predictor of food insecurity, says Paul Freedman, associate professor in the department of politics and a founding member of UVA’s Food Collaborative.
Dr. Ted Burns, a professor of neurology, offered a warning to his fellow neurologists. Patients with a rare neuromuscular disease are at risk because the inexpensive drug they take might disappear next year.
New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz will deliver the commencement address at the University of Virginia law school next spring. The law school says Shortz will speak on May 22 on U.Va.'s Holcombe Green Lawn in Charlottesville.
The University of Virginia’s newest residence hall played host to the descendants of a slave couple on Wednesday. Descendants of William and Isabella Gibbons visited the Gibbons House on grounds for a reception honoring their ancestors. The couple was enslaved by different professors at the university until 1865.
The University of Virginia announced on Wednesday the winner of its first annual Hannah Graham Memorial Award — named for the student found slain in September 2014. Second-year student Claire Romaine is the recipient of the inaugural award, given to exceptional students who show an interest in the French language, public health and international aid.
The International Rescue Committee in Charlottesville is hosting a public talk about the Syrian refugee crisis at noon Friday at the Central Library downtown. Leading the talk on the recent Syrian history that has led to the crisis is Hanadi Al-Samman, a native Syrian and professor at the University of Virginia. He will be followed by the Charlottesville IRC’s executive director, Harriet Kuhr, who will speak about the organization’s efforts in response to the conflict, their work with refugees in the area and how community members can get involved.
A University of Virginia sophomore studying biology received the school’s inaugural Hannah Graham Memorial Award in honor of the 18-year-old student who was slain in Charlottesville, Va., last year. Claire Romaine earned the award for her project examining gastric cancer cases in Rwanda. The award will grant Romaine $10,000 to study field work in a French-speaking country to honor Graham’s similar Francophile interests and passion for foreign cultures.
At the University of Virginia, studies showed that when happy couples held hands, the calming effect on the brain was similar to that caused by pain-relieving drugs. But unhappy couples did not show the same benefit. James A. Coan, the University of Virginia professor who conducted the hand-holding studies, said couples who find they have an ambivalent relationship should not panic about the study findings, but should feel motivated to work on the relationship and seek counseling before their problems become intractable.
The 11th Annual Bill Steers Men’s Four Miler race is scheduled to take place on Sunday, November 8. The Charlottesville event is organized entirely by volunteers, with all proceeds going back to men's health at the University of Virginia Medical Center.
A year after filming in Orange and surrounding counties, “Coming Through the Rye” is being screened at multiple film festivals around the country. It’ll appear on the big screen next week at the Virginia Film Festival being held in Charlottesville Nov. 5-8.