(Co-written by Helena Zeweri, assistant professor of global studies) Ever since the Taliban recaptured Afghanistan, the question in much of the Western media has been, “What will happen to the women of Afghanistan?” Indeed, this is an important concern that merits international attention. The Taliban has already imposed many restrictions on women. At the same time, however, much of the Western media coverage appears to be reinforcing the idea that the U.S. military intervention helped expand the rights for Afghan women, while erasing the impact of years of resulting corruption and violence on ...
The University of Virginia Department of Drama has canceled its production of “Diversity Awareness Picnic,” its first scheduled presentation of the new 2021-22 season.
Doctors at UVA Health are encouraging people to screen their breasts for any sudden changes. The most common clinical symptom of breast cancer, according to Dr. Carrie Rochman, is a palpable lump. “Other signs of breast cancer can be related to the skin overlying a lump in the breast,” she said. “It might look thickened, it might look red, and there might even be changes on the surface on the nipple.” The doctor says getting a mammogram can be intimidating, but it’s worth it.
The UVA Medical Center is putting more than $30 million into merit raises and pay increases in the next fiscal year to reward and retain current workers and improve recruitment of new employees, according to an official.
(Editorial) More good news from higher education: In the face of nursing shortages, Piedmont Virginia Community College will expand its nursing program. PVCC offers a two-year curriculum in practical nursing. The expansion is made possible by a $300,000 gift from an anonymous donor and another $400,000 from the UVA Medical Center.
UVA researchers say reducing mortality risk among obese individuals is better achieved by increasing physical activity than working to lose weight. “When you go from not being fit at all to being even slightly fit, you see large reductions in your risk of disease,” contributing researcher and UVA kinesiologist Siddhartha Angadi said.
The University of Virginia-led project will seek to 3-D print high-temperature parts made of previously unused niobium alloys, which could enable huge time and cost savings for more complex geometries. The hopes are that these proposed 3-D printing capabilities will eventually be applied to scramjets – a class of hypersonic jet engine in which combustion takes place in supersonic airflow.
(Subscription may be required) Immigration plays an outsized role in fueling the growing divide between Americans, especially where political beliefs and values are concerned, according to a newly published survey of Joe Biden and Donald Trump voters. The research was conducted by the UVA Center for Politics and Project Home Fire, an initiative aimed at “identifying and addressing the social, political, and psychological divides” between those who cast their ballot for Trump and those who moved to elect Biden.
(Video) University of Virginia’s “Sabato’s Crystal Ball” managing editor Kyle Kondik discusses a new effort to explore U.S. political polarization.
(Commentary) It appears that Virginia has turned the corner on the Delta variant. According to the weekly update from the UVA Biocomplexity Institute Friday, its COVID-19 model indicates that “cases have peaked and are in gradual decline.”
A painting honoring the late Otto Warmbier has been returned to UVA’s Theta Chi Fraternity. The painting was returned Friday morning, found on the front doorstep of the fraternity's house, with an apology note. Warmbier died shortly after being released from North Korean custody in 2017. The note left with the painting said in part: "This was taken out of utter stupidity…We recognize how inconsiderate this act was."
The University of Virginia is looking at its energy use, and finding ways to better use its buildings.
The word “slut” scrawled at the end of the manuscript for John Steinbeck’s seminal novel “The Grapes of Wrath” – thought by some to have been written there after the manuscript was placed in the UVA Library archives – may have been explained, thanks to a handful of Swedish academics.
The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign kicks off each October. The CVC is a statewide initiative that works to maximize the power of state employees and agencies. The University of Virginia is one participant that donates to many nonprofits in the state. “It’s the largest annual workplace giving drive, which is pretty great. It helps over 900 charities and not for profits,” UVA chief creative officer, Matt Weber said.
An annual charity campaign has gotten underway across Virginia. The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign launched earlier this week, giving employees of state agencies a way to donate to community nonprofits through payroll deductions or other means. According to a release, UVA has historically been the largest-contributing state agency, with employees giving nearly $1 million each year to nonprofits.
The University of Virginia is getting a new learning space, but it doesn’t look anything like the rest of the buildings on UVA Grounds. The Contemplative Commons held a groundbreaking ceremony Friday morning.
The University of Virginia has broken ground on the Contemplative Commons building located near the Dell on Emmet Street. Planned to open in 2023, the 57,000-aquare-foot Contemplative Commons will comprise flexible learning studios that can be configured for academic classes, quiet reflection, social interaction or physical activity.
(Subscription may be required) A University of Virginia language professor will join a colleague from the UVA School of Data Sciences in an effort to preserve two languages edging closure to extinctions. The National Science Foundation has awarded a $250,000 grant to Allison Bigelow, an associate professor in the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences’ Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese.
(Editorial; subscription may be required) In another effort to counteract staffing shortages, the UVA Medical Center plans to spend more than $30 million in merit raises now and pay rate increases in the next fiscal year. … Kudos to UVA for making these provisions.
UVA Health is seeing a decrease in the number of COVID-19 patients. The COVID unit currently has 49 patients, 22 of whom are in an acute unit and 25 are in the ICU. Dr. Reid Adams, UVA Health’s chief medical officer, says this is a decrease from two weeks ago. The COVID unit saw a peak of 68 patients.