Mask mandates and the Delta variant were discussed at UVA Health’s COVID-19 briefing Friday morning. Nationally, cases are beginning to rise and a lot of that has to do with the highly infectious Delta variant. Many states across the country are bringing back masking rules, regardless of vaccination status. UVA Health doctors say there is a small increase in cases and hospitalizations locally. However, it will not be necessary to restore previous mask rules.
UVA Health recognizes the negative turnover trends and is trying to help. It was announced Friday nurses will be receiving bonuses. “UVA is facing challenges and recruiting and retaining nurses and that’s really because the pandemic, COVID, we’ve been 18 months, you know in a very stressful situation,” CEO of UVA Medical Center Wendy Horton said. “It’s really important that we make sure that we’re caring for nurses.”
In 2014, psychologists at the University of Virginia conducted a simple experiment to showcase the power of the human mind. They placed subjects in a room by themselves with no distractions for roughly 10 minutes, letting them be alone with their thoughts. Given the infinite possibilities that our imaginations hold, it aimed to promote the sheer pleasures we can derive from just thinking. It turns out that people hated it.
(Podcast) Hosted by Andrew Keen, “Keen On” features conversations with some of the world’s leading thinkers and writers about the economic, political, and technological issues being discussed in the news, right now. In this episode, Andrew is joined by [UVA professor] Leidy Klotz, the author of “Subtract: The Untapped Science of Less,” to discuss why we overlook subtraction, and how we can access its true potential.
Amyloid beta and tau are two toxic molecular substances that accumulate in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease, creating plaques and tangles and destroying nerve cells. Pew Latin American fellow Guillermo Eastman – who is conducting research at the University of Virginia under the mentorship of George S. Bloom – is investigating how these substances alter the production of different proteins in brain cells and examining how these changes affect neurons’ survival, structure, and function.
New models from the UVA Biocomplexity Institute indicate infections are likely to climb because vaccination rates are well below herd immunity. “With many Virginians returning to normal, the virus has room to run,” researchers wrote in the latest UVA report released Friday.
The UVA Biocomplexity Institute, which produces a weekly COVID-19 model report, noted how the Crater Region is on an “In Surge” trajectory, or currently experiencing sustained rapid and significant growth of 2.5 cases per 100,00 or higher. UVA predicts the Delta variant will grow more dominant as the time comes, according to the report, with unvaccinated individuals and communities with low vaccination rates.
Several other examples demonstrate blended learning in practice, as provided by my colleagues. The Integrated Core Experience program at the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce in Charlottesville operates in similar fashion, but it’s far more ambitious: more than 300 undergraduates within one course tackle real client problems presented at the beginning of the semester. To help students build the foundational skills needed to solve these unstructured complex problems, commerce professor Keisha Lashley and her colleagues utilize the case study method and take students on a seme...
Back in March, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam signed an executive order requiring all state agencies, including universities, to pull back on plastic. There are two phases: cut out certain single-use plastics by July 21, then slowly phase out all other single-use plastics by 25% each year until they’re entirely eliminated by 2025. To meet orders, University of Virginia is going green.
The University of Virginia recently received a massive donation of Mormon memorabilia, books and other materials that officials say could make the university a leading site east of the Rockies for studying the religion.
UVA says many students who are eligible to enroll in classes on Grounds and Academic Division employees report being fully vaccinated. According to a release, 85% of eligible students and 78.5% of the Academic Division employees are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
UVA’s fall semester is quickly approaching and classes will be back to normal for the most part. Many students say they feel safe transitioning to normal because of UVA’s high vaccination rates. The latest data shows that 85% of students are fully vaccinated. Some say this in-person semester will allow for more effective learning rather than only having online classes.
UVA Health is trying to prevent more turnover. Wendy Horton, the CEO of UVA Health, says all patient-facing nurses were getting a bonus this year: $3,000 for full-time nurses and $1,500 for part-time. This is part of the hospital’s efforts to be more competitive in terms of pay and benefits and to hold onto more staff members during a national crisis.
A hunch and hard work has led a UVA medical research team to a clinical trial to determine if an allergy-related asthma drug can be used to treat COVID-19. Research by Mary Young and Allie Donlan, part of Dr. William Petri’s medical research team, has led to a human trial of dupilumab, also known as Dupixent, to see if it can keep COVID patients off ventilators.
The day the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee was lifted from its pedestal in Charlottesville and driven away, [UVA student] Zyahna Bryant stood nearby, wearing pearls. The adult adornment was telling. It showed she had grown up while waiting for that moment. At 15, Zyahna was a girl when she created the petition to remove the statue in her hometown. At 20, when that finally happened, she was a woman who had grown used to juggling homework with hate mail.
The antitrust partnership of [UVA Law alumnus] Ken Paxton, the Republican attorney general of Texas, and Dina Srinivasan, a left-leaning independent scholar, in a lawsuit against Google is part of a wave of bipartisan scrutiny of technology giants
As the 2022 World Cup qualifiers approach, Coach Gregg Berhalter has a good idea of his perfect starting lineup for the U.S. men’s national soccer team. The competition for the striker’s role, though, remains up for debate. Just a year into his pro career, Daryl Dike is making a convincing case. The former University of Virginia standout continued to make a strong impression Thursday in Kansas City, Kansas, scoring twice during a 6-1 victory over Martinique in the group stage of the Concacaf Gold Cup.
Aynne Kokas, an associate professor at the University of Virginia and expert on US-China media and technology relations said historically the LGBTQ community has been effective as digital activists and targeting WeChat could have the “most significant material impact” on the community’s ability to mobilize the movement. The action struck at the heart of how China’s LGBTQ community communicated and advocated for their rights.
“Everybody can be on the stage now. You get a mental picture of the president standing at the bully pulpit on the stage but nobody’s in the audience. That’s because everybody who was once in the audience is actually on the stage with their own mini-pulpit, and don’t want to be persuaded,” says Barbara Perry, a presidential scholar at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center.
It’s also important to note the variant is adapting. In addition to changes in COVID-19 symptoms, it’s also much quicker. To give an example, the Alpha variant, the first mutation, spread 50% quicker than the original virus. Delta, meanwhile, spreads 40 to 60% quicker than Alpha. “It binds to the human receptor with higher affinity than does the alpha variant,” UVA infectious disease expert William Petri said.