Two states, California and Vermont, have called for a convention to overturn the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision that permits huge amounts of unregulated money into federal campaigns. Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist, wants a convention to adopt sweeping changes, including a single six-year presidential term and concomitant House and Senate terms, to create more of a parliamentary system. Petitions to adopt term limits for members of Congress have circulated for years.
Back in the 1920s, most American city-dwellers took public transportation to work every day. There were 17,000 miles of streetcar lines across the country, running through virtually every major American city. That included cities we don't think of as hubs for mass transit today: Atlanta, Raleigh, and Los Angeles. So whatever happened to all those streetcars? "There's this widespread conspiracy theory that the streetcars were bought up by a company National City Lines, which was effectively controlled by GM, so that they could be torn up and converted ...
Do you believe in life after death? Where does the soul go? Can it live on in another body? A professor at the University of Virginia studies cases of children who say they have lived a past life as someone else. Dr. Jim Tucker has written a book about it, called Return to Life.
For many New Yorkers, nothing symbolizes summer more than a scorching day at Coney Island or a blissful swim in McCarren Park Pool. And some are urging the city to make it easier for locals to escape the heat by extending the season of public beaches and pools beyond the typical definition of summer. “Prior to the civil rights movement, public beaches were only public to white America,” says University of Virginia Professor Andrew Kahrl, who has studied the history of race and beaches in the U.S. “They were practically off-limits to people of color.” Today, as the effec...
While the power of money in politics should never be underestimated, institutions can be changed. Thomas Philippon of New York University and Ariell Reshef of the University of Virginia argue, for instance, that financial deregulation produced a huge wage premium for finance executives, even as it increased risks for the rest of society.
Medically and legally, it is challenging to determine consent for someone with Alzheimer’s. Two common tests for short-term memory, the Mini Mental Status Exam and the Brief Interview for Mental Status, are widely acknowledged by experts as well as the Alzheimer’s Association not to be sufficient to determine whether a patient with dementia can or cannot consent to sexual activity. John Portmann, a professor of Religious Studies at the University of Virginia, says that both people in a marriage have rights to sexual satisfaction. In his book The Ethics of Sex and Alzheime...
The technology industry is plagued not only by a gender gap but also by a broad lack of inclusiveness that affects minorities too, experts say. Joanne Cohoon, an associate professor of science, technology and society at the University of Virginia, has said that girls are often expected to have interests that are fundamentally different from those of boys, and that this can create a gender imbalance in work like computer science.
Jerome McGann believes that Poe has been underrated as a poet. McGann teaches at the University of Virginia, where Poe briefly studied.
Two students at the University of Virginia have developed a new app.The app is called VotersChoice and was created by Tara Raj and Garrett Allen.
Two of the Democrats vying for spots on the Charlottesville City Council participated in a form Wednesday night at the University of Virginia. The forum, which was hosted by the Gov360 nonprofit, focused on the relationship between the city and UVA, and how it can be improved.
More than 100 employers filled the John Paul Jones Arena Wednesday for the annual Charlottesville Community Job Fair. Most of Charlottesville's largest employers attended the event including the University of Virginia and Martha Jefferson Hospital, as well as a few stores opening new locations such as Bonjagles, Chipotle and Nude Food.
Just 14 months ago, the Blue Ridge Scholarships program was launched with a $4 million challenge grant and an invitation to University of Virginia supporters to match the total. A rapid and robust response grew the seed grant to $8 million, propelling a need-based scholarship that assisted dozens of high-achieving students in the current academic year.
A group of graduating University of Virginia students will leave a legacy with seven Charlottesville nonprofits. Students from the UVA Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy awarded a total of $50,000 in grants to those organizations during a ceremony Wednesday afternoon. The private initiatives and public problems class selected the nonprofits to receive the funds after researching and experiencing the work they do in the community.
The University of Virginia’s University Singers will be performing for audiences in England, Czech Republic, Poland and Austria. The ensemble’s first international tour in several decades is set for May 19 to 28. The singers, led by faculty conductor Michael Slon, will perform works by Whitacre, Part, Lukaszewski, Dvorak, Bruckner, Finzi and Biebl. Some American folk songs and spirituals also will be on the program.
In the increasingly crowded GOP primary field, there are three candidates who have something that all Republicans want, and few can claim: a plausible path to making a substantial connection with Hispanic voters. They are, or course, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush. That won’t be easy, says University of Virginia political scientist Larry Sabato. “Hispanics lean heavily to the Democratic party in a polarized age when party identification matters greatly. Turnout may be the key for the GOP. Are Hispanics energized (2012) or not ene...
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has hurdles to overcome if he doesn't want his 2016 presidential bid to look like his 2008 race, two political scientists said Tuesday. Huckabee will have to work harder to differentiate himself from the other social conservatives, said Geoffrey Skelley, associate editor of "Sabato's Crystal Ball," the University of Virginia Center for Politics' nonpartisan newsletter on American campaigns and elections.
At the University of Virginia, landscape architect Timothy Beatley has created the Biophilic Cities Project, devoted to developing new ways of making cities more “biophilic”, or close to nature – not only by increasing exposure to green spaces, but also by enhancing the emotional connection of urban residents to life outside.
The technology industry is plagued not only by a gender gap but also by a broad lack of inclusiveness that affects minorities too, experts say. Joanne Cohoon, an associate professor of science, technology and society at the University of Virginia, has said that girls are often expected to have interests that are fundamentally different from those of boys, and that this can create a gender imbalance in work like computer science.
Testiness during oral arguments at the Supreme Court get more heated based on the subject. Here's Justice Scalia during oral arguments two years ago in U.S. vs. Windsor challenging the Defense of Marriage Act. Michael A. Livermore, Associate Professor at University of Virginia Law School, weighs in on the analysis, which is to be formally published next year.
The man charged with abducting and killing University of Virginia student Hannah Graham last year now is facing the death penalty. Albemarle County prosecutors announced Tuesday that they have charged Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr, 33, with capital murder and said they will seek the death penalty. He also faces a charge of abduction with intent to defile.