Physical spaces where kids live, play and learn have big impact on obesity, eating behaviors
USC study identifies the strongest environmental predictor of childhood and adolescent obesity.
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Clinical trial investigating innovative way to control Type 2 diabetes
Study examines if an outpatient, nonsurgical endoscopic procedure can help patients stabilize blood glucose levels without the need for medication or insulin.
Notable USC alums to receive honors at 47th annual Black Alumni Association Scholarship Benefit
Daniel Prince will receive the 2023 Black Alum of the Year Award. Miki Turner and Kiesha Nix also will be recognized.
Historic winter blast is a mixed blessing for USC ski and snowboard team
The super-size snowpack created unprecedented opportunities for the student-run organization (yes, USC has a ski team), but it nearly shut down the sport’s national competition.
Trojans Skyler Pak and Taylor Contarino take #WeAreListening to heart
TITLE IX: The USC Annenberg pair are integral to the continuing success of the school’s #WeAreListening LIVE series.
USA Today
Is there an alternative to statins for high cholesterol?
Some people can’t take statins because of side effects. “If they go home and don’t take it, it’s not doing any benefit,” said cardiologist Eugene DePasquale of the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “It’s really important to have an alternative.”
(USA Today)
NPR
Hollywood gets wildfires all wrong — to the frustration of firefighters
A study from the climate change storytelling consultancy Good Energy and USC Annenberg’s Norman Lear Center found less than 3% of the more than 37,000 analyzed movie and TV scripts written between 2016 and 2020 made any reference to climate change. But scenes featuring discussions about climate change or fire control methods, such as raking leaves off a lawn, don’t exactly make for scintillating screen time.
Los Angeles Times
Claims link ‘woke’ policies to Silicon Valley Bank demise, but experts say no
USC Marshall’s Rodney Ramcharan dismissed criticism that the bank reportedly donated millions to Black Lives Matter and similar groups as “trivial and irrelevant,” given the bank had more than $200 billion in assets before it failed. (Los Angeles Times; may require subscription)
Variety
‘Women Talking’ and ‘Slow Horses’ writers win at USC Libraries’ Scripter Awards
The movie and TV series are recognized as the year’s best adaptation of the written word.
CBS News
Teens turning to TikTok for mental health advice are self-diagnosing
USC Annenberg’s Robin Stevens is working with Instagram’s Well-being Creator Collective, a pilot program that trains and educates influencers and content creators on how to create responsible mental health content.
MSN
Building more houses in L.A. is good for the environment
Research conducted by USC’s Matthew Kahn found that L.A. was the fifth-greenest large metropolitan area in the country as measured by carbon emitted by an average household — almost entirely because of relatively mild weather. If L.A. built more housing, there would be less building in areas such as Atlanta or Houston, which have higher greenhouse gas emissions.
The Hollywood Reporter
Movies starring women of color hit 16-year high in 2022
An annual report from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative also found that half of the women over 45 who led or co-led a movie were women of color.
Los Angeles Times
Looking back at Dianne Feinstein’s long run in the Senate
“If you go back 30, 40 years, women went on the education committee, or maybe dealt with health care — whatever little bone was thrown their way,” says Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a retired USC political science professor. “Dianne didn’t follow the typical path. … She didn’t let herself get pigeonholed as a ‘woman’ senator.”
Forbes
Rihanna extends legacy of legendary Black women Super Bowl performers
The entertainer is now part of an elite sorority of Black women who’ve been featured on Super Bowl stages. Shaun Harper of the USC Race and Equity Center explains why that’s important: Rihanna and other Black women work in an industry dominated by white executives and by men, few of whom are Black.
Gizmodo
If websites were liable for what users post, would the internet even work?
USC’s Robert Kozinets and a colleague describe how to bring transparency and accountability to social media.
The New York Times
The heartache of being sidelined from your favorite sport
One challenge: the absence of uplifting hormones. “There are a lot of endorphins and chemical changes that happen in our body when we exercise,” says Jared Vagy, USC assistant professor of physical therapy. “If that’s the only method that some people have to release those chemicals, then you’ve just lost a large part of what makes you complete as a human or satisfied.”
Los Angeles Times
A community garden in Watts provides solace, fresh produce for immigrants
Most community gardens in L.A. are “hobby gardens” for more affluent demographics, says USC Dornsife’s Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo. But this one, she says, is a “healing spot, homeland and economic generator” for a diverse group of immigrants — Indigenous, mestizo and Central American.
‘Women Talking,’ ‘Slow Horses’ win 2023 USC Libraries’ Scripter Awards
The movie and TV series are recognized as the year’s best adaptation of the written word.
Keck Medicine of USC names Ikenna ‘Ike’ Mmeje president and CEO of USC Arcadia Hospital
The seasoned health care executive will lead the longstanding community hospital and recent addition to the Keck Medicine health system.
USC programs trace Oscar’s past and work to change film’s future
An Adobe Foundation grant to the USC School of Dramatic Arts’ MFA Acting Program will directly support the production of short films by underrepresented students.
USC trailblazer pushed past criticism as Trojan Marching Band’s first female drum major
TITLE IX: Since donning the cardinal cape and gold breastplate, USC Thornton alumna India Anderson has performed with Beyoncé at the 2022 Oscars and now leads the brass band Blow.
USC film school grad helps people living with disabilities tell their stories
Marisa Torelli-Pedevska co-founded the Inevitable Foundation, a first-of-its-kind organization dedicated to funding and mentoring professional screenwriters living with disabilities.
Notable USC alumni to receive honors at the 89th annual Alumni Awards
Bill Allen will receive the 2023 Asa V. Call Alumni Achievement Award.
Toward the cancer solution we need: Experts from science, engineering and the humanities join together
Scientists from USC Dornsife and Cedars-Sinai rally scholars around the country and in diverse fields to find better ways of beating the disease.
Largest known genetic study of prostate cancer in men of African descent could improve screening
The USC-led analysis of genetic data fills an urgent research gap for a population that faces a higher risk of prostate cancer than white men.
Students in USC Gould’s International Human Rights Clinic help Ukrainian family escape war
“Our client was always unsure if he could make the meetings because he was often in bomb shelters with no electricity or Zoom connection,” says law student Uma Fry Demetria.
Anonymous $11 million gift to USC Rossier will cement school’s Educational Equity Initiative
The gift was made to three projects that ensure youth will benefit from a more individualized, meaningful and equitable education experience.
USC Trojan Marching Band walks tall on March Fourth, the day that celebrates the marching arts
Under the leadership of Jacob Vogel, the Trojan Marching Band is creating unforgettable memories and breathing new life into revered Trojan traditions.
Dornsife Dialogues virtual event series strikes a chord
The live discussions with USC scholars and other experts — launched early in the pandemic — have become hugely popular.
USC to lead industry-university cooperative research center for soil technologies
USC will lead a joint research effort to develop technologies for assessment of soil sustainability and health, tracking impacts of climate change on soils and providing tools for ensuring food security.
USC celebrates trailblazers at Women’s History Month kickoff
Monthlong observance begins with virtual event including President Carol L. Folt and some of the university’s own Trojan trailblazers.
Food insecurity is worsening among low-income Angelenos
Throughout 2022, 37% of low-income residents of L.A. County lacked access to sufficient food. That’s 10 points more than in 2018, according to research published by USC Dornsife’s Public Exchange.
In memoriam: Allen W. Mathies, 92, former Keck School of Medicine of USC dean
Mathies, who served as dean from 1975 to 1985, oversaw some of the school’s most significant growth.
New initiative shows the lasting impact of #OscarsSoWhite
The Inclusion List, launched Wednesday by Associate Professor of Communication Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, tracks and celebrates progress in entertainment.
Prisoners learn writing skills through new program founded by USC alum
Volunteers in the USC Prison Education Project’s Readers’ Circle program provide typing, copy editing and proofreading services to people in custody across the United States.
The water wars of the future are here today
Seven thirsty states including California are fighting over the dwindling waters of the Colorado River. USC experts look at how we got here — and why this was inevitable.
USC-led program awarded $15 million from U.S. Department of Transportation
The METRANS Transportation Consortium will lead the U.S. Region 9 research, education and technology transfer program.
Women’s History Month at USC celebrates female pioneers and their stories
Events taking place during the yearlong tribute to the 50th anniversary of Title IX include a music festival, a movie screening and conversations featuring trailblazing women.
‘Family reunion’ wraps up USC’s Black History Month observance
The celebration — moved indoors at the last minute because of inclement weather — culminates a month of events.
Using theater to promote healing and justice around the world
Professor Brent Blair of the USC School of Dramatic Arts heads to India, Rwanda and Israel to find the intersection of theater, healing and justice.
A high-powered processor for cutting-edge encryption
Recent advancements in cryptography have allowed algorithms to do direct computation on encrypted data.