Study looks at early influences on child brain development

Researchers at the School of Medicine are joining scientists around the country to conduct a study aimed at understanding how prenatal factors and early life experiences influence brain development and behavior in young children.

Which type of mask is easier on the ears?

COVID-19 brought masks and with them, a host of questions about how they affect our communications, including how well people wearing masks are understood. University researchers put popular designs to the test.

A river runs through it

Undergraduate Jordan Neeley in Arts & Sciences is using geospatial tools to better understand how water erodes a bedrock river at Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park. She is sharing her research at the American Geophysical Union fall meeting in December.

WashU Expert on MLB player-owner dispute

It’s unlikely that the standoff between baseball owners and players will lead to lost games in 2022, according to Patrick Rishe, a sports business expert at Olin Business School. But from a public relations perspective, he said, baseball already has lost.

Notables

A team led by Zhen (Jason) He at the McKelvey School of Engineering earned second place at the 2021 Intelligent Water Systems Challenge for its solution to a wastewater treatment problem.

Research Wire

Steven J. Mennerick at the School of Medicine received a five-year $2.3 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Notables

Historian Anika Walke, the Georgie W. Lewis Career Development Professor in Arts & Sciences, participated last month in the Blavatnik Archive Foundation’s international virtual conference “Jewish Soldiers & Fighters in WWII.”

Announcements

Reminder: United Way drive ends soon

University employees can support those in need by donating to the United Way of Greater St. Louis through Dec. 15. Those who donate through the WashU site will be entered in a raffle for a chance to win St. Louis and campus prizes.