Humanities & Society

Representatives and leadership from Washington University and the 28 McDonnell International Scholars Academy institutions came together with policymakers, researchers, students and corporate partners for the recent Fifth International Symposium on “The Role of Research Universities in Addressing Global Challenges.” The symposium, sponsored by the McDonnell Academy, focused on how interdisciplinary research and education collaboration can lead to innovative solutions for the world’s most pressing problems

Washington University School of Medicine recently teamed up with the Saint Louis Art Museum and the university’s Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum to scan some very unusual patients: three Egyptian mummies.

Climate change, water shortages and the loss of farmland to pollution and urban sprawl are making it increasingly difficult for farmers to feed the world’s growing population, agricultural scholars from four continents said this week at an international symposium held at Washington University in St. Louis.

The government of India’s Department of Biotechnology, Indian corporate leaders and Washington University in St. Louis have invested $2.5 million to launch the Indo-U.S. Advanced Bioenergy Consortium for Second Generation Biofuels (IUABC). The goal of the center is to increase biomass yield in plants and algae, enabling downstream commercial development for cost-effective, efficient and environmentally sustainable production of advanced biofuels.

“Long tail” thinking — a strategy employed by many new businesses — might yield greater progress the field of public health by eliminating health disparities, according to a study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis led by Matthew W. Kreuter, PhD.

People at high risk for psychological distress respond positively to receiving results of personalized genetic testing, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. More than 60 percent of subjects in the genetic study wanted information about their test results, and 95 percent said they appreciated receiving the information, regardless of whether the results were good or bad news.

Social media marketing strategies present both challenges and opportunities for public health professionals. While misinformation can be spread, social media does provide an effective way of reaching large audiences. Situational analysis by researchers at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis of a recent social media campaign by the Chicago Department of Public Health suggests that public health organizations need to pay close attention to how they disseminate information, and also to the response the campaign gets.

“For the Sake of All” is an interdisciplinary project funded by the Missouri Foundation for Health to improve the health and well-being of African-Americans in the St. Louis region. The project officially kicks off its community action series at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, at St. Louis Public Radio’s Community Room with the first of six community forums.

This week’s announcement that HBO will begin offering new video streaming service without a cable subscription is likely to have significant impact on the television industry. And the ripple effect could happen fast, according to Raphael Thomadsen, PhD, associate professor of marketing in Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis.

Our 21st-century world faces seemingly insurmountable problems. It is a challenge simply to understand the breadth of the issues, let alone find sustainable and adoptable solutions. History has shown that no single entity, or even country, can do this alone. And the world’s research institutions — colleges and universities rich in diversity and scholarship — […]