Perspectives

Lerone Martin, of the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics, discusses his research and book “Preaching on Wax,” chronicling how African-American preachers reached a wide audience through records in the 1920s and ’30s, for a “Research on Religion” podcast.

Clinical psychologist Mary Politi, of the School of Medicine, discusses helping patients make decisions about their health care and insurance, and available tools to guide that process, on the Society of Behavioral Medicine site.

Jason Purnell, of the Brown School, co-writes a column, shared on The Huffington Post site, about the racial wealth and health gap in the St. Louis region, the causes and what is being done to improve the situation.

Steven Fazzari, of Arts & Sciences, a scholar on income inequality, wrote a piece about Donald Trump’s analysis of America’s economic landscape on The Huffington Post blog.

Political scientist Betsy Sinclair, of Arts & Sciences, finds that when it comes to voting, politics is often more social than personal. Author of “The Social Citizen: Peer Networks and Political Behavior,” Sinclair discussed the role of social media and personal interactions in political decision-making for an election eve “Hold That Thought.”

Many Americans are concerned about the high price of prescription drugs. Rachel Sachs, associate professor in the School of Law,  writes for The Conversation  that there are both practical and political challenges with policies that elected leaders could enact to improve affordability.

Lan Yang, of the School of Engineering & Applied Science, discusses in a Q&A with The Institute, the IEEE news site, her work to bend two laws of physics that govern photonics systems.

Holocaust literature scholar Erin McGlothlin, of Arts & Sciences, explores whether survivor stories — and their moments of liberation — draw attention away from the true horrors of the Holocaust. Her article on the Center for the Humanities website comes ahead of today’s annual Holocaust Memorial Lecture. 

What draws us to scary movies? John Powers, a lecturer in film and media studies, explains and shares the history of horror films for a Halloween edition of Arts & Sciences’ “Hold That Thought.”

Suhas Gondi, a senior in Arts & Sciences, and Vishal Khetpal, a 2015 alum, write on The Huffington Post’s blog that the presidential debate held on campus Oct. 9 could have had more impact if the questions had focused on issues affecting St. Louis, many of which also apply more broadly.