Perspectives

Even small Supreme Court reforms could have larger benefits, writes Dan Epps, the Treiman Professor of Law. They put the justices on notice that elected officials are paying attention — and that those officials have the power to rein in a court that goes astray. In our democracy, that’s a healthy reminder for unelected Supreme Court justices to hear.

We still have time to implement policies that pull us back from the brink, but the window is closing. Without action, we will be remembered for debasing the environment so badly that it finally altered or eradicated even the toughest creatures in Earth’s history, writes Michael Moore, post-doctoral fellow with the Living Earth Collaborative.

If the U.S. ever hopes to finally win the war LBJ began in 1964, the poor need to be seen in order for the government to lift them out of poverty, writes Mark Rank, Herbert S. Hadley Professor of Social Welfare.

Ena Sendijarević’s debut feature, Take Me Somewhere Nice, follows a young Bosnian refugee as she sets off to visit a native country she no longer knows, writes Eileen G’Sell in her review of the film.

In this episode of the “Show Me the Science” podcast, WashU physicians discuss safety for kids when school resumes this fall, as well as treating children who have become seriously ill from COVID-19.

Sociologist and author Caitlyn Collins in Arts & Sciences appeared on the “Lead with Indeed” podcast to discuss her research on working mothers and how companies can support all employees’ needs to balance careers and caregiving responsibilities.

Arts & Sciences’ Christine Johnson, a historian of the Middle Ages, finds parallels between the post-pandemic labor shortages of today and the temporary shift in power to workers after the Black Death reduced Europe’s medieval population by a third. Then and now, she writes, the ruling classes seek a return to the previous status quo.

Rebecca Schwarzlose, a postdoctoral researcher in psychiatry at the School of Medicine, is the author of a book about brain organization titled “Brainscapes: The Warped, Wondrous Maps Written in Your Brain — and How They Guide You.”

hould businesses and universities require vaccinations for employees and students to return? As a mathematician who has studied coronavirus risk at large-scale sporting events and in other places, I believe the answer is a resounding yes, writes mathematics department chair John McCarthy.

By creating a bipartisan panel of experts, Biden likely hopes to temper the politicization surrounding the debate and confer credibility on reforms he might pursue. However, once the time to push policy change arrives, Biden might find that public support for his reforms would have been the same had he not convened it, writes political science associate professor Andrew Reeves.