August 30, 2024
Living in tree-filled neighborhoods may reduce risk of heart disease, study shows

Written by Kaitlin Sullivan and Anne Thompson for NBC News Living in a tree-filled neighborhood may be as beneficial to the heart as regular exercise, new research shows. Researchers at the University of Louisville designed a clinical trial that followed hundreds of people living in six low- to middle-income neighborhoods in South Louisville, Kentucky. They…
Climate & Energy | Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Design & Building | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Health & Well Being | Housing & Homelessness | Land Use & Planning | Natural Resources & Environment
August 20, 2024
Need anti-withdrawal meds? In King County, call this 24/7 hotline

Reported by Eilis O’Neil for KUOW and NPR News People addicted to opioids in King County can call a new hotline and get a prescription right away for a drug that can help. Buprenorphine reduces symptoms of withdrawal and can help people stay off fentanyl and other opioids. Buprenorphine “does cut overdose risk by 50%,…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Health & Well Being | Housing & Homelessness | Policy & Law
Permeable pavement could help cities be more resilient to flooding

Reported by Stéphane Blais for La Presse Canadienne and the Toronto Sun. Pilot projects are being developed across Quebec to make parking lots, bike paths or portions of streets more resilient to climate change. To make cities more resilient to flooding caused by climate change, researchers are developing more permeable pavements to allow water to…
Design & Building | Economy & Development | Health & Well Being | Infrastructure & Transportation | Innovation & Technology | Natural Resources & Environment
August 9, 2024
Are we on the brink of a tax revolt in Washington state?

Reported by Joshua McNichols for KUOW/NPR News Cities all over the region have big property tax levies on the ballot this year. There’s a transportation levy in Seattle, a levy to modernize the fire department in Tacoma, and a levy to pay for public safety and libraries in Everett. Increasingly, elected officials rely on these…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Design & Building | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Economy & Development | Health & Well Being | History & Preservation | Housing & Homelessness | Policy & Law
August 2, 2024
Wildfire Smoke Exposure Linked With Higher Dementia Risk

Reported by Dennis Thompson for HealthDay THURSDAY, Aug. 1, 2024 (HealthDay News) — The wildfires thats are increasing with climate change could harm the future brain health of humanity, a new study suggests. Wildfire smoke appears to increase people’s risk of a dementia diagnosis even more than other types of air pollution, researchers reported this…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Design & Building | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Health & Well Being | Housing & Homelessness | Natural Resources & Environment | Policy & Law
July 29, 2024
How Tiny Homes Could Help Solve America’s Homelessness Crisis

Reported by Giulia Carbonaro for Newsweek Shelter villages of tiny homes have popped up across the U.S. in recent years, as the small structures have started to be seen by many advocates as a promising solution to solve homelessness. Perhaps unsurprisingly at a time when mortgage rates are still hovering around the 7-percent mark and…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Design & Building | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Economy & Development | Health & Well Being | Housing & Homelessness | Innovation & Technology | Policy & Law
July 26, 2024
With $50M infusion, UW to launch security center to fight research theft

Reported by Emerson Drewes for the Seattle Times The University of Washington will receive a $50 million investment over five years from the United States National Science Foundation to establish a national center for research security. Universities, including those in Washington, have been victims of cyberattacks and hacks in attempts to access, download, alter or…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Economy & Development | Innovation & Technology | Policy & Law | Security & Privacy
July 22, 2024
A week of nonstop breaking political news stumps AI chatbots

Reported by Heather Kelly For The Washington Post In the hour after President Biden announced he would withdraw from the 2024 campaign on Sunday, most popular AI chatbots seemed oblivious to the news. Asked directly whether he had dropped out, almost all said no or declined to give an answer. Asked who was running for…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Economy & Development | Policy & Law
July 19, 2024
More Than 1 Trillion Microbes Live Inside the Average Tree Trunk

Reported by Erik Stokstad for Science The wood inside the average tree might seem barren, but it’s home to an incredibly diverse array of life. More than 1 trillion fungi, bacteria, and other microbes live inside the average trunk, according to the most comprehensive survey yet conducted, comprising unique communities specialized to various tree species….
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Climate & Energy | Design & Building | Health & Well Being | Land Use & Planning | Natural Resources & Environment | Policy & Law
July 16, 2024
SPARK Grant Recipients Win Big with a Social Justice Jacket

Reported by Kate Landis for Urban@UW What if a denim jacket could tell the stories of people impacted by housing inequality across the country? Resistive Threads, a project that was awarded a Urban@UW SPARK grant in 2023, was recently awarded a Honorable Mention at the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Designing Interactive Systems (DIS) conference,…
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