UCLA in the News lists selected mentions of UCLA in the world’s news media. Some articles may require registration or a subscription. See more UCLA in the News.
What the rain from Hilary means for California’s fire risk | New York Times
Brush and foliage that had dried out since the spring has been replenished by the drenching, particularly in the mountainous regions most prone to wildfires. “This has a really big fire-squashing effect,” Park Williams, a hydroclimatologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, told me. “I think this storm was big enough that the chances of really big fires in 2023 are substantially reduced in Southern California.” The southeastern part of the state, in particular, will see that benefit. But Hilary did not do nearly as much for the Bay Area, the Central Coast or the northwest corner of the state, according to Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA.
Hurricane Hilary soaked an already wet California. Is the drought over? | Vox
In the short term, farmers may need less river water, as will urban regions in Southern California that might otherwise draw water from their river allotment, although these impacts will likely be minimal. “This extra water now does put us in even better shape for next year,” Alex Hall, a climate scientist and professor at the University of California Los Angeles, told Vox. (Hall was also interviewed by KCRW 89.9-FM.)
Extreme August arrives with a warning: expect more | New York Times
“Twenty years from now, a summer like this is going to feel like a mild summer,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California Los Angeles, in an online briefing Monday afternoon. “In terms of incredibly frenetic pace of global extremes we are seeing this summer, in terms of temperatures and precipitation, that’s only going to get worse as the climate continues to warm.” (Swain was also quoted by the Associated Press.)
Montana youth climate ruling could set precedent | National Public Radio
A handful of other states do have similar language — most notably Hawaii, where Our Children’s Trust is engaged in another youth-led climate lawsuit. “In those states, the court’s framing in [this ruling] will be particularly salient, even though it’s not binding,” said Julia Stein, an environmental law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles
Republicans are deep in the 2024 ad wars | New York Times
“If your opponent is winning 57 percent of the vote and you have 2, there is zero percent chance you are making that difference up with advertising,” said Lynn Vavreck, a professor of political science at the University of California, Los Angeles. Even in a typical election year, Dr. Vavreck said, the persuasive effects of campaign television advertisements are small, and fade fast.
Trump voters can see right through DeSantis | New York Times
David Sears, a professor of psychology at UCLA, wrote by email that he “was inspired by your inquiry to do a free association test” on himself to see what he linked with both Trump and DeSantis.
The big business of sports betting | Men’s Health
“The real question people should be asking is what happens to all of this money that is generated above board?” says Timothy Fong, M.D., a clinical professor of psychiatry at UCLA and a codirector of its gambling-studies program, noting that a boom in sports-betting revenue does not necessarily equal a boom in revenue for problem-gambling treatment and prevention.
Landlords tire of restrictions amid rent freeze | Los Angeles Times
“We have an affordability crisis and a homelessness crisis that absolutely demands urgent action, but a rent freeze is not the best solution,” said Michael Lens, associate professor of urban planning and public policy at UCLA. Lens recognizes that the pandemic sent policymakers “reaching for the emergency button,” but the city should look at policies such as expanding housing subsidies rather than extending the rent freeze.
Formerly depressed patients continue to focus on negative | Science Daily
“Our findings suggest that people who have a history of depression spend more time processing negative information, such as sad faces, than positive information, such as happy faces, and that this difference is greater compared to healthy people with no history,” said lead author Alainna Wen, a postdoctoral scholar at the Anxiety and Depression Research Center at the University of California, Los Angeles.
