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.

Bright galaxies put dark matter to the test | Phys.org

The team, led by UCLA astrophysicists, ran simulations that track the formation of small galaxies after the Big Bang and included, for the first time, previously neglected interactions between gas and dark matter. They found that the galaxies created are very tiny, much brighter, and form more quickly than they do in typical simulations that don’t take these interactions into account, instead revealing much fainter galaxies. (UCLA’s Smadar Naoz and Claire Williams were quoted. Also: Science Daily and Scienmag.)

Two wrongs on China tariffs certainly don’t make a right | Barron’s

(Commentary by UCLA’s Christopher Tang) Despite their different ideologies, former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden have at least one important view in common. They both believe imposing tariffs on imports from China is good for the economy. But the Trump-Biden tariffs against China are simply not working and should be scrapped. They drive up prices, have limited effects on overall job creation, strain geopolitical relationships, and even hinder economic growth.

Republican lawsuits challenge mail ballot deadlines | Associated Press

Richard Hasen, a University of California, Los Angeles law professor and election law expert, criticized the legal basis of the lawsuits. In the Mississippi case, he said the RNC appears to be trying to gain a political advantage because it “believes late-arriving mail ballots are more likely to favor Democrats.”

California braces for inundation as atmospheric rivers | Los Angeles Times

“Storm No. 1 will be significant and is notable, but won’t bring extreme impacts anywhere,” said UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain in a Tuesday briefing. But he said his eyes are on that still-developing second storm, which “has a higher potential to produce some major and significant either wind- and/or flood-related impacts,” with flooding concentrated in Southern California. (Swain was also quoted by the New York Times and the Associated Press.)

Three strategies to break down barriers to breastfeeding | Medical Xpress

When it comes to encouraging women in California to breastfeed, health care providers, insurance companies and employers need to be doing more, according to recommendations in a new report from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. (UCLA’s AJ Scheitler was quoted.)

Non-white populations had greater post-COVID problems | City News Service

Black, Indigenous and other people of color who were infected with COVID-19 experienced greater negative aftereffects in health and work loss than did similarly infected white participants, according to research released Wednesday. The research from INSPIRE, a federally funded collaboration of UCLA Health and seven other major academic medical centers, investigated the longer-term impacts of acute COVID-19 infection across ethnic and racial groups. (UCLA’s Dr. Michelle L’Hommedieu and Dr. Joann Elmore were quoted.)

Public universities offer medication abortions | LAist 89.3-FM

UCLA public health professor Paula Tavrow says administrators should use their power to reach the entire campus. “The question is, should it be coming from the top? This is a discussion that I’ve had, even with some students,” [said Tavrow.]

Why do women have more autoimmune diseases? | New York Times

Dr. Melissa Lechner, an endocrinologist at UCLA who also was not involved in the work, said that while the new study was intriguing, it was possible that the Xist proteins only boost autoimmunity, rather than acting as a causal trigger. “The data doesn’t let me distinguish between the two,” she said.

Dry January is over, but are ‘sober drinks’ a way to keep it going? | CNN

Nonalcoholic beverages can help people limit alcohol consumption and its associated health risks, according to Dr. Lara Ray, a clinical psychologist who also runs the UCLA Addictions Lab, which studies the clinical neuroscience of drug and alcohol addiction. “Someone might think, ‘Oh, I’m just a regular drinker. I’m not a problem drinker,’ but one may still be elevating their risk and the specific mechanism by which alcohol elevates cancer risk,” she said. (UCLA’s Dana Ellis Hunnes was also quoted.)

Is weight-loss drug Wegovy safe for the long term? | NBC’s ‘Today’

Dr. Zhaoping Li, professor of medicine and chief of the division of clinical nutrition at the University of California, Los Angeles, says more long-term data is needed about Wegovy.