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.

Speaking without vocal cords with new tech | NPR’s ‘All Things Considered’

But now, a team at UCLA has figured out a new way to help people with voice disorders speak, no hands required … This is a type of patch that sticks directly to the skin on the throat. They published their research in the journal Nature Communications last week. (UCLA’s Jun Chen was cited.)

Low weights in babies born near gas leak | Los Angeles Daily News

Pregnant women who lived near the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility during and after its 2015 blowout had a higher chance of premature births and low-weight newborns compared to women from other communities, according to the findings of UCLA researchers studying the effects of the massive gas leak on nearby residents’ health. (UCLA’s Dr. Kimberly Paul and Michael Jerrett were quoted. Also: KTLA-TV and KCRW 89.9-FM.)

Prison water may contain dangerous levels of ‘forever chemicals’ | The Hill

Nearly half of American prisons are located downstream from water sources that are likely contaminated with cancer-linked “forever chemicals,” a new study has found … “If you think of the incarcerated population as a city spread out over this vast archipelago of carceral facilities, it would be the fifth largest city in the country,” senior author Nicholas Shapiro, a medical anthropologist the University of California, Los Angeles, said in a statement.

Noshing after a meal? It may be your brain, not your appetite | KTLA-TV

A new study from UCLA has discovered that people who tend to snack after meals may also have the same brain cells as mice.

Vaccine against tropical disease effective in animal studies | Medical Xpress

In a mouse study, UCLA researchers tested a vaccine against the bacterium that causes melioidosis and found it was highly protective against the disease, which is endemic in many tropical areas, causing approximately 165,000 cases with 89,000 fatalities around the world each year. (UCLA’s Dr. Marcus Horwitz was quoted.)

Chicago sues Glock over handgun modification | Washington Post

“The Sandy Hook case opened up one of the exceptions to the federal immunity law, and as a result, there’s been increased interest in using that exception to hold gunmakers liable,” said Adam Winkler, a professor at the UCLA School of Law who studies constitutional law and gun policy.

Advocates of ‘zero-bail’ say it’s not evenly applied | Los Angeles Daily News

Alicia Virani, a UCLA Law professor who founded a program to connect her students with clients in need of representation in bail hearings, praised the new rules as a step in the right direction. But she also called that step a “modest” one. That’s because she said her students and other court watchers have found the new system still looks somewhat like the old one.

Early Polynesians had regular contact with South Americans | Live Science

Jo Anne Van Tilburg, an archaeologist at UCLA and director of the Easter Island Statue Project, told Live Science in an email that this research “contributes new information to the ongoing discussion of Rapa Nui prehistory.” Van Tilburg, who was not involved in the study, said that, while the results are interesting and thought-provoking, some skepticism about the researchers’ inferences is warranted because their method of identifying the ancient starch grains had low accuracy in some cases. 

Full moon, lunar eclipse will appear this month | Washington Post

There is generally a lunar eclipse every six months, according to Jean-Luc Margot, a professor of planetary astronomy at UCLA. “These types of eclipses are very difficult to detect,” Margot said. “I would encourage the public to watch the other lunar eclipses or the solar eclipse.”

Heat rules for workers are opposed by finance officials | Los Angeles Times

But Ortega and Fee are two of an estimated 5.8 million Californians in high-risk heat industries, including indoor and outdoor workers, according to a map of national heat safety standards from the Natural Resources Defense Council. Many are low-wage workers, who are five times more likely to be injured on the job due to heat than high-income workers, according to a 2021 study led by UCLA that examined 18 years of California workers’ compensation data.

Tech janitors rally for better working conditions | Bay Area News Group

Latino janitors comprise 70% of the private sector janitorial industry workforce, according to a 2022 study from the UCLA Labor Center.