Despite progress made in educational systems in recent decades, more than 100 million children are not enrolled in primary or lower-secondary school, and many of those who do attend lack basic reading and writing skills, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF). Meanwhile, many countries face high unemployment rates, while regions like Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia  have…

The 2014 Rossi Prize of the American Astronomical Society has been awarded to Douglas (Doug) Finkbeiner, Harvard professor of astronomy and of physics, for the “discovery, in gamma rays, of the large unanticipated Galactic structure called the ‘Fermi Bubbles.’” He shares the prize with Meng Su (presently a Pappalardo Fellow at MIT) and Tracy Slatyer…

For years scientists have sought to unravel the mystery of why about 90% of people infected by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that cause tuberculosis (TB), remain symptom-free for years, while the remaining 10% become sick and may die. A December 15, 2013 study in Nature Medicine by Sarah Fortune, the Melvin J. and Geraldine L. Glimcher associate professor of immunology and…

A new report urges a stronger focus on improving socioeconomic conditions in the U.S. as a way to improve health—especially among low-income Americans. Issued by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Commission to Build a Healthier America, the report recommends investing in the physical and mental well-being of young children; creating communities that foster health-promoting behaviors; and promoting health…

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigator and Harvard Medical School Professor Gary Ruvkun has been named a co-recipient of the 2014 Wolf Prize in Medicine, along with Victor Ambros of the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and Nahum Sonenberg of McGill University. Ruvkun and Ambros are being honored for discovering that tiny molecules of RNA,control the…

Harvard’s expansive commuting and alternative transportation benefits have once again received national recognition. On January 16, 2014, Harvard was one of only ten universities to receive the Race to Excellence Gold award from the Best Workplaces for Commuters program at the University of Southern Florida National Center for Transit Research. The awards recognize organizations who…

Being overweight or obese does not lead to improved survival among patients with type 2 diabetes. The large-scale study led by Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers refutes previous studies that have suggested that, for people with diabetes, being overweight or obese could lead to lower mortality for people compared with normal-weight persons — the so-called…

A new Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) study finds that muscle strengthening and conditioning activities—like resistance exercise, yoga, stretching, and toning—is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. Following nearly 100,000 women over eight years, Anders Grøntved, visiting researcher in the Department of Nutrition at HSPH, Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at HSPH, and colleagues…

“A composer puts a mirror to the audience and asks us to recognize ourselves. It’s the same as with great plays. Music is no less serious just because it is composed of tones, not words.” — Robert Levin Robert Levin, the inaugural Dwight P. Robinson Jr. Professor of the Humanities at the Department of Music…

For those who practice medicine, the fee-for-service business model and “production pressure”—the requirement to see as many patients in as little time as possible—are impediments, according to Lucian Leape, adjunct professor of health policy at Harvard School of Public Health and a leader of the patient safety movement In a Q&A with MedPage Today, Leape was asked for the…

Department of Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius recently announced the appointment of HSPH alumna Karen DeSalvo, SM ’02, as the next national coordinator for health information technology starting January 13, 2014. DeSalvo will replace fellow HSPH graduate Farzad Mostashari, SM ’91, who stepped down in October. Read coverage from HealthBeat and GovernmentHealthIT. Learn more: HHS names…

The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard has selected five journalists as visiting fellows for the 2014 calendar year. Each will spend a short period of time at Harvard University to work on a project designed to enhance journalism in some unique way. Taylor Goldenstein, a recent graduate of the University of Illinois’s journalism program,…

Since 2011, the Harvard research team that created Slippery Liquid-Infused Porous Surfaces has demonstrated a spate of sleek applications for the super-slick coating known as SLIPS, which repels nearly any substance it touches: water, ice, oil, saltwater, wax, blood, and more. Now, SLIPS is wearable. As reported January 10 in a special issue celebrating the…

The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University announces the appointment of two assistant professors who will teach and pursue research programs at the Arnold Arboretum as joint faculty with the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology (OEB) at Harvard University. The arrival of Robin Hopkins and Elizabeth Wolkovich this January represents a significant step in expanding…

Pakistani physician Anita Zaidi, SM ’99, has won the first-ever $1 million Caplow Children’s Prize, the largest humanitarian prize worldwide dedicated to saving children’s lives. Zaidi’s project—aimed at reducing child mortality in Rehri Goth, an impoverished fishing village in southern Pakistan—was one of more than 550 projects submitted from around the world. Professor and chair of the Department…

Harvard University’s undergraduate dining halls have all earned Green Restaurant Association 2- or 3-star certification for their sustainability. Certification recognizes Harvard University Dining Services’ (HUDS) ongoing efforts to operate efficiently and source sustainable products. “Sustainability is a core value for HUDS,” notes Managing Director David P. Davidson. “We work continuously to reduce the environmental impact…

As Obamacare ramped up on January 1, 2014, the United States underwent a profound change in its health care system, according to health policy expert John McDonough, professor of the practice of public health at Harvard School of Public Health. McDonough spoke Jan. 6, 2014 on Dr. Timothy Johnson’s “Truth About Obamacare” podcast on WBUR’s CommonHealth. Johnson, MPH ’76, is retired medical…

Always at the forefront of world culture, technology, business and music, legendary pianist and composer Herbie Hancock has been named the 2014 Charles Eliot Norton Professor of Poetry. Hosted by the Mahindra Humanities Center, Hancock will give six Norton Lectures in a series titled “The Ethics Of Jazz” in February and March. The series follows…

People across the globe are consuming far more sodium than is healthy, according to a new study led by Harvard School of Public Health and University of Cambridge researchers. In 181 of 187 countries (constituting 99.2% of the world adult population), national intakes exceeded the World Health Organization recommended 2 grams per day of sodium. In 119…

Last month marked the 20th anniversary of the publication of Harvard School of Public Health’s groundbreaking Six Cities Study, which—by revealing a strong link between air pollution and mortality risk—paved the way for strengthened U.S. regulations on fine particulate matter. Douglas Dockery, lead author of the Six Cities Study and chair of HSPH’s Department of Environmental Health, answers three questions about…

Amidst the patchwork nature of Medicaid expansion in the U.S. under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), some have worried that low-income adults in states without expanded coverage might move to states that have chosen to expand—thus placing a financial burden on those states. But a new Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) study finds little evidence…

Throughout its 140-year history, the Arnold Arboretum has advanced our understanding of biodiversity through the work of some of the most significant people in plant science. Among this select group is senior research scientist Peter Del Tredici, who retires from the Arboretum in January 2014 after 35 years. Over that time, Del Tredici has made…

On Feb. 8, more than 1,000 students and alumni will experience the fourth annual Harvard Masquerade Ball. They’ll come wearing suits and ties, formal dresses and heels; their faces hidden behind colorfully decorated masks. Since its inauguration, the ball has quickly become one of the most popular graduate School events of the year — growing from…

Adults who are covered by Medicaid use emergency rooms 40 percent more than those in similar circumstances who do not have health insurance, according to a unique new study that sheds empirical light on the inner workings of health care in the U.S. The study takes advantage of Oregon’s recent use of a lottery to assign access to Medicaid,…

“The diseases of aging are not inevitable,” geriatrician Linda Fried told a Harvard School of Public Health audience on December 16, 2013. As people live longer around the world—largely due to successes in public health over the past century—understanding the science of healthy aging is imperative, she said. Fried, the dean of Columbia University’s Mailman School of…

The Noma-Reischauer Prize in Japanese Studies traces a distinguished history to 1995, the year the award was established by Kodansha, Ltd. Publishers in honor of Professor Edwin O. Reischauer. Each year the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies grants Noma-Reischauer prizes to the best essays authored by Harvard students on Japan-related topics. The 2013-14 awards were…

Jaime McAllister-Grande was on hold for a call when she opened an email about the Carol Ishimoto Award. She expected to read about one of her colleagues, but instead did a double take when she saw the word “congratulations.” McAllister-Grande, Harvard Library’s manager for user services and direct access processing, and Anna Anctil, senior human…

With federal research dollars declining, investigators must think of creative and flexible ways to keep their long-running cohort studies running and funded, said Bruce M. Psaty, professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Washington, at the 158th Cutter Lecture on Preventive Medicine at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) on December 5, 2013. Some of the…

Harvard School of Public Health Dean Julio Frenk discussed changes in the field of public health since the School’s founding a century ago in a December 3, 2013 article for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s NewPublicHealth blog. The article is one of several on the blog focusing on HSPH’s Centennial. “The 100 years that have passed since the School of Public…

Yahoo’s social networking website and micro-blogging platform Tumblr honored Houghton Library’s blog as one of its “New and Notable Blogs of 2013.” Houghton Library is the primary repository for rare books and manuscripts at Harvard University and is part of the Harvard College Library within the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Its blog launched in June…