Nobel-winning ‘natural experiments’ approach made economics more robust
Article reports that Guido Imbens, the Applied Econometrics Professor at the GSB, professor of economics in H&S and senior fellow at SIEPR, has won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for work on drawing conclusions from unintended experiments, or so-called “natural experiments.”
Lawmakers’ latest idea to fix Facebook: Regulate the algorithm
Article quotes Daphne Keller, director of the program on platform regulation at the Stanford Cyber Policy Center, on how attempts to ban certain types of speech have been seen by the courts as violating the First Amendment.
You can tell what’s going on in a room by staring at a blank wall
References Stanford Computational Imaging Lab research that revealed a technique where a single laser beam fired into a room through a small hole in the wall could be used to generate images of objects in the room.
Pfizer vaccine’s protection wanes over time, and not because of Delta, study says
Cites a Stanford study that found six months after being inoculated with the Pfizer vaccine, roughly half of 56 young and middle-aged adults had no detectable neutralizing antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
The Dixie fire threatened to pass 1 million acres, then was stopped in its tracks. Here’s how
Quotes Chris Field, professor of biology and earth system science, director of the Woods Institute for the Environment and a senior fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy, arguing the history of fire suppression efforts allowed vegetation to grow in forests, that when dry due to drought led to wildfires.
Some passions should be hobbies, not professions. Here’s how to know the difference
Article cites a Stanford study that found telling people to “follow your passion” leads them to think their passion will be easy, causing them to give less effort and making them less successful.
Bay Area in ‘wait and see’ mode as COVID cases decline
Article quotes Julie Parsonnet, professor of medicine and of health research and policy, expressing hope that COVID will become "a low-grade endemic disease."
After Covid-19 lockdowns, children struggle to rekindle close friendships
Quotes Douglas Rait, clinical professor, psychiatry and behavioral sciences, on the challenges children have retaining and nurturing friendships during the pandemic.
Cites Zhenan Bao, professor of engineering, as leading a team that developed a shape-memory polymer that can be used to make artificial muscles because it stores and releases appreciable amounts of energy.
A laser fired through a keyhole can expose everything inside a room
Describes non-line-of-sight imaging technology developed at the Stanford Computational Imaging Lab that uses a single point of laser light to reveal physical objects in a room.
Is it bad for your health when air quality is ‘moderate’ for days and weeks?
Quotes Marshall Burke, associate professor of earth system science and center fellow at FSI, commenting on a study that found an entire month of moderate exposure increased the risk of pre-term births by up to 20%.
CDC warns that off-label COVID shots have legal and financial risks
Quotes Yvonne Maldonado, professor of pediatrics, on how the adult dose of the vaccine is higher than those being trialled for children, and may cause more side effects.
Intense exercise could trigger ALS in those with genetic risk
Quotes Michael Snyder, professor of genetics, commenting on research that showed people who exercised vigorously, and who also carried genes tied to ALS, developed the disease at younger ages than those who were sedentary.