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.
Acute sense of touch helps hummingbirds avoid collisions | Earth.com
A new study led by the University of California, Los Angeles has found that hummingbirds create a 3D map of their body using neurons in specific forebrain areas, responding to gusts of air on their feathers and skin. The experts discovered that air pressure’s intensity, influenced by proximity to objects, is picked up by nerve cells at the base of the feathers and in the leg skin, and transmitted to the brain to gauge the body’s orientation relative to an object. (UCLA’s Duncan Leitch was quoted.)
This polite phrase may soon be a thing of the past | Reader’s Digest
New research published in Social Psychology Quarterly found that people use the word “please” when making a request a dismal 7% of the time. Yes, you read that right. Even more interesting, these findings were about the same across age, gender and social status. “We definitely were surprised by the results — everyone was,” says Tanya Stivers, Ph.D., a professor of sociology at UCLA and one of the authors of the 2024 study. “Having such a low number feels counterintuitive.”
How does being transgender affect your personal and family finances? | CNN
According to the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, “a transgender gender experience has been shown to be a unique and significant factor in economic, health, and experienced discrimination.”
Why do I keep getting colds every few weeks? | NBC’s “Today”
For most adults, it’s normal to get somewhere between one and three colds per year, Dr. Otto Yang, professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases and of microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, tells TODAY.com. But the truth is that “people vary a lot,” he adds. “There are people that feel like they’re sick the whole cold and flu season and other people that seem to be untouched by it.”
FDA advised against MDMA to treat post-traumatic stress disorder | CNN
Dr. Walter Dunn, a staff psychiatrist at the Veterans Administration Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System and assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California Los Angeles, was the only committee member to vote in favor of the treatment on both questions of efficacy and the balance of risks and benefits. (Dunn was quoted. Also: National Public Radio.)
Adding stem cells to kidney transplant could replace drugs | NBC News
“These are excellent results,” said Dr. Jeffrey Veale, a urologist at UCLA Health who specializes in kidney transplantation. Not only were a majority of the patients able to stay off of the drugs for two years, the authors also showed a significant benefit in quality of life for the patients, added Veale, who was not involved with the research.
Blaming drivers less, design more for accidents | Los Angeles Times
Some neighborhoods get upgrades funded and installed within months, while others wait years. Long delays to improve safety at the intersection where Alessa was killed “speaks to a lack of streamlined approach” by the city, according to Madeline Brozen, deputy director for the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies.
Heat wave or heat dome? Yes, there’s a difference | Los Angeles Times
Another recent coinage is the “ridiculously resilient ridge,” a phrase from UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain used to describe a blocking pattern to the west of California in the winter months that deflects storms north of the region.
