The university’s Bureau of Sociological Research is playing a key role in shaping agricultural policy and research in the state, KHGI, Nebraska Ag Connection and Tri-State Livestock News reported. With decades of survey expertise, the bureau gathers valuable data from Nebraska producers to guide agricultural practices, state efforts and national policy decisions.
Kevin Smith, political science, was interviewed for a July 8 Newsweek article on independent candidate Dan Osborn officially entering Nebraska’s Senate race against Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts. Smith said the race could be competitive based on Osborn’s previous race against Sen. Deb Fischer and his increased name recognition but that it should be Rickett’s race to lose due to the party registration advantage for Republicans.
Eve Brank, psychology, was interviewed for a July 8 St. Louis Post-Dispatch article on St. Louis police possibly citing parents for their children’s actions at future public events, as they did over the July Fourth weekend. Brank helped lead a 2012 study that found that there was not enough evidence to determine if such policies bring down juvenile crime rates — and there still isn’t. (This article requires a subscription.)
Mark Brittenham and Susan Hermiller, both mathematics, recently solved a decades-old problem in knot theory. The researchers found that larger and seemingly more complex knots created by joining two simpler ones together can sometimes be easier to undo than simple ones — the opposite of what was expected. The finding was featured in a July 15 New Scientist article.
