Laura Muñoz, assistant professor of history and ethnic studies, was interviewed for a Sept. 20 article on a recent Pew Research Center study showing that about half of U.S. Latinos who don’t speak Spanish well have been shamed by other Latinos for it. She said the major force in generational language erosion is Americanization, with some laws meant to compel people to speak English. “If you have a child growing up in English-speaking society, you want that child to do as well as possible,” she said. “Encouraging them to speak English is part of that. So there’s this massive pressure on young children of Latino heritage to abandon their language.”
The National Strategic Research Institute recently received a $24.5 million award from the Defense Health Agency to advance development of an acute radiation syndrome prophylactic. The University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s David Berkowitz, Patrick Dussault, Tomas Helikar, Massimiliano Pierobon and Robert Powers are part of the project. Stories on the project appeared in nine Nebraska media outlets, including the Lincoln Journal Star and Omaha World-Herald, and several national ones.
Gerald Steinacher, history, was interviewed for a Sept. 15 Washington Post article on Argentina’s federal police raiding a clandestine Nazi printing press on Sept. 12. Since the late ’90s, Argentina has cracked down on instances of Nazi propaganda distribution and antisemitism — which Steinacher commended as a “very important step forward.” “It’s important not to be passive and allow hate to go by unchecked,” Steinacher said. MSN.com picked up the story.
Thomas Gannon’s “Birding While Indian: A Mixed-Blood Memoir” was featured in a Sept. 20 Christian Science Monitor article. He is an associate professor of English and ethnic studies and associate director of ethnic studies at Nebraska.
A research team consisting of Jessica Petersen and Dustin Yates, both animal science; Kristin Montooth, biological sciences; and graduate students Mackenzie Batt, biological sciences, and Lauren Seier, animal science, has begun a federally funded study to deepen the understanding of links between genetics and cattle growth efficiency. The study will focus on cattle’s mitochondria, cell components whose biochemical activity produces most of the body’s energy for cell function. High Plains Journal ran a Sept. 27 article on the research.
