Experts available: GOP presidential nomination, abortion rights, digital privacy & wellness, and more
The Virginia Tech media relations office has the following experts available for interviews this week surrounding issues in the news. To schedule an interview, please contact mediarelations@vt.edu.
GOP presidential race: Political experts look to New Hampshire primary and beyond
Virginia Tech political experts Karen Hult and Caitlin Jewitt can provide perspectives on what’s ahead for the GOP presidential contenders in the Jan. 23 Republican primary in New Hampshire and the race overall. With Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis exiting the race, two candidates remain, with former President Donald Trump the clear front runner and questions surrounding how long former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley will stay in the race. “New Hampshire likely is the best possibility for Haley to show her strengths among some mostly independent and centrist or moderate Republican voters. It appears as well that existing Republican Party ‘elites’ are rallying around former President Trump,” says Hult.
“DeSantis’s exit makes it both easier and more challenging for Haley. She now becomes the candidate for those who are seeking an alternative to Trump, which should increase her vote share. However, given Trump’s lack of participation in debates, she will lose that visibility and avenue for self-promotion,” says Jewitt. Read more here.
Abortion rights and where we stand now
It’s been 51 years since the Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Roe v. Wade. While the decision has been overturned, experts say it remains top of mind for Americans on both sides of the issue. Virginia Tech political science expert Brandy Faulkner is available to discuss the original decision, what overturning it meant for women’s reproductive rights, and how that could play a role in the 2024 Presidential Election.
Advice for navigating influenza, COVID-19, and RSV this winter
Federal officials are describing a ‘tripledemic’ of respiratory infections on the rise. Coping with the challenges of parenting can be particularly stressful for those concerned about the flu, COVID-19, or RSV. With an increase in cases during the winter months, parents are seeking effective preventive measures and safety guidelines for their kids. Dr. Christopher Pierce, the interim chair of pediatrics at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, offers insights on managing these three illnesses. More here.
Lisa M. Lee, a professor of public health at Virginia Tech, is also available to answer questions about factors for concern and the importance of vaccination. Lee is an epidemiologist and bioethicist who has worked in public health and ethics for 25 years, including 14 years with CDC. More here.
Experts recommend focusing on digital privacy and wellness 2024
As 2024 gets underway, many people are focused on new year’s resolutions – eat healthier, quit smoking, catch up with family. But what about your online privacy and safety? Virginia Tech information privacy and cybersecurity experts and co-founders of Voices of Privacy, France Bélanger and Donna Wertalik say January is a great time to perform a digital cleanup and consider privacy in digital health. More here.
Curious Conversations podcast: The science of sticking to healthy changes
Samantha Harden joined Virginia Tech’s “Curious Conversations” to chat about the science behind developing and keeping healthy habits. Harden is an associate professor in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech and director of the Physical Activity Research and Community Implementation Laboratory, as well as an exercise specialist with Virginia Cooperative Extension. Her research focuses on the yoga kernels of mindfulness, breath work, and movement and how yoga can promote flourishing (personal, professional, and communal well being) and longevity (healthy aging).
New episodes will debut each Tuesday throughout the fall. Expert researchers are also available for media interviews. To listen and learn more, click here.
More here from Samantha Harden on mindfulness & behavioral interventions in the New Year.
Research Highlights
It’s the ‘thing in my life that shaped me the most,’ participant says of life-changing therapy
After experiencing a stroke in utero that caused weakness on the left side of her body, Keya Shapiro found a home at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute’s Neuromotor Research Clinic, which is celebrating 10 years of research into the therapy.
Keya, now 18 years old, was 13 months old when she first met Stephanie DeLuca and Karen Echols. At the time, DeLuca directed a research clinic at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where in collaboration with Echols and Sharon Ramey, the team would develop a unique form of high-intensity pediatric rehabilitation for children and young adults with cerebral palsy and other neuromotor movement disorders called ACQUIRE therapy.
In 2013, DeLuca and Ramey established the Neuromotor Research Clinic at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, where Keya would continue yearly ACQUIRE therapy. Since then, the clinic has served more than 200 children and trained more than 50 therapists in ACQUIRE therapy. Read more about Keya’s journey.
Understanding atmospheric flash droughts in the Caribbean
The word “drought” typically conjures images of parched soil, dust-swept prairies, depleted reservoirs, and dry creek beds, all the result of weeks or seasons of persistently dry atmospheric conditions.
In the sun-soaked islands in the Caribbean, however, drought conditions can occur much more rapidly, with warning signs appearing too late for mediation strategies to limit agriculture losses or prevent stresses on infrastructure systems that provide clean water to communities.
Such occurrences – known as flash droughts – are the focus of a new paper authored by Assistant Professor Craig Ramseyer of the College of Natural Resources and Environment and published in the Journal of Hydrometeorology. The paper’s finding is that Caribbean Islands are uniquely susceptible to sudden droughts, and Ramseyer advocates for alternative methodologies to more accurately measure dry conditions in the region. More here.
