A&S scholars sharing their expertise in the media this week

From the most detailed map of the universe’s dark matter to rocks on Mars to a new study that found high levels of banned chemicals in household products, experts from a range of disciplines across the Faculty of Arts & Science are sharing their expertise on a variety of issues in the media.

Here’s some of what they had to say this week.

March 31, 2023

• Department of Computer Science Professor Raquel Urtasun discusses on CTV National News how she’s developing autonomous vehicles.
• Forbes (paywall) and The New York Times (paywall) highlight research from the School of Cities which shows many major cities recorded much less downtown activity in the fall of 2022 than before the pandemic. In reference to this same research, ABC News online notes Salt Lake City’s downtown has largely recovered from the pandemic.
• Department of Political Science and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy University Professor Janice Stein shares insights with TVO: The Agenda on domestic issues in Israel in the wake of a controversial overhaul of the judiciary.
• Department of Earth Sciences Professor Miriam L. Diamond shares with CBC: The National and  Global News online new research on toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS in food packaging.
• Department of Computer Science Assistant Professor Ishtiaque Ahmed comments for The Globe and Mail (paywall) on his research that has found most writers, teachers, students and software developers see ChatGPT as more of a tool than a competitor.
• Bryan Gaensler, director of the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics and professor in the David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, and PhD candidate Amanda Cook share with IFL Science their research on the use of Fast Radio Bursts for measuring the halo of gas and rare stars surrounding the Milky Way Galaxy.

April 1, 2023

• Department of Earth Sciences Professor Kim Tait talks to CBC: Metro Morning about receiving the Dorothy Killam Fellowship and her research on rocks from Mars.
• Centre of Criminology & Sociolegal Studies Professor Scot Wortley comments for the Toronto Star (paywall) on the violence on the TTC.
• Department of Anthropology Professor Janelle Taylor writes in the Windsor Star about the lack of care for older adults with dementia.

April 2, 2023

• Department of Economics Professor Emeritus Gustavo Indart argues in the Toronto Star (paywall) that Canada’s low productivity growth is the outcome of Bank of Canada policies.

April 3, 2023

• Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy Director and Department of Political Science Professor Peter Loewen, Munk School professor Drew Fagan and Munk School U.S. projects co-ordinator Jennifer Levin Bonder argue in the Hill Times (paywall) that Canada-U.S. relations need to be reinvigorated.
• Political Science Professor Emeritus Nelson Wiseman writes in the Hill Times (paywall) about how allegations of Chinese political interference in Canada echo revelations of Soviet espionage in 1946.
• Department of Geography & Planning Professor and Infrastructure Institute at the School of Cities Director Matti Siemiatycki comments for the Toronto Star (paywall) on whether the Toronto mayoral campaign will engage the public.
• Institute of Islamic Studies Director Anver Emon, who is also a professor in the Department of History, comments for the Toronto Star (paywall) and blogTO on alleged systemic bias against Muslim charities.

April 4, 2023

• The Citizen Lab at the Munk School shares research with South China Morning Post (paywall) that found no overt data transmission from TikTok to the Chinese government.
• Matti Siemiatycki comments for Global News online on the possibility of retrofitting the TTC.

April 5, 2023

• Randall Hansen, director of the Centre for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies (CERES) at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy and political science professor, comments for the Weekly Voice on Canada’s positive attitude towards immigration.

April 6, 2023

• Department of Psychology Professor Morgan Barense discusses on CTV Your Morning the pandemic, people’s memories and the HippoCamera app she developed to improve memory recall.
• Political Science and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy Professor Lucan Way writes in The Globe and Mail (paywall) about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s resilience.
• Centre of Criminology & Sociolegal Studies Professor Emerita Mariana Valverde argues in the Toronto Star (paywall) for the restoration of previous TTC service levels.
• Judith Taylor, professor in the Department of Sociology and the Women & Gender Studies Institute, argues in the Toronto Star (paywall) that the Jewish community should engage differently with Israel.
• The Munk School’s Environmental Governance Lab Co-Director Matthew Hoffmann talks to the Toronto Star (paywall) about Earth Day and protection of the environment.

April 7, 2023

• Ilana MacDonald, acting outreach coordinator of the David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, shares with The Globe and Mail (paywall) how the Department will help people experience next year’s total solar eclipse which will be visible from parts of Canada.

April 8, 2023

• Matti Siemiatycki tells CBC News online that population growth is good for Canada’s economy,  comments for CP24 online on the idea of installing safety barriers on the TTC and comments for the Toronto Star (paywall) on TTC wait times.

April 9, 2023

• Ishtiaque Ahmed comments for the Toronto Star (paywall) on? AI automation.

April 10, 2023

• Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics University Professor Richard Bond, David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics and St. Michael’s College Assistant Professor Adam Hincks and Dunlap Institute and Department Associate Professor Renée Hložek share with The Globe and Mail (paywall), Toronto Star (paywall) and National Post (paywall) their work with the Atacama Cosmology Telescope and the most detailed map of dark matter yet.
• The Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy awards the Lionel Gelber Prize for international affairs, as reported by the Canadian Press.
• Tina Park, junior fellow at the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History at Trinity College, discusses with CBC News Network China-Taiwan relations.
• Psychology Associate Professor John Vervaeke talks to Inside Higher Ed (paywall) about work-life balance.
• Department of Physics Professor Amar Vutha discusses with Quanta the shape and spin of the electron.

April 11, 2023

• Department of Chemistry Professor Hui Peng and recent PhD graduate Steven Kutarna share with the Toronto Star (paywall), Global News, CityNews, CP24 Breakfast and CTV News online their research on banned chemicals known as chlorinated paraffins in household products.
• Citizen Lab senior research fellow Bill Marczak discusses with the Guardian (paywall), Reuters (paywall), Wall Street Journal (paywall), Washington Post (paywall), Foreign Policy (paywall), Le Monde (paywall),  TechCrunch and PCMag the lab’s latest spyware findings.
• Quill & Quire highlights that Department of Philosophy Professor Joseph Heath’s book Cooperation and Social Justice is shortlisted for the 2022 Donner Prize.

April 12, 2023

• Mel Cappe, Distinguished Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, writes for The Globe and Mail (paywall) about the role of public servants.
• Dunlap Fellow Ziggy Pleunis and Dunlap Department PhD candidate Amanda Cook talk to Sky & Telescope about Fast Radio Bursts.

April 12, 2023

• Matti Siemiatycki explains to the National Post (paywall) the impact of remote work on Toronto’s high-rise developments.