better – Page 2

On Critical Thinking Aaron Rodgers Dropped The Ball – You Can Do Better With A Little Practice

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

On Critical Thinking Aaron Rodgers Dropped The Ball – You Can Do Better With A Little Practice

Joe Árvai, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences It was hard to miss the news about Green Bay Packers’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers testing positive for COVID-19 on Nov. 3. Like the vast majority of people currently catching – and dying from – the coronavirus, he was unvaccinated. A few days after his diagnosis, Rodgers took to the airwaves to offer a smorgasbord of pandemic misinformation and conspiracy theories in defense of his decision to skip the COVID-19 vaccine. Having listened to many an interview with Rodgers, I found it totally predictable that he began his comments by asserting, “I’m not, you know, some sort of anti-vax, flat-earther.” But as someone who does research on how people think and decide, it’s what Rodgers said next that caused me to lean in: “I am someb...

Colleges Strive To Better Support Trans Students – Common Applications Will Now Allow Students To Choose Their Gender Identity

5Aug

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

LGBTQ

Colleges Strive To Better Support Trans Students – Common Applications Will Now Allow Students To Choose Their Gender Identity

Genny Beemyn, University of Massachusetts Amherst Since its inception in 1975, the Common Application, the undergraduate admissions application used by more than 900 colleges, has required students to provide their “sex,” with only “male” and “female” as choices. But starting in August 2021, the Common App is also asking students their gender identities and the names and pronouns they go by. As a researcher who specializes in studying the experiences of transgender college students, I believe these changes represent a much-needed opportunity for colleges and universities that use the Common App to acknowledge and respect the gender identities of their trans students. The changes mean that some colleges will have information about their trans students for the first time. Other institutio...

Some Types Are Better Than Others – But Too Much Sitting Is Bad For You

2Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Some Types Are Better Than Others – But Too Much Sitting Is Bad For You

The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced a number of new behaviours into daily routines, like physical distancing, mask-wearing and hand sanitizing. Meanwhile, many old behaviours such as attending events, eating out and seeing friends have been put on hold. However, one old behaviour that has persisted, and has arguably been amplified due to COVID-19, is sitting — and it is not surprising to see why. Whether sitting during transportation, work, screen time or even meals, everyday environments and activities are tailored nearly exclusively to prolonged sitting. As such, sedentary behaviours, like sitting, make up the vast majority of our waking day. Pre-COVID-19 estimates place the average Canadian adult’s sedentary behaviour at around 9.5 hours per day. Current daily sedentary time is likel...

The Headlines Ignores Millions Of Unemployed People – Here’s A Better Way To Tell How Many Need A Job

5Feb

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

BUSINESS

The Headlines Ignores Millions Of Unemployed People – Here’s A Better Way To Tell How Many Need A Job

Many economists would agree that the official U.S. unemployment rate is an inadequate measure of actual labor market conditions. Although this is one of the most cited pieces of data on the economy as a whole, not many people understand how this indicator is calculated and who is and – more importantly – who isn’t included in it. CC BY-NC-ND As a labor economist, I believe it’s important for more Americans to take a closer look under the hood to get a more accurate view of U.S. unemployment. What’s the unemployment rate? Unemployment is usually described in newspaper or television reports as a percentage or a rate. An article might declare, for example, that the U.S. unemployment rate fell from 6.7% in December to 6.3% in January, according to the latest jobs report released Feb....

In The COVID-19 Era, Older Adults See Time Differently And Are Doing Better Than Younger People

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

HEALTH & WELLNESS

In The COVID-19 Era, Older Adults See Time Differently And Are Doing Better Than Younger People

Time in the era of COVID-19 has taken on new meaning. “Blursday” is the new time word of the year – where every day seems the same when staying home and restricting socializing and work. As a public health and aging expert and founding director of the Texas A&M Center of Population Health and Aging, I have been studying the impacts of COVID-19 with an interest in debunking myths and identifying unexpected positive consequences for our aging population. It is common to view older adults as especially vulnerable. Public health statistics reinforce the picture of older adults infected with SARS-CoV-2 as more likely to have serious complications, to be hospitalized and to die. But what do we know about how older adults themselves are responding to social distancing restrictions in place...

Any Map Is Better Than No Map – Workers Are Looking For Direction From Management

9Dec

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

BUSINESS

Any Map Is Better Than No Map – Workers Are Looking For Direction From Management

Over eight months ago, with haste and necessity, workers and organizations across the globe were thrown into “the great remote work experiment.” What was arguably an adequate short-term solution is now showing signs of wear and tear: Remote workers are burning out, organizational cultures are under threat, and leaders are fretting about the loss of creativity and collaboration. While some companies are beginning to forge ahead with longer-term plans – like proclaiming that remote work will go on indefinitely or bringing at least some employees back to the office in a COVID-19-safe way – most organizations remain in a holding pattern: intent on returning to the physical office in some capacity, but repeatedly kicking the can down the road. This is understandable, given the amount of unce...

Skipping standardized tests in 2020 may offer a chance to find better alternatives

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

IN OTHER NEWS

Skipping standardized tests in 2020 may offer a chance to find better alternatives

The Education Department is letting states cancel standardized tests. The move is a practical one: School buildings across the nation are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, even though distance learning efforts are widespread. As a result, 2020 is the first year without federally mandated standardized testing in nearly two decades. Washington has required all states to use these tests to evaluate students, teachers, principals, schools and entire school systems, first in accordance with accountability measures shaped by the 2002 No Child Left Behind Act and later under the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act. Until now, students in third through eighth grade were taking standardized tests annually for language arts and math, and then at least once again in high school. In addition, they...

What we can learn from MLK for a Better Post-Coronavirus Economy

13Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SOCIAL JUSTICE

What we can learn from MLK for a Better Post-Coronavirus Economy

The civil rights icon fiercely advocated for redistributive wealth and social democracy. Fifty-two years after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was gunned down in Memphis, April 4, 1968, his radical economic agenda reverberates through a pandemic-ridden nation at a prophetic tilt. “If the society changes its concepts by placing the responsibility on its system, not on the individual, and guarantees secure employment or a minimum income, dignity will come within reach of all,” King wrote in his book Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community. As the economy grinds to a halt to flatten the COVID-19 curve, the triage of policies designed to fill the yawning holes in the nation’s social safety net looks a lot like what Dr. King ordered. The $2 trillion congressional emergency relief bill, CARES...

12 productive things you can do to feel better about being stuck at home

27Mar

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

LIFESTYLE

12 productive things you can do to feel better about being stuck at home

Now that the coronavirus has sent workers and students home, closed businesses and canceled events, it’s going to be important to create new routines and find meaningful ways to spend our long days at home. The following organizing tasks are simple and will help you structure your day and create a small sense of control. Order picture frames and albums: Do you have a stack of photos you have been meaning to put in frames or photo albums? If so, take a few minutes online to find options that will work for you, and place the order. Depending on how long social distancing lasts, you may even have time to put those photos into the frames and albums. Send notes: Write those thank-you cards that you have had on your to-do list for the past few months. If you don’t have any thank-you notes to s...

5 ways life would be better if it were always daylight saving time

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

LIFESTYLE, VIDEO REELS

5 ways life would be better if it were always daylight saving time

In my research on daylight saving time, I have found that Americans don’t like it when Congress messes with their clocks. In an effort to avoid the biannual clock switch in spring and fall, some well-intended critics of DST have made the mistake of suggesting that the abolition of DST – and a return to permanent standard time – would benefit society. In other words, the U.S. would never “spring forward” or “fall back.” They are wrong. DST saves lives and energy and prevents crime. Not surprisingly, then, politicians in Washington and Florida have now passed laws aimed at moving their states to DST year-round. Congress should seize on this momentum to move the entire country to year-round DST. In other words, turn all clocks forward permanently. If it did so, I see five ways that America...