Category: Research Story

Mitigating Climate Change through Microbiome Engineering

New Research by Michael Silverstein, Bioinformatics PhD Candidate and Hariri Institute Graduate Student Fellow By Margo Stanton The past decade has been the hottest in human history since record-keeping began 140 years ago. Burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and increased livestock farming are all major contributors to increasing the greenhouse effect, and thus global warming.  To help […]

AI used to analyze more than 2000 posts from 25 brands

WBUR 90.9 FM Radio – Air Date: September 17, 2024 Reporter: Amy Sokolow, Associate Producer News Anchor, Steve Brown Audio and transcription below: Brown: Boston University found the vast majority of Instagram posts by some e-cigarette and vape brands did not include health warnings about the products. The posts exploited a loophole to evade federal […]

Artificial Intelligence Reveals Youth-Targeting Strategies of Tobacco Companies

By Maureen Stanton A new study led by Boston University reveals that regulatory loopholes have allowed tobacco companies to target youth using social media.  Findings suggest that enforcement of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) health warnings on social media may reduce youth engagement with tobacco marketing. Amid declining cigarette sales and stricter regulations, tobacco companies […]

Will Mild Memory Loss Progress to Alzheimer’s Disease?

Boston University researchers reveal an easy-to-administer AI-driven method that predicts the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s Disease within six years  By Maureen Stanton As we get older, we often dismiss forgetfulness as a normal aspect of aging, and for many it is. However, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a condition where people have noticeably more memory or […]

A Preemptive Strike on Future Pandemics

A BU-led research team publishes new findings that show how detecting and correctly assigning deaths can help mitigate the impact of pandemics By Maureen Stanton, Hariri Institute COVID-19 caused catastrophe and chaos across the globe. According to some disease forecasters, the world could face another COVID-like pandemic within 10 years. To improve our response to […]

How Dickens and other Authors Shaped Attitudes to Education—With Lasting Impacts

In Education for All? BU political scientist Cathie Jo Martin says education systems continue to be influenced by the ideas of Enlightenment- and Industrial Revolution-Era writers  Story by Maureen Stanton and Alex Grzybowski Video by Natalie Williams In her new book, Education for All, Cathie Jo Martin, a Hariri Institute faculty affiliate and BU professor […]

Can an AI Model Learn the Changing Appearance of an Ear as a Baby Grows?

Betke and her team explore this question and win an IEEE IJCB award for their work By Maureen Stanton Before vaccines, millions of children died or endured life-long disabilities from diseases such as polio, diphtheria, measles, and meningitis. Unfortunately, there are still 20.5 million children who are missing lifesaving vaccines globally, 2.1 million more than in […]