I am told by Hawaiians that Maunakea is sacred. I am not sure I understand what that means, I am not Hawaiian, I am an outsider. Read more >
Science For Justice
Photo: pedrik/Flickr
Maunakea and the Need to Indigenize Astronomy
Hilding Neilson, UCS Science Network, UCS
August 9, 2019 1:12 PM EDT
Psychologists and Pediatricians Know that Families Belong Together: A Call to Action
Dzung X. Vo, MD, FSAHM, FAAP, and Christopher Willard, PsyD, UCS Science Network, UCS
July 9, 2019 4:18 PM EDT
As family medical and mental health professionals, society entrusts us not only to care for children, but to protect children when they are in harm’s way. It is for that reason, and simply as compassionate human beings, that we write with profound concern about the ongoing conditions for migrant children and families at the US border, from the ongoing horror of family separation to the deteriorating medical, physical, educational, and sanitary conditions of vulnerable families. We have watched countless families flee violence and danger, only to find themselves newly at risk at our borders. If anyone in our profession knew of children living in conditions that our colleagues have witnessed at the border, we would face professional sanctions if we failed to report our concerns to child protection services. Read more >
The Masked Syndrome: HIV, Health Disparities, and the Two-Pronged Approach
Maral Aghvinian, Ph.D. student, Fordham University, UCS Science Network, UCS
June 25, 2019 2:47 PM EDT
“I have to tell you something” he said to my father on the phone. My father could sense immediately the conversation would be pivotal. “Cancer?” my father asked, to which he quietly responded, “Much worse.” He was my mother’s uncle; he was hilarious, hardworking, and passionate. He was also a gay Armenian man, and his sexual orientation was a subject of shame, criticism, and volatility in many cultures like my own. It was 1989, and the public, including my father, knew little about human immunodeficiency virus or HIV. Within days of this phone call, my parents flew to see him. I often think about this moment and my mother’s uncle considering his diagnosis the worst news he could possibly share. I think about the shame he felt and the vulnerability he displayed in sharing his status. This moment of sheer vulnerability and honesty has been shared by over 36 million individuals and their families worldwide. Read more >
People are the Purpose of Science
Mona Hanna-Attisha, UCS Science Network, UCS
February 11, 2019 4:54 PM EDT
Scientists like to talk about what they are “solving for” in their work. In classrooms all over the world, students are told that the purpose of science is “explaining and predicting our world.” Is that enough? Read more >
Photo: Lonpicman/Wikimedia Commons
Forensics, Justice, and the Case for Science-Based Decision Making
Simon A. Cole, UCS Science Network, UCS
November 14, 2018 10:01 AM EDT
Forensic science—and the language forensic scientists use to talk about their findings–has real-world impacts, sometimes life-or-death impacts, for real people. If the criminal justice system is going to really serve the cause of justice, it needs to be informed by the best available science. Unfortunately, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is ignoring scientific best practices, reversing progress toward improving forensic science in the U.S.
