Teen Brains on Pot
Calm teenagers can reason almost as well as adults. But introduce a negative emotion, like stress, into their decision-making process and it’s a whole other story. Regular pot use before age 16 has been shown to disrupt development of parts of the brain involved in the ability to make rational decisions, persist over time and [...]
‘Bolsa Familia’ Boosts Families in Brazil
Can Brazil’s local governments run a federal income-supplement program without political interference? Yes, they can, says Natasha Borges Sugiyama, a UWM assistant professor of political science who has been studying the political impact of Brazil’s “Bolsa Família” (Family Grant), a program designed to alleviate poverty and develop human potential. The program gives stipends to mothers [...]
Reading Spanish, Mastering English
Can studying Spanish help Latino students learn English and other subjects better? Javier Tapia, associate professor of education at UWM, is working with St. Anthony’s, a choice school, to test that idea. Currently, all instruction in the K-8 grades is in English, even though the majority of students come from Spanish-speaking homes. St. Anthony’s, with [...]
Stories Told with Buildings
You could call UWM’s Chris Cornelius an architect, but first and foremost he considers himself a storyteller. A member of Wisconsin’s Oneida nation, Cornelius’s building designs embody the values and stories of Native American cultures. Take the example of Milwaukee’s Indian Community School. As a member of the design team, Cornelius played a key role [...]
Restoring America’s Homegrown Philosophy
To philosopher Robert Schwartz, successful inquiry must be understood and judged in terms of its consequences for current problems. That is why he is a voice for Pragmatism, which was prominent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Pragmatism holds that concepts and theories are best thought of as intellectual instruments. “The aim of [...]
UWM’s Innovation Engine
To attain true economic vitality for Southeastern Wisconsin, regional companies need to be linked in meaningful ways to breakthroughs in research. The UWM Research Foundation (UWMRF) is building an “innovation engine” to accomplish just that. By growing a culture of creativity and seeding promising ideas, the UWMRF is helping support partnering efforts in water, energy, [...]