You're next in line to get the McDonald's burger you've been craving and so close that you can almost taste it. But there’s just one problem: Right next to the words "Double Quarter-Pounder with Cheese" on the menu is the number 740 — as in calories. If this makes your jaw drop and your cravings wave a white flag, you're not alone, but you're close to it. A new study conducted in New York City found about 15 percent of customers took the nutritional information into consideration when making their food choice. "One in six customers reported using the calorie information when making ... Read More
Climate Change Threatens Great Lakes’ Parks
July 27, 2011 • By • Leave a Comment
"Climate change is a huge, transforming, all-encompassing threat to the national parks," Stephen Saunders, founder and president of the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization, told our Melinda Burns last year. Just how climate change will affect national parks around the world has been on the minds of environmentalists and park managers for some time. When their concerns reach the public — that of the threat to the country's most iconic parks — melting glaciers at Glacier National Park, for example, or rising water levels at the Everglades are usually invoked. But the latest in a series ... Read More
Transgender Issues Hidden in Same-Sex Marriage Debate
July 24, 2011 • By • Leave a Comment
“As far as I’m concerned, being any gender is a drag.” — Patti Smith Same-sex marriage has been a hot item for more than a decade. It gained attention in the 1990s with the Defense of Marriage Act, which, when enacted, maintained that marriage was between one man and one woman — in other words, same-sex marriages, which were then beginning to be performed by the states, would not be recognized at the federal level. But Defense of Marriage Act’s black-and-white distinction overlooks the transgender community. The percentage of transgender Americans varies from 0.25 percent to ... Read More
Website Demystifies Redistricting
July 9, 2011 • By • Leave a Comment
The once-a-decade reshuffling mandated by the Constitution now has a comprehensive source that helps to explain its complex details. Justin Levitt, an expert on election law and a professor at Los Angeles’ Loyola Law School has launched All About Redistricting, an interactive website that helps the average person understand all the intricacies of redistricting. With redistricting being a hot topic, and its fairness routinely questioned, the launch of Levitt’s website is particularly timely. The site offers a state-by-state guide that explains individual rules, regulations and ... Read More
‘The Real Science Gap’ Receives Investigative Reporting Prize
June 13, 2011 • By • Leave a Comment
A year ago, Miller-McCune contributor Beryl Lieff Benderly's cover story, "The Real Science Gap," examined the discouraging reality in America of young scientists and the lack of job opportunities that they currently face. She argued that the myth that young, talented scientists don't exist anymore in America and instead suggests that promising career opportunities are dwindling and forcing them to choose a different path. Last week, the American Association of University Professors awarded Benderly its Iris Molotsky Award for Coverage in Higher Education prize. The award looks for ... Read More
