Published research/scholarship/creative work

Flattening the curve with jazz

The WSU Jazz Big Band isn’t letting the global pandemic get in the way of delivering excellent big band entertainment. The award-winning group, directed by Regents Professor Greg Yasinitsky, put technology to the test to produce a video of the aptly titled composition, “Flatten That Curve.” In addition to the quality of the music, what […]

Writing, currency fueled ancient society growth

When it comes to the great civilizations of human history, the pen really might have been mightier than the sword. “There’s a fundamental relationship that exists between the way in which societies process information and how large they are able to become,” said Tim Kohler, WSU an archaeologist and a corresponding author of an international […]

Research opens a new approach to mental illness

Some of the most common mental disorders, including depression, anxiety and PTSD, might not be disorders at all, according to a recent paper by WSU biological anthropologists. The researchers propose a new approach to mental illness that would be informed by human evolution, noting that modern psychology, and in particular its use of drugs like […]

Too hot for habitation: archeology and climate change

Areas of the planet home to one-third of humans will become as hot as the hottest parts of the Sahara within 50 years, unless greenhouse gas emissions fall, according to research by scientists from China, United States (at WSU) and Europe The rapid heating would mean that 3.5 billion people would live outside the climate […]

Amphibian study shows stress increases vulnerability

Even the anti-freeze frog is not invulnerable to stress, according to a new study led by WSU biological sciences researchers. “We’re seeing these mass mortality events in wildlife that are often due to infectious diseases; while at the same time, we notice an association with some kind of environmental change,” said Emily Hall, the lead […]

Study cites law enforcement concerns

A new study by WSU criminal justice researchers found increased drugged driving, greater youth access to marijuana, and insufficient officer training are a few of the concerns expressed by police officers in the first state to legalize recreational cannabis sales to adults. While the officers did not support recriminalization, they noted several issues with the […]

Canada lynx disappearing from Washington state

Canada lynx are losing ground in Washington state, even as federal officials are taking steps to remove the species’ threatened status under the Endangered Species Act. A massive monitoring study led by WSU researchers has found lynx on only about 20% of its potential habitat in the state. The results paint an alarming picture not […]

Researching potential negative effects of cannabis

Coughing fits, anxiety and paranoia are three of the most common adverse reactions to cannabis, according to a recent study by the WSU Health and Cognition Laboratory. Researchers surveyed more than 1,500 college students on the type and frequency of adverse reactions they had experienced while using cannabis for their study in the Journal of […]

Where you live may influence your baby’s behavior

Infants from rural families tend to display negative emotions such as anger and frustration more frequently than their urban counterparts, according to a recent study in the Journal of Community Psychology. Babies born in big cities, on the other hand, typically are less fussy and not as bothered by limits set by their caregivers. The […]