As the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise in the U.S. and around the world, dozens of University of Michigan experts across a wide variety of disciplines are conducting research and using their expertise to address COVID-19 and its impact on public health, the economy, the environment, education and more.

The World Health Organization called countries to "pull out all the stops" and warned "this is not a drill," as new coronavirus infections surpass the 100,000 threshold worldwide. As the outbreak unfolds, nearly three dozen University of Michigan experts can discuss its societal, economic and public health impacts.

FACULTY Q&A Questions around coronavirus testing and immunity are top of mind as the pandemic continues to spread and potential vaccines undergo trials. Emily Toth Martin, associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, breaks down the basics of coronavirus testing and what the current data show are the potential Read more

Consumer sentiment sank further in late July due to the continued resurgence of the coronavirus, according to the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers. In the last four months, the Sentiment Index has remained trendless, averaging a decline of 25% from the same period in 2019. The Expectations Index fell back to a six-year low Read more

As recent Black Lives Matter protests against police brutality have framed new perspectives on white privilege and racism, many voices are joining a call for action to end what some are calling the “pervasive and pernicious nature” of anti-Black racism deeply embedded in many institutions and across numerous professions. This includes many areas of higher Read more

The students spoke, and U-M researchers listened: The future is sustainable plastics—at least for a two-week course in chemistry during the Michigan Math and Science Scholars program. U-M chemist Anne McNeil has led a chemistry-focused summer camp as part of the MMSS program since 2015. During the first few years of the class, McNeil included Read more

Origami principles can unlock the potential of the smallest robots, enhancing speed, agility and control in machines no more than a centimeter in size. University of Michigan researchers have demonstrated that behavioral rules underpinning the Japanese art of folding can expand the capabilities of these machines, creating potential for greater use in fields as diverse Read more

In teens with obesity problems, the brain regions that process rewards are strongly connected, or more likely to “talk” to each other. These regions, however, are less connected to those involved in memory and executive functioning—such as decision-making, attention and behavioral control—that could make teens more sensitive to rewards like junk foods, according to a Read more

Future spacecrafts bound for the moon or beyond will benefit from high-powered computer simulations underway at the University of Michigan that model the particulate mayhem set in motion by rocket thruster-powered landings. During descent, exhaust plumes fluidize surface soil and dust, forming craters and buffeting the lander with coarse, abrasive particles. This action presents a Read more

Erik Gordon is one of the University of Michigan’s most quoted professors in mainstream media, but his path to this status was not a traditional one. Hear how Erik’s meandering career path has led him to a faculty position at one of the most prestigious business schools in the country.

Amid the national debate over the safety and efficacy of absentee voting, Michigan can offer an example of how election reforms will play out in the 2020 election. And the battleground state’s local officials have an overall positive outlook about it and other election reforms that were included in a 2018 constitutional amendment, according to Read more

University of Michigan political science professor emeritus Michael Traugott reacts to president Trump’s Tweet suggesting the November election be postponed.