Alabama State University has managed to keep COVID-19 cases at zero since the start of the fall semester, even as the number of infections rises among college students at other campuses across the U.S. The university's president, Quinton Ross, Jr, in part, credits Dragonfly's thermal-screening technology that identifies coronavirus symptoms.
"This is a contactless device that we're using. We're non-invasive, where students can just walk up and get a quick check of their temperature and other vital signs," he told Cheddar. "It's been an asset to all of the protocols that we've set in place here to help identify and to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on campus."
Even before the technology was implemented at the historically Black university, steps were already being taken to protect the safety and health of everyone on campus.
"From the outset, we determined — even before the city of Montgomery, even before the state of Alabama — that we would become a mask-mandatory campus," he said.
For Ross, safety, especially for students, was the sole priority in taking steps to reopen campus. While a lack of PPE was a major concern for many early in the pandemic, the university was committed to avoiding "any barrier" that could potentially keep students from learning on campus. Therefore, the school decided to provide masks for them, he said.
Once back on campus, Ross explained, students have even stepped up and are doing their part to stop the spread of COVID-19.
“I cannot say enough about my student leadership, who’s embraced keeping our campus safe,” he noted.
In the event of an outbreak, Ross said there is a contingency plan in place that includes isolating students in already established dormitories.
A common criticism of universities' reopening plans during the pandemic has been that restrictions prevent students from socializing — a notable aspect of the on-campus college experience. It is also a scenario that, in many cases, is unavoidable; but Ross said the protocols and safety standards that were set, along with the students' ability to be mindful, are the reasons for his school's success in keeping infections at zero so far.
"I'm just thankful to our Board of Trustees and all of our leadership team for allowing us to put these procedures in place," he said.
2021 was an exciting year for space innovations, but 2022 could hold even more in store. Cheddar took a deep dive into the space mission on tap for the year ahead.
The United States purchased over 600,000 doses of a monoclonal antibody treatment from Glaxosmithkline and Vir Biotechnology, bringing the total worldwide doses purchased to 1.7 million. This comes as the country attempts to ramp up treatment options as cases of the omicron variant continue to surge. Dr. Asha Shah, Director of Infectious Diseases at Stamford Health joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
As the pandemic slammed the brakes on the nation's economy in 2020, America's greenhouse gas emissions reached their lowest levels in at least three decades. However, as the world, and the economy re-opened, 2021 told a much different story as emissions surged. Biden's flagship 'Build Back Better' act involves billions in spending on electric cars and renewables, in an effort to cut U.S. emissions, experts are still skeptical that the nation will meet the current 2030 target. Andrew Dessler, professor of atmospheric sciences at Texas A&M University, joins Cheddar News.
Amid the omicron surge, a new debate has emerged about whether or not throat swabs are more effective than nasal swabs for COVID testing. Dr. William Schaffner, MD, professor of infectious diseases, Vanderbilt Medical Center, sat down with Cheddar's News Wrap to weigh in on the dispute. "Should there be a change? You've got to do the studies, show that in the field [a throat swab] works as well or better than the nasal specimen," he said. "Let's not do it off our hips, as we say."
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam is declaring a state of emergency after Monday's winter storm left hundreds of drivers stranded on the interstate for more than 24 hours.
The snow also knocked out power for many residents, with more than 100,000 outages remaining days later.
Michael Wehner, a climate scientist at Lawrence Berkeley national laboratory, discusses recent weather disasters.
As the need for COVID-19 testing increases, so does the price of the tests themselves. An agreement with The White House and several major companies to sell the tests at a lower cost has now expired, sending prices up as retailers struggle to keep kits on shelves. Dr. Thomas McGinn, executive VP of physician enterprise at Common Spirit Health, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
A new report shows 2021 saw a surge in U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, indicating that the country remains far off track from meeting President Biden's climate change targets. Biden previously pledged to cut the nation's emissions in half by 2030, and now experts warn that immediate action must be taken in order to get the nation back on track. Zeke Hausfather, director of climate and energy at The Breakthrough Institute on U.S. Emissions and Global Temperatures, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
Electric vehicles are quickly becoming an accessible way for consumers to slash emissions as legacy automakers begin to electrify their fleets and world leaders including President Joe Biden push for broad EV adoption. But consumers have concerns about EV range, the availability of charging stations, and more. What if it were both helpful to consumers — and feasible from a climate change standpoint — to keep hybrid models that run on gas on the market? Gill Pratt, CEO of the Toyota Research Institute & Toyota Motor Corporation's Chief Scientist joins Cheddar Climate to discuss his team's research about 'carbon return on investment,' how Toyota is electrifying its fleet, and more.
According to a recent analysis compiled by The Washington Post, more than four in 10 Americans lived in areas hit by climate-related disasters in 2021. Jonathan Porter, Chief Meteorologist at AccuWeather, joined Cheddar Climate to discuss what this means and what can be done to prevent severe weather events from becoming even worse.
It's a painfully cold week across a large portion of the U.S. with more than 185 million Americans experiencing below-freezing temperatures on Monday and 10 million of them dealing with dangerous sub-zero temps.
