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Daily Archives: May 7, 2020

Here’s a List of Colleges’ Plans for Reopening in the Fall

The Chronicle of Higher Education – “The coronavirus pandemic has left higher-education leaders facing difficult decisions about when to reopen campuses and how to go about it. The Chronicle is tracking individual colleges’ plans. Currently the vast majority say they are planning for an in-person fall semester. Here’s our searchable list of colleges that have either disclosed their plans or set a deadline for deciding. New additions include Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences; Augustana, Carroll, Hampshire, Maryville, Reed, and Saint Mary’s Colleges; Catholic University of America; Laguna College of Art and Design; Lake Superior State, Lawrence Technological, Lubbock Christian, Ohio Northern, Regis, Samford, and Texas Woman’s Universities; the New Jersey Institute of Technology; and the Universities of Lynchburg, Northern Colorado, Scranton, and Washington…”

Contact-Tracing Apps in the United States

LawFare: “…In the United States, efforts to develop digital contact-tracing systems have largely fallen to states and tech companies—though privacy advocates have voiced concerns about the invasiveness of such apps. Apple and Google recently agreed to partner in developing a contact-tracing technology that will be interoperable between iOS and Android phones and will provide public… Continue Reading

Social isolation (and video chat) is bringing renewed attention to the art of the bookshelf

Washington Post: “Bookshelves are having a moment. Not long ago, their epitaph was being written. Ikea’s redesign of its Billy unit to accommodate objects other than books was cited as evidence that we had turned the page on possessing print. Now, that story has a sequel. Self-isolation has people rediscovering the value of having hardcovers… Continue Reading

How Patent Abuse Could Hurt the Fight Against the Pandemic

Slate – Scientific research that is funded by the public should be available to the public. “Scientific research that is funded by the public should be available to the public. That commonsense principle is no more apparent than in the middle of a public health crisis. And for the most part, researchers and journal publishers… Continue Reading

FHFA Announces Tools to Help Renters Find Out if They are Protected from Eviction

“To help renters find out if they are protected from evictions during the COVID-19 national health emergency, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced today that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) have created online multifamily property lookup tools.  The property lookup tools allow renters to find out if the multifamily property where they reside… Continue Reading

Here’s how lockdowns have improved air quality around the world

World Economic Forum: “…Two weeks after the nationwide lockdown was announced on March 23 in the UK, NO₂ pollution in some cities fell by as much as 60% compared to the same period in 2019. NASA revealed that NO₂ pollution over New York and other major metropolitan areas in north-eastern USA was 30% lower in… Continue Reading

The First 100 Days of the U.S. Government’s COVID-19 Response

“The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) has compiled a day-by-day timeline of the first 100 days of the U.S. federal government’s response to the novel coronavirus outbreak, which began in China in late 2019 and became a global pandemic. The timeline begins with the glimmers of initial international awareness of this virus that causes COVID-19.… Continue Reading

How quarantine makes the case for house arrest as an alternative to prison

ABA For Law Students: “…I hope in light of this quarantine—and everyone experiencing a mild form of house arrest—more people will see the validity of house arrest as a real alternative to incarceration. As in my case, this solution can alleviate not just the financial burden of mass incarceration, it can also benefit the inmate,… Continue Reading