This week’s 5 Questions Friday features Benjamin Cohen, an agricultural and consumer economics student with a focus on food systems and public policy.

What year are you, and how did you choose your ACES major?

Medical practices focusing on the relationship between the nervous system (mind) and the immune system (body) are explored in the relatively new biomedical research field of psychoneuroimmunology. Significant discoveries in areas like stress, mindfulness, ancient exercise (tai chi), and dietary interventions are just some of the work pioneered in this field.  

URBANA, Ill. – Soybeans outmatch all other legumes as the protein powerhouses of the plant kingdom, providing a key protein source for humans and livestock around the world. And now, after 30 years, University of Illinois scientists have identified the gene with the largest impact on seed protein in soybean.

URBANA, Ill. – As we move into the third year of the COVID-pandemic, we still face a multitude of information and it can be hard to know what guidelines to follow. Understanding what motivates individual behaviors can provide greater insight into mitigating the pandemic’s consequences and crafting effective public health messages.

URBANA, Ill. - Having a member of Shardé Smith's family—her baby—present with her for a recent interview was fitting. After all, Smith, an associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Illinois, works to better family health and wellbeing.

In particular, Smith's research focuses on Black families and understanding the associations between racism and mental health within Black families.

URBANA, Ill. – The College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Alumni Association has announced the dates for the 2022 ACES Family Academies. The family-friendly experience will be held July 14-15 on the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus.

URBANA, Ill. – Many agronomic weeds are developing resistance to available herbicides, making them harder and harder to kill. With few effective chemicals left and no new herbicide classes on the horizon, farmers are going back to older products that still offer the promise of crop protection.

This week’s 5 Questions Friday features a faculty member in the Department of Crop Sciences. As a small grains breeder, Dr. Jessica Rutkoski goes against the corn-and-beans norm in Illinois to improve important staple crops for societies around the world. 

What motivates you in your work?

The Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE), in partnership with the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences (NRES), invites applications and nominations for the Stuart L. and Nancy J. Levenick Resident Scholar in Sustainability Leadership for the 2022-23 academic year at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

URBANA, Ill. – Bikeshare systems have come a long way since they were first introduced in the Netherlands in the 1960s. They are popular in cities around the world, but how do bike systems affect existing public transportation? That’s the topic of a new paper from the University of Illinois, published in Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice.