Illinois Public Media News

In-depth reporting from WILL, NPR, the Associated Press, and other sources

Contact WILL News at willnewsroom@illinois.edu

Play

WILL Newscast

Rich Pedroncelli/AP

ENCORE: Life-Threatening Food Allergies; Young Evangelicals And Climate Change; Discoveries On Black Holes

Continuing our science and technology encore week, we spoke with Illinois scientists and doctors about their research on working to prevent life-threatening food allergies. Also, a new generation of evangelical Christians is hoping to move the needle on climate change action within their congregations, including at Wheaton College. Plus, we spoke with researchers about gravitational waves detections that helped shed light on entire populations of black holes.

Pat Nabong/Special to ProPublica

Assaults, Bullying, Rape: A Lawsuit Against One Professor Claims The University Of Illinois Didn’t Stop Him

Two former students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a professor at another college filed a lawsuit Tuesday against a former UIUC professor, claiming he assaulted, bullied and raped multiple students. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Urbana against Gary Gang Xu, seeks damages for distress from emotional, physical and sexual abuse.

Jenny Kane/AP

ENCORE: Seniors And Misinformation; How Poverty Affects Our Genes; Unplugging From Technology To Fully Experience Nature

We're continuing this week with some of our favorite past segments related to science and technology. Nature versus nurture is one of the oldest debates there is. But the answer might actually be neither. That’s because researchers at Northwestern have found experiencing poverty actually has an effect on your DNA. Plus, figuring out what’s true or false online can be tricky for everyone, but it turns out, older Americans are especially vulnerable to misinformation on social media. Also, in a world of never ending buzzing and alerts, research suggests that in order to get the full benefits of nature, you have to leave your devices at home.

More articles →