Media Coverage

Media articles featuring INFORMS members in the news.

Most Recent Media Coverage

Topic
Professor Fumbles COVID Death Projection for Football Players

Professor Fumbles COVID Death Projection for Football Players

The College Fix, January 15, 2021

One takeaway from the past year is that many people who think they can model coronavirus infections and deaths often cannot. There’s the Cornell professor who predicted 1,200 cases at the Ivy League university, but wound up off by 66%, since the total amount through December 31 came out closer to 400. Now meet Sheldon Jacobson, a computer science professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In June, he predicted up to seven college football players would die from COVID. “I guarantee someone is going to die,” Jacobson said in June, according to CBS Sports. “The virus does not discriminate.” But no one died during the college football season that ended earlier this week.

At Least Three Lawmakers Test Positive for Covid-19 After Capitol Attack

At Least Three Lawmakers Test Positive for Covid-19 After Capitol Attack

The Wall Street Journal, January 12, 2021

At least three lawmakers who sheltered in a secure room during last week’s storming of the Capitol said they have since tested positive for Covid-19, adding to fears about the virus’s spread during the attack. The lawmakers, all Democrats, said they had fled during the attack to the room where Republican lawmakers refused to wear masks. A video posted by Punchbowl News shows Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D., Del.) in the room offering masks to a group of House Republicans, who decline to put them on. The Capitol’s physician told lawmakers and staff this weekend that those who were in the room might have been exposed to someone infected with Covid-19.

Needle in a Haystack: Despite Efforts to Boost Rollout, Vaccination Rates Fail to Meet Demand

Needle in a Haystack: Despite Efforts to Boost Rollout, Vaccination Rates Fail to Meet Demand

NBC News, January 13, 2021

One of the world’s leading experts on getting supplies to catastrophe survivors likens the nation’s struggle to get Americans vaccinated against Covid-19 to an understaffed grocery store. “From a supply chain perspective, you’ve got the production, you’ve got the distribution, it’s on the shelves and there is demand,” Philip J. Palin told NBC News. “But you don’t have enough check-out lanes and you don’t have enough checkers.” And Palin would know. The former National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine consultant and author of books like "Out of the Whirlwind: Demand and Supply After Hurricane Maria" is also the son and grandson of grocers.

The Federal Government Loosens Vaccine Guidelines

The Federal Government Loosens Vaccine Guidelines

Yahoo! News, January 13, 2021

John Hopkins Carey Business School professor, Tinglong Dai, on the federal government’s announcement that they are allowing states to vaccinate anyone over 65 and those with preexisting conditions.

Clay Travis Blasts June Article 'Guaranteeing' COVID Would Kill CFB Players

Clay Travis Blasts June Article 'Guaranteeing' COVID Would Kill CFB Players

Fox Sports Radio, January 13, 2021

Clay Travis: “This was the most irresponsible single piece of journalism having to do with college football that was published anywhere in the country. CBS Sports should apologize to their entire audience because they wrote a piece based on University of Illinois computer science professional Sheldon Jacobson saying ‘I guarantee someone is going to die if they play a college football season.’ He also said the FBS level would see ‘3-7 deaths’. ‘A few of them could end up in a hospital and you’ll have a small number who could die. I don’t want to sugarcoat it for you, I just want to give you the facts’… IT DIDN’T HAPPEN.

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Artificial Intelligence

Why 23andMe’s Genetic Data Could Be a ‘Gold Mine’ for AI Companies

Why 23andMe’s Genetic Data Could Be a ‘Gold Mine’ for AI Companies

TIME, March 26, 2025

The genetic testing company 23andMe, which holds the genetic data of 15 million people, declared bankruptcy on Sunday night after years of financial struggles. This means that all of the extremely personal user data could be up for sale—and that vast trove of genetic data could draw interest from AI companies looking to train their data sets, experts say.

Healthcare

Want to reduce the cost of healthcare? Start with our billing practices.

Want to reduce the cost of healthcare? Start with our billing practices.

The Hill, March 11, 2025

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as the new secretary of Health and Human Services, is the nation’s de facto healthcare czar. He will have influence over numerous highly visible agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration, among others. Given that healthcare is something that touches everyone’s life, his footprint of influence will be expansive. 

We all benefit from and are hurt by health insurance claim denials

We all benefit from and are hurt by health insurance claim denials

Atlanta Journal Constitution, January 23, 2025

Health insurance has become necessary, with large and unpredictable health care costs always looming before each of us. Unfortunately, the majority of people have experienced problems when using their health insurance to pay for their medical care. Health insurance serves as the buffer between patients and the medical care system, using population pooling to mitigate the risk exposure on any one individual.

Supply Chain

Experts warn logistics industry stakeholders to make contingency plans

Experts warn logistics industry stakeholders to make contingency plans

Seafood Source, March 10, 2025

In their March 2025 forecasts, shipping and logistics experts are warning those who rely on the industry to expect continued disruption, and in order to survive a chaotic landscape, they are advising businesses to spend money conservatively, work with trusted partners, and make comprehensive contingency plans.

Climate