Meeting Places and Romance

In the study older adults who took weekly 15-minute “awe walks” for eight weeks reported increased positive emotions and less distress in their daily lives. This shift was reflected in “selfies” participants took on their weekly walks, in which an increasing focus on their surroundings rather than themselves was paralleled by measurably broader smiles by the end of the study. “Negative emotions, particularly loneliness, have well-documented negative effects on the health of older adults, particularly those over age 75,” said Virginia Sturm, PhD, an associate professor of in the departments of Neurology and of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. more »

Prosthetics for female veterans has been a national research priority for the Veterans Health Administration since 2017. VHA has funded 8 related studies, but officials said recruiting participants is a challenge. Although the female veteran population is growing, it remains small. Women make up just about 3% of the veteran amputee population. Female veterans received other "prosthetics" from VHA — like eyeglasses and wheelchairs — in addition to artificial limbs. Women made up 7.9% of those receiving prosthetic services in FY 2019, and accounted for about $889 million of the $15.4 billion cost of prosthetics VHA provided from FYs 2015-19. One study aims to develop a prosthetic ankle-foot system that allows female veterans to more easily change footwear with different heel heights. more »

Jo Freeman writes: The theme was different versions of “Thank God for Donald Trump.” He could do no wrong, including lose the election. If the media said more people and more states voted for Biden, then the election was being stolen. It was photogenic. Flags flourished. T-shirts, hats and posters were plentiful. Many people wore costumes, or turned flags into capes. Only buttons were scarce. (As a button collector, I was looking to add a Trump button to my collection). Everyone was pleasant. When I asked people to pose for a photo, I only got two negative responses – one from a man in a Chicago Proud Boys t-shirt, and another from a woman wearing a Biden-Harris cap who was waving at the marchers from the sidewalk of Pennsylvania Ave.   more »

Gaining the franchise was just the beginning. Over six weeks, distinguished speakers will discuss the impact of women in American government and public life over the last century. Weekly sessions will begin on August 27. Registration will open soon — newsletters! No matter where you are, you can attend our 2020 symposium! The rescheduled program will be conducted as a virtual series, and will cover all of the topics planned for the original event. more »