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Business & Economics

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 20-Oct-2026 23:16 ET (21-Oct-2026 03:16 GMT/UTC)

Temperature measurement error may cause climate-impact studies to understate impacts by 15% or more

Wake Forest University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

When policymakers and city officials plan for climate change, they rely on economic studies showing how extreme heat impacts violent crime, public health, energy grids and crop yields. However, a new study published in the Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists reveals a hidden problem in that research: the temperatures used in many climate-impact studies can contain substantial measurement error, leading researchers to misestimate the true impacts of temperature and, on average, potentially understate climate impacts by at least 15%.

National Science Foundation awards $2 million to Worcester Polytechnic Institute for student scholarships and STEM programs

Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Grant and Award Announcement

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded $2 million to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for scholarships and mentoring aimed at improving the retention and graduation rates of low-income undergraduate and graduate students in the fields of robotics, smart infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing.

The “cold-start” problem: online employment platforms are misaligned with skilled late-career workers, finds new study

University of Cambridge
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Many skilled older workers seek to transition from full-time stressful jobs to more flexible work, but freelance employment platforms don’t adequately recognise their credentials so there is a mismatch, finds a new study published in the journal Administrative Science Quarterly.

Journal: Administrative Science Quarterly

The high cost of climate change on worker productivity

University of California - Davis
Peer-Reviewed Publication

What's the price of climate-driven heat stress on worker producivity? A UC Davis study quantifies the cost.

Journal: Nature Climate Change
Funder: Yale Institute for Biospheric Studies Bass Fellowship, Rockefeller Foundation, NASA, Stanford Energy, Stanford Precourt Institute for Energy

National study finds violence affects millions across US with links to health, economic hardship

Tulane University
Reports and Proceedings

A new national study finds violence touches the lives of millions of Americans, with particularly high rates among women and people facing economic instability. Researchers found intimate partner violence has affected six in 10 women and nearly half of men, while recent violence was strongly associated with eviction, homelessness, mental health challenges and substance use. The first-of-its-kind national survey provides a new baseline for understanding who is most at risk and helping guide future violence prevention efforts.

Oughton to receive funding for project on space weather satellite risk characterization and socio-economic impacts

George Mason University
Grant and Award Announcement

Edward Oughton, Associate Professor, Geography and Geoinformation Science, College of Science, is set to receive funding for the project: “Collaborative Research: AI-enabled, Uncertainty-Aware Space Weather Risk Characterization and Mitigation for Satellite Operations.”

Funder: National Science Foundation

How high turnover rates in Tanzania’s agro-dealer sector affect farmer fertilizer adoption

College of ACES at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa adopt agricultural inputs including fertilizer at a low rate, contributing to low agricultural productivity. Previous research has shown that insufficient information and distrust in the quality of products for sale in local markets are among the reasons for low rates of fertilizer adoption and application. In a new study, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers examined the agricultural marketplace in Tanzania, finding that frequent turnover among local agro-dealers affect farmer perceptions of product quality and have implications for broader market functioning.

Journal: American Journal of Agricultural Economics

Study reveals the work & health insurance roller coaster millions of Americans ride

Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A study of low- and middle-income working American adults under 65 finds that those with volatile working hours, incomes and employment are much less likely to have access to employer-sponsored insurance, and that most of those with volatile hours have some weeks below the 20 hours of work that Medicaid work requirements will require in 2027.

Journal: JAMA Network Open

Where you live may influence your brain health

Radiological Society of North America
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a study analyzing nearly 3,000 brain MRI exams, researchers found that living in highly disadvantaged neighborhoods was associated with adverse brain health.

Journal: Radiology

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