Summer is often associated with leisurely days and a lull in everyday operations. But the excellence at UNLV never stops — and the university community consistently made headlines for it in the weeks before and after students began making their way back to campus.

Faculty experts appeared in major national, international, and trade publications lending insights on everything from public health and psychology to background on the business world, wonders of the galaxy, and the mysteries of ancient civilizations. 

What are the rules for hotel breakfast buffets? Why are we supposed to pull the window shade down (or pull it up) on airplanes? And does social media “doomscrolling” really hurt your brain?

Read on for answers, and check out some other media stories featuring UNLV experts who made the news in July and August.

Health & Science

• Tasting Table pinged infectious disease epidemiologist Brian Labus for a series of public health stories examining germy items in restaurants, signs of a clean kitchen, and health inspection grades. He also spoke to outlets including Yahoo and the Daily Mail about the cyclospora outbreak, as well as to EatingWell and Real Simple about the safety of bottled water. He lent insight about rabies in wildlife to Fox News readers.
• Archaeologist Lisa Johnson commented on a new Maya ruins discovery covered by the New York Times.
• Neuroscientists Dustin and Rochelle Hines tag-teamed on a Vice explainer about TCHV, a cannabis ingredient gaining a reputation as “diet weed.”
• Mosquito expert Louisa Messenger gave TIME Magazine tips on warding off the pests.
• There was a solar eclipse in August, and National Geographic talked to astrophysicist Jason Steffen about the best viewing options.
• Life sciences researcher Frank van Breukelen talked to Science about the brain circuitry involved in hamster hibernation.
• Nutrition sciences expert Sara K. Rosenkranz spoke to MarketWatch about hydration products.

Culture & Technology

• The Independent called on couple and family therapist Dawn Moore to discuss navigating large age-gap relationship dynamics.
• Does doomscrolling on social media lead to brain rot? Real Simple explored, and psychology professor Dustin Hines weighed in.
• Meanwhile, social media expert Benjamin Morse also helped Real Simple shed light on the psychology behind parasocial relationships with celebrities.
• UNLV Behavioral Addictions Lab director Shane Kraus was prominent in the news this summer. He explained the appeal of Rips, a new card-pack app, to Wired. He chatted with Inc. about prediction markets, and DraftKings blurring the line between sports betting and Wall Street trading. And he told WORLD about nicotine pouches, and The Last Show with David Cooper about phone addiction.  
• Hospitality professor Mehmet Erdem helped the Washington Post outline the rules to follow for hotel breakfast buffets.

Politics & Economics

• Inc. tapped hospitality expert Stowe Shoemaker for insight on why a New York City bakery has maintained relevancy after 30 years in the business.
• Emerging media expert Benjamin Burroughs helped the Washington Post ponder why a new online game that asks players to recall how senators voted on landmark bills is going viral.
• Nicholas Irwin with the Lied Center for Real Estate offered Vox readers background on the drive behind Nevada’s radical new solution for boosting affordable housing.
• USA Today interviewed hospitality professor Anthony F. Lucas for a story about Las Vegas resorts luring visitors with all-inclusive deals.
   

  

Experts Roundup

• Aviation historian Dan Bubb helped the South Florida Business Journal parse the implications of Spirit Airlines’ collapse for other low-cost carriers’ survival. He also spoke to HuffPost about seat position during takeoff and landing, window shade rules, and the strategy behind flight attendants’ passenger greetings; Reader’s Digest about lightning strikes; Travel + Leisure about boarding pass symbols, wash schedules for airplane blankets, and foods to avoid onboard; Canadian Broadcasting Corp. about an imposter pilot; and Business Insider about an AI company attempting to access Spirit Airlines’ old data. 
• Chef Chris Lindsay offered Mashed readers tips for seasoning prime rib.
• Tourism expert Marta Soligo weighed in on a new ordinance restricting umbrella use at Italian beaches via Food, Drink, Life.
• Ornithologist Donald K. Price explained how to attract hummingbirds in Real Simple and Good Housekeeping.
• Hydrologist David Kreamer talked to Newsweek about the near-record low water levels at Lake Mead.

Want more? Check out our frequently updated UNLV In The News page.