It is easier to spread the influenza virus (flu) than previously thought, according to a new University of Maryland-led study released today. People commonly believe that they can catch the flu by exposure to droplets from an infected person’s coughs or sneezes or by touching contaminated surfaces. But, new information about flu transmission reveals that we may pass the flu to others just by breathing.

As a part of Graduate Student Appreciation Week, the Graduate Student Government (GSG) hosted the annual Graduate Research Appreciation Day (GRAD) on April 5, 2017. Graduate students from all programs and disciplines across campus presented their research and work. Below are the GRAD 2017 winners from the School of Public Health, who were selected as the best presentations from their respective subject-themed oral, poster, and elevator-speech presentation sessions.

A Maryland bill that permanently bans hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, in the state has received final approval from the Senate with a 35-to-10 vote. Once Gov. Larry Hogan, who announced his support for the anti-fracking legislation on March 17, signs the bill, Maryland will become the third state, following Vermont and New York, to prohibit fracking.

Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer Laurie Garrett, author of several bestselling books and Senior Fellow for Global Health at the Council on Foreign Relations, warned about the consequences of a collapsing global public health infrastructure and the continued threat of Zika during her Grand Rounds lecture at the University of Maryland on October 17, 2016.

Extreme heat and heavy rainfall are related to increased risk of hospitalization for asthma in Maryland, according to a study by the University of Maryland School of Public Health researchers. Based on over a decade of asthma hospitalization data (115,923 cases from 2000-2012), researchers observed a higher risk of asthma hospitalization after extreme heat or extreme precipitation events. The increases in risk were particularly high during the summer months. Their findings are published in the journal Environmental Health.

On April 6, 2016, the University of Maryland’s Graduate School Government hosted Graduate Research Appreciation Day (GRAD). The event gave Master's and doctoral student investigators from all academic backgrounds an opportunity to share research, obtain feedback from faculty and peers, and hone conference presentation skills in a welcoming, on-campus setting.

Following their release of a state-commissioned study on the potential public health impacts of fracking in Western Maryland, University of Maryland researchers are helping to inform the conversation about the potential risks associated with unconventional natural gas development and production.

College Park, Md. – The Maryland Department of Environment and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene released a report by the University of Maryland School of Public Health, which assesses the potential public health effects of allowing unconventional natural gas development and production (UNGDP), commonly known as “fracking” (a name derived from one part of the process), in western Maryland’s Marcellus Shale region.