A controversial proposal from the Environmental Protection Agency, widely known as the “secret science” rule, would allow environmental regulators only to use studies based on publicly available data when they set pollution standards. The problem, as IUPUI urban health scientist Gabriel Filippelli explains, is that many public health studies rely on confidential medical data, such as individual test results with subjects’ names attached, that’s actually illegal for researchers to disclose.
Filippelli describes how he used information from children’s blood screenings to map high lead exposure levels in U.S. cities – work that persuaded EPA to lower acceptable levels for lead in dust nearly a decade ago. If the Trump administration’s approach is adopted, he asserts, “EPA officials will have to pretend this kind of research doesn’t exist” – and public health will suffer as a result.
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Blood samples from pediatric health screenings can provide valuable data for public health research.
AP Photo/Carlos Osorio
Gabriel Filippelli, IUPUI
The EPA is considering a rule that would limit what kinds of science regulators can use in setting rules. A scholar explains how this shift would bar his work mapping child lead poisoning.
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Politics + Society
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Bear F. Braumoeller, The Ohio State University
It's very dangerous to assume that Iran will not escalate the crisis further, much less that the US could limit any violence that might ensue.
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David J. Wasserstein, Vanderbilt University
If the US makes good on the president's threat, Iran's heritage won't be the only thing damaged. Washington's reputation would also take a hit.
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Nathaniel Swigger, The Ohio State University
Predictions about how a woman presidential candidate might fare in 2020 are largely speculation, writes a political scientist, because there isn't enough experience to base those predictions on.
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From our international editions
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Chloe Lucas, University of Tasmania; Christine Eriksen, University of Wollongong; David Bowman, University of Tasmania
One lesson from Australia's past bushfire disasters is that too many homes are underinsured. But it's a lesson we've failed to learn.
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Jonathan Ervine, Bangor University
Charlie Hebdo's often biting and dark humour frequently troubles people in France, and many reactions to the attack in France were not in keeping with the values of the publication.
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Silvia Irawan, Yayasan Inobu
The Indonesian government has been distributing funds for village development. In 2019, the money can also be used for climate change adaptation and mitigation.
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