OCTOBER 13, 2015 'Blind analysis' could cut bias A course on critical thinking at UC Berkeley, co-taught for the past three years by a public policy expert and a Nobel Prize-winning physicist, has generated a new proposal to remove sources of bias in research and improve confidence in published studies. The target would be usually inadvertent bias that skews the conclusions of studies and often makes them unrepeatable. > Read more... Supreme impact The U.S. Supreme Court has just begun its new term, and if recent history is any indication, Berkeley Law faculty members may soon influence more landmark rulings. Faculty whose work was noted by the court in its last term include Jonathan Simon, on solitary confinement; Joan Hollinger, on marriage equality; Alan Auerbach, on double taxation; and Richard Rothstein, on fair housing. > Read more... Could this help stop the shootings? Once a small subsection of education theory, social and emotional learning - known as SEL - has been gaining support, partly in response to increasing school violence. The idea is that teaching empathy to the young will spark deep societal change. The Bay Area-based Toolbox program, in place in Berkeley and Oakland schools, is working to make it so, and has caught the attention of experts at Berkeley. > Read more in California Magazine... RESEARCH Organic produce = lower pesticides in kids Health researchers find significant reductions after just a few days. Getting a better count of homeless young people How many are there? Initiative improves tools used to find out. Soda tax means higher prices Sugary drinks cost more since Berkeley passed tax, study confirms. PEOPLE  New leader for PEER Engineer Khalid Mosalam named director of earthquake center. Reading Steve Tollefson Gathering to remember the late writer, teacher. Young innovator awards for two NIH rewards high-risk research. Three win cybersecurity grants EECS faculty lead research projects. BERKELEY HEADLINES Buildings honored for design, sustainability  Maximino Martinez Commons, three others win AIA recognition. New program offers two years' study in France Dual-degree undergrads can opt for Science Po campus. Cool Campus Challenge UC campuses competing to see which can be the greenest.  MORE CAMPUS NEWS  Berkeley places third And we're the top public in new global rankings from U.S. News. Flu shots Thursday Drop-in clinic at the Tang Center, noon-5 p.m.  'Great Shakeout' coming up  Sirens at 10:15 a.m. Thursday will signal earthquake readiness drill. Breaking News   Campus Calendar   News tips or feedback? Please contact us at e-news@berkeley.edu Berkeleyan archive Managers & supervisors: Please print and post a copy of this newsletter for any staff who don't have access to email.