July 31, 2026

The Office of Research publishes this weekly media report to assist with keeping up with news relevant to research at George Mason. It includes news items about recent research of consequence by current George Mason faculty. Items and topics are identified using Google alerts, scientific email newsletters, the media tracker Talkwalker and by monitoring George Mason departmental social media accounts. Stories are sorted by academic unit and, if available, by topic. If stories about George Mason research are not captured by the report, email Elizabeth Grisham. 

Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution

Kardeşlik Söylemi Yetmez: Barış Sürecinin Asıl İhtiyacı Güvendir 

Yetkin REPORT 

7/28/26 – Alpaslan Özerdem, Dean, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies, is the author of this piece. Translation might be needed. more 

Ne Af Ne İmralı: Öcalan İçin Üçüncü Bir Yol Mümkün mü? 

Yetkin REPORT 

7/22/26 – Alpaslan Özerdem, Dean, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution; Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies, is the author of this piece. Translation might be needed. more 

College of Education and Human Development

Opening The Door Is Not Enough 

College of Education and Human Development 

May 2026 – Nabit Bajwa, a Doctoral Student studying Computer Science in George Mason’s College of Engineering and Computing (CEC); Sanmay Das, Professor of Computer Science in the College of Engineering and Associate Director of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Social Impact at the Sanghani Center at Virginia Tech, and Seth B. Hunter, Associate Professor, Education Leadership, College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), are the authors of this brief. more  

Generative AI (GenAI) As A Mindtool That Supports Generative Learning (GL) 

Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence 

December 2026 – Nada Dabbagh, Professor and Director of the Division of Learning Technologies in the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), and Helen Fake, Adjunct Professor, CEHD, are the authors of this research. more 

College of Engineering and Computing

Enabling Responsible AI Adoption Through Governance 

Times Higher Education 

7/3/26 – Amarda Shehu, Inaugural VP and Chief AI Officer; Associate Dean for Research; Professor, Department of Computer Science, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), comments in this story. more 

Opening The Door Is Not Enough 

College of Education and Human Development 

May 2026 – Nabit Bajwa, a Doctoral Student studying Computer Science in George Mason’s College of Engineering and Computing (CEC); Sanmay Das, Professor of Computer Science in the College of Engineering and Associate Director of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Social Impact at the Sanghani Center at Virginia Tech, and Seth B. Hunter, Associate Professor, Education Leadership, College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), are the authors of this brief. more  

Wang Set To Receive NSF CAREER Award 

Scienmag 

7/28/26 – Xuan Wang, Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), will receive a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation. more 

Instagram, Facebook Ran AI ‘Nudify’ Ads From China, NGO Says 

CLAIMS JOURNAL, thenews.com.pk 

7/29/26 – The author of this piece quotes Chad M.S. Steel, Adjunct Professor, Digital Forensics, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), and cites his co-authored research. more 

Bondok Named A 2026 Engineering Unleashed Fellow By Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) 

College of Engineering and Computing (via LinkedIn) 

7/28/26 – Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network named Doaa Bondok, Associate Professor of Structural Engineering in the Sid and Reva Dewberry Department of Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), a 2026 Engineering Unleashed Fellow. more 

Sanders Highlights Wearable Sensor Research 

LinkedIn 

7/28/26 – Quentin Sanders, Assistant Professor, Bioengineering, College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), highlights recent research and sessions at a professional conference in this post. more 

Three George Mason Faculty Members Elected To Virginia Academy Of Science, Engineering, & Medicine 

gmu.edu 

7/27/26 – The author of this piece writes, “The 2026 elected class includes individuals from the College of Science, the College of Public Health, and the College of Engineering and Computing: Distinguished University Professor Liping Di, Dean Melissa J. Perry, and Distinguished University Professor Siddhartha Sikdar.” more 

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Endless Summers Aren’t Just For Kids 

Reader’s Digest 

7/22/26 – Martin Wiener, Associate Professor, Psychology, College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), comments in this story. more 

College of Public Health

U.S. Measles Cases So Far This Year Hit A Three-Decade High 

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

7/24/26 – Amira Roess, Professor, Global Health and Epidemiology, College of Public Health, said, “More and more of the younger kids are showing up to school unvaccinated or undervaccinated, and therefore susceptible.”  

 

Roess said, further, “It’s sort of like brush. Fire will come in, and it will go through it very rapidly.” more 

Five Reasons Lettuce Is Often At The Root Of Food-Borne Illness Outbreaks 

The Independent (via au.news.yahoo.com) 

7/28/26 – The author of this piece highlights comments from Amira Roess, Professor, Global Health and Epidemiology, College of Public Health. more 

Three George Mason Faculty Members Elected To Virginia Academy Of Science, Engineering, & Medicine 

gmu.edu 

7/27/26 – The author of this piece writes, “The 2026 elected class includes individuals from the College of Science, the College of Public Health, and the College of Engineering and Computing: Distinguished University Professor Liping Di, Dean Melissa J. Perry, and Distinguished University Professor Siddhartha Sikdar.” more 

HMN 2026: Can AI Help Make Medical Records Less Biased? New Study Suggests Yes—With Caveats 

Health Medicine Network 

7/22/26 – Teenu Xavier, Assistant Professor, School of Nursing, College of Public Health, comments in this story. more 

A High-Schooler’s Path To Research, Via George Mason 

VITAMIN RUSH 
7/24/26 – Martin Binks, Professor and Chair, Nutrition and Food Studies, College of Public Health, comments in this article. more 

Do Life Happenings Make Sex Less Appetizing? 

Psychology Today 

7/18/26 – Lucas Reyes Prieto, Assistant Professor, Social Work, College of Public Health, is the author of this piece. more 

College of Science

Three George Mason Faculty Members Elected To Virginia Academy Of Science, Engineering, & Medicine 

gmu.edu 

7/27/26 – The author of this piece writes, “The 2026 elected class includes individuals from the College of Science, the College of Public Health, and the College of Engineering and Computing: Distinguished University Professor Liping Di, Dean Melissa J. Perry, and Distinguished University Professor Siddhartha Sikdar.” more 

George Mason’s Siddhartha Sikdar Elected To Virginia Science Academy 

THE AMERICAN BAZAAR 

7/29/26 – The author of this piece writes, “George Mason University bioengineering professor Siddhartha Sikdar has been elected to the Virginia Academy of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (VASEM), an organization that convenes top experts to provide evidence-based guidance to state leaders.”   

 

Sikdar is Professor, Director, Center for Adaptive Brain-Body Interactions, College of Science. more 

SpaceX Plan To Launch 1 Million Data Center Satellites Could Turn Atmosphere Into A ‘Fire Pit,’ Scientists Say 

NBC NEWS  

7/28/26 – Peter Plavchan, Professor, Physics and Astronomy, College of Science, comments in this story. more 

George Mason To Host 2026 Society for Industrial & Applied Mathematics (SIAM) DC-Maryland-Virginia Section Meeting 

LinkedIn 

7/24/26 – Harbir Antil, Director, Center for Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence (CMAI),  Professor, Department of Mathematical Sciences, writes, “We are pleased to announce the 2026 Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) DC-Maryland-Virginia Section Meeting, which will be held on Friday, November 20, 2026, at the FUSE Building, George Mason University, Arlington Campus.”  
 
See website for more details. more 

George Mason Physicists Map Quantum Complexity Phase Diagram Of Dicke Model 

Quantum Zeitgeist 

7/24/26 – The author of this piece writes, “George Mason University physicists have mapped a phase diagram for the Dicke model, a system describing light-matter interactions, revealing two distinct regimes of dynamic behavior. The research demonstrates a connection between the rate at which information spreads and fundamental shifts within the quantum system; at the transition, the slope of changes coincides with a jump in Krylov entropy.” more 

Luxembourg Police Host Rare Facial Reconstruction Training 
today.rtl.lu, chronicle.lu 

7/26/26 – The author of this piece mentions Joe Mullins, Adjunct Faculty, Forensic Science, College of Science. more  

Why Wildfire Smoke Still Catches Cities Off Guard 

Bloomberg 

7/24/26 – Daniel Tong, Associate Professor in the Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Earth Sciences (AOES), College of Science, spoke with Bloomberg about the complexities of forecasting where wildfire smoke will travel and how severely it will affect air quality. more 

The Strangeness Of Quantum Fields, In 21 Minutes | Hakeem Oluseyi 

Big Think Clips & Big Think (via YouTube) 

5/26/26 – Hakeem Oluseyi is Affiliate Faculty, Physics and Astronomy, College of Science. He discusses quantum fields in this video. more 

Costello College of Business

The Link Between Explicit AI-Generated Images & Offline Crime 

MIT Sloan Management Review 

7/29/26 – Siddharth Bhattacharya, Assistant Professor, Information Systems and Operations Management (ISOM), Costello College of Business, is among the authors of this piece. more 

Test Driving An Electric Car Can Discourage Buying  
Wszystko Co Najważniejsze 

No date – The author of this piece cites research co-authored by the Costello College of Business’ Ioannis Bellos, Director of MBA and MSM programs, and Hang Ren, Associate Professor in the Information Systems and Operations Management Area at the Costello College of Business. Translation might be needed. more 

Study Finds Women Find Better Matches With Fewer Dating Options 
DatingNews.com 

7/23/26 – The author of this piece cites research by Sabari Rajan Karmegam, Assistant Professor, Information Systems and Operations Management, Costello College of Business. more  

Schar School of Policy and Government

Who Gets Remembered? The Fight To Put Women’s History On The National Mall 

Ms. 

7/29/26 – Bonnie Stabile, Associate Professor; Director, Gender and Policy Center, Schar School of Policy and Government, is the author of this piece. more 

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