Eliot Shearer used advances in DNA sequencing to develop a single test to screen for all known deafness-causing genes, making diagnostic testing more cost-effective. Shearer is the 2013 Montgomery Dissertation Prize winner in biomedical and health sciences.

A new study by a University of Iowa researcher has found that the tone of a governor’s state of the state address has an immediate impact on the stock prices of firms based in that state, and in those firms' later investment behavior.

A nationally recognized expert panel on which a University of Iowa physician and researcher serves as co-chairman is releasing new guidelines for the management of high blood pressure that would raise the threshold for what is considered dangerous levels for people age 60 and older and could reduce the number of drugs some patients may have to take.

New guidelines, developed by a national committee co-chaired by the UI's Paul James, suggest that people over 60 can have a higher blood pressure than previously recommended before starting treatment to lower it.

Two University of Iowa faculty members, Matthew Nonnenmann and Dan Shane, have been awarded 2014 College of Public Health New Faculty Research Awards. Their research projects will investigate flu transmission and use of emergency departments.

University of Iowa alumna Melissa Moreton's research documents an exhaustive list of manuscripts produced by Italian Renaissance nuns, finding that the women were surprisingly connected to the humanist revival of the arts and scholarship of the time. Moreton is the 2013 Spriestersbach Prize winner in the humanities and fine arts.

The UI Graduate College is looking into setting up a career services office to help graduate students better understand job opportunities beyond academia.

The UI law school is reducing tuition and launching programs that will help students obtain degrees quicker and offer a broader range of course options: “We constantly are looking at what we are offering and teaching and what we could do different or better,” says Dean Gail Agrawal.

The University of Iowa College of Public Health has established a new Executive Master of Health Administration (EMHA) degree program. The program is designed to provide working professionals with advanced knowledge and skills to lead multifaceted health care organizations, emphasizing interprofessional teams.

New in 2014—a completely overhauled gateway to the University of Iowa on the web. Expect to see a more modern, functional, and flexible home page with the start of the spring semester, a new site that introduces the UI, but also offers handy resources for students, faculty, staff, and other regular users.

Daniel Collier has discovered a feedback mechanism in cells that affects blood pressure. He has gone on to define the molecular interactions that can be used to control the problem. Collier is the 2013 Spriestersbach Prize winner in the biological and life sciences who earned his doctorate from the UI.

UI professors Deborah Linebarger and Kembrew McLeod comment on children's "magical thinking" and "rich fantasy life" as it relates to belief in Santa.