Nobel laureate James Heckman *71 has found that nurse-family partnerships, in which nurses train low-income mothers to care for their babies, led to cognitive benefits for the children, especially boys. — NPR
 
Charlie Stillitano ’81, the chairman of Relevant Sports, “might be the most powerful, most well-connected soccer power broker you’ve never heard of,” according to a recent profile. — The New York Times
 
Brad Baron ’11 will be starring in Last Ditch Playlist, a play he wrote that features a series of non-chronological vignettes, shuffled like songs in a playlist. It premieres Aug. 17 at the Theaterlab in New York City. — Broadway World
 
Hammer thrower and national record-holder Julia Ratcliffe ’17 will be one of 12 athletes representing New Zealand at the IAAF World Championships in London Aug. 4-13. — New Zealand Herald
 
University of California, San Francisco professor Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo ’87 has been named the chair of the UCSF Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the inaugural vice dean for population health and health equity. — UCSF School of Medicine

“I said in my thesis, this is a virtually a direct quote: ‘Mutual funds can make no claim to superiority over the market averages.’ That’s the harbinger of the index fund.”

Vanguard founder John C. Bogle ’51, explaining how his senior thesis helped to lay the foundation for one of today’s most popular investment categories. Listen to more on Freakonomics Radio

Economist Diane Schanzenbach *02 will become director of Northwestern University’s Institute for Policy Research, which studies questions related to poverty, race, inequality, education reform, and social disparities in health care. — Northwestern Now

MIT physics professor Krishna Rajagopal *93 has been named the dean for digital learning, where he will “lead efforts to empower MIT faculty to use digital technologies to augment and transform how they teach.” — MIT News

In a two-part commentary, Purdue University professor Louis René Beres *71 argues that “Higher Law,” or the reason and will of God, supports the impeachment of President Donald Trump. — Jurist

Yi Wang *09, founder and CEO of Liulishuo, describes his company’s goal of teaching English to Chinese speakers and his launch of the world’s first “AI English teacher,” which provides a personalized learning experience for his 45 million users. — Asia One
 
Paul Brody ’95 of the consulting firm EY explains why the secure-transaction technology blockchain is set to have a major impact in the manufacturing industry — and may help to facilitate trade in a post-Brexit environment. — The Irish Times

Dr. Bon Ku *09, an emergency medicine clinician at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, has co-founded a laboratory that will allow students to use 3D-printing to create their own prototypes for solutions to various health-care problems. — Machine Design
 
Former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin *85 believes that while people should feel free to disagree with the CBO on its methods, it’s unfair to attack the office’s professionalism, integrity, and mission. — NPR
 
Nathan Myhrvold *83’s company, Intellectual Ventures Laboratory, has invented a device that can detect mosquitoes and zap them out of the air with invisible lasers — but the promising creation is not quite ready for mass consumption. — New York Magazine
 
Geerat Vermeij ’68, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of California, Davis, was presented with the Fellows Medal, the highest honor bestowed by the California Academy of Sciences. — UC Davis

Ann Rodriguez ’99, who previously served as vice president of business operations at Atlanta United FC, will join the WNBA as the senior vice president for league operations. — WNBA

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