You Can Quote Me
Discussing the failure of the cargo ship Dali’s navigation system, which led to the Baltimore Key Bridge collapse:
“There doesn’t appear to be anything that the port administration could have done to prevent this. This appears to be a failure of the navigation system after the vessel left the port.”
—Doug Hales, URI professor of supply chain management
Associated Press
On drug decriminalization:
“A public health approach is to decriminalize possession and use of substances and to avoid a punitive approach, because it hasn’t worked. The drug war has failed, and we need other approaches.”
—Jeffrey Bratberg, URI clinical professor of pharmacy
USA Today
On the importance of greater self-awareness as it relates to online incel communities and their connection to mass violence:
“It’s important to be kind to people. We’re all human. We all experience grievances. The fact that we experience them is not an abnormal thing, but we have control over how we respond.”
—Miriam Lindner, assistant teaching professor of psychology
The Public’s Radio
On finding PFAS in “old” water 3,000 feet deep that hasn’t been in contact with the atmosphere for 50 to 100 years:
“Typically, we expect this water to be free of man-made industrial compounds. Except that in this case, there has to be an additional pathway for the PFAS to reach those depths, most likely attaching themselves to settling particles.”
—Rainer Lohmann, URI professor of oceanography
The Cool Down
Peachy
Pantone’s 2024 Color of the Year is “spot-on,” says URI marketing professor Lauren Labrecque.
Lauren Labrecque, associate professor of marketing in URI’s College of Business, was tapped by Scientific American to comment on Pantone’s 2024 Color of the Year, Peach Fuzz.
“It’s a color reminiscent of sunrise or a nice summer’s day,” says Labrecque, a marketing researcher specializing in color at the University of Rhode Island. While she isn’t always a fan of Pantone’s choices—such as 2021’s pair of gray and yellow—she loves this year’s “soft, warm, fuzzy” selection.
“This one in particular I thought was spot-on,” Labrecque says, adding that after years of conflicts, crises, and economic struggles, there’s a yearning in the air for something soothing and warm. This year’s softly bright shade, she says, “sort of captures the zeitgeist: moving forward, hoping to focus more on positivity and warmth.”
After Pantone’s annual announcement, designers and marketers across industries such as fashion and web design will often incorporate the color into their products. Though it’s hard to disentangle whether Pantone is setting the trend or responding to ones already in motion, Labrecque says it’s likely a bit of both.
Labrecque’s research interests include sensory marketing (with a focus on color) and digital marketing (including digital empowerment, consumer privacy, social media engagement, and parasocial interactions).
PHOTOS: COURTESY PANTONE PR MEDIA; WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
News Ticker
RECORD INTEREST
Interest in URI soared this year, as the University received a record 26,800 first-year undergraduate applications for the fall 2024 semester.
PUBLIC HEALTH
The College of Health Sciences is introducing a new Department of Public Health to help train the next generation of health-care policymakers and public health professionals.
PEW FELLOWSHIP
The Pew Charitable Trusts awarded URI professor of environmental and natural resource economics Emi Uchida a $150,000, three-year fellowship to study effective mangrove and seagrass conservation in Indonesia.
CALENDAR DOG
Retired URI Police Sgt. Erica Vieira and her partner, K-9 Officer Figaro, were featured in the 2024 Vested Interest in K9s calendar. Proceeds fund protective equipment and services for law enforcement K-9s nationwide.
RHODYTHON
URI’s annual dance marathon raised $52,249 to benefit patients at Hasbro Children’s Hospital. Since 2017, the student-run event has raised close to $700,000 to benefit Hasbro and the Children’s Miracle Network.