The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "University of Iowa" ...
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The Siren Song of Alcohol
Iowa City, home to the University of Iowa, is facing a staggering upward trend of alcohol-related injury. Ambulance calls taking place at night and early morning hours are consuming and straining city emergency medical response resources. Binge drinking, drunk driving, and blacking out have all on the rise over the last five years.
Tags: drunk; drinking; alcohol; Iowa City; University of Iowa; binge; ambulance; injury; blackout; driving; intoxication; strain; resources; emergency; violence; deaths;
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"E-scam nation still thriving"
An e-mail scam promising University of Iowa students several hundred dollars a week for online employment invaded the inboxes of more than 21,000 student in January 2009. Xin Feng, a recipient of the e-mail, purposefully accepted the fraudulent offer to learn more about the scam and trace its source.
Tags: scam; spam; e-mail; university of iowa; e-scam; internet; fraud; online
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University of Iowa Sexual Assault Investigation
The Press-Citizen takes a look at how the University of Iowa handled an alleged sexual assault by football players at one of the university's residence halls. Access to information of the case details were withheld by the university from the publication.
Tags: rape; athletic department; Hawkeye; Kirk Ferentz; athletes; open records request; UI;
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Danger Zone
The Gazette investigation found that nearly half the fatal accidents on Interstate 80 in Iowa from 1994-2001 involved semi-trailer trucks. No other interstate in Iowa had a rate that high. Traffic counts are growing on a 60-70 mile stretch of I-80 in Eastern Iowa, where many of the semi-trailer trucks are concentrated. Despite the growth in traffic, state officials have no plans to improve safety by widening the highway because traffic counts are just shy of the threshold for widening the road.
Tags: fatal accidents; Interstate 80; semi-trailer trucks; traffic accidents; Fatality Analysis Reporting System; stopping distance; Iowa Department of Transportation; Iowa Office of Driver Services; Iowa Office of Motor Vehicle Enforcement; Iowa Office of Design; University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute; Cedar County; Iowa State Patrol; FARS
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Science Casts Doubt on FBI Bullet Evidence
This story investigated the validity of a forensics technique, comparative lead bullet analysis, that has been used by the FBI crime laboratory since the late 1960's. FBI scientists determine the trace metal profile of a lead slug and then compare bullet profiles. They found there was not a solid scientific backing for this technique and that new research indicates that the conclusions the FBI examiners drew about relationships between were, at best, unwarranted. There was never evidence to conclude that the fact that two bullets share similar trace element profiles means they are in some way connected, and there is now evidence against that conclusion. This is important because the technique is commonly used in murder cases where traditional ballistics cannot be used and, often where there is little evidence.
Tags: forensics; FBI; crime lab; lead bullet analysis; FBI scientists; lead slug; FBI examiners; American Chemical Society; National Academy of Sciences; bullet lead; fingerprint analysis; Iowa State University; National Research Council; Middlesex County Superior Court; crime scene; FBI testimony; National Research Council; rifling-mark analysis
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Betrayal of Trust?
The Chronicle of Higher Education examines the reasons for the "perception, held by some, that American colleges and universities are hooked on securing money at any cost." The story focuses on a controversial act of Iowa State University, which violated a deceased widow's wishes by selling instead of maintaining 240 acres of land received under the widow's will. The article also looks at the misspending of millions of dollars left to the University of Florida foundation by a wealthy supporter, and reveals "wide-spread abuses by fund raisers for California State University at Fullerton."
Tags: universities; higher education; fund-raising; gifts; foundations; public interest; scholarships; finance; money; wills
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Ethics & Orphans: the Monster Study
In 1939, speech pathologist Wendell Johnson and a graduate student conducted an experiment on a group of orphans near the University of Iowa. Their theory: "Stuttering begins in the ear of the listener, not in the mouth of the child." To test the hypothesis, the researchers conducted a psychological experiment on children starved for attention. Those who stuttered improved with positive speech therapy, but the children who had no trouble speaking were given negative therapy and became chronic stutterers for life. The research was never published and was known at the University as "The Monster Study" for the harm it did to the parentless children.
Tags: stutter; ethics; morality; science; institutional review; orphans; unethical study; human experiments; pathology; Iowa State Board of Control; children; control groups
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No title (id: 4633)
Des Moines Register finds that many buildings on the University of Iowa and Iowa State University campuses are in such serious violation of state fire codes that they should not be occupied, April 19, 1987.
Tags: None