Stories by Paul Caine

Researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine have found an apparent link between vitamin D deficiency and the likelihood of getting COVID-19. Paleontologist Neil Shubin has details on that story and more.

Maryam Saleh, an entrepreneur and Chicago-based computational neuroscientist, tells us about her new role leading the Ed Kaplan Family Institute for Innovation and Tech Entrepreneurship at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

After a come-from-way-behind victory against Detroit, the Bears now face the New York Giants in the home opener on Sunday. Former Bears player James “Big Cat” Williams has this preview.

“State and municipal budgets across the nation and here in Illinois are being decimated,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday. “It’s not a blue state problem or a red state problem.”

In an age when false information can be disseminated to millions with a single tweet or Facebook post, combatting that misinformation is all the more important. What election officials are doing to dispel misleading myths.

Will new EPA regulations allow a Wisconsin power plant to dump more toxic metals into Lake Michigan? Chicago Tribune reporter Michael Hawthorne explains.

We speak with Protect Our Parks founder and president Herb Caplan about the latest in the legal battle over the $500 million project planned for Chicago’s South Side.

Quantum technology is expected to transform our world, and Chicago appears to be at the center of this quantum acceleration, thanks to funding from the Department of Energy to establish two quantum research centers locally.

The president’s wife and children present the case for their dad’s reelection. Republican state lawmakers share their thoughts about the Republican National Convention so far.

The leader of the Chicago Republican Party said Monday that he is expecting to hear a strong “law and order” message from this week’s National Republican Convention combined with a hopeful economic vision for the future.

Former President Barack Obama launched a blistering attack on his successor at Wednesday night’s Democratic National Convention. Obama’s speechwriter talks about that speech and the challenge of writing for a virtual convention.

A political convention unlike any other is underway as Democratic leaders step up their fight against President Donald Trump and his attacks on mail-in voting. We discuss that and more with U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.

Illinois U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis says Chicago may have to call the National Guard back to the city if it is unable to prevent further looting. Davis and U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, join us in conversation.

As cities and states across the nation struggle to get control of COVID-19, members of Congress butt heads over another stimulus package. Illinois U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos weighs in on those topics and more. 

The Secret Service agent who took a bullet to protect President Ronald Reagan has spent the last 26 years as chief of police in Orland Park. We speak with Tim McCarthy ahead of his Aug. 1 retirement.

With Illinois reporting more than 1,000 new cases of COVID-19 for the sixth consecutive day, the state’s top public health official says the question of a reopening rollback will be answered by residents.

We journey to the sun’s surface and explore more from the world of science with University of Chicago paleontologist Neil Shubin.

A record 121,000 Chicagoans have sent in applications to vote by mail in the November election. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump claims without evidence the 2020 election will be “the most rigged.”

President Donald Trump is pressuring schools to fully reopen in the fall. But as many teachers, parents and even some students are expressing fears over returning to school, cases of COVID-19 are rising across the country.

He is optimistic about the development of vaccines and treatments to slow the spread of COVID-19 but describes the national response to the virus as a “disgrace.” We speak with Dr. Robert Murphy of Northwestern University.

Illinois is on track to move into phase four of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s reopening plan on Friday, but the state faces a huge challenge in reviving its pandemic-stricken economy and putting people back to work.

Scientists at Argonne National Laboratory have created the most detailed simulation that exists to model the spread of COVID-19 in Chicago — and what it shows is sobering.

A new study from Northwestern University highlights the growing wealth gap between black and white families. 

On Friday, all salons and barbershops in the state — except those in Chicago — will be allowed to reopen as part of phase three of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s reopening plan. What will the new salon experience be like?

Black Chicagoans are almost six times more likely to die from the new coronavirus than white residents, according to state and city health officials. We talk about the city’s ongoing health disparities with the Rev. Marshall Hatch of New Mount Pilgrim Church.

General Iron Industries believes that two explosions at its scrap metal-shredding facility that shook Lincoln Park on Monday were connected to a new piece of pollution control equipment installed last year.