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Space Foundation Inducts Microgravity Treadmill and Neurala Brain Into 2026 Space Technology Hall of Fame
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, March 11 -- Space Foundation issued the following news release on March 10, 2026:* * *
Space Foundation Inducts Microgravity Treadmill and Neurala Brain Into 2026 Space Technology Hall of Fame
Space Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1983 to advance the global space community, today announced that two leading-edge technologies developed for space will be inducted into the 2026 Space Technology Hall of Fame(R). The induction ceremony will take place during the annual Space Symposium, April 13-16, 2026, at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.
The 2026 inductees ... Show Full Article COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, March 11 -- Space Foundation issued the following news release on March 10, 2026: * * * Space Foundation Inducts Microgravity Treadmill and Neurala Brain Into 2026 Space Technology Hall of Fame Space Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1983 to advance the global space community, today announced that two leading-edge technologies developed for space will be inducted into the 2026 Space Technology Hall of Fame(R). The induction ceremony will take place during the annual Space Symposium, April 13-16, 2026, at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. The 2026 inducteesare:
* Microgravity Treadmill
* Neurala Brain
Founded in 1988 in partnership with NASA, the Space Technology Hall of Fame recognizes life-changing technologies emerging from global space programs; honors the scientists, engineers and innovators responsible for them; and communicates the importance of these innovations as a return on investment in space exploration.
Commenting on the newest inductees, Space Foundation CEO Heather Pringle said, "The induction of Microgravity Treadmill and Neurala Brain into the Space Technology Hall of Fame reflects the power of space innovation to drive meaningful progress on Earth. These breakthroughs began as solutions for astronauts and autonomous exploration, and today, they are improving lives worldwide. This is exactly what the Hall of Fame represents -- bold ideas from the space community delivering lasting global impact."
2026 Space Technology Hall of Fame Inductees
Microgravity Treadmill
* Individuals: Robert Whalen, Sean Whalen, Tom Allen, Fritz Moore
* Organizations: Boost Treadmills, AlterG, NASA Ames Research Center
Differential air pressure microgravity treadmill technology was developed at NASA Ames Research Center to help astronauts prevent bone loss and muscle atrophy during long space missions. Traditional exercise systems relied on harnesses and elastic cords, which often altered gait, limited exercise intensity and caused discomfort. Dr. Robert Whalen discovered that controlled air pressure around the lower body could simulate gravitational loading. This method applied smooth, evenly distributed vertical forces near the body's center of mass while preserving natural walking and running mechanics. Early prototypes in the late 1980s and early 1990s confirmed the concept's effectiveness, though spaceflight testing was limited by program constraints.
The technology later proved valuable on Earth. By reversing the system, users could partially unweight the lower body, reducing joint stress while maintaining natural movement patterns. Sean Whalen played a central role in the early engineering development and commercialization of the technology through AlterG. He later founded Boost Treadmills with Tom Allen to continue advancing microgravity-based rehabilitation technology and expand the next generation of these systems. Building on his father's foundational research, Sean led engineering and product development that brought the system into clinical and performance environments. Dr. Robert Whalen remains closely involved with Boost, contributing engineering expertise and helping solve technical challenges as the technology continues to evolve.
Fritz Moore, a NASA Ames-affiliated research physiologist and co-founder of AlterG, contributed expertise in exercise physiology and research design. He led studies demonstrating the safety and efficacy of differential air pressure treadmills, helping support regulatory pathways and clinical adoption as the technology entered rehabilitation settings.
The father-son Whalen duo continues to mature the Microgravity Treadmill technology, focusing on improving accessibility, usability, and scalability so weight-supported locomotion can be used more broadly across rehabilitation, performance, and long-term mobility applications.
Today, differential air pressure treadmills support orthopedic and neurological rehabilitation, post-surgical recovery, athletic training, gait analysis, and long-term mobility, enabling clinicians and trainers to use safe, repeatable weight-supported locomotion to support recovery and mobility preservation.
Neurala Brain
* Individuals: Dr. Massimiliano Versace, Dr. Anatoli Gorchet, Dr. Heather Ames, Dr. Mark Motter
* Organizations: Neurala, Inc., NASA Langley Research Center
In collaboration with NASA and Boston University's Neuromorphics Lab, Neurala developed a brain-inspired artificial intelligence technology enabling autonomous, continuous learning on edge devices. The resulting system, the Neurala Brain, allows machines to learn online without cloud connectivity or large datasets. The Neurala Brain has been commercialized across multiple products and is the cornerstone of the VIA software for visual industrial quality control. The work was led by cofounders Dr. Massimiliano Versace, Dr. Anatoli Gorchet, and Dr. Heather Ames, leaders in artificial intelligence and brain-inspired computing.
NASA's Langley Research Center recognized the technology's relevance to autonomous exploration systems. Dr. Mark Motter, an engineer at Langley, identified its potential and served as technical representative for Neurala's Small Business Technology Transfer awards. Phase I demonstrated unsupervised terrain learning in simulation. Phase II transferred trained models to physical robotic platforms, validating real-world performance. NASA support, including enhancement funding, helped move the technology from academic research to commercial readiness.
Neurala retained intellectual property ownership while transitioning the system into commercial products. The technology expanded into robotics, smartphones and industrial inspection. Today, Neurala's AI operates entirely on-device and has been deployed in approximately 80 million systems worldwide.
To view all Space Technology Hall of Fame inducted technologies, please visit www.spacefoundation.org/inducted-technologies/.
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About Space Technology Hall of Fame
Space Technology Hall of Fame, launched in 1988 by Space Foundation in partnership with NASA, honors individuals, organizations and companies that adapt technologies originally developed for space to improve the quality of life on Earth, as well as inspire future space innovators. Honorees are nominated by the space community and global space agency technology transfer offices, reviewed and selected by a space and technology expert panel, and inducted into the Space Technology Hall of Fame at Space Symposium. Visit Space Technology Hall of Fame to nominate a technology at www.spacetechhalloffame.org.
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About Space Foundation
Space Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1983 as a gateway to advance the global space community. Space Foundation uniquely educates, collaborates and informs the entire space workforce, from early education through post-secondary (college, non-college, vocational), to the start of their careers as new professionals, and ultimately as leaders at the highest levels of government and commercial industry. As a charitable organization, Space Foundation receives support from corporate members, sponsors, individual giving, and grants. Visit Space Foundation at www.SpaceFoundation.org, and follow us on Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.
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Original text here: https://www.spacefoundation.org/2026/03/10/space-foundation-inducts-microgravity-treadmill-and-neurala-brain-into-2026-space-technology-hall-of-fame/
Reason Foundation Issues Commentary: Second-look Laws Allow Courts to Reconsider Long Prison Sentences
LOS ANGELES, California, March 11 -- The Reason Foundation issued the following commentary by senior policy fellow Hanna Liebman Dershowitz:* * *
Second-look laws allow courts to reconsider long prison sentences
Second-look laws offer a needed way to bring our justice system into alignment with both values and practical constraints.
*
Since the late 1970s, the United States has been locking up more and more people in prisons for longer periods of time. In fact, according to the National Research Council, increased sentence length accounts for half of prison growth between 1980 and 2010. More ... Show Full Article LOS ANGELES, California, March 11 -- The Reason Foundation issued the following commentary by senior policy fellow Hanna Liebman Dershowitz: * * * Second-look laws allow courts to reconsider long prison sentences Second-look laws offer a needed way to bring our justice system into alignment with both values and practical constraints. * Since the late 1970s, the United States has been locking up more and more people in prisons for longer periods of time. In fact, according to the National Research Council, increased sentence length accounts for half of prison growth between 1980 and 2010. Morethan half of the people in prison are serving a sentence of a decade or longer, and one in seven are serving a life sentence.
But some long sentences, looked at years later in retrospect, don't match with modern sentencing practices (think decades-old drug law prisoners) or otherwise don't serve justice. Policymakers have turned to the concept of second-look laws to let judges review these old cases.
The growing body of second-look laws provides a judge-controlled review mechanism to safely reduce these kinds of old, lengthy sentences that may be out of step with current law, current sentencing strategies, or the interests of justice. The laws provide that individuals who have been incarcerated for a certain number of years--often 10, though versions of the legislation vary--receive a hearing in front of a judge (usually one who was not the sentencing judge) in which the judge considers any new evidence of good behavior and rehabilitation, changes in law, conditions of confinement as to that individual, or other factors that can convince the judge to resentence the person to a lower term.
Over the last several decades, sentences have exploded in length across the United States, fueled largely by drug sentences and the tough-on-crime politics of the '80s and '90s. Nearly one in five people in U.S. prisons--more than 260,000 people--had already served at least 10 years as of 2019. This is an increase from 133,000 people in 2000--which represented 10% of the prison population in that year.
By 2024, almost 200,000 people were serving life or virtual life sentences. According to the Council on Criminal Justice, long sentences (more than 10 years) in the states (based on data from 23 states) consist mostly of people convicted of a violent offense (56%), which include murders, sexual assaults, robberies, and other assaults; but it also includes 18% who were convicted for drug possession, distribution, and trafficking. Another 11% were sentenced to more than 10 years for "public order offenses" (defined to include firearms violations, habitual driving under the influence, nonviolent sex offenses such as prostitution, and disorderly conduct). This breakdown has remained stable since at least 2019, according to the study. Given that about 1% of the population commits 63% of all violent crimes, according to the National Library of Medicine, there must be a significant pool of people whose long-term incarceration is unnecessary for public safety.
But even as long sentences have left our prisons swollen with elderly and sick people and converted them into de facto mental health institutions, a large body of research has concluded that long sentences for many people make no sense at all and are actually costly and counterproductive.
First, long sentences are limited in achieving deterrence, one of the four goals of punishment, along with retribution, incapacitation (keeping dangerous people from the public for safety), and rehabilitation. While sentence length may have some deterrence effect, increasing already-long sentences produces diminishing returns. Evidence shows that, on the margin, deterrence is mostly a function of the certainty of punishment, not its severity. In other words, a typical thief is thinking less about whether he will be imprisoned for one year or three years, but more about whether he will get caught at all.
Second, lengthy sentences often exceed what is necessary to achieve the goal of incapacitation, considering that most people who commit crimes don't persist in a criminal "career" for more than a few years. Evidence shows most people "age out" of crime, with criminal activity beginning to trail off after a peak at age 21. Though long-term incarceration may be justified for individuals who pose serious risks, housing many other elderly and infirm individuals who have already served long periods is a wasted expense. In 2013, the federal Bureau of Prisons spent about one in five dollars on housing and caring for prisoners over 50, and this population has grown since then as a proportion of all prisoners. All told, since 1990, the share of the imprisoned population over age 50 has quintupled to 15%.
On top of the data on age and likelihood of reoffense, there is growing evidence that the experience of being incarcerated itself, especially under poor and crowded conditions, is physically and mentally hazardous, even for the people who work in these settings. These harms compound over time and are worse for older people. Second look laws explicitly allow judges to take these facts into account when reviewing sentences. For example, during the pandemic, courts considered the likelihood of severe illness from COVID infection--greater in elderly people--when evaluating compassionate release motions. Under a second look law in a state, a judge could consider contemporary conditions in the facility of confinement when evaluating the appropriateness of a sentence reduction.
Second-look laws are already being used by 15 states, the District of Columbia, and the federal government. Many of the states (six) focus second-look policies on youth, in keeping with the history, as the first adopters of these laws were juvenile systems. The focus on young people grew out of the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Graham v. Florida (2010) and Miller v. Alabama(2012), which ruled mandatory juvenile life without parole penalties unconstitutional for non-homicide crimes, and then all crimes.
Maryland's newly minted second-look law is no exception. As Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has explained, Maryland's Second Look Act builds on the state's Juvenile Restoration Act of 2021, which banned life without parole for juveniles and provided people serving life without parole who had been sentenced as juveniles the opportunity to file a motion to review and reduce that sentence.
California, Illinois, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington have each adopted resentencing programs that allow a prosecutor (and only a prosecutor) to initiate a petition for resentencing under their second-look statutes. These prosecutor-initiated programs are likely to miss many cases worth review because prosecutors are generally wary of questioning their prior cases. These statutes can be a healthy component of any state's laws, because they allow second look reviews recognized as meritorious by the prosecution to be handled efficiently, but they don't reach enough cases to successfully reduce unnecessary incarceration.
Other states, including California, Colorado, Oklahoma, and New York, allow judges to consider resentencing for specific groups of individuals who are military veterans (California), those sentenced under habitual offender laws (Colorado), and domestic violence survivors, respectively. The federal system allows resentencing under a provision often referred to as "compassionate release," with a variety of qualifying factors, and D.C.'s compassionate release statute is based on age, in keeping with data showing the short spans of criminal careers.
When crafting legislation in this area, policy choices center around the time of eligibility, retroactivity, inclusion of mandatory/plea-bargained sentences, the interval people must wait before subsequent review after a denial, and whether the state will pay for attorneys for petitioners seeking to earn a reduced sentence.
New York, West Virginia, Vermont, and New Jersey are among the states considering new or expanded second look statutes this session.
A model bill from the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers allows a petition before the original sentencing judge, if available, after people have served 10 years; and then, if denied, after a successive two-year interval. The bill confers a right to counsel if the petitioner cannot afford one, and also provides that if the prosecutor agrees to the motion, the court "shall" grant the petition. The bill also provides a rebuttable presumption of approval for petitioners over 50 years of age.
Second-look laws offer a needed way to bring our justice system into alignment with both values and practical constraints. These second-look policies recognize that people change, laws evolve, and justice requires responsiveness as well as resolve. A sentence handed down decades ago should not be immune from review when it no longer serves any legitimate purpose but is costing the taxpayers greatly. By giving judges the authority to reassess sentences in light of time, growth, and changed circumstances, second-look provisions help restore balance and rationality to punishment--advancing public safety and fairness alike.
* * *
Hanna Liebman Dershowitz is a senior policy fellow at Reason Foundation.
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Original text here: https://reason.org/commentary/second-look-laws-allow-courts-to-reconsider-long-prison-sentences/
J. Paul Getty Trust: Current and Upcoming Exhibitions
LOS ANGELES, California, March 11 -- The J. Paul Getty Trust issued the following news release:* * *
Current and Upcoming Exhibitions
For journalists, a frequently updated list with press contacts for current and upcoming exhibitions at the Getty Center and Getty Villa Museum
*
Getty offers changing exhibitions at both locations year-round, complemented by a wide range of public programs.
Editors please note--Information is subject to change. Images and press materials for exhibitions will be linked here as they become available, or may be requested via the press contacts listed for each ... Show Full Article LOS ANGELES, California, March 11 -- The J. Paul Getty Trust issued the following news release: * * * Current and Upcoming Exhibitions For journalists, a frequently updated list with press contacts for current and upcoming exhibitions at the Getty Center and Getty Villa Museum * Getty offers changing exhibitions at both locations year-round, complemented by a wide range of public programs. Editors please note--Information is subject to change. Images and press materials for exhibitions will be linked here as they become available, or may be requested via the press contacts listed for eachexhibition below.
For more press materials, please see For Journalists. For highlights of exhibitions and events, see What's On and subscribe to our e-newsletters.
Current Exhibitions
Sculpted Portraits from Ancient Egypt
January 24, 2024-January 25, 2027
Getty Villa
Egypt's 26th Dynasty (664-526 BCE) was a period of revival and renewal. It marks the last great phase of native pharaonic rule in ancient Egypt and is notable for its exceptional artworks, particularly stone sculpture. The achievements of Egyptian artists of this period are vividly expressed in the sculpted portraits of officials associated with the court and priesthood, which were created to be displayed in tombs and temples.
The works in this exhibition are on special loan from the British Museum, London.
Media Contact
Shannon Iriarte
(310) 440-7303
siriarte@getty.edu
* * *
Charles Ross: Spectrum 14
September 10, 2024 - September 13, 2026
Getty Center
Spectrum 14 is a calibrated array of prisms that cast a dazzling display of luminous color across the Museum's rotunda. Bands of spectral light traverse the space in relation to the sun, which follows a slightly different arc through the sky every day. Over time, Ross's work changes in response to Earth's rotational orbit, connecting us to the premodern experience of astronomical observation and calculation that defined cycles of days, seasons, and rituals.
This project was commissioned for PST ART as part of the exhibition Lumen: The Art & Science of Light. This is the second "Rotunda Commission," a series of art installations inspired by the Getty Museum's collection, architecture, and site.
Media Contact
Cole Calhoun
(310) 440-7186
ccalhoun@getty.edu
* * *
How to Be a Guerrilla Girl
November 18, 2025-April 12,2026
Getty Center
How to Be a Guerrilla Girl presents the inner workings of the anonymous feminist art collective alongside a new commission at the Getty Research Institute. Drawing on the Guerrilla Girls' archive, the exhibition explores the steps the group took to create their eye-catching and humorous public interventions. The exhibition places the Guerrilla Girls' well-known posters in the broader context of their data research, protest actions, culture jamming, and distribution methods. Coinciding with the Guerrilla Girls' 40th anniversary, the exhibition tells the story of their collaborative process and longstanding commitment to call for equity for women and artists of color in the art world.
Media Contact
Valerie Tate
(310) 440-6861
vtate@getty.edu
* * *
Beginnings: The Story of the Creation in the Middle Ages
January 27-April 19, 2026
Getty Center
Creation stories imagine the world's origins, often leading to a shared cultural vision of identity and values. For medieval Christians, the Biblical story of the seven days of Creation was essential to understanding the natural and spiritual realms, as well as humanity's role in bridging the two. This exhibition features manuscripts from Getty's collection alongside select contemporary paintings by LA-based artist Harmonia Rosales to explore how the Creation was visualized, represented, and interpreted both in the Middle Ages and today.
Media Contacts
Sidney Kantono
(310) 440-6613
skantono@getty.edu
* * *
Photography and the Black Arts Movement, 1955-1985
February 24-June 14, 2026
Getty Center
Amid the turbulent decades of the mid-20th century, African American and Afro-Atlantic diaspora artists sought to celebrate a distinctly Black culture and advance the struggle for civil rights. Photographic images contributed in myriad ways to the lively exchange of pan-African ideas that propelled the Black Arts Movement. See how an incredible range of artists and activists--from studio and street photographers to graphic designers and community organizers--used photography as a tool for social change.
The exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington.
Media Contact
Valerie Tate
(310) 440-6861
vtate@getty.edu
* * *
Virtue and Vice: Allegory in European Drawing
March 3-June 7, 2026
Getty Center
This rotation from Getty's collection explores how European artists from the 16th to 19th centuries made drawings to criticize bad behavior as well as praise virtuous deeds. Drawings of proper and improper conduct range from straightforward examples (charity, lust, and greed) to complex allegories (virtue, decadence, and friendship). Whether warning against sinful ways or celebrating how one should behave, drawings visualized moral codes, political ideologies, and social norms.
Media Contacts
Sidney Kantono
(310) 440-6613
skantono@getty.edu
* * *
The Egyptian Book of the Dead
March 4-November 30, 2026
Getty Villa
Among their rigorous preparations for eternity, ancient Egyptians developed an intricate set of religious writings to help the deceased achieve a blessed afterlife in union with the solar god Re and the netherworld god Osiris. Known collectively as the Book of the Dead, these ritual spells were inscribed on funerary objects. This exhibition, previously shown in 2023, features Getty's Book of the Dead manuscripts, illuminating how ancient Egyptians understood the cosmos, the world of the gods, and the nature of existence.
Media Contact
Shannon Iriarte
(310) 440-7303
siriarte@getty.edu
* * *
Upcoming Exhibitions
Lost. Found. Returned.
Jun 23, 2026-Oct 18, 2026
Getty Center
In 1894 the Kupferstich-Kabinett in Dresden acquired a drawing by Otto Greiner (1869-1916), a leading German artist associated with the Symbolist movement. How did that drawing, which the museum marked as "lost" after World War II, end up at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles? This exhibition narrates the drawing's journey, focusing on its shifting wartime status, the tools that researchers use to track down missing artworks, and the impending return of Greiner's drawing back to Dresden.
Media Contact
Valerie Tate
(310) 440-6861
vtate@getty.edu
* * *
Stendahl's World: Marketing Ancient Mexico and Modern Art in Los Angeles
Jun 23, 2026-Oct 18, 2026
Getty Center
Around 1940, after decades of selling landscapes and Modern paintings, Earl Stendahl turned to Mexican antiquities, transforming the market for pre-Hispanic art in Los Angeles and beyond. Stendahl Art Galleries promoted the ancient artifacts of Mexico as commodities for both museum and private collections, launching exhibitions across the United States and Europe and building on Hollywood connections for product placement in advertising campaigns. Meanwhile, archaeological sites in Mexico suffered irreparable depredations.
Media Contact
Valerie Tate
(310) 440-6861
vtate@getty.edu
* * *
Odilon Redon: Otherworldly Visions
July 14-October 18, 2026
Getty Center
Odilon Redon (1840-1916) is known for his enigmatic art that celebrated the beauty of nature and mined the dreamlike depths of the imagination. Featuring an exceptional group of charcoal drawings, lithographs, and pastels from Getty's collection, this exhibition presents the French artist's fantastical world of haunting darkness and luminous color. Discover Redon's singular vision and his diverse sources of inspiration, from religion and mythology to literature and modern science.
Media Contact
Sidney Kantono
(310) 440-6613
skantono@getty.edu
* * *
The Making of a Medieval Book
August 4, 2026-May 2, 2027
Getty Center
Books were written, decorated, and bound entirely by hand during the pre-modern era in Europe. This exhibition explores the four stages of making medieval books, from preparing animal skin to make parchment, to the methods and materials used for the subsequent phases of writing, painting, and binding. A selection of manuscripts from the Museum's collection elucidates these steps and the techniques used.
Media Contact
Sidney Kantono
(310) 440-6613
skantono@getty.edu
* * *
Instante/revelacion: Moments in Mexican Photography
September 1, 2026-January 3, 2027
Getty Center
Exploring the rich tapestry of cultural and artistic dialogues that have shaped Mexico's photographic history, this exhibition features works by 13 prominent photographers, including Lola Alvarez Bravo, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Hector Garcia, Graciela Iturbide, and Pablo Ortiz Monasterio, alongside key related publications. The photographs, donated by Daniel Greenberg and Susan Steinhauser to the Getty Museum over the past 25 years, record the instantes y revelaciones (instants and revelations) of a remarkable century of Mexican creativity.
Media Contact
Valerie Tate
(310) 440-6861
vtate@getty.edu
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"Every minute is history": Five Views of Los Angeles
September 1, 2026-January 3, 2027
Getty Center
Discover the work of five photographers whose distinct approaches to the medium helped expand traditional representations of Chicano/a communities in Los Angeles during the second half of the 20th century. Drawing from a wide range of influences, including social documentary practices, staged scenes, fashion and the popular press, these artists--Laura Aguilar, Reynaldo Rivera, George Rodriguez, Patssi Valdez, and Ricardo Valverde--pushed the medium in new and often provocative directions.
Media Contact
Valerie Tate
(310) 440-6861
vtate@getty.edu
* * *
The Holy Family at Home
September 22, 2026-January 10, 2027
Getty Center
Northern European artists around 1500 adopted a fresh view of the Holy Family, portraying the Virgin Mary, Christ Child, and a devoted St. Joseph as a loving trio in a domestic interior. This exhibition celebrates the treatment of this theme in Getty's recently acquired painting by Gerard David, while showcasing illuminated manuscripts and panel paintings of the period that shaped and reflected his approach. Together, these works highlight the late medieval view of the tender human relationships at the heart of the Christian story.
Media Contacts
Cole Calhoun
(310) 440-7168
ccalhoun@getty.edu
Sidney Kantono
(310) 440-6613
skantono@getty.edu
* * *
Reggie Burrows Hodges: A Theater of Passions
October 20, 2026 - February 28, 2027
Getty Center
A deep admirer of historic European painting, Los Angeles-born artist Reggie Burrows Hodges created a new series of paintings inspired by the art of father-and-daughter painters Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi in the Getty's collection. Building on the formal and thematic aspects of the 17th-century Italian works while incorporating his own artistic vision, Hodges explores and highlights the underlying components of violence, drama, and theatricality embedded in their biblical and mythological narratives.
Media Contact
Cole Calhoun
(310) 440-7186
ccalhoun@getty.edu
* * *
A Light in the Dark: Joseph Wright of Derby
November 24, 2026-March 14, 2027
Getty Center
The British painter Joseph Wright of Derby is celebrated for his astonishing ability to capture the magic of light piercing the dark. In 1760s London he exhibited a series of remarkable pictures that catapulted the provincial artist to national fame. This exhibition reunites several of these works--including the Getty's recently rediscovered Two Boys with a Bladder--and explores the technical innovations and artistic ambitions behind some of the most enthralling paintings of the 18th century.
Media Contact
Cole Calhoun
(310) 440-7186
ccalhoun@getty.edu
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Original text here: https://www.getty.edu/news/exhibitions-look-ahead-press/
Foundation for Economic Education Issues Commentary: Life of Frederic Bastiat
DETROIT, Michigan, March 11 -- The Foundation for Economic Education issued the following commentary on March 10, 2026, by President Emeritus Lawrence W. Reed:* * *
The Life of Frederic Bastiat
France's great classical liberal.
*
Two hundred and fifty years ago this month, the Scottish philosopher and economist Adam Smith's monumental work, An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, was published. Its lasting impact means that it belongs on any list of the 100 most influential books ever written.
Great teachers produce great students. Smith produced too many to count, ... Show Full Article DETROIT, Michigan, March 11 -- The Foundation for Economic Education issued the following commentary on March 10, 2026, by President Emeritus Lawrence W. Reed: * * * The Life of Frederic Bastiat France's great classical liberal. * Two hundred and fifty years ago this month, the Scottish philosopher and economist Adam Smith's monumental work, An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, was published. Its lasting impact means that it belongs on any list of the 100 most influential books ever written. Great teachers produce great students. Smith produced too many to count,but one in particular stands out as extraordinary for his eloquence, his storytelling, and his passion for freedom and free markets. That would be Frederic Bastiat, best known for his last of many books, The Law. It is in that mesmerizing little volume, readable in an evening, that he declared: "No legal plunder! This is the principle of justice, peace, order, stability, harmony, and logic. Until the day of my death, I shall proclaim this principle with all the force of my lungs!"
It was also in The Law that Bastiat enunciated this vital concept: "Life, liberty, and property do not exist because men have made laws. On the contrary, it was the fact that life, liberty, and property existed beforehand that caused men to make laws in the first place."
At the Foundation for Economic Education, we possess a special affinity for Frederic Bastiat. When his work was largely forgotten in France and unknown in America, it was FEE staffer Dean Russell who dusted him off, translated his books, and introduced him to an English-speaking audience a full century after his death in 1850. In addition to The Law and Dean Russell's biography of him (see sources, below), FEE also published Bastiat's Economic Sophisms and Economic Harmonies.
Bastiat never sat in any of Adam Smith's classrooms. He was born in Bayonne, France, on June 30, 1801, more than a decade after Smith passed away. Bastiat was a student of Smith in the intellectual sense. He identified the Scot as one of the three main influences over his own thinking, along with the French economist Jean-Baptiste Say, the school of Enlightenment thinkers known as the Physiocrats, and the French liberal Charles Dunoyer.
Say is remembered primarily for "Say's Law" (often explained as "supply creates its own demand"). When Bastiat founded a newspaper, Le Libre-Echange (Free Trade) in 1846, he printed a version of Say's Law on the masthead of every edition. The Physiocrats, though they erred in over-emphasizing agriculture, were early proponents of the natural law and market forces that Smith synthesized into his concept of "the invisible hand."
Bastiat's father died when the youngster was only seven. His mother passed away two years later. At the age of nine, he went to live with his paternal grandfather. The family's history of success in the export and banking businesses meant that young Frederic could enroll in good schools, where he learned to speak Spanish, Italian, and English.
When he was 26 (in 1827), he stumbled across a copy of Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanack, which he regarded as "a real treasure" because of Franklin's use of humor and brevity to illuminate serious principles.
Bastiat's later writings bear a strong resemblance to Franklin's style. Good examples are The Candlemakers' Petition, That Which Is Seen and That Which Is Not Seen, The Parable of the Broken Window, and his use of Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe character to illustrate an important economic principle.
When Bastiat's grandfather died in 1825, the young man inherited the family estate. For the next twenty years, he lived as a gentleman farmer and part-time scholar. Increasingly over that period, he relied on others to manage the property so that he would have time to pursue his scholarly passions. By the time of the Revolution of 1830, which dethroned Charles X and introduced a constitutional monarchy under Louis Philippe, Bastiat was a principled advocate for laissez-faire--a name often bestowed upon the philosophy of limited government, private property, and individual rights. He was disappointed when the Revolution fell short of producing a truly liberal order along laissez-faire lines.
He tasted public life for the first time when, in 1831, he was elected a justice of the peace in the town of Mugron, in the southwest of France. No doubt he learned some machinations of the law as a kind of insider, and many discussions with friends honed his talents as a debater. It was his ongoing study of political economy, however, that more fully equipped him for the burst of activity that would define the remarkable final years of his short life.
Bastiat's first published article appeared in April 1834. The subject was tariffs, which he regarded as taxes on economic progress that benefited the protected at everyone else's expense. He challenged a group of manufacturers who had called for selective (and self-serving) reductions in tariffs by appealing to principled consistency:
You demand that all protection be abolished on primary materials, such as agricultural products, but that protection must be continued for manufactured articles. I do not defend the protection you attack, but attack the protection you defend. You demand privilege for a few; I demand liberty for all.
Meanwhile, across the English Channel, growing sentiments for tariff reduction were coalescing into a powerful, grassroots movement. In 1839, Richard Cobden and John Bright co-founded the Anti-Corn Law League and turned it into the most effective lobby in Britain since the anti-slavery organizations of Thomas Clarkson and William Wilberforce. Just seven years later, the League triumphed when Parliament repealed Britain's onerous taxes on the importation of grain. Bastiat, by then a personal friend of Cobden's, was inspired to create a French counterpart, the Free Trade Association, to accomplish a similar objective for France. He moved in 1846 to Paris, where he burst onto the political scene as ready as anybody ever was to fight for economic liberty.
What was Bastiat like as a person? In his biography of the Frenchman, Dean Russell offered these observations from a Bastiat contemporary, Louis Reybaud:
He was a typical example of the provincial scholar, simple in his manner and plain in his attire. But under that country costume and good-natured attitude, there was a natural dignity of deportment and flashes of a keen intelligence, and one quickly discovered an honest heart and a generous soul. His eyes, especially, were lighted up with singular brightness and fire. His emaciated features and flushed complexion betrayed already the presence of the disease [tuberculosis] that was destined to kill him in a few years. His voice was hollow and in marked contrast to the vivacity of his ideas and the quickness of his gestures... He never thought of how many days he had to live, but of how he might employ them well.
Revolution came to France once again, in February 1848, two years after Bastiat had moved to Paris. Sadly, this one produced a new regime hostile to free trade. Forced by this turn of events to set his free trade organization aside, Bastiat turned his attention to a new threat gaining ground: socialism. It was, in many ways, the same fight but against a foe more evil than tariffs. Protectionism involved the use of government force to inhibit trade; socialism proposed the use of government force to inhibit almost everything.
After a brief campaign, Bastiat was elected in April 1848 as a deputy to the National Assembly. He would serve in that capacity until his death from tuberculosis on Christmas Eve, 1850. In that last year of his life, he managed to publish the work for which he remains best known, the one that even today transforms the thinking of many first-time readers, The Law.
As a legislator, Bastiat argued furiously against robbing Peter to pay Paul, the erection of barriers to productive enterprise, and the spendthrift habits of his vote-buying colleagues. He won over a few and lost most of his battles but never compromised his honor or his principles. To his last breath, he mustered great eloquence to assault the arrogance of socialism and to defend the virtues of liberty. Here is one of my favorite Bastiat quotes to that effect:
If the natural tendencies of mankind are so bad that it is not safe to permit people to be free, how is it that the tendencies of these organizers are always good? Do not the legislators and their appointed agents also belong to the human race? Or do they believe that they themselves are made of a finer clay than the rest of mankind?
In late 1850, Bastiat's doctors sent him to Italy for treatment of his advanced illness. On his deathbed, he summoned friends to his side and uttered his last words, "Truth, truth." He is buried at the church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome. France has never since produced a man or woman more principled or eloquent on behalf of human freedom and good government.
When Bastiat died in 1850, he knew that the prospects for France to slash its trade barriers were remote, at least in the near term. But Cobden carried on in England, and another close friend of Bastiat's in France, Michel Chevalier, who had converted to the free trade cause due to Bastiat's influence, found himself representing Paris at the bargaining table with Cobden on the other side. Together, they negotiated the Cobden-Chevalier Treaty of 1860, the first modern free trade agreement. It ended the two countries' tariffs on the main items of their trade, from French wine and silk to English coal and iron. Both men cited their friend Frederic Bastiat as a key inspiration.
How should we celebrate the semiquincentennial this month of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations? Reading that great book is certainly one way. But another, one I think Smith himself would approve of, would be to get better acquainted with one of the Scotsman's greatest students, Frederic Bastiat. Toward that end, I provide links below.
Additional Resources
Reflecting on Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations by Lawrence W. Reed
Adam Smith: Ideas Change the World by Lawrence W. Reed
Frederic Bastiat Deserves a Posthumous Nobel by Lawrence W. Reed
How To Create Like a Bastiat by Dan Sanchez
Advice for Presidential Candidates from Frederic Bastiat by Lawrence W. Reed
Disasters Should Remind Us of Bastiat's Wisdom by Lawrence W. Reed
Richard Cobden: The Humble Farm Boy Who Made Britain Great by Lawrence W. Reed
The Case Against Protectionism by Lawrence W. Reed
The Log Tax is Hurting Both Canadians and Americans by Lawrence W. Reed
It's More Important to BE American Than to BUY American by Lawrence W. Reed
Bastiat's Life by Sheldon Richman
Why Bastiat is as Relevant as Ever by Mark Perry
Walter Williams on Bastiat by Walter Williams
How to See the Unseen Through the Broken Window Parable by Jonathan Newman
Bastiat for the Ages by Jeff Riggenbach
Why Bastiat Deserves to be in the Pantheon of Great Economic Theorists by Donald J. Boudreaux
Frederic Bastiat: Ideas and Influence by Dean Russell
Frederic Bastiat: A Man Alone by George C. Roche
Frederic Bastiat: Ingenious Champion of Liberty and Peace by Jim Powell
The Law by Frederic Bastiat
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Lawrence W. ("Larry") Reed is FEE's President Emeritus, Humphreys Family Senior Fellow, and Ron Manners Global Ambassador for Liberty. He previously served as president of FEE from 2008-2019. He chaired FEE's board of trustees in the 1990s and has been both writing and speaking for FEE since the late 1970s.
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Original text here: https://fee.org/articles/the-life-of-frederic-bastiat/
FGA Applauds Introduction of the American Dream Accounts Act
NAPLES, Florida, March 11 -- The Foundation for Government Accountability posted the following news release on March 10, 2026:* * *
FGA Applauds Introduction of the American Dream Accounts Act
Senator Rick Scott's legislation will help millions of hardworking Americans achieve their American Dream of homeownership and extend our national identity of opportunity far into the future.
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Today, the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) praised Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) for introducing the American Dream Accounts Act. This bill would allow Americans to set aside funds for down payments ... Show Full Article NAPLES, Florida, March 11 -- The Foundation for Government Accountability posted the following news release on March 10, 2026: * * * FGA Applauds Introduction of the American Dream Accounts Act Senator Rick Scott's legislation will help millions of hardworking Americans achieve their American Dream of homeownership and extend our national identity of opportunity far into the future. * Today, the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) praised Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) for introducing the American Dream Accounts Act. This bill would allow Americans to set aside funds for down paymentson their first home in a tax-advantaged savings account.
"President Trump and congressional Republicans are working tirelessly to reverse the Biden-era affordability crisis and restore Americans' ability to build wealth and achieve financial security," said Tarren Bragdon, President and CEO of the Foundation for Government Accountability. "Owning a home is a fundamental part of the American Dream, yet millions are being priced out of homeownership. The American Dream Accounts Act helps reverse that disturbing trend by giving families better tools to save, invest, lay down roots, and build for the future.""We're grateful to Senator Scott for championing policies that expand opportunity and restore the promise of the American Dream," added Bragdon.
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The Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) is a non-profit think tank that promotes public policy solutions in all 50 states to create opportunities for every American to experience the American Dream. To learn more, visit TheFGA.org.
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Original text here: https://thefga.org/press/fga-applauds-introduction-of-the-american-dream-accounts-act/
FFRF Calls on Rep. Ogles to Resign Over Christian Nationalist Attack on Muslims
MADISON, Wisconsin, March 11 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:* * *
FFRF calls on Rep. Ogles to resign over Christian nationalist attack on Muslims
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is calling on Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., to resign following several anti-Muslim statements that are incompatible with the Constitution he has sworn to uphold.
In a letter sent to Ogles, FFRF condemns his March 9 social media post declaring that "Muslims don't belong in American society" and that "pluralism is a lie." FFRF Legal Counsel Christopher Line says such remarks ... Show Full Article MADISON, Wisconsin, March 11 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release: * * * FFRF calls on Rep. Ogles to resign over Christian nationalist attack on Muslims The Freedom From Religion Foundation is calling on Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., to resign following several anti-Muslim statements that are incompatible with the Constitution he has sworn to uphold. In a letter sent to Ogles, FFRF condemns his March 9 social media post declaring that "Muslims don't belong in American society" and that "pluralism is a lie." FFRF Legal Counsel Christopher Line says such remarksare "profoundly bigoted, fundamentally un-American, and incompatible with the oath" of a member of Congress."
"By asserting that Muslims do not belong in American society and dismissing pluralism itself, Rep. Ogles is repudiating the very constitutional framework he is sworn to defend," Line writes in the letter. "If you cannot accept the basic constitutional principle that Americans of all religions -- including Muslims -- and no religion belong fully and equally in this nation, then you cannot faithfully discharge the duties of your office."
FFRF notes that Ogles' March 9 post is part of a broader pattern of rhetoric targeting Muslims. Ogles has recently said he plans to introduce legislation banning immigration from certain Muslim-majority countries. Over the same weekend as his March 9 statement, he also posted that "diversity is our weakness" and called for the deportation of Muslim Americans, including naturalized citizens.
"These statements go far beyond political disagreement and amount to open hostility toward Americans based solely on their religion," FFRF's letter states.
Ogles is a member of the recently formed "Sharia Free America Caucus," a group House Republicans launched in December 2025 that claims Islamic law poses a threat to the United States. The caucus has promoted sweeping and tendentious claims. Ogles himself has previously declared that "Islam is conquering Europe" and has warned against what he calls "radical Islam."
Constitutional experts and lawmakers have pointed out that such claims reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of American law and religious liberty.
At a recent House subcommittee hearing on so-called "Sharia law threats," Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., noted that the U.S. Constitution already prohibits any religious legal system from replacing secular law. The First Amendment's Establishment Clause prevents the government from imposing any religious doctrine -- whether Islamic, Christian, Jewish or otherwise -- while its Free Exercise Clause protects individuals' right to practice their religion without discrimination.
"We live in a country so great that we don't need anti-Sharia legislation," Raskin said. "Our Constitution already forbids theocratic imposition of any kind."
Raskin emphasized that efforts targeting Muslims specifically are themselves unconstitutional, pointing to U.S. Supreme Court precedent holding that laws singling out particular religions violate the Free Exercise Clause. The Constitution also explicitly prohibits religious tests for public office.
"The government cannot endorse Muslim law, Jewish law, Christian law, Methodist law, Baptist law -- none of it," Raskin said. "The First Amendment already takes care of it."
FFRF emphasizes that the Sharia Free America Caucus' rhetoric, echoed in Ogles' statements, fuels religious fearmongering while ignoring the Constitution's clear protections.
"You singled out an entire religious group -- including millions of Muslim Americans who are citizens of this country -- and declared that they do not belong in their own society," Line writes. "That sentiment stands in direct conflict with the First Amendment."
Muslim Americans, FFRF notes, serve in the U.S. military, work as teachers, physicians and first responders and contribute to every aspect of American life.
"Suggesting members of a religious minority do not belong in their own country is not merely offensive; it is an attack on the constitutional principle that all Americans enjoy equal standing under the law," the letter states.
FFRF also stresses that the Establishment Clause was designed to prevent the sectarian conflict and persecution that arise when governments align themselves with particular religions.
"America's strength lies in its secular Constitution," Line writes. "True religious freedom requires that government remain neutral toward religion and free from religious domination."
Because Ogles' statements reject these basic constitutional commitments, FFRF concludes that he is unfit to serve in Congress.
"Members of Congress take an oath not to a religion, ideology, or political movement, but to the Constitution of the United States," the letter states. "If you cannot accept the basic constitutional principle that Americans of all religions -- including Muslims -- and no religion belong fully and equally in this nation, then you cannot faithfully discharge the duties of your office."
For that reason, Ogles should resign.
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The Freedom From Religion Foundation (www.ffrf.org) is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With about 42,000 members and chapters nationwide, including hundreds of members and a chapter in Tennessee, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/uncategorized/ffrf-calls-on-rep-ogles-to-resign-over-christian-nationalist-attack-on-muslims/
[Category: Religion]
AAFA's 2026 Allergy Capitals Report Highlights Climate and Health Emergency
ARLINGTON, Virginia, March 11 -- The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America issued the following news release on March 10, 2026:* * *
AAFA's 2026 Allergy Capitals Report Highlights Climate and Health Emergency
Extreme weather and warming temperatures fueled by climate change make pollen seasons longer, more intense, worsening seasonal pollen allergies for millions
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Washington D.C., March 10, 2026 -- The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) today released its annual Allergy Capitals report ranking the most challenging cities in the U.S. to live with seasonal pollen allergies. ... Show Full Article ARLINGTON, Virginia, March 11 -- The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America issued the following news release on March 10, 2026: * * * AAFA's 2026 Allergy Capitals Report Highlights Climate and Health Emergency Extreme weather and warming temperatures fueled by climate change make pollen seasons longer, more intense, worsening seasonal pollen allergies for millions * Washington D.C., March 10, 2026 -- The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) today released its annual Allergy Capitals report ranking the most challenging cities in the U.S. to live with seasonal pollen allergies.More than 106 million people in the U.S. experience various types of allergies each year, including many with pollen allergies.
This year, Boise, Idaho, claimed the top spot due to higher-than-average pollen levels and relatively low availability of allergy specialists. Boise moved into the top spot due to tree pollen peaking earlier and lasting longer as well as a significant increase in the number of days with "high" or "very high" grass pollen. The effects of climate change helped drive Boise's climb to the top of the rankings.
"Allergies disrupt sleep, undermine concentration, keep children home from school, and keep adults from work. We are experiencing a widening health threat fueled by climate change," said Kenneth Mendez, President and CEO of AAFA. "Millions of people in the U.S. live with seasonal pollen allergies, and extreme weather events driven by climate change contribute to the conditions that lead to higher pollen levels and longer allergy seasons. This report is a call to action for policymakers: We need climate solutions, and we need them now."
The report's data paints a devastating picture of the current climate reality. Extreme weather events - including atmospheric rivers, warmer temperatures, and drought - are becoming more common. These events help create the conditions for longer, more intense pollen seasons, meaning many people in the U.S. experience nearly year-round exposure to some type of pollen.
AAFA's Allergy Capitals ranking scores the top 100 most populated city areas in the contiguous United States based on annual pollen counts, over-the-counter allergy medicine use, and number of allergists. The full report can be found at allergycapitals.org
The top 20 Allergy Capitals(R) for 2026 (out of 100 cities ranked) are:
1. Boise, ID
2. San Diego, CA
3. Tulsa, OK
4. Provo, UT
5. Rochester, NY
6. Wichita, KS
7. Raleigh, NC
8. Ogden, UT
9. Spokane, WA
10. Greenville, SC
11. San Francisco, CA
12. Minneapolis, MN
13. Salt Lake City, UT
14. Richmond, VA
15. Colorado Springs, CO
16. Little Rock, AR
17. Toledo, OH
18. New Orleans, LA
19. Winston-Salem, NC
20. Lakeland, FL
The impact of longer, more intense pollen seasons goes beyond simply more sneezing. Pollen is a common trigger of allergic asthma, allergic rhinitis, allergic conjunctivitis, atopic dermatitis, nasal polyps, and eosinophilic esophagitis.
"Long and potent pollen seasons make managing allergies and asthma more challenging, leading to increased health care costs and missed days of school and work," said AAFA Chief Mission Officer Melanie Carver. "At the individual level, allergy management strategies will help reduce symptoms. But long-term and wide-scale solutions require policymakers at all levels of government to adopt strategies to address the climate and health crisis."
AAFA's Allergy Capitals report includes both strategies for allergy management and recommendations for policymakers.
"Monitoring pollen counts is a key strategy in managing pollen allergy," said Kris Klein, CEO of Pollen Sense. "When you are aware of pollen levels, you can make an informed decision about time spent outdoors. Pollen Sense is proud to work with AAFA in support of this annual report. As extreme weather events bring high pollen counts to more parts of the country, it is critical that communities understand the impact of pollen. This report provides both tools for understanding pollen allergies and actionable insight to promote policy change."
The 2026 Allergy Capitals report is an independent research project of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America and made possible by support from Opella, makers of Allegra(R).
Resources:
* 2026 Allergy Capitals(R) report: allergycapitals.org
* Allergy facts and stats: aafa.org/allergyfacts
* Pollen allergy: aafa.org/pollen
* Allergy medicine guide: aafa.org/allergymeds
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About the Research
The 2026 Allergy Capitals(R) research and ranking is reported by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA). The ranking is based on analysis of data from the 100 most-populated Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the contiguous 48 states as determined by the most recent U.S. Census Bureau population estimates (2024). The individual factors analyzed for the 2026 rankings are pollen scores for tree, grass, and weed pollen, over-the-counter medication use (allergy), and number of allergy specialists.
For each factor, AAFA used the most recently available 12-month data. Weights are applied to each factor; factors are not weighted equally. Total scores are calculated as a composite of all four factors, and cities are ranked from highest total score (city rank #1) to lowest total score (city rank #100). [Text omitted. It can be viewed in the link at bottom.]
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About AAFA
Founded in 1953, AAFA is the oldest and largest non-profit patient organization dedicated to saving lives and improving the quality of life for people affected by asthma and allergic diseases through support, advocacy, education, and research. AAFA offers extensive support for individuals and families affected by asthma and allergic diseases, such as food allergies and atopic dermatitis (eczema). Through its online patient support communities, network of regional chapters, and collaborations with community-based groups, AAFA empowers patients and their families by providing practical, evidence-based information and community programs and services. AAFA is the only asthma and allergy patient advocacy group that is certified to meet the standards of excellence set by the National Health Council. For more information, visit: aafa.org
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Original text here: https://aafa.org/aafas-2026-allergy-capitals-report-highlights-climate-and-health-emergency/