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Robert Speel

Associate Professor of Political Science, Erie campus, Pennsylvania State University

Dr. Speel earned his Ph.D. from Cornell University and his B.A. from The University of Pennsylvania. His teaching and research interests include most aspects of American politics, including elections and voting behavior, state and urban politics, Congress and the Presidency, and public policy, as well as ethnic and racial politics and Canadian politics.

Penn State University Press published his book, Changing Patterns of Voting in the Northern United States, about the creation of the regional divide of Red States and Blue States in the United States.

He currently continues to research the development of regional movements and regional voting behavior in the United States and often speaks with media sources and to community groups about political campaigns and issues.

Dr. Speel is the recipient of 2008/09 Council of Fellows Excellence in Outreach Award and the 2006 George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Measuring a president's first 100 days goes back to the New Deal

Apr 29, 2021 15:34 pm UTC| Politics

During Joe Bidens first 100 days in office as president, he has signed 11 bills into law. One was the prominent American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, intended to provide broad economic relief and increase distribution of...

US under Trump Series

Trump and the history of the 'First 100 Days'

Apr 20, 2017 02:26 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

The federal government is currently being funded by a continuing resolution that expires on April 28, 2017 which also happens to be the 99th day of Donald Trumps presidency. If Congress fails to approve a new spending...

US Election Series

Three common arguments for preserving the Electoral College – and why they're wrong

Nov 15, 2016 10:52 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

In November 2000, newly elected New York Senator Hillary Clinton promised that when she took office in 2001, she would introduce a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College, the 18th-century,...

Economy

What should you do if you can’t pay your rent or mortgage?

The cost of living crisis is making it difficult for many people to pay their bills, including housing costs. Private sector rents have increased by an average 9% over the year to February 2024, and rising interest rates...

Reducing energy demand and improving efficiency will help prevent the next gas crisis

Gas prices have relaxed, Europe has come out of the winter with record gas storage levels and a surfeit of liquefied natural gas is set to reach the shores of Europe over the coming years. Many commentators are hopeful...

Minimum wage for South African farm workers: study shows 2013 hike helped reduce poverty even though compliance was poor

Minimum wage policies are typically aimed at reducing poverty. Yet there is little direct evidence of this effect, especially in developing countries. And none for South Africa. In a recent paper, we consider the...

Gas is good until 2050 and beyond, under Albanese gas strategy

The Albanese government is talking up the crucial role of gas as a transition fuel through to 2050 and beyond. In a gas strategy to be released on Thursday, the government envisages the fuels uses would change over...

South Africa’s plan to move away from coal: 8 steps to make it succeed

The South African governments Just Energy Transition Implementation Plan was launched in November 2023. It is a roadmap guiding the country away from reliance on coal-fired power towards renewable energy alternatives by...

Politics

Donald Trump Allegedly Offers Oil Execs a Deal to Scrap EV Incentives for $1B Donation

Former President Donald Trump reportedly proposed a $1 billion deal to oil executives, offering to end electric vehicle (EV) subsidies in return for campaign funding, according to The Washington Post. This move underscores...

US Supreme Court upended decades of precedent in 2022 by allowing voters to vote with gerrymandered maps instead of fixing the congressional districts first

For the 2022 midterm elections, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Alabama to use congressional districts that violated the law and diluted the voting power of Black citizens. A 5-4 vote by the Supreme Court in February...

Germany lowers voting age to 16 for the European elections

Ahead of the European parliament elections in June, Germany has lowered the age limit on participation to 16. This makes it the largest of just a handful of states in the EU to allow people under the age of 18 to vote....

South Africa will be president of the G20 in 2025: two much-needed reforms it should drive

South Africa will play an important international role in 2025 as president of the G20. The G20 is a group of 19 countries as well as the African Union and the European Union. Between them they represent 85% of global...

What early 2024 polls are revealing about voters of color and the GOP

By the end of winter 2024, the return of Donald Trump to the top of the GOP presidential ticket has revealed a surprising trend in the former presidents base of support: his increasing popularity among Black and Latino...

Science

Is dark matter’s main rival theory dead? There’s bad news from the Cassini spacecraft and other recent tests

One of the biggest mysteries in astrophysics today is that the forces in galaxies do not seem to add up. Galaxies rotate much faster than predicted by applying Newtons law of gravity to their visible matter, despite those...

Why are algorithms called algorithms? A brief history of the Persian polymath you’ve likely never heard of

Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without...

IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects

About a trillion tiny particles called neutrinos pass through you every second. Created during the Big Bang, these relic neutrinos exist throughout the entire universe, but they cant harm you. In fact, only one of them is...

The Mars Sample Return mission has a shaky future, and NASA is calling on private companies for backup

A critical NASA mission in the search for life beyond Earth, Mars Sample Return, is in trouble. Its budget has ballooned from US$5 billion to over $11 billion, and the sample return date may slip from the end of this...

Dark matter: our new experiment aims to turn the ghostly substance into actual light

A ghost is haunting our universe. This has been known in astronomy and cosmology for decades. Observations suggest that about 85% of all the matter in the universe is mysterious and invisible. These two qualities are...

Technology

OpenAI Founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman Defend After Safety Researchers Quit

OpenAI founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman are defending their safety measures after top researchers Ilya Sutskever and Jan Leike resigned, highlighting internal disagreements on AI priorities. Key OpenAI Safety...

Analyst Predicts Ethereum ETF to Trigger Major ETH Market Moves Soon

Cryptocurrency analyst Michael van de Poppe forecasts that the upcoming Ethereum ETF announcement will cause significant market moves, despite a recent decline in trading volume. Ethereums ETF Announcement Expected to...

Venezuela Acts Tough on Crypto Mining Amid Energy Squeeze, Disconnects Bitcoin Farms

Venezuelas Ministry of Electric Power is disconnecting cryptocurrency mining farms from the national grid to manage energy demand and ensure a stable power supply. This measure follows the recent seizure of 2,000 Bitcoin...

AI 'Godfather' Warns of Job Displacement, Advocates for Universal Basic Income

Renowned AI godfather Geoffrey Hinton warns of significant job losses due to AI, urging governments to adopt universal basic income as a countermeasure. Hinton Advocates for Universal Basic Income According to...

Shiba Inu: Top Analyst Identifies Coin as 'Potential Gold Mine'; Price Analysis Suggests 35% Upside

Top analyst Davie Satoshi sees Shiba Inu (SHIB) as a potential gold mine; price analysis predicts a 35% upside. Key Pattern in SHIBs Price Chart The Shiba Inu (SHIB) memecoin has caught the eye of many analysts....