Long-term study of elephant seal reproduction shows population’s resilience

Researchers found that a female elephant seal’s age and experience were more important than ocean conditions in determining the condition of her pup at weaning.

New book shares lessons from history on the case for Senate reform

In his new book, Professor of Politics Daniel Wirls uses historical research and modern-day analysis to argue that features of the Senate undermine effective democratic governance and have contributed to the maintenance of white supremacy.

‘Manatee Man' Jamal Galves wins scholarship to study coastal science and policy

Biologist Roxanne Beltran wins prestigious Packard Fellowship

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation has awarded a Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering to Roxanne Beltran, assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz.

Astrophysicists explain the origin of unusually heavy neutron star binaries

Simulations of supernova explosions of massive stars paired with neutron stars can explain puzzling results from gravitational wave observatories.

Scientists assemble a biological clock in a test tube to study how it works

The reconstituted biological clock maintains daily cycles for days on end, allowing researchers to study the interactions of its component parts.

Mellon Foundation award to support UC Santa Cruz’s ‘Visualizing Abolition’ initiative

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded a $1,977,000 grant to support 'Visualizing Abolition,' the nation’s most ambitious and sustained art and prison abolition initiative.

Graduate student studying New Orleans' Latin American connections

Rafael Delgadillo, a UC Santa Cruz doctoral student in Latin American and Latino Studies, is looking at how New Orleans' colonial foundations set a tone for its distinctiveness within the United States.

Environmental governance expert Sikina Jinnah appointed to Harvard University’s SCoPEx advisory committee

Jinnah was appointed to an independent advisory committee that will make governance recommendations for a proposed experiment intended build understanding of the potential efficacy and risks of stratospheric aerosols relevant to solar geoengineering.

Postdoctoral scholars critical in advancing research mission

With experience, training, and ideas of their own, postdoctoral scholars play an important role in furthering research at universities.

Felicity Schaeffer named Baskin Foundation Presidential Chair for Feminist Studies

Felicity Amaya Schaeffer, the new Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation Presidential Chair for Feminist Studies, plans to address the most pressing issues of the department’s focus on social justice.

Manel Camps appointed faculty director of UCSC Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development

UCSC has appointed Manel Camps, professor of microbiology and environmental toxicology and provost of Crown College, to serve as the director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development.

The writing on the wall: exploring the cultural value of graffiti and street art

Doctoral candidate’s research interprets graffiti’s deeper meaning among Latinx and Black urban subcultures in Los Angeles.

Karen Tei Yamashita to receive 2021 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters

UC Santa Cruz emerita professor of literature Karen Tei Yamashita will be awarded the 2021 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters from The National Book Foundation, presenter of the National Book Awards.

UC Santa Cruz course tutorial wins national online learning award

Three UC Santa Cruz staff members have been honored for creating an online instruction tutorial last year after the campus shut down and suspended in-person teaching because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Astronomers create the first 3D-printed stellar nurseries

Researchers can now hold stellar nurseries in their hands thanks to 3D printing, revealing features often obscured in traditional renderings and animations.

UCSC signs $3M state contract to deliver a public health data platform for pathogen genomics

The one-year, $3 million contract with the California Department of Public Health will galvanize pandemic-related genomic data analysis efforts for the public good.

When humans disturb marine mammals, it’s hard to know the long-term impact

Scientists are developing new tools to determine when short-term changes in behavior caused by human activities have biological significance for protected populations.

DOE grant funds development of new imaging technology to study roots and soil

A multidisciplinary collaboration combines expertise in medical imaging technology and the ecology of plant roots to address questions with global implications.

Nearby star-forming region yields clues to the formation of our solar system

The Ophiuchus star-forming complex offers an analog for the formation of the solar system, including the sources of elements found in primitive meteorites.

Study takes unprecedented peek into life of 17,000-year-old mammoth

An international research team has retraced the astonishing lifetime journey of an Arctic woolly mammoth that roamed the Alaska landscape 17,000 years ago.

Five-year NIH grant supports collaborative research into rejuvenating the aging brain

Scientists at UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, and Stanford are working together to discover and treat the causes behind age-associated cognitive decline.

Salt marsh resilience compromised by crabs along tidal creek edges

A long-term study in Elkhorn Slough revealed the impact of superabundant crabs on salt marsh vegetation and the vulnerability of tidal creek banks to erosion.

NIH grant funds collaborative research on protein-RNA interactions in cancer

Biologist Jeremy Sanford has received major funding from the National Cancer Institute for research on the role of protein-RNA interactions in cancer.

Climate change poses threat to ‘tuna dependent’ Pacific Islands economies

Shifting distributions of key tuna species could have serious economic impacts for island nations in the Western and Central Pacific, according to a new paper coauthored by Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Katherine Seto.

Dickens Universe celebrates 40th anniversary with ‘A Christmas Carol’

This summer, the Dickens Project at UC Santa Cruz—the largest multi-campus consortium on Victorian studies in the world—will present the 40th year of the Dickens Universe, a week of intense study and festivities.

Racial and colonial histories offer insights on refugee crisis in ‘The Black Mediterranean’

Assistant Professor of Sociology and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies Camilla Hawthorne coedited a first-of-its-kind new book called "The Black Mediterranean," which examines the African diaspora within the region.

Susana Ruiz awarded ACLS digital grant to develop VR documentary of 2011 Egyptian Uprising

UC Santa Cruz assistant film and digital media professor Susana Ruiz has received a 2021 Digital Extension Grant of $150,000 from The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) for her project, Arab Data Bodies: Social Media in Mixed Reality.

History professor wins prize for article on post-Civil War incarceration of African American children

Associate professor of history Catherine Jones has been honored with the 2021 Richards Prize for the best article published in The Journal of the Civil War Era in 2020. The journal explores how knowledge of the Civil War era informs our understanding of 21st-century politics and society.

Haziness of exoplanet atmospheres depends on properties of aerosol particles

A laboratory study of haze particles produced under different conditions helps explain why some exoplanets may be obscured by hazy atmospheres.

$2 million grant revamps Chemical Screening Center

A new NIH grant will facilitate more efficient and accessible biomedical research.

Model reveals interactions between rivers and fault lines

Researchers created a model that uses the movement at fault lines to understand river flow and vice versa.

Library’s new Community Archiving Program to broaden scope of Regional History Project

The University Library has announced the establishment of a new Community Archiving Program that will build on the foundation of its decades-old Regional History Project. 

Unusual currents explain mysterious red crab strandings

New findings suggest that abnormal ocean currents cause the occasional appearance of pelagic red crabs outside their native range.

Jonathan Fortney garners Simons Investigator in Astrophysics award

The $500,000 award from the Simons Foundation will support Fortney’s research on planetary atmospheres.

Martian south polar cap composition focus of new study

A team of scientists have determined that Mars’ south polar ice sheet may be made of clays, metal-bearing minerals, or saline ice.

Cosmic dawn occurred 250 to 350 million years after Big Bang

Cosmic dawn, when stars formed for the first time, occurred 250 million to 350 million years after the beginning of the universe, according to a new study.

Tracking data show how the quiet of pandemic-era lockdowns allowed pumas to venture closer to urban areas

During regional shelter-in-place orders, declining levels of human mobility emboldened local pumas to use habitats they would normally avoid out of fear of humans.

Nathaniel Deutsch’s ‘A Fortress in Brooklyn’ reveals provocative counter-history of American Jewry

A new book by UC Santa Cruz history professor Nathaniel Deutsch details how a group of determined Holocaust survivors survived in one of the roughest parts of New York City—reshaping the urban landscape of postwar Brooklyn.

New study shows how loss of drought-sensitive species could affect health of California grasslands

At a grassland site near San Jose, scientists studied experimental research plots to determine what might happen if the plants that ecologists expect to be hit hardest by drought actually disappeared.

Hydrologist Margaret Zimmer wins NSF CAREER Award

Margaret Zimmer, assistant professor of Earth and planetary sciences, has received an award from the National Science Foundation to support her research on the role of Earth’s subsurface in regulating the water cycle.

Doctoral student wins Ford Foundation fellowship for work on gender, race, and policing

Uriel Serrano recently won a Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship to support his research on how gender ideologies are formed in relation to carceral violence.

Research partnership will highlight STEM learning in local community garden

A grant from the Spencer Foundation will help UC Santa Cruz researchers document the many types of STEM learning taking place in a Latinx immigrant-led community garden in Watsonville.

Axions could be the fossil of the universe researchers have been waiting for

A new study suggests finding the hypothetical particles known as axions could mean finding out for the first time what happened in the universe a second after the Big Bang.

Snowflake morays can feed on land, swallow prey without water

While most fish need water to feed, the unique anatomy of moray eels gives snowflake morays the ability to grab and swallow prey on land.

Dead zones formed repeatedly in North Pacific during warm climates, study finds

Over the past 1.2 million years, marine life was repeatedly extinguished in low-oxygen ‘dead zones’ in the North Pacific Ocean during warm interglacial climates.

Somalia’s fight for God-given rights

The latest book from Politics and Legal Studies Professor Mark Fathi Massoud challenges Western notions of Islam and secular law-making by revealing how Somali Muslims have embraced Sharia as a force for progress and liberation.

Non-hallucinogenic psychedelic analog reverses effects of stress in mouse study

Free of toxic and hallucinogenic side effects, ibogaine-inspired tabernanthalog shows promise as a potential treatment for the detrimental effects of stress on the brain.

Astronomers track down fast radio bursts to galaxies’ spiral arms

Mysterious flashes of radio energy that disappear in the blink of an eye originate from young, massive galaxies.

Survival of migrating juvenile salmon depends on stream flow thresholds

New understanding of relationship between stream flows and salmon survival provides a critical tool for balancing water needs in the highly managed Sacramento River.

UC Santa Cruz names Celine Parreñas Shimizu new dean of Arts Division

UC Santa Cruz has appointed award-winning filmmaker and film scholar Celine Parreñas Shimizu as dean of the Arts Division, effective July 1.

Missing the middle: the importance of regional-scale field research

Regional-scale research networks such as the UC Natural Reserve System are ideal for documenting the impact of climate change on plants and animals.

Ancient horse DNA reveals gene flow between Eurasian and North American horses

New findings show connections between the ancient horse populations in North America, where horses evolved, and Eurasia, where they were domesticated.

Climate change sends tropical species racing to higher elevations while temperate counterparts lag behind

A new paper shows that, in mountain habitats, species' responses to rising temperatures vary by latitude, but researchers fear there may be no clear winners among these strategies.

Virtual reality warps your sense of time

Psychology research demonstrates the unique "time compression" effect of virtual reality.

Ultrasensitive antigen test detects SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses

Novel chip-based diagnostic technology can detect individual viral antigens in nasal swab samples to identify the viruses that cause COVID-19 and flu with a single test.

New tools enable rapid analysis of coronavirus sequences and tracking of variants

Developed by the UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute, UShER allows researchers to quickly see how a new viral sequence is related to all other variants of SARS-CoV-2, crucial information for tracking transmission dynamics.

Temperamental supernova appeared strangely cool before exploding

A curiously yellow star has caused astrophysicists to reevaluate the possible pathways that can lead to the explosion of a massive star as a supernova.

Long-term monitoring shows successful restoration of mining-polluted streams

Despite differences in aquatic life and toxic metals in streams across a broad region of the western United States, scientists found common responses to cleanup of acid mine drainage.

Project to read genomes of all 70,000 vertebrate species reports first discoveries

A bold project to read the complete genetic sequences of every known vertebrate species has reached its first milestone, publishing new methods and the first 25 high-quality genomes.

Fellowship win supports doctoral candidate’s research on national security policy

Cesar Estrella, a Ph.D. candidate in Latin American and Latino studies, won an American Council of Learned Societies fellowship to support his study of the ideologies that drive U.S. national security policy.

2021-22 Dickson Emeritus awards support faculty research in history, literature, and psychology

Karen Yamashita, professor emerita of literature; Dana Frank, research professor in history; and Thomas Pettigrew, research professor in psychology, were each awarded Edward A. Dickson Emeritus Professorships in recognition of their outstanding achievements in scholarship and teaching.

Three UCSC professors elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Angela Davis, distinguished professor emerita of history of consciousness and feminist studies; James Estes, professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology; and Barbara Rogoff, distinguished professor of psychology, are among the newly elected fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. 

UC Santa Cruz and United Way partner to empower youth through research in local communities

A research partnership between UC Santa Cruz and United Way of Santa Cruz County will offer local youth and UCSC undergraduates new leadership platforms and support college-readiness and success.

James Webb Space Telescope program aims to map the earliest structures of the universe

COSMOS-Webb is slated to be the largest program in JWST’s first year of operation.

Coral reefs prevent more than $5.3 billion in potential flood damage for U.S. property owners

A new study reveals how valuable coral reefs are in protecting people, structures, and economic activity in the United States from coastal flooding during storms.

Baked meteorites yield clues to planetary atmospheres

The gases released from meteorite samples heated in a high-temperature furnace can tell scientists about the initial composition of the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets.

Two UC Santa Cruz arts professors receive 2021 Guggenheim Fellowships

Film and digital media professor Irene Lusztig and art professor Elizabeth Stephens were among the 184 artists, writers, scholars, and scientists selected this year from nearly 3,000 applicants to receive Guggenheim Fellowships.

Study of U.S. tuna fisheries explores nexus of climate change, sustainable seafood

A new study by researchers at UC Santa Cruz and NOAA examines traditional aspects of seafood sustainability alongside greenhouse gas emissions to better understand the carbon footprint of U.S. tuna fisheries.

UC Santa Cruz to launch new support center to advance the university’s innovation, industry engagement

UC Santa Cruz is launching a new support center to advance innovation, entrepreneurship and business engagement that will leverage the campus’s innovative spirit and be guided by its deep commitment to environmental and social justice.

Postdoctoral fellowships support planetary science research

Emily Martin and Melodie Kao have won 51 Pegasi b Fellowships to support their research on exoplanets.

Teens describe their gender and sexuality in diverse new ways, but some are being left behind

Psychology Professor Phil Hammack’s latest research shows how regional differences and other social factors can either hinder or support expression of diversity in sexual and gender identity among teens and young adults.

Changes in ocean chemistry show how sea level affects global carbon cycle

A new analysis of strontium isotopes reveals how the global carbon cycle has responded to changes in climate and sea level through geologic time.

UC Santa Cruz joins new consortium to ensure future of SlaveVoyages database

UC Santa Cruz has joined a newly formed consortium of institutions to ensure the preservation, stability, and future development of what has become the single most widely used online resource for anyone interested in slavery across the Atlantic world. 

UCSC professor contributes to new study showing how parts of the US will ‘tropicalize’ as climate changes

Environmental Studies Professor Michael Loik is a coauthor on a new paper describing how warming winters are allowing some tropical plants and animals to replace temperate communities in southern portions of the country.

New analysis shows potential for ‘solar canals’ in California

UC Santa Cruz researchers and their partners published a new study that suggests covering California’s water delivery canals with solar panels could be an economically viable means of advancing renewable energy and water conservation.

For migrating elephant seals, ‘lightscapes of fear’ shape feeding, resting strategies

A new tracking study shows how elephant seals balance predator avoidance and the need to feed, shifting strategies as their body condition improves during a 7-month foraging migration.

Low-temperature supercapacitors could power missions to moon and Mars

UCSC researchers developed 3D-printed porous carbon aerogels for electrodes in ultralow-temperature supercapacitors, which could reduce heating needs for future space and polar missions.

A little squid and its glowing bacteria yield new clues to symbiotic relationships

A small molecule produced by bioluminescent bacteria as they colonize the light organ of the Hawaiian bobtail squid may play a key role in establishing the symbiosis.

Sea otters maintain remnants of healthy kelp forest amid sea urchin barrens

While kelp forests have declined dramatically along the California coast, sea otters in Monterey Bay are maintaining patches of healthy kelp forest, according to a new study.

Return to Rat Island: Conservation strategy leads to ecosystem rebound

Hawadax Island's birds and seashore ecosystem have returned to a natural balance after the removal of invasive rodents.

The collapse of Northern California kelp forests will be hard to reverse

Most of Northern California’s kelp forest ecosystem is gone, replaced by widespread ‘urchin barrens’ that may persist long into the future, according to a new study.

UCSC leads multicampus initiative on coastal resilience and climate adaptation

A UC-funded initiative will bring together researchers at the Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, and San Diego campuses to address pressing issues for California’s coastal communities.

Girl activists are more visible than ever. Is this progress?

In the past decade, there’s been an explosion in media coverage of girl activists. Professor Jessica Taft, a leading expert in youth activism, sees opportunity in this visibility, but her research has also identified many troubling trends in how girl activists are portrayed.

Scientists describe ‘hidden biodiversity crisis’ as variation within species is lost

Many of the benefits people receive from nature depend on diversity within species, but this intraspecific variation is poorly understood and declining rapidly.

LASER talk to feature research by UCSC deans of the humanities and social sciences

The event will feature research presentations by Jasmine Alinder, Dean of the Humanities (“Representing Japanese American Incarceration”), and Katharyne Mitchell, Dean of the Social Sciences (“Sanctuary Space and Insurgent Memory”).

Computer scientist Yang Liu wins $1M grant for research on fairness in AI

Liu’s research aims to achieve more equitable outcomes from decision-making tools based on automated machine-learning algorithms.

Oldest DNA sequences reveal how mammoths evolved

Analysis of ancient DNA sequences recovered from mammoth teeth reveal North American mammoths were descended from two earlier mammoth lineages.

Astronomer J. Xavier Prochaska honored for top research paper in Science

J. Xavier Prochaska, distinguished professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, and his coauthors of a landmark paper describing a fast radio burst from a massive galaxy have been chosen to receive the prestigious AAAS Newcomb Cleveland Prize.

Healthy oceans need healthy soundscapes, say marine scientists

A global team of researchers has documented the pervasive impacts of noise on marine animals and ecosystems and identified actions to return to the soundtrack of the healthy ocean.

Rob Fairlie testifies before Congress on inequality in pandemic economic impacts

Rob Fairlie testified before the House Committee on Small Business to share his latest research on the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, including the disproportionate hardships faced by minority-owned businesses.

Noncoding RNA has surprising effects on immune response and sepsis, study finds

A long noncoding RNA regulates the expression of inflammatory genes and has a surprising effect on vulnerability to septic shock in mice.

UCSC awarded National Endowment for the Humanities grants to support faculty research

UC Santa Cruz has received two grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to support faculty research and writing leading to book projects.

Energy spent avoiding humans linked to smaller home ranges for male pumas

New research shows that fear of humans causes mountain lions to increase their energy expenditures as they move through the landscape, and this can ultimately limit the size of the home ranges they’re able to maintain.

New book by arts professor takes fresh look at controversial photographer Robert Mapplethorpe

UCSC history of art and visual culture professor Derek Conrad Murray offers the first dedicated book-length critical study of Mapplethorpe's lesser-known still life flower photographs.

Grant funding will advance aquaculture research in UCSC’s new state-of-the-art facility

Researchers won a USDA grant in support of their efforts to develop ocean-friendly feed formulas for farm-raised rainbow trout. This work will take place in the team's new aquaculture facility at the UCSC Farm.

Study of flowers with two types of anthers solves mystery that baffled Darwin

Some flowers use a clever strategy to ensure effective pollination by bees, doling out pollen gradually from two different sets of anthers.

New analysis highlights importance of groundwater discharge into oceans

A global assessment of the impact of groundwater on ocean chemistry is important for understanding the weathering of rocks and its effects on climate.

UC Santa Cruz scholar of Chinese American history Judy Yung dies at 74

Judy Yung, a pioneering author and scholar of Chinese American and women's history, died on December 14, 2020.

Uncovering the social factors lurking within diabetes risk

Assistant professor of sociology James Doucet-Battle's new book challenges assumptions about race within diabetes research and delves into the issue through the lens of African American experience.