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2023 Engineering News

December 20, 2023
UCSC joins as founding member of new Action Collaborative to improve pathways for women of color in tech education and careers
UC Santa Cruz has joined a new Action Collaborative on transforming trajectories for women of color in tech which was launched by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and 35 other institutions representing higher education, national laboratories, and government.
December 15, 2023
Nobuhiko Kobayashi elected to the 2023 National Academy of Inventors
Nobuhiko (Nobby) Kobayashi, professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Santa Cruz, has been named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).
December 05, 2023
Cloud technologies bring organoids into undergraduate classrooms for the first time
For the first time, remote education tools have allowed undergraduate students to gain direct experience experimenting with cortical organoids grown at UC Santa Cruz.
December 01, 2023
Indigenous scientists awarded $9M to establish the first RADx Tribal data repository that upholds Indigenous data sovereignty
The National Institutes of Health announced funding for an Indigenous Data Repository led by Native scientists to help improve health in tribal communities and for all Indigenous Peoples.
November 30, 2023
Smart microgrids can restore power more efficiently and reliably in an outage
A new AI model that optimizes the use of renewables and other energy sources outperforms traditional power restoration techniques for islanded microgrids, a new paper from Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Yu Zhang shows.
November 29, 2023
Funding opportunities to develop UC Santa Cruz innovations
The Innovation & Business Engagement Hub is now accepting applications for two funding opportunities to advance innovations being developed at UC Santa Cruz.
November 29, 2023
UCSC’s 2023 iGEM team grabs fourth consecutive gold medal and nomination for best software tool at international competition
A team of UC Santa Cruz students won a gold medal at the 2023 International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) Grand Jamboree, marking their fourth consecutive year of bringing home the prize, and were nominated as best software tool for the first time.
November 29, 2023
2023 list of most highly cited researchers includes 18 UC Santa Cruz scientists and engineers
In a notable recognition of scholarly achievement, 18 scientists and engineers from UC Santa Cruz have earned a spot on the 2023 Highly Cited Researchers list, recently unveiled by Clarivate.
November 20, 2023
Life Beyond the Redwoods: Teresa Faasolo reflects on her educational journey one year after graduating from UCSC
A year after graduating with a B.S. in computer engineering from UCSC, Teresal Faasolo (Merrill ’22) is a software quality assurance engineer at Digital Dynamics, Inc., based in Scotts Valley.
November 16, 2023
Brain-inspired AI code library passes major milestone, new paper offers perspective on future of field
UCSC Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Jason Eshraghian's open source code library for brain-inspired deep learning, called “snnTorch,” has surpassed 100,000 downloads and is used in a wide variety of projects. A new paper details the code and offers a perspective on the future of the field.
November 16, 2023
World-renowned supernova expert honored for breakthrough contributions to astronomy
Mark Phillips received the Alumni Achievement Award on Oct. 27, 2023, for his pioneering supernova research that led to the reversal of a major scientific theory on the trajectory of the universe, and for the indelible legacy he has left for aspiring astronomers.
November 09, 2023
Giving Day 2023 breaks records
Giving Day, UC Santa Cruz’s biggest fundraising event of the year, wraps up on a high note.
November 09, 2023
Alumna Susan Nerton honored for contributions to Crown College
Crown College alumna and volunteer Susan Nerton (Crown ’71, ’87, psychology and computer and information science) receives Fiat Lux Award for her dedication to Crown College.
November 07, 2023
UC Santa Cruz students win three categories at Orange County Sustainability Decathlon
An interdisciplinary team of UC Santa Cruz students, many from the Rachel Carson College Sustainability Minor program, designed and built EcoHus, an innovative, affordable, net-zero house. The EcoHus team was selected to receive a $100,000 grant to participate in the 2023 Orange County Sustainability Decathlon (OCSD) held on Oct. 5-15, where they won first place in three categories, and secured second and third place in other categories.
October 31, 2023
Slug Gaming looks to level up presence on campus
Slug Gaming, a student group for casual and competitive esports players, want to increase campus support for their players and foster a strong sense of community for gamers at UCSC.
October 30, 2023
Multidisciplinary team will develop advanced rhizosphere carbon imaging for climate change research with support of major DOE grant
A team of researchers at UC Santa Cruz and Stanford University are leading a new project in which they aim to use dynamic imaging and modeling of carbon in the rhizosphere to answer longstanding questions about how carbon moves through the soil and plant root interface.
October 24, 2023
Bacteria can enhance host insect’s fertility with implications for disease control
New research led at UC Santa Cruz reveals how the bacteria strain Wolbachia pipientis enhances the fertility of the insects it infects, an insight that could help scientists increase the populations of mosquitoes that do not carry human disease.
October 23, 2023
Working to improve clarity for patients assessing their genetic breast cancer risk
A project to expedite the analysis of variants on the BRCA 1 and 2 genes, the most commonly affected genes in breast cancer cases, will help more people to better understand their cancer risk.
October 16, 2023
Slugworks welcomes students across campus to new creative space
Slugworks, a new creatorspace on campus located in the Jack Baskin Engineering building, is open to the campus community.
October 10, 2023
Three climate resilience projects supported by 2023 CITRIS Interdisciplinary Innovation Program
CITRIS and the Banatao Institute and the Innovation & Business Engagement Hub collaborated to fund three projects focused on climate resilience and that align with developing solutions that address some of the California's most pressing climate challenges.
October 09, 2023
System-wide leaders visit campus to discuss next steps in Agricultural Experiment Station designation
A group from University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources visited UC Santa Cruz to discuss implementation for the campus’s official designation as an Agricultural Experiment Station.
October 04, 2023
UCSC iGEM 2023 addressing harmful algal blooms through synthetic biology
A team of UCSC undergraduate students is designing and assembling a plasmid that targets the toxic genes of a type of freshwater bacteria responsible for harmful algal blooms.
October 02, 2023
Biotech founder and hero of the Human Genome Project joins UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute as Executive Director
The UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute has selected scientist, entrepreneur, and executive Lauren Linton as their new Executive Director.
October 02, 2023
Genome study reveals 30 years of Darwin’s finch evolution
A study led by UC Santa Cruz postdoctoral scholar of Genomics & Bioinformatics Erik Enbody paints a dynamic picture of how species adapt to changing environments.
September 28, 2023
US Department of Agriculture visits UC Santa Cruz to learn about research and workforce development projects
UC Santa Cruz faculty, staff, and students shared information about USDA-funded research and education projects on campus with special guests from the USDA.
September 27, 2023
UCSC’s David Deamer and Mark Akeson honored for invention of nanopore sequencing
UCSC's David Deamer and Mark Akeson won the AAAS Golden Goose award for the invention of nanopore sequencing, a transformational technology for reading DNA and RNA.
September 26, 2023
UC Santa Cruz welcomes new faculty to campus
UC Santa Cruz welcomes 54 new faculty members to campus who bring a wide array of expertise in research and creative scholarship that will open new areas of investigation and expression and expand existing areas of work.
September 19, 2023
Innovation Catalyst Grants help early-stage innovators with resources, training, and financial support
Two UC Santa Cruz research teams that can make impactful advancements in drug discovery and human health outcomes have been chosen as recipients of the university’s inaugural Innovation Catalyst Grants program. These new grants, administered by the Innovation & Business Engagement Hub, are designed to support and propel early-stage technology innovations developed by UCSC researchers.
September 18, 2023
UC Santa Cruz Computer Game Design program ranked top five in the nation by U.S. News and World Report
The Computer Game Design program at the University of California, Santa Cruz, was listed in the top five best game/simulation development programs in the nation according to rankings released today by U.S. News and World Report.
September 11, 2023
2023 ARCS Foundation scholarships support UCSC graduate students in the sciences and engineering
Sixteen UC Santa Cruz graduate students have received scholarships worth a total of $175,000 from the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists (ARCS) Foundation for the 2023-24 academic year.
September 07, 2023
Alumnus Daniel Anderson receives Wilhelm Exner Medal for scientific achievement in business and industry
Alumnus Daniel Anderson received the 2023 Wilhelm Exner Medal in Vienna, Austria. The award—presented by the Austrian Industry Association (AIA), and dating back to 1921—is given to those who have made significant advancements in their respective scientific fields.
September 07, 2023
Empowering dreams
Alumna Birong Hu’s generous gift to Girls in Engineering paves the way for a new era of engineers, unlocking boundless opportunities and transforming futures.
September 06, 2023
Novel device combines nanopores with electronic signals for disease detection
Research led by UC Santa Cruz Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Marco Rolandi shows the power of bioprotonic nanopores for disease detection.
September 01, 2023
GREAT program creates new opportunities for students to participate in research
This summer, the “Genome Research Experiences to Attract Talented Undergraduates into the Genomics Field to Enhance Diversity” (GREAT) programmed welcomed six students from California State University Monterey Bay (CSUMB) to an intensive eight-week research program at UC Santa Cruz.
August 31, 2023
New blood test for noncoding RNA significantly improves cancer detection
Assistant Professor of Biomolecular Engineering Daniel Kim and his lab are developing more accurate and powerful liquid biopsy technologies that take advantage of signals from RNA “dark matter,” an understudied area of the genome.
August 31, 2023
Five UC Santa Cruz projects win California Climate Action Grant funding
Millions of dollars in new funding will support UC Santa Cruz and partners in tackling some of California's toughest climate change challenges through innovative research and community engagement.
August 29, 2023
The sky’s the limit: Becca Fenwick gives research and education a new perspective with drone tech
The CITRIS principal investigator and director of the CITRIS Initiative for Drone Education and Research at UC Santa Cruz advances wildland management, ecology research and workforce development with uncrewed aerial vehicles and remote sensing systems
August 23, 2023
10 mysteries of the Y chromosome
Researchers have just completed the first full sequence of a Y chromosome — what will we learn?
August 23, 2023
Scientists release the first complete sequence of a human Y chromosome
Scientists have completed the first full sequence of a human Y chromosome, completing the set of end-to-end human chromosomes and helping researchers to better understand human reproduction, evolution, and population change.
August 23, 2023
Koerner Family Foundation provides funds for five UCSC graduate students
Five UC Santa Cruz doctoral candidates in Baskin Engineering were awarded a fellowship that covered nearly one-third of their tuition and fees in the 2022-2023 academic year.
August 17, 2023
Nearly $1 million in USDA grants will support 3 UCSC-led agricultural technology projects
Three UC Santa Cruz research teams led by engineering faculty will pursue innovative agriculture technology projects with the support of seed grants from the USDA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative.
August 15, 2023
UCSC computer science student selected into Major League Hacking’s top 50 list
Rising second-year computer science student Marina Lee was chosen out of a community of 150,000 hackers for her outstanding work in developing accessible STEM education programming and building an inclusive hacking community.
August 10, 2023
Researchers’ tool finds bias in state-of-the-art generative AI model
UCSC researchers introduce a new tool to measure bias in text-to-image AI generation models, which they have used to quantify bias in the state-of-the-art model Stable Diffusion.
August 08, 2023
UC Santa Cruz welcomes vibrant and talented incoming class
The University of California, Santa Cruz is preparing to welcome more than 5,500 new Banana Slugs to campus this fall, reflecting its commitment to providing equitable access and a transformational experience.
August 07, 2023
A childhood cancer survivor becomes a cancer researcher
This summer, 15-year-old Robert McCabe helped to sequence and analyze a tumor sample in the lab of the UC Santa Cruz Treehouse Childhood Cancer Initiative.
July 31, 2023
UCSC students behind bus tracking app selected as only U.S. team in Google Solution Challenge’s top 10
The competition, which invites thousands of students worldwide to compete, tasks students to come up with technical solutions that contribute to the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development goals.
July 28, 2023
Engineering faculty take on innovative climate resilience projects
Engineering professors are leading three major projects to address climate crisis issues with funding from UCSC’s newly launched Center for Coastal Climate Resilience.
July 25, 2023
St. Baldrick’s Foundation grant will expand pediatric cancer research at UCSC
A new $100,000 grant from the St. Baldrick’s Foundation will provide UC Santa Cruz’s Treehouse Childhood Cancer Initiative funding to expand efforts to study rare pediatric cancers.
July 25, 2023
Excellence in Teaching Awards announced
The Academic Senate’s Committee on Teaching in collaboration with Chancellor Larive and CP/EVC Kletzer celebrated UC Santa Cruz’s innovative and dedicated teachers with a gathering at the Cowell Provost House in early June.
July 19, 2023
New data science project seeks to span disciplines and create community
Pedro Morales-Almazan leads a new data science project that will provide professional development and facilitate cross-discipline collaborations.
July 13, 2023
To support Hispanic women in STEM, UC Santa Cruz hosts inaugural HSRU Alliance conference
Convened by the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities, an inaugural cohort from universities, government, foundations, and industry met at UC Santa Cruz to discuss and develop a framework to support the advancement of Hispanic women in their academic and professional STEM careers.
June 29, 2023
Study shows significant decline of snow cover in the Northern hemisphere over the last half century
Professor and Statistics Department Chair Robert Lund collaborated on a new study that uses rigorous mathematical models and statistical methods and finds declining snow cover in many parts of the northern hemisphere over the last half century.
June 28, 2023
UCSC’s Center for Coastal Climate Resilience awards over $4.6 million to support California coastal projects
The UCSC Center for Coastal Climate Resilience has awarded over $4.6 million in funding to 23 UC Santa Cruz research groups for pilot projects and implementation projects supporting efforts to fight climate change in coastal communities across California and beyond. Funds for these grant programs came from the California State Budget Act of 2022-23.
June 27, 2023
Q&A with John MacMillan, vice chancellor for research
After nearly two years as the interim Vice Chancellor for Research (VCR) for UC Santa Cruz, John MacMillan was appointed to the permanent VCR role on June 1, 2023, after a nationwide search. Here he discusses his vision for UC Santa Cruz and its research enterprise.
June 15, 2023
Katia Obraczka appointed director of CITRIS at UC Santa Cruz
Katia Obraczka, professor of Computer Science and Engineering, has been appointed director of the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) and the Banatao Institute at UC Santa Cruz
June 15, 2023
Interdisciplinary team wins Small Farm prize in first-ever Farm Robotics Challenge
An interdisciplinary team of students and researchers created an autonomous weeder which was recently recognized with the Small Farm prize at the inaugural Farm Robotics Challenge.
June 13, 2023
Novel deep learning-based software detects and tracks individual cells with high precision
Assistant Professor of Biomolecular Engineering Ali Shariati and doctoral student Abolfazl Zarageri together with several student researchers in the Shariati lab have developed and released a new deep learning model called “DeepSea,” one of the only tools with the ability to segment cells, track them and detect their division to follow lineages of cells.
June 08, 2023
UCSC team wins third place in first-ever Amazon SimBot challenge
A team of UC Santa Cruz computer science and engineering (CSE) Ph.D. students won third place in the first-ever Amazon Alexa Prize SimBot Challenge, a university competition focused on advancing virtual assistant technology.
June 02, 2023
UC Santa Cruz announces recipients of Chancellor’s Innovation Impact Awards
The Chancellor’s Innovation Impact Awards celebrate the university’s talented faculty, researchers, staff, students, and community partners for their outstanding contributions to innovation and creativity.
June 01, 2023
UC Santa Cruz now offers graduate degrees in materials science and engineering
The interdisciplinary program will serve students interested in developing new materials for next-generation technologies.
May 30, 2023
Students find support, success through Next Generation Scholars in Applied Mathematics program
Students have found success through the Next Generation Scholars in Applied Mathematics program, which provides students scholarships and additional support such as counseling and career readiness workshops
May 23, 2023
UC Santa Cruz engineers join major transportation cybersecurity project
Researchers from UC Santa Cruz will play an important role in protecting the United States’ transportation systems against cybersecurity threats as part of a new national center
May 18, 2023
Karen Miga named 2023 Searle Scholar to study uncharted regions of the human genome
Karen Miga, assistant professor of biomolecular engineering at UC Santa Cruz, has been named a 2023 Searle Scholar.
May 17, 2023
Comb jellies proven to be the sibling group to all other animals
New research proves comb jellies are a unique lineage or “sibling group” whose ancestors diverged before the common ancestor of all other animals.
May 16, 2023
UCSC ranked number two on Wall Street Journal list for top public colleges for high-paying jobs in engineering
New rankings from the Wall Street Journal place UC Santa Cruz as the number two public school for high-paying jobs in engineering, just behind UC Berkeley, and the number nine public school for high-paying jobs in data science and software.
May 16, 2023
Excellence in Action: Celebrating UCSC’s 2023 Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award Recipients
Now in its seventh year, the Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award welcomes its 2023 cohort.
May 10, 2023
Human pangenome reference will enable more complete and equitable understanding of genomic diversity
UC Santa Cruz scientists, along with a consortium of researchers, have released a draft of the first human pangenome—a new, usable reference for genomics that combines the genetic information of 47 individuals from different ancestral backgrounds to allow for a deeper, more accurate understanding of worldwide genomic diversity.
May 09, 2023
UC Santa Cruz to lead data collection center for major federal project on genetic underpinnings of neurological conditions
The UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute will run the Data Coordination Center for the Scalable and Systematic Neurobiology of Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Disorder Risk Genes (SSPsyGene) Consortium.
May 03, 2023
Ed Green named QB3-Santa Cruz Scientific Director
Richard (Ed) Green, professor of biomolecular engineering, has been selected to serve as the next director of the California Institute of Quantitative Biosciences (QB3) at UC Santa Cruz.
May 02, 2023
Deep neural network provides robust detection of disease biomarkers in real time
Holger Schmidt's lab has developed a deep neural network that improves the accuracy of their unique devices for detecting pathogen biomarkers.
April 27, 2023
Genome of famed sled dog Balto reveals genetic adaptations of working dogs
Still a good boy nearly 100 years after historic sled run, Balto has now helped scientists explore the genetics of working dogs and demonstrate the power of comparative genomics.
April 24, 2023
Electrical engineer wins award to support improvement of efficient, low-cost agricultural soil sensor systems
UC Santa Cruz Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Colleen Josephson is a recipient of the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research’s (FFAR) 2022 New Innovator in Food & Agriculture Research Award.
April 18, 2023
Indirect cost recovery changes for fiscal year 2024
Attention Principal Investigators: UC Santa Cruz recently updated its federal Facilities and Administration (F&A) agreement approving indirect cost recovery rates for sponsored contracts and grants.
April 17, 2023
Banana Slugs seek to advance conversational AI in all three Amazon Alexa Prize challenges
Three teams of UC Santa Cruz Baskin School of Engineering students are developing next-generation, multimodal AI-powered systems for a chance to win $500,000 or more per challenge.
April 12, 2023
Naming system for transfer RNA fragments will increase research productivity, standardization
UC Santa Cruz Professor of Biomolecular Engineering Todd Lowe and his group created a new naming scheme for tRNA fragments aimed at standardizing research.
April 06, 2023
Two major stem cell research projects supported with more than $2.6 million in funding
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) will provide more than $2.6 million in total funding for two major stem cell research projects led by scientists at UC Santa Cruz, the organization announced.
March 30, 2023
New program advises UCSC Ph.D. students on their path to entrepreneurship and venture capital
Many student-led innovations never make it out of the lab. A new program at UC Santa Cruz aims to change that by mentoring Ph.D. students in the life sciences on alternative career pathways outside academia: entrepreneurship and venture capital.
March 28, 2023
A scholar in his own community: Kevin Weatherwax
Computational Media Ph.D. student Kevin Weatherwax's research is supported through the Piatt Fellowship, a scholarship for doctoral students from Santa Cruz County.
March 21, 2023
Computer engineering research prompts bug fixes, updates to major GPU frameworks
A new suite of GPU tests developed by Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Tyler Sorensen and his students led to changes to an important GPU framework for programming web browsers.
March 14, 2023
Researcher solves nearly 60-year-old game theory dilemma
Dejan Milutinovic has solved a nearly 60-year-old game theory dilemma called the wall pursuit game, with implications for better reasoning about autonomous systems such as driverless vehicles.
March 09, 2023
New project will develop safer, highly accurate GPS alternative
Ricardo Sanfelice, UCSC professor of electrical and computer engineering, and his team of graduate students and researchers are designing a new and resilient Position, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) system.
March 07, 2023
SpikeGPT: researcher releases code for largest-ever spiking neural network for language generation
Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Jason Eshraghian and two students recently released the open-sourced code for the largest language-generating spiking neural network ever, named SpikeGPT.
March 02, 2023
Leaf wetness sensor will enable better plant disease forecasting and management
An interdisciplinary team of researchers created a new type of sensor for more accurately measuring leaf wetness which will enable better plant disease forecasting and management.
February 23, 2023
MLK Convocation speaker points way to STEM success
The key to persevering in STEM careers is to find joy in the struggle, discover yourself in the process and lead with passion and purpose, Talithia Williams said at UC Santa Cruz’s online 39th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Convocation Feb. 21.
February 21, 2023
Researcher wins inaugural NHGRI award for DEIA Innovation in the Genomics Workforce
Ann Mc Cartney received the National Human Genome Research Institute’s (NHGRI) inaugural Staff Award for DEIA Innovation in the Genomics Workforce.
February 16, 2023
Alumni Councilor Christy Martin
Christy Martin is currently serving as the Vice President of Finance for the UC Santa Cruz Alumni Association. Martin enjoys reconnecting with and giving back to the UCSC community, while helping to manage and grow funds that support alumni programs and student success.
February 07, 2023
UCSC joins FAA/ UAS Collegiate Training Initiative
UC Santa Cruz is now the first UC- or CSU-member of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)/ Unmanned Aircraft Systems’ (UAS) Collegiate Training Initiative program.
February 03, 2023
Funding opportunity to develop university innovations
The Innovation & Business Engagement Hub is now accepting applications for its new Innovation Catalyst Grant; a proof-of-concept program focused on providing targeted gap funding, training, mentorship, and support to UC Santa Cruz researchers in order to help de-risk and/or validate the implementation and adoption potential of early-stage technology innovations.
February 01, 2023
Three UCSC faculty win prestigious NSF CAREER awards
The CAREER Awards are NSF's most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization.
January 31, 2023
Three UCSC faculty named 2022 AAAS fellows
Three UC Santa Cruz professors received the distinction of 2022 fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the association announced today.
January 30, 2023
Disclosing foreign collaborations in research projects
In order to comply with evolving federal regulations related to disclosing foreign collaborations and other support, the Office of Research has updated Cayuse to include screening questions. These questions are meant to trigger information that needs to be disclosed on all applications and progress reports for projects with federal funding.
January 23, 2023
Five student teams embark on tech for social good projects
Five student teams will take on tech for social good projects with funding from the UCSC CITRIS and the Banatao Institute and the UCSC Institute for Social Transformation.
January 17, 2023
Researchers produce first-ever toolkit for RNA sequencing analysis using a ‘pantranscriptome’
Researchers at UC Santa Cruz introduce the first-ever method for analyzing RNA sequencing data genome-wide using a “pantranscriptome.”