Science
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Library ceremony honors UCSC faculty and the books that influenced them
The Honored Faculty, Honored Books Program at UC Santa Cruz will hold a ceremony next week in celebration of the bond between the written word and the achievement of scholars. The event recognizes UCSC faculty who have attained tenure or received promotion and showcases the books that have influenced them. The faculty and their selected…
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New study highlights role of hit-and-run collisions in the formation of planets, asteroids, and meteorites
Hit-and-run collisions between embryonic planets during a critical period in the early history of the Solar System may account for some previously unexplained properties of planets, asteroids, and meteorites, according to researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who describe their findings in a paper to appear in the January 12 issue of the…
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Large survey of galaxies yields new findings on star formation
New findings from a large survey of galaxies suggest that star formation is largely driven by the supply of raw materials, rather than by galactic mergers that trigger sudden bursts of star formation. Stars form when clouds of gas and dust collapse under the force of gravity, and the study supports a scenario in which…
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Astrophysicists detect very high-energy gamma rays from the Milky Way
Scientists using the Milagro Gamma-ray Observatory in New Mexico have captured evidence of radiation emitted from the plane of our home galaxy at extremely high energies. The researchers detected “TeV gamma rays”–electromagnetic radiation in the one trillion electronvolt energy range, about a trillion times more energetic than visible light–and determined that the gamma rays were…
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Three to receive top honors from UC Santa Cruz Alumni Association
A senior writing lecturer, an epidemiologist in the international fight against AIDS, and a staff member who helps nontraditional students thrive have been selected to receive the UCSC Alumni Association’s highest honors for the 2005-06 year. Don Rothman will receive the Distinguished Teaching Award; Cheryl Scott, the Alumni Achievement Award; and Corinne Miller, the Outstanding…
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Simulations shed light on Earth’s history of magnetic field reversals
A new analysis of computer simulations of Earth’s magnetic field suggests that its behavior was different early in Earth’s history, resulting in greater stability and fewer reversals of the magnetic field. The findings by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, are helping to reconcile the geologic record of magnetic field reversals with the…
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Unmanned submersible sheds light on an undersea volcano
Rock samples collected last year show surprising variation in the chemistry of an undersea volcano on the Juan de Fuca Ridge near Seattle. The variation comes from the mantle, the source of the magma that erupted from the volcano to form the rocks, and may influence the microbial communities that now inhabit the volcano, said…
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Ancient sediments show influence of southern ocean circulation on climate
About 34 million years ago, the Earth’s climate transitioned from a “greenhouse climate” to the “icehouse climate” of today, forming a massive ice sheet on the Antarctic continent. A new study by Linda Anderson, an ocean sciences researcher at the University of California, Santa Cruz, suggests that oceanographic features in the Southern Ocean–the intensity of…
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Thar she glows! Seymour Center lights up Ms. Blue for the holidays
The 87-foot blue whale skeleton at UC Santa Cruz’s Long Marine Laboratory will again brighten the holiday season this year. Fondly known as Ms. Blue, the massive whale skeleton will glow each evening in December at the lab’s Seymour Center. It is believed to be the world’s largest assembled whale skeleton on public display. “The…
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$4 million in federal funding secured for two major UCSC research programs
Funding for two major interdisciplinary research programs led by the University of California, Santa Cruz, has been included in a federal appropriations bill for fiscal year 2006. The bill includes about $2 million for each of the programs: the Center for Integrated Marine Technologies (CIMT), an ongoing effort to improve long-term monitoring of ocean ecosystems,…
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Genome sequencing aids investigation of an ancient and mysterious life-form
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, are using the latest in genetic technology to investigate an ancient form of life–the poorly understood microorganisms known as Archaea. Many Archaea live in hostile environments, from salt lakes to acidic hot springs, but they can be very difficult to grow and study in the laboratory. So…