All news
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Newly discovered gene may hold clues to evolution of human brain capacity
Scientists have discovered a gene that has undergone accelerated evolutionary change in humans and is active during a critical stage in brain development. Although researchers have yet to determine the precise function of the gene, the evidence suggests that it…
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Woody Allen to headline UC Santa Cruz Arts & Lectures 2006-07 season
Renowned filmmaker and Dixieland jazz clarinetist Woody Allen, African world music star Angelique Kidjo, National Public Radio’s legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg, and the European-influenced Aspen Santa Fe Ballet are just some of the highlights of the new 2006-07 UC…
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Study documents the marathon migrations of sooty shearwaters
Every summer, millions of sooty shearwaters arrive off the coast of California, their huge flocks astonishing visitors who may have trouble grasping that the dark swirling clouds over the water consist of seabirds. Scientists have long known that sooty shearwaters…
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AIDS vaccine expert Phillip Berman to head UCSC Biomolecular Engineering Department
The University of California, Santa Cruz, has recruited Phillip Berman, a pioneer in the development of recombinant vaccines for AIDS and other infectious diseases, to serve as professor and chair of the Department of Biomolecular Engineering. Berman, who joined the…
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UCSC collaborating in interdisciplinary center to study marine microbes
The University of California, Santa Cruz, is one of six partner institutions in a new interdisciplinary science and technology center that will focus on the microbial inhabitants of the sea. Funded by a five-year, $19 million grant from the National…
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A simple survey yields a cosmic conundrum
A survey of galaxies observed along the sightlines to quasars and gamma-ray bursts–both extremely luminous, distant objects–has revealed a puzzling inconsistency. Galaxies appear to be four times more common in the direction of gamma-ray bursts than in the direction of…
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Atomic-resolution structure of a ribozyme yields insights into RNA catalysis and the origins of life
Which came first, nucleic acids or proteins? This question is molecular biology’s version of the “chicken-or-the-egg” riddle. Genes made of nucleic acids (DNA or RNA) contain the instructions for making proteins, but enzymes made of proteins are needed to replicate…
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UCSC physicists explore a boundary of their discipline in new book, Quantum Enigma
Quantum mechanics, one of the most successful theories in all of science, says some strange things about the fundamental nature of the world. For all practical purposes, physicists can and do ignore the bizarre implications of the theory and use…
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UC President Appoints George Blumenthal Acting Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz
OAKLAND, CA.–University of California President Robert C. Dynes announced today (July 14) the appointment of George Blumenthal as acting chancellor of UC Santa Cruz, effective immediately. Blumenthal, a UCSC professor of astronomy and astrophysics and a former chair of the…
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UCSC scientists to discuss life on Earth in conjunction with world premiere of Frans Lanting’s Life: A Journey through Time
A scientific forum exploring advances in the understanding of life on Earth will take place on Monday, July 31, at 7 p.m. at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium. The forum is being held in conjunction with Life: A Journey through…
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UCSC researchers use new technology to study Cape fur seals in South Africa
Sophisticated electronic tagging technology developed as part of the Tagging of Pacific Pelagics (TOPP) program is now being deployed to study Cape fur seals in South Africa. Daniel Costa, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of California,…
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UCSC creates new major in computer game design
The University of California, Santa Cruz, has approved a new major in computer game design, the first of its kind in the UC system. The new major, leading to a B.S. degree, provides students with a rigorous background in the…
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Mix of age groups, nationalities drawn to summer programs at UC Santa Cruz
Summer is the season for nontraditional students at UC Santa Cruz. Fulbright scholars and professionals from around the world are being introduced to the United States-and English-in University Town Center downtown; youngsters on campus are perfecting their cheers and honing…
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Denice Denton’s life remembered in UC Santa Cruz memorial ceremony
More than 1,000 people commemorated the vibrant life of Chancellor Denice D. Denton today (Thursday, June 29) in a ceremony that spanned four campus venues. A special web site has been created to honor UCSC’s ninth chancellor. The site includes…
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Increased flow of groundwater after earthquakes suggests oil extraction applications
The most obvious manifestation of an earthquake is the shaking from seismic waves that knocks down buildings and rattles people. Now researchers have established a more subtle effect of this shaking–it increases the permeability of rock to groundwater and other…
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MEDIA ADVISORY: Memorial service for UC Santa Cruz Chancellor Denice D. Denton on Thursday, June 29
A public memorial service honoring Chancellor Denice D. Denton of the University of California, Santa Cruz, will be held Thursday, June 29, in the Music Center Recital Hall at UCSC. You are invited to cover this event. WHEN: 10 a.m.,…
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Obituary: Denice D. Denton–UC Santa Cruz chancellor; trailblazing woman in engineering, science and higher education
Denice D. Denton, a trailblazing engineer who broke through numerous barriers in her academic career to become chancellor of the University of California, Santa Cruz, died June 24 in San Francisco. Denton took the helm at UC Santa Cruz in…
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Chancellor Denton was a tireless champion of diversity and excellence
Throughout her brief tenure as chancellor of UC Santa Cruz, Denice D. Denton was a tireless champion of diversity and excellence, proud to be part of the University of California and eager to help it become an even stronger institution…
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UC Santa Cruz summer session has special option for those over 55
Summer classes at UC Santa Cruz are open to all, but those 55 and older have an especially sweet deal. For just $25, these nontraditional students may purchase a Summer Senior Audit Card allowing them to sit in on summer…
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Astronomer Sandra Faber awarded Harvard Centennial Medal
Sandra Faber, University Professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has been awarded the Centennial Medal of the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS). The Centennial Medal, first awarded in 1989 on…
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Study shows earthquake shaking triggers aftershocks
A new analysis of earthquake data indicates that aftershocks are triggered by the shaking associated with the mainshock, rather than by the added stress on nearby faults resulting from rearrangement of the Earth’s crust. The triggering of aftershocks by shaking…