Author: Tim Stephens
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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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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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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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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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Two UCSC engineering professors named IEEE Fellows
Two faculty members of the Baskin School of Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have been elected Fellows of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). They are J. J. García-Luna-Aceves, Baskin Professor of Computer Engineering, and Darrell Long, Malavalli Professor of Storage Systems Research. The IEEE Board of Directors confers this…
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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…
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Philanthropist Jack Baskin chosen for Silicon Valley Engineering Hall of Fame
Jack Baskin, whose steadfast support led to the establishment and rapid growth of the Baskin School of Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has been selected for induction into the Silicon Valley Engineering Hall of Fame. The Silicon Valley Engineering Council (SVEC) announced the Hall of Fame winners last night during the group’s…
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Rapidly accelerating glaciers may increase how fast the sea level rises
Satellite images show that, after decades of stability, a major glacier draining the Greenland ice sheet has dramatically increased its speed and retreated nearly five miles in recent years. These changes could contribute to rapid melting of the Greenland ice sheet and cause the global sea level to rise faster than expected, according to researchers…
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UCSC physicists deliver detector for NASA’s GLAST telescope
After more than a decade of work, a team led by physicists at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has completed a major detector subsystem for NASA’s Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST). Completion of the tracking detector is a significant milestone for the telescope project, scheduled for launch in 2007. GLAST will give astronomers…