Campus News
-
UCSC engineers develop assistive technologies for the blind
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, are developing new assistive technologies for the blind based on advances in computer vision that have emerged from research in robotics. A “virtual white cane” is one of several prototype tools for the visually impaired developed by Roberto Manduchi, an assistant professor of computer engineering, and his…
-
Deep Down Things, a new book by physicist Bruce Schumm, explores the astonishing world of particle physics
Particle physicists have developed an amazingly successful theory describing how the universe works on the most fundamental level. This theory, known as the Standard Model and hailed as one of the greatest intellectual achievements of the 20th century, is still only understood and appreciated by a limited number of people who tend to have advanced…
-
Students, alumnus honored for helping police catch suspect
Two UCSC students and an alumnus whose quick action led to the apprehension of a suspect in a recent attack at the campus library were honored Friday by campus police. Julia Dean, a community studies senior from Atlanta; Jeff Basinger, a film and digital media junior from Poway; and Kai Chang, a 1999 psychology graduate…
-
Computer analysis shows scientists could reconstruct the genome of the common ancestor of all placental mammals
Contrary to the movie Jurassic Park, in which scientists recreate dinosaurs from ancient DNA, genetic material more than about 50 thousand years old cannot be reliably recovered. Nevertheless, a team of scientists has now demonstrated that computers could be used to reconstruct with 98 percent accuracy the DNA of a creature that lived at the…
-
Civil rights activist Joseph Lowery to speak at Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation Jan. 10
The Rev. Joseph Lowery, who helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Martin Luther King in 1957 and led the organization for 20 years, will be the keynote speaker at UCSC’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Convocation on January 10. Lowery will speak at 7 p.m. in the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium. The…
-
Antibiotic rifampicin shows promise for fighting Parkinson’s disease in laboratory tests
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have shown that rifampicin, an antibiotic used to treat leprosy and tuberculosis, can prevent the formation of protein fibrils associated with the death of brain cells in people with Parkinson’s disease. The drug also dissolved existing fibrils in laboratory tests. The researchers studied the effects of rifampicin…
-
UC Santa Cruz Library receives half-million-dollar gift to benefit Special Collections photo archives
The University of California, Santa Cruz, has received a $500,000 gift to benefit Special Collections in the University Library. The endowment will be established in honor of the late Miller and Bunny Outcalt and their lifelong partnership in the field of photography. Proceeds will be used to fund a permanent staff position dedicated to work…
-
Unusual material that contracts when heated is giving up its secrets to physicists
Most solids expand when heated, a familiar phenomenon with many practical implications. Among the rare exceptions to this rule, the compound zirconium tungstate stands out by virtue of the enormous temperature range over which it exhibits so-called “negative thermal expansion,” contracting as it heats up and expanding as it cools, and because it does so…
-
Marine biologist John Pearse to give Emeriti Faculty Lecture at UCSC on Tuesday, Nov. 23
John Pearse, professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology, will give the Emeriti Faculty Lecture at UC Santa Cruz on Tuesday, November 23. His talk, “Reproduction in Freezing Oceans: Paradigm Shifts in the 20th Century,” will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the UCSC Media Theater. This event is free and open to the public. Pearse…
-
Marine biologist John Pearse to give Emeriti Faculty Lecture at UCSC on Tuesday, Nov. 23
John Pearse, professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology, will give the Emeriti Faculty Lecture at UC Santa Cruz on Tuesday, November 23. His talk, “Reproduction in Freezing Oceans: Paradigm Shifts in the 20th Century,” will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the UCSC Media Theater. This event is free and open to the public. Pearse…
-
New Engineering 2 Building receives design award
The just-dedicated Engineering 2 Building at UC Santa Cruz has received a merit award for design from the American Institute of Architects Los Angeles chapter. The merit award honors built work designed by Los Angeles architects. Anshen + Allen Los Angeles was the architect for Engineering 2, which was dedicated on November 5. Engineering 2…