Ph.D. Student Beats Odds to Put Science and Community First

Ruben Rodriguez (left) with fellow grad student Jackie MinasThe odds were stacked against Ruben Rodriguez. When the 27-year-old UC Merced student was still in high school, he was confronted with a sobering statistic that Hispanics receive only 5 percent of all doctorates awarded.

Diverse Physics Group Achieves Milestones with Focus on Innovation

The new physics graduate group offers a variety of research possibilities.From understanding how groups of atoms behave at ultra-low temperatures to modeling how flocks of birds organize, UC Merced's Physics group is helping solve many of the world's mysteries and using the knowledge to improve technology, ranging from computing to solar energy conversion.

Researchers Delve into Valley Fever from All Angles

Note: This story originally appeared in the Fall 2014 issue of UC Merced Magazine.

Before it infects humans who breathe it in, the fungus that causes valley fever changes shapes in the environment. Once infected, some people fight it off while others die.

NIH Supports Professor’s Work in Inhibiting HIV Infection

Biochemistry Professor Patricia LiWang calls it a stroke of luck that she has become enmeshed in HIV research, but her developments are no accident.

Researching the Hows and Whys of Politics

Note: This story originally appeared in the Fall 2014 issue of UC Merced Magazine and has been updated in the wake of the Nov. 4 elections. Read the whole issue online.

Professor’s Soil Research Digs Up Many More Questions

When people get near California’s giant sequoias, they usually look up.
 
But Professor Steve Hart looks down, and what he finds beneath the trees has intrigued him.
 

Nobel Laureate Offers Chemistry Seminar

Professor K. Barry Sharpless of Scripps Research Institute and the 2001 winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry, will offer a chemistry seminar at UC Merced at 3 p.m. Friday in COB 120.

Professor’s Research to Examine Whether Copper Plays Role in Alzheimer’s Disease

Professor Masashi Kitazawa wants to figure out if any environmental factors increase the risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease – specifically, whether elevated levels of copper in drinking water play a role.

A new $2.6 million, five-year grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences will fund his research, making what was a side project into a full-blown exploration.

New Faculty Members Expand, Strengthen Research

UC Merced has hired 34 faculty members for the 2014-15 academic year, giving the campus 212 tenure-track professors who expand the depth and breadth of research expertise.

Excluding student employees, the campus now has about 1,300 total staff and faculty members, which also includes 149 lecturers.

Pine Needle Bacteria Earn Professor Second NSF Grant of the Year

Professor Carolin Frank will collect $1.6 million over the next four years to continue researching the nitrogen-fixing bacteria that live in pine needles and to work with the Sierra Foothill Charter School, which she helped found.