Energy & Environment

UC Merced Aerial Picture
Ecosystem Engineers Play Crucial Role in Stabilizing Their Environments, Study Shows
August 11, 2020
When people think of engineering in nature, they tend to think of species such as beavers — the tree-felling, dam-building rodents whose machinations can shape the landscape by creating lakes and changing the path of rivers. But beavers... Read More
World’s Oldest Trees Shape the Diversity of Life in Their Soils, Study Shows
August 10, 2020
There’s a whole world of activity beneath your feet. Soil holds a large proportion of Earth's biodiversity, and is the place where organisms interact with each other and with plants, serving important functions for their ecosystems. A new... Read More
World’s Tallest Trees Shape the Diversity of Life in Their Soils, Study Shows
August 10, 2020
There’s a whole world of activity beneath your feet. Soil holds a large proportion of Earth's biodiversity, and is the place where organisms interact with each other and with plants, serving important functions for their ecosystems. A new... Read More
New NSF Center Intersects Chemistry and Mechanics
August 3, 2020
Scientists know the whats and whys of using light, heat and electricity to direct chemical reactions toward an end goal. What’s less well understood are the effects mechanical force can have on chemistry. Thanks to a three-year, $1.8... Read More
New Engineering Research Center to Focus on Agriculture Technology
August 3, 2020
By 2050, the U.S. population is estimated to grow to 400 million, and the world population to 9.1 billion, requiring a 70 percent increase in global food production. UC Merced is one of four campuses across the country uniting to meet that... Read More
SNRI Sees a Leadership Transition
July 29, 2020
Change is everywhere at UC Merced this year, from hiring a new chancellor to the completion of a major campus expansion. The Sierra Nevada Research Institute (SNRI), an early hallmark of research excellence at UC Merced, is also making a... Read More
Professor and Falasco Chair Berhe Recognized as a Carnegie Corporation Distinguished Immigrant
July 1, 2020
Every Fourth of July, the Carnegie Corporation of New York honors the legacy of its founder Andrew Carnegie, by recognizing an extraordinary group of immigrants, who are now naturalized American citizens, and who have made notable... Read More
New Grant Helps Assess Benefits of Satellites for Determining Water Quality
June 24, 2020
Summertime means fun in the water, but as temperatures increase, algal blooms can grow in freshwater and marine ecosystems. Some algae are natural and life-giving, while others are the result of life out of balance and can have harmful... Read More
New Bridge Program Involves Incoming Students in the Future of Agriculture
June 22, 2020
Incoming first-year and transfer students will have a new resource for success and an introduction to research starting next summer, thanks to a four-year, $400,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Civil and environmental... Read More
Human Waste Treatment Helps Solve Climate-Change Puzzle, New Study Shows
June 1, 2020
About 4.5 billion people around the globe do not have access to adequate sanitation, and what they do have — typically pit latrines and lagoons — are responsible for widespread illnesses and a portion of the greenhouse gases that are... Read More