Briefs

University is recognized as a distinguished partner by the Santa Ana Unified School District

UCI was recognized as a Santa Ana Unified School District distinguished partner at the 2017 State of the District Breakfast on Oct. 13. “UCI was selected along with two other agencies because of the wide range of opportunities that the university has extended to the students of Santa Ana,” said Stefanie Phillips, SAUSD superintendent. UCI […]

Bill Maurer to emcee panel at meeting of national behavioral sciences board

Bill Maurer, dean of the School of Social Sciences, will moderate a panel discussion featuring research sponsors from federal agencies and other government organizations at the 20th anniversary meeting of the National Academy of Sciences Board on Behavioral, Cognitive & Sensory Sciences. “It’s really quite exciting to participate in a forum that showcases the very […]

UCI chemist helps create tool that anticipates molecular actions

An international team of scientists including Kieron Burke, UCI professor of chemistry, has created a machine-learning algorithm that predicts molecular behavior. The breakthrough may aid in the development of pharmaceuticals and materials to enhance the performance of batteries, solar cells and digital displays. In a study published in Nature Communications, the researchers describe how their […]

UCI makes sustainability 'honor roll' for 5th time

UCI has been selected for The Princeton Review’s 2018 Green College Honor Roll, the fifth time it has made the list, which salutes universities earning a perfect score of 99 in The Princeton Review’s sustainability rating system. This year, 24 U.S. schools were listed, out of 629 evaluated, and UCI was the only UC campus included. […]

Assemblyman honors UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman for campus free speech advocacy

Free speech was the subject of the day in Sacramento, as UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman met with Assemblyman Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin) to discuss the hot-button campus topic and to receive a framed copy of Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 21. Passed unanimously July 17, it urges all state colleges and universities to adopt free speech statements […]

ARPA-E funds UCI-led study of kelp farming

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy has awarded $1.8 million to UCI oceanographic engineer Kristen Davis to study offshore kelp cultivation. “Macroalgae are fast-growing and highly versatile; they can be used for feedstock, fuels, chemicals and many other commercial products,” said Davis, assistant professor of civil & environmental engineering and Earth system […]

Little green flashes unlock secrets of catalytic reactions

UCI researchers have devised a new fluorescence microscopy technique for observing individual molecules during catalytic reactions. Their work, published recently in the prestigious German journal Angewandte Chemie, is aimed at helping scientists and engineers better understand the fundamental workings of catalysis, the basis of multibillion-dollar industries in polymer plastics and pharmaceuticals. “Most studies of catalytic […]

UCI part of NSF-funded study of big data ethics

From mobile phone applications to website search engines, wearable technology to social platforms, consumer data has become highly obtainable and trackable. The result is an ethically questionable free-for-all in research and marketing, but consumers aren’t the only ones concerned about how their personal information is being collected and utilized. UCI is one of six institutions […]

In a warming climate, ocean- and land-based floods are a disastrous duo, UCI researchers find

Coastal areas are threatened by both oceanic and terrestrial flooding, and the combination of these factors is especially concerning as sea levels continue to rise. Untangling how oceans and rivers interact – their so-called compounding effects – is a challenge for scientists and engineers trying to estimate the current and future risk of flooding. UCI researchers have […]

Being arrested takes toll on mental health, study finds

Being in prison is known to adversely affect mental health, but it’s not just the  2.2 million people incarcerated in the U.S. who suffer. According to a new UCI study, the 12.2 million individuals arrested every year also experience mental health repercussions. “For the first time, our research documents the significant association between arrest and […]