Natural Sciences News

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - UO lab spaces are some of the most resource-intensive areas on campus, using two to three times more energy than typical offices and generating unique kinds of waste that aren’t collected through regular recycling streams. The recently launched Sustainable Labs program offers researchers a flexible framework to foster more sustainability in labs.

EARTH SCIENCES - CRESCENT wrapped up its first-ever cohort for the Geoscience Education and Inclusion (GEI) Twinning Program. Over the course of a year, students worked with mentors on fully funded research projects, developing practical skills and presenting their findings to fellow scientists. The program manager, Shannon Fasola, said it offered a unique opportunity because students could focus on research without having to worry about finances. The program included Libby Tonn, a CAS student.

During the summer, 25 faculty members from the college’s Division of Natural Sciences took part in the Mobile Summer Institute for Scientific Teaching. The weeklong workshop offered faculty members ways to transform traditional lectures to be more inclusive and hands on that puts students at the center of learning. It brought together instructors not only from disciplines such as biology, chemistry, and physics—and across the campus.

PHYSICS - During the last week of August, the University of Oregon Eugene campus was home to the Europa Clipper Project Science Group meeting, offering College of Arts and Sciences students a chance to see a space mission team at work and inspire them to become the next generation of planetary scientists.

MATHEMATICS - The University of Oregon will be home to the Functional Analysis in the Pacific Northwest conference, Nov. 8-11. The four-day event aims to bring together a diverse field of mathematicians from around the world and foster an environment for collaboration and exchange of ideas, as well as celebrate influential functional analysis expert William B. Johnson.

PSYCHOLOGY - A new study led by researchers at the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences in collaboration with Google Research found little evidence linking smartphone use with mental well-being in adults. Researchers analyzed more than 250,000 days of smartphone usage from more than 10,000 U.S. adults ages 18 and up.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - The Chemistry and Biochemistry department is pleased to introduce the recipients of our annual undergraduate scholarships. Nine students were selected as recipients for the 2025 awards.

PHYSICS - Far from home, Eric Torrence, a physics professor at the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences, will spend the next year and a half as the ATLAS Run Coordinator at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). After being elected to the position fall 2024, Torrence ensures the largest particle accelerator in the world continuously produces usable data from May 2025 to July 2026.

BIOLOGY - Lauren Hallett, biology associate professor at the College of Arts and Sciences discusses her ongoing work to enhance the climate resiliency of Oregon’s hazelnut farms, which account for 99% of the country's hazelnut production. With the support of a $2 million federal award, Hallett and her lab have designed an agricultural practice using native cover crops and basalt dust amendments to set a new standard for sustainable hazelnut farming.

HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY - Performance testing transforms training from a guessing game into a precise, strategic process that builds maximum athletic potential. Oregon Performance Research Laboratory at the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences offers a number of testing services to athletes in the community, including threshold testing, VO2 max, hemoglobin mass, sweat testing and more.

BIOLOGY - An expert on child and adolescent development and an expert on host-microbe interactions have each been recognized by the Medical Research Foundation of Oregon of the Oregon Health and Science University. Karen Guillemin, professor and Philip H. Knight Chair in biology in the College of Arts and Sciences, received the Discovery Award for her significant contributions to health-related research.

PHYSICS - Physics Professor Richard Taylor blends art and science to create award-winning nature-inspired designs for indoor environments. In collaboration with designers in Austria, Taylor has been using computer-generated fractal patterns, which have been shown to reduce people’s stress levels by up to 60%.

PSYCHOLOGY - Adolescence isn’t a time of dysfunction; it’s a peak period of brain development, adaptability, and growth. Jennifer Pfeifer, a psychology professor at the College of Arts and Sciences, discusses at the 2025 TEDxPortland that it’s time to flip the script and recognize that young people are acting exactly as they’re wired to, and are capable of far more than we’ve been led to believe.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Sylvia Kennerly, Marie Kerns, Natalie Lakanen, Keyan Li, Rohan Myers, and Dario Nunez have been named recipients of the 2025 Chemistry and Biochemistry Graduate Student Teaching Awards. The award recognizes graduate student educators that have greatly exceeded the normal expectations of a Teaching Assistant, and their important contributions to the instructional mission of the department.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - UO Chemistry graduate student Audrey Klein has been selected to receive a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.  The fellowship provides three years of support for graduate students who have demonstrated their potential for significant research achievements in STEM or STEM education.