News

BIOLOGY - In lab experiments that followed Caenorhabditis elegans worms for many generations, sexual selection after sperm are released was a bigger driver of evolutionary change than sexual selection before mating. Researchers in the lab of UO biologist and Provost Patrick Phillips report their findings in a paper published Feb. 14 in PLOS Genetics.

BIOLOGY, ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES - Biologist Lauren Ponisio has a plan to help the pivotal pollinators in the Pacific Northwest

BIOLOGY - UO researchers report observations suggest a new lifestyle option for larval-stage invertebrates living in the ocean. Scientists usually think of plankton-dwelling larvae either growing by grazing on nanoplankton — mostly unicellular algae — or relying on the egg's yolk reserves to become full-fledged adults. Instead, it appears there’s a third strategy: carnivory.

BIOLOGY - Caitlin Kowalski is a postdoctoral fellow in the UO’s Barber Lab, led by biology professor Matt Barber, which investigates the evolution of host-microbe interactions. Her award from the Helen Hay Whitney Foundation is the first of its kind to a UO researcher, according to university records, and will fund her research around yeast-bacteria interactions for the next three years, beginning in April.

BIOLOGY, NEUROSCIENCE - Nerves in the intestines help regulate the gut’s acidity, new research shows, and that helps keep their bacterial communities in balance.

BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY & BIOCHEMISTRY - Here at the UO, many women on campus are doing innovative research while also working to make the sciences better for everyone.

BIOLOGY - Proteins on the surface of cells act as sentries — and microbes hoping to invade will evolve tricks to evade these front-line defenses. But the host cell’s proteins don’t sit back helplessly. They, too, can evolve in ways that makes it harder for microbes to get through.

BIOLOGY - Prithiviraj Fernando, MS ’93, PhD ’98 (biology), and Herve Memiaghe, a landscape architecture PhD student, use research to save elephant populations in Sri Lanka and Gabon, Africa.

BIOLOGY - Two-time winner of the prestigious Udall Scholarship and 2018 Stamps Scholar Temerity Bauer didn’t always feel at home at the University of Oregon. One of few Native students pursuing a biology degree at UO and in the Clark Honors College, she said she felt lonely during her first few weeks of her freshman year — until she attended a potluck with the Native American Student Union.

ANTHROPOLOGY, BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Four UO faculty members have been named as 2021 fellows by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, joining 564 other newly elected members whose work has distinguished them in the science community and beyond.

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES, BIOLOGY - While the climate crisis is a global issue that cannot be solved by any one person or entity alone, individuals can still take meaningful actions. At the time of year when we resolve to be better versions of ourselves, UO experts offer some suggestions for resolutions that individuals can adopt to counter climate change and help green up their lives, their communities, and the planet.

BIOLOGY, PHYSICS, MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCE - A University of Oregon scholarship program funded by the National Science Foundation is enhancing teacher education on campus and creating a ripple effect in public schools around Oregon.

BIOLOGY - Two assistant professors of biology at the University of Oregon have landed prized early-stage research grants, funding their projects for the next five years.

BIOLOGY - Bee populations have been suffering sharp declines in recent years, part of a pattern of widespread loss of pollinator diversity and abundance. Now a UO biologist and former UO postdoctoral fellow have looked for ways to incentivize almond growers to adopt bee-friendly practices.

PSYCHOLOGY, BIOLOGY, THEATRE ARTS - The Center for Undergraduate Research and Engagement honored four faculty members this spring for excellence in mentoring students as they ask questions and seek answers.