News

New research from the University of Quebec declares coffee pods are “better for the planet than filtered brew.” Here to weigh in on the matter is UCR's Andrew Gray, who studies the movement of plastic pollutants through the environment.

Many Southern Californians plant trees prized for drought tolerance, but a new UC Riverside-led study shows that these trees lose this tolerance once they’re watered.

For decades, scientists have been stumped by the signals plants send themselves to initiate photosynthesis, the process of turning sunlight into sugars. UC Riverside researchers have now decoded those previously opaque signals.

Without clocks or modern tools, ancient Mexicans watched the sun to maintain a farming calendar that precisely tracked seasons and even adjusted for leap years.

University of California scientists have a new way to demonstrate which neighborhoods are most affected by air pollution from vehicle emissions. Their technique could help ensure people most affected by pollution will benefit from efforts to reduce it.

Great gray owls’ physical features, especially parts of their wings and face, help them correct for sonic distortions caused by snow, enabling them to find moving food with astonishing accuracy, according to a new UC Riverside study.

New research suggests environmental changes caused the first mass extinction event in history, which occurred millions of years earlier than scientists previously realized.

Researchers at UC Riverside are paving the way for diabetes and cancer patients to forget needles and injections, and instead take pills to manage their conditions.

Breakthrough research addresses a long-standing question in pulmonary medicine about whether modern ventilators overstretch lung tissue. They do.

An Earth-like planet orbiting an M dwarf — the most common type of star in the universe — appears to have no atmosphere at all. This discovery could cause a major shift in the search for life on other planets.

Broccoli, along with other plants and microorganisms, emit gases to help them expel toxins. Scientists believe these gases could provide compelling evidence of life on other planets.

The Salton Sea, California’s most polluted inland lake, has lost a third of its water in the last 25 years. New research has determined a decline in Colorado River flow is the reason for that shrinking.

By documenting hundreds of new nectar plants for painted ladies, scientists have renewed hope these charismatic butterflies may prove resilient to climate change.

Scientists at UC Riverside are suggesting something is missing from the typical roster of chemicals that astrobiologists use to search for life on planets around other stars — laughing gas.

Laughing gas is no laughing matter — nitrous oxide is a greenhouse gas with 300 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide. Scientists are racing to learn whether microorganisms send more of it into the atmosphere after wildfires.

A pair of massive earthquakes in Mexico has some in Southern California on edge, wondering whether the Golden State is next. UC Riverside seismologist Abhijit Ghosh weighs in on the likelihood of more shakers, and how to prepare for them.

UC Riverside engineers are developing low-cost, robotic “clothing” to help children with cerebral palsy gain control over their arm movements.

Though it is disappearing, California’s official state grass has the ability to live for 100 years or more. New research demonstrates that sheep and cattle can help it achieve that longevity.

A UC Riverside-led team discovered the exact chemical combination that causes Zika, dengue and yellow fever-spreading mosquitoes to locate and land on their victims.

Researchers have identified a new reason to protect mangrove forests: they’ve been quietly keeping carbon out of Earth’s atmosphere for the past 5,000 years.