College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Joshua Trees facing extinction

They outlived mammoths and saber-toothed tigers. But without dramatic action to reduce climate change, new research shows Joshua trees won’t survive much past this century.

By Jules Bernstein | July 16, 2019 | Science / Technology

Physicists’ finding could revolutionize information transmission

UC Riverside-led team identifies dark trions as the next carrier of quantum information

By Iqbal Pittalwala | July 9, 2019 | Science / Technology

Campus to celebrate 50th anniversary of historic Moon landing

Free event at UC Riverside includes hands-on activities, lecture, and telescope viewings

By Iqbal Pittalwala | July 8, 2019 | Science / Technology

Study finds electronic cigarettes damage brain stem cells

A research team at the University of California, Riverside, has found that electronic cigarettes, often targeted to youth and pregnant women, produce a stress response in neural stem cells, which are critical cells in the brain. Present throughout life, stem cells become specialized cells with more specific functions, such as...

By Iqbal Pittalwala | July 1, 2019 | Science / Technology, Health

New material shows high potential for quantum computing

Research by UC Riverside-MIT team focuses on quantum phenomena in gold

By Iqbal Pittalwala | June 28, 2019 | Science / Technology

Scientists find thirdhand smoke affects cells in humans

UC Riverside-led study is the first to find an association between thirdhand smoke and gene expression in humans

By Iqbal Pittalwala | June 28, 2019 | Science / Technology, Health

Anopheles mosquito which spreads malaria

Controlling deadly malaria without chemicals

Scientists have finally found malaria’s Achilles’ heel, a neurotoxin that isn’t harmful to any living thing except Anopheles mosquitoes that spread malaria.

By Jules Bernstein | June 28, 2019 | Science / Technology

Star tours

Astronomers have a new tool in their search for extraterrestrial life – a sophisticated bot that helps identify stars hosting planets similar to Jupiter and Saturn.

By Jules Bernstein | June 25, 2019 | Science / Technology

Slime travelers

New UC Riverside research settles a longstanding debate about whether the most ancient animal communities were deliberately mobile. It turns out they were, because they were hungry.

By Jules Bernstein | June 19, 2019 | Science / Technology

Looming insect invasion threatens California wine and avocados

UC Riverside is testing whether a sesame seed-sized wasp can control a pest that could seriously damage California crops including wine, walnuts, and avocados.

By Jules Bernstein | June 17, 2019 | Science / Technology

It’s not easy being green

Despite how essential plants are for life on Earth, little is known about how parts of plant cells orchestrate growth and greening. By creating mutant plants, UC Riverside researchers have uncovered a cellular communication pathway sought by scientists for decades. Chan Yul Yoo, UCR molecular biologist and first author on...

By Jules Bernstein | June 14, 2019 | Science / Technology

New study dramatically narrows the search for advanced life in the universe

In a new study, a UC Riverside–led team discovered that a buildup of toxic gases in the atmospheres of most planets makes them unfit for complex life as we know it.

By Jules Bernstein | June 10, 2019 | Science / Technology

Meteor magnets in outer space

Astronomers believe planets like Jupiter shield us from space objects that would otherwise slam into Earth. Now they’re closer to learning whether giant planets act as guardians of solar systems elsewhere in the galaxy. A UCR-led team has discovered two Jupiter-sized planets about 150 light years away from Earth that...

By Jules Bernstein | May 24, 2019 | Science / Technology

As bumblebee diets narrow, ours could too

There has been a lot of buzz about honeybees’ failing health because they pollinate our produce. Less well known is how critical bumblebees are for some of our favorite foods. And their numbers are also rapidly declining. A new study from the University of California, Riverside, reveals the loss of...

By Jules Bernstein | May 15, 2019 | Science / Technology

Pioneering UC Riverside geoecologist elected to the National Academy of Sciences

Marilyn Fogel, a University of California, Riverside endowed geoecology professor, received one of the highest honors in science this week with her election to the National Academy of Sciences, or NAS. Membership in the NAS is rare. According to the Congressional Research Service, there are 6.9 million scientists in the...

By Jules Bernstein | May 2, 2019 | Science / Technology

An activated Steinernema carpocapsae nematode

Petri dishes don’t make good hosts for parasitic nematodes

Some of what scientists know about how parasitic nematodes damage their host’s tissues may be missing the mark

By Holly Ober | May 2, 2019 | Science / Technology

Student collecting maggot for examination.

Maggots and murder: what insects can teach us about crime

Taking care to stand upwind, UC Riverside students display stoic professionalism as they collect insects off a pig carcass in 90-degree heat. This scene from a class in forensic entomology could have been ripped from any TV police drama and in some ways, it was. Professor Alec Gerry said intense...

By Jules Bernstein | April 29, 2019 | Science / Technology