China’s success in cleaning up air pollution may have accelerated global warming: Study

Efforts to clean up air pollution in China and across East Asia may have inadvertently contributed to a spike in global warming, a new study led by UCR climatology professor Bob Allen has found.
WCBD-TV Charleston | July 14, 2025

Something Strange Is Happening to Tomatoes Growing on the Galápagos Islands

Adam Jozwiak, a UCR biochemist, led a study showing tomatoes growing on the Galápagos Islands appear to be going back in time by producing the same toxins their ancestors did millions of years ago.
Smithsonian Magazine | July 9, 2025

Some Tomatoes Are Evolving Backwards in Real Time, Scientists Find

A new study led by molecular biochemist Adam Jozwiak at UCR compares tomatoes from eastern and western islands of the Galápagos — that famous island chain that inspired Charles Darwin’s evolutionary theory nearly 200 years ago. They found the tomatoes on the western islands are creating natural pesticide alkaloid molecules similar to eggplant relatives from millions of years ago, seemingly reversing evolution.
Popular Mechanics | July 9, 2025

Scientists behind threatened NASA missions explain what’s at stake

UCR astrophysicist Stephen Kane explains how the DAVINCI mission to Venus is imperiled by the budget cuts proposed for NASA, and what knowledge will be lost if the mission is cancelled. Hint: there's a lot about Earth's future we may not be able to predict without more info on our twin planet.
The Planetary Society | July 7, 2025

Physicists Solve a 50-Year Mystery About a Critically Important Molecule

A study by UCR’s Boerge Hemmerling and Stephen Kane confirmed the dipole moment of aluminum monochloride, an elusive but important molecule found in ancient galaxies. 
Gizmodo | July 2, 2025

If you’re a US researcher, now is the time to establish a plan B

If you’re a US researcher, now is the time to establish a plan B, says UCR’s Brandon Brown. The scale of funding cuts in the United States means that countless scientists will lose their jobs. It would be naive not to start thinking about alternative career paths.
Nature | June 30, 2025

These plants might actually be de-evolving

UCR's Adam Jozwiak leads a team of researchers who argue that despite how controversial it might sound, tomatoes in the Galápagos actually seem to be evolving backwards, not forwards.
Boy Genius Review | June 29, 2025

Scientists Are Just Beginning to Understand How Life Makes Clouds, and Their Discoveries May Drastically Improve Climate Science

According to UCR's Bob Allen, the climate mitigation potential of tree restoration may be larger than previously appreciated.
Smithsonian Magazine | June 26, 2025

5 things to know about the Inland Empire’s workforce

The Press-Enterprise newspaper writes about a just-released workforce report from UCR's Inland Empire Labor and Community Center.
The Press Enterprise | June 25, 2025

Reinventing Online Engagement: AI and Deliberative Democracy

UC Riverside professor Kevin Esterling, creator of Prytaneum, talks about an AI-powered webinar platform built to foster inclusive, deliberative public discourse. Inspired by ancient democratic principles, Prytaneum enables real-time audience participation and AI synthesis of diverse viewpoints—reshaping how civic engagement happens online.
The Good Men Project | June 25, 2025

Common parasite may be affecting your brain without symptoms

Emma Wilson has found that a common parasite might have a bigger impact on brain function than we previously realized.
Earth.com | June 24, 2025

UC Riverside starts construction of innovation hub

Center near campus on University Avenue will have labs, maker spaces, room for startups.  
The Press Enterprise | June 23, 2025

Nanoparticles are threatening the stability of plant cells

But new research, led by UCR's Juan Pablo Giraldo, shows that once nanoparticles -- which are everywhere -- enter a plant cell, they can change in unexpected ways and interfere with the plant’s ability to photosynthesize.
Earth.com | June 20, 2025

Why are so many straight guys so bad at gossiping?

Article highlights the work of Megan Robbins, UCR associate psychology professor, who has demonstrated that women discuss social topics more than men, and that the gossip is often more positive than one might assume.
Vox | June 18, 2025

Data centers' environmental impact is hard to quantify. Here's how we did it.

UCR's Shaolei Ren is a primary source for a Business Insider investigative article on the true cost of the U.S. data center boom, in water, power, pollution, and tax incentives.
Business Insider | June 18, 2025

Dairy Farm Captures and Cleans Over 80 Percent of Methane Emissions

The implementation of dairy digesters on farms could reduce methane emissions by approximately 80 percent, according to a study led by UCR climate scientist Francesca Hopkins. 
Discover Magazine | June 16, 2025

Inland Empire will get new medical center and teaching hospital

CalMatters writes about UCR Health’s planned new medical center at the Riverside/Moreno Valley border.
Cal Matters | June 11, 2025

Even Bumble Bee Queens Need Time Off, UC Riverside Study Finds

Blanca Peto, UCR entomology doctoral student, observed that bumble bee queens take surprising pauses in their egg-laying cycle — likely as a crucial strategy to preserve their energy and ensure colony survival.
The National Enquirer | June 11, 2025

Scientists dropped gophers on Mount St. Helens for 24 hours. Four decades later, the impact is astonishing

University of California Riverside microbiologist Michael Allen did an experiment with gophers after Mt. St. Helens blew in 1980. The creatures spent one day on ground destroyed by the eruption, and 40 years later, the recovery they initiated was still detectable. 
IFL Science | June 11, 2025

The Mexican Flag Becomes a Potent L.A. Protest Symbol

Alfonso Gonzales Toribio, an ethnic studies professor at UCR, who has written about Latino immigrant rights movements, said that right now, immigrants are motivated by pride to wave flags from their homeland at protests.
The New York Times | June 8, 2025