Cockroach Sex is Evolving in Response to Pesticides

German cockroaches “overcome challenges over and over,” said Chow-Yang Lee, a UCR entomologist. “You cannot help but have a lot of respect.”
Smithsonian Magazine | April 7, 2023

Even California’s Sonoran Desert is threatened by climate change

New research from UCR ecologists Marko Spasojevic and Tesa Madsen-Hepp shows one of the hottest, driest places in North America is changing in ways that might one day leave stretches of arid land barren.
The Mercury News | March 31, 2023

UC Riverside School of Medicine Accepts Inaugural Class of California Medicine Scholars

The UCR School of Medicine has accepted its first class of California Medicine Scholars. This spring, these community college students from inland Southern California will receive academic support as they pursue medical education.

California’s desert trees can’t take the heat: study

Tesa Madsen-Hepp, a UCR botanist and Ph.D. student, led research offering evidence that desert ecosystems, long perceived as the most resilient to climate change, may be hitting their limits.
The Hill | March 28, 2023

How Southern California researchers are developing the food of the future

The OC Register highlights the work that UCR genetics professor Julia Bailey-Serres is doing with the Center for Plant Cell Biology to make staple foods more resilient to climate change.
Orange County Register | March 25, 2023

Why do some love to exercise? It might be their microbiome.

Theodore Garland, Jr., a UCR evolutionary biologist, has shown in an ongoing experiment launched in 1993 that some variability in motivation or ability to do hard exercise is related to genetics. 
National Geographic | March 24, 2023

Ukraine is betting big on a bloody battle for a ruined town, but the gamble could break its ability to drive Russia back

Paul D'Anieri, a UCR political science professor and the author of "Ukraine and Russia: From Civilized Divorce to Uncivil War," says the battle for the eastern city of Bakhmut will ultimately look like a big miscalculation either for the Ukranians or the Russians. 
MSN / Business Insider | March 22, 2023

Tattoos Do Odd Things to the Immune System

When a tattoo is stamped onto skin, the body considers it an assault. The skin is the immune system’s “first barrier,” and is heavily stocked with fast-acting defensive cells that can leap into action when it’s breached, says Juliet Morrison, a virologist at UC Riverside.
The Atlantic | March 22, 2023

How Southern California researchers are developing the food of the future

UCR's Center for Plant Cell Biology, directed by Professor Julia Bailey-Serres, is leading research into such topics as how to increase yields of crops like rice and tomatoes, and how to make them more resistant to pests. 
Orange County Register | March 22, 2023

Are Kids Collateral Damage In California Culture Wars?

Black students are more often the target of racial hostility than any other group of students, according to a joint report by the UCLA Institute for Democracy, Education and Access and the Civic Engagement Research Group at UC Riverside.
LAist | March 21, 2023

Union-backed bill would make it harder for California industries to seek voter veto on new laws

Shaun Bowler, dean of the graduate division in UCR's political science department and an expert on ballot measures, believes voters are pretty savvy even when bombarded with expensive campaign ads. Therefore, he questions the need for a ballot measure that would make it harder to gather referendum signatures.
East Bay Times | March 21, 2023

School gave students bugs to eat as part of an assignment. Is that safe?

UCR Entomology Department Chair Rick Redak offers context for a debate about eating insects that was sparked by a school assignment in Utah. "Bugs are eaten just about everywhere in the world except the United States and Europe," he said. "There are probably 500 to 1,000 species of insects that are used for food."
The Today Show | March 17, 2023

How can we control mosquitos? Deactivate their sperm.

New research from UCR biologists Richard Cardullo and Cathy Thaler makes it more likely that the proteins that activate mosquito sperm can be shut down. This could help control populations of a common house mosquito known to transmit West Nile Virus and brain-swelling encephalitis.
Popular Science | March 16, 2023

Cyclone Freddy to ease after battering Malawi, Mozambique

AP interviews  Kim Yi Dionne, associate professor of political science, regarding Cyclone Freddy. 
Associated Press | March 15, 2023

Venus is volcanically alive, stunning new find shows

UCR planetary astrophysicist Stephen Kane says new evidence is some of the most convincing he's ever seen that Venus may have active volcanoes, which sheds new light on the evolution of our sister planet. 
MSN / National Geographic | March 15, 2023

Here's the devastating impact a super-Earth would have on our solar system

New research from UCR astrophysicist Stephen Kane shows the tiniest changes in the orbit of Jupiter, which is more massive than all other planets combined, would have a profound and devastating effect on the delicately balanced orbits of all other planets, including Earth.
Yahoo Sports | March 13, 2023

Insurance requirements for prior authorization may prompt ‘devastating’ delays

Erin Conlisk, a UCR social science researcher shares her experience trying to get an ambulance to take her 81-year-old mother six miles to a health clinic. The ride was not pre-authorized, and no one had notified her; it simply never showed up.
CNN | March 10, 2023

Riverside professor puts Marvel’s newest Black superhero back in the spotlight

John Jennings, UCR media and cultural studies professor, has helped a new Black superhero enter a storied franchise.
The Press Enterprise | March 8, 2023

One 'Super-Earth' Could Destroy Our Own Planet, Study Finds

In a new study, UCR astrophysicist Stephen Kane asks the question, "What if a beefed-up version of Earth were suddenly dropped into the solar system between Mars and Jupiter?" The answer sheds light on how “super-Earths,” a class of planets that is very common in other star systems, might affect our own solar neighborhood.
Vice | March 8, 2023

Don’t feel like exercising? It could be your microbiome.

Mouse studies led by UCR biology professor Theodore Garland suggest your gut may help motivate you to exercise. Or it might nudge you to skip your workout.
Washington Post | March 8, 2023