UCR entomologist Tim Paine studies pest management in forests. He said treating trees with insecticides in campgrounds and areas used by people is part of the Forest Service’s policy. "The western pine beetle is a natural part of the forest," he said. "They're a vital part of that ecosystem — a problem from our perspective when they get to really high populations because they can kill large numbers of trees."
Bd is a deadly fungus causing a global pandemic that has either contributed to or caused the probable extinction of 90 amphibian species. UCR microbiologists Mark Yacoub and Jason Stajich have discovered a virus that infects Bd, and they think it can be genetically engineered to control or destroy the fungal disease.
A proposal by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to kill roughly half a million barred owls to protect the spotted owl has animal welfare advocates debating the moral issue of killing one species to protect another. Cameron Barrows, a retired emeritus researcher at UCR's Center for Conservation Biology, says that without a barred owl management strategy, spotted owls will disappear.
According to UCR's Eddie Schwieterman, there were no trees on Earth for most of the history of life on Earth and for most of the history of photosynthesis.
UCR's Vasileios Christopoulos and his colleagues are using functional ultrasound imaging (fUSI) to visualize the spinal cord and map its response to electrical stimulation in real time, an approach that could improve treatments of chronic back pain.
UCR astrophysicist Stephen Kane comments on a new study that suggests gravitational perturbations—perhaps from rogue passing stars or by migrating gas giants—can routinely launch rocky worlds into the maws of their star, even in mature planetary systems.
Arizona is not the only place with AI-related water issues. UC Riverside estimated last year that global AI demand could cause data centers to use up to 1.7 trillion gallons of fresh water by 2027.
Brandon Robinson, an associate professor and department chair of gender and sexuality studies at the University of California, Riverside, said the growing numbers show that people sense greater societal acceptance and/or support systems for those who identify as LGBTQ+.
UCR economist and associate professor Ugu Antonio Troiano’s research included in the Tax Foundation’“s article: “Taxes and Migration: New Evidence from Academic Research.”
UCR bioengineer Tingting Xiang and chemical engineer Robert Jinkerson discovered the gene that enables marine algae to produce a unique type of chlorophyll. Then they successfully implanted this gene in a land plant, paving the way for better crop yields on less land.
Lightning appears to us as a bright flash, usually during a big rainstorm, and it’s caused by electricity in the atmosphere discharging between clouds or to the ground. It also “influences the chemistry of planetary atmospheres, including, as we all know, on Earth,” explains UCR astrobiologist Edward Schwieterman.
Vasileios Christopoulos, assistant professor of bioengineering at UCR, helped develop an innovative tool not only visualizes the spinal cord but also tracks the cord’s real-time response to treatments.