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UCR in the News

Wildflower bloom: Here's a checklist of Southern California favorites

The Sacramento Bee | March 13, 2026
Exequiel Ezcurra, professor emeritus of ecology at University of California, Riverside, discusses some must-see wildflowers in Southern California.  
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UCR in the News

These charcoal-eating fungi flourish after fires. Uncovering their genetic secrets could help rebuild burned ecosystems

Smithsonian Magazine | March 13, 2026
Sydney Glassman, a microbial ecologist at UCR, uncovers genetic secrets that allow some fungi to thrive in wildfire-ravaged areas when everything else dies off. These secrets could help burned areas recover. 
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UCR in the News

Enrollment is flattening at most UC campuses - with this major exception

Yahoo News via The San Francisco Chronicle | March 12, 2026
Enrollment was flat this year at most University of California campuses, some of which lack the physical capacity to add students. Others wanted to increase enrollment but missed their targets. UC Riverside, however, was the exception.
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UCR in the News

China's 3,046-kilometer "Great Green Wall" has transformed its largest desert into a carbon sink

IFL Science | February 18, 2026
“This is not a rainforest. It’s a shrubland like Southern California’s chaparral. But the fact that it’s drawing down CO2, and doing it consistently, is something positive we can measure and verify from space,” King-Fai Li, study co-author and atmospheric physicist at the University of California, Riverside.
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UCR in the News

About 15% of households in California don't have internet access, report finds

LAist / KPCC 89.3 FM | February 17, 2026
About 15% of California households lack access to high-speed internet, according to a report from UC Riverside. Researchers pointed to affordability as one of the biggest barriers to closing the persistent digital divide. Edward Helderop, associate director at UCR’s Center for Geospatial Sciences and report author, comments on the study.
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UCR in the News

Charge up your camera for an early wildflower bloom

The Bakersfield Californian | February 16, 2026
University of California, Riverside plant ecologist Loralee Larios notes she recently observed a bloom she hadn’t expected until mid-March. She said the desert is already experiencing displays of sand verbena and evening primrose, and she predicted California poppies in Antelope Valley soon.
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UCR in the News

Carbon's hidden superpower: How extreme warming can trigger an ice age

The Weather Network | February 15, 2026
Global warming could eventually bring about a new ice age on Earth, aided by organic carbon buried in the deep ocean, according to a 2025 study whose lead author was UCR geologist Andy Ridgwell.
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UCR in the News

The secret to happiness according to new research

UK Independent | February 14, 2026
To feel true happiness, UCR's Sonja Lyubomirsky says people need to build a loving connection with another person. That jumpstarts a cycle of mutual love: you have to show more to get more.
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