Applied Mathematics

UC Merced Leads National Effort to Unlock Quantum Secrets of Twisty Molecules

October 27, 2025

An example showing a chiral molecule and 'handedness.'

A team of scientists led by UC Merced is embarking on a project to understand how the twisted shapes of specific molecules can influence the spin of electrons — a phenomenon that could revolutionize solar energy, electronics and quantum computing. The research, funded by the U.S....

Finalists Compete for Grad Slam Champion Title April 8

UC Merced’s Graduate Division will host its annual Grad Slam competition on April 8, with graduate scholars presenting their research on topics ranging from the effects of cannabidiol (CBD...

Most ranked graduate programs see progress in the 2023 U.S. News Best Graduate Schools rankings.

UC Merced Grad Programs See Uptick in U.S. News Rankings

Twelve of UC Merced’s graduate programs and one of its schools are among the best in the country in the U.S. News & World Report 2023 Best Graduate Schools rankings, according to results...

New Program to Prepare Students for Academic, Career Success in STEM Fields

The new UC Merced Bobcat STEM Scholars Program, funded by a $1.4 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF), will provide four years of scholarship support for up to 10 eligible...

Graduate students stand before the Beginnings sculpture.

Grad Students Invited to UC Merced’s First ‘Nanoengineering Environmental Sensors’ Incubator Program

Graduate students who are passionate about their research, concerned about the environment and eager to reach across disciplinary boundaries are invited to apply for a three-week summer program in...

Applied Mathematics Professor Suzanne Sindi, Postdoctoral scholar Lihong Zhao and immunology Professor Katrina Hoyer

Postdoc Awarded Fellowship to Support Computation and Immunology Cross-training

Postdoctoral scholar Lihong Zhao was one of 10 researchers named a 2022 Intersect Fellow by the American Association of Immunologists (AAI) — a first for UC Merced. The AAI Intersect...

Ph.D. Student Goes from Former Inmate to Teaching Prisoners

In his early 20s, Cory Mccullough battled addiction and stole to support his habits. The Dos Palos native spent several stints in prison as early as 2011 for commercial burglary. Education was the...

From left, UC Merced faculty Lei Yue, Keith Thompson, Changho Kim, Professor Zenaida Aguirre-Muñoz and Mayya Tokman work on planning the new calculus effort with their teammates. Photo by Jim Chiavelli

New Collaboration Aims to Help Students Understand the Hows and Whys of Calculus

More than a few students have probably asked themselves why they have to take calculus — the course is notoriously difficult for some. “People haven’t been taught math the way it...

UC Merced Faculty Land Three UC-HBCU Grants, Most in System

The University of California Office of the President awarded three out of only seven UC-Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Initiative grants to UC Merced faculty members. The...

Postdoc Earns Prestigious NIH Fellowship to Expand Prion Disease Research

Postdoctoral Scholar Mikahl Banwarth-Kuhn was awarded a $205,140 National Institutes of Health Ruth L. Kirschstein Postdoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (NIH-F32) to be distributed...