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Research Excellence

How Did the COVID-19 Pandemic Fuel Record-Breaking Wildfires in 2020? New Study Explains

May 5, 2025

Photo depicts a firefighter and flames from the 2020 Apple fire in California.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted many facets of life, including health care, schools and the work environment. A new study by UC Merced researchers shows evidence that the pandemic also fueled an elevated number of wildfires in the United States that year. How? With schools...
Professor Chuang and his students

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Development at the Fore of Chuang’s International Research

Green energy solutions are critical to meet current and future power demands, and while solar and wind power are great, they are also site-specific and intermittent. That’s why researchers...
Professor Roland Winston and some of his student researchers with a solar collector

In Retiring, Winston Looks Forward to His Busy, Bright Future

Distinguished Professor Roland Winston was among the first eight faculty members at UC Merced in 2003, two years before the campus opened. When he retires July 1, at age 86, he will be the first of...

Symposium to Open Doors on Education Research in the Valley

For the first time, UC Merced has partnered with local higher education institutions for a two-day symposium dedicated to education research findings from the Central Valley. The Central Valley...
Professor Clarissa Nobile

Mucus Molecules can Thwart Fungal Infection, Researchers Discover

An international team of researchers, including Professor Clarissa Nobile from UC Merced, has discovered which component in mucus prevents a fungus most humans carry from turning destructive....
Professor Munoz and a few of his research group members.

‘Molecular LEGO’ Study Analyzes Building Blocks of Partially Disordered Protein

Bioengineering Professor Victor Muñoz and his lab have created a new way to solve some of the mysteries among an increasingly important class of proteins that don’t appear to have any...
A baby drinks from a bottle.

Baby Formula Shortages and COVID-19 Led to Risky Feeding Practices, Study Suggests

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the majority of parents struggling to find baby formula have resorted to dangerous feeding practices for their infants, which could negatively impact the health of...
Professor Eva De Alba Bastarrechea

Bioengineer Invited to Join NIH Review Board

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) have invited bioengineering Professor Eva De Alba Bastarrechea to serve as a member of the Macromolecular Structure and Function C Study Section within the...
Professor Zoghbi, seated, and some of the students in her lab.

Lab Aims to Understand Transporter Protein that Protects Cells from Damage

Professor Maria-Elena Zoghbi and her lab are taking a closer look at a human transporter protein that acts as a cellular protector by relocating a molecule that has important antioxidant properties...
A drone, viewed from below, flies between tall buildings on a partly cloudy day.

CITRIS Researchers Lay Groundwork to Bring Flying Buses to California Skies

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has awarded a team of researchers from the University of California campuses at Merced, Berkeley and Davis a two-year grant to simulate urban...

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