Research

Study: People Facing Life-or-Death Choice Put Too Much Trust in AI

September 4, 2024

In simulated life-or-death decisions, about two-thirds of people in a UC Merced study allowed a robot to change their minds when it disagreed with them -- an alarming display of excessive trust in artificial intelligence, researchers said. Human subjects allowed robots to sway their judgment...

Remapping Global History Through 5,500 Years of Malaria

In a new study, an international team of researchers — including UC Merced Distinguished Professor Emeritus Mark Aldenderfer — reconstructed the evolutionary history and global spread of...

UC Merced faculty and graduate students collaborate with the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation to record rock art sites in Mariposa County.

Major Gift to Reimagine Humanities Research, Community-engaged Projects

Humanities education has been under fire on college campuses over the past decade. “There’s a lot of concern nationally about graduate education in the humanities. We’re...

TUSCEB scholars showcased their research projects at a recent symposium.

Stem Cell Engineering and Biology Program Hosts First Symposium

In April, the Training Undergraduates in Stem Cell Engineering and Biology (TUSCEB) program marked a significant milestone toward its mission of fostering excellence in stem cell engineering and...

UC President Michael Drake signs a white coat to celebrate an important milestone for UC Merced's Medical Education Building.

Following the Mission to Improve Valley Health Care

It was a groundbreaking Tuesday night so there were shovels. Many shovels. Full sized, posterized, miniaturized (in a gift box). All to mark a symbolic turning of earth for UC Merced’s Medical...

Scholar Workshop Studies Genocide from Several Angles

An online workshop this week aims to deconstruct one of humanity’s most destructive traits: genocide. UC Merced’s Department of Cognitive and Information Sciences is bringing together...

A flexible material that gets stronger the more it is hit and conducts electricity is shown.

Stretchy Material That Gets Stronger When Hit Has Exciting Potential

Much of the work Yue (Jessica) Wang does at UC Merced sounds like science fiction: She creates flexible material that gets stronger the more you hit it. And it conducts electricity. Science, yes....

Ph.D. candidate Ambarish Varadan will compete in the UC Grad Slam finale livestreamed starting at 10:30 a.m. Friday, May 3.

Campus Grad Slam Winner Examines ‘Gut Viruses: Friends or Foes?’

Earlier this month, Ambarish Varadan competed in UC Merced’s Grad Slam finals and seized the title of Campus Champion. This was the second time the Quantitative and Systems Biology (QSB) Ph....

Researchers Find Unexpected Cellular Residence for Protein Vital in Neurodevelopment

In Professor Xuecai Ge ’s lab, where UC Merced researchers study how cells talk to each other to develop and differentiate, a recent surprise discovery is lending insight as to how erroneous...

Professor Ajay Gopinathan and CCBM Executive Director Carrie Kouadio

New Summer Research Opportunities for Undergraduates from Across U.S.

The National Science Foundation awarded a team, led by principal investigators Professor Ajay Gopinathan and Carrie Kouadio, funding to establish a summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (...