Research

UC Awards Support Tackling Big Questions in Health, Physics, Agriculture and Climate

February 5, 2025

A fluorescence microscope image of one kind of active matter being studied. Image courtesy of Amanda Tan, UC Merced

Faculty members at UC Merced are taking the lead on four Multicampus Research Program Initiatives (MRPI), working with colleagues around the University of California system to address challenges around labor and agriculture, active matter, Indigenous health and fusion energy. “The MRPI...

Despite Farms, Some in Valley Struggle to Find Fresh Food

It might come as a surprise that, in a region where agriculture is so prevalent, many people in the San Joaquin Valley cannot afford fresh, quality produce or live too far from grocery stores,...

Cancer Patients’ Care Requires More Than Written Instructions

The depth and breadth of post-diagnosis care for cancer patients often depends on the resources available to them. But a new paper in the journal PLoS One by UC Merced Professor Nancy Burke shows...

UC Merced Professor Delivers Pellissier Lecture

Everyone is invited to hear UC Merced Professor Clarissa Nobile, this year’s Pellissier Distinguished Speaker, discussing biofilms. “Microbial Films: Why are They Important? How do They Form? And...

Study: Infants Recognize Surprise in Others Before Age 2

Infants as young as 20 months of age expect adults to display surprise when discovering a false belief, according to a new study from UC Merced Professor Rose Scott. Previous research suggested that...

Raindrops, Red Wine Inspire Solar Tech Advancements

In recent publications, Professor Vincent Tung proves that inspiration for advancements in materials science can come from anywhere — even the merging of raindrops on a windshield or the sheeting of...

New UC Grant Enables Deeper, Broader Valley Fever Research

Researchers at UC Merced are playing key roles in the new UC Valley Fever Research Initiative, studying how the Valley fever fungus, Coccidioides immitis, causes disease in its mammalian hosts, and...

Blum Center Relaunching With Focus on Food

UC Merced is relaunching its branch of the Blum Center for Developing Economies with a focus on food security for the first two years of the faculty-led effort. Economics Professor Kurt Schnier, with...

‘Diverse’ Magazine Names Groundbreaking Professor an Emerging Scholar

The magazine Diverse: Issues in Higher Education has named UC Merced Professor Ala Qattawi an Emerging Scholar of the Year in its first issue of 2017. Qattawi, with the School of Engineering, is the...

Bird Researcher Expands Knowledge About Reserve’s Kestrels

Kestrels are a fixture among the birds on the Merced Vernal Pools and Grassland Reserve adjacent to campus. Though they are not endangered, the small falcons’ population has declined by...