School of Natural Sciences

Study of Sugar Pines Reveals Urgent Issue in Protecting Forests from Climate Change

November 20, 2024

Sugar pines are the tallest pine species in the world, and they only grow along the West Coast of North America. They are a valued source of timber with cones as large as an adult’s forearm. But they face several problems that a new paper argues should be quickly addressed. The sugar pine...

A male waterbuck antelope stands knee-deep in receding floodwaters three months after Cyclone Idai made landfall. Three months before this photo being taken, a waterbuck standing in this spot would be totally submerged by Cyclone Idai induced flooding.

Research Team Explores the Effects of Climate Catastrophes on Different Species

How different species of animals respond to extreme weather events — which are increasing because of climate change — appears to be related to body size and habitat preference, a new...

New Project Focuses on Women of Color in the Geosciences Throughout the UC

Although there has been a lot of talk this summer about paleoecology Professor Sora Kim’s research on the now-extinct megalodon shark, there is another focus to her work: BAJEDI, or belonging,...

Campus and Academic Growth Highlighted in UC Merced State of the University Address

Distinguished rankings, new academic offerings, world-class research and campus expansions were among the highlights of the UC Merced State of the University address delivered by Chancellor Juan...

HACU Leadership Cohort an ‘Exciting Opportunity to Learn,’ Ortiz Says

Physiology Professor Rudy M.Ortiz has been named a Fellow in this year's cohort of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities’ Leadership Academy (La Academia de Liderazgo...

UC Merced's Experimental Smart Farm is shown.

Grants Fund Wide Variety of Climate Change Research Projects

UC Merced researchers will tackle climate changes in multiple ways through more than $4 million in grants recently awarded from within the university. The Office of Research and Economic...

Professors Briana Ballis, Shijia Pan and Xuan Zhang are pictured.

Three Hellman Fellows Awarded at UC Merced

Three UC Merced researchers have recently received the prestigious Hellman Fellowship. Computer science and engineering Professor Shijia Pan, economics Professor Briana Ballis and life...

Miguel Chacón-Terán was presented with his award at Merck’s headquarters in Rahway, NJ.

Chemistry Postdoc Awarded Merck Research Award

Miguel Chacón-Terán was selected as one of 16 scientists from across the country to receive the 2023 Merck Research Award for Underrepresented Chemists of Color, intended to support rising chemists...

Most of the Universe Composed of Dark Energy, Researchers Show

A UC Merced researcher and her teammates around the world have succeeded in measuring the total amount of matter in the universe for the second time. A new paper in the Astrophysical Journal,...

Department of Energy Awards $37 Million to Build Research Capacity

Five faculty members from the School of Natural Sciences received grants recently from the Department of Energy (DOE) under its Funding for Accelerated, Inclusive Research (FAIR) initiative. To...