Research

NSF Award Supports Young Faculty Member’s Research into Building Blocks of the Universe

May 1, 2025

Cosmology Professor Anna Nierenberg has received a CAREER award for a project that will vastly improve the study of the nature of dark matter in the universe. She is the 42nd researcher from UC Merced to earn a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation (NSF). CAREER awards are among...

Immigration Status Has Health Implications for Young Latinos, Study Shows

Young undocumented Latinos who gain legal status, even on a temporary basis, experience significant positive effects on their psychological well-being, according to a new study published in the...

Researchers Eye Social Media’s Influence on Relationships, Stress

Nearly 70 percent of Americans use some form of social media, according to a Pew Research Center survey. There is little doubt it affects our daily lives — but how? UC Merced Ph.D. graduate Holly Rus...

Researcher Continues Progress Toward Effective HIV Inhibitor

Patricia LiWang was at an impasse. It was 2011 and the UC Merced professor’s research group had figured out how to make some of the most potent HIV inhibitors even more powerful. LiWang was thrilled...

Study: Wildfires, Climate Change Could Make Sierra a Polluter

What if nature were to become a polluter, discharging millions of tons of planet-warming carbon into the atmosphere in much the same way as diesel-fueled trucks or coal-fired power plants? This...

New Study Finds Link Between Unconscious Movement and Reading

Right now, while you are reading these typewritten words, your hand muscles are moving imperceptibly, but measurably. These movements would be even greater if the words were handwritten. That’s...

UC Merced Library Chosen to Digitize AIDS Historical Archives

The UC Merced Library’s digital assets team is playing an important role in providing access to a swath of modern history that will contribute to research and society. The team has been asked to...

Students’ Engineering Chops to be Showcased at ‘Innovate to Grow’

Is it still possible to build a better mouse trap? Engineering students at UC Merced think so. “Eraticate” — a fitting name for a group focused on mouse trap optimization — isn’t concerned with the...

NSF Grant Brings Powerful New Microscope to Campus

UC Merced added a powerful new tool to the campus’s Imaging and Microscopy Facility. The newly acquired Zeiss LSM 880 is a state-of-the-art laser scanning confocal microscope that represents a huge...

New Collaboration Focuses on Refugee Stories, Experiences and Humanity

Often, when people talk about or study refugees, the focus is on policy, rescue operations or terrorism. Rarely is the conversation centered on refugees as human beings. But a new collaboration among...