News

Public Health Ph.D. Student Wins CCAPW Scholarship

August 27, 2020

Shaina Santa Cruz, a graduate student in the Public Health Graduate Program, was awarded the Central California Asian Pacific Women (CCAPW) scholarship. The scholarship provides financial assistance to Asian and Pacific Islander (API) women pursuing higher education who are from Fresno, Kern, Kings...

Some Immune Cells Appear to ‘Know’ the Coronavirus, Even Though They’ve Never Met

August 20, 2020

Having had the common cold appears to have programmed some people’s immune cells to recognize the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. That discovery — by an immunology team that includes a UC Merced alumnus — could change scientists’ understanding of the virus behind the current pandemic. Lorenzo...

New Project Shining a Light on Energy Storage

August 20, 2020

California’s leaders want the state to reach 100 percent clean energy in the future, including being 60 percent powered by renewable energy by 2030 and being free of fossil fuels entirely by 2045. But if the state wants power without fossil fuels, School of Engineering Professor Sarah Kurtz said...

‘From the Valley, For the Valley’: Local Students Start Training at UCSF to Become Physicians for the Region

August 19, 2020

The San Joaquin Valley has a shortage of doctors, but students such as Kyle Shen (’18) aim to change that by attending a tailored track at UCSF’s medical school specifically designed to address this problem. Shen is one of 12 recently admitted to the newest cohort of students in the UCSF San...

Precipitation and Drainage Fuel Large CO2 ‘Burps’ from Rainforest Soils, Study Finds

August 17, 2020

It is said that rainforests are the Earth’s lungs, capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, building it into lush vegetation and releasing oxygen and water back into the air. But every time there’s a big rain, the rainforest soil emits a significant burst of that CO2, according to a new study...

Reforesting After Wildfires: Which Trees Are Most Likely to Thrive?

August 11, 2020

Wildfire seasons are intensifying because of climate change. That means reforestation efforts will increase, making it important for scientists and resource managers to understand how to make sure restorations will thrive in the future. Because changes in climate challenge forests’ stability and...

Ecosystem Engineers Play Crucial Role in Stabilizing Their Environments, Study Shows

August 11, 2020

When people think of engineering in nature, they tend to think of species such as beavers — the tree-felling, dam-building rodents whose machinations can shape the landscape by creating lakes and changing the path of rivers. But beavers are far from the only organisms to reshape their environment....

World’s Oldest Trees Shape the Diversity of Life in Their Soils, Study Shows

August 10, 2020

There’s a whole world of activity beneath your feet. Soil holds a large proportion of Earth's biodiversity, and is the place where organisms interact with each other and with plants, serving important functions for their ecosystems. A new study shows that trees and rocks are important drivers of...

World’s Tallest Trees Shape the Diversity of Life in Their Soils, Study Shows

August 10, 2020

There’s a whole world of activity beneath your feet. Soil holds a large proportion of Earth's biodiversity, and is the place where organisms interact with each other and with plants, serving important functions for their ecosystems. A new study shows that trees and rocks are important...

New Engineering Research Center to Focus on Agriculture Technology

August 3, 2020

By 2050, the U.S. population is estimated to grow to 400 million, and the world population to 9.1 billion, requiring a 70 percent increase in global food production. UC Merced is one of four campuses across the country uniting to meet that challenge by harnessing the power of innovation and...