Bach to the blues, our emotions match music to colors

Our brains are wired to make music-color connections depending on how the melodies make us feel, according to new research from UC Berkeley.

Higgs boson: UC physicists mattered in historic search

UC scientists spearheaded key experiments in what some call the 'Holy Grail' discovery in physics: a new particle that may prove to be the long-sought Higgs boson.

Learning by getting into the heads of schoolchildren

New brain imaging technology may pave the way for a new science to understand how children think and learn. It could eventually help educators and revolutionize classrooms.

Aditi Muralidharan

Trimming time in the stacks

A sophisticated text-analyzing tool developed by a UC graduate student could speed literary searches for humanities scholars and other researchers.

Putting the crown on solar power

Someday, solar power will provide all the energy homes and buildings need for electricity, heat and cooling. Scientists at UC Solar, a multicampus research institute based at UC Merced, are helping to make that day come true.

Monitoring tower

There's something in the California air

UC professors built and worked in towers as part of the largest single atmospheric research effort in the state. The data they've collected will guide policymakers dealing with air pollution.

Graduate student researchers mix technology and humanity

Graduate students are at the heart of UC research. And many package their expertise, creativity and compassion to tackle and solve key problems in California and beyond.

Legislators tap grad students for expertise

In early June, 20 UC graduate students met with state lawmakers to discuss the variety and importance of their research. Several students were asked for their input on key policy issues, such as conservation and energy.

A gecko

Lizard tails and gecko feet inspire industries, students

UC Berkeley discoveries about these agile and sticky reptiles have sparked product ideas ranging from rescue robots to sports gear. And they have captured the research imagination of undergraduate and graduate students.

Turning big ideas into solutions

UC's Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) rewarded teams of students for developing innovative tools that may prove handy for politics, health care and seeking social services.

Remote sensing: placing nature at our fingertips

Researchers at UC Natural Reserve System locations use sensors to map land, track animals and collect environmental data.

UC's Saul Perlmutter wins Nobel Prize for physics

Saul Perlmutter of Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley has won the 2011 Nobel Prize for physics for his work with the Supernova Cosmology Project. He is the 57th University of California researcher to be honored with a Nobel Prize.

Ronald David Glass

Center chases truth about state's crises

A multicampus center connects researchers and people in the community to address poverty, employment, health, the environment and other California issues.

Getting to the root of the water cycle

In a remarkable outdoor laboratory in the Sierra, UC Merced and UC Berkeley researchers use sensors to gather a mother lode of data to greatly improve ecological measurement and hydrologic forecasting.

Xiang Zhang

Pushing innovations to industry's doorstep

A tiny laser that could enable smaller and faster smart phones and tablets. A glucosamine-like supplement that targets the underlying cause of multiple sclerosis. These are among research projects getting a boost this year from a UC grants program. The Proof of Concept grants help move UC research out of the lab and to commercialization.

Building batteries and bridges

With moral and monetary support, including a UC Proof of Concept Grant, two UC grads have formed a company to create 'printable' batteries that are efficient, environmentally friendly and could be made as small as a postage stamp.

Graduate students take their research to the Capitol

They delivered a message to legislators: graduate student research is central not only to the future of UC, but to that of the state and the nation as well.

Honey bee

Tiny saviors in our backyard

Honey bees get most of the buzz, but some native bees are better at spreading pollen. They may hold the solution to world pollination problems that affect important crops.

Seabirds

Crossing borders to kick-start novel research

Scientists in Mexico and at UC study the breeding habits of a remarkable seabird for possible clues about behavioral evolution and how animals may develop immunities. The project is one of many research collaborations supported by UC MEXUS.

John Bigham

Car crash website tracks the really big hits

For those wanting to know about risky places to drive, or even walk, UC Berkeley researchers have designed a tool for sorting through and mapping all of the serious traffic collisions in the state.