River project promises clarity, security for California water resources
Researchers at UC Merced are installing wireless sensors across the American River to monitor the water level. This will help pinpoint how fast the snow is melting and when the meltwater will arrive in the reservoirs each spring.
A deadly virus identified in snakes
UCSF scientists have uncovered the possible cause of a mysterious disease that causes bacterial infections, neurological problems, anorexia and withering in snakes.
Transportation energy challenge solved?
UC Davis joined five other research institutions in releasing a national standard for low carbon fuel. There are high hopes that this standard will ensure fuels in the future are cleaner and cheaper and 'made in America.'
Study warns of continued rise in wildfires
A UC Berkeley researcher reports that some areas of the world, including the western United States, 'should brace themselves for more fire.'
Plants previously thought to be 'stable' found to be responding to climate change
Many wild plant species thought to be stable in the face of climate change are actually responding to global warming, say researchers at UC Santa Barbara.
Biodiversity loss ranks with climate change and pollution in terms of impacts to environment
A study published by an international research team at UC Santa Barbara has found that loss of biodiversity impacts the environment as significantly as climate change and pollution.
Robots measure flow of Sacramento River
A fleet of 100 robots, developed by UC Berkeley researchers, floated down the Sacramento River to demonstrate their ability to measure the pace of the river's flow and to navigate the delta's water.
Which plants will survive droughts, climate change?
New research by UCLA life scientists could lead to predictions of which plant species will escape extinction from climate change.
Gases drawn into smog particles stay there, study reveals
A finding by UC Irvine researchers could explain why air pollution models underestimate organic aerosols.
Universities' solar future illuminated
A group of UC researchers met recently at UC Merced to talk about some of the latest solar research and its potential impact.
Devastating tree-killing pathogen traced to California
A study by UC Berkeley and Italian researchers may have solved a decades-long mystery behind the source of a tree-killing fungus that affected six of the world's seven continents.
Scientists fight a deadly oak tree disease
UC Berkeley researchers are part of the largest experiment ever conducted in the wild on a promising preventive treatment for sudden oak death.
Cows not at fault for decline of Yosemite toads
A study by UC Davis, UC Berkeley and the U.S. Forest Service found that livestock grazing is not the reason for a steep decline in the high-country amphibian.
UC research drives climate change report
A state report on climate change and California's landscape features research from seven UC campuses and laboratories.
Climate change skeptic changes views
A UC Berkeley physicist now states that the reason for global warming is due to the human emission of carbon monoxide. He argues that the warm-up began with the Industrial Revolution and has accelerated in recent years.
Climate change may spark more wildfires in future
A UC Berkeley study shows that in coming years, the frequency of wildfires will increase because of climate change.
Humans may be forcing an irreversible tipping point for Earth
The study by an international team of scientists, including two from UC Davis, finds severe impact on fisheries, agriculture, clean water and much of what Earth needs to sustain its inhabitants.
Elephant seal tracking reveals hidden lives of deep-diving animals
Researchers at UC Santa Cruz, who pioneered the use of satellite tags to monitor the migrations of elephant seals, have compiled one of the largest datasets available for any marine mammal species, revealing their movements and diving behavior at sea in unprecedented detail.
Researcher's waste-to-energy technology moves from the lab to the marketplace
Technology invented by a UC Davis researcher that converts solid waste into renewable energy debuted as the first commercially available, high-solid anaerobic digestion system in the U.S.
'Robosquirrel' deployed to research relationship with rattlesnakes
A lifelike robot, built by a team from UC Davis, can replicate two behaviors squirrels display when confronted by a rattlesnake. It joins a growing list of robot creatures created by the campus.
The sweet smell of success
A UC Irvine graduate student has won a Public Impact Fellowship for her sage scrub restoration efforts.
Yosemite's alpine chipmunks take genetic hit from climate change
A UC Berkeley study is one of the first to show a hit to the genetic diversity of a species because of a recent climate induced change in the animals' geographic range.
UC gets 4,584-acre forestland donation
A land donation will allow UC to nearly double its research forests, conserving a swath of the Northern California watershed and offering academics an expanded laboratory to explore forest ecosystems.
Parasites moving on up
A UC Santa Barbara research paper breaks new ground by including parasites in a detailed study of ecosystems.
Taking stock of the California Current
Scientists from Scripps Institution of Oceanography have been methodically measuring the southern waters of the current for 62 years, and their data series is touted as the most extensive of its kind in the world.
Groundwater depletion detected from space
Research at UC Irvine is redefining the field of hydrology, which has grown more critical as climate change and population growth draw down fresh water supplies.
Climate change can determine whether species go or stay
UC Berkeley scientists study how precipitation and temperature changes impact birds and other animals. They hope to project how different species will respond to future climate change.
Helping plants fight back
To protect crops from destruction researchers at UC Davis are developing a technique to exploit parasitic vines that suck water, nutrients and information from plants.
Scientists connect seawater chemistry with ancient climate change, evolution
Scientists at UC Santa Cruz and University of Toronto are looking in depth at the causes of the cooling trends in the past 45 million years, which have a lot to do with the chemistry of the world's oceans, not just humans.
Open-fire cooking may affect child cognitive development
Children exposed to open-fire cooking in developing countries experience difficulty with memory, problem-solving and social skills, according to researchers at the UC Riverside.
Nuisance seaweed found to produce compounds with biomedical potential
A seaweed considered a threat to the healthy growth of coral reefs in Hawaii may possess the ability to produce substances that could one day treat human diseases, a new study led by scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego has revealed.
Plastic trash altering ocean habitats, study shows
A 100-fold upsurge in human-produced plastic garbage in the ocean is altering habitats in the marine environment, according to a new study led by a graduate student researcher at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego.
Researchers offer new ecological model for deep-water oil spills
On the second anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil platform blowout, UC Santa Barbara researchers provided new insight into what happened in the disaster, as well as a guide for how to deal with such events in the future.
Coastal California fog carries toxic mercury, study finds
New research out of UC Santa Cruz shows that the moist fog air carries methylmercury, an especially toxic form of the heavy metal mercury.
Ecologist simulates climate change with infrared heaters
A UC Merced scientist is studying how trees in the mountains of Colorado will adapt to climate change.
Stock values rise when companies disclose 'green' information, study finds
It pays to be green, as companies that are open about their greenhouse gas emissions and carbon reduction strategies see stock values rise, according to a UC Davis study.
Sudden oak death cases jump
A UC Berkeley study used 10,000 tree and plant samples collected by 500 citizens between April and June this year to document a dramatic increase in the infection rate from Napa to the Carmel Valley and virtually everywhere in between.
Scientists warn that fires could consume Yellowstone forests
Increasing waves of severe fires fed by climate change could shift much of the iconic forests of Yellowstone to scrub or grasslands by the end of this century, UC Merced scientists say.
In heart of Amazon, a natural lab to study diseases
Amy Morrison of UC Davis leads a medical research unit studying the spread of dengue fever, a mosquito-borne disease.