Behunin's project targets challenges in practical quantum computing by controlling noise and its impact on qubits. By manipulating sound waves, he hopes to quiet the noise that corrupts information stored in quantum computers.
The researcher will use a combination of rover, orbital, and analog data to understand the geological record on Mars. The team aims to link the orbital data with images and thermal infrared data from the Curiosity Rover to improve our understanding of past depositional conditions across Mars.
A multidisciplinary team at Northern Arizona University is using $1.3 million in funding to reduce racial disparities in STEM graduate programs. The team will create a cohort-based bridge program between NAU and tribal colleges, providing recruitment, training, and placement support for historically excluded groups.
Rising temperatures are causing the world's coldest forests to shift northward, threatening biodiversity and increasing wildfire risks. Soil nutrient availability also plays a key role in the response of boreal vegetation to climate change.
Researchers are using a salamander virus to predict the future of biodiversity amid a changing climate. The study aims to create better models to understand how climate change and infectious diseases interact, with potential implications for conserving species at risk of extinction.
Researchers studied Paradise, California's response to the 2018 Camp Fire. They found that community responses vary greatly due to distinct fire and demographic characteristics.
A new research-practitioner partnership aims to develop a CS/CT curriculum for K-5 settings with a significant Native American student population. The team will design, implement, and evaluate a curriculum that uses Internet measurement as an interdisciplinary approach to understanding computational thinking and computing.
A forest geneticist has received a $1.2 million NSF CAREER grant to investigate the genomic basis of drought tolerance in Douglas fir trees. The project aims to better understand how hybridization can help these species adapt to climate change.
NAU's Cristina Thomas is a renowned planetary astronomer who has received numerous awards for her groundbreaking research on asteroids and planetary defense. She is also recognized for her exceptional teaching and mentorship, making her a role model for underrepresented communities in STEM fields.
A bioengineer at Northern Arizona University received a $507,642 NSF CAREER grant to improve cardiovascular flow computer models using machine learning. The project aims to develop software that synergistically integrates deep learning and traditional physics-based modeling to address fundamental issues in high-fidelity blood flow and ...
A clinical trial will test a treatment strategy using a lightweight, wearable robotic device that provides neuromuscular training and makes walking easier for children with cerebral palsy. The study aims to establish fundamental knowledge on adaptive ankle interventions to treat walking impairment relative to standard of care.
NAU astronomers, planetary astronomers and their students will conduct experiments using the JWST to expand their research and advance our understanding of the solar system. The telescope's advanced suite of instruments will explore planets, stars, nebulae, galaxies and beyond.
A new study investigates the impact of climate change on human-elephant conflict in Africa's Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area. The research finds that households and communities have adaptive capacity to cope with these challenges, but institutions need to support effective risk mitigation strategies.
The Research Corporation for Science Advancement and USDA have awarded $1.25 million to early-career scientists to detect and mitigate emerging zoonotic diseases. Crystal Hepp and Jason Ladner of Northern Arizona University will receive funding for projects on serological approaches and genomic epidemiology.
A team of engineers at Northern Arizona University is developing an instrumented bike with sensors and a video device to detect real-time quality of cycling infrastructure systems. The bike will share data with cyclists and municipal authorities to improve road safety and maintenance.
A team of researchers from Northern Arizona University discovered that water briefly existed in the Arabia Terra region on Mars. The study used thermal inertia to understand how rock layers were formed, revealing that the deposits could have only had water for a brief period.
Researchers aim to reverse tissue damage and scar buildup in lungs affected by Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) using a protein domain. The team hopes to identify therapeutic agents that can be used to treat the disease, which affects 100,000 Americans annually.
Researchers found that microbes' growth rate decreased over 15 years of warming, and a loss of soil carbon may be responsible for the slowdown. Rare bacterial taxa were among the fastest growers, highlighting the importance of considering different organisms' responses.
A new project, funded by the National Science Foundation, aims to study the effects of climate change on caribou herds in the Arctic. By partnering with Indigenous conservation managers and agencies, researchers will conduct large-scale ecological analyses using novel modeling techniques and extensive field data.
Northern Arizona University researcher Marti Canipe has developed a three-year project to create science courses for undergraduate elementary education majors using phenomenon-based instruction methods. The courses will focus on real-life phenomena and engage students in scientific practices, leading to deeper understanding of science ...
Two PhD students, Maria Bolar and Megan Foley, are the first from Northern Arizona University to receive awards from the US Department of Energy. The program prepares graduate students for STEM careers by providing research opportunities at DOE national laboratories.
A doctoral student is launching a project to quadruple the number of known active asteroids by engaging volunteers in the search. The Active Asteroids project, supported by NASA and NSF grants, aims to classify over 10 million asteroid images in the Southern Hemisphere.
Researchers from Northern Arizona University found that solar radiation can produce iron nanoparticles on the Moon's surface, a process previously thought to be less significant. This discovery has important implications for future space missions and the study of the Moon's surface evolution.
The NSF CAREER award will support Mike Gowanlock's research on developing new parallel algorithms to process large data volumes from the Legacy Survey of Space and Time. The grant also funds a new undergraduate course teaching parallel computing using GPUs, ensuring graduates have skills for future generation computer systems.
A recent study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases documents the person-to-person transmission of antimicrobial-resistant pneumonic plague in an outbreak in rural Madagascar. The AMR strain was resistant to streptomycin but susceptible to co-trimoxazole, and all patients treated with antibiotics survived.
Astronomer David Trilling is leading a project to increase readiness of minority researchers for the Vera C. Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). The $900,000 grant will support research programs for thousands of worldwide scientists, including those from underrepresented communities.
Researchers found that mobile lidar scanning consistently provided accurate structural metrics and estimates of canopy cover and landscape metrics in various forest types and configurations. The technology has the potential to monitor a variety of forest attributes at a lower cost than other platforms.
Researchers developed a model that shows diverse supply chains can explain up to 90% of historically observed food supply shocks in US cities. This finding has practical implications for boosting city supply chain resilience and developing policies to mitigate supply chain shocks.
A new study published in Nature Communications confirms that the end-Permian mass extinction was caused by nickel-rich aerosols from volcanic eruptions. The study uses nickel isotope analyses to demonstrate a direct link between global dispersion of Ni-rich aerosols, ocean chemistry changes and the mass extinction event.
Zach Lerner, a mechanical engineer at Northern Arizona University, has received an NSF CAREER award to develop wearable robotic exoskeletons for long-term gait rehabilitation. The project aims to understand the interplay between disease severity and wearable assistance, with potential to transform treatment of walking disabilities.
Researchers found that just three to six bacterial groups are responsible for the majority of carbon cycling in soils. These dominant species were able to efficiently consume and utilize both existing and added soil carbon and nutrients.
Francisella tularensis can persist in a dormant state for over six months in cold water without nutrients, remaining fully virulent. This discovery changes the understanding of the bacterium's ecology, suggesting it spends most of its time outside a host and amplifies disease events in mammals.
Astronomer Alicia Rutledge has been awarded a $200,000 NASA Planetary Science Early Career Award to support the development of a field-portable laboratory for her research on cold-climate alteration processes. The award will enable her to conduct analog fieldwork and train next-generation scientists in planetary analog science.
Researchers at Northern Arizona University developed a computerized method that uses machine learning to analyze visual information, allowing for rapid sorting of thousands of pottery fragments. The system achieved accuracy comparable to human experts and provided a visual record of its thought process.
A new collection of papers emphasizes the importance of protecting free-flowing rivers, which sustain biodiversity and food supply chains for billions. Despite being under-protected, these ecosystems face significant threats from human activities.
Predatory bacteria grow faster and consume more resources than non-predators in the same soil, according to a study. These active predators play an outsized role in how elements are stored in or released from soil, with some species growing 36% faster and taking up carbon 211% faster.
Cavatappi artificial muscles, developed by Northern Arizona University researchers, exhibit specific work and power metrics ten and five times higher than human skeletal muscles, respectively. These flexible actuators respond as fast as they can pump pressurized fluid and have demonstrated contractile efficiency of up to 45 percent.
A new study published in Science shows that deciduous trees replacing burned spruce forests store more carbon and accumulate it four times faster over a 100-year fire interval. This suggests that these faster-growing forests may act as a stabilizing 'firebreak' against escalating fire patterns.
A Northern Arizona University researcher is working to increase participation of neurodivergent students in STEM fields. The project aims to provide interventions such as minimizing changes to routines and continuity, offering options for assignment completion and assessment, and providing different types of learning material.
Researchers are using multibeam sonar to study shifting sands in the Colorado River system, aiming to preserve sandbars through conservation management. The project involves mapping underwater topography and analyzing changes in sediment storage, with potential implications for native fish populations and ecosystem sustainability.
A multidisciplinary project between NAU and ASU aims to create a secure identification system for food traceability throughout the supply chain. Dendritic tags, which offer unique identities, could enable real-time tracking of contaminated products and reduce economic losses.
Tyler Robinson, a Northern Arizona University astronomer, has been recognized as a 2021 Cottrell Scholar for his outstanding academic leadership and research quality. He will receive a three-year $100,000 grant to advance his teaching and research, focusing on exoplanet atmospheres and undergraduate education.
The Emirates Mars Mission will provide crucial science data on the Martian atmosphere, measuring dust particles, ice clouds, and water vapor. The mission's launch marks a significant milestone in space exploration for an Arab nation and has enormous positive impacts on science communities.
A study found that 48 major US cities underreport their greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 145% compared to standardized estimates, affecting climate change policies. The discrepancies were likely due to limited local information on particular fuels or sectors.
Northern Arizona University will test Allarity drug stenoparib against the highly infectious Coronavirus Variant B117, a variant found in the UK and US that spreads more easily than other variants. The testing aims to validate the antiviral activity of stenoparib against this variant.
A recent study led by a doctoral candidate in Arctic Alaska reveals the interconnectedness of the Arctic and North Pacific on multimillennial timescales, with implications for future climate change. The research demonstrates that reduced sea ice results in isotopically heavier precipitation derived from proximal Arctic moisture sources.
A study by Northern Arizona University and TGen found that COVID-19 may awaken an antibody response created in humans prior to the pandemic, suggesting pre-existing immunity. The research also identified cross-reactivity between SARS-CoV-2 and previous coronavirus infections, which could help design new diagnostics and vaccines.
A new study finds that Earth's temperature tipping point for carbon uptake is already being exceeded in nature, with potential catastrophic consequences. If emissions continue unchecked, up to half the terrestrial biosphere may experience temperatures beyond this productivity threshold by mid-century.
A Northern Arizona University ecologist is studying pollinators in utility rights-of-ways to improve ecosystem health and biodiversity. The research project aims to evaluate the impact of different vegetation management treatments on plant and pollinator abundance in Arizona's electric power delivery lines.
A biologist has created software tools to model cancer pathways and predict the efficacy of cancer drugs. The project aims to develop targeted treatments that target specific signaling networks in cancer cells, reducing harm to normal cells.