Author: Talia Ogliore

James Friend, of the University of California, San Diego, has been named chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science in the McKelvey School of Engineering. His appointment will begin in 2026.

Frank A. Podosek, a professor emeritus of earth, environmental and planetary sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, died June 8 in Florida. He was 83 years old.

An interdisciplinary research team at Washington University in St. Louis has found that variability in sleep patterns in people experiencing pregnancy can effectively predict preterm birth.

Biologist Keith Hengen in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis says “criticality” is the key to understanding how the brain works — and how to keep it free from Alzheimer’s and other diseases.

Kevin Cox, an assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, received the 2025 Eric E. Conn Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Plant Biologists.

Physicists Bryce Wedig and Tansu Daylan, in Arts & Sciences, calculated how many gravitational lenses will be uncovered by NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope when it begins science operations in 2027. By examining a large population of these lenses, the researchers hope to learn a lot more about the mysterious nature of dark matter.

Using a variety of microscopic analysis techniques not available when the Apollo astronauts first returned samples from the moon, physicist Ryan Ogliore in Arts & Sciences helped unlock the secrets of tiny lunar beads.

A study led by physicist Shankar Mukherji in Arts & Sciences uses a new technique to simultaneously visualize how six major organelles within a cell change as the cell grows. The work has implications for how cells regulate metabolism and growth, which is important in both health and disease.

A new study reveals that students learn best through prediction activities, even though they don’t realize it. This idea is at the center of research published by biologist Elise Walck-Shannon and her co-instructors for an introductory genetics course in Arts & Sciences.

The Biotech Explorers Pathway, a first-year Ampersand Program in Arts & Sciences, uses biotechnology as the theme that immerses students in real-world science, according to a new career feature written by WashU authors.