Newsroom Stories

In 1999, Danish scientist Per Bak made the startling proposal that the brain remained stable for much the same reason a sand pile does; many small avalanches hold it at a balance point, where — in the brain’s case — information processing is optimized. Now scientists have shown for the first time that a brain receiving and processing sensory input follows these dynamics.

​​Chenyang Lu, PhD, has been named the inaugural Fullgraf Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. He was installed at a ceremony held on campus March 16.

Obesity and excess weight, and their negative impact on health, have become a significant focus for health-care experts in recent years. But new research at Washington University School of Medicine shows that an escalation in the number of those considered obese or overweight in the U.S. continues, signaling an ongoing upward swing in chronic health conditions as well.

​Two computer scientists from Washington University in St. Louis, Robert Pless and Roman Garnett, are part of a research team that will use big data to accelerate breeding and the commercial release of sorghum crops that can be used as a renewable energy source.​

Two vastly different but innovative business startups with direct ties to Washington University, Applied Particle Technology and Invisible Girlfriend, have been awarded $50,000 in extra capital funding thank Arch Grants. The grants provide equity-free cash awards and free support services to startups willing to headquarter their businesses in St. Louis.

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to announce its decision in a lawsuit that threatens federal health insurance subsidies for more than 6 million Americans, health care economist Timothy D. McBride, PhD, professor in the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, is confident the high court will side with the Obama administration. If the court decides otherwise, low-income residents in many states will have little access to affordable healthcare, he warns.

Does a recently upheld Texas abortion law impose an “undue burden” if it forces some women to drive as much as 600 miles to obtain an abortion at a state-approved clinic? That’s a question the U.S. Supreme Court may be asked to decide, suggests legal experts at Washington University in St. Louis.

Fair Saint Louis​ will be held July 2-4 in Forest Park. In the spirit of community partnership, and given the proximity of the park to campus, Washington University in St. Louis has agreed to sponsor Fair Saint Louis by providing access to several campus parking areas during the fair, beginning at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, July 2.

Studying mice, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a neural circuit in the retina that carries signals enabling the eye to detect movement. The finding could help in efforts to build artificial retinas for people who have suffered vision loss.

Images captured in and around the Washington University campuses.