Page 17 – The Source | Washington University in St. Louis

Nominate staff for Distinguished Honor Awards

It is again time to nominate deserving staff members for WashU’s Distinguished Honor Awards. The nomination deadline is March 20.

Climate & Environment

Making hydrogen fuel cells ‘less precious’

a hydrogen fueling station in California

WashU engineers are working to bring stability to iron components instead of using more expensive precious metals in fuel-cell technologies.

Campus & Facilities

Gary C. Werths Building earns LEED Gold

The nine-story Gary C. Werths Building at Siteman Cancer Center, based at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine, has earned Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Cancer Research

Method spots early signs of infection after breast cancer reconstruction

A new tool developed by WashU Medicine researchers could allow for preemptive treatment of implant-related infections that improves outcomes and reduces patients’ emotional and financial burden.

Neuroscience & Memory

Brain network responsible for Parkinson’s disease identified

A brain network first identified by WashU Medicine researchers, called SCAN, is shown in a new study to be the neurological basis for Parkinson’s disease. Patients receiving treatments targeted to this brain region, rather than to surrounding areas, experienced greater improvements in symptoms.

Performing Arts

WashU student film added to National Film Registry

Shot on WashU’s campus, the 110-year old film “The Maid of McMillan” is one of 25 films the Library of Congress added to the National Film Registry.

Health & Society

Closing the research-practice gap

WashU researchers urge institutions to reward implementation science that demonstrates benefit, improves health, reduces inequities and justifies research investment.

Awards & Notables

WashU named Fulbright Top Producing Institution

Washington University in St. Louis has maintained its status as a Fulbright Top Producing Institution for U.S. students. This recognition is given to the U.S. colleges and universities that received the highest number of applicants selected for the 2025-26 Fulbright U.S. Student Program.

Data & Computer Science

Reinforcement learning for arbitrarily large systems is possible

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis are developing mathematically rigorous and computationally efficient techniques to transform extremely complex reinforcement learning problems into a manageable domain.

Psychology

Barch wins major national psychology prize

WashU psychology researcher Deanna Barch has won the Atkinson Prize in Psychological and Cognitive Sciences from the National Academy of Sciences, one of the most prestigious honors in psychology.