News

A Husband’s Self-esteem Could Protect Against Preterm Births, Study Finds

November 20, 2025
A husband’s optimism and confidence might play a crucial, if often unseen, role in helping babies arrive healthy and on time. A new study from UC Merced psychology researchers found that when married fathers reported higher levels of resilience — a quality that includes traits such as optimism,...

Postdoc Leads Study to Turn Cotton Waste into Climate-Smart Compost

November 12, 2025
UC Merced researchers are collaborating on a two-year research project to develop effective composting methods for cotton textiles. The project explores manufacturing cotton waste scraps from clothing into compost to demonstrate efficient composting with the right recipe, and the compost’s ability...

Professor and Environmental Champion Bales Retires, But Research and Advocacy Continue

November 10, 2025
Professors Roger Bales and Martha Conklin arrived in Merced in 2003, the first non-administrative faculty members at UC Merced. They came with a vision: to create a research university that would serve California’s future. Now, after more than 22 years of building institutions, mentoring and...

College and K-12 Faculty Strengthen Collaboration for Central Valley Students

November 6, 2025
More than two dozen educators from kindergarten through college converged at UC Merced to discuss the challenges they're facing and the opportunities ahead. The Oct. 21 event, hosted by the Center for Educational Partnerships, featured Lupita Cortez Alcalá, the newly appointed executive director...

UC Merced Chemist Wins DOE Award to Simulate Electron Motion at Quantum Speeds

November 5, 2025
Chemistry Professor Henrik Larsson has received a prestigious Early Career Award from the U.S. Department of Energy, becoming the first faculty member from UC Merced’s School of Natural Sciences to earn the honor. The award includes more than $878,000 in funding over five years to support Larsson’s...

Thinning, Burning Forests Provide Multiple Benefits, Some of Them Surprising

November 4, 2025
Wildfires are growing more frequent and severe across the western United States, and California's Sierra Nevada is ground zero. Decades of fire suppression have left these forests overstocked and vulnerable to catastrophic fires, drought and pest outbreaks. Beyond destroying homes and...

First-generation Students Shine at UC Merced. This Week Celebrates Them

November 3, 2025
More than six in 10 UC Merced undergraduates are the first in their families to attend a university. The national average for four-year universities is about two in 10. Opening doors to opportunity for first-generation students is infused into UC Merced’s DNA. Young people who had little to no...

Unraveling Cancer’s Neural Connections: NIH-Funded Study Investigates How Stem Cell Regulation Influences Tissue Renewal, Cancer Development

November 3, 2025
The same cellular renewal that keeps our bodies healthy might also fuel the growth of cancer. A UC Merced biologist has found that the brain could hold the key to stopping it. Professor Néstor Oviedo, a molecular and cell biologist and affiliate of the Health Sciences Research Institute, received...

UC Merced Leads National Effort to Unlock Quantum Secrets of Twisty Molecules

October 27, 2025
A team of scientists led by UC Merced is embarking on a project to understand how the twisted shapes of specific molecules can influence the spin of electrons — a phenomenon that could revolutionize solar energy, electronics and quantum computing. The research, funded by the U.S. Department of...

20 Years In, UC Merced Celebrates Achievements, Looks to Future

October 23, 2025
Only 20 years since undergraduate instruction began, UC Merced is a recognized leader in conducting academic research, developing young minds for career success and driving economic growth, the university’s chancellor said Wednesday. Speaking to a gathering of campus and community leaders, along...

Pages