blog posts Study explores coevolution of mammals and their lice Jul 5, 2022 9:00 am Lice first took up residence on a mammalian host tens of millions of years ago, thus beginning the long association between mammals and lice and setting the stage for their coevolution as new animal species developed. Study links protecting Indigenous peoples' lands to greater nonhuman primate biodiversity Aug 10, 2022 1:30 pm Researchers found that areas managed by Indigenous peoples tend to have much more primate biodiversity than nearby regions, and that primates whose territories overlap with Indigenous areas are less likely to be classified as threatened. Coca-Cola and McDonald's left Russia. Their brands stayed behind Aug 17, 2022 10:30 am Reuters (Aug. 17) – Western brands that exit Russia face years of battling knockoffs. Coke, which left in August, is fighting a rip-off of its Fanta brand. 'This should, in normal times, be an easy win for Coca-Cola,' says U of I's Peter Maggs. A huge leap forward: Photosynthesis hack boosts soybean yield 20% Aug 18, 2022 2:15 pm U of I-led team of RIPE researchers prove bioengineering better photosynthesis increases yields in food crops for the first time ever. Transfer partnerships and pipelines Aug 25, 2022 11:00 am Inside Higher Ed (Aug. 25) Holly Pflum, the transfer initiative coordinator in academic programs and services at Illinois, writes about the U. of I. System’s support of transfer students. Illini Union Art Gallery exhibition featuring photos of Mexican Muralism Sep 1, 2023 3:30 pm Murals created on the campus of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in Mexico City have been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The exhibition in the Illini Union Art Gallery runs from September 7 to September 29. Thursday night football: Illini close nonconference slate hosting Chattanooga Sep 19, 2022 11:45 am The Fighting Illini play their final nonconference opponent when the Chattanooga Mocs come to Memorial Stadium. Illinois is coming off its first bye week of the season and sits at 2-1 on the year. Chattanooga enters the contest with a 3-0 record. Women's Tennis earns singles and doubles championships at UTR College Circuit Sep 26, 2022 9:15 am Illinois women's tennis racked up 26 combined wins across two days of play in the UTR College Circuit hosted at the Atkins Tennis Center. Ashley Yeah and Josie Frazier earned the doubles title. In singles, all four semifinalists were Illini. Illinois travels to Purdue for first Big Ten road game Sep 26, 2023 8:45 am Illinois will be on the road in Big Ten play for the first time this season when the Fighting Illini travel to West Lafayette to take on Purdue on Saturday. The game is scheduled to kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT on Peacock. Revealing the mysteries of whip-poor-wills - and what it might take to save them Oct 3, 2023 10:30 am Audubon Magazine (Aug. 23) U of I researchers monitor whip-poor-wills in Illinois’ Sand Ridge State Forest - one of the few places they can still be found in the Midwest. Professor Mike Ward hopes to reverse the decline in the whip-poor-will population. Recycling breakthrough turns one common type of plastic into another Oct 4, 2022 10:15 am New Atlas (Oct. 3) A team co-led by U. of I. professor Damien Guironnet has demonstrated a promising new plastic-recycling process that could lead to massive reductions in global greenhouse emissions. Illini Football legend Dick Butkus passes away at 80 Oct 6, 2023 10:00 am Dick Butkus, regarded as the greatest linebacker in football history, passed away at his home in Malibu, California. As an Illini, Butkus played center on offense, linebacker on defense and led the team to the 1963 Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl victory. U of I Library’s 15-millionth volume: A 13th century manuscript on agricultural management Oct 6, 2023 11:45 am The 15-millionth volume in the collection of the University Library is a medieval copy of Walter of Henley’s 13th-century work 'Hosbondrye,' one of the most influential works on agriculture and land management in the Middle Ages. Peer adversity may cause girls to feel their self-worth is constantly at risk Oct 10, 2022 10:30 am A history of peer adversity sensitizes teen girls to situational threats to their self-esteem and interpersonal needs, cultivating feelings that their self-worth is constantly in jeopardy, a new study found. 3D printing for medicine being developed by CI MED students Oct 11, 2023 11:45 am '3D printing can be utilized to facilitate medical education by providing alternative ways of learning, and it helps with disease visualization, modeling, and understanding,' says CIM3D co-founder Rand Kittani. Shannon Jr., Epps shine as Illini cruise to win over Monmouth Nov 15, 2022 9:15 am Terrence Shannon Jr. had a game-high and career-best 30 points, while Jayden Epps had 21 in their third regular-season contest with the Illini. Dain Dainja had 15 points off the bench, his third straight game in double figures. Next-gen diamond semiconductors show highest breakdown voltage Dec 1, 2023 8:15 am U of I researchers have developed a semiconductor device made using diamond that has the highest breakdown voltage and lowest leakage current compared to previously reported diamond devices. Destination Decatur for pipeline pumping liquified carbon dioxide from Cedar Rapids Dec 13, 2022 11:15 am Herald & Review (Dec. 12) 'Everybody knows the (carbon sequestration) work that’s been done here, and it’s a model for what’s being done around the world,' says U of I geologist Sallie Greenberg. She's loyal to you, Illinois. Jada Peebles' fifth year as an Illini Dec 13, 2023 10:15 am Jada Peebles received her first college offer from North Carolina State as a seventh-grader. By her senior year in high school, she had decided to attend the U of I, where she started the first 11 games as a freshman. Illinois Football signs 19 on National Signing Day Dec 20, 2023 11:30 am Coach Bret Bielema continued Illinois' rise in recruiting by signing his third-straight top-50 recruiting class, a feat achieved at Illinois for the first time since the beginning of recruiting rankings, according to 247Sports. No. 9 Illini host Northwestern tonight in return to B1G action Jan 2, 2024 8:45 am Illinois opens 2024 at the State Farm Center in a return to Big Ten play after dominating their final non-conference game against Fairleigh Dickinson on Friday. Tonight's game against Northwestern is scheduled for an 8 pm tip. Simpson shatters weight throw school record in Illini debut Jan 8, 2024 8:15 am The men's and women's track and field squads completed their first meet of the season on Saturday. 509 fans saw graduate student Amber Simpson shatter the weight throw program record with a 20.31m heave. Women’s Track and Field ranked No. 1 nationally for first time ever Jan 23, 2024 9:15 am The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association released its first round of weekly national rankings on Monday. The Fighting Illini women debut as the national leaders, and the men close out the top-10 rankings at No. 10. Back from the dead: Tropical tree fern repurposes its dead leaves Jan 29, 2024 9:15 am Plant biology professor James Dalling and his colleagues discovered that some tree ferns recycle their dead fronds into roots. The researchers call these repurposed fronds 'zombie leaves.' Fighting Illini host Northwestern for Pride Game tonight Feb 8, 2024 8:45 am The Illini Women's Basketball team partners with local organizations for Pride Night, a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community. Tipoff is at 6 pm against Northwestern, which is 8-14 overall on the season, 3-8 in the Big Ten. Illini Men's Basketball at Indiana Saturday Feb 17, 2023 2:45 pm Illinois begins a stretch of four games in nine days Saturday at Indiana (11 a.m. CT, ESPN). Illinois has won two straight in Bloomington, but hasn't won three in a row at Indiana since the 1988-1990 seasons. Nebraska visits tonight for Women's Basketball Senior Night Feb 22, 2023 10:00 am The Fighting Illini hope to add another victory to their 20 win season (10-6 B1G) when they face Nebraska (7 pm). Illinois has secured the biggest one-year conference win improvement in program history, the second-best in Big Ten history. Six engineering faculty members win NSF CAREER awards Feb 29, 2024 12:00 pm The National Science Foundations CAREER grants are recognize early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their organization. 2024 Big Ten tournament bracket Mar 11, 2024 8:30 am Illinois is the No. 2 seed in the 2024 BIg Ten Tournament. The Illini will open play at the Target Center Minneapolis in the Quarterfinals on Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT on BTN, facing the winner of No. 7 Iowa vs. No. 10 Ohio State. Study: Americans struggle to distinguish factual claims from opinions amid partisan bias Mar 12, 2024 11:30 am Americans struggle to tell the difference between statements of fact and statements of opinion – a troubling trend that has grave implications for civic discourse in the U.S., say U of I political science researchers. Study brings scientists a step closer to successfully growing plants in space Mar 13, 2024 11:00 am Highly stretchable sensors can monitor and transmit plant growth information without human intervention. The U of I study was funded by a NASA grant to investigate how wearable printed electronics will be used to make farming possible in space. How to regrow your age-shrunken brain in just six months Apr 2, 2024 2:15 pm Newsweek (March 29) 'We can see older people on these exercise interventions gain brain tissue in as little as six months,' says U of I professor Brad Sutton. 'And usually by the time we can see it in an image, it’s a pretty big effect.' Illini Baseball wraps up homestand with tonight's matchup vs. Illinois State Apr 4, 2023 9:45 am Fighting Illini baseball wraps up this four-game homestand hosting Illinois State, scheduled for tonight at 6:00 p.m. This is the first of two meetings in eight days between the two programs, as Illinois heads to Normal on April 11. USDA confirms cow-to-cow transmission a factor in bird flu spread Apr 22, 2024 11:15 am Reuters (April 19) 'Those of us who have worked with influenza for a long time were fairly quickly saying, "Yep it moves cow to cow,"'says Illinois Professor Jim Lowe. 'You can’t explain the epidemiology any other way.' How 3D printers can give robots a soft touch Apr 24, 2024 10:00 am U of I researchers' 3D-printed pads function as both soft skin for a robotic arm and pressure-based mechanical sensors, and can be made inexpensively by reprogramming 3-D printers. Fifth-seeded Illini Women’s Tennis ready for Big Ten Tournament Apr 28, 2022 9:30 am After finishing the regular season in a tie for third place in the conference, the women's tennis team shifts its focus to the Big Ten Championships, held at the Hawkeye Tennis & Recreation Center in Iowa City, April 27-May 1. Countries will solve the chip crisis by working together, not by acting alone May 3, 2022 1:00 pm Fortune (April 29) Illinois professor Rakesh Kumar writes, 'The solution to the chip shortage isn’t to increase onshore production, but rather to deepen supply chains, even if only between like-minded countries.' Smart surgical implant coatings provide early failure warning, prevent infection May 5, 2023 12:45 pm New “smart” coatings for surgical orthopedic implants, developed at Illinois, can monitor strain on the devices to provide early warning of implant failures while killing infection-causing bacteria. Softball: Four earn Big Ten All-Conference honors May 10, 2023 10:30 am Kailee Powell and Kelly Ryono were named to the Second Team All-Big Ten. Delaney Rummell earned an All-Defensive Team nod and Miranda Gallardo was the Fighting Illini's Sportsmanship Award honoree. U of I's talking robot heads like gossip and could help us understand hearing better May 10, 2023 4:15 pm ZME Science (May 10) Researchers at U of I's Augmented Listening Laboratory unveiled a collection of bizarre 3D-printed talking robots, which are used to study how our ears receive sound when multiple conversations happen simultaneously. U of I proposal chosen for USDA's 'Farm of the Future' Jun 2, 2022 9:00 am As the USDA's only 'Farm of the Future' nationwide, 'All eyes will be on this project as we lay the foundations for the future of agriculture,' says U of I's Vikram Adve. 'This grant is a major endorsement of our growing strengths in digital ag.' Q+A with alumnus Russell Wigginton, president of the National Civil Rights Museum Jun 21, 2022 9:30 am From academia to public service, Russell Wigginton has led a career driven by a passion to assist others and build relationships – traits he’s carried since he was a student at Illinois. Is interrogation of women who miscarry the next post-Roe reverberation? Jun 29, 2022 11:45 am Time (June 28) 'They were all suspects,' says abortion history expert Leslie Reagan. Doctors 'couldn’t tell if it was a natural miscarriage or whether they had induced it. They came to assume that anyone who came in...miscarrying, had induced it.' Cockburn, Howell Named Dike Eddleman Athletes of the Year Jun 29, 2022 8:00 am Ffirst-team basketball All-American Kofi Cockburn and track All-American Olivia Howell are winners of the 2021-22 Dike Eddleman Award, presented annually to the top Fighting Illini male and female athlete. Space Invaders: Professor examines the symbolic influence of a secretive, playful artist Jul 18, 2023 10:45 am '(The artist) invades urban space with these characters, finding in mosaic tiles the perfect material to replicate the aesthetics of pixels,' Julie Gaillard said. 'These effigies are a symbol for the global upheaval brought about by digital technologies.' Kirschsieper, Janas selected on final day of MLB draft Jul 20, 2022 1:00 pm Illinois had two players taken in this years MLB Draft. Left-handed pitcher Cole Kirschsieper (Illini pitching staff leader with 3.40 ERA), and first basemen Justin Janas (.368 career hitter at Illinois, .501 career on base percentage, .503 slugging). Study tracks plant pathogens in leafhoppers from natural areas Aug 2, 2022 10:00 am By extracting and testing DNA from archival leafhopper specimens collected in natural areas, the study identified new phytoplasma strains and found new associations between leafhoppers and phytoplasmas known to harm crop plants. 'Depave' movement: A cooler future means cities with less pavement Sep 5, 2023 1:15 pm The Nation (Aug. 31) 'We’re trying to bring attention to it so that the city will start treating this as a critical part of climate adaptation and social justice,' says landscape architecture professor Mary Pat McGuire, a founder of Depave Chicago. Researchers find new carbon-capture potential in farm fields Sep 6, 2023 11:00 am Farm Week Now (Aug. 31) 'Our results suggest that basalt application to farms could be a win-win for farmers and for the planet, improving yields and drawing down CO2,' says Evan DeLucia, a professor of plant biology at Illinois. Exploring an ancestral Maya neighborhood Sep 9, 2022 9:00 am 'Families lived and worked here (from A.D. 250 - 600)... We know the Maya left forests in place because the animal bones we find here are of species that can only breed in the forest.'