News Bureau

Four professors at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have been elected 2018 Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. They are: mechanical science and engineering professor Narayana Aluru, computer science professor William Gropp and plant biology professors Andrew Leakey and Ray Ming.

Low-income undergraduate students at the U. of I. who need assistance juggling the demands of parenthood and college will be able to get assistance through programs and services offered by the Child Development Laboratory.

The insects known as Hemiptera are not a particularly glamorous bunch. This group includes stink bugs, bed bugs, litter bugs, scale insects and aphids. Their closest relatives are thrips, bark lice and parasitic lice. But with a massive number of species, two-thirds of which are still unknown to science, these insects together make up one of the twiggiest branches on the tree of life.

A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences collected a vast amount of molecular data on these insects and used the information to help tease out their family relationships and evolutionary history.

Researchers discovered that the same biomechanical traits that allow the barbed spines of the jumping cholla and other cacti to readily penetrate animal flesh also make the spines more difficult to dislodge.

I'm video recording on three DSLR cameras today, which is the most I can handle by myself. But I don't want to miss a second of this event, because I flew to Paris the day before yesterday just to film this auditorium of international delegates. These serious-looking men and women are actually very excited. I know that because several of them have told me so. In a few minutes, they will cast their nation's vote on whether to accept the proposed redefinition of the kilogram.

Parents who talk to their children about nonviolent conflict resolution reduce children’s likelihood of abusing their dating partners – even if parents give contradictory messages advocating violence in some situations.

Constitutional checks and balances and the power of the presidency will be topics of a speech and roundtable Nov. 29 at the U. of I.

Designing safe bridges and water systems for low-income communities is not always easy for engineers coming from highly industrialized places. A new discipline called contextual engineering helps engineers think beyond personal values, expectations and definitions of project success when tackling global infrastructure problems.

I’m in a cave with three identical waterfalls. The roar of water fills my ears as I look around, a little shakily. This is not what I was expecting when I showed up to Davenport Hall for an interview. But when I said, “Yes, I’d love to try out a virtual reality environment,” two students perched a headset on my head, adjusted the earphones and set me loose in this “cave.”

I can hear anthropology professor Laura Shackelford gently guiding me. I’m aware that I’m in a room with her and the students, but I’m also in a cave, alone.

An Illinois historian tells a new story about England’s famous “Domesday Book” and what it tells us about the trauma of the Norman conquest.

When student loan amounts were printed in community college financial aid award letters, it led to better academic results and, in the following year, an increase in transfers to four-year colleges, says new research from Ben Marx, a professor of economics at Illinois.

Reflecting on what one is grateful for not only tends to lower materialism, but also increases one’s generosity, says new research co-written by Gies College of Business professor Aric Rindfleisch.

The use of electronic cigarettes has increased by 65 percent among sophomores and by 45 percent among seniors in Illinois high schools over the past two years, according to this year's Illinois Youth Survey.

November Dance will celebrate the University of Illinois dance department’s 50th anniversary with collaborations between faculty members and alumni.

Illinois researchers find that less variety in housing types leads to less stability and higher rates of foreclosures.

Single mothers, those with less education and mothers enrolled in the WIC Program may receive less information and support with breastfeeding, University of Illinois researchers found in a new study.

The first solo U.S. exhibition by Irish artists Kennedy Browne at Krannert Art Museum raises questions about global commerce and technology.

New research reveals that Aspergillus flavus, a fungus that produces carcinogenic aflatoxins that can contaminate seeds and nuts, has a multilegged partner in crime: the navel orangeworm caterpillar, which targets some of the same nut and fruit orchards afflicted by the fungus. Scientists report in the Journal of Chemical Ecology that the two pests work in concert to overcome plant defenses and resist pesticides.

Demographic and cultural differences strongly influence young people's coping styles after a natural disaster, and these disparities should be taken into account when providing services to help them recover, a new study found.

The EU’s ambassador to the U.S. will discuss the U.K. Brexit process and transatlantic relations as part of EU Day on Nov. 9.

Slavery in Illinois and the move to freedom will be the subject of a Nov. 8 lecture at the U. of I., part of a series commemorating the state’s bicentennial.

In adopting the 14th Amendment, Congress unambiguously intended that the children of immigrant workers would have birthright citizenship in the U.S., said University of Illinois labor and employment relations professor Michael LeRoy, an expert on immigration and employment law.

Brazilian expert Jerry Davila analyzes the country’s election of a far-right president and what it might mean for the future.

University of Illinois art and design faculty members show their work at Krannert Art Museum.

Influenza has no cure, but vaccines and anti-viral treatments could help thwart another deadly outbreak, says microbiology professor Christopher Brooke.

University of Illinois entomology professor and department head May Berenbaum, a member of the National Academy of Sciences and longtime editorial contributor to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and other journals, has been appointed editor-in-chief of PNAS, effective Jan. 1.

Passes for the 21th annual Roger Ebert’s Film Festival, shortened from five days to four, go on sale Nov. 1.

Four factors account for public health messages accruing retweets on Twitter, says research co-written by U. of. I. social psychology expert Dolores Albarracin and a team of U. of I. graduate students.

With a much-anticipated midterm just a week away, political scientist Brian Gaines suggests we check some common assumptions about polling.

University of Illinois social work professor Ryan Wade explores the prevalence and impact of racialized sexual discrimination on sexual networking websites used by gay or bisexual men of color.

An accurate census is essential for public and private planning, but the 2020 effort is underfunded and behind schedule, an Illinois expert says.

A new book by Illinois information sciences professors Gerald McWorter and Kate Williams-McWorter tells how a former slave founded an integrated town in western Illinois that became a station on the Underground Railroad.

Hurricane Michael made landfall near Mexico Beach, Florida, as the first Category 4 storm in recorded history to reach shore in the northeast Gulf Coast. News Bureau physical sciences editor Lois Yoksoulian spoke with Illinois atmospheric sciences professor Deanna Hence about the storm’s size, strength and path, and the impact of global climate change on future hurricanes. 

A study of 3,588 square kilometers of privately owned land in central Kenya offers evidence that humans and their livestock can, in the right circumstances, share territory with zebras, giraffes, elephants and other wild mammals – to the benefit of all.

A spate of Supreme Court decisions on the tension between religious freedom and the protective function of government has caused a sense of unease among religious people, says Robin Fretwell Wilson, the Roger and Stephany Joslin Professor of Law at Illinois and editor of the book “The Contested Place of Religion in Family Law.”

Entomology professor Gene Robinson, an international leader in honey bee research, has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine “for pioneering contributions to understanding the roles of genes in social behavior.” Robinson directs the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mice with epilepsy have altered patterns of neuron activity in the portion of the brain that controls the reproductive endocrine system, University of Illinois researchers report in a new study. Furthermore, the differences in neuron activity in female mice fluctuate across the reproductive cycle, the team found.

Illinois education scholar and dean James Anderson will deliver the Center for Advanced Study Annual Lecture on the 14th Amendment and citizenship, immigration and national identity.

Rashid Bashir, the executive associate dean and chief diversity officer of the Carle Illinois College of Medicine, will become the next dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign effective Nov. 1.

It is just past noon as Zuze Dulanya, Evance Mwathunga and I climb out of the van. The shiny new handpump for Jimu Village sits where just last week a drill rig bored the hole for this much needed, much anticipated new water source. Beneath a nearby row of sweet gum trees, two long benches surround a lone, red-cushioned side chair.

“Ha!” Zuze says. “We know who will be getting the hot seat today!”

Kidney dialysis patients who engage in technology-based positive psychology exercises during their treatments may significantly improve their depressive symptoms and quality of life, a new study found.

The lasting impact of Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee will be the image of a lone woman speaking truth to power, says Lesley Wexler, a University of Illinois law professor who studies anti-discrimination law.

Illinois sociologist Rebecca Sandefur has been named the recipient of a 2018 MacArthur fellowship, or “genius grant.”

University of Illinois anthropologists talk about their work at Cahokia in the new documentary “Native America,” about the cities built by Native Americans.

An American Indian studies professor tells a story of Hopi runners who ran with and often beat the world’s best.

Scientists are helping determine the age of an antique Chinese porcelain vase in Krannert Art Museum’s collection through an X-ray fluorescence analysis of its paint.

Breaking the bonds between oxygen and hydrogen in water could be a key to the creation of hydrogen in a sustainable manner, but finding an economically viable technique for this has proved difficult. Researchers report a new hydrogen-generating catalyst that clears many of the obstacles – abundance, stability in acid conditions and efficiency.

In Greek mythology, Zeus punishes the trickster Prometheus by chaining him to a rock and sending an eagle to eat a portion of his liver every day, in perpetuity. It was the right organ to target – the liver has the ability to regenerate itself, though not overnight nor for eternity.

New research conducted by biochemists at the University of Illinois has determined how damaged liver cells repair and restore themselves through a signal to return to an early stage of postnatal organ development.

Without the #MeToo movement and the high bar of a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court, it’s doubtful that the sexual assault allegations leveled against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh would have surfaced, says Lesley Wexler, a University of Illinois law professor who studies anti-discrimination law.

Home prices within a school district affected by a school-based mass shooting episode declined by 7.8 percent over the course of at least three years after the incident, according to a new paper co-written by University of Illinois scholar Juan Sebastian Munoz.