Latest news from University of California, Santa Cruz on Newswise en-us Copyright 2025 Newswise 115 31 / /images/newswise-logo-rss.gif /articles/uc-santa-cruz-scientists-slither-into-the-history-books-with-first-complete-genome-of-a-banana-slug/?sc=rsin /articles/uc-santa-cruz-scientists-slither-into-the-history-books-with-first-complete-genome-of-a-banana-slug/?sc=rsin Tue, 04 Feb 2025 20:10:24 EST Not only is the banana slug the endearing mascot for UC Santa Cruz -- making the project fitting for campus researchers -- but the slugs' unique slime was a particularly challenging undertaking for UCSC's experts in genomics. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/alo-slebir-s-maverick-move-uc-santa-cruz-alum-rides-potential-record-breaking-100-foot-wave/?sc=rsin /articles/alo-slebir-s-maverick-move-uc-santa-cruz-alum-rides-potential-record-breaking-100-foot-wave/?sc=rsin Tue, 04 Feb 2025 09:25:29 EST UC Santa Cruz Alum Alo Slebir (College Nine '23, legal studies) may have surfed the biggest wave ever University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/new-research-and-art-instillation-demonstrates-the-viability-of-using-fog-as-a-water-source/?sc=rsin /articles/new-research-and-art-instillation-demonstrates-the-viability-of-using-fog-as-a-water-source/?sc=rsin Tue, 04 Feb 2025 09:10:43 EST In a state known for its droughts, where the southern half recently experienced devastating fires, understanding California's natural water sources is more important than ever. Three University of California, Santa Cruz professors have teamed up to create a multipart scientific and artistic research study, Art+Fog as a collective, University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/new-data-shows-how-rage-giving-boosted-immigrant-serving-nonprofits-during-the-first-trump-administration/?sc=rsin /articles/new-data-shows-how-rage-giving-boosted-immigrant-serving-nonprofits-during-the-first-trump-administration/?sc=rsin Fri, 17 Jan 2025 19:00:32 EST Nonprofits that provide legal services for immigrants ended up receiving increases in public contributions in the wake of Trump's attacks on immigrants, demonstrating a backlash effect that's sometimes called "rage giving." University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/new-strontium-isotope-map-of-sub-saharan-africa-is-a-powerful-tool-for-archaeology-forensics-and-wildlife-conservation/?sc=rsin /articles/new-strontium-isotope-map-of-sub-saharan-africa-is-a-powerful-tool-for-archaeology-forensics-and-wildlife-conservation/?sc=rsin Mon, 06 Jan 2025 19:05:10 EST A team of researchers led by UC Santa Cruz has mapped predicted bioavailable strontium isotope ratios across all of Sub-Saharan Africa. Archaeologists, conservation scientists, and forensics experts will now be able to match values from the map against those observed in artifacts and plant, animal, and human remains of unknown origin to identify where they likely came from within the continent. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/will-ai-tools-revolutionize-public-health-not-if-they-continue-following-old-patterns-researchers-argue/?sc=rsin /articles/will-ai-tools-revolutionize-public-health-not-if-they-continue-following-old-patterns-researchers-argue/?sc=rsin Tue, 08 Oct 2024 16:05:24 EST A new paper published in the journal Social Science & Medicine shares findings from an extensive literature analysis of AI's current trajectory in health care. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/an-overlooked-side-effect-of-the-housing-crisis-may-be-putting-californians-at-increased-risk-from-climate-disasters/?sc=rsin /articles/an-overlooked-side-effect-of-the-housing-crisis-may-be-putting-californians-at-increased-risk-from-climate-disasters/?sc=rsin Wed, 14 Aug 2024 15:05:59 EST In a new article for the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, UC Santa Cruz researchers laid out the foundation for their highly-anticipated upcoming study of how lack of affordable housing in urban areas of California may be driving increased development in and near wildlands, leading to more severe climate change impacts. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/singing-from-memory-unlocks-a-surprisingly-common-musical-superpower/?sc=rsin /articles/singing-from-memory-unlocks-a-surprisingly-common-musical-superpower/?sc=rsin Wed, 14 Aug 2024 15:05:48 EST UC Santa Cruz psychologists studied "earworms," the types of songs that get stuck in your head and play automatically on a loop, to show that highly accurate pitch memory is much more common than might be expected. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/smart-microgrids-enhance-power-restoration-efficiency-and-reliability-during-outages/?sc=rsin /articles/smart-microgrids-enhance-power-restoration-efficiency-and-reliability-during-outages/?sc=rsin Fri, 01 Dec 2023 07:05:24 EST It's a story that's become all too familiar -- high winds knock out a power line, and a community can go without power for hours to days, an inconvenience at best and a dangerous situation at worst. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/new-blood-test-for-noncoding-rna-significantly-improves-cancer-detection/?sc=rsin /articles/new-blood-test-for-noncoding-rna-significantly-improves-cancer-detection/?sc=rsin Mon, 18 Sep 2023 16:05:51 EST Cancer is most treatable in its early stages, so finding innovative and non-invasive methods to diagnose cancer early on is crucial for fighting the disease. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/novel-device-combines-nanopores-with-electronic-signals-for-disease-detection/?sc=rsin /articles/novel-device-combines-nanopores-with-electronic-signals-for-disease-detection/?sc=rsin Mon, 18 Sep 2023 16:05:35 EST In living organisms, cells have a very high capacity to process and communicate information by moving molecules or ions through tiny channels that span the cell membrane. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/study-reveals-key-molecular-interaction-that-sets-the-timing-of-our-biological-clocks/?sc=rsin /articles/study-reveals-key-molecular-interaction-that-sets-the-timing-of-our-biological-clocks/?sc=rsin Thu, 18 May 2023 11:05:27 EST Molecular clocks in our cells synchronize our bodies with the cycle of night and day, cue us for sleep and waking, and drive daily cycles in virtually every aspect of our physiology. Scientists studying the molecular mechanisms of our biological clocks have now identified a key event that controls the timing of the clock. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/shrinking-age-distribution-of-spawning-salmon-raises-climate-resilience-concerns/?sc=rsin /articles/shrinking-age-distribution-of-spawning-salmon-raises-climate-resilience-concerns/?sc=rsin Tue, 28 Feb 2023 12:00:36 EST By returning to spawn in the Sacramento River at different ages, Chinook salmon lessen the potential impact of a bad year and increase the stability of their population in the face of climate variability, according to a new study by scientists at UC Santa Cruz and NOAA Fisheries. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/rna-rescue-challenge-invites-players-to-solve-puzzles-and-advance-rna-therapeutics/?sc=rsin /articles/rna-rescue-challenge-invites-players-to-solve-puzzles-and-advance-rna-therapeutics/?sc=rsin Tue, 21 Feb 2023 11:35:12 EST Researchers at UC Santa Cruz working to develop novel RNA-based medicines are teaming up with a new group of collaborators--players of the online game Eterna. The University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/reduced-krill-lead-to-fewer-pregnancies-in-humpback-whales/?sc=rsin /articles/reduced-krill-lead-to-fewer-pregnancies-in-humpback-whales/?sc=rsin Mon, 23 Jan 2023 15:10:52 EST New collaborative research shows reduced krill supplies lead to fewer pregnancies in humpback whales--a finding that could have major implications for industrial krill fishing. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/political-parties-use-gerrymandering-to-counteract-shifting-voter-preferences-in-key-battleground-states-study-finds/?sc=rsin /articles/political-parties-use-gerrymandering-to-counteract-shifting-voter-preferences-in-key-battleground-states-study-finds/?sc=rsin Thu, 25 Aug 2022 19:05:51 EST Research that focused on battleground states suggests that whichever party controls the redistricting process in the state legislature engineers an 11 percentage point increase in its probability of winning a U.S. House race in the next election. And these advantages often run counter to the will of voters. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/covid-19-genomic-recombination-is-uncommon-but-disproportionately-occurs-in-spike-protein-region/?sc=rsin /articles/covid-19-genomic-recombination-is-uncommon-but-disproportionately-occurs-in-spike-protein-region/?sc=rsin Thu, 11 Aug 2022 13:05:44 EST An analysis of millions of SARS-CoV-2 genomes finds that recombination of the virus is uncommon, but when it occurs, it is most often in the spike protein region, the area which allows the virus to attach to and infect host cells. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/locally-supportive-climates-may-do-little-to-aid-mental-health-for-lgbtq-youth-amidst-broader-societal-stigma/?sc=rsin /articles/locally-supportive-climates-may-do-little-to-aid-mental-health-for-lgbtq-youth-amidst-broader-societal-stigma/?sc=rsin Mon, 08 Aug 2022 19:05:57 EST New research shows little difference in mental health outcomes for LGBTQ+ youth between some of California's most and least supportive communities for sexual and gender diversity. The findings also indicate factors that may contribute to this trend. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/data-from-elephant-seals-reveal-new-features-of-marine-heatwave-the-blob/?sc=rsin /articles/data-from-elephant-seals-reveal-new-features-of-marine-heatwave-the-blob/?sc=rsin Wed, 03 Aug 2022 12:45:53 EST The North Pacific Blob, was the largest and longest-lasting marine heatwave on record. A new study using data collected by elephant seals reveals that in addition to the well documented surface warming, deeper warm-water anomalies associated with the Blob were much more extensive than previously reported. University of California, Santa Cruz /articles/autistic-adults-have-become-increasingly-visible-in-media-books-television-and-more-in-the-past-decade-but-challenges-with-representation-persist/?sc=rsin /articles/autistic-adults-have-become-increasingly-visible-in-media-books-television-and-more-in-the-past-decade-but-challenges-with-representation-persist/?sc=rsin Wed, 29 Jun 2022 20:05:51 EST Researchers documented a shift toward more representation for adults in popular portrayals of autism, which have historically focused on children. University of California, Santa Cruz