News: Research

Read the latest news from the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin

Research

Climate-friendly Microbes Chomp Dead Plants Without Releasing Heat-trapping Methane

Scientists have identified an entirely new group of microbes quietly living in hot springs, geothermal systems and hydrothermal sediments around the world.

Hot springs

UT News

Exoplanet is Gobbling Up Gas and Dust as it Continues to Build Mass

The Hubble Space Telescope has allowed astronomers including Brendan Bowler from The University of Texas at Austin to get a rare look at a young...

An artist's image suggests a planet is sucking a stream of orbiting light into its mass

Research

UT Chemistry Researchers Encode Jane Austen Quote in a Polymer

The technique, which relies on short polymers called oligourethanes, encodes information with greater density than DNA-based approaches

Illustration of a book showing how to translate chemical components of a polymer into English letters

Research

Cosmic Rumbles: New Faculty Probe Universe for Gravitational Waves

A couple who joined the Department of Physics in 2020, Pablo Laguna and Deirdre Shoemaker, study violent events in the universe, like when cosmic heavyweights...

Portrait of a man and woman

Department of Molecular Biosciences

Human Trials Begin for a Low-Cost COVID-19 Vaccine to Extend Global Access

A COVID-19 vaccine in human trials in Vietnam, Thailand and Brazil, holds promise for affordable vaccine manufacturing in countries currently dependent on imported vaccines.

A masked person holds a glass vial of vaccine

Research

Two Postdocs Receive Fellowships to Study Extrasolar Planets

Brianna Lacy and Yifan Zhou have received a fellowship that will give them the support to conduct research on exoplanets.

Portrait of two scientists

Research

Twin Study Shows Why Physical Punishment Leads to Child Behavior Problems

Harsh parenting practices, not genetics, are linked to higher levels of behavior problems in children, according to a new study.

Photo of a shadow of an adult holding the hand of a child

Research

Accurately Editing Genes in Living Cells Means Grappling with Knots in DNA

Gene editing inside living cells could become more effective and accurate after researchers unveiled how inner workings can help or hinder the process.

A man in a lab coat and goggles watches from the background as a woman in lab coat and goggles handles a pipette at a lab bench

Research

New Study Shows How Deep-learning Technology Can Improve Brain Imaging

The technology can be used to train computers to increase the resolution of low-quality cellular and tissue images acquired on point-scanning systems, such as MRI

Comparison of brain imaging before and after the new technique

Texas Scientist

The Start of It All

Here’s how eukaryotes might have evolved from simpler life forms

Illustration of the inside of a eukaryotic cell