News: Point of Discovery

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

Podcast

The Next 50 Years: A Global Census of Life

Biologist David Hillis aims to discover the 80 percent of species on Earth that scientists know nothing about in the next few decades.

A montage of beetles, leaves, butterflies and DNA

Podcast

Coming Soon: A New Podcast Miniseries

In January 2020, we will be releasing a new miniseries called The Next 50 Years.

Logo consisting of a microscope in front of an abstract background

Podcast

You Belong Here: What It Takes for Success in College

Why do so many first-year students struggle in college? Who is most likely to fail? And what can professors and staff do to help them...

Two students talking on steps in front of the main administration building at the University of Texas at Austin

Podcast

Experimental Vaccine Against Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Elicits Strong Immune Response

After decades of research, an effective RSV vaccine now seems within reach

A patient receives a vaccination in the arm

Podcast

New AI Sees Like a Human, Filling in the Blanks

An artificial intelligence agent that can glance quickly at parts of a new environment and infer the full scene might be more effective on dangerous...

Silhouettes of a human and a robot looking at a painting in a museum

Podcast

A Machine That Understands Language Like a Human

Alex Huth is trying to build an intelligent computer system that can predict the patterns of brain activity in a human listening to someone speaking.

Illustration of a brain with different regions colored differently

Podcast

A Love Letter from Texas Scientists to the Periodic Table

We're celebrating the 150th anniversary of the periodic table. Join us as we tour the cosmos, from the microscopic to the telescopic, with four scientists studying...

A series of cupcakes arranged to look like the periodic table

Podcast

All in the (Scientific) Family

Scientists often talk about the people who mentored them, and the students and postdocs they supervise, in ways that sound like a family.

A casual photo of college students and faculty sitting on a living room floor

Podcast

Bringing Real Science to the Big Screen

Scientist Kip Thorne talks with his former graduate student Bill Press about what it's like to work on a major Hollywood film.

An astronaut walks across a frozen, alien landscape

Podcast

A Big Week in Science

The first full week of October is like a science-lover's World Series: Each year, the spotlight falls on high-impact science, when day after day, a...

Nobel ptize medal