News

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

Dell Medical School

Arbel Harpak: Pursuing the Next Frontier in Genetics

Arbel Harpak, recently named a Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences, researches how genetic makeup can have dramatically different impacts on health and evolution in...

A scientist in white shirt stands in front of a sculpture made of aluminum canoes

Research

For Rainforest Amphibians, the Bigger the Toes, the Higher They Go

In rainforests in Gabon, amphibians with larger toes relative to their body length are found higher in the forest canopy.

Photo of orange and brown frog leptopelis boulengeri on a tree branch

Podcast

Rise of the LLMs

Greg Durrett tackles your burning questions about large language models.

A robot made of words sits on a chair and reads a book with a pile of more books at its feet

Texas Science YouTube

Insider Insights: Meet Human Development and Family Sciences Major Corinne Floyd

One honors students in Natural Sciences shares experiences with research in a smaller major.

A young woman in a sleeveless shirts poses in front of a map-like graphic with the words "Insider Insights Corinne Floyd" and the hook 'em horns graphic.

Features

What Will Extreme Weather Events Mean for Texas’s Favorite Bugs?

The answer matters for people, too, given how insects affect whole ecosystems.

A photo of a monarch butterfly on a yellow flower

McDonald Observatory

Giant Magellan Telescope Enclosure Ready for Construction

When completed in the early 2030s, the 213-foot-tall enclosure will be one of the largest mechanized buildings ever constructed.

A telescope dome under a starry sky at night with an open door and telescope visible inside

Texas Science YouTube

Insider Insights: Meet Mathematics Major Shankar Padmanabhan

Researching natural language processing and machine learning became a centerpiece for one Natural Sciences student during his time at UT.

A young man with a beard and glasses wears a Longhorn polo shirt, as a map-like graphic behind him reads "Insider Insights: Shankar Padmanabhan" with a hook 'em horns symbol.

Research

Targeted Grazing May Help Beat Invasive Buffelgrass

Researchers head to Kenya to unlock the weaknesses of invasive buffelgrass to combat it here in Texas.

Image of buffelgrass and cattle

Podcast

What is AI, Anyway?

What do we even mean when we say “artificial intelligence”? And how do we make sure it’s safe and useful? Here, with all the answers...

A robotic hand pours coffee into a mug being held by a human hand

Accolades

Neuroscience Professor Wins Prize for Promoting Scientific Rigor

Michela Marinelli received a Rigor Champions Prize for fostering scientific transparency through her course Analytical Skepticism.

A woman with colorful highlights in her hair smiles from a circle graphic that is adjacent to waves of color with UT branding.