News

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

Announcements

New AI Institute Led by UT Researchers Will Accelerate Cosmic Discovery

Stella Offner and Arya Farahi are among the leads of a new multi-institution institute focused on AI and astronomy.

Four quadrants of scientific-images come together, with webs showing bright spots for star formation, galaxy clustering, identifications of galaxies that are labeled and a futuristic network.

Announcements

Natural Sciences Welcomes New Faculty Across the College

Familiar faces and newcomers alike are among the 13 newest tenured and tenure-track faculty members joining the college.

New faculty members 2024-2025

Features

Transitioning to an Empty Nest? What to Know and How You Can Help Scientists Learn More

As children grow up and leave home to begin college or work, their parents face a transformation of their own. 

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McDonald Observatory

Early Dark Energy Could Resolve Cosmology’s Two Biggest Puzzles

Michael Boylan-Kolchin and others show “early dark energy” might help solve the Hubble Tension and explain why there are more early galaxies than expected.

Views of the early universe from a computer model

Podcast

Is it Time to Regulate AI?

Artificial intelligence is very loosely regulated in the U.S. What kinds of laws would help make AI safer and more useful for everyone?

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Research

Carbohydrate Polymers Could be a Sweet Solution for Water Purification

In Cassandra Callmann and her team’s proof-of-concept, the sticky materials removed heavy metals including cadmium and lead.

A test tube with a small amount of blue liquid

Research

Newly Discovered Antimicrobial Could Prevent or Treat Cholera

Natural antimicrobials called microcins are produced by bacteria in the gut and show promise in fighting infection.

There are two images side-by-side. In the image on the left, a dark ring separates a blue disk in the middle from a field of grey surrounding the disk. The image on the right is similar, except there is no dark ring.

UT News

UT Launches Nation’s First Robotics Program for Freshman Applicants

Robotics honors students will pursue degrees in computer science or various types of engineering, while also earning a minor in robotics.

Three students look at a handheld computer tablet with a yellow robot in the foreground

Features

Take a Tour of UT Through the Lens of Science

Spots that are a part of The University of Texas at Austin can serve purposes for both science learning and community R&R.

A turtle rests on a cement wall near a pond with the UT Tower reflected in the water.

UT News

Newly Discovered Antibody Protects Against All COVID-19 Variants

Researchers have discovered an antibody able to neutralize all known variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, as well as similar coronaviruses.

An artist's rendering of identical virus particles, spheres with protruding proteins, floating in a space.