Life at OSU

News Archive

Filter by Category:

June - 2018

June - 2018
	‘Maximal’ running shoes may increase injury risk to some runners	Researchers in the FORCE Lab found that runners experienced a higher impact peak and increased loading rate with “maximal” shoes, which are associated with a greater likelihood of injury, such as plantar fasciitis and tibial stress fractures.
	Lipid-based nanoparticles enable improved therapy for cystic fibrosis patients	PORTLAND, Ore. – Researchers at Oregon State University and Oregon Health & Science University are working on a treatment that holds great promise for improving the lives of cystic fibrosis patients
	OSU lands $1 million grant to improve undergraduate instruction in STEM	Oregon State University has been awarded a five-year, $1 million grant to improve instruction of science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, and better meet needs of undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds.
	Bees love blue fluorescent light, and not just any wavelength will do	CORVALLIS, Ore. – Researchers at Oregon State University have learned that a specific wavelength range of blue fluorescent light set bees abuzz.
	New blood test reveals susceptibility to costly disease in dairy cows	Oregon State University researchers have developed a blood test to identify dairy cows are susceptible to bovine clinical mastitis.
	Oregon State University announces marine science media fellows	Oregon State University has named 12 leading regional, national and international journalists as its 2018 marine science media fellows.
	Research shows short gamma-ray bursts do follow binary neutron star mergers	Researchers at Oregon State University have confirmed that last fall’s union of two neutron stars did in fact cause a short gamma-ray burst.
	Oregon State University to lead building of second ship for national research fleet	Oregon State University has received $88 million from the National Science Foundation to lead construction of a second Regional Class Research Vessel to help bolster the nation’s aging academic research fleet.
	Paying communities for forest management activities supports social relationships	New research shows that paying communities in Mexico to conserve and manage their jointly-owned property doesn’t just benefit the environment—it strengthens social relationships and a sense of community within those areas as well.
	This “whey” to make vodka could add value to creameries, lessen environmental impact	Researchers say artisan creameries can add value and lessen harmful environmental impacts by converting whey into vodka.
	Unnecessarily difficult: Physical activity resources for adults are loaded with jargon	Web page articles and other written materials designed to encourage physical activity are often too difficult to be easily read and understood by most U.S. adults, limiting their effectiveness, new research from Oregon State University shows.
	Fungi-produced pigment shows promise as semiconductor material	Researchers at Oregon State University are looking at a highly durable organic pigment, used by humans in artwork for hundreds of years, as a promising possibility as a semiconductor material.
	When it comes to school recess, a quality playground experience matters, researchers suggest	Recess periods can offer physical, cognitive, social and emotional benefits to elementary school children, but those benefits are tied closely to the quality of the playground experience.

May - 2018

May - 2018
	Research shows dogs prefer to eat fat, and cats surprisingly tend toward carbs	Dogs gravitate toward high-fat food, but cats pounce on carbohydrates with even greater enthusiasm, according to research into the dietary habits of America’s two most popular pets.
	Study suggests scientists can use microbial measurements to gauge river flow	Oregon State University scientists have created a tool that can predict the flow rate of Arctic rivers with a surprising degree of accuracy based on the makeup and abundance of bacteria in the water.
	OSU, NOAA researchers document widespread methane seeps off Oregon coast	Over the past two years scientists from OSU and NOAA have documented hundreds of new methane seep sites off the Northwest coast.
	OSU biologist advocates ecological approach to improving human health	Chronic diseases like cancer, autoimmune disorders and obesity may ultimately vanquish the efforts of medical intervention unless people change their diet.
	Two from College of Engineering win prestigious CAREER awards from NSF	Two professors in the College of Engineering have received the prestigious Faculty Early Career Development award from the National Science Foundation.
	Schizophrenics’ blood has more genetic material from microbes	The blood of schizophrenia patients features genetic material from more types of microorganisms than that of people without the debilitating mental illness.
	Annotation tool provides step toward understanding links between disease, mutant RNA	Researchers at Oregon State University have developed a computer program that represents a key step toward better understanding the connections between mutant genetic material and disease.
	Hawaii’s Kilauea completely unrelated to Northwest volcanoes, but…	As flowing lava from the Kilauea volcano continues to destroy homes on the Big Island of Hawaii – and officials fear a more violent eruption could occur – some Pacific Northwest residents have expressed concern that the events in Hawaii could trigger an eruption in the Cascade Range.
	New study shows New Zealand has its own population of blue whales	A group of blue whales that frequent the South Taranaki Bight (STB) between the North and South islands of New Zealand appears to be part of a local population that is genetically distinct from other blue whales in the Pacific Ocean and Southern Ocean, a new study has found.
	Researchers take key step toward growing human organs in laboratory	Researchers have learned that precursor cells for skeletal muscles actually also give rise to neurons, blood vessels, blood cells and immune cells, pushing science one step closer to generating body parts in a laboratory.
	Accumulating over time, even low concentrations of silver can foil wastewater treatment	Research has shed new light on how an increasingly common consumer product component – silver nanoparticles – can potentially interfere with the treatment of wastewater.
	Study shows ice stream draining Greenland Ice Sheet sensitive to changes over past 45,000 years	A ribbon of ice more than 600 kilometers long that drains about 12 percent of the gigantic Greenland Ice Sheet has been smaller than it is today about half of the time over the past 45,000 years.
	OSU researchers question conservation community’s acceptance of trophy hunting	Researchers at Oregon State University are challenging the premise that trophy hunting is an acceptable and effective tool for wildlife conservation and community development.
	Oilseed crop’s waste product yields compounds that protect skin from the sun	Meadowfoam, a native Pacific Northwest plant cultivated as an oilseed crop, has emerged as a potential new source of protection against the sun’s harmful effects on the skin.
	Transistor fabrication onto curved surface means a sharp turn toward better diabetes therapy	Transparent transistors fabricated onto the sharp curves of a tiny glass tube are paving the way toward a therapeutic advance for diabetics.

April - 2018

April - 2018
	Proximity to fracking sites affects public support of them, study finds	People who live closer to fracking sites are more familiar with and more supportive of hydraulic fracturing, a new study from Oregon State University has found.
	Novel ecosystems provide use for some native birds	Ecosystems that have been altered by human activities can provide suitable habitat for native birds.
	More mountain meadow water storage unlikely to benefit streamflow downstream	Increasing water storage in the mountain meadows of the arid West through diverse river restoration strategies has local benefits for vegetation but is unlikely to benefit downstream flows, according to an Oregon State University study.
	Millennials aren’t getting the message about sun safety and the dangers of tanning, study finds	Many millennials lack knowledge about the importance of sunscreen and continue to tan outdoors in part because of low self-esteem and high rates of narcissism that fuel addictive tanning behavior.
	Discovery of new material is key step toward more powerful computing	A new material created by Oregon State University researchers is a key step toward the next generation of supercomputers.
	Oregon State University wave energy test site reaches licensing milestone	Culminating five years of work, Oregon State University has submitted a 1,000-page plan that outlines construction and operation details of a wave energy test site off the Oregon coast, along with measures to avoid, minimize and mitigate any potential environmental effects. The project is designed to allow commercial wave energy developers the opportunity to test different technologies for harnessing the untapped energy of ocean waves.
	Researchers use “environmental DNA” to identify killer whales in Puget Sound	When endangered killer whales swim through the sheltered waters of Puget Sound, they leave behind traces of “environmental DNA” that researchers can detect as much as two hours later, a new study has found.
	Oregon’s new gray whale license plate closer to reality after 3,000th voucher sold	It appears that Oregon will have a new license plate with the image of a gray whale mother and her calf after the Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute sold its 3,000th voucher for the plates earlier this week.
	Photonic crystal features of fossilized algae hold promise for improved food safety testing	Researchers have used the fossilized remains of algae to take a key step toward being able to more sensitively detect harmful contaminants in food.
	Oregon State purchases building for bioscience research	The Oregon State University Board of Trustees Monday approved the purchase of a Corvallis building that will serve as an OSU hub for biological and chemical science research.
	Large wildfires bring increases in annual river flow	Large wildfires cause increases in stream flow that can last for years or even decades, according to a new analysis of 30 years of data from across the continental United States.
	For repeat-spawning steelhead, more than once is worth the risks	For steelhead trout, reproductive choices represent a collection of tradeoffs – whether spawning once or doing it multiple times, no decision comes without risks and benefits.
	Talk on whale entanglement set Sunday, April 15, at Hatfield Marine Science Center	Doug Sandilands will give a free public talk this Sunday, April 15, on “Large Whale Entanglement in Pacific Northwest Fishing Gear.”
	OSU's Hatfield Center to host Marine Science Day on April 14	Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center will hold its annual Marine Science Day on Saturday, April 14.
	Rare coastal martens under high risk of extinction in coming decades	The coastal marten, a small but fierce forest predator, is at a high risk for extinction in Oregon and northern California in the next 30 years due to threats from human activities, according to a new study.
	Study suggests estuaries may experience accelerated impacts of human-caused CO2	Rising anthropogenic, or human-caused, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere may have up to twice the impact on coastal estuaries as it does in the oceans because the human-caused CO₂ lowers the ecosystem’s ability to absorb natural fluctuations of the greenhouse gas, a new study suggests.

March - 2018

March - 2018
	Want to bring back the lions, tigers and bears? Here are the best places on Earth.	Although humans have driven lions, tigers, wolves, bears and other large carnivores from much of their home territories across the planet, scientists have identified more than 280 areas where these animals could potentially be reintroduced to restore ecosystems on practically every continent.
	Ancient flowers and insects from Australia found in Burmese amber	Burmese amber is an important source of early- to mid-Cretaceous plant and animal remains that date back some 100 million years, with more than 870 species of organisms having been described.
	Cell-penetrating “nanodrills” show promise for intracellular drug delivery	Researchers have created new nanomaterials able to cross cell membranes, establishing a novel platform for the intracellular delivery of molecular drugs and other cargo.
	OSU robotics spinoff secures $8 million in new funding	Agility Robotics, a company launched at Oregon State University that designs and builds walking and running robots, has raised $8 million in new funding.
	Combining power of humans, computers key to watershed solutions	An Oregon State University researcher is leading the charge for crowdsourced solutions to complex water management problems.
	Improved wastewater treatment technologies hold promise for cost savings, energy production	Improved wastewater treatment methods that lead to cost savings and energy production are part of Oregon State University’s new Clean and Sustainable Water Technology Initiative.
	Detection, deterrent system will help eagles, wind turbines coexist better	Researchers have taken a key step toward helping wildlife coexist more safely with wind power generation by demonstrating the success of an impact detection system that uses vibration sensors mounted to turbine blades.
	Molecular motor mystery solved: Novel protein rounds out plant cells’ machinery	A research team led by an Oregon State University biophysicist and a plant biologist from University of California, Davis has discovered a novel motor protein that significantly expands current understanding of the evolution and design principle of motor proteins.
	Research provides framework for understanding how populations handle random disturbances	Research has provided a mathematical framework for understanding how population-reducing events of varying frequency and intensity, like fires, floods, storms and droughts, can affect a species’ longtime survival ability.

February - 2018

February - 2018
	Hotspots like the Hawaiian Islands “drifted” millions of years ago, but have since settled	A new study published in Nature Communications finds the Hawaiian Island hotspot drifted millions of years ago, unlike its cousins in the Pacific Ocean.
	OSU professor emeritus elected to prestigious engineering academy	Jose Reyes, professor emeritus of nuclear engineering at Oregon State University and founder of NuScale Power, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineers.
	Human cells’ remodeling abilities may be key to how cancer spreads	Research at shows that human cells have tremendous power to mechanically change their surroundings, opening the door to new insights on a variety of physiological processes including how cancer spreads.
	Workplace alcohol not always a perk for recent college grads seeking jobs	Offering alcohol to employees in the workplace may be a trendy perk of employment, but it doesn’t appear to be an enticement for recent college graduates just entering the workforce, new research published today from Oregon State University shows.
	Novel research approach sheds light on how midsize predators interact	A novel research approach by Oregon State University has resulted in a key step toward better protecting the fisher, an important forest predator.
	Compounds derived from hops show promise for metabolic syndrome patients	A group of compounds derived from hops can likely improve cognitive and other functions in people with metabolic syndrome, new research at Oregon State University and Oregon Health & Science University suggests.
	Relationship factors affect decisions about contraceptive use among young adults, study finds	The dynamics of a couple’s relationship, including the exclusivity of the partnership, the level of commitment to the partnership and participation in sexual decision-making with their partner, impact young adults’ decisions related to contraceptive use, new research from Oregon State University shows.
	Researchers take important step toward gonorrhea vaccine	Researchers are paving the way toward a new therapeutic approach for gonorrhea by shedding light on the mechanism behind important proteins on the Neisseria gonorrhoeae bacteria’s outer membrane.

January - 2018

January - 2018
	Study: Little genetic difference among Dungeness crab from California to Washington	A new study of Dungeness crab along the West Coast found strong genetic diversity throughout various sampling sites, with little genetic “differentiation” between them, meaning that crab found off the California coast are similar to those found off Oregon and Washington.
	Warm-air blowers direct pathogens to surgical site, computer model shows	Warm-air blowers that keep patients at a safe temperature also interfere with operating room ventilation systems, potentially making it easier for microbial skin colonizers to cause infection at surgical sites.
	Study sheds light on alternative, more convenient method of cell preservation	Researchers at Oregon State University have taken an important step toward a more convenient, less expensive means of preserving mammalian cells for in vitro fertilization, species conservation, cell therapy and other purposes.
	Research showcase highlights work of engineering grad students	Want to learn more about the Oregon State University College of Engineering’s far-ranging research efforts, including asking questions of those conducting the research?
	New study shows freshwater input route from melting ice led to rapid cooling	Scientists have long known that a reduction in Atlantic Ocean currents bringing warm water to the Northern Hemisphere from the tropics created abrupt cooling known as the Younger Dryas cold period nearly 13,000 years ago, but the cause of this phenomenon has not been proved.
	Big energy savings: OSU researchers build the world’s smallest electro-optic modulator	Researchers at Oregon State University have designed and fabricated the world’s smallest electro-optic modulator, which could mean major reductions in energy used by data centers and supercomputers.
	Oregon State University president affirms decision for new marine studies building location	Oregon State University President Ed Ray today confirmed that the university’s new Marine Studies Building will be built at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.
	Study finds body size of marine plankton, currents keys to dispersal in ocean	When it comes to marine plankton, the smaller you are the farther you travel.
	Dirt-dwelling microbe produces potential anti-melanoma weapon	A type of soil-dwelling bacterium produces molecules that induce death in melanoma cells, research at Oregon State University shows.
	Researchers use ‘global thermometer’ to track temperature extremes, droughts and melting ice	Large areas of the Earth’s surface are experiencing rising maximum temperatures, which affect virtually every ecosystem on the planet, including ice sheets and tropical forests that play major roles in regulating the biosphere, scientists have reported.

Pages