When Annika Swanson arrived as a freshman at Oregon State in 2010, she already had a life purpose: join the ranks of research faculty studying the causes and effects of environmental pollution. “I’ve always had a deep interest in the environment and in environmental toxins and pollution. This began when I was younger and my [...]
Tag » College of Science
July 25, 2012
The Heart of Mass
Discovery of the Higgs opens a new chapter in the exploration of nature
The term “God particle” tends to rankle physicists. The flippant reference to the recently discovered particle believed to be the Higgs boson was coined by Leon Lederman, the former director of the Department of Energy’s Fermilab and Nobel Prize winning physicist. But, says Ken Krane, nuclear scientist and emeritus professor of physics at Oregon State [...]
May 30, 2012
Battling the Superbugs
Science wages war on bacteria that are resisting modern drugs
This story has echoes of heroes tramping the Earth (or the galaxy) on a quest to defeat the forces of darkness. Along the way, the travelers encounter strange creatures with remarkable powers. They endure harrowing tests of mental strength and technological prowess. In the end, they prevail, bringing down the enemy and discovering a truth [...]
May 30, 2012
Turncoat Proteins
Scientists scope out the earliest signs of disease
It’s one of life’s little ironies. The proteins in our bodies fight infection, carry messages, ferry oxygen and build tissue. But then, like double agents in a spy novel, they can betray us. They overreact to a virus and attack our own organs. They promote cancer, help clog arteries or set up roadblocks in the [...]
May 30, 2012
Business Partners
Entrepreneurs leverage OSU research in startup companies
One sunny spring afternoon, friends sat together in the backyard of a Corvallis home sipping wine, bemoaning the recent hike in gas prices to $3.50 per gallon. Among them were a former product-development specialist for Hewlett-Packard and an Oregon State University chemist. Perhaps inspired by the bioethanol in their glasses, what might happen, they wondered, [...]
May 29, 2012
The Oh! Zone
Far-out findings from science
Ancient Blood Brothers Like the “sloth moth,” which lives only in the fur of the ambling two-toed and three-toed mammals, the “bat fly” exists only in the fur of the winged, cave-dwelling mammals. Now scientists know that the flea-like, blood-sucking fly has been hanging around with bats for at least 20 million years. That’s because [...]
May 24, 2012
X-ray vision
Discarded data may hold the key to a sharper view of proteins and other molecules
There’s nothing like a new pair of eyeglasses to bring fine details into sharp relief. For scientists who study the large molecules of life from proteins to DNA, the equivalent of new lenses has come in the form of an advanced method for analyzing data from X-ray crystallography experiments. Reported in this week’s issue of [...]
December 22, 2011
Botanist leads international fungal genome project
Joey Spatafora's goal: 1,000 fungal genomes in five years
Fungi are master recyclers, turning waste into nutrients and providing humankind with everything from penicillin to pale ale. Although fungi are members of one of the world’s most diverse kingdoms, we know relatively little about them. That is about to change. A new study headed by Joseph Spatafora, an Oregon State University professor of botany [...]
December 8, 2011
OSU undergraduate solves long-standing problem in organic chemistry
Sam Bartlett's findings make chemical synthesis faster, more efficient
When Sam Bartlett, an Oregon State University senior in chemistry, put on his lab coat, goggles and latex gloves in the summer of 2010, he didn’t expect to wind up helping organic chemists around the world. With guidance from Chris Beaudry, assistant professor of chemistry, he developed the most efficient and productive method yet reported [...]
November 21, 2011
Contraceptive vaccine under study for elephants and horses
For Ursula Bechert, reducing conflicts between wild animals and people comes down to good birth control.
The first lesson the elephants taught Ursula Bechert was that they had a sense of humor.
October 27, 2011
Chemistry for Life
The foundation for OSU's new science center was built a century ago
In 2011, the first Baby Boomer turned 65 — the leading edge of a wave that is going to change the country. By 2030 one in every five Americans will be older than that. People are already living longer, taking time to travel and to enjoy their families. Think gourmet cooking classes, fishing trips and [...]
October 12, 2011
Bug Zoo
OSU’s arthropod museum provides a window on the past and clues to our future
The other day, I found myself sharing a room with 3 million dead bugs.
February 21, 2011
Thinking Like a Physicist
OSU leads national effort to reform upper-level physics education
Walk into an upper-level college physics classroom almost anywhere in the country, and you’ll see students sitting down, listening to the professor and taking notes. Despite years of education research showing that students learn better by being active, the common curriculum for juniors and seniors in physics still emphasizes passivity. In recent years, a revolution [...]
February 1, 2011
Surprise in the Sargasso
Microbes are masters of adaptation. In some of Earth’s most extreme environments — Antarc- tica’s frigid ice fields, Yellowstone’s sulfuric hot springs, Crater Lake’s lightless depths, the oceans’ deep-sea basalts — Stephen Giovannoni has discovered thriving communities of bacteria. As the holder of the Emile F. Pernot Distinguished Professorship in Microbiology, he has discovered some [...]
February 1, 2011
Lionfish Outcompete the Natives on Coral Reefs
Lionfish memo to coral reefs in the Bahamas: There’s a new predator in town. Native to the South Pacific, the invasive lionfish is reducing the abundance of native fishes on coral reefs in the Bahamas (see “Deep Ecology,” in Terra, spring 2008). OSU zoologist Mark Hixon leads a team of graduate students and other collaborators [...]
December 22, 2010
Yellow tang study shows marine reserve benefit
The popular aquarium fish are rebounding after being nearly wiped out
Marine ecologists at Oregon State University have shown for the first time that tiny fish larvae can drift with ocean currents and “re-seed” fish stocks significant distances away – more than 100 miles in a new study from Hawaii.
May 23, 2008
Expedition to the Edge
An OSU scientist braves an uncharted rainforest in a search for rare and endangered species
A love of bugs led Chris Marshall to take a white-knuckle flight into a remote South American rainforest. With an eye on cataloging the diversity of these rich ecosystems before they vanish, he returned with species never seen by scientists.
April 4, 2008
Deep Ecology
From coral reefs in the tropics to Oregon’s rocky banks, Mark Hixon investigates coastal marine fishes
When talk turns to the mud-dwelling creatures of the deep seafloor, Mark Hixon jumps up from his swivel chair, strides to a cabinet in his office and swings open the door. Taking out a long cardboard box, he gently lays it on his desk. “This,” he says, reaching inside, “is a sponge from just off [...]
January 23, 2008
Invaders in the Dunes
Unnoticed by most beach–goers, a showdown is under way in Oregon’s coastal dunes, and the winner could pack increased risks for coastal property, especially during winter storms. OSU scientists have documented a slow but steady takeover by American beach grass (Ammophila breviligulata), an invasive species from the East Coast and Great Lakes. They have found [...]
