Story Archive

Beginning in March 2016, the University of Minnesota launches Minnesota Sparks, a series of outreach events to bring its researchers—who are tackling the state’s most critical issues—into conversation with communities across Greater Minnesota.

In a recent announcement by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the University of Minnesota Twin Cities ranks sixth in the nation among public universities in the number of 2015-2016 Fulbright Program student awards.

With 59 graduates currently serving abroad in the Peace Corps, the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities ranks No. 3 nationally on the Peace Corps' Top Colleges annual list.

For the first time, scientists have observed ripples in the fabric of spacetime called gravitational waves, arriving at the earth from a cataclysmic event in the distant universe. This confirms a major prediction of Albert Einstein’s 1915 general theory of relativity and opens an unprecedented new window onto the cosmos.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have engineered a new synthetic biopathway that can more efficiently and cost-effectively turn agricultural waste, like corn stover and orange peels, into a variety of useful products ranging from spandex to chicken feed.

A large international team of forest ecologists including U of M ecologist Jennifer Powers and University of Minnesota graduate student Justin Becknell sought to answer that question by analyzing recovery of aboveground biomass using 1,500 forest plots and 45 sites across Latin America. The researchers found that carbon uptake in these new-growth tropical forests was surprisingly robust. Their findings will appear in the print edition of the journal Nature February 11.

The February agenda for the University of Minnesota’s Board of Regents is highlighted by discussions central to the strategic positioning of the U for years to come.

The material at the heart of the lithium ion batteries that power electric vehicles, laptop computers and smartphones has been shown to impair a key soil bacterium, according to new research published online in the journal Chemistry of Materials.

Adam Levy, frontman for the Honeydogs, Mina Moore, Claire Monesterio of GRRRL PRTY and Johnny and Molly Solomon of Communist Daughter will speak and perform at Music and the Mind Unplugged Tuesday, February 9.

Water is essential to human well-being, yet reports of water shortages surface daily. Now, thanks to a team of global water experts, planning for water development and use just took a giant leap forward.