2023
Origin of life group debuts at AAAS
March 9, 2023
Researchers from UChicago, ETH Zurch, the University of Cambridge, and Harvard have formed an international, interdisciplinary collaborative to explore how life evolved on Earth and, possibly, other planets.
New study shows Venus likely didn’t have ancient oceans for long
March 8, 2023
Assoc. Prof. Edwin Kite and graduate student Alexandra Warren work to model the history of Venus' atmosphere.
Image: Inverse/Shutterstock
Black holes will destroy all quantum states, researchers argue
March 7, 2023
Prof. Robert M. Wald discusses new research findings and his studies under celebrated theoretical physicist John Wheeler.
Image: Kristina Armitage/Quanta Magazine
An applied mathematician with an unexpected toolbox
March 2, 2023
Lek-Heng Lim uses tools from algebra, geometry and topology to answer questions in machine learning.
No, the James Webb Space Telescope Hasn’t Broken Cosmology
February 27, 2023
Prof. Wendy Freedman is exploring how JWST observations can be squared with the standard cosmological model.
PSD Spotlight: Sean Hernandez
February 24, 2023
PSD's February spotlight is Sean Hernandez, Assistant Director of PSD Graphics. Sean has been with UChicago for fifteen years.
PSD in the News - February 2023
February 24, 2023
This month PSD researchers have been recognized for their pioneering discoveries, the quality and innovation of their research programs, and their unique contributions to new fields of inquiry.
Solving astrophysical problems by hand
February 23, 2023
Abigail Vieregg, director of the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, shares her passion for building experiments and bringing people together to solve scientific mysteries.
Deep earthquakes could reveal secrets of the Earth’s mantle
February 22, 2023
A new study led by University of Chicago geophysicist Sunyoung Park suggests there may be a layer of surprisingly fluid rock located in the Earth’s mantle. The study uses 350-mile-deep earthquake to make elusive measurements of the Earth’s layers.
A chemist who studies the spots where chaos sneaks in
February 20, 2023
UChicago Asst. Prof. Sarah King awarded prestigious Cottrell Scholarship, that honors “outstanding teacher-scholars who are recognized by their scientific communities for the quality and innovation of their research programs and their academic leadership skills.”
What “living drill bits” can teach us about evolution
February 18, 2023
Clams that can bore into solid rock show surprising patterns of evolution, UChicago study finds.
Dark energy from supermassive black holes? Physicists spar over radical idea
February 17, 2023
Earlier this week, a study made headlines claiming that the mysterious “dark energy” cosmologists believe is accelerating the expansion of the universe could arise from supermassive black holes at the hearts of galaxies. If true, the connection would link two of the most mind-bending concepts in physics—black holes and dark energy—and suggest that the source of the latter has been under theorists’ noses for decades. However, some leading theorists are deeply skeptical of the idea.
Suri Vaikuntanathan awarded 2023 Early Career Award in Theoretical Chemistry
February 16, 2023
Vaikuntanathan is being recognized “for the development of powerful non-equilibrium statistical mechanical theories to understand the behavior of complex matter ranging from driven systems to biological self-assembly.”
RNA’s “joints” play key role in our gene expression, UChicago scientists find
February 15, 2023
Longstanding puzzle of RNA methylation revealed by team of UChicago chemists. The finding could have implications for gene therapies for disease, as well as our picture of gene expression, development, and evolution.
This tool could protect artists from A.I.-generated art that steals their style
February 13, 2023
Professor Zhao and a team of computer science researchers at the University of Chicago designed a tool called Glaze that aims to thwart A.I. models from learning a particular artist’s style.