News

UChicago biophysicists from the Department of Physics and James Franck Institute discover that the way cells grow and multiply—normally considered part of the same process—are regulated separately.

Image courtesy John Devany

There were at least 19 Black scientists and technicians who worked on the Manhattan Project, including mathematician J. Ernest Wilkins, the youngest student ever admitted to the University of Chicago at 13 years old who at 21 joined UChicago's Met Lab to research plutonium, and UChicago alums Moddie Daniel Taylor and Jasper Jeffries, whose scientific contributions were crucial to the Manhattan Project.

Photo courtesy of the University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center

"Oppenheimer" director explains that he attributed the calculation contribution of the Trinity Test to Albert Einstein rather than Arthur Holly Compton, who directed an outpost of the Manhattan Project at the University of Chicago, because Einstein was more recognizable.

Photo courtesy of the University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center

Professor of statistics and computer science Rebecca Willett says that in regulating AI's use in automated weapons, it's important not to lose sight of the humans behind it, adding that "this is one of the reasons that the U.N. is looking at this...there really needs to be international repercussions so that a company based in one country can’t destroy another country without violating international agreements. Real enforceable regulation can make things better and safer.”

Event at UChicago commemorates site of first controlled nuclear chain reaction during Manhattan Project.

Researchers, including UChicago beamline scientist Vitali Prakapenka, have combined X-ray and laser techniques to illuminate the origin of mysterious deep-Earth structures.

In this audio segment, atmospheric scientist Elisabeth Moyer discusses bad air quality that has affected the Chicago region this summer.

Geophysical sciences professor David Archer says underground climate change is not the same as what we think of as climate change in the atmosphere, which is largely driven by greenhouse gases and has far-reaching effects, adding that “calling it climate change seems like a bit of a coattail thing.”

In an audio piece, Physics chair Peter Littlewood discusses the legacy of the Manhattan Project on scientific research.

Photo by Robert Kozloff

The American Physical Society has designated the Chicago Pile “Site A” and Stagg Field at the University of Chicago as Historic Sites to recognize the world’s first self-sustaining, controlled nuclear chain reaction. Each site will receive a plaque, acknowledging its exemplary contributions to physics.

Photo courtesy of the University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center

Data Science for Everyone Director Zarek Drozda mentions that California is one of 17 states now offering data science to high school students in some form, and that Oregon and Ohio offer it as an alternative to Algebra II.

The 2023 Alice W. Chandler Staff Service Recognition Ceremony was held June 22. Meet some of the staff members who are celebrating this year the longest tenures at the University.

Mitzi Nakatsuka celebrates year 45 at UChicago. She started at the University as a secretary in the Statistics Department, later moved into Web Services, before eventually returning to the department she started in as a web developer.

UChicago chemists, including Gregory Voth, use simulation to reveal key mechanism in microtubule growth.

Article mentions astronomy and astrophysics postdoctoral fellow Michael Zhang's plan to measure the spectrum of light from exoplanet TOI 2445b, a rocky world about twice the size of Earth that orbits perilously close to its host star.

Article mentions the slime mold watch developed by computer scientist Pedro Lopes and doctoral candidate Jasmine Lu.