News: 2024

December

Astronomers unveil their favorite discovery of 2024

December 24, 2024

illustration of silhouette looking through telescope

Wendy Freedman shares her standout discovery of the year.


What to read and watch over winter break 2024

December 24, 2024

students in Mansuetto

UChicago award winners share their selections for the holidays.


Looking back at 2024 at the University of Chicago

December 24, 2024

UChicago campus

UChicago retrospective article features PSD breakthroughs and accolades.


UChicago partners on new National Science Foundation large-scale research infrastructure for education

December 24, 2024

NSF logo

Researchers from Computer Science and DSI have received a $900,000 sub-award for their critical contributions to the NSF SafeInsights project, which aims to build a transformative infrastructure for inclusive education research at a national scale.


DOE awards Fred Chong and his national research team $7.5M to develop a SMART software stack to control quantum computer noise

December 24, 2024

SMART stack

University of Chicago Computer Science Seymour Goodman Professor Fred Chong is part of a national team building software to manage quantum noise, an increasingly relevant problem due to the rapid development of quantum computing technologies.


Saturdays with CSIL — How undergraduates are transforming CS education for local high school students

December 24, 2024

Saturdays with CSIL

Saturdays with CSIL (Computer Science Instructional Laboratory) focuses on exposing Chicago Public School high school students to computer science at an introductory level, as some CPS students have limited access to CS classes.


The climate app designed to tackle Chatham’s flooding crisis

December 24, 2024

climate app team

Fourth-year PhD student Kelly Wagman, in collaboration with Argonne National Laboratory and the Greater Chatham Initiative, develops a community-based app that bridges the gap between the residents’ and the scientists’ needs for flood-reporting resources and data.


UChicago course puts art under the microscope

December 24, 2024

Photo of scientists in a lab

When mixing disciplines, there are some subjects that are much more readily paired—psychology and biology or visual arts and photography. However, one physical science course at the University of Chicago seeks to combine three subjects that aren’t a natural fit on the surface. “The Chemistry of Artists' Materials,” taught by Assistant Instructional Professor Hannah Lant, blends together art, history and science.


How an ‘accidental chemist’ honed his approach at UChicago on the way to a Nobel Prize

December 24, 2024

John Jumper

UChicago alumnus John Jumper was awarded a share of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his contributions to the AlphaFold project, which uses AI to predict protein structures. Learn more about Jumper's academic and scientific journey.


New technology points to unexpected uses for snoRNA

December 24, 2024

RNA illustration

Scientists from UChicago created a new way to study snoRNAs, showing they may serve a surprisingly broad range of functions across many cell types.


The US Department of Defense is investing in deepfake detection

December 24, 2024

Pixelated image of a man

The US Department of Defense has invested $2.4 million over two years in deepfake detection technology from a startup called Hive AI. UChicago Prof. Ben Zhao comments on the potential efficacy of this tool.


Actual vs. advertised speeds: Your home internet can be slower than expected. Here’s why.

December 24, 2024

Symbol of wifi

Internet service providers offer a wide range of speeds in their plans. However, the speed customers pay for is not always consistent with what they experience. Computer Science Prof. Nick Feamster comments on factors that might contribute to varied internet speeds.


Solar power glut boosts California electric bills. Other states reap the benefits.

December 24, 2024

solar power panels

California is making so much solar energy that large commercial operators are increasingly forced to stop production, raising questions about the state’s costly plan to shift entirely to carbon-free sources of electricity. Computer science Prof. Andrew Chien comments.


The mystery of dark energy surrounding us…It’s neither clean, nor polluting, nor “energy”

December 24, 2024

abstract interpretation of dark energy

The term “dark energy” was coined by the UChicago astrophysicist Michael Turner in 1998. Since then, details about this phenomenon have remained a mystery to scientists. Prof. Joshua Frieman comments on why it is likely that dark energy was not prevalent during the initial inflation of the Big Bang.


PSD in Practice: An interview with clean energy professional Sneha Vasudevan

December 23, 2024

Sneha Vasudevan

Sneha Vasudevan, who grew up in Chennai, India, and now lives in the Bay Area, earned her Master’s in Applied Data Science (formerly the Master’s in Analytics) in 2022. She is a Lead Technical Project Manager at Uplight, a technology company that “enables energy providers, ecosystem partners, and consumers to conserve, deploy, manage, and monetize energy resources.” We interviewed Sneha about her experiences at UChicago and her career path since.