Faculty

Link Between Dementia and Air Pollution Drives Research Collaboration

April 17, 2025

Students Zeyi Moo, back left, and Yaying Wang, right, work with Professor Xuan Zhang, center, on her Alzheimer's-related research. Photo courtesy of Kate Marsh.

California’s Central Valley, famous for producing much of the food Americans eat, is also infamous for its inferior air quality and its high rates of poverty, housing insecurity and at-risk workers. Increasing epidemiological evidence has shown a correlation between long-term exposure to...

Two men pose with an oversized check on stage at a check presentation ceremony for the PG&E award to SNRI.

PG&E Funds Critical SNRI Work on Sierra Forest Resiliency

A team of UC Merced researchers was recently awarded $100,000 from Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) to identify ways to improve drought resilience and reduce the risk of wildfire in Sierra...

One of several murals painted on school buildings with the community's help.

Artists Making Their Marks On and Off Campus

“Artists to my mind are the real architects of change, and not the political legislators who implement change after the fact.” — William S. Burroughs The economic and educational...

The monks take tea with Professor Noelle and continue discussing concepts in neuroscience.

Researchers Take Cognitive Science to Buddhist Monks

Two UC Merced cognitive scientists spent part of their summer in India this year, teaching neuroscience to a group of exiled Tibetan Buddhist monks. Professors Ramesh Balasubramaniam and David...

Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe stands in front of a wall wearing a light blue lab coat and holding a tray of cake tins filled with soil samples.

Earth Scientist Targets Sexual Harassment With NSF Grant

Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe is a biogeochemist who studies the impact of climate change on Sierra Nevada soils. She’s also active in efforts to recruit and retain women in science,...

Several hundred staff members are seated in the Dr. Lakireddy Auditorium listening to a speaker on stage.

Staff, Faculty Convocations Celebrate Successes, Highlight New Priorities

Chancellor Dorothy Leland, members of her executive team and other campus leaders kicked off UC Merced’s 2017-18 academic year by lauding faculty and staff members, recapping successes of the...

New Academic Year Brings New Faces, Opportunities

More than 2,200 students — many entering their first year at UC Merced — arrived last weekend in cars, trucks and minivans packed to the gills with living essentials from clothing and...

Critical Race and Ethnic Studies is Campus’s Newest Major

Starting this semester, students in the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SSHA) will have a new major option: Critical Race and Ethnic Studies (CRES). Led by professors Ma Vang and Kit...

Sun setting in red-orange sky over darkened mountain range as seen from UC Merced's Kolligian Library.

Professors Demystify Eclipse for Merced Skygazers

As the frenzy surrounding the Aug. 21 solar eclipse begins to peak, physics Professor Wil van Breugel is using the opportunity to give Merced stargazers a crash course in the science and history of...

Professor Nathan Monroe works with a student to analyze politics.

Political Scientists, Students to Examine United Nations’ Inner Workings

Considering that the United States spends about $3.3 billion on United Nations-related activity each year, including peacekeeping — and President Donald Trump has proposed a 40 percent cut in...