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From the College of Natural Sciences
Step Into the Arena
Dear Students, There is a famous quote from Teddy Roosevelt. In his "Citizenship In a Republic" speech given in Paris in 1910, the former president paints a picture of a strong fighter in the ring, stumbling. Roosevelt says it's not the nitpicking critic, sitting outside the ring and pointing, who counts. Rather, the credit belongs to the pers...Help Spread the Word: Boil Water Notice
Dear Students, You received a message this morning from Campus Safety alerting you to the fact that the City of Austin has issued a citywide notice that all residents need to boil their water. Updates on the situation for our campus community will be posted to this website https://emergency.utexas.edu/In the meantime, please avoid consuming water f...Free Tacos and a Star Party
Dear Students,You read that right: this week is Natural Sciences Week – the time when we celebrate how great science is – and tonight we kick it off at 6 pm in and around the Texas Union Ballroom. Come on out to enjoy free tacos and pizza, live animals like mini-horses, and lots of student organizations. Be sure to represent with your Texas Science...Speaking Truth to Power
Dear Students,Often, I hear from students (and staff and faculty) who feel there has been an injustice through words or deeds, but don't feel they have the right to speak directly to that individual because they're a professor, or a supervisor, or a Dean—someone in a position of power. Quakers coined the phrase "speak truth to power" as a middle gr...Spend a Semester by the Sea
Dear Students, Have you ever been staring at your textbook and thought, "I wish I were on a beach"? Well, have I got good news for you: you can take a course and lie on the beach (or be close by), even while reading your textbook. UT has a Marine Science Institute in Port Aransas, Texas, and there's a wonderful opportunity to spend a Semester ...Science is Life
Dear Students,I recently learned about an amazing scientist named Dr. Maynard Daly: the first African-American woman to earn a Ph.D. in chemistry in the United States, in 1947. Dr. Daly grew up in a house surrounded by the love of science and discovered a love of chemistry in high school. After completing her doctorate at Columbia University, she w...Re-Search
Dear Students,Earlier this year I had the great fortune to attend a panel of female scientists at Explore UT called "Smart Kids: A Panel Discussion of Career Paths and Personal Journeys in Science." Meredith Walker, co-founder of Amy Poehler's "Smart Girls," moderated a discussion with our own Chemistry professor Dr. Kate Biberdorf, Astronomy gradu...Get Hooked for a Lifetime
Dear Students,In her early 20s, Dr. Wanda Díaz-Merced was studying physics at the University of Puerto Rico when a prolonged illness caused permanent blindness, a seemingly career-ending turn of events. However, Dr. Díaz-Merced was hooked on physics and astronomy, so instead of giving up her passion, she began to think about "seeing" science in ano...Dig a Little Deeper
Dear Students,Last week I urged you to think of what you wanted to accomplish this year and do something that works toward your goals every day. This week I want you to think about life after college and work toward that (even those of you for whom this is only your second week in college). Often we have ideas based on successful people we have kno...Read It Now
Read our publication, The Texas Scientist, a digest covering the people and groundbreaking discoveries that make the College of Natural Sciences one of the most amazing and significant places on Earth.
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