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From the College of Natural Sciences

Steve is the Communications Specialist for the College of Natural Sciences. He has a BS in Ecology from Evergreen State College and a BS in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior from UT Austin.

Graduate Students Ensure Science Under the Stars Shines Bright

Graduate Students Ensure Science Under the Stars Shines Bright

A young visitor to Science Under the Stars views ants through a microscope. Photo by Vivian Abigiu.

Starlight twinkles through the trees and crickets serenade in the distance as families, students and others with a thirst for knowledge gather outside at The University of Texas at Austin's Brackenridge Field Laboratory (BFL) for another evening of Science Under the Stars.

6 Research Stories to Revisit this Darwin Day

6 Research Stories to Revisit this Darwin Day

In honor of Darwin Day, we round up six popular College of Natural Sciences stories that showcase concepts in evolution. 

Summer at UT Releases Youths’ Inner Scientists

Summer at UT Releases Youths’ Inner Scientists

Families searching for fun and educational program options this summer need look no further than the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin. 

Chemistry Chair Receives Major Award from American Chemical Society

Chemistry Chair Receives Major Award from American Chemical Society

The Department of Chemistry's new chair, Professor Dave Thirumalai, has been selected to receive the 2016 Award in Theoretical Chemistry by a division of the largest scientific society in the world.

Sociable Chimps Harbor Richer Gut Microbiomes

Sociable Chimps Harbor Richer Gut Microbiomes

Two chimpanzees interact in Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Photo by Steffen Foerster, Duke University

Spending time in close contact with others often means risking catching germs and getting sick. But being sociable may also help transmit beneficial microbes, finds a multi-institutional study of gut microbiomes in chimpanzees.

Textiles and Apparel Students Win Prestigious National Awards

Textiles and Apparel Students Win Prestigious National Awards

UT textiles and apparel faculty members Nancy Prideaux and Sara Stevens accompanied the scholarship winners to the YMA awards dinner in New York. Left to right: Nancy Prideaux, Debby Garcia, Avani Patel, Clare Moore, Tami Gumilar, Daeci Dinh, Sara Northcutt, and Sara Stevens.

​A student majoring in textiles and apparel at The University of Texas at Austin last night was announced to have won a prestigious national scholarship from a leading international fashion industry group. Avani Patel's innovative design idea, which combines 3D printing and 3D modeling to make custom-fit leather shoes, is one of a handful of concepts from UT Austin textiles and apparel students to have won national awards in recent weeks.

Some Prairie Vole Brains Are Better Wired for Sexual Fidelity

Some Prairie Vole Brains Are Better Wired for Sexual Fidelity

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that natural selection drives some male prairie voles to be fully monogamous and others to seek more partners. The surprising contrasts in the animals' brains result from differences in their DNA.

Fish Skin Provides Invisibility in Open Ocean

Fish Skin Provides Invisibility in Open Ocean

Simulated view of how the lookdown fish would appear in polarized light with mirrored skin (left) versus skin that reflects polarized light (right). Images are from simulations created by the Cummings lab.

Scientists have solved a longstanding mystery about how some fish seem to disappear from predators in the open waters of the ocean, a discovery that could help materials scientists and military technologists create more effective methods of ocean camouflage.

Researchers Receive $15 Million for Biofuel Crop Study

Researchers Receive $15 Million for Biofuel Crop Study

A researcher at The University of Texas at Austin will receive two grants totaling $15 million to study a native prairie grass, including how it can become a sustainable source of bioenergy amid global climate change.

College Welcomes New Departmental Leadership

College Welcomes New Departmental Leadership

The Department of Chemistry will soon have a new department chair. Theoretical chemist Dave Thirumalai, whose research focuses on biophysics, chemical physics, soft matter, and system biology, will assume the role in early January 2016.

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