Tags: Earth

photo of man on boat in ocean with tool reaching for drone in water
New tools for finding the right whales

North Atlantic right whales, hunted to extinction by the end of the 19th century, return to the Georgia Bight for calving. Marine scientists search the large ocean sector stretching from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina to Cape Canaveral, Florida to document the number of new calves, which remains below average. Franklin faculty at the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography are using a new technology to help track conservation and rebuilding of the…

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Two UGA students finalists in Radiolab contest to name one of Earth's quasi-moons

Though they might not be seen, they can be named – voting is open through Dec. 31. Asteroids orbiting the sun in a similar path to Earth's, quasi-moons escort our planet on its journey a few centuries at a time. The science podcast Radiolab and the International Astronomical Union (IAU) — the organization that assigns official names to quasi-moons and their surface features — announced a contest earlier this year to name the…

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Art + Math make a GROVI connection

Creative ingenuity at the faculty level and across Franklin units provides the spark for an innovative new partnership – and the NSF support to expand the collaboration: Designer and artist Moon Jung Jang met mathematician David Gay through the UGA Arts Collaborative, a research incubator that encourages collaboration across the arts and sciences, and between the university and the Athens community. Since 2017, the two professors have engaged in…

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Noted and Quoted, November – December 2024

From comment and opinion to groundbreaking work on reviving heritage crops and fighting disease, Franklin faculty expertise informs and leads by a continual presence in media around the globe. A sampling of the numerous stories over the previous few weeks: We knew lead pipes were bad 140 years ago – Stephen Mihm, professor of history and associate dean, writing in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette UGA researcher links broken corn chromosomes to cancer…

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Kudos, November - December 2024

From rankings to renovations of beloved campus buildings to welcoming award-winning new faculty colleagues, a rich cohort of accolades and good news ushered in late fall on campus. A sampling of the terrific stories about our colleagues and alumni: UGA dedicates first phase of Science and Ag Hill modernization  Nathan Lewis, a professor of pediatrics and bioengineering at the University of California San Diego, joined UGA as the new Georgia…

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UGA plant biologist leads new advances in biotech

The evolutionary lineage leading to Amborella diverged from all other flowering plant lineages approximately 150 million years ago. In 2013, an international research team co-led by UGA Plant Biology faculty member Jim Leebens-Mack and collaborators announced the newly sequenced genome of the Amborella trichopoda plant became the foundation for comparative analyses of genes tracing back to the origin of flowering plants and earlier.…

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New research connects peach reach to indigenous communities

Long before there was a Peach State, indigenous communities saw the promise of peaches – originally introduced to North America by Spanish explorers. A new study published in Nature Communications shows that Indigenous political and social networks and land use practices played key roles in the peach’s adoption and dispersal across the continent: The researchers analyzed historical documents that mentioned peaches, such as the travel writings of…

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Franklin hosts inaugural faculty research mixer

The Franklin College hosted the first-ever faculty research mixer on Nov. 14 at Normal Bar in Athens, bringing together faculty across the university who share research affinities to build multidisciplinary research and teaching teams. The evening featured seven brief research presentations and a social mixer of faculty interested in collaborating on areas related to "Health, Gender, & Equity." "There was an energy  about collaboration…

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Art in the Field: UGA students explore mining and ecology in Georgia

Mines in Southeast Georgia can conjure many images — swamps, pits, pines, machinery. A band of artists may not be at the top of this list. Nevertheless, University of Georgia Professor of Art Michael Marshall and 14 students were invited to don hardhats and visit the Chemours Mission Mine in the Altamaha River Basin this past September to contemplate the setting through different eyes and tell a greater story of this region.  …

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UGA's Dorsey selected to receive Simons Foundation Pivot Fellowship

University of Georgia faculty member Alan T. Dorsey is one of eight 2024 Simons Foundation Pivot Fellows. The program supports researchers who have a strong track record of success and achievement in their current field, as well as a deep interest, curiosity and drive to make contributions to a new discipline. Professor of physics in the UGA Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, Dorsey serves as associate chief information officer for…

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Students journey across America through UGA's Interdisciplinary Field Program

From Sapelo Island, Georgia to Yosemite National Park in California, UGA’s Interdisciplinary Field Program mixes geology, ecology, and anthropology into a 60-day road trip across America: They travel through 20 states and to 23 national parks and monuments—including the Grand Canyon, Muir Woods, Mount Saint Helens, and Yellowstone National Park—and log nearly 12,000 miles on the road, and then tack on another 100 miles or so hiking on foot.…

photo of man, clipping hedge in stadium
Ancestry of Sanford Stadium hedges goes into the lab

In a terrific story combining genome analysis, a love for the hedges and UGA history— a Franklin College faculty member and his students found that the same family of hedges have stood tall for nearly 100 years: Plant biology professor and hedges researcher James Leebens-Mack decided to sequence the genome of the Sanford Stadium hedges. His goal was to combine service-learning with his own areas of research, comparative genome biology and the…

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Alumnus named UTK Chancellor’s Professor

Derek Alderman, Franklin College alumnus and Board of Advisors member, earned his MA (`93) and PhD (`98) in Geography and was recently named Chancellor’s Professor at the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville. This distinction honors the highest standards of academic excellence at UT and is awarded based on outstanding scholarly achievement and contributions to their fields. Alderman, a professor of human geography in the Department of…

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Kudos, October 2024

Faculty, students and alumni of the Franklin College shine all year long and October is no exception. A sample of the featured good work and achievements during the eighth month of the calendar of Romulus: UGA celebrates 40 years of AI  at Oct. 28 conference Alchemy, co-founded by Raj Shingadia (AB ’01, Philosophy, BS ’03, Psychology), designs and installs breathtaking water worlds through Southeast Aquariums & MRC and set design for…

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Sensing a new understanding of the world

Since 1985, the UGA Center for Geospatial Research has been dedicated to advancing remote sensing, mapping, and geospatial research. Along with the technological changes over that nearly 40 year history, the center's technical capacities have grown to reflect the advanced capabilities of today in environmental remote sensing and GeoAI, photogrammetry, small satellite development, and graduate and undergraduate training. In service of promoting…

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National Transfer Student Week

Transfer students currently make up nearly 18% of the UGA student body, arriving from 800 different colleges, 134 Georgia counties, 44 states, and 60 different countries around the world. Campus grows more diverse in every way thanks to so many different students following their academic dream to UGA. As a part of our commemorations for National Transfer Student Week (Oct. 21-25), Franklin College communications writer intern Mianna Lotshaw, who…

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GenAI Competition 2.0

Franklin College faculty announce the return of the Generative AI Competition for its second year. GenAI Competition 2.0 will be facilitated by Lindsey Harding, director of the UGA Writing Intensive Program, and Aaron Meskin, professor and head of the department of philosophy, and sponsored by the Office of Instruction. Students are encouraged to submit projects between now and March 14, 2025. Guidelines: Use generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT,…

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PBS series Weathered features UGA's Shepherd

A new PBS production WEATHERED: EARTH’S EXTREMES, a six-part docu-series debuts in October on YouTube, and PBS stations (check local listings). In 30-minute episodes, audiences follow host and science communicator Maiya May as she delves into the impacts of climate change and meets with the people inside communities on the frontline of extreme weather events. Throughout the series, Maiya May introduces audiences to scientists and community…

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Holland named Shellebarger professor in Geology

Steven Holland, paleobiologist and expert in stratigraphy, has been selected as the Shellebarger Professor in Geology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. The professorship is supported by a gift from Sydney (BSHE ’79) and Jeff (BS ’78, MS ’80) Shellebarger, former president of Chevron’s North American exploration and production operations. Jeff Shellebarger currently serves on the executive committee of the UGA Geology Alumni Board.…

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New North Georgia weather radar fills coverage gap

A new weather radar system – a collaboration among three Georgia institutions of higher education - comes online at a critical time in hurricane season to protect people and property across the metro region and beyond: Installed recently at Georgia Gwinnett College (GGC), an X-band weather radar purchased two years ago by the Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of Georgia (UGA) is now providing data for a section of north Georgia…

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kudos, September 2024

We welcomed new faculty and staff colleagues into the Franklin College, celebrated new professorships, a Hall of Fame induction and so much more in this first month of the fall semester 2024. Congratulations to our colleagues for outstanding contributions and career achievements: Kelly Dyer, professor in the department of genetics, director of the Integrated Life Sciences Program and co-director of the NIH T32 Genetics Training Grant program, is…

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Noted and Quoted, September 2024

Fantastic start to the fall semester, with excellent research stories and expert comment alike finding purchase in media around the world. Great job by Franklin College scholars in a wide range of disciplines, prepared with authority, ready to share. A sample of stories from recent weeks: There might be more than one way to make a planet – The New York Times reports on new research from Cassandra Hall, assistant professor of computational…

photo of equipment and people on board a ship, sea in background, day
Where the ocean meets the air

A National Science Foundation collaborative project between researchers from the University of Delaware and the University of Georgia to better understand how nutrients, pollutants and organic matter are exchanged between the air and the sea recently conducted a research cruise in the North Atlantic Ocean. The cruise aboard UD’s Research Vessel Hugh R. Sharp to study the sea surface microlayer was designed to better understanding the role it…

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UGA's Knox receives USG Hall of Fame Faculty Award

UGA faculty member John Knox was among three USG faculty honored with the Felton Jenkins, Jr. Hall of Fame Faculty Award at the University System of Georgia (USG) 20th annual Regents’ Scholarship Gala on September 12. The black-tie gala, hosted at Town Stage at Trilith Studios in Fayetteville, GA, honored faculty, alumni and friends while raising $1.85 million from generous sponsors to support and provide need-based scholarships for…

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Writing experience into Georgia's seafood heritage

The UGA Domestic Field Study (DFS) programs integrate place-based, active, and faculty-driven experiential learning to provide immersive, off-campus learning experiences. The social and geographic diversity found across the state yield innumerable possibilities for field study programs, though perhaps none as extensive and captivating as the Georgia coast. “Writing and Community at the Georgia Coast” is a service-learning domestic field…
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