Laura Mersini-Houghton

An Origin Story

Most theoretical physicists don’t see their predictions confirmed in their lifetimes, as it can take centuries to discover the physical phenomena that mark them true. But that hasn’t been the case for...
a tardigrade close-up, under a microscope

The Survivors

Heat-resistant. Cold-weather tough. Outer space savvy. If anything, tardigrades are survivors above all else. But what makes them so resilient? Thomas Boothby strives to figure that out and discover...
graphic of a woman crossing a crosswalk and an autonomous vehicle "sensing" her as she walks past

Ready, Set, Brake

While autonomous vehicles begin to appear on roadways, gaps in knowledge are blocking the way to their full integration. Researchers at UNC are asking the tough questions to ensure that the driverless...

In Your Backyard

Allison Duprey and Andrew Zachman experience new opportunities through hands-on fieldwork — right here, on UNC’s campus...

Stepping Into the Lab

Jackson Richards learns how to build a successful research project and implement skills acquired in the classroom...
Kou Yang

Just Jump In

Kou Yang lets curiosity guide him into the research lab at the Gfeller Center, where he’s uncovered his desire to become an athletic trainer...
Liah McPherson takes a photo of a dolphin underwater

Coastal Connections

Liah McPherson accidentally got involved in research at UNC when she tried to enroll in a graduate class as a freshman — an experience that’s led her to new colleagues and fostered her love of...

An Unforgettable Experience

This week, UNC celebrates University Research Week — an annual campus-wide event packed with lectures, workshops, and undergraduate research stories designed to promote awareness of research...
a graphic of a Swiss army knife; the large blade is provenance, the small blade is indexing, the nail file is integrity, the scissors are compliance, the magnifying class is auditing, the keychain is storage tiering, the corkscrew is automated ingest, and the pen is publishing

Carpe Datum

Every day, humans create 2.5 quintillion bytes of data. How do we protect, store, and transfer it all? A team at RENCI has spent the last decade developing the Swiss Army knife of data management...
a group of female hikers hike in the Sierra Nevadas

Riverine Re[Sr]ch

As a first-year student, Elena Watts took a research-based field trip that would change her life and lead her to four years of undergraduate research at UNC. The results of her original work served as...

Chasing Cephalopod Dreams

Jared Richards recalls childhood memories walking through the halls of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. and the awe of all that surrounded him. A summer...
Meredith Emery

Emotional Environment

When Meredith Emery photographed geography researchers conducting fieldwork, she couldn’t believe what she saw — a slew of litter along streambeds and forest lines. Now she’s sharing these images...