University of Arizona in the News

High school senior Aseel Rawashdeh has worked to develop a eco-friendly, homemade larvicide from baker's yeast and essential oils that would kill the mosquito species known to transmit yellow fever, dengue and other viruses while sparing more beneficial varieties of the flying insects. In the summer of 2020, she received mosquito eggs from Michael A. Riehle's entomology Lab at the University of Arizona in support of her research.

The University of Arizona has several initiatives underway to recruit students from Mexico and then prepare those students to succeed. Currently, 138 students from Mexico are enrolled in UArizona. "We started a new enrollment option called Global Direct, which is the option for an international student to receive a UArizona degree fully online from their home country and they get a tuition discount based on where they're located," student recruiter Hope Noriega said.

Young children who transition to a new gender with social changes – taking on new names, pronouns, haircuts and clothing – overwhelmingly continue identifying as that gender five years later, according to a first-of-its-kind report published May 4 by the Trans Youth Project. Just 2.5 percent of the group had reverted to identifying as the gender they were assigned at birth.

This column examining the elusive nature of "herd immunity" to COVID-19 in the United States quotes University of Arizona immunologist Deepta Bhattacharya. He said there is a "'mosaic of immunity,' with plenty of vulnerable cracks and crevices into which the coronavirus will still seep."

Young children who transition to a new gender with social changes — taking on new names, pronouns, haircuts and clothing — overwhelmingly continue identifying as that gender five years later, according to a first-of-its-kind report published May 4 by the Trans Youth Project. Just 2.5 percent of the group had reverted to identifying as the gender they were assigned at birth.

University of Arizona associate research professor of environment and natural resources Molly Hunter explains what's fueling extreme fire conditions in the Western U.S. and why risky seasons like this are becoming more common.

University of Arizona associate research professor of environment and natural resources Molly Hunter explains what is fueling extreme fire conditions in the Western U.S. and why risky seasons like this are becoming more common.

Venomics – the study of venom – has led to several important drug discoveries. "A century ago we thought venom had three or four components, and now we know just one type of venom can have thousands," said Leslie V. Boyer, a professor emeritus of pathology at the University of Arizona. "Things are accelerating because a small number of very good laboratories have been pumping out information that everyone else can now use to make discoveries."

A University of Arizona tree-ring expert is closer than ever to pinning down the date of the infamous eruption of the volcano Thera – a goal she has pursued for decades. Charlotte Pearson, an associate professor in the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, is lead author of a new paper that narrows down the date to just a handful of possibilities: 1611 B.C., 1562-1555 B.C. and 1538 B.C.

Linda Paola Varela, a student in the University of Arizona's School of Theatre, Film and Television, writes about her experiences writing and directing "I'm Just Trying to Help," which screened at this year's "I Dream in Widescreen" festival.