University of Arizona in the News

A 2018 study led by University of Arizona economist George Frisvold examined the contribution of agriculture and agribusiness to Pinal County's economy and the potential effects of climate change on the water supply there.

Record heat this summer has battered not just the Northwest, but also the Southwest. Drought conditions have been reached this year in virtually every western state, including Arizona. Katharine Jacobs, director of the University of Arizona Center for Climate Adaptation Science and Solutions and an expert in water systems, points to the next consequence. "When it is hotter and it is drier, obviously you have a much higher chance of wildfire, so the watersheds that are upstream from reservoirs may wind up burning," she said.

Extreme rainfall and flooding left paths of destruction through communities around the world this summer. The latest was in Tennessee, where preliminary data shows a record-shattering 17 inches of rain fell in 24 hours, turning creeks into rivers that flooded hundreds of homes and killed at least 18 people. A lot of people are asking: Was it climate change? Answering that question isn’t so simple.

Last year's influenza season turned out to be the mildest on record, but health experts have renewed warnings that a "twindemic" – in which flu and COVID-19 cases simultaneously rise and overwhelm hospitals – may be possible this year, and they urge Americans to get their flu shot. "Last year, we didn’t have a very big flu season because people were using masks and that decreased the flu season activity," said Dr. Ricardo Correa, endocrinologist and associate professor of medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine.

An array of activists, scientists and politicians said Wednesday that the Biden administration's inconclusive report on the origins of the coronavirus pandemic demonstrates the need for further probes, even if that leads the United States into delicate geopolitical territory.

The disruption of many people’s emotional well-being due to the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted mental health professionals and scientists to call for the further development of mental health science and interventions. University of Arizona assistant professor of psychology and cognitive science Jessica Andrews-Hanna co-wrote this article.

A new paleoclimate model finds many favorable windows when Homo sapiens might have survived a migration out of Africa. Jessica Tierney, a paleoclimatologist at the University of Arizona who was not involved with the research, said she found the approach interesting but inconclusive. "Ultimately this is a model, not geology or archaeology," Tierney said. "The mystery remains until you have better and more paleoenvironmental records."

University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins is interviewed about campus COVID–19 mitigation efforts and more.

If a tree fell in an ancient forest, what can it tell scientists today? Perhaps a lot if it was a Ginko tree, the leaves of which, when fossilized, often preserve actual organic matter which may help us better understand ancient climate systems – and the possible future of our warming planet. "The reason scientists look back in the past is to understand what's coming in the future," said Kevin Anchukaitis, a climate researcher at the University of Arizona.

University of Arizona researchers have identified an enzyme they believe to be the key driver behind COVID-19 severity and mortality.