University of Arizona in the News

Trees store information about climatic conditions in the rings they lay down each year. Dendrochronology – the science of studying these rings – allows scientists to learn about the ancient climate on Earth. At the University of Arizona, paleoclimatologist Valerie Trouet uses dendrochronology, the science of dating objects through the study and comparison of tree rings, to learn about the ancient climate on Earth. Her new book, "Tree Story: The History of the World Written in Rings," details some of the discoveries scientists have made.

"People really do grow connected to their devices. What I've found, in the studies I've conducted on depression and smartphone use, is that it doesn't have to do with how much you're using your phone. There is no correlation between the time spent on one's phone and an increase in depressive symptoms or loneliness.

The global pandemic has changed every aspect of our lives – how we work, how we socialize, how we dress. And without us even noticing, it also has changed how we talk. As 2020 comes to a close, many of us find ourselves fluent in a new language that would have been nearly indecipherable just one year ago. "This has been the year of 'Covid.' 'Covid' has changed our lives, and that one word captures more than just the virus," said Sonja Lanehart, a professor of linguistics at the University of Arizona.

University of Arizona faculty members Robert A. Norwood and Laurence Hurley have been elected as fellows of the National Academy of Inventors.

Known as @Afro_Herper to her over 36,000 Twitter followers, nearly 19,000 Instagram followers and a growing number of YouTube subscribers, University of Arizona graduate student Earyn McGee began her higher education journey with her sights set on field research. She has since expanded her focus to include advocacy for environmental conservation and inclusivity in the sciences, through mentoring and science communication campaigns on social media. McGee was recently included on the 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 list for science.

Researchers studying the new UK strain of the coronavirus think it likely arrived in the U.S. in mid-November, and that many people in the United States could already be infected. "If I had to guess, I would say it's probably in hundreds of people by now," said Michael Worobey, head of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona. "It's very possible it's arrived multiple times in multiple places."

In a review paper published in the journal Science, a group of climate experts makes the case for including paleoclimate data in the development of climate models. Such models are used globally to assess the impacts of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, predict scenarios for future climate and propose strategies for mitigation.

Felina Cordova-Marks, a postdoctoral fellow with the University of Arizona Cancer Center focusing on the science of cancer health disparities, has been named the Woman of the Year in the Tucson Hispanic Chamber's annual "40 Under 40" list.

If someone was protected from symptoms of COVID-19 but still capable of spreading it, experts say it wouldn't be that shocking. There is a hypothetical mechanism that could allow this to happen biologically, said Deepta Bhattacharya, a professor of immunobiology at the University of Arizona. And that mechanism is boogers and phlegm. "So, the virus enters in through the upper respiratory tracts, either through your nose or your throat. And those are protected by a mucous layer. And so that mucous layer is good at slowing things down from getting into you.

Sociologist Zeynep Tufekci writes that Americans should postpone all gatherings until at least March to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. "Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunologist at the University of Arizona, told me that decades of research on viral immunology suggest we should feel confident that the vaccines will reduce transmission and contagiousness as well."