University of Arizona in the News

University of Arizona associate professor of Judaic studies Gil Ribak discusses the life of Thomas LaRue Jones – "The Black Cantor" – an African American tenor who sang Jewish music in the early decades of the 20th Century.

This story reflects on the contributions to entomology, and science in general, made by University of Arizona researcher Justin Schmidt, known widely as "The King of Sting" for his development of the Schmidt Pain Index, the only scientific rating system classifying the pain inflicted by stinging insects.

University of Arizona Health Sciences has come a long way since the College of Medicine's founding in 1967 and is uniquely poised to help address Arizona's long-term health care needs, President Robert C. Robbins said in a presentation to the Arizona Board of Regents.

"The Linda McCartney Retrospective" which includes nearly 200 pieces from the renowned photographer's 30-year career, celebrates her friendships with famous people, her love of the desert and her connection to Tucson, runs through Aug. 5 at the University of Arizona Center for Creative Photography. "We love a Tucson story," CCP chief curator Rebecca Senf said recently, "and we had an opportunity to show the inspiration a University of Arizona student had on photography."

Efforts to develop a cure for Valley fever could involve the use of live attenuated vaccines, which elicit a robust immune response – including T-cells – but also run the risk of replicating uncontrollably in people with compromised immune systems. Preventing that is now possible, said John Galgiani, an infectious disease doctor who directs the Valley Fever Center for Excellence at the University of Arizona. In 2016, a team led by his colleague Marc Orbach published a method for snipping out the gene that controls Valley fever's ability to multiply.

The Colorado River supports $1.4 trillion in annual economic output in the U.S. and 16 million jobs in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming – equivalent to about 1/12 of the total U.S. domestic product, economists at the University of Arizona found in 2015.

A consortium of 13 universities and institutions aims to build the Giant Magellan Telescope, a multibillion-dollar instrument more powerful than any existing ground-based telescope. The first of the GMT's mirrors was cast in 2005 in a rotating furnace beneath Arizona Stadium developed by University of Arizona Regents Professor and Professor of Astronomy and Optical Sciences J. Roger P. Angel. Three of the mirrors are now completed and sit in boxes at the Tucson airport. Three more are being polished and tested. The seventh and final mirror is set to be cast this year.

In 50 years, as the climate changes, experts say San Francisco might feel more like what North Morocco does now. Chicago might feel like part of Pakistan. Rome might feel like Southeast China, and so on. In a new project – "Tasting Tomorrow" – conceptual artist Jonathan Keats, a research associate at the University of Arizona Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill, teamed up with a local chef to explore what the changing climate means for the food we eat, and how traditional dishes may change as some ingredients no longer grow locally.

Offshore oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico release far more climate-changing methane than official estimates show, according to a study published earlier this month. "There really have been transformational advances in remote sensing technology for methane over the last decade and the last three to four years," said University of Arizona research scientist Riley Duren. "That reporting program doesn't require operators to go out and fly airplanes. It's largely based on models and standard emissions factors."

For years, archaeologists could only speculate about the origins of the 200,000 wood timbers used in the construction of the structures at Chaco Canyon in northwest New Mexico. The area around the site itself is a dry, arid climate that offers few high-quality trees but an analysis in 1986 led by University of Arizona geoscientist Julio Betancourt found microscopic indicators that identified many of the logs as spruce and fir that originated in mountain ranges up to 60 miles away.