Jan. 6, 2017— Many people head to the mountains in the summer to get above the haze of the cities and valleys. A new study finds that the haze could be catching up. University of Utah atmospheric scientist Gannet Hallar and colleagues find a correlation between the severity of drought in the Intermountain West and […]

At about 3 p.m. on Jan. 26, 2011, as a normal, albeit cold, Washington, D.C., workday drew to a close, heavy snow started to fall. By the time the surprise snowstorm ended six hours later, low visibility, slick roads and 7 inches of snow left hundreds of cars smashed and many others abandoned in roadside […]

More than 90 percent of ivory in large seized shipments came from elephants that died less than three years before, according to a new University of Utah study. Combining radiocarbon ivory dating with genetic analysis provides a picture of when and where poachers are killing elephants, useful tools in the ongoing battle against illegal animal […]

Biologists at the University of Utah recently used light-weight geolocation technology to follow a species of songbird on its 10,000-kilometer migration from the Middle East to sub-Saharan Africa. The study, published October 26 in The Condor: Ornithological Applications identified key regions of importance for the species and highlighted the lack of protection many of these […]

Utah’s iconic Rainbow Bridge hums with natural and man-made vibrations, according to a new University of Utah study, published September 21 in Geophysical Research Letters. The study characterizes the different ways the bridge vibrates and what frequencies and energy sources cause the rock structure to resonate. The vibrations are small, according to geology and geophysics […]

Most people could benefit from a few extra hours of sleep every night. But some people habitually sleep much less than the recommended amount, yet report feeling no ill effects. A new University of Utah study, published Sept. 15 in Brain and Behavior, finds that patterns of neural connections in the brains of so-called “habitual […]

Sept. 12, 2016— Loss of megaherbivores such as elephants and hippos can allow woody plants and non-grassy herbs and flowering plants to encroach on grasslands in African national parks, according to a new University of Utah study, published September 12 in Scientific Reports. The study used isotopes in hippopotamus teeth to find a shift in […]

University of Utah ornithologist and biology department professor Çağan Şekercioğlu presents a new book, “Why Birds Matter,” this week at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Honolulu. Held every four years, this is the world’s largest conservation event. Over 8300 delegates from 184 countries gathered for the meeting where President Obama made an appearance on Wednesday. Şekercioğlu […]

Contrary to traditional expectations of unbalanced sex ratios, places with more men than women do not typically experience higher rates of family and social instability, according to a University of Utah study. The study by anthropologists Ryan Schacht and Karen Kramer, published August 24 in PLOS ONE, finds instead that surpluses of men are associated […]

University of Utah ecologist Nalini Nadkarni is no fashion mogul. But she is a scientist actively engaged in public outreach, working to bring the wonder and curiosity of the natural world to people, even those who may have no interest in natural history museums, nature documentaries or natural history magazines. Those people probably care about […]