Perspectives Magazine: Science and Environment

Perspectives: Research and Creative Activities at SIUC

Articles: Science and Environment

Bt and H2O (spr 08)
Research showing that transgenic corn might affect aquatic life has drawn widespread attention.
room to roam (spr 08)
Where might migrating cougars find the Midwest most hospitable?
skilled at working small (spr 08)
A physicist works at the nanoscale on ways to enhance energy storage.
river of hardship (spr 08)
There's a mystery in Peru: lakes are full, but rivers are drying up and agriculture is suffering.
better safe (spr 08)
SIUC is leading a $1.2 million, multi-agency project helping counties prepare disaster mitigation plans.
ecologist honored (spr 08)
A pioneering plant biologist has been named SIUC's 2008 Outstanding Scholar.
to catch a bomb (fall 07)
Specially configured nanowires could serve as the basis for ultra-sensitive bomb detectors.
eco-sound (fall 07)
Conservation work at a fledgling tropical park requires careful listening.
from biodiesel to baseball (fall 07)
Technology transfer brings University advances in many areas, including more efficient energy production, into the marketplace.
nanoanimation (fall 07)
A chemist uses computer modeling to save time and money for researchers developing fuel cell catalysts.
life in detail (fall 07)
Working with ferns and other land plants with ancient lineages, an undergraduate finds a correlation between genome size and pore size that could help untangle evolutionary relationships.
in our own back yards (spr 07)
Pesticides called pyrethroids threaten the ecological balance of aquatic systems, but homeowners can do much to solve the problem.
to have and to hold (spr 07)
Peatlands sequester huge amounts of carbon, which gives us a vested interest in studying and preserving these ecosystems.
pure prairie league (spr 07)
Determining "best practices" for prairie restoration also helps researchers advance the field of ecology.
saving the sturgeon (spr 07)
An SIUC zoologist argues for better protection of the fish that nets us caviar.
cold front (spr 07)
A newly developed alloy is more promising than any other materials to date for energy-saving magnetic refrigeration.
making it new: a nanotechnology research sampler (fall 06)
A special cover story looks at some current nanotech projects at SIUC—basic research with potential applications in fields ranging from spintronics to medical imaging to aerospace engineering.
saving the amphibians (fall 06)
An influential group of scientists, including an SIUC zoologist well known for amphibian research, calls for formation of an international Amphibian Survival Alliance.
protein I.D. (fall 06)
New instrumentation that greatly improves separation and identification of proteins from a mix will be of great use to cancer researchers.
to a higher power (fall 06)
Greg Budzban and Maisha Moses team up on innovative math teaching for minority high school students.
corralling qubits (fall 06)
An SIUC physics professor wins a major grant to work on error correction in quantum computing.
eco-nomics (fall 06)
To preserve the environment, land use decisions must take the value of ecosystem services into account, says a doctoral student.
preserving the parks (fall 06)
A team of forestry researchers assesses the health of six National Park units around Lakes Michigan and Superior.
the road less traveled (spr 06)
An SIUC naturalist has introduced us to little-known treasures on our own public lands.
analyze this (spr 06)
A better chemical detection system for the pharmaceutical industry is under development.
in the swim (spr 06)
Natural vitamin E could be used to boost immunity in aquaculture fish.
taking wing (spr 06)
Zoologists study a community of trumpeter swans to see what these migratory birds need to thrive.
creature feature (spr 06)
A new book on mammals of the national parks has an ecological bent.
freeloaders (fall 05)
Some of the world's most astonishing flowering plants are parasites—and they have genetic lessons to teach us.
shaken and shocked (fall 05)
Big earthquakes produce electrical currents that may make possible better warning systems.
cold case (fall 05)
Polar research provides more evidence that today's global warming can be chalked up mostly to human activity.
rare plants (fall 05)
A new database will help Illinois conserve its endangered and threatened plant species.
down the drain (fall 05)
Illinois may face local water shortages over the next two decades, says a report looking at expected water demand county by county.
in harm's way (fall 05)
An expert on flooding sounds an alarm about floodplain development in the St. Louis metro area.
a river runs through it (spr 05)
Where's the water? An SIUC student has developed a greatly superior method of mapping streams.
renegades (spr 05)
Learning more about the habits of Asian carp will be critical to managing these invasives.
heading east? (spr 05)
Why are cougars showing up in the Midwest? Can they survive here? Wildlife ecologist Clayton Nielsen directs scientific research for the Cougar Network.
hot find in a cold place (fall 04)
A research team in Antarctica confirms the existence of an active underwater volcano in a region where none had been known.
into the woods (fall 04)
Oaks in our eastern woodlands are in decline, changing the character of our forests. Three SIUC faculty discuss what we can do about it.
fish story (fall 04)
An undergraduate student discovers significant changes in shoreline fish populations in the Middle Mississippi River over just the past years.
inner workings (spr 03)
Much progress against cancer promises to come from a basic understanding of the molecular processes that protect us from the disease or make us vulnerable to it. This special cover story samples SIUC projects that range from DNA analysis to materials design. Some of this basic science may lead directly to new diagnostic tests and therapies.
water work: the science of water-use forecasting (fall 03)
Will the United States have enough water in the years ahead? To fuel economic growth while protecting the environment, policymakers need sound predictions of water demand.
it's a puzzle (fall 03)
The branch of mathematics called combinatorics poses riddles with real-world applications in business, science, and defense.
fins for forests (fall 03)
How aquaculture can contribute to saving the Amazon rainforest.
under our feet (fall 03)
Geophysicist Tiku Ravat's research may be helpful to understanding both earthquakes and extinctions.
new field station will boost wetlands research (fall 03)
SIUC will operate the new Middle Mississippi River Wetland Field Station on a site restored by the American Land Conservancy and the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service.
lush life (spr 03)
A project to map out early plant evolution is part of an ambitious National Science Foundation initiative called Assembling the Tree of Life. The benefits will extend from conservation biology to human health.
promising packages (spr 03)
Could tiny carbon structures called nanotubes offer industry an efficient way to store gases such as hydrogen? An SIUC team investigates.
good fat for fish flesh (spr 03)
A new NSF cooperative project seeks to boost levels of omega-3 fatty acids in farm-raised fish.
dino bones (spr 03)
Geology students are restoring dinosaur specimens in a cooperative venture with the Burpee Museum of Natural History (Rockford, Ill.).
channeling (spr 03)
Ion channels in cell membranes are crucial to keeping the body in good order. A physiology student wins the 2002 Outstanding Thesis award with research on an unusual ion channel in frog skin.
flood of data (spr 03)
Geologist Nicholas Pinter, previously featured in Perspectives, wins a MacArthur grant to study flooding rivers in Europe.
bearing witness (fall 02)
Geologist Scott Ishman studies microscopic sea creatures from Antarctica to Florida to get clues about the nature of global warming. How much are manmade activities contributing?
alchemy in glass (fall 02)
An undergraduate develops a way to make metal nanoparticles inside the pores of a special kind of glass, giving the glass new optical and electronic properties.
fawn survival (fall 02)
To better manage the state's deer population, wildlife scientists need to learn more about fawn survival rates in southern Illinois.
hostile takeovers (spr 02)
The Chinese yam threatens forests across the southeastern United States.
swan song (spr 02)
Trumpeter swans have returned to southern Illinois, and wildlife biologists here are trying to ensure their survival.
architects of the new: building materials at the molecular scale (fall 01)
Two materials chemists are making nanoparticles and thin films with useful electrical properties.
- Also: A look at SIUC's Materials Technology Center.
benzene busters (fall 01)
Bioremediation specialists will welcome the discovery of the first-known bacteria that can break down benzene, a widespread pollutant, in airless environments.
high-water mark (fall 01)
River engineering has made flooding more severe along the middle Mississippi, an SIUC geologist says.
extreme science (fall 01)
Microbiologist Michael Madigan was named SIUC's Outstanding Scholar for 2001.
subterranean sex (spr 01)
The whisk fern reveals some of the survival secrets of early land plants.
creatures great and small (fall 00)
SIUC celebrates 50 years of pioneering fisheries and wildlife research. Articles:
- from wastelands to wetlands: mined land reclamation for wildlife
- farming with fins: aquaculture
- sentinel species: wildlife toxicology
- rescue mission: saving an endangered species
elastic math (fall 00)
SIUC's Outstanding Scholar for 2000 has advanced his discipline in the area of elasticity equations, which can help engineers better understand and predict material failure.
green glass (fall 00)
A newly invented sol-gel (a type of sponge-like glass) incorporating certain enzymes can convert carbon dioxide to methanol—a neat recycling trick that may be of use to industry.
works in progress (fall 00)
A young zoologist has caught cavefish evolution in the act.