On October 4-6, 2012, the inaugural Ivy Plus Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Symposium & Workshop for Diverse Scholars will take place at the University of Pennsylvania. Brown is one of ten sponsoring Graduate Schools.  The following faculty from Brown will be serving as panelists to discuss their research: Wesley Bernskoetter (Chemistry), Eric Morrow (Biology), Alberto Saal (Geological Sciences), and Agnes Kane (Pathobiology).

Surgeons given their own view of a laparoscopic task, rather than a shared one, can work more efficiently and accurately, a small new study suggests. Findings from “proof of concept” experiments appear in the Journal of Laparoendoscopic and Advanced Surgical Techniques.

A coating of selenium nanoparticles significantly reduces the growth of Staphylococcus aureus on polycarbonate, a material common in implanted devices such as catheters and endotracheal tubes, engineers at Brown University report in a new study.

Theorists first suggested the existence of the Higgs boson to explain why some particles have mass and others don’t — 48 years ago. Brown physicists, who for decades have been deeply involved in high-energy particle physics research, have played important roles in the massive worldwide hunt to find the Higgs. On Wednesday, they were all able to declare an apparent and historic victory, reflect on the search, and dream about what happens next.