Research

Arts and Humanities

Brown archaeologists, students dig up new insights in Central Greece

October 23, 2019

Recent discoveries by Brown faculty and students at the ancient Koutroulou Magoula settlement have prompted scholars to reconsider their assumptions about the Middle Neolithic period.

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Science and Technology

New augmented reality system lets smartphone users get hands-on with virtual objects

October 16, 2019

Developed at Brown University, a new augmented reality system places virtual objects within real-world backgrounds on cell phone screens and lets people interact with those object by hand as if they were really there.

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Science and Technology

Study suggests ice on lunar south pole may have more than one source

October 10, 2019

New research sheds light on the ages of ice deposits reported in the area of the Moon’s south pole — information that could help identify the sources of the deposits and help in planning future human exploration.

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University Initiatives

New podcast spotlights faculty research at Brown

October 9, 2019

“Faculty in Focus,” hosted by University Provost Richard Locke, features interviews with faculty members about their research and its impact on society.

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Science and Technology

New production technique for high-performance polymer could make for better body armor

October 9, 2019

Using a new composite nanoparticle catalyst, Brown University researchers have shown they can make degradation-resistant PBO, a polymer used to make body armor and other high-performance fabrics.

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Science and Technology

Study of past California wildfire activity suggests climate change will worsen future fires

October 8, 2019

A new study finds that climate has been the dominant controller of wildfire activity in the Sierra Nevada region over the past 1,400 years, suggesting that future climate change is poised to make fires worse.

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Health and Medicine

Researchers to develop ‘intelligent spinal interface’ with $6.3 million in DARPA funding

October 3, 2019

Brown University researchers, surgeons from Rhode Island Hospital and private partners will develop and test a device aimed at bridging the gap in neural circuitry created by spinal cord injury, in the hope of restoring muscle control and sensation.

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Science and Technology

Picture this: ICERM program explores the imagery of mathematics

September 26, 2019

“Illustrating Mathematics,” a program happening throughout the semester at Brown’s national mathematics institute, aims to aid research and public engagement with math through visual representation.

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Science and Technology

NSF-funded Brown, Dartmouth researchers to explore materials, matter states for quantum technologies

September 24, 2019

A $4 million grant from the National Science Foundation will support research aimed at developing a fundamental understanding of quantum systems to enable new quantum technologies.

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Health and Medicine

Diet impacts the sensitivity of gut microbiome to antibiotics, study finds

September 12, 2019

Antibiotics change the kinds of bacteria in the mouse gut as well as the bacteria’s metabolism — but diet can exacerbate the changes, a new study showed.

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Science and Technology

Biology of bat wings may hold lessons for cold-weather work, exercise

September 11, 2019

The muscles in bats’ wings are much cooler than the muscles in their core, a new study finds — and this research could one day enhance our understanding of human muscle.

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Health and Medicine

$53.4M grant to Brown, Hebrew SeniorLife to enable massive expansion of Alzheimer’s research

September 10, 2019

Federal grant from the National Institute on Aging will fund a collaborative research incubator to support trials across the nation aimed at improving care for people living with dementia.

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Health and Medicine

By comparing needles to mosquitoes, new model offers insights into Hepatitis C solutions

September 4, 2019

Removing used needles does not reduce the spread of Hepatitis C virus — instead, changing the ratio of infected to uninfected needles is critical, study finds.

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Health and Medicine

Newly launched lab at Brown investigating impact of environmental contaminants

August 29, 2019

Early-career researcher Jessica Plavicki is advancing understanding of how environmental contaminants interfere with heart and brain development — the formidable task of establishing her new lab should prove fruitful for decades to come.

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Health and Medicine

Investigating plant growth with CRISPR gene-editing technology

August 28, 2019

On a quest to unearth insights about ethylene production and plant growth, Adrian Lee spent his summer applying the revolutionary genetic engineering tool alongside Brown faculty.

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Health and Medicine

New technique isolates placental cells for non-invasive genetic testing

August 26, 2019

A new technique for isolating cells carrying the full fetal genome from cervical swabs could enable doctors to diagnose genetic disorders without using needles to harvest cells from the placenta.

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Science and Technology

Mosquito incognito: Could graphene-lined clothing prevent mosquito bites?

August 26, 2019

A new study shows that graphene sheets can block the signals mosquitos use to identify a blood meal, potentially enabling a new chemical-free approach to mosquito bite prevention.

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Science and Technology

Computer model could help test new sickle cell drugs

August 22, 2019

A new computer model that captures the dynamics of the red blood cell sickling process could help in evaluating drugs for treating sickle cell disease.

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Science and Technology

Research shows why there’s a ‘sweet spot’ depth for underground magma chambers

August 19, 2019

Computer models show why eruptive magma chambers tend to reside between six and 10 kilometers underground.

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News and Events

Photos: Brown’s Summer Research Symposium 2019

August 15, 2019

A two-day event in early August offered undergraduate researchers from Brown and beyond the chance to showcase findings unearthed and topics investigated in the University’s classrooms and laboratories this summer.

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Health and Medicine

Modeling hurricane effects on Rhode Island

August 14, 2019

Working with the Rhode Island Department of Health, Brown MPH student Joyce Pak is interviewing hospital and other critical facility managers to inform a real-time computer model of storm consequences.

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Science and Technology

Research shows human cells assembling into fractal-like clusters

August 12, 2019

In a finding that could shed light on tissue formation, wound healing and cancer spread, a new study shows that human cells follow the same rules as non-living particles to form fractal-like branching structures.

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Health and Medicine

Individuals are swayed by their peers, leading to more severe punishments, study finds

August 12, 2019

Punitive peers can increase how much fellow decision-makers support punishment, by up to 40 percent.

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News and Events

Brown faculty members earn prominent awards, distinctions

August 7, 2019

In recent months, prestigious national and international organizations recognized Brown faculty for their research, scholarship and leadership.

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Science and Technology

New approach could make HVAC heat exchangers five times better

August 1, 2019

Turbulent heat exchangers are widely used in HVAC systems around the world, and a new study demonstrates a simple modification that can improve their capability by 500%.

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Health and Medicine

Higher vitamin A intake linked to lower skin cancer risk

July 31, 2019

Researchers found that people who ate high levels of vitamin A were 17 percent less likely to get the second-most-common type of skin cancer years later.

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Health and Medicine

With $12.5M grant, Brown to create research center on substance misuse and chronic disease

July 30, 2019

With a new five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health, the Center for Addiction and Disease Risk Exacerbation will launch four research projects and establish a clinical laboratory for biological addiction research at Brown University.

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Health and Medicine

Brown awarded $10.8 million for opioid treatment aimed at parolees and people on probation

July 25, 2019

The new collaboration between Brown University and the Rhode Island Department of Corrections will expand an already successful opioid treatment program in correctional institutions, helping people who are in the justice system but outside prison walls.

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Science and Technology

Brown graduate student discusses lunar exploration past and future

July 23, 2019

Ariel Deutsch, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, will join an astronaut who walked on the Moon and two top NASA scientists for a panel titled “Lunar Geology: Past, Present and Future.”

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Social Sciences

Teacher treatment of students factors into racial gap in school suspensions

July 18, 2019

An analysis led by Brown sociologist Jayanti Owens found that different treatment of black and white students accounted for half of the racial gap in school suspensions and expulsions among 5- to 9-year-old children.

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Health and Medicine

Brown neuroscientists discover neuron type that acts as brain’s metronome

July 18, 2019

By keeping the brain in sync, these long-hypothesized but never-found neurons help rodents to detect subtle sensations.

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Science and Technology

World’s island conifers threatened with extinction from climate change

July 15, 2019

By estimating climate conditions in which conifer species could thrive if they needed to, a new study identifies which species are at extinction risk due to climate change.

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Science and Technology

Caught in the act: Images capture molecular motions in real time

July 11, 2019

Researchers have shot a “movie” of subtle molecular motions in unprecedented detail, shedding light on previously unseen chemical dynamics.

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Health and Medicine

Brown to fund 5 biomedical technologies with potential for patient benefit, commercial viability

July 11, 2019

Brown Biomedical Innovations to Impact will award five faculty projects $100,000 each to accelerate promising medical solutions into commercial technologies.

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Health and Medicine

New initiative improved care for sepsis patients, but black patients saw smaller benefits

July 2, 2019

Study found that hospitals with more black patients saw smaller increases in compliance with new sepsis protocols than those that treat mainly white patients, highlighting a need to evaluate the effects of quality improvement projects for minority groups.

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Health and Medicine

Scientists identify interactions that stabilize a protein associated with neurodegeneration

July 1, 2019

Understanding the normal molecular interactions could aid in the development of therapeutics to prevent the formation of clumps associated with ALS and frontotemporal dementia.

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Science and Technology

Research reveals exotic quantum states in double-layer graphene

June 25, 2019

A new study reveals a suite of quantum Hall states that have not been seen previously, shedding new light on the nature of electron interactions in quantum systems and establishing a potential new platform for future quantum computers.

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Health and Medicine

Cold weather increases the risk of fatal opioid overdoses, study finds

June 17, 2019

While the precise reasons are unclear, an analysis of overdose deaths in Rhode Island and Connecticut showed that cold snaps raised the risk of fatal opioid overdoses by 25 percent.

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Health and Medicine

People who use opioids would welcome safe consumption spaces, study finds

June 10, 2019

There are no legal safe consumption spaces in the U.S. currently, but a three-city study found that a majority of people who use opioids would be willing to use locations where they would have medical support in case of overdose.

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Science and Technology

NSF CAREER awards to advance promising research by four Brown faculty members

June 5, 2019

The awards for early-career faculty will support research in computer networking, algebraic geometry, neurodegenerative diseases and robotics.

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Science and Technology

Strange Martian mineral deposit likely sourced from volcanic explosions

May 22, 2019

In a finding that is soon to be ground-truthed by NASA’s next Mars rover, Brown University researchers show that a Martian mineral deposit was likely formed by ashfall from ancient volcanic explosions.

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Health and Medicine

Researchers discover how a member of a family of light-sensitive proteins adjusts skin color

May 16, 2019

After a series of surprising discoveries, a team of scientists determined a role of opsin 3 in tuning human skin color in response to ultraviolet rays.

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Science and Technology

Study reveals final fate of levitating Leidenfrost droplets

May 6, 2019

The research shows why levitating droplets on hot surfaces eventually explode if they start out large enough.

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Health and Medicine

Unexpectedly big wins improve two kinds of memory

May 6, 2019

Brown researchers discover that unexpected rewards improve the memory of specific events, which may have implications for how clinicians treat individuals with depression.

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News and Events

Research Achievement Awards honor accomplished and early-career Brown researchers

April 23, 2019

The annual awards program recognizes the research and scholarship of both longtime and early-career faculty members.

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Science and Technology

Researchers outline how humans reduce uncertainty in social situations

April 22, 2019

A team of Brown University scientists proposed a psychological model of three interrelated ways people reduce uncertainty in social situations.

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Science and Technology

Repelling charges prevent Cooper pairs from ‘island hopping’ in insulating state

April 22, 2019

New research shows how Cooper pairs — quasiparticles that make superconductivity possible — can also play an opposite role in an exotic type of insulating materials known as Cooper pair insulators.

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Health and Medicine

Stroke patients receive vastly different amounts of physical therapy, despite its clear benefits

April 19, 2019

Patients who receive more physical therapy are less likely to be readmitted to a hospital within a month, yet the amount of care made available to Medicare patients varies widely.

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News and Events

Research Matters highlights graduate student research and its impact

April 17, 2019

The annual “TED Talks”-style event challenged 12 graduate students to explain why their current research matters — to the field and to themselves — in 5 minutes or less.

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Health and Medicine

Heart patch could limit muscle damage in heart attack aftermath

April 17, 2019

Guided by computer simulations, an international team of researchers has developed an adhesive patch that can provide support for damaged heart tissue, potentially reducing the stretching of heart muscle that’s common after a heart attack.

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