Nourishing the collective being

Several groups across Stanford will recognize and celebrate Black History Month this February with events including a speaker series, a pop-up shop, a service day at the farm, and more.Many events are part of the Black Community Services Center’s Black Liberation Month programming, this year themed “Food Justice Is Justice…

Final enrollment data for Class of 2028 reported in Common Data Set

In October 2024, Stanford reported preliminary enrollment data for the entering undergraduate Class of 2028, the first class to be admitted under the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling on race-conscious admissions.Stanford has now reported final enrollment numbers for the class as part of the 2024-25 Common Data Set, a data-reporting…

Recycling lithium-ion batteries delivers significant environmental benefits

In briefli]:su-m-0">Compared with mining and processing new chemicals, the battery recycling process analyzed in the study:Emitted 58% to 81% less greenhouse gas emissionsUsed 72% to 88% less waterAnd used 77% to 89% less energyCarbon emissions aside, energy use correlates with air pollutants like soot and sulfurRecycling lithium-ion batteries to recover…

New mail and package program enhances convenience and cuts emissions

In briefli]:su-m-0">Stanford’s new Mail and Package Services (MPS) centralizes mail handling with a Newark receiving warehouse and same-day campus delivery via electric vehicles.Redesigned package centers and 24/7 lockers offer students flexible, secure access to their packages.The program cuts delivery truck traffic, reduces emissions, and incorporates waste diversion to support Stanford’s…

Stanford women’s basketball players teach kids data science through sports

For anyone serious about becoming a top athlete, well-known steps to success include intense conditioning, a health-conscious diet, and grueling hours of practice. However, a unit developed by Stanford Graduate School of Education (GSE) Professor Jo Boaler highlights a variable often overlooked in the formula for athletic achievement: the ability to…

Trove of California history to be housed at Stanford

Stanford University Libraries (SUL) have assumed permanent stewardship of the California Historical Society Collection, a trove of over 600,000 items spanning the history of California and the West since the 18th century.The collection, acquired in collaboration with the Bill Lane Center for the American West, will become known as the…

Non-invasive brain stimulation opens new ways to study and treat the brain

The control panel to the human experience is hidden inside a bony box. We can thank our skulls for keeping our brains safe. But this protective case also makes the three-pound organ that generates our mental lives and behavior particularly challenging to study and treat. Add to this the sheer complexity…

Student needs, impacts of new administration discussed at Faculty Senate

Leaders of the Associated Students of Stanford University (ASSU) outlined key student priorities, and President Jonathan Levin discussed potential impacts of the new presidential administration for Stanford during the Faculty Senate meeting on Thursday.In the student government’s annual report to the senate, ASSU President Diego Kagurabadza and Vice President Divya…

Paul Yock receives National Medal of Technology and Innovation

Emeritus Professor Paul Yock, MD, formerly the Martha Meier Weiland Professor in the School of Medicine, a professor of bioengineering and of cardiology, and founding director of Stanford Biodesign (now the Stanford Mussallem Center for Biodesign), traveled to Washington, D.C., earlier this month to receive the National Medal of Technology…

Cancer-fighting compound shows immense potential to eradicate HIV

A compound with the unpresuming designation of EBC-46 has made a splash in recent years for its cancer-fighting prowess. Now a new study led by Stanford researchers has revealed that EBC-46 also shows immense potential for eradicating human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections. Compared to similar-acting agents, EBC-46 excels at activating dormant…

Commemorating MLK’s 1967 speech at Stanford

Almost 58 years ago, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a speech on poverty and racism, “The Other America,” at Stanford. This month – on King’s actual birthday, Jan. 15 – the Stanford community commemorated the event with a screening and discussion of King’s speech. Projected on a 16-foot-wide movie…

Jane A. Lauder elected to Stanford Board of Trustees

Jane A. Lauder, a former senior executive of the Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) and a current member of its board of directors, has been elected to the Stanford University Board of Trustees. Her five-year term begins Feb. 1.“It’s an honor to join the board,” Lauder said. “Stanford has played such…

In the hunt for new and better enzymes, AI steps to the fore

Enzymes are crucial to life. They are nature’s little catalysts. In the gut, they help us digest food. They can enhance perfumes or get laundry cleaner with less energy. Enzymes also make potent drugs to treat disease. Scientists naturally are eager to create new enzymes. They imagine them doing everything…

A pop-up pub where everybody knows your name

Could a student-run pub add a new dimension to campus social life? A group of Stanford students tested this idea with a pop-up pub last month, and the result was a resounding “yes.” The Rough Draught Pub – which was run by students and supported by staff and the Associated…

Learners with disabilities benefit from more complex reading instruction

Students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) such as autism and Down syndrome are often left behind when it comes to literacy instruction – casualties of the misperception that at best, they could only read by learning to recognize common words by sight. But researchers are finding that students with…

Sarah Soule appointed dean of the Stanford Graduate School of Business

Sarah A. Soule, a scholar of organizational behavior who has held multiple leadership roles at Stanford, will be the next dean of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Stanford Provost Jenny Martinez announced today.Soule, the Morgridge Professor of Organizational Behavior, has been a member of the GSB faculty since 2008…

Reform the justice system to save democracy, says David Sklansky

When he was a federal prosecutor in Los Angeles in the 1990s, Stanford Law School Professor David Sklansky often participated in the selection of juries. “I would hear potential jurors talk about their views about criminal justice, the police, and about crime in their neighborhoods, and I was repeatedly struck…

As dengue cases rise, research points to a simple solution: trash cleanup

As cases of dengue fever skyrocketed globally this past year, new findings by Stanford researchers and their international collaborators underscore the importance of one measure that can significantly reduce disease risk: cleaning up trash. Dengue fever is a viral illness spread through mosquito bites. While cases can be asymptomatic, many people…

What we know about the health effects of wildfire

As wildfires continue to rage across the Los Angeles area, their toll on lives, homes, and natural landscapes is undeniable. Less obvious are the health impacts, such as respiratory issues caused by smoke inhalation and mental health strains of evacuation and loss, that could stretch far beyond the burn zone…

AI Playground offers a safe place to explore and experiment

As artificial intelligence continues to rapidly evolve, Stanford’s AI Playground provides a convenient environment for faculty, staff, and students to experiment with AI technology.Earlier this year, University IT began piloting the AI Playground, a Stanford-hosted environment that allows users to test out and compare a range of AI tools, including…

AI helps identify the biology underlying Type 2 diabetes

A paper detailing the research published Dec. 23 in Nature Biomedical Engineering. McLaughlin and Snyder are co-senior authors. Ahmed Metwally, PhD, a former postdoctoral scholar at Stanford Medicine who is now a research scientist at Google, is the lead author. Delineating details of diabetes Currently, diagnosing diabetes is based solely…

In Stanford’s Practical Ethics Club, students examine life’s moral complexities

On a Saturday morning a week before her fall quarter finals, Stanford senior Ursula Neuner found herself talking about bison.Specifically, Neuner discussed the case of Clifford Walters, who, while visiting Yellowstone National Park in May 2023, rescued a newborn bison from drowning after spotting the distressed calf, separated from its…

A new ultrathin conductor for nanoelectronics

​​As computer chips continue to get smaller and more complex, the ultrathin metallic wires that carry electrical signals within these chips have become a weak link. Standard metal wires get worse at conducting electricity as they get thinner, ultimately limiting the size, efficiency, and performance of nanoscale electronics.In a paper…

Stanford art museums welcome visitors over the holidays

While the campus is closed for winter break from Dec. 23 through Jan. 3, Stanford’s art museums will remain open during regular hours, and campus visitors are welcome to explore the outdoor public art collection. The Anderson Collection’s 10th-anniversary exhibitions celebrate the museum’s roots and what it means to live with…

New book explores poet W.H. Auden’s life between two world wars

For many contemporary readers, their first introduction to the poetry of W.H. Auden came not in a course on English literature, but from a more mainstream source: the film Four Weddings and a Funeral, in which a character recites Auden’s 1937 poem Funeral Blues during the titular funeral.“It’s incredibly touching that…

Students help Stanford archivists preserve the past

In an office on the third floor of Green Library, senior Bradley Strauss sifts through a box of files donated to Stanford University Archives by Cathy Haas, a lecturer in the School of Humanities & Sciences."}">svg]:su-mt-3 md:[&>svg]:su--mt-2 lg:[&>svg]:su-mt-4 [&>svg]:su-w-41 [&>svg]:su-h-43 md:[&>svg]:su-w-[97px] md:[&>svg]:su-h-[102px] su-mr-8 lg:su-mr-19">nIn an office on the third floor…

Five books to help you disagree productively in 2025

Even in a time of sharp division, people can learn how to have more open, empathetic, and constructive dialogue in disagreements.Norman W. Spaulding, the Nelson Bowman Sweitzer and Marie B. Sweitzer Professor in Law, helps people do just that through ePluribus Stanford, an initiative that seeks to cultivate constructive dialogue…

Students take nuclear strategy ideas to the White House

Nuclear energy is poised to become the future of energy, and the global race to lead this industry is intensifying. But how can the United States compete and invigorate its nuclear energy industry, particularly amid the explosive growth of artificial intelligence? Stanford students Mandy Alevra, Nuri Capanoglu, Elena Kopstein, and…

New knit haptic sleeve simulates realistic touch

Wearable haptic devices, which provide touch-based feedback, can provide more realistic experiences in virtual reality, assist with rehabilitation, and create new opportunities for silent communication. Currently, most of these devices rely on vibration, as pressure-based haptics have typically required users to wear stiff exoskeletons or other bulky structures.Now, researchers at…

A national effort seeks to advance semiconductor research

Your car, your cell phone, your LED holiday lights, even your credit card – all of them contain electronic chips made of semiconductors. These materials manipulate the flow of electricity and provide the foundation for modern electronics.Over the years, American investment in this essential technology has lagged, but the federal…

New device produces critical fertilizer ingredient from thin air

The air around us contains a powerful solution for making agriculture more sustainable. Researchers at Stanford University and King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Saudi Arabia have developed a prototype device that can produce ammonia – a key fertilizer ingredient – using wind energy to draw air through…

Portola Valley approves new Stanford housing

On Thursday, Dec. 5, the Portola Valley Town Council voted unanimously to approve Stanford’s Portola Terrace residential project. Portola Terrace will provide 27 single-family homes for faculty and 12 affordable housing units for members of the Portola Valley community on a portion of “the Wedge” property along Alpine Road, near Westridge…

Who gets to cross cultural boundaries without permission?

Elvis Presley may have been the king of rock ’n’ roll, but he didn’t invent it. His influences included country music and pop crooners as well as Black artists like Arthur Crudup, B.B. King, Fats Domino, and Little Richard, and the gospel music he loved as a kid in rural…

New Center for Poetics ‘supports and encourages the vitality of the field’

A longstanding poetics workshop credited with fostering the academic success of many of its past and current members has given rise to a new center dedicated to poetry scholarship.The Stanford Center for Poetics was launched this quarter under the leadership of faculty director Marisa Galvez, professor of French and Italian.…

AI could help reduce injury risk in pianists

Professional piano players spend countless hours at the keys, perfecting their craft. For people with smaller hands, this dedication can take a physical toll. Repeated stretching to reach distant keys in a chord can strain muscles and joints and may lead to tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and other injuries.Researchers at…

New tool enhances control of cellular activity

A basic function of cells is that they act in response to their environments. It makes sense, then, that a goal of scientists is to control that process, making cells respond how they want to what they want.One avenue for this ambition is cell receptors, which function like ignition slots…

Decoding the mysteries of the universe

How fast is the universe expanding? What is dark matter? Where did we come from?These questions of life, the universe, and everything are just some of the big topics that motivate the new Center for Decoding the Universe at Stanford.Launched in October, the center is an interdisciplinary partnership between Stanford Data…

For major U.S. cities, the ‘donut effect’ persists

What is the shelf life of a freshly baked donut? Two days, tops.But when it comes to an entirely different kind of donut – one that Stanford economist Nicholas Bloom described early in the pandemic when he measured the exodus of people from city centers to city suburbs – there…

What to know about hearing loss

Around 1.5 billion people globally experience some level of hearing loss – that’s nearly 20% of the world’s population. Losing the ability to hear can be devastating, and navigating the potential treatments isn’t always straightforward.What actually causes it? Are there new treatments that can restore hearing? Can it be reversed?…

AI tool reads biopsy images

A working model After the researchers integrated their new cancer biopsies as well as other datasets, including transcriptomic data and images from thousands of healthy cells, the AI program – which they named SEQUOIA (slide-based expression quantification using linearized attention) – was able to predict the expression patterns of more…