Jeff Falk

Rice expert: Using carbon is key to decarbonizing economy

Rice University carbon materials expert Matteo Pasquali is available to discuss ways to slash carbon dioxide emissions and rapidly decarbonize the global economy.

Rice’s OpenStax to provide 13 educational technology companies with training to develop equitable courseware platforms

HOUSTON — (Aug. 5, 2021) — OpenStax, Rice University’s educational technology initiative, announced today that 13 companies have been selected to participate in the organization’s new equity in courseware training program. The training will help the participating companies learn about and develop educational technology platforms that provide better outcomes for all students, especially those from historically marginalized and underserved communities.

Data scientists go to the mat to learn about microbial networks

A project led by Rice University data scientists will attempt to define "social networks" in microbiomes, starting with microbial mats that thrive in Yellowstone Park's hot springs.

When many act as one, data-driven models can reveal key behaviors

Data science approaches can reveal subtle clues about the origins of such collective behaviors as aggregation of bacteria.

Sustainability alone cannot fix waste management woes, says expert

Both sustainability practices and a circular economy can help maximize the world’s resources, but the ideas are not interchangeable, according to a new brief from Rice's Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Iran’s water crisis is a warning for the US

HOUSTON – (Aug. 3, 2021) – Iran’s groundwater depletion and food security crisis is an issue of global importance reflecting not only climate change, but also a pattern of policy mismanagement, according to an expert from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

NSF grant kicks off Center for Adapting Flaws into Features

Rice University has won a Phase I National Science Foundation grant to establish the NSF Center for Adapting Flaws into Features to investigate nanoscale chemical phenomena and optimize the structures and electronic properties of materials.

How headless hydra feel, react to prodding

Researchers identify redundant neural networks in jellyfish-like, freshwater hydra. The work is a step toward modeling how internal states and external stimuli shape the behavior of an organism with a highly dynamic neural architecture.

Science and technology research is critical infrastructure, says Baker Institute

HOUSTON – (July 30, 2021) – Investments in science and technology research are vital to the United States’ economic growth and global leadership, according to a new report from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Programmed bacteria have something extra

Rice chemists expand genetic code of E. coli to produce 21st amino acid, giving it new abilities.

Rice University hurricane announcement

HOUSTON – (Aug. 25, 2020) – Due to Hurricane Laura, Rice University is suspending normal operations – including all classes and events -- at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 26, and all day Thursday, Aug. 27.

AI could expand healing with bioscaffolds

Artificial intelligence can speed the development of 3D-printed bioscaffolds that help injuries heal, according to Rice researchers.

US should fully reopen Mexican border, vaccinate people on both sides, says expert

The United States-Mexico border should be fully reopened — with people on both sides given easier and expanded access to vaccines in the U.S. — according to a new brief from Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Pathogens get comfy in designer goo

Hydrogels developed at Rice University mimic intestines when lined with epithelial cells. A study by Rice and Baylor College of Medicine proved hydrogels in various stiffnesses are valuable for learning the dynamics of pathogens that cause diarrhea and other intestinal diseases.

Baker Institute’s BCarbon recognized as top in the US