New enzyme could aid anticancer drug development
Retracing nature’s steps, Rice University engineer Xue Gao and her team mapped out the full series of enzyme-powered reactions a marine fungus uses to produce a complex molecule with anticancer properties. In the process, the Gao lab uncovered the first fungal enzyme of its kind known to break an amide bond.
People, papers and presentations for June 26, 2023
Fred Oswald, the Herbert S. Autrey Professor of Psychology in Rice University’s School of Social Sciences, is a member of The National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee.
Rice caps off monthlong festivities at annual Pride parade
Dozens of members of the Rice community hit the streets of downtown Houston June 24 to walk in the city’s 45th annual LGBTQ+ Pride parade.
Juneteenth events examine Black leadership and ideas central to the holiday
Rice honored Juneteenth with a discussion series on June 15 to discuss issues of race, racism and injustice. Author Annette Gordon-Reed joined audiences June 20 to discuss her book “On Juneteenth,” which recounts the holiday’s origins and the complex history of Black Texans before, during and after the rise of chattel slavery in the state.
Houston high-schoolers get environmental boot camp
Rice University’s Center for Environmental Studies, in partnership with the Houston Climate Justice Museum, hosted students from the Houston Independent School District the week of June 12 as part of a summer program focused on Houston environmental justice.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought renewed focus on the use of energy resources as geopolitical “weapons.” But the respective experiences for oil and natural gas in the past year — Russia’s two main energy exports and the leading energy sources for Europe and the U.S. — provide strategic lessons for policymakers, according to a new report from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
Study finds human impact on wildlife even in protected areas
The largest long-term standardized camera-trap survey to date finds that human activity impacts tropical mammals living in protected areas and sheds light on how different species are affected based on their habitat needs and anthropogenic stressors.
Researchers give robots new options for arrangements
Rice computer scientists have expanded the options robots have for rearranging objects with a new algorithm that allows them to switch between complementary skills like grabbing and placing individual objects or pushing and sliding entire groups.
Kyrillidis wins grant to address AI’s ‘catastrophic forgetting’
Rice computer scientist Anastasios Kyrillidis has won a Microsoft Research Award to find ways to overcome the problem of “catastrophic forgetting” during the training of artificial intelligence.
Simpson-Sullivan, Slinkman named C-USA Field Athletes of the Year
Rice track and field athletes Tara Simpson-Sullivan and Alexander Slinkman were recently named Conference USA Female and Male Athletes of the Year, respectively.
Yimo Han receives NSF CAREER Award
Rice materials scientist Yimo Han has won a prestigious NSF CAREER Award to advance the use of complex 2D materials in flexible electronics, quantum computing and other applications.
Rice U. names AP for institutional research and effectiveness
Arun Chandran Natarajan will join the Office of the Provost as the associate provost for institutional research and effectiveness. Natarajan comes to Rice from Johns Hopkins University, where he was the assistant vice provost for institutional research. He will assume his new role July 1.
Nine Owls named to preseason All-AAC team
Josh Pearcy leads a group of nine Rice football players that were named to Phil Steele’s Preseason All-American Athletic Conference team.
DNA test could broaden access to cervical cancer screening
Rice bioengineers have demonstrated a low-cost, point-of-care DNA test for HPV infections that could make cervical cancer screening more accessible in low- and middle-income countries where the disease kills more than 300,000 women each year.
Rice announces new staff paid parental leave and updated short-term disability policies
Upon recommendations from the University Committee on Faculty and Staff Benefits and the President's Parental Leave Working Group, we are pleased to announce that the campus has approved a new staff Paid Parental Leave policy and an updated Short-Term Disability policy. Both policies will go into effect on July 1, 2023.
