News

Feb 3, 2012

Celebrating the work of life scientists

In this Winter 2012 issue, we turn to the College’s life sciences in recognition of the contributions and impacts those programs are making while bringing innovative solutions to the challenges facing our citizens locally, nationally and globally. 

Feb 3, 2012

Designing jet fuels of the future

Using micro-organisms able to survive in some of the most extreme environments on Earth, two CALS researchers are working to turn plants and algae into oil-producing factories efficient enough to help solve the problem of the world’s diminishing petroleum reserves. 

Feb 3, 2012

Cleaning up fuels of the past

While N.C. State University researchers work to create next-generation fuels, Dr. Michael Hyman examines the opposite of a fuel’s lifecycle, studying how microbes in the soil can degrade gasoline components. And that work has important implications for cleaning up spills and protecting groundwater from contamination. 

Feb 3, 2012

A two-way street

Just a few days after Vickie Wilson defended her Ph.D. dissertation in toxicology at N.C. State, she was conducting postdoctoral research at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, thanks to a cooperative training agreement that gives scientists-in-training more laboratory experience while providing the EPA with more research muscle. 

Feb 3, 2012

Thoroughly modern maladies

Manmade chemicals have become nearly ubiquitous. They are found in the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe. But are they safe? It’s a big, complicated question with implications for human health, the environment and the economy. And it’s a question that many CALS life scientists are addressing. One of them is Dr. Heather Patisaul. 

Feb 3, 2012

Taking a bite out of mosquito-borne viruses

The mosquito-borne virus that causes an estimated 300 million dengue fever infections each year is considered one of the world’s biggest health threats. But thanks to a discovery by CALS biochemists, a promising vaccine is in the pipeline. 

Feb 3, 2012

YOU DECIDE: Is manufacturing back?

Is manufacturing headed back to being a dominant part of the U.S. and North Carolina economies? Mike Walden discusses. 

Feb 3, 2012

An energy game-changer

Energy will continue to be an issue in both the country and the world in coming decades. Is there some energy source or technology on the horizon that might quickly change the energy market? N.C. State University economist Mike Walden says yes -- and it's natural gas. 

Feb 2, 2012

Nobel Laureate, international entrepreneur headline research conference

Nobel Laureate and distinguished MIT professor Dr. Phillip A. Sharp and Juan Enriquez, best-selling author and leading authority on the global impact of life sciences, will headline the conference “Stewards of the Future: Research for Human Health and Global Sustainability” at North Carolina State University. 

Feb 2, 2012

Micropropagation and Repository Unit recognized with McLaughlin Award

N.C. State's Micropropagation and Repository Unit has been recognized with the 2012 Foil McLaughlin Award, which notes work that impacts North Carolina's seed industry.