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Amelia Noall standing at the top of Torc Mountain in Ireland, overlooking a vast field.
Students

French, microbes and the microbiology senior who speaks both

Lice: creepy, crawly, but to a young Amelia Noall, fascinating. “There was an outbreak at my school, and of course I got it. But I started looking at the bugs through my microscope and thinking, ‘Wow, these are so interesting!’” she recalled. As she followed her curiosity, picking leaves from the ground and examining their hidden structures through the microscope lens, she unknowingly paved the way toward her time as a microbiology major — and now senior — at Oregon State.

Coral microbiologist Rebecca Vega Thurber snorkeling above a mass of coral in clear waters.
OSU Press Releases

College of Science postdoctoral scholar helps find hidden viral threats to coral reefs

Microscopic algae that corals need for survival harbor a common and possibly disease-causing virus in their genetic material, an international collaboration spearheaded by an Oregon State University researcher has found.

May Nyman in the lab with students
Chemistry

Prestigious awards and the ultimate recycling: Oregon State professor spearheads chemistry innovations

Oregon State University Professor May Nyman received the prestigious F. Albert Cotton Award in Synthetic Inorganic Chemistry from the American Chemical Society.

Jenna Bustos showing off her Oregon State shirt while in the lab.
Graduate students

Graduate student traverses the frontier of radioactive metal research

Actinide chemistry is defined by its cutting-edge research, which graduate student Jenna Bustos has a passion for pursuing. From becoming a member of the Nyman Research Group at Oregon State to interning at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Bustos is well-versed in the field and eager to see what it brings next for her.

A diver looks under clear blue water at corals.
Marine Science

Esteemed coral scientist to help identify sites for restoration in South Pacific

Sometimes knowing where not to deploy conservation efforts is the most valuable information. Oregon State Pernot Distinguished Professor of Microbiology Rebecca Vega Thurber and her team have received a half million-dollar grant to help grass roots conservation groups in French Polynesia identify ideal sites for coral restoration.

Jamie Cornelius kneels down in snow holding a small bird.
Integrative Biology

NSF Career Grant fuels Jamie Cornelius' deep dive into the hidden world of songbirds

Assistant Professor Jamie Cornelius received a coveted National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award to measure the energy and fitness costs of metabolic and behavioral strategies used by songbirds during inclement weather.

Valley Library and OSU clock tower in the background with sunshine.
Faculty and Staff

Faculty excellence: Promotions and tenure 2023

The College of Science congratulates 17 faculty on receiving promotions and/or tenure this year.

Kimberly Truong
Mathematics

College of Science student selected as Goldwater Scholar

A third-year mathematics student has been named a 2023 Goldwater Scholar by the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation.

A black and white image of the sun with mathematical shapes coming off of it.
Events

Gilfillan Lecture: "Dealing with big data: What to do when your neutrino detector is the size of a building"

A trailblazer in experimental particle physics, Professor Heidi Schellman will present the 2023 F.A. Gilfillan Memorial Lecture, “Dealing with big data: What to do when your neutrino detector is the size of a building.” In her talk, Schellman will share her personal journey as a scientist and her fascination with neutrinos – mysterious particles that could hold answers to the universe.

A hand with pink painted thumbnail uses a phone with an orange survey on the screen.
Statistics

Oregon by the Numbers: Survey Research Center helps clients master the art of surveys

Since 1973 the Survey Research Center has been working with Oregon State faculty and state government agencies to help them conduct and analyze surveys.

High school students stand around a microscope in a lab wearing lab coats.
Diversity in Science

Breaking down barriers to a future in science

This past summer, Ph.D. student Savanah Leidholt set out to create a summer “bootcamp” for area high school students to draw more students from BIPOC, LGBTQ+, low-income and other diverse backgrounds to the study of microbiology.

A group of individuals stand on a staircase for a photo during a mathematics conference.
Mathematics

Making math inclusive: 2023 Math For All satellite conference

Three years ago, current Oregon State University Assistant Professor Swati Patel and two colleagues wanted to do something to counter systemic racism and inequities in mathematics. In response, they founded the Math For All conference at Tulane University in New Orleans. Math For All is now a national conference that hosts annual local programs throughout the country. In late February, about 40 people attended the Math For All satellite conference in Corvallis for free.