Kara J. Manke

27th May 2025

Berkeley Voices: How seeing a new color stretches the limits of human perception

Last month, UC Berkeley researchers tricked the eye into seeing a new color they named "olo." They say it could transform how we understand and treat eye diseases, and expand the way we see the world around us.

Berkeley News • 22nd May 2025

This university alliance is training students to strengthen tribal food, energy and water systems - Berkeley News

The Native FEWS Alliance, a multi-university consortium led by UC Berkeley and the University of Arizona, is one of hundreds of programs affected by National Science Foundation funding cuts.

Berkeley News • 7th May 2025

A stroke left her ‘locked in.’ With the help of AI, she heard her voice again.

UC Berkeley researchers explain how a brain-computer interface restored Ann Johnson’s ability to speak after 18 years.

Berkeley News • 25th April 2025

Scientists trick the eye into seeing new color ‘olo’

UC Berkeley scientists created a new platform called “Oz” that directly controls up to 1,000 photoreceptors in the eye at once, providing new insight into the nature of human sight and vision loss.

16th April 2025

Electric trains are quieter, more reliable than diesel. New study finds they’re healthier, too.

A new study found that electrifying the San Francisco Bay Area’s Caltrain commuter rail line reduced riders’ exposure to carcinogenic black carbon by an average of 89%.

Berkeley News • 3rd April 2025

A single dry winter decimated California’s salmon and trout populations - Berkeley News

Severely dry conditions during the winter of 2013-2014 blocked some species of salmon and steelhead trout from accessing their breeding grounds, wiping out the populations of individual tributaries and even entire watersheds.

Berkeley News • 28th March 2025

UC Berkeley engineers create world’s smallest wireless flying robot - Berkeley News

The bumblebee-inspired robot, less than a centimeter in diameter, can hover, change directions and even hit small targets.

Berkeley News • 27th February 2025

Initiative aims to create a 'rightful presence' for the Ohlone community at UC Berkeley - Berkeley News

“Our long term goal is for every student, every faculty member, every professor — everybody that's engaged with the university — to have a common understanding about Ohlone people and our living identity,” said Vincent Medina, co-leader of the...

Berkeley News • 13th February 2025

Study finds persistent spike in hate speech on X - Berkeley News

The new analysis contradicts the social media platform’s claims that exposure to hate speech and bot-like activity decreased during Elon Musk’s tenure.

Berkeley News • 5th February 2025

Why conspiracies are so popular — and what we can do to stop them - Berkeley News

UC Berkeley Professor Timothy Tangherlini uses lessons from folklore and AI to understand how social media fuels the spread of conspiracies, and how we can use storytelling tools to stem the tide of misinformation.

Berkeley News • 16th January 2025

Is the Bay Area prepared for major wildfires?

A UC Berkeley-led team is using computer simulations to stress-test the region’s disaster preparedness and creating virtual games to educate the public about wildfire safety.

Berkeley News • 16th December 2024

What a century-old grapevine reveals about a disease that plagues wine country - Berkeley News

UC Berkeley researchers used bacterial DNA from a 120-year-old herbarium specimen to reconstruct the history of Pierce’s disease in California.

Berkeley News • 12th November 2024

Citizen scientists discover new, more virulent form of sudden oak death in Bay Area - Berkeley News

Every year, volunteers with the UC Berkeley-led SOD Blitz Project survey tens of thousands of California trees for signs of the fungus-like pathogen.

Berkeley News • 4th November 2024

With the help of AI, UC Berkeley researchers confirm Hollywood is getting more diverse - Berkeley News

A new study used facial recognition technology to track the amount of time actors appear on screen in more than 2,300 films.

Berkeley News • 30th October 2024

Project 2025 could be disastrous for the climate. Legal scholars are preparing to fight back. - Berkeley News

UC Berkeley's Ken Alex says regardless of who the next president is, proponents will continue to push for this "straightforward statement of climate denial."

Berkeley News • 30th September 2024

How UC Berkeley researchers are making online spaces safer for all - Berkeley News

Across campus, researchers are building tools to support freedom of expression on the internet while minimizing the potential for harm.

Berkeley News • 11th September 2024

California has dramatically improved its air quality, but racial disparities persist - Berkeley News

The state’s aggressive emissions policies have reduced exposure to PM2.5 air pollution by 65% since 2000, but low-income communities of color still breathe the dirtiest air.

Berkeley News • 22nd August 2024

Can an aquifer be injured? Scholar brings a disability lens to ecological repair - Berkeley News

In her new book Disabled Ecologies, UC Berkeley professor Sunaura Taylor returns to a Tucson Superfund site to document how residents organized one of the earliest and most successful environmental justice movements in the country.

Berkeley News • 13th August 2024

How color shapes which animals we fear — and which we protect - Berkeley News

From albino squirrels to black coyotes, urban wildlife with unique color variations reveal the role of human bias in wildlife conservation.

Berkeley News • 5th August 2024

Dozing at the wheel? Not with these fatigue-detecting earbuds - Berkeley News

UC Berkeley researchers have created earpieces that identify brain activity associated with relaxation and drowsiness.