‘Gut instinct’ may have been the GPS of human ancestors
Food is the key: Our predecessors needed to remember where they found it, so they could go back for more.
How to build a robot that mimics the moves of animals — and why you’d want to
Inspired by nature, students create creaturelike robots that could improve security, explore disaster sites and even save lives.
Scientist’s new database can help protect wildlife from harmful hues of LED lights
As usage of the modern lights explodes, research led by USC’s Travis Longcore can help biologists better understand how to reduce impacts on animal life.
Trojan helps build eye implants for people with retina degeneration
Electrical engineer reveals what to know about triggers — and how the right ones, at the right time, can change everything.
USC scientists help identify genetic markers for prostate cancer in global DNA download
Knowledge obtained by international team is likely to be useful for prevention of the disease.
What can be done to stem the rise of military suicides?
Two USC schools try to identify at-risk active military personnel and veterans.
Department of Defense funds futuristic USC research in electronics and beyond
USC engineers and scientists will use $169 million in Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative grants to make “living” devices and illuminate mysterious chemical reactions.
USC scientists discover schizophrenia gene roles in brain development
The research team tracked snippets of DNA across stem cells to identify 150 suspect proteins.
Yep, driving home does take longer than driving to work in L.A.
USC research shows it’s usually faster to drive in the morning rush hour than it is at night. But why?
Drones that save lives? Meet humanitarian aid’s newest tool
Unmanned aerial vehicles could help health providers make effective use of emerging technology.
Sodium-based batteries could make your smartphone cheaper and cleaner
USC Viterbi School of Engineering researchers create a solution that brings better batteries within reach.
Perfectly punctual or fashionably late, it takes all kinds of cells to build a kidney
USC scientists show how progenitor cells that form the kidney’s filtering units mature into entirely different types of cells.
USC physicist investigates black holes like crime scenes
Nicholas Warner tackles one of the most intractable problems in physics, attempting to solve a paradox identified with his late friend Stephen Hawking.
Astronaut Garrett Reisman to join USC Viterbi faculty
The director of space operations at SpaceX and former NASA astronaut joins USC’s Department of Astronautical Engineering.
Your brain is multitasking, using a hunger peptide that tells you when to eat
It’s one of several jobs of the cerebral plumbing system, which uses its fluid in some surprising ways.
With rainwater project, USC’s Engineers Without Borders seeks sustainability in Guatemala
The group teams with a nonprofit to develop a water collection system and help families beset with malnutrition.
Graduate’s global upbringing shaped his USC journey
A high school education in Nigeria set the tone for a collegiate life devoted to service, medicine and engineering.
Why you should care about this 130-million-year-old fossil
The ancient find, unearthed in Utah, bridges the transition from reptiles to the beginning of mammals and changes our view of continental drift, too.
With comic book styling, biology grad Kella Vangsness paints stem cells as superheroes
‘Stem Cells: The Heroes of Disease’ depicts stem cells waging a war against the villainy of disease.
A budding surgeon fascinated by the untapped potential of stem cells
After seeing his father survive cancer, graduate Malcolm Gebauer found value in using stem cells as therapeutic agents in numerous diseases.
Particle shows promise to prevent the spread of triple-negative breast cancer
Like a smart bomb, the potential treatment delivers a cancer-fighting drug directly to cells, deterring metastasis to the lungs.
In Africa, visiting Trojan pursues computer science by day and traditional dance at night
Passions for dance and programming fused into a memorable adventure for a USC student in Botswana.
A fascination with flight leads USC graduate Conor Cimo to the space industry
The rocketeer, researcher and environmentalist believes that advances in sustainability can be adapted from technologies developed for space exploration.
USC Iovine and Young Academy celebrates its first graduating class, with help from will.i.am
The musician and entrepreneur joins in the celebration of 30 problem-solver students who break the traditional mold.