News

A mother's obesity in pregnancy can affect her child's development years down the road, according to researchers who found impaired motor skills in preschoolers and lower IQ in middle childhood for boys whose mothers were severely overweight while expecting them. A team of nutrition and environmental health researchers at The University of Texas at Austin and Columbia University found that the differences are comparable to the impact of lead exposure in early childhood.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world's largest general scientific society, has named Mark Raizen, a professor in the Department of Physics, a 2019 AAAS Fellow.

A generous estate gift to The University of Texas at Austin from alumna and former physician Lorraine "Casey" Stengl will have a dramatic impact on educational efforts and scientific research examining plants, animals and their interactions with the natural world.

​John Tate, who won the world's top prize in mathematics and taught for nearly 20 years at The University of Texas at Austin where he was Regental Professor Emeritus, has died. He was 94.

David Vanden Bout, the College of Natural Sciences' senior associate dean for undergraduate education, has been named the inaugural winner of a prize recognizing outstanding leadership at a university for efforts in the areas of equity and inclusivity.

As any farmer or summer gardener knows, tiny aphids represent an enemy for most crops. The insects like many of the same plants that we rely on for food, and aphids can sometimes spread plant diseases, similar to the way mosquitos spread human diseases.

On June 3, 1979, an oil rig called the Ixtoc I exploded off the coast of Campeche, Mexico, triggering what at the time was the worst oil spill in history. Even today, Ixtoc is eclipsed in the Gulf of Mexico only by the Deepwater Horizon disaster of 2010. Ixtoc's damage was observed for decades along the Texas coast, where experts at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute study the impact of the oil spill to this day and explore ways to contain the damage from future disasters.

Members of the Class of 2019 are tackling the complicated questions shaping our tomorrow, taking what they have learned at UT out into the world. With no shortage of impressive achievements and inspiring stories in this cohort, UT Austin featured four stand-out students from Natural Sciences in its round-up about amazing graduates. Each student demonstrates a distinct commitment to their vision for changing the world. 

Dean's Honored Graduate is the highest honor awarded to graduating seniors in the College of Natural Sciences. Honorees exhibit excellence in the classroom as well as substantial achievement in scientific research, an independent intellectual pursuit, or exceptional service and leadership to the college and university. These outstanding students are among the graduating seniors also receiving College of Natural Sciences Distinctions this year.

Peter Stone, a professor of computer science at The University of Texas at Austin, has won the Minnie Stevens Piper Teaching Award, which celebrates outstanding postsecondary teaching.