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New View of Nature’s Oldest Light Adds Twist to Debate Over Universe’s Age

From a mountain high in Chile’s Atacama Desert, astronomers with the National Science Foundation’s Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) have taken a fresh look at the oldest light in the universe. Their new observations plus a bit of cosmic geometry suggest that the universe is 13.77 billion years old, give or take 40 million years.

Sex peptide causes female fruit fly’s gut to grow

Scientists have known that females of many species eat more to meet the demands of reproduction, and that females undergo widespread physiological and behavioral changes after mating. The mechanisms of these changes, however, are not well understood.

Students petition for refugee’s release from detention center

A group of Cornell students have launched a campaign to free a Salvadoran woman in a detention center whom they befriended through a class focused on refugees and immigration.

Data on armed conflict reveals patterns in violent chaos

Chaos and uncertainty are hallmarks of armed conflict. But new research that ties together multiple aspects of political violence reveals universal dynamics in how conflicts emerge and expand. The work provides a statistical framework that could one day help anticipate deadly violence.

Professor chases plastic all the way to Ultimate Hall of Fame

“There’s a state of awe, an expansiveness. Because in that moment, you expanded your conception of yourself.”

2020 in review: COVID-19 was the story

The first mention of the word “coronavirus” in a Cornell Chronicle story in 2020 came on Jan. 29, when the university designated mainland China as an elevated-risk destination, and imposed travel restrictions on students, faculty and staff.

Physics without fear: a course for students across disciplines

Holmes hopes that students will take a positive, informed view of physics with them into their careers.

Celebrating December grads after ‘a semester like no other’

On Dec. 19, nearly 1,500 Cornell students celebrated their winter graduation in a virtual recognition ceremony viewed around the world – the first such event at Cornell, and a fitting end to what President Martha E. Pollack called “a semester like no other at Cornell.”

Native ironworkers’ tradition continues on North Campus

For six generations, Mohawk ironworkers have “walked the steel.” Indigenous people began ironworking in the 19th century, when they were hired to build railroad bridges in Canada. They helped craft the New York City skyline, working on projects including the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building and the World Trade Center.

Professor shares immersive VR project to fight racism

  Courtney Cogburn, associate professor of social work at Columbia University and director of “1000 Cut Journey,” shared her story about creating the virtual-reality experience during a November webinar with students in the Milstein Program in Technology & Humanity.

A&S students compete in December business competitions

A total of 17 entrepreneurial students from the College of Arts & Sciences were part of teams who shared plans for new businesses in two online December events — the Big Idea Competition and eLab Early Stage Pitch event.

Africana studies class produces political leaders podcast

For their final projects, students in Africana Studies professor Carole Boyce-Davies’ Black Women and Political Leadership course created a podcast featuring interviews with Black women in politics.

COVID Summit: Social science perspectives

White House order to loosen occupational licensing burdens

The White House issued an executive order this week requiring state and local governments to issue occupational licenses to workers who have received a similar license in another jurisdiction — as long as they are in good standing. The goal of the new order is to increase economic and geographic mobility.

Spires wins MLA award for ‘Practice of Citizenship’ book

Derrick R. Spires, associate professor of English in the College of Arts and Sciences, has won the Modern Language Association (MLA) Prize for a First Book for “The Practice of Citizenship: Black Politics and Print Culture in the Early United States.” In the book, Spires examines the parallel development of early Black print culture and legal and cultural understandings of U.S. citizenship between 1787 and 1861.