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Letters and Science

man in wild sea grass
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Courtesy
UC Santa Barbara physics researcher Skyler Palatnik

Designing lightweight optics to detect signs of life beyond our solar system

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A man in a lab coat and mask works in a laboratory lit by blue light
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Matt Perko
A researcher works in the lab of Ania Bleszynski Jayich

Using mechanical inputs to enhance quantum states in sensors
person at drafting table leans over a drawing with a pencil in hand
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Matt Perko
College of Creative Studies student Jake Tran

Watching art films can make you a more creative thinker
Man sitting at a desk with clocks in the background points his finger angrily
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Peter Finch as anchorman Howard Beale in “Network.”

The profound prescience of a 1970s masterpiece
professor eileen boris standing outside with her hands on her hips
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Matt Perko
Eileen Boris, March 2026

Eileen Boris reflects on a career shaping feminist studies at UCSB
Shelly Gable, David Morrison, Javier Read de Alaniz, Kelly Caylor
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Matt Perko and Jeff Liang
Shelly Gable, David Morrison, Javier Read de Alaniz, and Kelly Caylor

UCSB professors honored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science
three brain scans from different perspectives
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Courtesy

UCSB professor honored for research on how media shapes the human brain
two men in a black and white photo in the desert with one pointing out to the horizon and the other behind a 1950s motion film camera
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Archival photograph on the back cover of “Pipeline Cinema: The Cultural Infrastructure of Oil Extraction in Iran and Iraq” (UC Press, 2025) by Mona Damluji

How oil companies shaped early cinema in Iran and Iraq
white man with beard at sunset at beach with sunlight peering from behind his shoulder
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Matt Perko
Daniel Masterson, UC Santa Barbara

Political scientist Daniel Masterson named UCSB’s 7th Pahl Scholar
close up of photonics chip
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Jeff Liang

California prepares to accelerate quantum research and industry
child at table with big colored crayons drawing on white paper
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Stephen Andrews, Unsplash

New study explores links between early-life gut microbiome and neurodevelopment
two researchers in blue, one holding a crab
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Sophia Lecuona Manos, right, is one of several student researchers who discovered a new crab egg predator in the lab of UCSB parasitologist Armand Kuris, left, holding a yellow rock crab.

UCSB students discover new crab egg predator
A cyclists speeds down a bike path.
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Integrating infrastructure for pedestrians, bicycles and motor vehicles makes for a healthier, more vibrant community.

New dashboard maps bike safety across Santa Barbara County
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