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Jigna Desai and Sameer Pandya
Photo Credit
Jeff Liang
Jigna Desai, left, and Sameer Pandya, right, will co-lead a new South Asian American studies center

UCSB secures gift to launch a South Asian American studies center

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Blue sky and bright sun light the partial view of a modern building on a coastline
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Ehrlich Yanai Rhee Chaney Architects
An artist's rendering of the La Kretz Environmental Crossroads shows the view from the main entry and an elevated porch with the ocean in the distance

Alumni gift, vision powers plans for a multifaceted climate solutions hub at UCSB
a woman smiling while writing in her journal
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iStock

The benefits of gratitude interventions vary based on where they are practiced, and by whom
Portrait of Wendy Berry Mendes
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Courtesy
Wendy Berry Mendes

Social psychologist, alum Wendy Berry Mendes to deliver inaugural Major-Blascovich Lecture
Tsimané fishing with bows and arrows
Photo Credit
Michael Gurven
Compared to industrialized counterparts Tsimané people of lowland Bolivia have less food availability and must expend more effort to get it

New study adds nuance to the understanding of dementia in the Tsimané and Mosetén of lowland Bolivia
color photographic portrait of professor shelly lundberg
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
UC Santa Barbara economist and demographer Shelly Lundberg, September 2026

Economist Shelly Lundberg wins prestigious Mincer Award, releases book on gender economics
A woman in blue blouse and green blazer with long brown hair, standing on a beach with greenery in the background
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Courtesy
Anton Vonk Associate Professor of Environmental Politics Leah Stokes

Leah Stokes brings urgency, optimism to fight to save the planet
portrait of two scientists, one sitting, one standing
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Danyi Zhang, left, and Tamas Vami

Physicists extend the search for quantum black holes at the LHC
a closeup of a centimeter-long crustacean on beach sand
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Courtesy Image
Megalorchestia corniculata, one of six major species of sand hoppers in California

Tiny beach-dwelling crustaceans are big-time sand movers, shaping the California coast
color photograph of professors Miguel Eckstein and Arpit Gupta
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courtesy
UC Santa Barbara vision scientist Miguel Eckstein (left) and computer scientist Arpit Gupta will discuss AI as a research tool

UCSB researchers discuss AI role in computing and cognition
photo of a man delivering a food to a woman at her home
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iStock

AI-enabled tools may help disabled workers close the wage gap
Mother and child in her lap
Photo Credit
Michel Chaplin
A mother and child in Bangladesh, where UCSB anthropologist Kathrine Starkweather conducted field research.

For working mothers, flexibility may not be enough
a hand cradles a lit lightbulb against a sunset sky
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iStock

Six UCSB junior faculty members selected for 2026 NSF CAREER awards
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