We are sad to report that AirUCI faculty Steve Davis will be leaving us as of June 30th to join the faculty in Stanford University’s new School of Sustainability. He has led the way in research into critical issues like food security, energy, air pollution, land use, and other areas as evidenced by his popularity as an expert who is regularly interviewed and published across many forms of media. Steve will be greatly missed here, but we know he will carry on with his leading-edge research and continue sound the alarm.
News
Here's the latest news from AirUCI — our events, our people, our science.
2024
Thursday, June 27, 2024
AirUCI faculty Jun Wu is quoted in a June 27th article in Time Magazine on the health hazards of fireworks. Along with burns and other injuries, fireworks can affect long-term health too since they release contaminants that can affect air quality and, as a result, potentially cause respiratory and other health issues. June says, “If you have to go outside, wearing an N95 mask would be good.” Read the article
Thursday, June 27, 2024
AirUCI faculty Jane Baldwin is quoted in a June 27th article in The Guardian about regions in the U.S. where temperatures have risen the most. Broken down by counties across America, average temperatures have soared with some areas experiencing summers up to 5 degrees hotter. Even heat increases of 1 degree can cause much higher likelihoods of deaths from heat waves, as well as agricultural impacts and wildfires, said Jane. “Heat is a silent killer and it unfortunately affects the most underserved members of society the worst.” Read the article
Monday, June 17, 2024
A recent paper by AirUCI faculty Mike Prather has prompted new discussion of the earth's recovery from the "ozone hole". The discovery of the ozone problem by Sherry Rowland, (honorary AirUCI team member) and Mario Molina in the 1970s won them the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and motivated an international effort to reduce ozone use in everyday products. There has been slow but steady recovery of the stratospheric ozone layer, but about 10% remains in the troposphere. Mike's findings indicate that "what happens in the troposphere doesn't stay in the troposphere." Some of these molecules travel up into the stratosphere when the two atmospheric layers exchange air. This upward migration of ozone may make it difficult to assess the recovery rate of the depleted stratospheric ozone layer accurately and may also affect how researchers interpret the results of a worldwide reduction in halocarbon use. Read the article
Thursday, June 13, 2024
AirUCI Co-Director Sergey Nizkorodov is listed in the 2024-25 cohort of UCI Faculty Academy for Teaching Excellence (FATE) fellows. FATE is a community of faculty from across campus with a shared desire to promote student success through teaching. Acceptance into FATE is a lifetime honor bestowed on faculty who have demonstrated the aptitude to develop learning environments that foster student growth. Congratulations, Sergey, for this well-deserved honor! Read more
Tuesday, June 11, 2024
In a June 11th article in Very Well Health, AirUCI facutly Jun Wu is quoted on cooling centers and other heat mitigation strategies. Policy and infrastructure changes are necessary for reducing heat-related health risks, Jun said, adding that “Local government, especially, can really do something. Planting trees is relatively simple. Also, painting a lighter color of roof and road—those things are relatively easy to do and may have multiple benefits. Green planning, in addition to reducing the heat, can also help with reduced air pollution.” Read the article
Monday, June 10, 2024
UCI's Chemistry Department has recognized 15 researchers for their work in promoting a strong safety culture in their labs. Of the 15, five are AirUCI team members! While they are not the safety representatives for their labs, these individuals show that anyone can be a positive role model for exemplary safety practices. The AirUCI team members are Madeline Cooke, Kristen Johnson, Lucia Liu, Marcus Marracci, and Steven Nguyen. Congratulations, all!
Tuesday, June 4, 2024
At the Chemistry Department's undergraduate ceremony held June 4th, Katelyn Pacaud and Patricia Morris (both in the Finlayson-Pitts group) received awards. Katelyn was a recipient of the Michael Gebel undergraduate student award and Patricia received the American Chemical Society's ENV award. Well done, ladies!
Monday, June 3, 2024
A new study published by AirUCI's Tires and Brakes (TAB) team is the subject of an article published June 3rd. The team showed that most of the particles emitted during light braking carry an electric charge, largely dependent on the material makeup of brake pads—something that could potentially be exploited to help reduce air pollution from vehicles. “If the particles are charged, they can be removed easily from the air before they have a chance to have an impact at all on health,” said AirUCI Prof. Jim Smith, one of the faculty involved in the study.
Read the article
Tuesday, May 14, 2024
AirUCI grad student Avisa Charmchi has been named a 2024 UCI Beckman Scholar by the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation. Avisa is double-majoring in Chemistry and Biological Sciences studying non-linear chemistry from atmospheric oxidation of volatile organic compounds as part of a joint project between the research groups of AirUCI faculty. Sergey Nizkorodov (Chemistry) and Celia Faiola (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Chemistry). Each year, 1-3 outstanding students are selected as the Beckman Scholars based on their academic record, quality of previous research experience, and potential to become prominent research leaders in the chemical and life sciences.
