Sean Simonini, who is double-majoring in biology and political science, wants to help find treatments and a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, a fatal neurodegenerative disease. He won a $7,500 Goldwater Scholarship to support that work.

More than 200 students showcased their research work and academic endeavors at the 28th annual Student Research and Community Engagement Symposium at University Crossing.

For years, UMass Lowell's Baseball Research Center has been the primary equipment testing lab for Major League Baseball. Now, it’s embracing pickleball – the latest sport to capture the imagination of players young and old – through a partnership with the United Pickleball Association of America and Pickle Pro Labs. Together, the collaborators are developing testing standards for the sport’s equipment. The center is also branching out into hockey, incorporating the study of the game’s gear to serve more clients.

A warming climate is leading to greater extremes of wet and dry weather, a pattern called hydroclimate whiplash. One example is the Los Angeles fires, which were followed by torrential rains and mudslides, says Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Prof. Christopher Skinner.

UMass Lowell is now listed as a Carnegie Research 1 (R1) university, a prestigious designation used to identify the nation’s top research institutions.

The amount of PFAS exposure among construction workers is not yet known, but a new study aims to assess the extent and sources of PFAS exposure to inform safer industry practices.

Assoc. Prof. Kelsey Mangano of Biomedical and Nutritional Sciences in the Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences received a $900,000 grant from Harnessing Emerging Research Opportunities to Empower Soldiers (HEROES), a joint research and development initiative of UMass Lowell and the United States Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center (DEVCOM), to study the natural production of omega-3s.

Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Prof. Juliette Rooney-Varga and her collaborators developed a computational model to guide strategies for propagating educational tools on sustainability.

The inaugural Department of Chemistry Research Symposium featured talks from green chemistry co-founder John Warner, faculty researchers and industry professionals.

Chemistry Asst. Prof. Michael Ross and Prof. Matthew Gage are looking to combine proteins with gold nanoparticles to be used in pH sensors.

Education Assistant Professor Christine Montecillo Leider, a new faculty member, has been awarded a $3.4 million federal grant to expand training for aspiring bilingual teachers in southeastern Massachusetts – and to start a similar program in UMass Lowell’s School of Education.

Biological Sciences Assoc. Prof. Jessica Garb received a $344,000 Mid-Career Advancement grant from the National Science Foundation to further her spider silk research.

The National Science Foundation has awarded Chemical Engineering Asst. Prof. Fanglin Che and her collaborator a three-year grant totaling $781,454 to develop a sustainable method for creating organonitrogen compounds, which are used in a wide range of industrial applications, from agriculture to pharmaceuticals. 

Philosophy Chair Nicholas Evans and Criminology Assoc. Prof. Neil Shortland are researching the future of artificial intelligence in warfare and policy under a pair of Department of Defense Minerva Grants worth $4.2 million, leading teams that include paid student researchers and other UML and outside faculty.

The Massachusetts Gateway Cities Climate Resilience Center seeks to develop a community-driven climate resilience model in Lowell that can be replicated in other cities.

Kennedy College of Sciences Dean Noureddine Melikechi and his research team examined metals found in blood to distinguish Alzheimer’s patients from healthy individuals.

In a study published in the February issue of the journal Stroke, Assoc. Prof. Lynne Gauthier of the Physical Therapy and Kinesiology Department found that “one-size-fits-all” insurance reimbursement is not an evidence-based policy.

Assoc. Prof. Gulden Camci-Unal has been conducting tissue engineering research in her lab using finely crushed eggshells to create microscopic 3D structures, or scaffolds, where bone cells can grow and proliferate.

UMass Lowell researchers, including Chemistry Asst. Prof. Michael Ross, have found that combining noble metal nanoparticles with bismuth created a concave shape with beneficial properties for renewable energy.

Asst. Prof. Fanfei Meng of the Biomedical and Nutritional Sciences Department is evaluating the effectiveness of combining antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs in a nanoparticle to treat sepsis.