Fascinated with Fractals
Nature is full of fractals, a geometrical shape found in objects from pine cones and snowflakes to trees and clouds. These natral shapes have been proven to reduce stress in humans and mental fatigue. But humans spend a lot of time indoors and in built environments, such as cities.
College of Arts and Sciences physicist Richard Taylor and his collaborators at the internationally acclaimed Austrian product design studio 13&9 Design are using computers to generate fractal patterns inspired by those commonly seen in nature. These patterns have been shown to reduce people’s stress levels by up to 60%, and Taylor and his collaborators in Austria have developed and sold fractal flooring, wall panels and lighting fixtures for installation in buildings around the world—including a carpet installed in the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact building at the University of Oregon Eugene campus.
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We Love Our Supporters
Gifts to the College of Arts and Sciences can help our students make the most of their college careers. To do this, CAS needs your support. Your contributions help us ensure that teaching, research, advising, mentoring, and support services are fully available to every student. Thank you!
What’s Happening in CAS?
Fractal patterns are found in the outdoors and are scientifically proven to reduce stress. Find out how College of Arts and Sciences physics professor Richard Taylor—in collaboration with designers in Europe—is creating computer-generated nature-inspired environments indoors that have been proven to reduce stress by up to 60%.
Also in the September issue of CAS Connection: Find out how the mental health service CAHOOTS saved the city of Eugene money, how AI is helping researchers monitor bees, the upcoming theatre season—and more.
Undergraduate Studies
Wherever your academic goals eventually take you at the UO, all Ducks begin their journey with foundational courses in CAS. More than 60 percent of students go on to pursue a major in a CAS department or program. With more than 50 departments and programs, there’s an intellectual home for almost any interest, talent, or career aspiration.
Graduate Studies
The College of Arts and Sciences offers more than 30 master's programs and more than 20 doctoral programs across a diverse range of disciplines. Both as contributors to research teams and through their own scholarship and teaching, our CAS graduate students are indispensable to the vitality of the UO academic mission.
Student Support Services
We provide our students with a variety of resources to help you thrive inside and outside the classroom. Through Tykeson Advising, we provide comprehensive academic and career advising from the start of your journey at the University of Oregon. Learn about career preparation and get assistance in selecting the very best classes. Connect with labs, libraries, IT and tutoring. Find your community on campus.
World-Class Faculty
The College of Arts and Sciences faculty members are a driving force of the high-output, high-impact research activity that has earned the UO membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU). Our world-class faculty members are inspiring teachers.
Among them are five members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, four members of the National Academy of Sciences. They are committed to helping students discover their academic passion. Every day, they work to expand students’ intellectual horizons, preparing them for life after college with real-world knowledge and skills.
Meet our Dean
In the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS), we are committed to excellence in research and teaching, student success, and diversity, equity, and belonging.
A liberal arts education—one that offers a breadth of intellectual approaches and perspectives and depth in a major discipline—is the foundation to a purposeful life as a life-long learner, engaged citizen, and leader. The skills you will learn here—from written and verbal communication to analytical and quantitative reasoning, to compassion and understanding—are those that employers seek and will open the door to a wealth of opportunities.
You will find more than 50 majors and a multitude of minors within CAS, and seemingly endless opportunities for personal exploration and discovery. Whether you are an incoming first-year student, a grad student or a transfer student, you can map an exciting future and be part of a fun, warm, engaged liberal arts community here. Come join us. And go Ducks!
The College of Arts and Sciences includes:
Happening at CAS
noon
Join the University of Oregon School of Law's Environmental and Natural Resources Law Center and cross-campus partners—including the Department of Native American and Indigenous Studies, the Native American Law Student Association, and the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics—for the 19th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture at Oregon Law.
Our community is thrilled to welcome Amy Bowers Cordalis as this year's lecturer.
Amy Bowers Cordalis is a mother, fisherwoman, attorney, and member and former General Counsel of the Yurok Nation—the largest Indigenous Nation in California. She is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Ridges to Riffles Indigenous Conservation Group, a nonprofit advancing Indigenous sovereignty through the protection of cultural and natural resources, including the undamming of the Klamath River. She is the recipient of the United Nations' highest environmental honor, Champions of the World Laureate, and has been named to the second annual TIME100 Climate List (2024), featuring the one hundred most influential leaders driving business to real climate action.
Her book, The Water Remembers: My Indigenous Family's Fight to Save a River and a Way of Life, will be published by Little, Brown/Hachette on October 28, 2025, and is currently available for preorder.
Questions about the event? Contact the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Center at enr@uoregon.edu.
Attend in person in Room 110 of the law school or join remotely via Zoom Webinar.
6:00–7:00 p.m.
The Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project uses community archaeology and public history to document the rich history and heritage of early Chinese Oregonians. Join archaeologist Chelsea Rose for highlights of recent projects that showcase the extent and impact of the Chinese immigrant community in early statehood.
3:30–6:00 p.m.
History welcomes our students back to campus with a casual get-together! Join us for free pizza, hors d’oeuvres, and beverages; learn what’s happening in the department this year; and connect with the History community.
Free and open to all History undergraduates, graduates, faculty, and staff!
3:30–4:30 p.m.
Not sure where to start with career planning? You’re not alone! Join us for a hands-on workshop that introduces the many resources available to graduate students at the University of Oregon. It’s never too early or too late to start shaping your career path. Learn how to make the most of career tools, campus programs, and professional development opportunities designed to help you explore options, build confidence, and take your next steps forward. Register for this free event at https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/0198e2b551ef7f9fb7c0ca9a85f6e27c to receive the Zoom link.
This is the first of seven events as part of the GradEdge: Midweek Career Workshops series. Join us every Wednesday afternoon this term!