CAS Connection - Oct 2025

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Human Physiology intern, Ally Smith, on the track

Soaring from the sidelines

Thanks to human physiology internships, these students are getting hands-on lessons in medicine and helping Ducks' sports soar.

By Nicole Krueger and Henry Houston

Experiential Learning  |  Research & Innovation  |  Community Impact  |  Career Preparation  |  Teaching Excellence  |  21st Century Liberal Arts  |  Building Community  |  Good Vibes  |  CAS Spotlights  |  All Stories  |  Past Issues
 

Comics exhibition - Captain American by Jack Kirfy

Good Vibes

All hail the King of Comics

Only one comics artist has influenced so much of our culture and it’s not the name people know best.

By Jenny Brooks

chlorate antibiotic treatment comparison

Research & Innovation

CAS gives antibiotics a boost

Researchers have tested a new combination drug therapy that could dismantle difficult-to-treat bacteria.

By Leila Okahata

europa moon by nasa

Experiential Learning

NASA team ignites curiosity at UO

A next generation of scientists joined a meeting with 265 professionals guiding a NASA spacecraft.

By Henry Houston

an illustration collage of people's faces

CAS Spotlights

How race shapes everyday life

A new book by Professor Jessica Vasquez-Tokos uncovers how race influences personal experiences.

By Grace Connolly

Computer Science Alumni Fedi Aniefuna giving keynote at Hackathon

CAS Spotlight

Computer science alum weaves together ambition and generosity to kickstart his career

When Fedi Aniefuna arrived at the UO, he still hadn’t decided whether he wanted to major in political science and go to law school, or study computer science and head straight into the workforce. Five years later, he’s beginning his second year as an engineer with Amazon Web Services after choosing math and computer science.

Learn Fedi’s Story

Where athletes maximize performance

The Oregon Performance Research Lab in the Department of Human Physiology is designed to drive significant scientific advancements in human performance and remove barriers for all individuals .

“When we first had the vision for this lab, it was not only understanding mechanisms that might be limiting human performance, but we also really wanted to translate that out into the community,” said Professor Brad Wilkins, founder and director of the Oregon Performance Research Lab. “Our community testing services program is really taking the research and translating that to people in the community that really want to improve their performance.”

The lab offers a number of fee-based testing services including threshold testing, VO2 max, hemoglobin mass and sweat testing.

Explore the Lab’s Research

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CAS News

students gathered by a poster
UO Earth sciences program pairs students with researchers
EARTH SCIENCES - CRESCENT wrapped up its first-ever cohort for the Geoscience Education and Inclusion (GEI) Twinning Program. Over the course of a year, students worked with mentors on fully funded research projects, developing practical skills and presenting their findings to fellow scientists. The program manager, Shannon Fasola, said it offered a unique opportunity because students could focus on research without having to worry about finances. The program included Libby Tonn, a CAS student.
two people in the field
Field school blends archaeology, ecology and tribal sovereignty
SOCIOLOGY - As part of the University of Oregon’s Museum of Natural and Cultural History summer field school, the students are spending a month immersed in Indigenous cultural landscapes while studying archaeology, history and ecology and, at the same time, helping restore oyster beds. They’re learning vital career skills while helping usher in a new era of archaeology with Gabe Sanchez, a CAS assistant professor of sociology.
a person sitting in a chair with a laptop
Large national study finds minimal link between smartphone use and well-being in adults
PSYCHOLOGY - A new study led by researchers at the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences in collaboration with Google Research found little evidence linking smartphone use with mental well-being in adults. Researchers analyzed more than 250,000 days of smartphone usage from more than 10,000 U.S. adults ages 18 and up.

All news »

From the Media

CAHOOTS workers
The rise and fall of America’s model mobile crisis service
Research by College of Arts and Sciences economist Jonathan Davis and data scientist Rori Rohlfs is featured in the Nov. 8 print and digital issue of the Economist about the Eugene-based mental health de-escalation program CAHOOTS. The article mentions a study co-authored by Davis showed that CAHOOTS reduced the probability that a 911 call ends in an arrest by 76%. Each arrest costs taxpayers, so the service provided significant savings. And Rohlf's research is that police were dispatched to 23% fewer calls when CAHOOTS responds.
a grocery store cart
SNAP benefits dry up Saturday. What does it mean for grocery prices, food workers?
College of Arts and Sciences economist Keaton Miller speaks with The Oregonian/OregonLive about the loss of SNAP funds and what it means for the state's grocery stores. “(Grocery stores) have to pay for their facilities. They have to pay for their staff. They have to pay for all of the logistics, no matter how much they’re selling to consumers,” he said. “So, that’s going to put potentially upward pressure on pricing.”
A supermassive black hole far from its galaxy's center tears apart a star in the foreground of this artist's rendition.
Black hole caught snacking on star far from host galaxy’s center
The publication Astronomy wrote about a study by researchers who detected a unique incident of a star wandering near a supermassive black hole. “What’s exciting about this one is how well-sampled the data are,” said Yvette Cendes , an assistant professor in physics at the College of Arts and Sciences who analyzed the radio data. “We’ve seen second brightenings before, but this time we watched the rise and fall in real time.”

All media news »

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