CAS Connection All Stories archive

POLITICAL SCIENCE - Voters are in a way acting as lawmakers, as some states see an increase in ballot measures, spanning from county or city-level ordinances to state constitutional amendments, according to research by Madison Schroder, a political science PhD candidate at the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences.

BIOLOGY - An AI-based imaging system that is a collaboration between researchers at the University of Oregon and Oregon State University, funded by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement Inc., is working to monitor bee populations without harming the insects. The technology could solve a key paradox in bee conservation efforts. The collaboration includes CAS biologist Lauren Ponisio.

PHYSICS - Physics Professor Richard Taylor blends art and science to create award-winning nature-inspired designs for indoor environments. In collaboration with designers in Austria, Taylor has been using computer-generated fractal patterns, which have been shown to reduce people’s stress levels by up to 60%.

THEATRE ARTS - This year, the University Theatre’s season includes an exciting range of productions by Shakespeare, Jen Silverman, D.W. Gregory and Monica Sanchez. Each of the plays offers a mix of historical and contemporary themes, while also addressing timely issues such as immigration, gender roles, and workplace safety. And it marks the return of the Robinson Theatre.

HISTORY - Julie Weise’s research on temporary migrant work policies is one of many projects around the country to lose NEH funding, but she remains focused on her work. Her upcoming book, "Guest Worker: Lives across Borders in an Age of Prosperity, 1919-1975," looks at how this type of international policy agreement evolved during the mid-20th century, with a focus on the experiences of temporary workers in more economically prosperous countries: Mexicans in the US, Malawians in South Africa and Spaniards in France.

COMICS AND CARTOON STUDIES, DISABILITY STUDIES, ENGLISH - What makes the comic book villain the Joker such a popular antagonist for Batman? It’s one of many questions Professor Elizabeth Wheeler examines in her latest research paper, “The Joker’s Shifting Face: Eighty Years of Mad History in Batman and American Culture.”

SOCIOLOGY - For some CAS students, a class inside Oregon’s prisons is an experience that current and past students say has provided them with meaning and a drive for life. And for the adults in custody—referred to as inside students—it’s a way to break up the clamor and routine of life in lock up.

EARTH SCIENCES - An undergraduate’s discovery of ash from an underwater volcano will shape scientific research for years to come. Marcus Chaknova, then a marine biology and geology major in the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences, stumbled across a massive deposit of ash sediment while on a research cruise with the UO's Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, the University of Rhode Island and Western Washington University.

CINEMA STUDIES - Visiting filmmaker series helps cinema studies majors connect with mentors in the movie industry—and learn how films really get made. In spring 2025, Academy Award-nominated director Sean Wang was on campus to share his experience and advice with students in the Cinema Studies department.