Scientists at Northern Arizona University, Arizona State University, the Arizona Geological Survey at the University of Arizona and the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado Boulder have been awarded almost $2 million from the National Science Foundation to develop a virtual reality teaching tool called Polar Explorer. In this… Read more
News about research and scholarly activities
Ecologists compare accuracy of lidar technologies for monitoring forest vegetation
As light detection and ranging (lidar) technology evolves, forest ecology and ecological restoration researchers have been using these tools in a wide range of applications.
“We needed an accounting of relative accuracy and errors among lidar platforms within a range of forest types and structural configurations,” said associate professor Andrew Sánchez Meador, executive… Read more
FEWSION: Creating more resilient supply chains through nature-inspired design
A new paper in Nature lays out the way natural ecosystems parallel U.S. supply chains and how American cities can use these tools to strengthen their supply chains.
The paper, “Supply chain diversity buffers cities against food shocks,” is co-authored by Benjamin Ruddell, director of the FEWSION Project and the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems at Northern… Read more
Drought affects aspen survival decades later, new NAU study finds
Drought—even in a single year—can leave aspen more vulnerable to insect infestation and other stressors decades later, a new study by NAU researchers found. Aspen trees that were not resilient to drought stayed smaller than others, growing more slowly and succumbing to an outbreak of insects known as aspen leaf miners that have plagued interior Alaska for more than two decades.
The findings, led by research specialist Melissa Boyd and Regents’ professor Michelle Mack of the Center for Ecosystem Science… Read more
Community health workers improve birthweight of newborns through the Arizona Health Start Program, researchers find
Researchers from Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona found pregnant women and mothers who are treated by community health workers have lower rates of low birthweight and preterm newborns than their peers without those providers.
The 10-year comprehensive study looked at women enrolled in Arizona’s Health Start Program, which employs community health… Read more
NAU mechanical engineer receives NSF CAREER award to pioneer robot-assisted rehabilitation while integrating education, research
Project outcomes have potential to transform treatment of walking disabilities across wide range of conditions
Zach Lerner, an assistant professor in Northern Arizona University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, was recently awarded a $538,563 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to build on his research into restoring neuromuscular function and augmenting human ability through the design, control and testing of robotic exoskeletons.
“There is a… Read more