
Small eye movements are critical for 20/20 vision
When a patient fails an eye test, it’s not just structural defects in the eye that are to blame. New Rochester research show that small eye movements humans aren’t even aware of making play a large role in humans’ ability to see letters, numbers, and objects from a distance.

Lasers etch a ‘perfect’ solar energy absorber
The University of Rochester research lab that recently used lasers to create unsinkable metal structures has now demonstrated how the same technology could be used to create highly efficient solar power generators.

Rochester astronomers reflect on their contributions to Spitzer Space Telescope
As NASA retires its Spitzer Space Telescope, the Rochester scientists who were involved in its development, look back on the project.

Rochester economist expects the Fed to stay the course
At the committee’s first meeting of 2020, Rochester professor Narayana Kocherlakota expects the Federal Open Market Committee to hold the course on interest rates, as issues from trade wars to impeachment loom.

Multispectral imaging unlocks a Smithsonian treasure’s secrets
This tiny book was acquired by the Smithsonian in 1925. It’s made up of 147 folios of parchment, or treated animal hide, stitched together. The “over text”—the visible text—is of an Armenian prayer book, suspected to date from the 15th century. But there is also an “under text”—a work that was erased to recycle the parchment for the over text. The Smithsonian has turned to University of Rochester professor Gregory Heyworth and his Lazarus Project to help solve the mystery of what that long-ago effaced text might be.

New research unlocks clues about Earth’s magnetic field
Professor John Tarduno has analyzed zircon crystals collected from sites in Australia—the oldest known terrestrial materials—to construct a timeline of Earth’s magnetic field, finding that the field was stronger than previously believed.

Online trolls keep largely mum for latest Star Wars movie
With a fast-paced plot and more conservative themes, The Rise of Skywalker avoided the online trolling that greeted its predecessor, argues associate professor of political science Bethany Lacina in the Washington Post.

Robert Alexander to join University of Rochester as dean of admissions, financial aid, and enrollment management
Alexander is vice president for enrollment and communications at Millsaps College, a nationally ranked private liberal arts institution in Jackson, Mississippi. He will begin at the University on June 1.

Steve Gonek named fellow of American Mathematical Society
Thirty percent of the 20 tenure-track faculty members in the University’s Department of Mathematics are now AMS Fellows.

Parents aren’t powerless when it comes to sleep-deprived teenagers
Teenagers in the US don’t get enough shut eye, and the consequences of this epidemic of sleep deprivation are extensive. But researchers at the University of Rochester have found that a simple solution yields solid results: setting a bedtime and sticking to it.