Rachel Wayne

Futurity • February 11, 2019

How do sea snakes in salt water get a drink?

New research solves the mystery of how sea snakes, who live surrounded by salty ocean water, stay hydrated. Previously, scientists thought that sea snakes were able to drink seawater, but recent research has shown that they need to access...

UF News • February 7, 2019

Dengue immunity may buffer against Zika, study finds

In the epicenter of the Zika epidemic in northeast Brazil, 73 percent of people living in an urban slum in Salvador were infected in 2015, but a new study finds that those with immunity to dengue, a genetically similar virus, had a reduced risk of...

Futurity • November 13, 2018

How big plant-eating animals affect biodiversity

A new study may upend a widely held ecological theory about how grazing herbivores influence their ecosystems. The theory holds that plant-hungry creatures help shape ecosystems by mowing down dominant plants that might smother other plants, thus...

Futurity • November 12, 2018

Merging galaxies fuel supermassive black holes

New research offers a preview of what will likely happen in our own cosmic backyard when our Milky Way combines with the neighboring Andromeda galaxy and their respective central black holes smash together. No need to worry, though—this process is...

UF News • June 4, 2018

Researchers identify immune profiles that place people at risk of dengue

For many viruses, contracting the pathogen can have a silver lining: The subsequent antibodies confer immunity against future infection. Not so for dengue, a remarkably common and occasionally fatal mosquito-borne disease that affects between 50...

UF News • March 21, 2018

Drought-induced changes in forest composition amplify effects of climate change on carbon storage

The face of American forests is changing, thanks to climate change-induced shifts in rainfall and temperature that are causing shifts in the abundance of numerous tree species, according to a new paper by University of Florida researchers. The result...

UF News • November 15, 2017

Justice in the age of locker-room talk

National Institute for Justice funds psychology professor’s work to prevent bullying and sexual assault “Boys will be boys” and “sticks and stones” don’t fly with Dorothy Espelage.

UF News • October 9, 2017

Engineered river diversions sequester carbon in deltas

Researchers from the University of Florida have found that a delta of a distributary on the Mississippi River created by coastal engineering efforts may have the potential to build long-term sinks of greenhouse gases.

UF News • March 23, 2017

Most dengue infections transmitted in or near home

Study findings could aid in interrupting transmission chains and reducing severe illness The majority of dengue virus infections appear to happen very close to home and are transmitted from the same family of mosquitoes, suggests new research led by...

UF News • October 19, 2016

First Pluto, now this: Discovery of first binary-binary calls solar system formation into question

Everything we know about the formation of solar systems might be wrong, says University of Florida astronomy professor Jian Ge and his postdoc, Bo Ma. They’ve discovered the first “binary–binary” – two massive companions around one star in a close...

UF News • July 6, 2016

Setting the Gold Standard

UF chemistry professor is first to use light to make gold crystal nanoparticles A team of University of Florida researchers has figured out how gold can be used in crystals grown by light to create nanoparticles, a discovery that has major...