The Cancer Center at Brown University announced the funding of eight pilot projects that aim to innovate and pioneer in the field of cancer research last December.

’21 Rising, an ongoing social network study led by Principal Investigator and Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences Nancy Barnett, enrolls members from the class of 2021 in biannual surveys to find out how social networks play a role in their health behaviors.

Four University computer science students were recognized during the selection process of the 2021 Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards. Nishanth Kumar ’21 was selected as one of 23 finalists, and Sarah Bawabe ’21, Dylan Sam ’21 and Homer Walke ’21 were acknowledged as honorable mentions. 

University researchers collaborated with the BrainGate clinical trial to identify the role of the middle frontal gyrus — an area in the front region of the brain — in planning movements based on auditory stimuli, including words and other sounds, through observations of a single participant in the trial. 

The Office of the Vice President for Research and the University Library co-sponsored Brown’s Love Data Week, which was hosted online this year in the form of webinars and workshops during the week of Valentine’s Day.

The Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards will now fall under SPRINT’s purview in order to centralize funding opportunities, according to a Jan. 26 Today@Brown announcement. As a result, students will have to use a different application process to receive UTRA grants compared to past years.

COVID-19 has taken a toll on the healthcare system, the job market and the simple ability to conduct activities that once took place in person.

After most University labs slipped into a lull in March following the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, undergraduates are anxious to partake in hands-on research investigations once again. But with a pandemic still pushing onward, popping into a laboratory at one’s whim is no longer feasible.

With the assistance of the University’s COVID-19 Research Seed Fund, some research groups have focused their microscopes on the viral particles behind the infection, while others have built technology to approach the pandemic’s challenges from various angles.

As part of its 2020 Research Achievement Awards, the University recognized the exemplary research of three accomplished professors in biology, computer science and alcohol and addiction studies with the Distinguished Research Achievement Awards.