At Wayve, John Wyrwas (B.S. ’07, physics; B.S. ’07, electrical engineering) is driving AI innovation for next-generation #AutonomousVehicles ➡️ go.umd.edu/wyrwas "This technology has the promise of saving lives, reducing traffic and making transportation more accessible."

#UMD's 2025 Convocation honored 4 #ScienceTerps! 🌟 Mathematics Professor Larry Washington received the Kirwan Undergraduate Education Award. 🌟 @umdgeology.bsky.social's Michael Brow, Mathematics' Abba Gumel and Astronomy's Chris Reynolds were named Distinguished University Professors.

🏝️🐜A new study out by Dr. Evan Economo and colleagues reveals a decline in Fiji’s native ant species. With insects playing a crucial role in ecosystems, this research is key to understanding insect populations and guiding conservation efforts.🐜🏝️

Mathematics Professor Larry Washington is receiving UMD's Kirwan Undergraduate Education Award for his transformative impact on #StudentSuccess and program innovation 🌟

“Insects are essential for the environment,” said @umdentomology.bsky.social's Evan Economo. “As scientists, we need to play our part in their protection.” Read about Evan's novel approach to studying ant populations, which revealed signs of decline in 79% of species found only in Fiji ⤵️ #BugSky

Enabled by support from Open Philanthropy, The Science and Community Impacts Mapping Project (#SCIMaP) will embark on the next phase of efforts to analyze, visualize and communicate the impact of scientific funding cuts: cmns.umd.edu/news-events/...

The Science & Community Impacts Mapping Project (SCIMaP), co-led by Biology Professor Joshua Weitz, shows how scientific and medical research funding cuts affect local economies. With new funding from Open Philanthropy, the team plans to expand its analysis ➡️ go.umd.edu/scimap-2

#InsectTerps are researching ways to predict mosquito-borne disease outbreaks. See them at work 👇

@umdphysics.bsky.social's Will Fox is tackling one of the biggest questions in his field: how plasmas generate magnetic fields. His research on the universe's most abundant state of matter could help unlock fusion power and demystify cosmic phenomena ⤵️

#WestNileVirus is one of the most common mosquito-borne diseases in North America, with cases reported in the U.S. every year. @umdentomology.bsky.social Asst. Prof. Megan Fritz's lab is working to predict mosquito-borne disease outbreaks ➡️ go.umd.edu/west-nile #BugSky @mosquitodoc.bsky.social

Tomorrow (9/9), biological sciences senior Ariel Abraham will be taking over our Instagram story! Ariel will start his day working as a peer mentor and student researcher before attending classes and coaching soccer tryouts. Follow along on Instagram: instagram.com/umdscience

Getting new scientists involved is one of the most exciting parts of the job @umdscience.bsky.social @umdentomology.bsky.social cmns.umd.edu/news-events/...

Tired of COVID revisionism? Wondering what made COVID so hard to stop & what lessons can be adapted to confront future pandemics? JHU Press book sale finishes today, code: HLAB25 Asymptomatic: The Silent Spread of COVID-19 and the Future of Pandemics bit.ly/asymptomatic...

New research revealed that Mars' innermost core appears to be a solid hunk of metal just like Earth's. @umdgeology.bsky.social's Nick Schmerr weighed in on these findings with @sciencex.bsky.social, noting that questions regarding Mars' core are far from settled. 🔭 #PlanetaryScience

Over 1,700 new #ScienceTerps gathered yesterday for our 2025 CMNS New Student Welcome 💛 Students played Science Terp Bingo, learned lessons from their peers on a student panel and shared their personal and academic goals for the semester.

A research team led by #UMD astronomer Sylvain Veilleux used #JWST to detect dust far outside the Makani galaxy in a reservoir of hot gas. This research raises questions about how these particles survived such a long and volatile journey. 🔭🧪 #Astronomy

#UMD researchers tracked June 2025 thunderstorms, offering a rare glimpse into how lightning pollutes and simultaneously helps cleanse the air. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science's Ken Pickering spoke with @intengineering.bsky.social about the experiment ⚡️

Coevolving over millions of years, both figs and their wasps have played a key role in sustaining ecosystems. "Their effects ripple through entire ecosystems—keeping tropical forests alive and thriving for millions of species, including our own," said Biology Professor Carlos Machado. #EvoSky

Really cool (or hot?) science by Ph.D student, Cosmo Sikes! #totheMoon

Geology Ph.D. student Cosmo Sikes aims to further our understanding of the moon’s volcanic history ➡️ go.umd.edu/sinus-aestuum Cosmo is synthesizing spinel minerals in #UMD's Planetary Volcanism Laboratory, which has furnaces that can reach 2,900℉ and mimic the conditions of a lunar volcano.

Congrats to our 29 #ScienceTerp faculty members who were promoted this year ➡️ go.umd.edu/promotions-25 Special shoutout to @umdgeology.bsky.social's Michael Brown, Mathematics' Abba Gumel and Astronomy's Christopher Reynolds, who were named Distinguished University Professors!

@umdgeology.bsky.social's Nick Schmerr helped develop a new way to estimate moonquake activity by studying the moon's scars. Read how Nick's research is helping NASA plan for moonquakes 🌔

How do interacting species affect each other's evolution? Carlos Machado seeks to answer that question by studying species divergence, plant-insect coevolution and evolutionary genomics. Learn about coevolution in tomorrow's (8/26) #RedditAMA — submit questions now: redd.it/1mzzrm7 #EvoSky

The #DMV has a new invasive pest: the box tree moth. @umdentomology.bsky.social's Mike Raupp spoke with WUSA9's @kaitlynmcgrath.bsky.social about what to look out for ⤵️

Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics Professor Anne Simon (@annealiz1.bsky.social) spoke with @wbur.org about the disease that has devastated Florida's citrus trees.

Safiullah Rifai (B.S. '23, biological sciences; B.S. '23, mathematics) is starting his #MDPhD program at @medschool.umaryland.edu this fall! Check out our #QandA with Safi to see how he made the most of our Health Professions Advising Office resources: go.umd.edu/qa-rifai

Don't bother squishing spotted lanternflies, @umdentomology.bsky.social's Paula Shrewsbury told @baltimorebeat.bsky.social. Instead, try not to let the bugs hatch in the first place—hunt down their egg masses in the colder months and scrape them into the trash.

As Maryland's state entomologist, Max Ferlauto (Ph.D. '24, @umdentomology.bsky.social) traverses the state's diverse environments to survey and protect the state's insect populations. "Some of our ecosystems hold globally rare species. And we need to protect them." @marylanddnr.bsky.social

With tick season underway in the #DMV, @umdentomology.bsky.social's Mike Raupp shared his acronym for how to handle these tiny pests with @washingtonpost.com. AIR: Avoid. Inspect. Remove.

Mathematics and chemistry dual-degree junior Benjamin Raufman was selected as a 2025 Astronaut Scholar! He credits his achievement to his early research experiences in high school. Read more: go.umd.edu/raufman

The Earth's core-mantle boundary separates two very different geologic realms—but new evidence suggests the core is somehow leaking out to the surface. "In a sense, it's the meeting of two planets," @umdgeology.bsky.social's Ved Lekić told @quantamagazine.bsky.social ➡️ go.umd.edu/20yf

Computer science and operations management & business analytics dual-degree senior Sharvari Tirodkar is taking over our Instagram story tomorrow (8/5)! Tune in to see a day in her life interning at Appian—including attending a @nationals.com game with her fellow interns: instagram.com/umdscience

Mathematics Ph.D. student Shashank Sule blends #MachineLearning and mathematical techniques to help improve brain disease diagnostics and molecular simulations. Read about his Ph.D. journey at #UMD as a mathematician and as a researcher working on real-world problems ⤵️

As president of #UMD's Math Club, mathematics and computer science senior Alex Yelovich helps the next generation of math majors get involved. "[Our club is] a safe place where people can share their theories, ideas and projects with the rest of the department and have meaningful discussions."

@umdgeology.bsky.social's Nick Schmerr analyzed samples from the #Apollo17 landing site to identify seismic activity. Learn how their findings could impact future missions and long-term lunar infrastructure: go.umd.edu/moonquake

Geology's Michael Brown, Mathematics' Abba Gumel and Astronomy's Christopher Reynolds have been named 2025 Distinguished University Professors—the highest academic honor bestowed by #UMD! Read about their respective work: go.umd.edu/DUP25

#ScienceTerp orientation advisors are taking over our Instagram story today (7/29) and tomorrow (7/30)! Tune in to see the orientation experience behind the scenes: instagram.com/umdscience

Angel Obiorah (B.S. '24, biochemistry; B.S. '24, biological sciences) started her #MDPhD program at WashU this summer! Check out our #QandA with Angel to see how she made the most of our Health Professions Advising Office resources: go.umd.edu/qa-obiorah

Leslie Pick, the previous president, has been recognized by the significant contribution to the society! #PASEDB2025 #pastpresident #oursociety

#SpottedLanternflies are more prevalent in the #DMVArea this year. @umdentomology.bsky.social's Mike Raupp spoke with @fox5dc.bsky.social about why.

Biological sciences Ph.D. candidate Priyanka Bharadwaj uses Marchantia (aka common liverwort) as a model to study how plants can survive extreme conditions. Read about Priyanka's #PlantAdaptation research: go.umd.edu/bharadwaj

A study co-authored by Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Professor Russ Dickerson links #AirPollution in Baltimore's Curtis Bay neighborhood to a nearby coal terminal. Exposure to coal dust has been linked to adverse outcomes for both human health and the environment. Read more about their findings ⤵️

📺The St. Leger lab is engineering innovative ways to control mosquito populations and reduce the spread of diseases they carry👇

"Flavor" physicist Manuel Franco Sevilla (@umdphysics.bsky.social) studies fundamental particles in high-energy proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider at @cern.bsky.social. Learn about the LHCb and #ParticlePhysics in tomorrow's (7/22) #RedditAMA — submit questions now: redd.it/1m5sul6

Over a million people die from mosquito-borne diseases every year. Because mosquitoes have adapted to resist conventional control measures, @umdentomology.bsky.social's Raymond St. Leger decided to innovate. Watch this video to learn about his lab's work using fungi to fight mosquitoes ⬇️

#ScienceTerp Claire Bolster (B.S. '20, biological sciences) is committed to the care and rehabilitation of #MarineLife. Her experience at #UMD provided a strong foundation for every challenge she takes on as a senior aquarist at @mysticaquarium.bsky.social ⤵️

Tomorrow (7/16), @umdgeology.bsky.social graduate student Julia Famiglietti is taking over our Instagram story from the Jug Bay Wetlands! Julia will be collecting air and water samples for her research measuring methane concentrations and isotopes. Follow along: instagram.com/umdscience #GeologySky

Andrew Smith's (M.S. '02, @umdentomology.bsky.social) research at #UMD inspired him to explore a more natural, science-based approach to growing crops and raising animals. Learn how he is taking #OrganicFarming into the future at the Rodale Institute and on his own farm 🚜🌾

#QuantumScience researcher Gretchen Campbell has been appointed as associate vice president for quantum research and education! Read the announcement: go.umd.edu/campbell-avp #QuantumUMD

This was so much fun to do! I hope everyone enjoys it!!