SIB News
For First Nations peoples, effects of European contact are recorded in the genome
A study of the genomes of 25 individuals who lived 1,000 to 6,000 years ago on the north coast of present-day British Columbia, and 25 of their descendants who still live in the region today, opens a new window on the catastrophic consequences of European colonization for indigenous peoples in that part of the world.
Publication Date: 19 November 2016
Scientists tweak photosynthesis to boost crop yield
As computer models predicted, genetically modified plants are better able to make use of the limited sunlight available when their leaves go into the shade, researchers report.
Publication Date: 19 November 2016
Eight Illinois researchers rank among world’s most influential
Plant biology professors Lisa Ainsworth, Stephen P. Long, and Donald Ort are three of eight Illinois faculty members on the Clarivate Analytics / Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researchers list, 2016.
Publication Date: 19 November 2016
Soybean plants with fewer leaves yield more
Using computer model simulations, scientists have predicted that modern soybean crops produce more leaves than they need to the detriment of yield—a problem made worse by rising atmospheric carbon dioxide. They tested their prediction by removing about one third of the emerging leaves on soybeans and found an 8% increase in seed yield in replicated trials. They attribute this boost in yield to increased photosynthesis, decreased respiration, and diversion of resources that would have been invested in more leaves than seeds.
Publication Date: 19 November 2016
Fellowship program provides opportunity for hands-on research experience
IB students receive Access and Achievement Program research fellowships in Animal Biology.
Publication Date: 01 November 2016
In Memoriam - Dr. Sharon Gray (1985-2016)
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign B.Sc. Integrative Biology, 2006 Ph.D. Plant Biology, 2013
Publication Date: 07 October 2016
Future drought will offset benefits of higher CO2 on soybean yields
Plant biology professor Andrew Leakey and colleagues report that soybeans will suffer yield losses sooner than previously predicted under future conditions that combine elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels with drought.
Publication Date: 08 September 2016
Scientists watch as water fleas take over new territory
University of Illinois animal biology professor Carla Cáceres and graduate student Christopher Holmes led a study of Daphnia pulex, an aquatic crustacean, to gain insight into the ecology of ponds.
Publication Date: 20 July 2016
Current diversity pattern of North American mammals a ‘recent’ trend
In a study of fossils spanning 63 million years, University of Illinois animal biology professor Jonathan Marcot and his colleagues found that current patterns of mammal biodiversity in North America are a relatively recent phenomenon.
Publication Date: 13 June 2016
Researcher studies how animals puncture things
Illinois animal biology professor Philip Anderson and his colleagues found that increasing the speed of a projectile enhances its ability to puncture an object more effectively than increasing its mass.
Publication Date: 23 April 2016