UCSB is one of only 61 institutions elected to membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities. And the Newsweek guide to America’s best colleges has named UCSB one of the country’s “hottest colleges” twice in the past decade.
In addition to five Nobel Laureates, UCSB’s faculty includes many elected members or fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (25), the National Academy of Sciences (32), the National Academy of Engineering (25), and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (60). Three UCSB professors also have been named MacArthur Fellows by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
A scholar of Japanese religion explains the connections that Japan’s political parties have with several religious groups and how religion is tied in with the legacy of Shinzo Abe.
Sara Kamali, University of California, Santa Barbara
A former Oath Keepers member testified during a congressional hearing that it was time to stop mincing words about the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol: ‘It was an armed revolution.’
It’s not logical to believe your relationship is “meant to be.” But believing in destined love may have evolved as a way to keep couples together long enough to reproduce and raise children.
Vamsi Ganti, University of California, Santa Barbara
Millions of people around the world live on river deltas and are vulnerable when those rivers shift direction. A new study shows why and where these events, called avulsions, happen.
An anthropologist of Japanese religion met followers of Shinto religion online and found how they were building a community and sharing instructions on practice.
Kai M. Thaler, University of California, Santa Barbara
The rule of Daniel Ortega has become increasingly authoritarian. Sanctions and repression could destabilize the region and result in increased numbers of refugees.
Offshore oil drilling has a long history in California, but is highly unpopular today. The latest major spill is likely to fuel efforts to wind down oil and gas production statewide.
Hot, humid population centers are becoming epicenters of heat risk as climate changes worsens. It’s calling into question the conventional wisdom that urbanization uniformly reduces poverty.
Lisa Hajjar, University of California, Santa Barbara
A scholar who has visited Guantanamo 11 times to observe legal proceedings in the 9/11 terrorism case explains why the conflict continues to delay the case going to trial.
Castillo is a farmer and teacher who has never held national office. Peru is a nation in political turmoil, with the world’s worst COVID-19 death rate. Can this unlikely leader lead it through crisis?
In the design of marine protected areas, new research suggests that it might be better to start small in order to gain local trust and support that leads to larger long-term benefits.
Debra Perrone, University of California, Santa Barbara and Scott Jasechko, University of California, Santa Barbara
The US has one of the highest groundwater use rates in the world. When wells run dry, households may opt to conserve water, find new sources or sell and move.
Lisa Hajjar, University of California, Santa Barbara
The release of a new movie calls public attention to the US government’s treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, and what the detainees’ future might be.
The rejection culture of academia is damaging. Rejections are inevitable, but there are better ways of managing the process that don’t leave individuals to bear the whole burden of coping.
Forced labor is a widespread problem in fisheries on the high seas. Between 2012 and 2018, an estimated 100,000 people may have been victims of forced labor on thousands of different boats.
Climate change is a true existential threat for small island nations, but the US has done little to help the Marshall Islands, which it administered for decades.