Eureka!: beaker briefs

Research highlights from the desk, lab and field

By Marcene Robinson (BA ’13)

Myth-Busting Tobacco

e-cigarette.

All tobacco is risky business. But not all products are equal. Unfortunately, contradicting reports leave the public misinformed, as researchers discovered that the overwhelming majority of Americans believe chewing tobacco and snuff are as dangerous as cigarettes, and almost half think e-cigarettes are. The reality: Cigarettes are far more lethal.

Public health researchers Marc Kiviniemi and Lynn Kozlowski

Community Clocks

For years we believed the sun to be nature’s timer. But new research suggests that society also influences our internal rhythms. Investigators placed mice together in constant darkness and found that, even without light, they synchronized their daily schedules. The larger the group, the more in sync their behavior.

Psychology researcher Matthew Paul

Clean Coal

Despite gains by solar power, coal remains the nation’s top producer of electricity. But the dark source of energy is also a major culprit behind greenhouse-gas emissions. New research hopes to clean up coal by converting it into a gas and using an energy-efficient filter to sift out carbon dioxide.

Chemical and biological engineering researchers Haiqing Lin and Mark Swihart