Like the males of many animal species, male Drosophila melanogaster fruit flies, a commonly studied lab animal, are aggressive toward one another and even fight when competing for resources such as food and females. Researchers in the lab of David Anderson have been studying aggression in these insects for decades, elucidating the neural basis for […]

Brown dwarfs get a bad rap in the stellar world, often labeled as "failed stars" for their inability to sustain nuclear fusion at their cores. The mass of these objects falls between planets and stars, ranging from 13 to 80 times the mass of Jupiter. Because they aren't massive enough to sustain fusion, they are […]

Yuk L. Yung, professor of planetary science and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) senior research scientist, passed away on March 16, 2026, after a brief illness. He was 79."Yuk loved Caltech, JPL, and his many close colleagues, and it showed in the many ways he shared his scientific passion and understanding of this life we lead […]

Scientists at Caltech have figured out how to precisely engineer tiny three-dimensional (3D) metallic pieces with nanoscale dimensions. The process can work with any metal or metal alloy and yields components of surprising strength despite having a porous and defect-ridden microstructure, making it potentially useful in a wide range of applications, including medical devices, computer […]

Cheers echoed through Caltech's Scott Brown Gym as a 20-pound student-built robot powered its way up a steel-plated pyramid and crested the summit. Moments later, the machine accurately deposited its payload of pellets, drawing another round of applause from the crowd gathered for the 41st annual ME 72 Engineering Design Competition.Every year, third- and fourth-year […]

Anima Anandkumar, the Bren Professor of Computing and Mathematical Sciences, has been appointed to the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General's Scientific Advisory Board, which brings together distinguished researchers from around the globe to advise UN leaders on breakthroughs in science and technology. Established in August 2023, the 15-person board provides "independent insights on trends at the […]

Exhaled breath can provide a treasure trove of health information, offering a noninvasive window to both respiratory microenvironments and systemic physiological states. But collecting such data is a challenge.In 2024, Caltech's Wei Gao, professor of medical engineering, and members of his laboratory developed a prototype for a smart mask that uses clues from exhaled breath to monitor […]

Alumna Lauren Edgar (PhD '13) has been selected by NASA as one of 10 new astronaut candidates following a competitive selection process involving more than 8,000 applicants from across the United States. Edgar and her colleagues will now complete nearly two years of training before becoming eligible for flight assignments supporting future science and exploration […]

Since 1990, the United Nations (UN) has used the Human Development Index (HDI) to assess the development of a country using indicators of well-being and quality of life gathered via census data. HDI scores are then used by government agencies and nonprofits to help allocate resources. But the index rankings do not reflect information at […]

When the densest objects in the universe collide and merge, the violence sets off gravitational waves that reverberate across space and time over hundreds of millions and even billions of years. By the time they pass through Earth, such cosmic ripples are barely discernible.Thanks to a global network of gravitational-wave observatories—the US-based National Science Foundation-funded […]