By A.J. Cheline. The University of California, Davis, has been awarded $20 million as part of a multi-institutional collaboration to establish an institute focused on enabling the next-generation food system through the integration of artificial intelligence, or AI, technologies. The award is part of a larger investment announced today (Aug. 26) by the National Science Foundation, or NSF, in partnership with several federal agencies — distributing a total of $140

By Yvonne Tevis. Five years ago, this publication told you about DEARhealth, a health care platform from UCLA that grew into a business. A lot has happened in the past five years: The digital health company, founded by Drs. Daniel Hommes and Eric Esrailian, UCLA professors of medicine, offers a provider platform and patient app that helps manage chronic conditions, improve patient outcomes, and lower associated health costs. Since the

Submit your nominations for the [email protected] Athena Awards by November 6. These awards recognize leaders who embody, encourage, and promote the inclusion of women in technology. Nominees should be leaders who inspire others to pursue technical careers through outstanding contributions, service, and membership to foster inclusion in science and technical fields. Awards will be given in four categories: Executive Leadership (individual) Academic Leadership (individual) Early Career (individual) Next Generation

By Jeané Blunt. October means it’s time for fall leaves, Halloween, and National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM). To the average person, one of those doesn’t belong. But those of us who’ve whispered about wanting a certain pair of shoes –  only to have Amazon email us about them minutes later – know that the online world can be a spooky place! National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) has become a tradition

By Dan White. An estimated 7.5 million small businesses in the United States face extinction because of the COVID-19 crisis that has forced them to shutter their operations. Many have minimal websites and e-commerce capabilities, or none at all, making it difficult to transition to online operations. But UC Santa Cruz students are hoping to keep local Santa Cruz businesses from that grim fate. They’re part of a unique nonprofit

Two University of California campuses are piloting the use of a smartphone technology to notify users if they have had a high-risk COVID-19 exposure that may result in infection. Importantly, privacy and security are central to the design of the technology, which does not collect location data from any device and never shares user identities. The effort uses Google/Apple Exposure Notification (GAEN) technology on smartphones to supplement the essential work

By Jeané Blunt. October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) and it is almost here. If you’ve participated in the past, then you’re used to the guest speakers, tips and tricks on how to stay safe online, and NCSAM signage dressing the walls of UC campuses. This year, as you probably guessed, all events will be remote. I spoke with Cecelia Finney, the organizer of this year’s NCSAM festivities.

By Lorena Anderson. UC Merced is rapidly gaining a strong reputation for research and scientific computing across many disciplines and a major expansion of its computing infrastructure is about to cement the campus’ status as a research computing hub. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is supplying $700,000 and the UC Merced Office of Research and Economic Development and the Cyber Infrastructure and Research Computing unit in the Office of Information Technology are adding the

Save the date for the next UC IT Town Hall on October 19, 2:30 – 3:30. The featured speaker is Eugene Whitlock, UC Berkeley chief people and culture officer, and assistant vice chancellor for Human Resources. He will talk about how to cultivate inclusion and belonging – even during a pandemic. Expect an engaging and interactive session! The town hall will include a short UC IT update and time at

By Ghanya C. Thomas. Medical doctor Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo recalls a conversation with a patient who had heart failure: “I’m always emphasizing to my patients the importance of eating fruits and vegetables and this one time during our visit the patient said, ‘Hey doc, you’d be so happy for me, I’m following all the advice you gave me. I go to Walgreens and I eat this can of vegetable soup every