Research
‘Opportunity to Experiment’: Visiting HBCU Scholars Praise Harvard’s Visiting Professorship Program
Four visiting professors from historically Black colleges and universities praised Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Visiting Professorship Program for offering the opportunity and funding to explore their scholarly work.
HMS Is Facing a Deficit. Under Trump, Some Fear It May Get Worse.
Harvard Medical School administrators and professors are already worried about the school’s tightening budget and declining federal research funds. Trump’s reelection adds a whole new level of risk.
HMS Study Reveals How Mutation Can Accelerate Breast Cancer Progression
A new study led by Harvard Medical School researchers shed new light on how even a single defective copy of the tumor-suppressor BRCA1 gene can increase patients’ risk of developing breast cancer.
HMS Study Suggests New Narratives for Pompeii Victims
New DNA analysis challenges existing hypotheses about the identities and relationships of victims found in Pompeii after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E., per a study published in Current Biology on Nov. 7.
Pesticide Consumption May be Linked to Male Infertility, Harvard Study Suggests
A study conducted by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health demonstrated that high intake of pesticide residue from fruits and vegetables may reduce fertility in men.
HMS Study Sheds Light on Link Between Heart Condition and Cancer Treatment
A new study out of Harvard Medical School is opening the door for cancer patients with a rare but dangerous heart condition to continue immunotherapy treatment for the first time.
Harvard Biology Professors Win International Awards for Neuroscience Research
Two Molecular and Cellular Biology professors, Takao K. Hensch ’88 and Catherine Dulac, received prestigious international awards this fall for their neuroscience research.
Harvard, UMiami Researchers Debunk Ecuador Mass Extinction Event in New Study
Scientists debunked a widely accepted mass extinction of 90 plant species in Ecuador’s Centinela cloud forests in the 1980s, per an October research paper published in Nature Plants.
Harvard Study Suggests Vitamin D Has No Effect on Cardiovascular Health
Vitamin D supplementation does not reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, researchers reported in a September paper.
Medicare Advantage Plans Receive Billions in Excess Funding for Veterans Health, Harvard Researchers Find
Medicare Advantage plans may receive as much as $1.3 billion in excess funding for veterans who receive nearly no care through Medicare, researchers reported in a Monday study.
Ozempic, Wegovy Use Doubled as Bariatric Surgery Procedures Declined in 2022-2023, Harvard Researchers Report
The national use of weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy more than doubled as bariatric surgery frequency dropped by about 25 percent from 2022 to 2023, researchers report in an Oct. 25 study.
Common Plastic Ingredient May Cause DNA Damage, Harvard Study Finds
A chemical in common-use plastics may cause DNA damage and infertility in women, a new Harvard Medical School study shows.
Massachusetts Awards Harvard-Backed Center $5 Million for Quantum Computer
The Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center, a facility run by Harvard and four other universities, was awarded $5 million to build the first state-funded quantum computing center, state leaders announced on Friday.
Harvard School of Public Health Study Finds That Deforestation May Increase Malaria Transmission
A Harvard School of Public Health study published Oct. 21 found that ecological changes in the Brazilian Amazon have led to a significant increase in the risk of malaria transmission.
Massive Meteor May Have Supercharged Early Microbial Life on Earth, Harvard Study Finds
A meteorite 200 times larger than the one that wiped out Earth’s dinosaurs may have been critical for the development of early microbial life on the planet three billion years ago, according to a Harvard study published last week.
Harvard Professor-Led Company Says It Reconstructed Genome of Extinct Tasmanian Tiger
Colossal Laboratories and Biosciences, a company co-founded by Harvard professor George M. Church, announced last week that it had reconstructed the genome of the extinct Tasmanian tiger with more than 99.9 percent accuracy — the most complete ancient genome of its kind.
Harvard Researchers Shed New Light on Extent of Chemical Pollution in Wildlife
In an October study, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences discovered that fish can accumulate elevated levels of synthetic chemicals up to five miles away from the original source of pollution.
Decades-Long NHS Research Jeopardized by Funding Cuts
The Nurses’ Health Study – a 48-year long medical study run jointly by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and the Harvard Medical School – is at risk of shutting down due to a lack of funding, according to researchers involved with the project.
Harvard Researchers Classify Microorganism Species, Tardigrade
Harvard researchers recently identified a new fossilized species of tardigrade, a discovery that lends crucial insights into the microscopic organism’s evolutionary history and its unique resilience.
Harvard Dental School Dean Wins American Dental Association Award for Research
Harvard School of Dental Medicine Dean William V. Giannobile was presented with the American Dental Association’s 2024 Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Dental Research last Friday.
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard Lays Off 87 Workers in Restructuring Effort
The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard announced on Oct. 10 that it laid off 87 employees as part of a strategic restructuring.
Cerebellum Only Necessary for Some Muscle Memory, Harvard Researchers Find
In an August study, researchers at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences discovered a new distinction between long and short-term motor memories — a class of memories developed through repeated physical movements.
Kip Thorne, 2017 Nobel Laureate, Talks Black Holes During Inaugural Hawking Lecture
Hundreds packed Science Center Hall B to watch Kip S. Thorne, a professor of theoretical physics at Caltech and a 2017 Nobel Prize laureate, discuss black holes and wormholes during the inaugural Hawking Lecture on Friday.
Harvard-Led Researchers Are Creating an Air Quality Sensor Inspired By Dog Noses
Researchers led by Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences professor Joanna Aizenberg are developing a new air quality sensor inspired by a dog’s nose that promises more specificity than existing products.
Harvard Researchers Suggest Green Hydrogen Will Remain Costlier Than Projected
Harvard researchers found in a recent study that prices for green hydrogen — hydrogen fuel created from sustainable energy sources — will remain high.