Building knowledge for a healthier world

Phys.orgJuly 12, 2021How to preserve employee morale during cost-cutting

After cutbacks and layoffs, remaining employees were more likely to feel they were treated fairly if the companies invested in them—and morale was less likely to plunge, according to new research.

The Seattle TimesJuly 11, 2021Newly discovered fungus spores spurred by heat and drought are killing Seattle street trees

So-called sooty bark disease is named for the black, powdery patches that are the telltale marks on tree bark of the fungus Crypotostroma corticale. At least 46 street trees have been observed to be suffering or killed by the disease so far in the city, but many more trees may be infected.

The ColumbianJuly 11, 2021Research aims to examine ‘compounding’ health effects of climate change

Claire Richards research, which was awarded funding under WSU’s new faculty seed grant competition, will look at the extent to which the region is experiencing extreme heat, power outages and wildfire smoke and then look at what data exists — or not — to help identify solutions.

Mirage NewsJuly 9, 2021Students spring into science careers

Through the regional partnership, select WSU graduate students spend the last two years of their doctoral program training alongside scientists and engineers at the laboratory. The students conduct hands-on research in existing areas of collaboration between the two institutions. These areas include nuclear science and engineering, electric power grid, bioproducts, catalysis, environmental and soil science, and materials science, among others.

The Western ProducerJuly 8, 2021U.S. bee research gives varroa mites the cold shoulder

Entomologist Brandon Hopkins and colleagues at the Washington State University put 200 bee colonies into refrigeration at 4 C, putting the bees into winter mode. The queen stops laying eggs, which means no bee larvae, or brood.