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Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

WVU researcher unearths an ice age in the African desert

A field trip to Namibia to study volcanic rocks led to an unexpected discovery by West Virginia University geologists Graham Andrews and Sarah Brown. While exploring the desert country in southern Africa, they stumbled upon a peculiar land formation—flat desert scattered with hundreds of long, steep hills. They quickly realized the bumpy landscape was shaped by drumlins, a type of hill often found in places once covered in glaciers, an abnormal characteristic for desert landscapes.

WVU research addresses suicide risk in rural communities

Karissa Bjorkgren, a second-year student in the Master of Social Work and Master of Public Administration programs at West Virginia University, is dedicated to addressing mental health in rural communities. A native of Franklin, Bjorkgren has experienced first-hand how infrequently rural communities in West Virginia address mental health concerns. She hopes her research will help overcome this disparity.

WVU students receive NASA Space Grant fellowships

Each student will receive a $1,000 award: $500 from the Eberly College and $500 from the NASA West Virginia Space Grant Consortium. The recipients are Erica Chwalik, Dillion Cottrill, Ryan Culp, Brenden Glover, Janna Kleinsasser, Maxwell Reese, Simon Wirth and Olivia Young.

WVU graduate wins prestigious Pickering Fellowship

Jerrica “Ashley” Fox has been awarded a 2019 Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Fellowship to prepare for a career in the U.S. Foreign Service. Fox is the first West Virginia University alumna to win a Pickering Fellowship in at least a decade.

New research suggests forests, like humans, require a balanced diet

The world’s forests are on a fast food diet of carbon dioxide, which is currently causing them to grow faster. But a researcher at West Virginia University, along with an international team of scientists, finds evidence suggesting that forest growth may soon peak as the trees deplete nitrogen in the soil over longer growing seasons.