New Research Finds Disney Princesses Can Be Good for a Child’s Self-Image

While adoration for Disney princesses continues to grow in terms of film ratings, some parents wonder what effects these idealized images of young women might have on how their children feel about and express themselves. In new research, a favorite princess improved—but did not harm—young children's confidence in their own bodies and the diversity of the ways in which they chose to play.

Program Gives Jumpstart to Student Researchers

A program that gets students into labs as early as their first year at UC Davis transforms lives — leading many to pursue careers in research. Accelerating Success by Providing Intensive Research Experience, or ASPIRE, has begun reaching out to a wider pool of students. “We wanted to find the students who, given this opportunity, would go the farthest relative to where they started,” says co-founder Steve Luck, Distinguished Professor of Psychology.

Three College of Letters and Science Students Ready to Rumble for UC Davis Grad Slam

Three College of Letters and Science graduate students will test their research communication prowess at the upcoming 2023 UC Davis Grad Slam. Created and organized by Graduate Studies, the competition provides 10 graduate students the opportunity to present a three-minute pitch about their research. The competition will be held at the UC Davis Graduate Center on April 6 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Three Alumnae Named Sacramento Latino Change Makers

Melinda Guzman, Cathy Rodriguez Aguirre and Lydia Ramirez attended UC Davis at different times, pursued different majors in the College of Letters and Science, and followed different paths to successful careers in law, business advocacy and banking. Their paths converged at various times, most recently with a shared honor: each was named to The Sacramento Bee’s inaugural list of Top 25 Latino Change Makers for leading positive transformations in their communities.

How Can We Use Jewelry To Communicate?

The face already plays an important role in communication, but a group of UC Davis computer scientists led by doctoral student Shuyi Sun is taking this to the next level. The team is designing facial jewelry that can use signals from a person’s facial muscles to send wireless commands to at-home devices like Alexa and Google Home.