A Husker-led study detailing how a mouse species has adapted to live at extremely high elevations garnered extensive media coverage in July. The articles were among 35-plus national news stories featuring University of Nebraska–Lincoln faculty, administrators, staff, students, centers and programs during the month.
In a new study published in Science, Jay Storz, Willa Cather Professor of biological sciences at Nebraska, and a team of international collaborators illuminate the biological secrets that allow Phyllotis vaccarum, also known as the Andean leaf-eared mouse, to thrive at the highest elevations of any known mammal — almost 7,000 meters — atop the Central Andes.
Through a series of physiological experiments and genetic analyses, Storz’s team pinpointed physiological traits and genetic variations that fortify the mice against the extreme environment. The findings — which relate to the animals’ cardiovascular function and muscle metabolism — provide new evidence about the set of traits that equip animals for life in extreme, low-oxygen conditions.
The team includes co-first author Naim Bautista, a former postdoctoral associate in the Storz laboratory, along with international researchers from three Chilean institutions: Universidad de Chile, where all the physiological experiments were conducted; Universidad Austral de Chile; and Universidad San Sebastián. Additional collaborators were from McMaster University in Canada and the University of Montana.
Articles on the research appeared in the Omaha World-Herald, Earth.com, Live Science, Science, Science News and Smithsonian magazine.
Additional national news coverage in July included:
- Dane Kiambi, advertising and public relations, wrote a July 1 op-ed for Inside Higher Ed on how the frustration and grief of losing his parents to cancer transformed how he teaches. For the past several years, he has structured his capstone courses in public relations around partnerships with cancer-fighting nonprofit organizations.
- Kelsy Burke, professor of sociology at Nebraska, and Katie Gaddini, associate professor of sociology at University College London, co-wrote a July 1 op-ed for The Guardian on Gen Z conservative women celebrating the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to uphold state restrictions on transgender students participating in sports. “In stark contrast with the image that the Republican movement is led by stuffy, old, white men, these young women make the broader MAGA movement seem trendy, modern and even, well, feminist,” they wrote. “They take for granted the ubiquity of messaging surrounding ‘women’s empowerment’ and insist the feminist label can apply to their views, too.”
- David Taylor, emeritus adjunct professor of entomology, was interviewed for a July 2 FactCheck.org post on the re-emergence of the New World screwworm in the United States. Taylor said neither the Biden nor Trump administrations were to blame. Taylor and other scientists said one possibility for the re-emergence is that the sterile flies being used to maintain the border in Panama became less effective or stopped working. “The fault lies, in my opinion, very possibly with strain deterioration,” Taylor said, although he cautioned that it was only a suspicion.
- John Fech, Nebraska Extension educator, was interviewed for a July 2 CNN Underscored article on the “20 best landscaping tools,” according to experts. He recommended the Root Slayer Perennial Garden Shovel, Root Slayer Serrated Edger and Saker Mini Chainsaw.
- Kait Chapman, an urban entomologist with Nebraska Extension, was interviewed for a July 4 article in The Spruce on using peppermint oil as a natural option to repel bugs. She said it might work well as part of an integrated pest management strategy, but not as a standalone tactic. “It’s important to take into consideration many things that influence its effectiveness, including the formulation, concentration, how it’s applied and what specific insects or arthropods you’re hoping it repels,” she said.
- Georgina Bingham, entomology, was interviewed for a July 6 Straight Arrow News article on the re-emergence of the New World screwworm in the United States. “Insects are highly responsive to temperature, moisture and season length,” she said. “And in certain regions, we’re seeing more drought, which brings more animals together, because they all drink from the same watering hole.”
- Max Perry Mueller, classics and religious studies, wrote a July 6 essay for Slate on how Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani’s great season is helping him cope with the death of his wife, Anna. “Shohei Ohtani is not healing me,” Mueller wrote. “But in my nightly witness of his history-breaking greatness, he helps give my grief a new form.”
- Bedross Der Matossian, history, wrote a July 7 guest column for The Jerusalem Post on the Israeli government’s recent recognition of the Armenian genocide. Der Matossian argued that the recognition doesn’t go far enough because it doesn’t protect Armenians. “Recognition, if it is to have genuine moral significance, must be accompanied by concrete action to prevent persecution, protect vulnerable populations and uphold international law,” he wrote.
- The Nebraska Ranch Practicum, run by Nebraska Extension, is bringing the newest agricultural research and hands-on education to ranching professionals, bolstering one of the region’s major industries in the process. The practicum is held in eight sessions over an entire growing season and production cycle, from June through January, at the West Central Research, Extension and Education Center in North Platte and its Gudmundsen Sandhills Laboratory. Stories on the practicum appeared in the The North Platte Telegraph, Farms.com, The Fence Post and Tri-State Livestock News.
- Dr. Jeffrey P. Gold, president of the University of Nebraska system, wrote in a July 10 email to faculty and staff that Gov. Jim Pillen’s recent order to state agencies and institutions that they freeze their hiring processes and reduce their spending will have “significant” impacts on the system. Stories on Gold’s message appeared in KETV, KNOP, KOLN/KGIN, KSNB, the Lincoln Journal Star, Nebraska Public Media, WOWT, The College Investor and Higher Ed Dive.
- Government Technology published a July 10 article on the University of Nebraska system’s new AI Institute. Co-directors Santosh Pitla, biological systems engineering, and Adrian Wisnicki, English, were interviewed for the article.
- Cousins DeMoine Adams and Dr. Richard Steward III both gave commencement speeches in May, the Pine Bluff (Arkansas) Commercial reported July 10. Adams — CEO of The Game Plan: Ready, Set, Perform; former CEO of TeamMates Mentoring; and a former Husker football student-athlete — delivered the keynote address during the morning undergraduate ceremony May 9 at Nebraska. Steward spoke to the graduating class at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in New York on May 28. Both are natives of Pine Bluff.
- The College of Engineering’s Kiewit Scholars Program was highlighted in a July Midwest Contractor article. Ten incoming freshmen each year participate in a curated, four-year cohort program that includes exclusive courses focused on leadership development, special group activities, immersive learning trips, a Kiewit internship offer, ongoing mentorship and scholarships.
- To help tax and law professionals guide agricultural producers through the many tax considerations following a natural disaster, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln will offer a webinar from 1 to 5 p.m. Aug. 27. The webinar, “Farm Disaster Tax Rules: Deferrals, Casualty Losses, Recovery Payments and Tax Reporting,” is offered through the Nebraska Tax Institute, part of the university’s Center for Executive and Professional Development. Farms.com ran a July 14 article on the webinar.
- Wyatt Clark, head coach of the university’s rodeo team, was interviewed for a July 14 segment on RFD-TV’s “Market Day Report.” He discussed growing interest in collegiate rodeo, investments in the program and Nebraska’s role in hosting the 2026 National High School Finals Rodeo.
- The University of Nebraska–Lincoln is a key partner in a collaboration involving about 70 institutions and organizations across Nebraska and Iowa that will create a bioeconomy-focused innovation ecosystem in the region’s rural communities. Stories on the initiative, called RuralSTAMINA, appeared in the Lincoln Journal Star, Nebraska Public Media, Farms.com and the Iowa Capital Dispatch.
- Gwendolyn A. Newkirk, an educator, scholar, trailblazer, mentor, philanthropist and champion for generations of students died July 3 at age 99. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education published a July 15 obituary on Newkirk.
- Nearly 500 Husker students have been named to the Deans’ Commendation List for the spring semester of the 2025-26 academic year. The Yankton (South Dakota) Daily Press and Dakotan ran a July 17 item on its area honorees.
- Eve Brank, psychology, was interviewed for a July 20 Spotlight on America story on the idea of holding parents criminally responsible for their children’s actions. Brank said there is limited evidence that this approach is effective and warned that enforcement might not fall evenly across communities. “Your lower-income parents, single parents, parents of color are disproportionately likely to face enforcement of these laws,” she said. The story was picked up by several broadcast outlets nationwide.
- The College of Law’s Space, Cyber and National Security Law program was highlighted in a July 20 National Jurist article on the growing field of space law. Nebraska is one of the few schools in the United States to offer advanced degrees in the area.
- Tiffany Heng-Moss, Harlan Vice Chancellor for the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and vice president for agriculture and natural resources for the University of Nebraska system, was interviewed for a July 28 segment on RFD-TV’s “Market Day Report.” She discussed the university’s agriculture and natural resources programs climbing into the top 9% of nearly 500 institutions worldwide in the new QS World University Rankings.
- Mark Vrtiska, School of Natural Resources wrote a July 30 piece for The Conversation on effective methods for managing Canada goose populations in Colorado’s cities. Vrtiska wrote that common tactics include hazing and scaring, as well as habitat modifications, such as turning off water fountains during the winter or making islands accessible to humans so geese don’t get too comfortable. An extreme method is culling — which is effective but controversial — while Nebraska has an egg-oiling program to prevent goose eggs from hatching. “Typically it takes multiple tactics to solve or reduce the nuisance geese problem,” Vrtiska wrote, and persistence is key.
Faculty, administration, student and staff appearances in the national media are logged at http://newsroom.unl.edu/inthenews. If you have additions to the list, contact Sean Hagewood at shagewood2@unl.edu or 402-472-8514. If you have suggestions for national news stories, email Deann Gayman at deann.gayman@unl.edu.
