PROTOTYPE NO. 2

“WHAT IF … ?” Our themed issues generally begin with the kind of openended questions that inspire curiosity and creative experimentation. Last year, we asked our team, “What if we turned over an entire magazine issue to research news, stories and data?” Borrowing a page from Rice’s engineering design projects, we built a prototype — and published a snapshot of some of Rice’s most “dynamic, complex and ambitious scholarship” taking place across, and far beyond, campus. This summer, we’re back with a new iteration of the research issue — one that we think readers will find informative, engaging and visually delightful.

This issue kicks off with a note from President DesRoches in which he quotes the great Harlem Renaissance writer and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston: “Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose.” In these pages, we see Hurston’s wisdom reflected in the questions our undergraduate researchers are exploring — in plant genetics, tropical ecology, urban planning and purpose-driven engineering design projects. We see the fruits of formalized curiosity in critical and creative scholarship from graduate students and faculty at home and abroad. We marvel at the ongoing discoveries of alumni researchers working in biomedical engineering, religion, medicine, philosophy and fusion energy — and praise the brilliance of an alumnus who can turn the history of chemistry into a dad-joke-strewn graphic novel (really!). are involved in research and all our students pursue the creative and systematic practice of discovery.

We also hear this philosophy expressed in the voice of Vice President for Research Ramamoorthy Ramesh, who joined Rice last year from the University of California, Berkeley. A condensed matter physicist with a breadth of experience across academic and government spheres, Ramesh exudes an infectious belief about Rice’s future as an innovation powerhouse.

One lesson we took away from last summer’s issue is that research “by the numbers” could be richer in meaning with additional context. So, we’re trying something new. Our four-page explainer, “The Year in Research,” breaks down the data categories describing Rice’s banner year in research, and it’s expanded online.

Finally, “what if … ” we ended all these stories of purpose with a moment of pure joy from a perfect commencement day?

We’ll see you in the new (academic) year. In the meantime, send your comments about this issue to ricemagazine@rice.edu.

Rice made a commitment to doing impactful research early on. Just six years after opening its doors, Rice awarded its first doctoral degree. Today, graduate students make up almost half the university’s student population. Rice’s funded research has grown significantly over the years as well. Scholars at Rice conduct research in a range of critical areas that