Discovering New Knowledge

As part of the National Science Foundation’s support for convergence research, five universities and two organizations have collaborated to investigate an innovative and sustainable approach to coffee farming, called integrated open canopy cultivation, in Honduras. Cameron School of Business Professor Peter Schuhmann, with his vast experience using choice experiments as tools for determining non-market valuation, provides economic expertise to the interdisciplinary team. His contribution will highlight how a variety of factors affect adoption of sustainable practices and how coffee production characteristics affect wholesale coffee prices.

New research by Lorian Schweikert, assistant professor in the Department of Biology and Marine Biology, published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, shares the discovery that deep-sea shrimp have evolved to have different eye sizes to better see the bioluminescence of their own species. The multi-institution collaboration determined that more than other ecological factors, like habitat, migration patterns, depth and even sunlight level, bioluminescence was the strongest indicator for how big the shrimp’s eyes are. This finding emphasizes the connection between vision and bioluminescence and provides more evidence that making light is, in fact, a deep-sea form of communication.

While performing routine analysis of human bones collected from an archaeological dig in Portugal, Professor of Biology Steve Emslie stumbled upon a new discovery – the earliest evidence for mercury poisoning in the history of the human population. The mercury value was more than 400 parts per milligram (ppm) in some of the bones, significantly over the World Health Organization’s recommendation of 10 ppm. Many of the bones were stained red, revealing that cinnabar, a mercury sulfide mineral found in volcanic regions, was to blame for the extremely high levels. Emslie’s collaborative research with top archeologists and physical anthropologists in Iberia (Spain and Portugal) was published in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology and is the largest contaminant study ever done on human bone.

An exciting breakthrough discovery of therapeutic treatments to help breast cancer patients experience fewer side effects is under development in the labs of Dobo Hall. Reported in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry by Sridhar Varadarajan, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Arthur Frampton, associate professor of biology, this multidisciplinary research spans several years and is conducted by UNCW undergraduate and graduate students with scientist collaboration at other universities. These new molecules can selectively seek and destroy only the breast cancer cells, which will minimize patient side effects such as hair loss, gastric irritation, immune suppression and secondary cancer.

“Confluence,” a multi-sensory art and science experience from The Algae Society Bio Art & Design Lab, ran at the Cameron Art Museum from January 28 through April 24, 2022. The exhibit explored historical and modern ways to view the study of algae through portraits, interactive projections and videos. The exhibition team included contributing artist Gene Felice, assistant professor of digital art and co-founder of The Algae Society, and contributing scientists Catharina Alves-de-Souza, research professor and director of the Algal Resources Collection, and Alison Taylor, professor in biology and marine biology and director of RMD Bioimaging Facility.