SSE News

Stay updated on recent achievements, research highlights, and news within the SSE community.

Smiling Asian man in a lab coat stands by a microscope.

Tulane Researcher Elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science

YiPing Chen, a professor of Cell and Molecular Biology in the Tulane School of Science and Engineering, has been elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in the Section of Biological Sciences. The honor recognizes individuals for distinguished contributions to science and its applications.

For Chen, who has spent almost three decades as an independent researcher, the recognition carries personal weight. "This is a nice honor for me and recognition of my contribution to the science," he said.

Young man in patterned shirt smiles on a balcony with green mountains and ocean background.

Recent NTC Graduate Is Paris-Bound With a Lafayette Fellowship

Zachary Hom, an earth and

Man with glasses in a blue checkered shirt with arms crossed.

How Does Gold Keep Its Glitter? Tulane University Researchers Uncover Why It Resists Tarnish

Gold has been prized for thousands of years for its enduring shine, but Tulane University researchers have discovered that gold’s resistance to tarnishing depends on more than its chemistry.  

Headshot of a smiling young man with messy brown hair.

From the Diamond to Discovery

Marc Théberge originally came to Tulane University to play baseball. A shoulder injury in his first year changed that. What followed was a path that took him from the School of Science and Engineering to the National Institutes of Health, and eventually to a doctoral program that spans two continents.

Man in lab coat and goggles smiles, wearing gloves and holding a tool.

From New Orleans to the Arctic: How Tulane Alum Kobi Jones is Powering the Future of Cold-Weather Technology

Kobi Jones graduated from Tulane University's School of Science and Engineering in 2020 with a degree in chemical engineering. Four years later, he is a manufacturing engineer at South 8 Technologies, a San Diego-based startup developing battery electrolyte technology designed for extreme cold-weather applications. His customers include the United States Army, defense contractors, and research partners working on the next generation of soldier power and unmanned aerial systems.

Two men standing behind a table with scientific equipment.

At the Speed of Light: Tulane Team Advances Optical AI

In a field dominated by ever-larger GPUs and rising energy demands, a team of researchers is looking in a different direction. Instead of electrons, they are using light.

In a new study published in Machine Learning: Science and Technology, researchers Manon P. Bart, a recent Tulane PhD graduate, along with Nick Sparks and Ryan T. Glasser, introduce a method that dramatically improves how optical neural networks are trained, bringing this emerging technology closer to real-world use.

Professor Meena Vijayaraghavan standing in front of trees

Professor Honored With Service Learning Award for Innovative Teaching

Meena Vijayaraghavan, a se

Woman with glasses in a blue shirt gesturing while speaking in front of a projection screen.

The Art of Translation: Jill Love’s Journey From the Lab to the Stage

High in the rugged peaks of Sierra Nevada rests the Mimulus laciniatus—the cutleaf monkeyflower. To a casual hiker, these flowers are merely a part of the scenery; to Jill Love, Ph.D. in Tulane University’s Ferris Lab, they are a living puzzle. Her research sits at the intersection of evolutionary ecology and climate change, exploring a fundamental question: how do plants survive in a world where the rules are constantly shifting?

Collage of seven young women in various settings.

Ten from Tulane SSE Earn NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Recognition

Ten students and alumni connected to the Tulane University School of Science and Engineering have been recognized through the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program, one of the nation’s most competitive honors for emerging researchers in science and engineering.

Young man sitting on a park bench under trees.

From Family Legacy to Physician-Scientist: Ben VanDerHeyden's Path at Tulane SSE

Ben VanDerHeyden has a photograph of himself walking around Tulane's campus at 10 years old. Both of his parents are School of Science and Engineering alumni, and they were married at Rogers Memorial Chapel. The university was always part of his story. What he could not have known back then was the specific shape that story would take: four years of undergraduate research, a honors thesis on DNA replication and cancer, and now a place in Tulane's MD/PhD program, where he will train to become a physician-scientist.