Faculty Research News

The chemistry of zinc can be fundamentally changed, making it trivalent — or a valence of three — with the proper reagent, according to a new paper by VCU researcher Puru Jena, Ph.D.

Study shows zinc’s oxidation state can be made +3, fundamentally changing the element’s chemistry

Aug. 16, 2021

A new paper by VCU researcher Puru Jena “shows that fundamental chemical properties of an atom can be changed” and could lead to the synthesis of new materials with applications to many industries.

In a new study to be published in the journal Motivation Science, 1,500 participants across six experiments were given the opportunity to repeatedly choose between a small amount of immediate retaliatory aggression or a larger amount of delayed revenge. Across the experiments, the researchers found a clear and consistent preference for immediate revenge. (Getty Images)

Is revenge a dish best served cold? For most, ‘hot and ready’ is preferable, VCU study finds

Aug. 5, 2021

Across six experiments involving 1,500 participants, researchers found a clear and consistent preference for immediate revenge.

Students at the Indian Industrial Boarding School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. (Photo courtesy of the Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle, Pa.)

‘A painful chapter in our nation’s history’: New class to shed light on Indigenous boarding schools

Aug. 3, 2021

The course will examine the traumatic histories at the schools in the United States and Canada, where thousands of Native children lost connections with their cultures, languages and families.

Page from “The Day the Klan Came to Town,” a new graphic novel featuring art by VCU advertising professor Bizhan Khodabandeh. (Courtesy of Bizhan Khodabandeh)

Graphic novel illustrated by VCU professor tells the story of ‘The Day the Klan Came to Town’

Aug. 2, 2021

The comic is a fictionalized retelling of a community’s resistance to a violent march of thousands of Ku Klux Klan members in Carnegie, Pennsylvania.

Carlo Rosati, a retired FBI firearms and ballistics examiner who teaches in VCU's Department of Forensic Science, appeared in Sunday's episode of "Forensic Files II."

VCU forensic science instructor appears on ‘Forensic Files II’

Aug. 2, 2021

Retired FBI examiner and adjunct faculty member Carlo Rosati was featured on the episode “The Orange Shorts.”

Stephen Chan of Ameriflux conducts a site evaluation of a tower that gathers greenhouse gas data at VCU Rice Rivers Center. (Contributed photo)

VCU wetlands research will help improve models that predict global climate change

July 29, 2021

A project at the Rice Rivers Center fills a unique gap because it will capture data from a source that is both tidal and freshwater, which is “rare in tidal regions because of proximity to saltwater.”

A comic created by Maggie Colangelo and Bernard Means tells the story of the world's oldest ham.

The subject of a VCU student and professor’s new comic? The world’s oldest ham.

July 16, 2021

The one-page comic gives the Isle of Wight County Museum “another way of telling the story of Smithfield hams.”

A new study led by VCU and Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU researchers found that meals selected by students at six Title I elementary schools met most federal nutrient recommendations. But it also found that fewer children met recommendations for intake of total calories, calcium, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C and fiber. (Getty Images)

Analysis of school lunches suggests federal nutrition standards should be maintained, or strengthened

July 15, 2021

A new study led by VCU researchers examined nutrient composition of what children chose and what they actually ate through the National School Lunch Program.

Catherine Hulshof, an assistant professor in the Department of Biology, received the grant from the NSF's prestigious CAREER program for her project, “Predicting plant functional trait variation across spatial, temporal and biological scales.” (Unsplash)

Armed with a ruler and a $1M grant, a VCU professor studies functional trait variation in plants

July 15, 2021

Biology professor Catherine Hulshof’s research, funded by the National Science Foundation, aims to help predict the responses of species and ecosystems to climate change.

Anita Nadal (in black with her hands on her knees) and the seven students that travelled with her to Nogales, Arizona at the border wall.

VCU students learn about immigration and the border firsthand

July 9, 2021

A service-learning trip to Arizona benefits students and the migrant community at Casa Alitas.