LSU College of Science

09/06/2026

We love seeing the Tigers shake things up again! Here's a reading from the campus seismograph!

09/03/2026

From Bangladesh to the Stars. 🌎➡️🌙

For LSU Geology & Geophysics graduate student Dewan Mohammad Enamul Haque, that journey took curiosity, persistence, plenty of research and a willingness to keep learning when things didn't go according to plan. His journey has earned him more than $300,000 in support, including a NASA FINESST grant.

Read his story. 👇
https://www.lsu.edu/science/news/science-next/2026/09/dewanhaque.php

09/02/2026

As freshwater becomes scarcer and salt builds up in growing regions, scientists are looking for new ways to help crops handle increasingly salty conditions.

A recent study from LSU Department of Biological Sciences published in Nature Communications analyzed more than 200,000 individual root cells and found that naturally salt-tolerant plants don’t all survive stress the same way. Different species have evolved different cellular strategies to solve the same problem.

The new cross-species single-cell atlas gives scientists a closer look at those strategies, offering new clues for developing more resilient crops.

🔗 Read more: https://www.lsu.edu/science/news/2026/08/root-atlas-nc.php

LSU Research

09/01/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Zakiya S. Wilson-Kennedy on being selected as one of LSU’s representatives in the 2026–27 Southeastern Conference Academic Leadership Development Program (SEC ALDP)! 🎉

The SEC ALDP prepares and advances faculty for leadership roles across the SEC and higher education. We’re proud to see Dr. Wilson-Kennedy recognized for her leadership potential and look forward to all she’ll bring to this year’s cohort! 💜💛

09/01/2026

08/31/2026

Congratulations to the recipients of the Neil and Arlene Kestner College of Science Superior Graduate Student Scholarship! 🎉

The scholarship recognizes graduate students for their achievements and promise in materials science. It honors the late LSU Professor Emeritus Neil Kestner, a pioneer in theoretical physical and computational chemistry whose influential work on electron transfer was recognized by Rudolph “Rudy” Marcus during his 1992 Nobel Prize acceptance speech. Kestner was inducted into the LSU College of Science Hall of Distinction in 2017.

This year’s recipients are:
▪️Thimira Kandabadage Don, Chemistry PhD student, Baranets Research Group
▪️ Mohammed Mehedi Hasan, Physics PhD student, Magana-Loaiza Research Group
▪️ Md. Abdullah Al Mahmud, Chemistry PhD student, Pojman Research Group

Congratulations to these outstanding graduate students!

LSU Department of Chemistry LSU Department of Physics and Astronomy
Thimira Kavinda, Abdullah Al Mahmud, & Mehedi Hasan

08/31/2026

Congratulations to Gayomi Samarakoon, a PhD student in the LSU Department of Chemistry and a member of the Baranets Research Group, on receiving the Adah Proctor Sturgis Graduate Scholarship in Chemistry and Biochemistry!

The scholarship recognizes graduate students for their achievements and promise in chemistry and biochemistry. It honors Adah Proctor Sturgis, a trailblazing chemist who worked for the Ethyl Corporation. Her grandson, LSU alumnus Dr. Erich Sturgis, helped establish the scholarship to honor his grandmother and pioneering women in science.

Congratulations, Gayomi!

08/28/2026

From fins to feet! 🐟➡️👣

Dr. Prosanta Chakrabarty from the LSU Museum of Natural Science took Science Café on a 400-million-year journey through evolution and the surprising story of animals learning to walk.

08/28/2026

Hubble’s sharp vision, but a field of view at least 100 times larger! 🚀

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope will survey huge areas of the sky much faster, opening new possibilities for finding planets, studying stars and uncovering black holes hiding near the center of the Milky Way.

LSU Department of Physics and Astronomy Professor Matthew Penny has spent more than a decade helping prepare for Roman. Now, he’s ready to see what the real data will reveal.

And he’s not the only LSU scientist getting ready for what comes next. Professors Tabetha Boyajian and Robert Hynes, along with postdoctoral researcher Himanshu Verma, are also leading projects in Roman’s first research cycle. In all, four of five LSU-led proposals were selected for funding, spanning research on planets, stars and black holes. 🔭

🔗 Read more: https://www.lsu.edu/science/news/science-next/2026/08/roman-telescope.php

LSU Research

08/27/2026

We were excited to welcome Dr. Joseph P. Messina, Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost, to the LSU College of Science! During his visit, Dr. Messina toured the new Our Lady of the Lake Health Interdisciplinary Science Building, met with college and department leadership, and connected with faculty and staff. Thank you for visiting! 💜💛