Weber State College of Science

10/16/2026

At WeberState’s Mary Carver Hall Herbarium, our plant specimens tell fascinating stories about native plant history and regional ecology:

🧄 Allium (Wild Onion): A look back at onions before domestication. While cultivated onions have grown quite large, wild onions feature small bulbs at their base while maintaining their characteristic, beautiful floral spheres.

🌳Ailanthus (Tree of Heaven): An aggressive invasive species in our region. Its rapid spread is driven by lightweight, wind-dispersed papery fruits, similar to native maples.

Herbarium collections like ours play a critical role in tracking species introduction, distribution, and establishment over time.

🌿 What's your favorite wild plant species? Let us know!

10/15/2026

Now that we are halfway into the semester, it’s a great time to start looking at your plan for Spring 2027! 🗓️💜

Class Schedules open soon! Here are the key dates to keep on your radar:

🔍 Oct. 26: Spring 2027 Class Schedule goes live
📝 Nov. 9: Registration appointment window opens (check eWeber for your exact time!)

Reach out to your academic advisor or schedule a meeting to solidify your schedule and make sure you're on track for next semester! 📚✨

10/14/2026

WSU Physics student contributes key ideas to the solution of a nationally published math problem 💡

Connecting passionate students with dedicated faculty is what Weber Science is all about!

Physics major Nate "Cinder" Hartner recently tackled a tricky math problem from the Mathematical Association of America’s Mathematics Magazine. Working alongside Professor Dr. Afshin Ghoreishi to refine his submission, Cinder's solution was selected for publication!

Tackling advanced problem sets and getting published as an undergrad is no small feat. Join us in celebrating Cinder in the comments below! 🎉👇


(Link to Article) 👇
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0025570X.2025.2539652

10/13/2026

Look out, there’s a chill in the air 🌫️🍁
As our campus gets colder, expect to see more run-ins with that beautiful mountain fog.
In northern mountainous regions like ours, longer autumn nights give the atmosphere time to cool down and hit its dew point. As water v***r condenses, heavy, cold air sinks into our valleys, carrying visible fog with it.
Beyond making for scenic views, this fog plays a vital role in our local ecology! It creates cool microclimates and provides critical moisture, known as fog drip, to mountain plants, soils, and ecosystems as dry weather sets in.

10/12/2026

🧪Weber State Students Are Harnessing Chemistry to Change Medical & Solar Tech 🤖⚡

From securing $10K+ in research grants to developing flexible tech for solar panels and prosthetic limb sensors, chemistry instructor Dr. Don’s research group at Weber State is redefining what undergraduate students can accomplish in the lab!

We look forward to seeing Weber State students Rylie Gonzales, Jaxson Smith, Celeste Caballero, and Jaide Crittenden continue their amazing work and present at the American Chemical Society (ACS) regional conference in the spring.✨

Head to the link in our bio to read how these future scientists are getting hands-on experience and preparing for graduate school and science careers! 📚

🔗 [Link in IG bio]
https://www.weber.edu/science/blog/beyond-silicon-research.html

10/09/2026

Reconnect, explore, and catch up with EES on the island! 🦬🌾

Calling all Earth & Environmental Sciences alumni! Join us for the EES Alumni Homecoming ’26 Reunion at Antelope Island State Park! Come hang out with faculty, staff, and friends to hear about new classes, field trips, and exciting research happening in the department.

📅 When: Saturday, October 17

📍 Where: Antelope Island State Park

🍽 Food & Entry: Breakfast is provided! We’re also coordinating reduced park entrance fees for our group (details sent upon RSVP).

Schedule of Events:

☕ 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM | Visitor Center

Breakfast & tour of the new visitor center featuring faculty research. Optional IMAX screening on the Great Salt Lake (45 min).

🏔 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM | Buffalo Point

Bedrock geology & Great Salt Lake update with Carie and Liz, plus an optional lakeshore hike!

🎟 RSVP Required:

Email Anna Cinch at [email protected] with the event(s) you plan to attend and your party count!

(Bring snacks & water if you're hiking!)

10/08/2026

Friendly reminder: You are more than your midterm grades! 💡✨

Midterms week is officially in full swing, and we just wanted to check in. If your to-do list feels a mile long right now: take a step back, take a deep breath, and remember to take care of yourself.

💡 Quick Midterm Survival Tips:
• Pace yourself—break large study guides into smaller chunks

• Take quick 10-minute walk breaks to clear your head

• Reach out to your professors, TAs, or campus support resources if you're stuck

Good luck on all your exams and papers this week! We're cheering you on! 👏

10/08/2026

10/07/2026

Weber Science faculty are unlocking the power of undergraduate research!

Congratulations to Weber State's Tracy M. Covey, professor of chemistry, and Kristin G. Rabosky, professor of physics, who highlight the key outcomes and institutional insights from WSU’s Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) course designation in a new study published in Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research (SPUR).

Key takeaways:

📊 Tracking Impact: Weber State has designated 53 CURE courses, which make it easier to track student participation and support university-wide goals.

🎯 High Persistence: Student persistence in these research-intensive courses remains remarkably high, ranging from 93.5% to 98.7%.

💡 Faculty Drivers: CUREs foster real-world skills and scholarly outputs, such as publications and conference presentations. This type of student success and pedagogical innovation is motivational.

⚠️ Workload & Sustainability: Despite these successes, survey data from 22 participating faculty members reveal a significant gap between existing resources and instructor needs. High workloads, course prep, and advocacy burdens show that long-term sustainability depends on institution-wide support systems.

Covey and Rabosky offer the following conclusion,

"By leveraging granular data to justify administrative support and resource allocation, universities can transition from disparate high-impact offerings to sustainable, institutionalized models that ensure long-term success for both faculty and students."

Check out the full study to learn about their findings! 📚
[https://doi.org/10.18833/spur/9/4/1]

10/06/2026

As we transition into fall, you might notice a change in our campus scenery. Our beautiful green leaves will start shifting into golden hues, but do you ever wonder about the plant physiology behind changing leaf colors? 🔬🍁

Throughout spring and summer, leaves are densely packed with chlorophyll, the green pigment residing in chloroplasts that drives photosynthesis by absorbing sunlight. However, leaves also contain accessory pigments like carotenoids (yellow and orange) and anthocyanins (red and purple), which are typically masked by chlorophyll's dominance.
As autumn brings shorter photoperiods and cooler temperatures, trees form a corky layer of tissue called an abscission zone at the base of the leaf stem. This restricts water and nutrient transport, causing chlorophyll synthesis to halt and existing chlorophyll to break down. As green fades, the stable carotenoids and newly synthesized anthocyanins become visible, creating autumn's vibrant canopy!

Now you know!