To outsmart malarial drug resistance, researchers develop new whole-plant strategy

Malaria brings misery and death to millions in the developing world each year, and fighting it keeps medical researchers up at night because the mosquito-borne parasite Plasmodium falciparum, which causes the deadliest form of the disease, has developed resistance to every drug thrown at it. Resistance has cut short the useful life of nearly every therapy tried so far, experts say.
 
But now molecular parasitologist Stephen Rich has led a research team who report a promising new low-cost combined therapy with a much higher chance of outwitting P. falciparum than current modes.

Climate model is first to study effects of Arctic hurricanes

Though it seems like an oxymoron, Arctic hurricanes happen, complete with a central “eye,” extreme low barometric pressure and towering 30-foot waves that can sink small ships and coat metal platforms with thick ice, threatening oil and gas exploration. Now climate scientists in the Geosciences Department and in England report the first conclusive evidence that Arctic hurricanes, also known as polar lows, play a significant role in driving ocean water circulation and climate.
 
Results point to potentially cooler conditions in Europe and North America in the 21st century than other models

Researchers sample soils to track microbes’ contribution to climate warming

Biologist Jeffrey Blanchard and microbiologist Kristen DeAngelis, with other New England researchers, recently received a $500,000 grant from the Joint Genome Institute at the U.S. Department of Energy to identify soil microbes in Harvard Forest and track how they break down forest litter in a simulated warmer climate. The goal is to determine the impact of a warmer climate on microbes and their production of greenhouse gases.
 
The study takes advantage of three long-term soil-warming experiments already in place in the forest, where heating coils similar to those used to keep football and

New institute to promote diversity in STEM fields

Building on its success in attracting and retaining women, underrepresented minorities and people with disabilities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) over the past decade, UMass Amherst has formed a new STEM Diversity Institute (SDI) to serve as a campus-wide umbrella to coordinate diversity efforts, particularly those funded by federal grants. 
 
Sandra Petersen, professor of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, is executive director, Patricia Lehouillier the financial director and Jennifer MacDonald managing director of the institute, which is overseen by Provost James

NSF grant will create dedicated computer network to handle large volumes of research data

Campus researchers have received a two-year, $867,040 grant from the National Science Foundation to build a high-bandwidth optical data network to handle large amounts of computerized research data. The new network is designed to separate research data traffic from the rest of the data traffic on the Amherst campus.

Researchers in fields such as genomics, remote sensing, biostatistics and planetary science, who require high-speed transport of very large amounts of data, will be the major beneficiaries of the new network.

“This project is about how we can improve the computer network

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