When Usha Jain and her husband, Santosh, arrived from India in 1960, their plan was clear: Santosh would earn his master’s degree in engineering, then they would return home. But UC Berkeley has a way of altering destinies. Soon after Santosh’s enrollment, Usha found her own academic calling, entering a master’s program in Asian studies and securing a campus job as a teaching assistant. Thus began Usha’s impactful career...
UC Berkeley lecturer Melanie Acosta remembers when everything changed for her. She was working as a professional singer in New York City at the time of the September 11, 2001, attacks. At the time, Acosta felt the only people doing meaningful work were the first responders.
Not long after, Acosta got a job on the “Broadway Celebrates America” tour. The cast would travel to different towns, perform a concert about...
In November, a report from UC San Diego raised alarm across the country. One in 12 incoming students tested below middle school proficiency in mathematics — even while maintaining good grades in high school. The report sparked debates on many issues, from grade inflation to standardized...
Alan Karras has been selected as the inaugural G. Eric and Margaret Davis Notable Lecturer in Political Economy. Karras is a long-time senior lecturer and academic leader at UC Berkeley who serves as the Political Economy Program’s associate director.
“I am very grateful to Eric and Margaret Davis for their generosity, as well as all of the other supporters who contributed to this chair — the first in political economy...
Earlier this month, a dozen students gathered on the Zellerbach Playhouse stage to show off their costume, lighting, and set design skills. The event shined a light — literally — on the incredible work the students have completed in classrooms, on stage, and out in the community.
When Professor Gül Dölen joined UC Berkeley’s neuroscience and psychology departments in January 2024, the influential scientist got to work designing her new lab and office. Now, after an extensive renovation, Dölen can finally reveal the results, complete with dinosaur brain replicas, a wall-to-wall bookshelf, colorful floor tiles, trippy Beatles posters, and all manner of octopus paraphernalia.
Technological advancements and ethical debates dominate the media’s coverage of artificial intelligence. AI pioneer and 1966 Cal alum Sarah Douglas asks the sort of big questions — on knowledge, meaning, and consciousness — that are often overlooked by companies and can only be answered in a philosophical context. Unfortunately, the rapid velocity of AI development has outpaced society’s capacity to consider these questions....
Henry Sohn didn’t know what he wanted to do in college. At first, he was considering medical school, but an eye-opening hospital experience and a serendipitous internship at Apple altered the course of his life. Taking two breaks from UC Berkeley, Sohn ultimately completed his bachelor’s degree in sociology in 1992.
It was a good time to enter the Bay Area’s tech scene. Sohn leveraged his Apple internship into jobs at...
UC Berkeley’s music program is booming, with the fastest-growing major on campus. Thanks to a newly retooled curriculum, students' modern interests are reflected in new songwriting classes, expanded performance ensembles, more digital music creation, and an...
As a postdoctoral physics researcher, Elizabeth Dresselhaus had found many excellent networking groups for young women scientists — but she longed for a structured environment to learn professional skills and strategies. So, when she received an email about joining UC Berkeley’s Shining Lights Program’s first cohort, she thought it was the perfect opportunity. The semester-long leadership development fellowship aims to help more...
