Rather than fade away from the world’s political landscape, authoritarian regimes have made a comeback in recent times. The problem is, we know little about their inner workings. Using network analytic tools, Josef Woldense’s research examines the contentious relationship between autocrats and their ruling elite, which is marked by the combustible mix of mutual dependence, treachery and political survival. In so doing, his research provides insights into the underlying dynamics that shape authoritarian politics.

Heidi Roop’s interdisciplinary research and Extension program advances the use and integration of climate change-related information in decision- making with a focus on enhancing equitable climate resilience. Her community-engaged scholarship contributes to critical advances in climate research with a focus on novel approaches in the field of climate services. Through her research, extension programs, and service, Roop seeks to reduce the negative impacts of climate change on communities and landscapes.

Chemists seek to improve the world around them by inventing and manipulating molecules to solve exciting challenges. Research in the Roberts group seeks to mix and match cores of pharmaceutical molecules in order to improve their efficacy and invent new drugs. This can be accomplished through organometallic catalysis which is the synergy between metals and organic molecules.

Prototyping is a fundamental part of new product development, and prototypes are essential for rationalizing design decisions and communicating design intent when developing a product. Early-stage physical prototypes vary in form, function, materials, and construction, and these various models are tested with stakeholders to evolve the design. This research aims to understand how physical prototype fidelity influences feedback from various stakeholders, and then how design teams balance and prioritize that information to make design decisions.

Liberal humanitarianism driven by compassion shapes global politics as wars, climate change, and economic crisis keeps decimating human life. The reconfiguration of humanitarianism by non-liberal donor countries remains to be an understudied aspect of humanitarianism literature. This project studies Turkish humanitarianism in Somalia by conducting community-engaged research among Somali diaspora in Minneapolis and ethnographic research in a Turkish hospital in Mogadishu. It aims to explore the limitations of compassion-based politics and produce a collaboration-based critique.

Astrophysical explosions from merging neutron stars and black holes are revolutionizing measurements of the expansion rate of the Universe and properties of matter at the highest densities in the Cosmos. Michael Coughlin is leading innovative efforts in both software and hardware development which will maximize the scientific return on these explosive events. His efforts are placing the University of Minnesota in a leadership position in the flourishing, nascent field of multi-messenger astronomy.

Mathematical groups are algebraic structures which encode the symmetries of geometric spaces and physical objects. The group of symmetries of an object is the collection of all transformations that leave the object invariant, together with the operation on the collection coming from the composition of these transformations. In her work, Michelle Chu studies the relationship between the algebraic properties of groups and geometric properties of spaces for which groups appear as symmetries.

Current spacecraft lifetimes are limited by their need to carry their own fuel. Ryan Caverly is developing robotic solar sail technology that uses photons from the Sun to propel spacecraft without fuel. This will enable unique and impactful long-duration space missions, such as an early warning system for solar flares that disrupt critical communication and power grids on Earth, as well as a solar shade system that cools the Earth and slows down climate change.

The Calabrese lab addresses grand societal challenges by engineering new complex fluids and soft materials: structured fluids or soft solids like those found in consumer products, vaccines, and biomedical materials. To create technologies for applications including drug delivery and sustainability, the group synthesizes polymers and nanoparticles, and then precisely characterizes their structure and flow behavior.

Madelaine Cahuas’s research examines how Black, Indigenous and Latinx communities sustain spaces of social justice activism in gentrifying northern cities. Bridging theories and methodologies across Latinx Studies and Geography, she is innovating the field of Latinx Geographies and deepening understandings of how relationships of care and solidarity are forged in place across social differences. This research carries significant implications for community organizing and equitable policymaking in and beyond the Twin Cities.