Eberly News

Drylands in the western United States are currently in the grips of a 23-year “megadrought,” and one West Virginia University researcher is working to gain a better understanding of this extreme climate event.

The Department of English within the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences has launched two undergraduate degree programs for students interested in pursuing careers as writers, editors or researchers.

Mariya Cherkasova, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, will spend the next two years reverse engineering certain structural characteristics of slot machines to find out what makes them an immersive product. Her research is supported by the International Center for Responsible Gaming.

When Easton Cahill arrived at West Virginia University, he was the first in his family to attend college. As a high school student in Bridgeport, he was drawn to science through the influence of his biology teacher. Once he discovered his affinity for research, his path became clear — WVU was his choice.

The evidence traces back to the University of Costa Rica. That’s where Luis Arroyo, a research assistant, met Tatiana Trejos, who was wrapping up her degree in chemistry. They became close friends, found common interests and fell in love. That love for each other – and unraveling truth through science – eventually led them from the “world’s happiest country” to the Mountain State.

Earlier this semester, a group of undergraduate and graduate students in Eberly College’s School of Social Work traveled to the West Virginia State Capitol to attend Social Work Advocacy Day, hosted by the WV chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.

A West Virginia University researcher is studying newly released records of private communications between U.S. Supreme Court justices to learn how they interact and relate behind the scenes.

Five Eberly College students will expand their horizons through study abroad experiences this spring, summer and fall after being awarded scholarships through the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program.

Katy Goodrich, assistant professor of space physics, receives 2024 WVU CAREER award. She believes her research project will make space science more accessible to institutions with limited resources. For her project, she’ll design a CubeSat, or miniature satellite, mission to study the Earth’s auroral acceleration region.

Before the existence of procedural crime dramas like “Bones” and the “CSI” franchise, Tatiana Trejos took on an internship at the Costa Rican Department of Forensic Science. Forensics in popular culture hadn’t hit its peak and Trejos had little idea of what she was getting into.