Caitlin Looby and Amanda Gorton look to tackle big questions around carbon cycling and urban ragweed distribution.

The College of Biological Sciences recently announced a new cohort of the College’s Grand Challenges in Biology Postdoctoral Program. Amanda Gorton and Caitlin Looby will join the College this summer to pursue research projects with faculty members from different departments across the University.

This time of year is always a little bittersweet. The frenetic activity of April gives way to the quiet focus of finals week, and of course we will soon bid farewell to a class of newly minted graduates. Later this week well over 400 graduating seniors will walk across the stage at 3M Arena to the loud cheers of their peers, family and friends. It’s an inspiring and emotional experience for all. If you want a sense of the emotions evoked by this annual rite of passage, take a moment to watch this year’s commencement video.

CBS alums are invited to head back to the headwaters for a weekend at Itasca Biological Station and Laboratories June 14-16!

Spring is springing - the dining bell is ringing. This is a special time of year in the north woods, concluding what many call ‘mud season’ but what I call the ‘spring frolic.’ This is when sandhill cranes headed to greener fields fly over trumpeter swans settling in for summer. Barred owls’ hoots are throaty and yearning.