Plastic has become a ubiquitous part of modern life — in water bottles, shopping bags and car dashboards. But once discarded, it is among the hardest materials on earth to recycle.

Eric Bescher, an associate adjunct professor of materials science and engineering at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, represented the University of California system at a transportation research showcase May 19 in Washington, D.C.

Three pairs of doctoral students at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering have been awarded the 2026 Qualcomm Innovation Fellowships for North America to support their research into autonomous vehicles and next-generation semiconductor technologies

Steven Chavez, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, has been selected as one of Scientific American’s inaugural class of Young American Scientists for improving the effectiveness of catalysts used in industrial processes

Judea Pearl, a chancellor’s professor emeritus of computer science at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, has been named one of 50 AI Pioneers by nonprofit think tank Boston Global Forum and its AI World Society initiative

UCLA scientists are calling for a large-scale initiative to understand how human cells influence one another — a missing layer of biology that could reveal how cellular interactions drive disease and inform new therapies

Electric fields control the flow of charge in modern electronic chips, powering computers, smartphones and other devices. But as chips continue to shrink, this approach is reaching its physical limits.

When first-year mechanical engineering student Christine Xu eased the Bruin Supermileage Vehicle up a 12-degree incline at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this spring, three of her teammates had to push the car up the ramp by hand