Research

With a commitment to free and open inquiry, our scholars take an interdisciplinary approach to research that spans arts to engineering, medicine to education. Their work transforms the way we understand the world, advancing fields of study, and often creating new ones. Generating new knowledge for the benefit of present and future generations, UChicago research has had an impact around the globe, leading to such breakthroughs as discovering the link between cancer and genetics, establishing revolutionary theories of economics, and developing tools to produce reliably excellent urban schooling.

Research News

Combining computer science, statistics creates machines that can learn

July 16, 2013—Learning a subject well means moving beyond the recitation of facts to a deeper knowledge that can be applied to new problems. Designing computers that can transcend rote calculations to more nuanced understanding has challenged scientists for years. Only in the past decade have researchers’ flexible, evolving algorithms—known as machine learning—matured from theory to everyday practice, underlying search and language-translation websites and the automated trading strategies used by Wall Street firms.

Chicago Booth to expand footprint in Asia

July 10, 2013—The University of Chicago Booth School of Business will relocate its Asia Executive MBA Program from Singapore to Hong Kong, in a move to expand and strengthen the school’s presence and influence across the region, while continuing a robust presence in Singapore.

Bernard Harcourt elected to ranks of leading French research institution

July 10, 2013—Prof. Bernard Harcourt has been elected to a chair at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris and will become a permanent visitor at the research institution. Harcourt, who is the Julius Kreeger Professor of Law and Political Science, will keep his primary appointment at UChicago and visit EHESS annually as a “directeur d’études.” The name of his chair is “Political Theory of Juridical Practices,” or, in French, "Théorie Politique des Pratiques Juridiques."

Cosmochemist discovers potential solution to meteorite mystery

July 8, 2013—A normally staid University of Chicago scientist has stunned many of his colleagues with his radical solution to a 135-year-old mystery in cosmochemistry. “I’m a fairly sober guy. People didn’t know what to think all of a sudden,” said Lawrence Grossman, professor in geophysical sciences.

Cloud modeling expands estimate of life-supporting planets

July 1, 2013—A new study that calculates the influence of cloud behavior on climate doubles the number of potentially habitable planets orbiting red dwarfs, the most common type of star in the universe. This finding means that in the Milky Way galaxy alone, 60 billion planets may be orbiting red dwarf stars in the habitable zone.