Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
March 31, 2026
March 31, 2026 | Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

Science & Technology



COURTESY OF SKAMAN306/GETTY
Plotnik’s research has revealed that elephants rely primarily on olfactory senses to perceive their environments and make foraging choices.

Joshua Plotnik’s 20-year quest to understand the elephant mind

Joshua Plotnik, director of Comparative Cognition for Conversation Lab at the City University of New York, delivered a PBS Colloquium lecture on March 4 in Gilman Hall about cognitive flexibility in Asian elephants and revealed a few of the insights gained in the field of comparative cognition.




COURTESY OF ELANA FERTIG
Wu reflects on Fertig's research studying cancer using computational approaches including spatial biology.

When cells become equations: A reflection on spatial biology

In this piece, I highlight one particular talk that caught my interest — given by Elana Fertig, Dean E. Albert Reece Endowed Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland. Fertig’s talk centered around rethinking how we can predict and monitor the carcinogenesis of pancreatic cancer through a spatial biology and computational lens.


COURTESY OF YOUNAN XIA / CREATIVE COMMONS
Professor Younan Xia discusses his research and shares some insights in an interview with The News-Letter.

Nanomaterials and curiosity: an interview with professor Younan Xia

Professor Younan Xia is a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Hopkins well reputed for his extensive experience and work with nanomaterials. He was recently elected to the National Academy of Engineering, a significant accomplishment. In an interview with The News-Letter, he discussed his research and shared some of his insights.













COURTESY OF IKSHU PANDEY 
Pandey at the Disney Research facility in Zurich. 

Humans of Hopkins: Ikshu Pandey

In an interview with The News-Letter, Pandey reflected on her passion for interdisciplinary research and the effect of Fulbright experience, which have solidified her desire to create collaborative, globally informed solutions in neurodegenerative disease and healthcare engineering.



JOSHUA LONSTEIN / PHOTO EDITOR

The Amazon AI PhD Fellowship program, founded in 2025, provides $68 million of funding over two years to more than 100 PhD students around the nation.

Hopkins doctoral students selected for 2025 Amazon AI Fellowship Program

On Oct. 27, the Whiting School of Engineering announced the selection of seven Amazon AI PhD Fellows. The program, initiated this year, provides $68 million in funding over two years to over 100 doctoral students at nine universities including Hopkins. Students are first nominated internally, and then apply to the fellowship.


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