Team working to unlock methanogens’ potential for biofuels
Darla Brennan, Madison Broeker, Nicole Buan (front) and Henry Chen
Scientists seek to use an ancient organism’s unique metabolism to solve modern problems. But first they must work out how these methanogens function.
Nebraska microbial physiologist Nicole Buan seeks to unlock the biochemical circuitry of methanogens, which can be found in nearly every oxygen-free environment on Earth. Her research aims to help harness methanogens to produce renewable fuels and other biological products.
Methanogens munch on molecules like hydrogen, carbon dioxide and acetate, producing high-energy methane as a byproduct in a reaction that releases just enough energy to sustain life, a thermodynamic feat not yet fully understood.
“It would open up a whole other world of engineering biology that we’re just beginning to tinker with today,” said Buan, professor of biochemistry.
Her research will eventually help guide engineering methanogens to produce sustainable biofuels and chemicals with benefits extending from Nebraska farms to astronauts on Mars.
Because methanogens predate oxygen on Earth, Buan’s research could also illuminate primordial cellular evolution.
Her research studying tiny microbial structures benefits from Nebraska’s expertise and facilities, including the CryoEM Core Facility, the Morrison Microscopy Core Research Facility and the Nebraska Center for Biotechnology.
The National Science Foundation funds this research.
Research brings synthetic muscle closer to reality
Stephen Morin and graduate student Nengjian Huang
Human muscle is one of nature’s marvels, and it’s proving elusive to artificially produce. Success could transform robotics, prosthetics and the way humans and machines work together.
Nebraska researchers have taken several important steps toward that goal. Their work was published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.
Motors and muscles both exert force, but muscles are soft and flexible. To mimic those qualities, researchers are developing hydrogel-based actuators, sponge-like devices that move as they absorb and release water in response to triggers such as temperature.
Stephen Morin, associate professor of chemistry, and his team have developed a working system that responds quickly and precisely while operating in air rather than only underwater.
“We’ve demonstrated two really big principles that work toward the target of some sort of synthetic artificial muscle, and those are microstructure and chemical control,” Morin said.
His team has integrated micro-sized hydrogels with an internal “circulatory system,” mimicking the blood vessels that sustain biological muscle.
Soft robots that operate with speed and precision could lead to robotic hands and other tools suitable for interacting closely with people or delicate environments, said Morin, a Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience affiliate.
The Army Research Office funds this research.
Stump earns spot on Booker Prize shortlist
Jordan Stump
Jordan Stump, Willa Cather Professor of French, earned international recognition when his literary translation of “The Witch,” a novel by French author Marie NDiaye, was shortlisted for the prestigious International Booker Prize.
The award honors a single work of fiction translated into English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. Now in its 10th year, the International Booker Prize is the world’s most influential award for translated fiction.
Stump has translated eight of NDiaye’s books. His translation of “Ladivine” was longlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2016. “The Cheffe: A Cook’s Novel” won the American Literary Translators Association’s National Translation Award in Prose in 2020.
Stump has translated more than 30 novels. While his process is largely consistent, he said each project must inspire him.
“It really has to mean a lot to me. If it doesn’t inspire a passion, it’s going to be flat, and that’s the worst thing you can do to a book.”
‘New Westbrook’ elevates music education, performance
Westbrook Music Building
Nebraska’s Glenn Korff School of Music celebrated the opening of its new Westbrook Music Building.
The state-of-the-art facility greatly expands Nebraska’s performance space, recording capabilities and potential to collaborate within the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts and across the university.
The Nebraska Legislature allocated $75 million toward the 103,000-square-foot building. The new Westbrook Music Building replaced the former facility of the same name, which opened in 1967.
The new building is home to an immersive performance hall with enhanced spatial sound and design capabilities, a recording studio equipped with cutting-edge audio and video technology, large rehearsal rooms and a music library. It also includes additional classrooms, practice rooms, offices and social spaces.
“The building is both beautiful and highly functional, and it truly supports the next chapter of excellence at the Glenn Korff School of Music,” said Felix Olschofka, director of the School of Music. “It’s exciting to imagine all the possibilities this new home will open up for everyone.”
Renovation to preserve Museum’s legacy for future generations
Students exploring Elephant Hall
Nebraska’s state museum Morrill Hall will undergo the largest renovation in its 99-year history.
The upgrades, including to iconic Elephant Hall, will position the museum as a resource for scientific learning and education for another century.
“This project will bring the newest research to Nebraskans, celebrate Nebraska’s world-renowned fossils and provide expanded learning opportunities for students and future generations,” said Susan Weller, the museum’s director.
Renovations will focus on the museum’s second floor. The project will protect and digitize the museum’s significant collection of fossils, preserve fragile specimens and replace display frameworks using modern exhibition standards.
Updates to Elephant Hall and adjacent gallery displays will reflect the latest research on the history of mammoths and other mammals of the Great Plains.
Renovations include conserving and digitizing Nebraska artist Elizabeth Honor Dolan’s murals, making her work available to researchers and artists worldwide.
The Hubbard Family Foundation, Dr. Anne Hubbard and the Lancaster County Visitors Improvement Fund will help fund this $15.9 million, donor-funded project. Construction is scheduled to run from summer 2027 through 2028.
NSRI contract to speed research solutions for defense
Maj. Gen., USAF (Ret.) Rick Evans, NSRI executive director,
briefs the University of Nebraska Board of Regents.
The National Strategic Research Institute at the University of Nebraska received a contract worth up to $500 million from U.S. Strategic Command to help the U.S. maintain its technological edge and keep its military forces safe.
The contract also retains the institute’s designation as a University Affiliated Research Center under the U.S. Department of War. There are 15 UARCs in the country.
Established in 2012, NSRI is a nonprofit research institute sponsored by the U.S. Strategic Command and affiliated with the NU system. Husker scientists collaborate across Nebraska facilities and centers to provide research, products and expertise to meet military requirements.
The contract is what is called “indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity,” which enables government agencies to rapidly issue funded task orders for specific research without lengthy procurement processes.
“[This IDIQ] is a vote of confidence in the institute’s continued and future execution of critical research to meet national defense requirements,” said Maj. Gen., USAF (Ret.) Rick Evans, NSRI’s executive director.
The contract, which runs for five years with an option to extend, is the largest in Nebraska’s history and is the institute’s fourth IDIQ from U.S. Strategic Command. NSRI received $84 million in 2012, $92 million in 2018 and $107 million in 2020.
UNP wins indie publishing accolades
The University of Nebraska Press was named the 2025 INDIE Publisher of the Year by Foreword Reviews, which annually recognizes a press that exemplifies the spirit of independent publishing.
Founded in 1941, UNP champions diverse voices and pushes the boundaries of human knowledge and experience worldwide.
The press publishes about 150 titles a year across multiple imprints, including Bison and Potomac Books. Its catalog spans academic titles, general interest nonfiction, poetry and novels, many of them award-winning.
Foreword Reviews also announced the winners of its 2025 INDIES Book of the Year Awards, which honor outstanding titles published by small, independent and university presses.
Among the winners is “Scarlett: Slavery’s Enduring Legacy in an American Family” by Leslie Stainton, which won bronze medals in both the Autobiography & Memoir and History categories. Published by UNP imprint Potomac Books, “Scarlett” is Stainton’s unflinching look at her family’s slaveholding past.
The press also publishes winners of the Prairie Schooner Raz-Shumaker Book Prize Contest. The winner of the 2024 Book Prize in Poetry, “Death Does Not End at the Sea” by Gbenga Adesina, won the 2026 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, was shortlisted for the 2026 Griffin Poetry Prize and was a finalist for the 2026 PEN/Voelcker Award for Poetry Collection.
Nebraska study aims to improve disaster communications
A water tower in Rolling Fork, Mississippi, after a tornado
During a natural disaster, social media becomes a critical tool for sharing warnings, damage reports and recovery information. It also exposes communication gaps in rural and underserved communities, according to a Nebraska study.
Media scholar Cory Armstrong and her University of Alabama collaborator analyzed social media activity before, during and after the tornado that tore through the rural community of Rolling Fork, Mississippi, in 2023. They also interviewed local, state and federal disaster personnel.
They found that while digital platforms helped spread information, limited broadband access, a fragmented media landscape and other challenges left some vulnerable populations without vital information.
For example, transient communities, where renting is more common than home ownership, likely need more information regarding finding shelter and safety before disaster strikes.
“Every disaster is unique, but there are patterns,” said Armstrong, Pike Professor of Journalism. “It’s not one message that fits everything. If we really want to make sure that we’re doing a public safety catch-all, we need to be addressing all of our populations.”
Published in News Research Journal, the case study could help inform emergency management communication strategies during life-threatening events.
1011 NewsAdvanced Functional MaterialsArmy Research OfficeCory ArmstrongCreative Engagement and Cultural HeritageCryoEM Core FacilityDarla BrennanElephant HallFelix OlschofkaForeword ReviewsHenry ChenHubbard Family FoundationInternational Booker PrizeJordan StumpKETVLancaster County Visitors Improvement FundLeslie StaintonLincoln Journal StarMadison BroekerMaterial Sciences and EnergyMorrill HallMorrison Microscopy Core Research FacilityNational Science FoundationNational Strategic Research InstituteNebraska Center for BiotechnologyNebraska LegislatureNebraska Public MediaNebraska’s Glenn Korff School of MusicNengjian HuangNews Research JournalNicole BuanNTVRick EvansSocial/Behavioral/Educational/Prevention SciencesStephen MorinThe WitchTransportation/Infrastructure/Robotics/Autonomous TechnologiesU.S. Department of WarU.S. Strategic CommandUniversity of Nebraska Press