What to read and watch over summer 2025

UChicago teaching award winners share their selections

Around UChicago

Devils in the details: The gargoyles of UChicago

Around UChicago

Ways to celebrate Juneteenth 2025

High dose radiation therapy may fuel cancer spread, UChicago study finds

Announcement

Grant funds Smart Museum-Divinity School partnership to research religious objects

Fecal transplants can have unintended side effects, study finds

AROUND UCHICAGO

Dispatches from Abroad

From Woods Hole to Chile, UChicago model goes global

A historic site becomes a hub for scientific training and collaboration through a program inspired by the Marine Biological Laboratory

UChicago’s Class of 2025 urged to ‘forge a stronger future’
The UChicago community celebrated the Class of 2025 during Saturday’s Convocation ceremony with encouragement from speakers Prof. Kunle Odunsi and President Paul Alivisatos. “Right now, the world needs you,” said Odunsi. “It needs your voice, your vision, and your courage to become advocates—not just for what is, but for what could be.”

‘We made it’: Class Day speakers share lessons from College
Ceremony honors Class of 2025, kicks off Convocation weekend

Software startup wins 2025 Edward L. Kaplan, ’71, New Venture Challenge
Record $2.267 million awarded at Chicago Booth’s renowned startup competition

Rethinking prison labor under the 13th Amendment
A UChicago legal scholar examines how forced labor persists in U.S. prisons—and what it will take to change the system

UChicago Explainer Series

View All Explainers

UChicago Explainer

Black holes, explained

Black holes fascinate both the public and scientists—they push the limits of our understanding about matter, space and time.

RECENT

Dark energy, explained
Coined by University of Chicago astrophysicist Michael Turner in 1998, dark energy—the force causing the universe to expand faster over time—remains one of the great mysteries of physics.

Improv, explained
Modern improv comedy began at the University of Chicago in the 1950s.

MOST VIEWED

The origin of life on Earth, explained

Ecological succession, explained

The Gut Microbiome, explained

Master's education at UChicago

Programs transforming careers

UChicago master’s programs meet demand in evolving job market

Degree programs help students build skills, become future leaders and make impact

‘Theoretical rigor with practical application’: UChicago master’s in data science and computer science
Programs provide real-world skills and hands-on experience in a supportive environment

‘Immersive and transformative’: UChicago’s master’s in arts and humanities
Interdisciplinary programs offer students a rigorous and impactful experience

PODCASTS

Big Brains homepage

Episode 161

Are we making AI too human?, with James Evans
Data scientist explains how we are limiting models like ChatGPT in training them—and how that’s narrowing research

Episode 160

Inside the disease that changes your personality, with Bruce Miller
Neurologist explores the ‘social brain’ and how dementia affects how we act

Episode 159

Meet the ‘Planet Hunter’ searching for alien life, with Jacob Bean
Astrophysicist studies atmospheres of distant worlds to identify habitable exoplanets

Episode 158

How to stop gun violence before it starts, with Jens Ludwig
Crime Lab director argues we need to address behavioral causes of crime, in addition to policy and policing

Episode 157

Can your DNA predict your future?, with Dalton Conley
Sociologist examines how genetic science could forecast your income, education and love life

More from the University of Chicago Podcast Network

Capitalisn't

Is capitalism the engine of destruction or the engine of prosperity?

Listen

Not Another Politics Podcast

Understand the political science behind the headlines

Listen

Entitled

Why rights matter—and what’s the matter with rights

Listen

Inside the Lab

Explore Labs Across UChicago

Sheffield Lab: Understanding the neuroscience of memories

Watch UChicago neurobiologist Mark Sheffield and his team investigate the mechanisms of memory by studying neuron activity and connections. Their research could enhance the treatment of memory-related conditions such as Alzheimer’s and PTSD.

Awad Lab: Predicting and preventing strokes and brain bleeds
In the newest episode of Inside the Lab, visit Prof. Issam Awad and learn about his team's mission: to prevent strokes before they happen.

Light Lab: Understanding the gut microbiome to treat disease
Step inside Asst. Prof. Sam Light’s lab to learn how scientists are mapping the incredible network of microbes living inside your gut—and how they can affect health or disease.

Education Lab: Using tutoring to reverse pandemic-era learning loss
Learn how UChicago experts are working with school districts nationwide to tackle learning loss and scale solutions to set students up for success.

Events

June

18

Juneteenth with the Committed Knitters

Juneteenth with the Committed Knitters

Green Line Performing Arts Center, 329 E. Garfield Blvd

June

18

Tour the Arts Block

Tour the Arts Block

Green Line Performing Arts Center, 329 E. Garfield Blvd

June

18

Juneteenth Free Class: Envisioning Ancient Landscapes:Robert Duncanson’s Paintings of Antiquity and Ruins

Juneteenth Free Class: Envisioning Ancient Landscapes:Robert Duncanson’s Paintings of Antiquity and Ruins

Online

June

21

South Side Fireflies

South Side Fireflies

Arts Incubator, Washington Park

June

21

Community Archiving & Digitization Day: Preserving Our Stories

Community Archiving & Digitization Day: Preserving Our Stories

Regenstein Library, Room 122A-B

June

22

Bells of Summer

Bells of Summer

Rockefeller Memorial Chapel