Research & Discovery

This page highlights the astonishing amount of scientific discovery happening at Columbia, one of the world’s leading research universities. 

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Clockwise from top left: An iceberg stranded on a submerged rock in northwest Greenland (Karl Zinglersen); homo erectus crania from the Turkana Rift (John Rowan); a mosquito feeding (Alex Wild); a shell of thick gas and dust (red) expelled from the outer layers of a star as its core collapses into a black hole. The inner regions show a heated ball of gas (white) continuing to fall into the central black hole. (Keith Miller, Caltech/IPAC - SELab)
Columbia University Discoveries in 2025-26 to Know About

Here are some of the top scientific research findings of the past academic year.


 

RECENT STORIES

A study found that ChatGPT can help prioritize critical aspects of care while explaining its interventions.

A new $400 million gift from Roy and Diana Vagelos will secure Columbia’s leadership in biomedical science research and education.

A study found that, with surprising frequency, unresponsive patients with brain injuries show clear signs of cognitive function.

A new study has yielded a pathbreaking trove of data on how a person’s brain abstractly represents acts of reasoning.

Columbia researchers have developed an inexpensive bandage that uses an electric field to promote healing.

Bacteria can create free-floating and ephemeral genes, raising the possibility that similar genes exist in us.

A new study shows that the world’s largest reef system is under unprecedented pressure.

Columbia Physics PhD student Jordan Pack talks about a new technique to study the electronic properties of quantum materials.

Columbia’s core curriculum led rising senior Aman Choudhri to his new life as a “policy wonk.” He also likes to dance.

Some trees produce isoprenes that interact with pollutants to form ground-level ozone, a prime factor in respiratory ailments.

Marie Lilly is doing new research on where ticks are present in New York parks, and how people understand their exposure risk.

A Columbia neuroscientist and fencing coach explain how Olympic-level fencers train their bodies and their minds.