USC Dornsife News Briefs highlight faculty research studies, newly published books, awards, grants and other news showcasing faculty members’ work at USC Dornsife. All USC Dornsife faculty are eligible to submit content.
(The diverse opinions expressed in News Briefs do not necessarily represent the views of USC Dornsife administration or USC.)
Sarah Feakins, professor of Earth sciences, has been named editor-in-chief of the scientific journal Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology. Feakins will oversee publication of research papers and promote peer review. Noting the potential of research in the field to impact policy, she says she also intends to “help the global Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology community voice their research progress and societal relevance,” particularly through public-friendly (plain-language) summaries of the research.
Megan Fieser, assistant professor of chemistry, has received an ACS Principal Investigator Development in Sustainability award from the American Chemical Society for her work on “Improving the End of Life of Poly(Vinyl Chloride) Products.” The award includes $50,000 to support Fieser during a sabbatical at the National Laboratory of the Rockies, where she will explore the scalability of her work on repurposing polyvinyl chloride into new materials. She’ll also gain expertise in lifecycle assessment and techno-economic analysis as well as build collaborations with members of the DOE BOTTLE Consortium.
Cameron Thrash, professor of biological sciences and Earth sciences, has been elected to Fellowship in the American Academy of Microbiology, the honorific leadership group within the American Society for Microbiology recognizing excellence, originality, service and leadership in the microbial sciences. In its 50-year history, the academy has elected fewer than 3,000 fellows. Thrash is among 63 elected this year.
Jed Fuhrman, McCulloch-Crosby Chair in Marine Biology and professor of biological sciences, has been listed as a Highly Ranked Scholar for 2025 by ScholarGPS. Fuhrman ranks No. 16 globally in microbial ecology, No. 76 in bacteria, No. 292 in biology and biological sciences, and No. 1,134 overall based on his accomplishments over the entirety of his career, putting him in the top 0.05% globally.
Yehuda Ben-Zion, professor of Earth sciences, has been listed as a Highly Ranked Scholar for 2025 by ScholarGPS. Based on his lifetime career accomplishments, Ben-Zion ranks No. 5 overall in Southern California, No. 20 in geophysics, No. 21 in Earthquakes as a specialty, and No. 161 in Earth and planetary sciences, putting him in the top 0.05% globally.
Douglas Capone, William and Julie Wrigley Chair in Environmental Studies and professor of biological sciences, has been listed as a Highly Ranked Scholar for 2025 by ScholarGPS. Capone ranks #26 globally in the marine sciences based on his accomplishments over the entirety of his career, putting him in the top 0.05% globally.
Eli Levenson-Falk, associate professor of physics and astronomy and electrical and computer engineering, has received a 1-year, $80,000 bridge award from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement. RCSA is a private foundation that provides support for innovative scientific research and the development of academic scientists, particularly in the physical sciences. The award will support Levenson-Falk’s work as his group navigates recent disruptions in federal research funding.
Joseph Boone, Professor Emeritus of English, has been awarded the Douglas C. Basil Award for 2025–26 from the USC Emeritus Center for his forthcoming book The Melville Effect: A Literary Afterlife Across the Arts. The award, which recognizes valuable contributions of retired faculty, includes a $5,000 stipend.
Megan Fieser, assistant professor of chemistry, has been awarded a Scialog Collaborative Innovation Award from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement. One of eight projects funded in year two of Scialog’s Sustainable Minerals, Metals, and Materials initiative, the award supports basic scientific research on the acquisition, use and recycling of materials used in technology. Fieser will receive $60,000 to support her work on “SECURE Polymerization – Selective Encapsulation by Chelation Using Radiation-Enabled Polymerization” with Michael Schulz of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
