Logistics left of boom: Understanding adversary threats to the defense industrial base ahead of conflict

Morgan Bazilian, director of the Payne Institute for Public Affairs, co-authored this opinion piece that noted a prominent 2023 wargame found that in a defense of Taiwan, the U.S. would likely exhaust its inventory of critical long-range precision ....
February 6, 2026

PFAS levels in Great Lakes fish are dropping, study finds

Sarah Balgooyen, liquid chromatography mass spectrometry manager, discusses her study that concluded PFAS levels peaked between 2007 and 2017 in all five of the Great Lakes.
February 6, 2026

America’s rare-earths solution is hiding in plain sight

This guest essay cites a Science article by Elizabeth Holley, associate professor of mining engineering, that concluded the U.S. could meet most of its critical minerals and rare earths needs by reprocessing mine waste streams.
February 6, 2026

U.S. to create $12B critical minerals stockpile

Ian Lange, professor of economics and business, explained that mining companies outside of China are facing Chinese firms that are subsidized by their government and thus have zero cost of capital.
February 5, 2026

Scientific expedition confirms vast freshwater reserve beneath ocean floor

Brandon Dugan, associate department head and professor in geophysics and Baker Hughes Chair in Petrophysics and Borehole Geophysics, explained that the freshened water found in vastly different materials will help his team understand the conditions ....
February 5, 2026

What to know about the critical minerals trading bloc the U.S. wants to build with allies

Ian Lange, professor of economics and business, said it will be important the critical minerals trading bloc to have ways to keep countries from buying cheap Chinese materials on the side.
February 5, 2026

There's a vast freshwater system hidden beneath ocean floor. Scientists just got their first look

Brandon Dugan, associate department head, professor of geophysics and Baker Hughes Chair in Petrophysics and Borehole Geophysics, said his team was excited to see that freshened water exists in multiple kinds of sediments—both marine and terrestrial.
February 5, 2026

How wildfires are causing snowpacks to disappear earlier in different regions in the West

Arielle Koshkin, graduate research assistant and Mines PhD graduate in hydrologic science and engineering, discusses her study that considers how fires impact the speed of later snow melts.
February 3, 2026

America’s critical-minerals strategy looks increasingly Chinese

Morgan Bazilian, director of the Payne Institute for Public Policy, says that China's withholding of critical minerals in 2025 brought about a paradigm shift.
February 3, 2026

US creates stockpile for critical minerals to protect manufacturers from China's dominance

Ian Lange, professor of economics and business, spotlights gallium supplies as he considers the new U.S. plan to create a critical minerals stockpile.
February 3, 2026

Robot Riot brings comedy and science to RISE Comedy

Tom Williams, associate professor of computer science and director of the Interactive Robotics Research Lab, says Robot Riot is designed to make audiences laugh and get them to think about the ethical challenges surrounding robots and AI.
February 2, 2026

Colorado School of Mines wants to prove a masters isn’t needed to work in quantum

Fred Sarazin, department head/professor of physics and Mines director of quantum, explains why quantum engineers are desperately needed if the U.S. is to up its game in the quantum arena.
January 30, 2026