Clay weekly context brief for the University category (ISO week 2026-W38). Clay tracks publications from the University feed list. Below are recent items from this category, each with its source and a short description of what the publication covers when one is available in the source feed. Recent publications: 1. The Download: biotechs future and cheaper, cleaner steel Source: MIT Technology Link: https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/11/1143879/the-download-biotech-future-cheaper-cleaner-steel/ This is todays edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of whats going on in the world of technology. 2. Foam recycling now available at Johns Hopkins Source: Johns Hopkins University News Link: https://hub.jhu.edu/2026/09/11/foam-recycling-now-available-at-johns-hopkins/ A new recycling machine in a parking lot at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center takes airy chunks of foam and churns them into dense plastic cubes that can be made into park benches, picture frames, new foam packaging, and more 3. Aparna Giri Shankar's move to medicine Source: National University of Singapore News Link: https://news.nus.edu.sg/aparna-giri-shankars-move-to-medicine/ Tabla!, 11 September 2026, p5 4. Community Engagement Impact Projects Source: Stanford News Link: https://seedfunding.stanford.edu/opportunities/community-engagement-impact-projects-fy27 The Office of Community Engagement seeks proposals from Stanford scholars on behalf of partnerships with community organizations. Projects bring education and research to the region to further engagement and build healthy local communities. Learn more and apply by Oct. 1. 5. Who needs opioids? Source: Harvard Gazette Link: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2026/09/who-needs-opioids/ HSDM team explores how artificial intelligence could help clinicians tailor pain treatment to individual patients 6. Who is eligible to lead Mexico? Source: University of Michigan News Link: https://news.umich.edu/who-is-eligible-to-lead-mexico/ Edgar Franco-Vivanco is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Michigan. His research examines how colonial-era institutions and contemporary criminal violence contribute to economic underperformance, particularly in Latin America. 7. UW, WA Department of Health show its possible to test wastewater for STIs Source: University of Washington News Link: https://www.washington.edu/news/2026/09/10/uw-wa-department-of-health-show-its-possible-to-test-wastewater-for-stis/ American public health agencies dont routinely test wastewater for sexually transmitted infections, but new research led by the University of Washington and the Washington State Department of Health found that such methods could be used to effectively identify Chlamydia trachomatis, the bacteria that causes chlamydia. 8. How writer Jean Toomer envisioned an American race beyond color Source: Cornell Arts and Humanities Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/how-writer-jean-toomer-envisioned-american-race-beyond-color In Jean Toomer: Writer for a New America, literature scholar George Hutchinson reveals how Toomers theory of a new American race, defying old categories, shaped both his literary genius and his personal struggles, 9. MIT Schwarzman College of Computing launches pilot to help educators teach AI across disciplines Source: MIT News Link: https://news.mit.edu/2026/mit-schwarzman-college-computing-launches-pilot-help-educators-teach-ai-across-disciplines-0909 Participants in an AI education workshop, hailing from higher-ed institutions nationwide, pose with MIT Schwarzman College of Computing leadership, workshop instructors, and staff. 10. Dyed wool a sustainable water purification alternative Source: Cornell Architecture Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/dyed-wool-sustainable-water-purification-alternative A research team has proven the feasibility of using polydopamine-dyed and ultrablack wool as a low-cost, renewable water-purification method. 11. AI reveals new class of cellular off switch linked to cancer pathways Source: Cornell Life Science Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/ai-reveals-new-class-cellular-switch-linked-cancer-pathways Cornell researchers have used artificial intelligence to uncover a previously unknown way cells control how proteins move inside them, a process essential for growth, communication and movement, and one that is often disrupted in cancer. 12. W. Rochelle Calhoun to retire after more than a decade as vice president for campus life Source: Princeton University News Link: https://www.princeton.edu/news/2026/09/08/w-rochelle-calhoun-retire-after-more-decade-vice-president-campus-life Calhoun has played a pivotal role in enriching the student experience during a period of significant growth at Princeton. She will retire at the end of the 2026-27 academic year. 13. The secret lives of city insects: bringing urban ecology to the community Source: Cornell Food Agriculture Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/secret-lives-city-insects-bringing-urban-ecology-community Doctoral student Sylvana Ross and a team of Cincinnati youths spent their summer studying city-dwelling insects, amassing data that can inform decisions that support healthy green spaces. 14. Antifungal therapy restores gut microbiome in IBD patients Source: Cornell Health Nutrition Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/antifungal-therapy-restores-gut-microbiome-ibd-patients A commonly used systemic antifungal medication may help reduce symptoms in a subset of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. 15. Campaign closes with record support for students and research Source: Cornell Global Reach Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/08/campaign-closes-record-support-students-and-research Cornells To Do the Greatest Good campaign surpassed its goal of raising more than $5 billion and engaging more than 200,000 alumni achievements that will enhance opportunities for students and accelerate critical faculty research. 16. Hitting dead ends and rethinking everything BURE summer scholars explore research life Source: Cornell Computing Information Science Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/08/hitting-dead-ends-and-rethinking-everything-bure-summer-scholars-explore-research This summer, 60 undergraduates participated in theBowers Undergraduate Research Experience, a 10-week, paid program where undergraduate students do real-world research alongside Bowers faculty. 17. How social media interoperability could restore user choice Source: Oxford University Link: https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/how-social-media-interoperability-could-restore-user-choice/ Social networking interoperability is a leading policy proposal thatgivesusers a realchoiceofplatformproviders. New evidence shows it onlyworksif regulators get the specifics right, argues Philipp Riederle, doctoral researcher, OII. 18. Many young people are being prescribed multiple psychiatric drugs at once which can be risky Source: University of Pennsylvania News Link: https://penntoday.upenn.edu/penn-in-the-news/many-young-people-are-being-prescribed-multiple-psychiatric-drugs-once-which-can Many young people are being prescribed multiple psychiatric drugs at once which can be risky Sean Hennessy of the Perelman School of Medicine led a study that explored the risks of prescribing multiple medications at once. 19. Robert J. David Source: McGill University News Link: https://www.mcgill.ca/newsroom/node/22751 Robert David Title: Professeur(e) titulaire Department: Faculté de gestion Desautels Areas of expertise: Émergence de nouvelles industries; transformation des industries matures; évolution des pratiques de gestion; institutions et esprit d'entreprise Email address: robert. 20. Meet the under-35s shaping the future of biotech Source: MIT Technology Link: https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/11/1143834/meet-the-under-35s-shaping-the-future-of-biotech/ Every year, MIT Technology Review puts together a list of some of the brightest and best young minds working across science and technology. 21. 'None of us will ever be the same' Source: Johns Hopkins University News Link: https://hub.jhu.edu/2026/09/11/september-11-remembrance-hopkins-25-years/ A look back at how the JHU community reacted to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and a remembrance of those affiliated with Hopkins who lost their lives 22. 20 and counting: NUS Computings CVWO celebrates proud student tradition of tech for social good Source: National University of Singapore News Link: https://news.nus.edu.sg/20-cvwo-social-good/ Computing for Voluntary Welfare Organisations (CVWO) , a student volunteer initiative of the National University of Singapore (NUS) School of Computing (NUS Computing) , commemorated its 20th anniversary today, having trained more than 300 students across 20 cohorts to develop and maintain software for social service and non-profit organisations. 23. Program invites faculty into world of athletics Source: Stanford News Link: https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2026/09/faculty-athletic-fellows-program The Faculty Athletics Fellows program pairs Stanford faculty with athletic teams, strengthening academic support for student-athletes balancing sport and scholarship. 24. Does having a bad dream make you a bad person? Source: Harvard Gazette Link: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2026/09/does-having-a-bad-dream-make-you-a-bad-person/ Psychologist breaks down what those negative night narratives might be trying to tell you 25. U-M project to study links between free school meals, student performance and well-being Source: University of Michigan News Link: https://news.umich.edu/u-m-project-to-study-links-between-free-school-meals-student-performance-and-well-being/ University of Michigan researchers will examine whether Michigan's statewide free school meals program is linked to improvements in students' academic performance, attendance, graduation or progression, and discipline outcomes. 26. Coyote density is 9 times higher in Seattle than in Washingtons wild lands Source: University of Washington News Link: https://www.washington.edu/news/2026/09/10/coyote-density-is-9-times-higher-in-seattle-than-in-washingtons-wild-lands/ A new UW study shows a nine-fold increase in coyote density in Seattle compared to natural areas of Washington state. Coyotes in urban environments have fewer predators and more prey, which may help explain the national trend. 27. Title of Teaching Professor and new award announced Source: Cornell Arts and Humanities Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/title-teaching-professor-and-new-award-announced The College of Arts and Sciences has created Teaching Professor titles to recognize excellence in teaching, advising and academic leadership. 28. Injectable nanodevices could provide effective treatment for drug-resistant glioblastoma Source: MIT News Link: https://news.mit.edu/2026/injectable-nanodevices-could-provide-effective-treatment-drug-resistant-glioblastoma-0909 This illustration depicts injectable nanoantennas being wirelessly activated by a magnetic field to generate localized electric fields that target a brain tumor. The magnified inset shows nanoparticles interacting with drug-resistant glioblastoma tissue. 29. Environmentalist photographer kicks off A.D. White Professors-at-Large series Source: Cornell Architecture Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/environmentalist-photographer-kicks-ad-white-professors-large-series James Balog will discuss his work documenting the worldwide rapid retreat of glacierson Sept. 17 as part of the visiting professors program. Sources in this brief: Cornell Architecture; Cornell Arts and Humanities; Cornell Computing Information Science; Cornell Food Agriculture; Cornell Global Reach; Cornell Health Nutrition; Cornell Life Science; Harvard Gazette; Johns Hopkins University News; MIT News; MIT Technology; McGill University News; National University of Singapore News; Oxford University; Princeton University News; Stanford News; University of Michigan News; University of Pennsylvania News; University of Washington News. Selected 29 of 322 available items for this weekly brief.