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A close-up view of a vintage wooden library card catalog cabinet featuring rows of small drawers with brass handles and printed labels.

A whisper in the archives: Two scholars rewrite the histories of commerce and revolution

Sweeping a prestigious international historical society award, a pair of doctoral candidates are shifting the focus of the early modern world.

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Black and white archival photograph of two men in the desert, with one man seated on sandbags pointing out to the horizon while the other operates a 1950s motion film camera on a tripod.

Big Oil’s Role in Cinema

UC Santa Barbara assistant professor Mona Damluji's new open-access book reveals how mid-century Western petroleum companies sponsored documentaries in Iran and Iraq, inadvertently fueling a local artistic renaissance.

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Artist Tiffany Chung stands in front of navy hand-embroidered maps in a museum gallery.

Tiffany Chung at AD&A Museum

A powerful career retrospective explores hand-embroidered maps, the global "climate-conflict crisis" and the history of human migration across deep time.

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Four dancers with flowy yellow and white skirts performing a high leg extension on stage under warm lighting.

Dance Company Tours Europe

Following a celebrated campus premiere, the pre-professional UC Santa Barbara student dance ensemble is traveling across Europe this April to perform an eclectic mix of contemporary choreography.

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Headshot of Distinguished Professor Patrice Petro wearing glasses and a dark blue top, smiling at the camera with a framed poster in the background.

Film and Media Studies faculty sweep major national society awards

Distinguished Professor Patrice Petro leads a historic cohort of four UCSB scholars recognized for career achievement, book publication and research excellence by the Society for Cinema and Media Studies.

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Formal portrait of Frank J. Frost wearing a suit and patterned tie.

In Memoriam: Emeritus Professor Frank J. Frost

Frank J. Frost, professor emeritus of History, passed away in Santa Barbara on January 9, 2026. A noted scholar of ancient Greece and a former Santa Barbara County Supervisor, Frost leaves behind a legacy of scholarship, music and civic service.

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Students sitting in groups and talking on a long, curved blue bench in the sunny outdoor courtyard of the modern Interactive Learning Pavilion.

Distinguished Professor Lisa Parks to co-chair newly formed committee to guide responsible use of AI across campus

Co-chaired by Distinguished Professor Lisa Parks (Film and Media Studies), this new advisory committee brings a crucial humanities perspective to the social, ethical and cultural impacts of AI in higher education.

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João Pedro Oliveira in a black leather jacket standing in front of a brick building.

Corwin Chair awarded 2025 Fromm Commission from Harvard University

Only 12 composers worldwide received Harvard University's 2025 Fromm Music Foundation Commission, and UC Santa Barbara's João Pedro Oliveira is among them. The Corwin chair of composition will create a new electroacoustic chamber work premiering at UCSB in 2027.

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