u/AskScienceModerator

How can we give people more agency when interacting with artificial intelligence systems? That is one of the questions my research aims to answer. 

I am an assistant professor in the University of Maryland Department of Computer Science, where I am leading a new research effort to test whether the reasoning processes used by advanced AI systems will remain transparent. At the center of my research is a widely used technique known as chain-of-thought reasoning, in which AI models generate step-by-step explanations of how they reach their answers. 

Feel free to ask me about AI transparency, natural language processing and more. I’ll be answering questions on Wednesday, August 12, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT (15-17 UT).

Bio: Sarah Wiegreffe is an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). She is a member of the CLIP (Computational Linguistics and Information Processing) lab and also affiliated with UMD’s AI Interdisciplinary Institute (AIM) and Institute for Advanced Computer Study (UMIACS).

Sarah works on the explainability and interpretability of deep learning systems for language, with a focus on understanding how language models make predictions to make them more reliable, safe, and transparent to human users. She has been honored as a three-time Rising Star in EECS, Machine Learning, and Generative AI. She was previously a postdoc at the Allen Institute for AI and the University of Washington and, before that, received her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees from Georgia Tech.

Other links:

• Google Scholar
• Personal Website
• Recent coverage: UMD's Sarah Wiegreffe Receives Grant to Stress-Test the Future of AI Transparency

Username: /u/umd-science

https://preview.redd.it/2xp45odb1wih1.jpg?width=5000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dcded40e0bd97b6920dbaba3d6bea5e9e40f158d

Hello Reddit! We are Kimberly Fulda, the director of the North Texas Primary Care Practice-Based Research Network and Professor in Family and Osteopathic medicine; Scott Walters, Regents Professor in Public Health; and Tracey Barnett, Associate Professor and Department Chair at the Kate Marmion School of Public Health in San Antonio.

We recently published a paper titled "Substance use disorder among people with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A narrative review"; in the American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse (AJDAA). We examined what the research tells us about the relationship between intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD; such as autism spectrum disorder and ADHD) and substance use disorder. Although substance use rates appear lower among people with IDD, our review highlights important considerations for prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Feel free to ask us any questions about the paper, or about developmental disabilities and substance use more broadly!

We will be online to answer your questions at 1 pm CT (2 PM ET, 6 PM UTC).

You can also follow up with us at our socials here:

• Kimberly Fulda, DrPH: Facebook or LinkedIn
• Scott Walters, PhD: LinkedIn
• Tracey Barnett, PhD: Instagram

Follow the journal to stay up to date with the latest research in the field of addiction here: BlueSky, Threads, LinkedIn

Usernames: u/Kim_F_2026 (Dr. Fulda), u/Material_Mistake_816 (Dr. Walters) u/Suspicious-Love-6677 (Dr. Barnett), u/TheJournalAJDAA (the journal)

https://preview.redd.it/4d6ok9x1lmgh1.png?width=2207&format=png&auto=webp&s=82687644802f5d63b518ffcdd9f17fc1f5ca9db0

Hi Reddit!

We are scientists who study human lactation, from the evolution of the molecules in milk to the future of virtual lactation care. Every year, we celebrate World Breastfeeding Week by dropping in here to answer all of your burning milkquiries!

Since human milk is made by humans, our science is fraught with complexity. “Womens health issues” often get sidelined when there are cuts to research budgets like what we’ve seen in the US. But also, every August, we notice that some Redditors express sad or guilty feelings about World Breastfeeding Week. We’re here to spread science, not sads! If we are doing our job, our science should make you feel BIG, not small. Keep in mind that WBW is a global event (supported by WHO, UNICEF and many health partners) and sadly many breastfeeding experiences around the world are unfair—but for different reasons in different places. But also, breastfeeding is part of the human story, so WBW is also a celebration of every unique breastfeeding journey.

Social science tells us that breastfeeding is a health equity issue, not a lifestyle choice. Sure, “promoting” breastfeeding is cool, you know what’s cooler? Creating societies anybody can breastfeed if they want to (i.e. the “warm chain”). Every year WBW explores new ways to do this better. The WBW theme for 2026 is focused on the UN Sustainable Development Goals related to nutrition, food security and poverty reduction and hyping solutions that actually work. 🌍🍃

Science belongs to—and matters to—everyone. We hope that by the end of the day you feel the same wonder that we do about this very adooorable science.

Ask us anything!!

• Meghan Azad, PhD (u/MilkScience) is a biochemist and epidemiologist who specializes in human milk composition and the infant microbiome. Dr. Azad holds a Canada Research Chair in Early Nutrition and the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. She is a Professor of Pediatrics and Child Health and director of the THRiVE Discovery Lab at the University of Manitoba. She co-founded the Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Centre (MILC), and directs the International Milk Composition Consortium (IMiC). Check out this short video about her research team, her appearance on the Biomes podcast, and her lab’s YouTube Channel.
  • Bluesky: @meghanazad.bsky.social
  • LinkedIn
• Marion M. Bendixen, PhD, MSN, RN, IBCLC (u/MarionBendixen) is a nurse scientist and clinical and translational scientist who studies human lactation and maternal/infant health specializing in the biological and physiological mechanisms of insufficient mothers' own milk (MOM) volume among mothers who deliver an infant(s) admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) as well as how MOM influences the infant’s intestinal microbiome. Dr. Bendixen is an Assistant Professor in the College of Nursing at the University of Florida. She co-created the lactation program at Winnie Palmer Hospital where she practices as a board-certified lactation consultant.
  • Bluesky: @mmbendixen.bsky.social
  • X: @UFNursing
  • UF Nursing Instagram: @ufnursing
  • UF Nursing Facebook
  • UF Nursing LinkedIN
• Sarah Brunson, BA, BSN, MS, Phd(c), RN, IBCLC (u/LactFact-42) is an Internationally Board-Certified Lactation consultant who has practiced since 2009 in pediatric clinics, hospitals, birth centers, home settings, and public health. She currently practices at the Medical University of South Carolina where she has developed numerous education programs for nursing staff and residents to improve lactation care in the Mother Baby and Neonatal Intensive Care Units. She is a PhD candidate in Nursing with a focus in Maternal/Child Health and Lactation at the University of South Carolina College of Nursing. She has served as the Chair of South Carolina Breastfeeding Coalition for the last six years during which time she has developed a Website with information for parents, providers, and employers; directs a project to map lactation resources in the state that are searchable by address; and organizes quarterly education webinars and conferences.
  • LinkedIn
  • SC Breastfeeding Coalition on Facebook
  • SC Breastfeeding Coalition on Instagram
  • www.SCBreastfeeds.org
• Jill Demirci, PhD, RN, IBCLC (u/JillDemirci_PhD) is a nurse scientist and lactation researcher who studies how families make human milk feeding decisions and sustain breastfeeding, particularly when support is complicated by medical, social, or structural barriers. Dr. Demirci is an Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing and directs both the Maternal/Perinatal and Reproductive Health Research Hub and the Nursing Office of Innovation & Impact. Her work focuses on telelactation and mHealth infant feeding support, antenatal milk expression, milk sharing, donor milk access, and culturally responsive and community-based lactation support. She is the former Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Human Lactation and a board-certified lactation consultant.
• Miena Hall, MD, IBCLC (u/LactationMD) is a lactation medicine physician who studies techniques for identifying mammary tissue development issues which put individuals at risk for low milk production and improving lactation education in medical schools. Dr. Hall teaches med students at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine and the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, and is Director of Scientific Affairs at the Mothers’ Milk Bank of the Western Great Lakes. Dr. Hall is a member of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM) protocol committee on low milk production, a medical advisor to La Leche League International (LLLI), and a past president of the Northern Illinois Lactation Consultant Organization (NILCA). She also holds a Bachelor's degree in math and chemistry.
  • Facebook
  • Instagram: @lactationmd
  • lactationmd.com
• Kaytlin Krutsch, PhD, PharmD, MBA, BCPS (u/PharmacoLactation) is a lactation pharmacologist who literally wrote the book on medications in human milk with Dr. Thomas Hale, Hale's Medications and Mothers' Milk. She is the director of the InfantRisk Center and Associate Professor at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, and advises the Food and Drug Administration, the Human Milk Banking Association of Northern America, and pharmaceutical industry on lactation pharmacology and lactation research. Dr. Krutsch believes families deserve better answers about breastfeeding and medication questions, and aims to design research that addresses their questions while creating a comprehensive information cycle that empowers families.
  • LinkedIn: Dr. Krutsch
  • Instagram: @infantrisk
  • Facebook: InfantRiskCenter
  • Website: InfantRisk.com
• Bridget McGann (u/BabiesAndBones) is an anthropologist who studies how lactation shaped us as a species. She is a research assistant and science communicator at THRiVE Discovery Lab. She has a Bachelors in Anthropology and is a Masters student in Biological Anthropology at the University of Colorado Denver. Her thesis uses longitudinal, prospective, large cohort data to study the generational transmission of the human milk microbiome. She was also a founding team member at March for Science. Check out her stand-up act about Luke Skywalker's green milk, or her top comments.
  • BlueSky: @bridgetmcgann.medsky.social
  • Instagram: @Raising_Wonder
  • TikTok: raisingwonder
• Ryan Pace, PhD (u/_RyanPace_) is an Assistant Professor in the College of Nursing and USF Health Microbiomes Institute at the University of South Florida. He also serves as an Associate Editor for Breastfeeding Medicine. Dr. Pace’s translational research integrates microbiome science, immunology, and molecular biology to understand how lactation and early-life microbial colonization shape maternal and infant health. His research focuses on the interplay among maternal diet, human milk bioactive components, the maternal and infant microbiomes, and host immune function to identify mechanisms that influence infant development and disease risk and to inform evidence-based interventions that improve maternal and child health. 
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Google Scholar
• Rebecca Powell, PhD, CLC (u/HumanMilkLab) is a human milk immunologist who studies the human milk immune response to infection and vaccination with the aim of designing maternal vaccines aimed to enhance this response. Dr. Powell is an Assistant Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and a certified lactation counselor. Her lab studies the potential of SARS-CoV-2-reactive antibodies in human milk both as a COVID-19 therapeutic and as a means to prevent infection of breastfed babies. They also study mechanisms for maternal vaccines to prevent mother-to-child-transmission (MTCT) of HIV via breastfeeding, as well as how white blood cells in human milk use a process called antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) to minimize MTCT via breastfeeding.
  • Instagram: @sinaihumanmilklab
• Sam Stead, PhD (u/Mammals-Milk) is a postdoctoral researcher in the THRiVE Discovery Lab at the University of Manitoba. An evolutionary anthropologist by training, she studies how chronic stress during pregnancy and lactation influences child growth, development, and behaviour, and whether human milk composition plays a role in these relationships. Her current research focuses on stress-related hormones and other bioactive compounds in human milk as potential links between maternal experiences and child health. She completed her PhD at the University of Toronto, where she studied maternal and infant outcomes in wild Angolan colobus monkeys in Uganda. Her research combines evolutionary, biological, and developmental perspectives to understand how early-life experiences shape lifelong health.
• Sanoji Wijenayake, Ph.D. (u/Wijenayake_Lab) is the Canada Research Chair in Milk Nanovesicles and Applied Health and an Associate Professor of cell and molecular biology. Dr. Wijenayake studies the biologically active parts of human milk. Specifically, she studies a not-so-well known component of human milk, called milk nanovesicles. One can think of milk nanovesicles as emails. Similar to how emails carry text, images, and videos from a sender to a recipient, milk nanovesicles carry biological material between mothers and their children. Milk nanovesicles are anti-inflammatory and hold great therapeutic potential as drug carriers that can get to difficult places, like the brain.
  • www.wijelab.ca
  • LinkedIn

EDIT:
That’s a wrap everyone! Once again, we have been blown away by the thoughtfulness of Redditors’ questions! One of the reasons we love doing this every year is because your questions spark such interesting discussions amongst ourselves in our zoom.

We did notice that, unfortunately, some questions had to be deleted by the mods per the sub rules due to being too clinical in nature. We recognize that it can be really tough to get clear, evidence-based guidance—either because of lack of specialists in your area, because insurance doesn’t cover the care you need, or simply because the answers don’t exist due to underfunding of this area of research. We want you to know we are working hard on improving access to expertise. Look for board-certified lactation consultants (look for IBCLC after their name), and remember that we now have board-certified lactation medicine practitioners as well (NABBLM).

This may be it for us today, but the boob party doesn’t end here!

Aug 8-14: Indigenous Milk Medicine Week
Aug 25-31: Black Breastfeeding Week

Thank you for your amazing questions everyone! See you next year!

Hi Reddit! We are professors and extension specialists in the University of Maryland’s Department of Entomology. We bring a combined experience of six decades studying an unending stream of egregious insect invaders from around the world. We develop, implement and evaluate sustainable pest management practices—including landscape modification, biological control and non-chemical alternatives. Using a variety of outreach platforms, we help private citizens, horticultural practitioners, agencies and institutions manage invasives in economic and environmentally responsible ways.

We are excited to answer your questions and help you learn about spotted lanternflies, stink bugs, and other six-legged invaders. We’ll be on from 12 to 2 p.m. ET (16-18 UT) on Wednesday, July 15*—ask us anything!

Bio: Michael Raupp followed his boyhood interests in wildlife and ecology to Rutgers University and the University of Maryland (UMD), where he earned degrees in animal science and entomology. He joined the faculty at UMD in 1982 and served as chair of the entomology department and associate dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. His ongoing research and outreach programs focus on the ecology of urban pests, invasive species, climate change and insect natural history. A regular guest on television and radio, Mike has been featured on National Geographic, Discovery Channel, NPR, PBS and other outlets. His website and YouTube channel reach thousands of viewers worldwide each week. Mike is a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America and has received more than a dozen national and international awards for writing, research, and scientific outreach. His most recent book, “26 Things that Bug Me,” introduces youngsters to the wonders of insects and natural history.

Bio: Paula Shrewsbury is an entomologist with broad interests in ecology and integrated pest management (IPM), which she applies to the development of sustainable pest management programs. Raised in Massachusetts, she earned her B.S. in plant science at the University of Rhode Island. After her M.S. at the University of California, Riverside and Ph.D. at the University of Maryland in entomology, she joined the faculty of Rutgers University. Since her arrival at UMD’s Department of Entomology in 1999, Paula has worked with green industries to conduct applied research and extension education programs on IPM. The overall focus of her program is to create sustainable landscapes, nurseries and turf systems with an emphasis on biological control, conservation of beneficial arthropods and management of invasive species. Paula has received numerous awards for her research and extension program and was recently recognized as a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America. Paula is a long-time contributor to the widely circulated University of Maryland Extension IPM Alert newsletter.

Other links:

• Google Scholar and lab website (Mike Raupp)
• Google Scholar and lab website (Paula Shrewsbury)
• Bug of the Week website and YouTube channel
  • Spotted lanternfly blog
  • Stink bug blog
  • Japanese beetle blog

Username: u/umd-science

https://preview.redd.it/zeksdx1lu7dh1.jpg?width=8256&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5d6febc44b22677dcb21e729d260cf7a6bb81aab

Hello Reddit! I am Daniel Rath, a soil scientist at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council). My work explores how carbon and nitrogen cycles through soil as well as agriculture’s impacts on soil and soil biodiversity.

We just released a report, The Nitrogen Pollution Crisis, that highlights how pollution from fertilizer overuse exposes millions of Americans to unsafe drinking water, pollutes our rivers and lakes leading to harmful algal blooms that kill or sicken fish and wildlife, and costs the U.S. more than $59 billion annually.

The dirt beneath our feet is more than just “dirt,” it’s alive! It holds some of the most complex living ecosystems on the planet that fuel our agricultural system, filter our water and store carbon, all of which are crucial to life on this planet.

I will be here on June 30th 2026 at 3:00 PM EST (19 UT) to answer your questions about nitrogen pollution, the science behind healthy soil, sustainable farming practices, and anything else on soil!

Username: u/nrdcsoilteam

EDIT: Note slight time change to match with image.

https://preview.redd.it/5md2g8kjddah1.jpg?width=2316&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=96e60ba05ea6459df0a2ebb7fb7b650a0003fe99

https://preview.redd.it/dpb4y9ub4e7h1.jpg?width=5000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ed2465d1c83e95b9a70b20a5be091499f3d50704

Understanding volcanoes is important for unlocking the history of our planet, as well as advancing public safety and climate science.

I am an associate professor in the University of Maryland Department of Geological, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences. My research combines experimental petrology, numerical modeling, and state-of-the-art geochemical analyses to study volcanoes on the Earth, the Moon and Mars. I am also interested in quantifying the sources and fluxes of volatiles in planetary interiors.

Part of my research is investigating what makes some volcanic eruptions gentle while others are explosive. My lab acts like a team of forensic scientists using "crystal clocks" (based on diffusion of different elements in volcanic crystals) to calculate how fast magma rises to the surface. We also measure the compositions of microscopic droplets of magma trapped within crystals to work out how much gas the magma contained before it erupted.

Feel free to ask me about volcanoes, planetary volcanism and petrology or geochemistry more broadly. I’ll be answering questions on Monday, June 15, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. EDT (17:30-19:30 UT).

Bio: Dr. Megan Newcombe is an Associate Professor of Geological, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at the University of Maryland, where she leads the UMD Planetary Volcanism Laboratory. Dedicated to education alongside research, Megan uses her funding to host an annual Volcano Camp at UMD, bringing local high school students into the lab for hands-on science.

She earned her Ph.D. in geology from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and specialized in experimental petrology to simulate planetary interiors. She then went on to complete postdoctoral research at the Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University and the Carnegie Institution for Science. Her academic journey has positioned her at the intersection of volcanology, geochemistry, and planetary science—studying how planetary bodies evolve and sustain habitability.

Other links:

• UMD Planetary Volcanism Website
• Google Scholar
• National Science Foundation CAREER Award

Username: /u/umd-science

Making weather forecasts more accurate gives communities more time to prepare for dangerous weather and make informed decisions about emergency response. My research focuses on understanding how hurricanes form and behave to improve the accuracy of hurricane forecasts. 

I study how temperature, moisture and air currents interact within storms, and how that information can help scientists better predict where hurricanes will go and how strong they will become.

My current work focuses on two areas. One project evaluates the impact of integrating satellite data into numerical weather prediction (NWP) models on tropical cyclone forecasts. This data comes from new satellite systems designed to catch GPS radio signals that transit through the atmosphere (yes, that’s right, the same GPS signals that we use for navigating our cars!). As part of this work, I collaborate with NOAA researchers to improve the observation data assimilation algorithms in NOAA's NWP models. For my second project, I analyze a model simulation of Hurricane Joaquin (2015) to better understand how the storm was able to undergo rapid intensification despite experiencing unfavorable upper-level winds that could have otherwise sheared the storm apart.

Feel free to ask me about hurricane/tropical cyclone prediction, severe weather forecasting and meteorology more broadly. I'll be answering questions on Tuesday, May 26, from 1 to 3 p.m. EDT (17-19 UT).

Bio: Will Miller is an Assistant Research Scientist with the University of Maryland Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center (ESSIC) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. His research interests include both advancing our fundamental understanding of atmospheric dynamic and thermodynamic processes important to severe convective-scale and mesoscale weather phenomena—particularly tropical cyclones (TCs)—and improving the TC forecast accuracy of numerical weather prediction (NWP) model. 

Will graduated from the University of Virginia in 2004 with a BS in Chemistry. Following a tour serving in the U.S. Navy as a nuclear trained officer, Will decided to pursue his lifelong interest in meteorology and enrolled in the University of Maryland's Atmospheric and Oceanic Science (AOSC) M.S./Ph.D. program, which he completed in 2019. After a one-year postdoctoral research appointment at the University of Oklahoma Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies, Will returned to UMD to join ESSIC/CISESS.

Other links:

• ESSIC Faculty Bio
• LinkedIn Profile
• ResearchGate Profile

Username: /u/umd-science

https://preview.redd.it/t8vp7crg2c3h1.jpg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=67a372c497e4453ca1404e3ae66ccaca83fba692

Happy World Quantum Day! We are a group of quantum science researchers at the University of Maryland (UMD), and we're back for our fifth year of answering your quantum questions. There are always new developments in quantum science and new things to learn, so ask us anything!

At UMD, hundreds of faculty members, postdocs, and students are working on a variety of quantum research topics, from developing quantum computers and quantum simulations to studying the behaviors of the fundamental particles that make up reality. Feel free to ask us about research, academic life, career tips, and anything else you think we might know!

For more information about all the quantum research happening at UMD, which anchors Maryland's broader Capital of Quantum Initiative, check out the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI; u/jqi_news is our Reddit account), the Joint Center for Quantum Information and Computer Science (QuICS), the NSF Quantum Leap Challenge Institute for Robust Quantum Simulation (RQS), the Condensed Matter Theory Center (CMTC), the Quantum Materials Center (QMC), the Quantum Technology Center (QTC), the National Quantum Laboratory (QLab) and the Maryland Quantum Thermodynamics Hub. For a quick primer about some of the basics of the quantum world, check out The Quantum Atlas.

We are:

• Avik Dutt, (nano-photonics for quantum technologies, JQI, IPST & QLab)
• Alan Migdall, (experimental quantum optics, JQI)
• Emily Townsend (atomic-scale quantum devices, JQI)

We'll be answering questions live this morning from 10 a.m. to noon EDT (14-16 UT), ask us anything!

https://preview.redd.it/xkvm6fe4u3vg1.jpg?width=1042&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=39144b18615f0821408629df09a568e1122b2242

In order to feed an expanding planetary population, farmers are constantly searching for efficient, cost-effective ways to grow agricultural products. Engineering biology approaches can potentially help improve yields and reduce costs, but several unknowns remain before these techniques can be deployed at scale. Which techniques are most effective for which crops? Does increasing yield mean a sacrifice in taste and cost? How can researchers work with farmers, consumers, industry partners and policymakers to ensure that 21st century farming best practices are sustained into the 22nd century (and beyond)?

Join us today at 2 PM ET/11 AM PT/18 UT for an AMA to talk about all of these issues and more! We'll share about our current work focused on improving plant enzymes, discuss how researchers are using engineering biology to enhance agricultural production, and answer your questions about crop engineering. Ask us anything!

We are:

• Kristen Van Gelder, Ph.D. (/u/mossy_canoe368)- Synthetic Biology Research Scientist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
• Cătălin Voiniciuc, Ph.D. (/u/Catalin_Voiniciuc)- Associate Professor of Plant Synthetic Biology, University of Florida
• Vance Whitaker, Ph.D. (/u/WhitakerV_UF)- Professor of Horticulture, University of Florida

Links:

• Adapting enzymes to improve their functionality in plants: why and how
• Building a directed evolution–genome editing pipeline for metabolic traits in specialty crop breeding
• Mirages in continuous directed enzyme evolution: a cautionary case study with plantized bacterial THI4 enzymes