Professor Michael Oppenheimer speaking in large, tiered lecture hall

Natural Sciences Research

Discovery Without Limits

Our researchers collaborate with colleagues across the University and beyond to explore the most pressing scientific issues of our time, including climate change, cognition, space, and viruses and diseases.

Research Profiles

John Hopfield
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Word of John Hopfield's 2024 Nobel Prize in physics reached Hopfield at a thatched cottage where he is staying in England. “My wife and I went out to get a flu shot and stopped to get a coffee on the way back home,” he said. They returned to find a flood of congratulatory emails that he described as “astounding” and “heartwarming.”

Xiaohui Xu
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Xiaohui Xu, a postdoctoral researcher in chemical and biological engineering, is co-developer of an invention that uses sunlight to drive water purification.

Nita Bahcall and Gillian Knapp
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Nita Bahcall and Gillian Knapp, the first two women on Princeton’s astrophysics faculty, have spent the past half-century shaping a welcoming environment for astronomers of all backgrounds.
Dinosaur skeleton in Guyot Hall

Natural Sciences Research

Our renowned physicists delve into the worlds of particles as our astrophysical scientists turn toward the limitless universe. Chemists and biologists explore the inner workings of genes and microorganisms. Geoscientists unravel how the planet formed and behaves, while ecologists and evolutionary biologists expand our understanding of life. Neuroscientists study the complex machinery of the brain as our mathematicians lead their fields with new insights.

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