research
research at Wazzu is a file of 5 stories. The newest of them: “At the Fair, WSU Serves Up a Century of Washington Farm History”, “WSU scientists dig in to save honey bees from the brink”, and “Washington wine didn't happen by accident. Cougs helped build it”. The Washington State Fair runs for a few weeks each fall, but WSU's booth there runs for a century. Honey bees are having a rough go of it, and WSU has people on the ground trying to change that. The unofficial read for people who left Pullman and stayed Cougs. The list below is every research story on Wazzu, newest first.
At the Fair, WSU Serves Up a Century of Washington Farm History
The Washington State Fair runs for a few weeks each fall, but WSU's booth there runs for a century. That is the kind of fact that stops you mid-bite into a scone. The university is serving up a hundred years of Washington farm history at the fair this year, and it is exactly the right thing to do. Pullman is a farm town. The whole Palouse is. WSU started as an agricultural college, and that work still pays the bills in ways most people never see. So standing at the fair and telling that story, how the research from our ag programs shaped what grows in this state, how it keeps farms running, how it puts food on tables, is not nostalgia. It is the truth. This is the kind of coverage that matters. Not every WSU story has to be about a game or a grant number. Sometimes it is about a booth at the fair where a family can learn why Washington apples taste the way they do. That is the university showing up for the people who pay for it. If you want to see how that same practical, roll-up-your-sleeves thinking shows up in other places, read our piece on President Betsy Cantwell talking about AI. She says WSU's job is making it useful, not flashy. Same instinct, different century. Go Cougs.
WSU scientists dig in to save honey bees from the brink
Honey bees are having a rough go of it, and WSU has people on the ground trying to change that. Scientists at the university are digging in to figure out how to keep these little pollinators from sliding further toward the brink. It's not just about honey, though that's a nice perk. It's about the crops they pollinate and the food chain that leans on them. When the bees struggle, we all feel it eventually. The threats are piling up: pests, disease, habitat loss, the usual modern mess. WSU's approach isn't a single silver bullet. It's a lot of patient, unglamorous lab work and field research. That's the kind of thing Pullman does well. Nobody's clapping for it on a highlight reel, but it matters. This is the same university that's quietly helping rural schools swap diesel for solar and putting first-gen nursing students through the wringer with a purpose. WSU doesn't always grab the biggest headlines, but the work coming out of the Palouse tends to outlast the news cycle. The bee research fits right in. It's practical, it's urgent, and it's the kind of problem that doesn't solve itself. We'll be watching what they find. And if you want a reminder of how WSU keeps showing up in unexpected places, check out the piece on rural schools going solar. It's the same stubborn, useful energy. Go Cougs.
Washington wine didn't happen by accident. Cougs helped build it
You don't have to dig deep into Washington wine country to taste the Cougar in the glass. That's because WSU didn't just show up to the harvest, it helped plant the roots. For decades, the university has worked shoulder-to-shoulder with growers and producers across the state, turning what could have stayed a scrappy regional hobby into an economic powerhouse. That's not luck, and it's not happenstance. It's the result of patient, hands-on work in the vineyards and the labs, the kind of quiet persistence that doesn't make for flashy headlines but sure makes for a good bottle. The wine industry here doesn't owe everything to Pullman, but it owes a lot. And it's worth saying plainly: Cougs built this, and we're not shy about it. The same spirit that drives our ag research, the kind that makes the Palouse a little smarter every season, shows up in the vines. If you want to see how that same practical innovation plays out elsewhere, our piece on WSU's smarter corn fields is worth a click. But today, raise a glass to the growers, the researchers, and the decades of grit that made Washington wine a name you actually hear outside the state. It didn't happen by accident. It happened because Cougs showed up, got their hands dirty, and stayed. Go Cougs.
A letter that found a Coug you never knew you needed
A letter from Barbara A. Petite x'76 landed in our mailbox, and she's right: Catherine Roberts Frasier is a Coug we never knew we needed. The Spring 2026 magazine pulled her story out of the archives, and Barbara calls it exactly what it is, proof that this alumni magazine is the best one out there. We agree. That kind of digging, that kind of pride in the people who built this place, is why we keep turning pages. Jeff Hardesty '97 English, Ed., '18 EdD chimed in too, remembering Gay Selby's truthisms about superintendent-board relationships. The Spring 2026 issue honored Selby, and Jeff says those lessons still ring in his ears daily. That's the kind of impact that doesn't fade when you leave Pullman. It follows you. And while we're on the subject of research that matters, a new WSU study on cannabis ads shows how they're shaping young adults' ideas about sex and intimacy. It's the same sharp curiosity that unearthed Frasier's story, just applied to what's happening right now. We don't stretch stories here. We don't have to. The real ones are good enough. Go Cougs.
WSU puts AI to work on human health, no hype required
WSU just dropped a new AI project, and for once, nobody is trying to sell you a flying car. The university is putting artificial intelligence to work on human health, and the pitch is refreshingly simple: make people better, not just buzzwords. True to the land-grant mission, they're also aiming this tech at health equity and outreach. That means the same algorithms that can spot a disease pattern might also help a rural clinic reach patients who don't have broadband. That's Pullman thinking, solve the problem where it lives. We've seen this kind of grounded innovation before. If you read our piece on the Cosmic Crisp® apple, you know how one crop changed the economy around here. That same no-nonsense, Coug-built approach is alive in the AgWeatherNet system, where AI turns farm data into real action without needing a postcard sunrise to make it work. Now it's health's turn. No hype. Just WSU doing what it does: take a tool, point it at a real need, and let the results speak. This is the kind of story you text a friend who still brags about the Cougs. It's not flashy. It's useful. And it's ours. Go Cougs.