U-M again near top of world university rankings; an abbreviation “too vulgar” for the university; the role of war in the creation of complex societies; fear of a planet of no apes; a game-making alum; and more.

Of all the quirks in English, spelling has to be the most wonderful and infuriating. Case in point: “colonel.”

The names of University of Michigan alumni/alumnae who perished in the attacks of 9/11.

“In the African villages that I study in Mali, children fare as well in nuclear families as they do in extended families,” says U-M professor Beverly Strassmann.

People who give, live longer, studies have shown. Now, a new study shows that why people volunteer—not whether they volunteer—is what really counts.

A robot in a University of Michigan lab can run like a human—a feat that represents the height of agility and efficiency for a two-legged machine. “It’s stunning,” says professor Jessy Grizzle. “I have never seen a machine doing a motion like this.”

“On Earth, everywhere there’s liquid water, there is microbial life,” says U-M professor Nilton Renno. He’s the scientist who discovered liquid water droplets on Mars, and he’s now leading a project to explore pockets of very salty, liquid water on the red planet. It might be the best bet for finding microbial life beyond Earth.

Skewed skulls may have helped early whales discriminate the direction of sounds in water and are not solely, as previously thought, a later adaptation related to echolocation.

Scott Atran is a world-renowned expert on terrorism and terrorists. His research and his book “Talking to the Enemy: Faith, Brotherhood, and the (Un)Making of Terrorists” derive from years in the field interviewing terrorists from around the globe. Michigan Today asked for his insights into the status of terrorism ten years after 9/11.