This year, UC Davis Magazine took readers to a caviar farm, Picnic Day, a kitten’s foster home and more. We visited with experts and alumni alike, who offered their knowledge and memories.
As this year ends, we revisit some of our most popular stories, ranked by how many readers viewed them online.
Read on for the top 10 stories from 2025.
10. Caring for Kittens
UC Davis Magazine spotlighted the Orphan Kitten Project, a program that gives hands-on veterinary experience to students and eases a burden on traditional animal shelters.
Second-year UC Davis undergraduate Kaya Miller shared her experience taking care of three 3-week-old foster kittens — balancing class work and feeding them every two hours.
“It’s a lot of dedication ... but it's so worth it,” she said.
>>> Read the story
9. Farming Caviar: A UC Davis Innovation
Tsar Nicoulai President Ali Bolourchi ’05, M.B.A. ’12, gave us a tour of the company’s Wilton, California, facility, explaining his multiple connections to UC Davis expertise and research.
The culinary luxury of course goes back to ancient civilizations, but here in the U.S. overfishing of sturgeon created a dilemma.
Enter UC Davis and one professor who recognized that farming sturgeon could ease the pressure on wild populations.
>>> Read the story
8. 5 Ways UC Davis Says AI Is Surprisingly Good
UC Davis researchers shared ways in which they are using artificial intelligence to help in veterinary medicine, health, climate science, engineering and education.
Take, for example, diagnosing diseases in animals. Researchers at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine have developed three AI models that can help detect specific conditions using routine bloodwork. The idea is that machines are better at recognizing patterns, which holds great promise for diagnosing disease.
>>> Read the story
7. Ph.D. Alum Kathleen DuVal Wins Pulitzer Prize
DuVal was honored for her 2024 book, Native Nations: A Millennium in North America (Random House), tracing a thousand years of Native history. The alum shared some of her background, including attending UC Davis with her husband, launching them both into careers as professors.
"Going to UC Davis just propelled us both into tremendously successful careers," she told UC Davis Magazine.
>>> Read the story
6. The 111th Picnic Day Set for April
Always a favorite, a preview of Picnic Day made the list, offering the theme of the event and some key stops for visitors planning to attend.
We also offered a trivia quiz, inviting readers to test their knowledge of the beloved UC Davis tradition.
>>> Read the story
>>> Take the quiz
5. 5 Exciting Projects Coming to UC Davis
Aggie Square, the new innovation district in Sacramento, topped the list. The area opened in May with more than 1.2 million square feet of public and private space for research and academic pursuits; support for startups launching new businesses; continuing education and job training; and community uses.
Other projects included student use space, outdoor enhancements and more.
>>> Read the story
4. 5 Things to Know About Baltimore Ravens Linebacker and Alum Teddye Buchanan
Buchanan ’24 is the first Aggie to be drafted to the NFL since 2002. UC Davis Magazine caught up with him just before the football season started.
Above all, Buchanan said a career in football has always been a long-range goal.
"There is a cool aspect to it where you lock in and focus on your craft," he said. "You're so singularly focused. It's hard for me to even know what's going on in the outside world because of how our days are completely consumed with football. But I think it's a cool experience to get to focus on something like that."
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3. Majorettes Come to UC Davis
A new dance group formed on campus, appearing first at UC Davis football games.
Founded by students, the majorettes combine elements of jazz, hip-hop and contemporary dance. They have a history at historically Black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, for decades.
>>> Read the story
2. Is the American Dream Dead?
Faculty and students in the UC Davis College of Letters and Science discussed the idea and the ideal — and the undeniably powerful role is has had in shaping values and aspirations in the U.S.
Where did the idea come from? Was it ever true? What is the future of such a dream?
One of the greatest expressions of the American Dream is public higher education — and, if social mobility exists, it is sometimes achieved through these types of institutions, argued Louis Warren, W. Turrentine Jackson Professor of U.S. Western History at UC Davis.
>>> Read the story
1. How Could Tariffs Affect Consumers, Business and the Economy?
UC Davis economists took on one of the biggest topics of the year, weighing in on the trade tactic and how it could be felt by Americans.
The experts also addressed the potential consequences of the tariff plan at the time of publication, noting that tariffs are likely to be met with retaliation.