December 30, 2019
Life as we know it requires phosphorus, which is scarce. So, how did a lifeless environment on the early Earth supply this key ingredient? A new UW study, published Dec. 30 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, finds an answer to this problem in certain types of carbonate-rich lakes.
Neile Graham is both a longtime administrator with the College of Built Environments and a published poet — and she has a new book of poetry out, called “The Walk She Takes.”
December 19, 2019
A teacher discusses respectful world travel, a historian explores Silicon Valley’s evolution, a professor and violist plays the music of Robert Schumann and a late English faculty member’s meditation on Seattle returns … Here’s a quick look at some gift-worthy books and music created by UW faculty in the last year — and a reminder of some recent favorites. O’Mara’s ‘Code’: History professor Margaret O’Mara provides a sweeping history of California’s computer industry titans in her book “The Code:…
December 18, 2019
As 2019 draws to a close, we present highlights from video stories produced by the UW News team — selections from architecture to zoology, and everything in between
December 17, 2019
A discussion of Brutalist architecture on the UW campus with professor Alex Anderson of the Department of Architecture.
December 16, 2019
If you fear a trip to the dentist, you are among a majority of adults that report moderate to high levels of anxiety related to dental care, according to a review of research. And, if you’re afraid of getting into a dental chair, you are more likely to avoid going and are at risk of oral and overall health problems, such as worsened cardiovascular disease. Studies show that, of those adults with such fear, more than 70% say they started…
Recent honors to UW faculty and staff include the new editorship of a major journal, a post with the Republic of Uganda and honors from the American College of Physicians, the Association for Computing Machinery and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
Large, old Chinook salmon have mostly disappeared from the West Coast. A new University of Washington and NOAA study points to the recent rise of resident killer whales, and their insatiable appetite for large Chinook salmon, as the main driver behind the decline of the big fish.
December 12, 2019
To end the year on a high note, take advantage of visiting the museums on campus (free admission, as always, for UW employees and students)! Burke Museum Daily 10 am – 5 pm | Closed on December 25 and January 1 Experience natural and cultural collections at the Burke Museum. The Burke brings research and collections out from behind the scenes so you can bring your perspective and your passions forward. We can use them to learn about the past,…
An Antarctic field campaign last winter led by the U.S. and Australia has successfully extracted some of the largest samples of air dating from the 1870s until today. Researchers will use the samples to look for changes in the molecules that scrub the atmosphere of methane and other gases.
December 11, 2019
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR 52.203-7) require the University of Washington to implement procedures designed to prevent and detect violations of the Anti-Kickback Act of 1986 (41 USC 51-58).
December 10, 2019
To better understand large, disruptive snowstorms, a University of Washington atmospheric scientist will lead a NASA field campaign this winter to fly through major snowstorms along the East Coast. The multi-institutional team will observe snow as it forms in clouds to help with satellite monitoring of snowfall and ultimately improve forecasts.
December 9, 2019
Brian Johnson, assistant professor in the UW Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, has received a $4.9 million grant across three years from the U.S. Department of Energy.
Randy Thompson, a postdoctoral researcher with the UW Jackson School of International Studies will explore the nexus of religion and politics in a new podcast, “ReligioPolitics.”
December 6, 2019
This week in the arts, enjoy Beethoven Trio Cycle with School of Music faculty, use the arts to spark dialogue about memory loss, support Indigenous Artists at the Burke, and more! Beethoven Trio Cycle Concert December 9, 7:30 pm | Meany Center Faculty colleagues Craig Sheppard, piano; Sæunn Thorsteinsdóttir, cello; and Rachel Lee Priday, violin, present the first of a three-concert performance over two seasons of the complete Beethoven piano trio cycle. Join the artists in the West Lobby of Meany…
Joyce Yen — director of the University of Washington’s ADVANCE Center for Institutional Change, an NSF-funded body to promote female STEM faculty on campus — recently worked with the Heising-Simons Foundation to dismantle bias and promote diversity in a prominent grant that the Foundation awards to postdoctoral researchers in planetary science. In this Q&A, Yen shares the many, sometimes counterintuitive ways bias can work against goals toward greater diversity, equity and inclusion in STEM fields.
December 4, 2019
With 2019 on pace as one of the warmest years on record, a new international study reveals how rapidly the Arctic is warming and examines global consequences of continued polar warming.
UW researchers have found that warmer temperatures, at levels expected under most climate change projections, can lead to higher concentrations of arsenic in rice grains.
Joy Williamson-Lott, dean of the UW Graduate School and a professor of education, has been honored for her 2018 book “Jim Crow Campus: Higher Education and the Struggle for a New Southern Social Order.”
Researchers from the University of Washington and Michigan Technological University have created the first comprehensive database of all the wildfire fuels that have been measured across North America. Ultimately, it can help scientists make more informed decisions about fire and smoke situations.
December 3, 2019
Communities underneath and downwind of jets landing at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport are exposed to a type of ultrafine particle pollution that is distinctly associated with aircraft, according to a new University of Washington study, the first to identify the unique signature of aircraft emissions in the state of Washington. The finding comes from the two-year Mobile ObserVations of Ultrafine Particles or “MOV-UP” study funded by the Washington State Legislature to examine the air-quality impacts of aircraft traffic on communities located…
Donald Hellmann, UW professor emeritus in the Jackson School of International studies and of political science, has been awarded the Order of the Rising Sun from the Government of Japan, in recognition of his contributions in promoting academic exchanges and mutual understanding between Japan and the United States. Hellmann, 86, teaches courses on Japanese government and politics, American foreign policy and the international relations of Northeast Asia. He joined the UW in 1967, chaired the Japan Program for several years,…
A new experiment by the University of Washington has found that some corals are more likely to eat microplastics when they are consuming other food, yet microplastics alone are undesirable.
December 2, 2019
UW faculty members Roxanne Hudson and Magdalena Balazinska have received grants for research to be conducted over the next few years.
Recent honors to UW faculty and staff members include an honorary doctorate from the University of Bucharest, membership in an inaugural class of distinguished fellows in pharmacology, and a leadership position in a national student housing association.
UW researchers have created Carpentry Compiler, a digital tool that allows users to design woodworking projects. Once a project is designed, the tool creates optimized fabrication instructions based on the materials and equipment a user has available.
November 27, 2019
Using a mathematical framework with roots in artificial intelligence and robotics, UW researchers were able to uncover the process of how a person makes choices in groups. And, they also found they were able to predict a person’s choice more often than more traditional descriptive methods.
November 26, 2019
UW English professor emeritus Charles Johnson is one of five people whose likeness is featured on posters promoting diversity and inclusion sent by the American Philosophical Association to every college undergraduate philosophy program in the United States and Canada. And he is in excellent company: The other four people featured, each in a separate poster, are American writers Susan Sontag and Mary Higgins Clark; British novelist Kazuo Ishiguro, winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize for literature; and English actor Theo…
Two UW professors — Alex Luedtke and Tyler McCormick — are among 60 researchers the National Institutes of Health has named recipients of its 2019 Director’s New Innovator Awards.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science has named six faculty members from the University of Washington as AAAS Fellows, according to a Nov. 26 announcement. They are part of a cohort of 443 new fellows for 2019, all chosen by their peers for “scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.”
A new University of Washington study finds that families with a father in prison tend to live in neighborhoods with higher poverty.
November 25, 2019
This week in the arts, Three Sisters closes, Professor Shannon Dudley bridges campus and community, Burke Open Doors allows chatting with researchers, and more! Exhibition: In Plain Sight November 23 – April 26, 2020 | Henry Art Gallery This group exhibition engages artists whose work addresses narratives, communities, and histories that are typically hidden or invisible in our public space (both conceptually and literally defined). The presenting artists approach the exhibition’s theme from a range of directions, varying across all media…
Balancing the needs of open science with national security and journal sustainability, and respecting the beliefs of native populations near observatories are among current issues for the American Astronomical Society, said Paula Szkody, University of Washington professor of astronomy. She has begun a term as president-elect of the AAS, and will serve as the society’s president in 2020-2022.
University of Washington faculty members have been awarded grants for research to be conducted over the next few years. Django Paris, an associate professor in the College of Education, has been awarded a $1 million grant from the Spencer Foundation. With the four-year grant, Paris will work with H. Samy Alim, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, to study the strengths and limitations of “culturally sustaining pedagogies” — practices designed to foster cultural pluralism — implemented in…
Welcome to UW Notebook, a new section of the UW News site dedicated to telling stories of good work done by faculty and staff members at the University of Washington.
November 21, 2019
The new class of undergraduates at the University of Washington this fall contains the largest number of Washington state residents in the UW’s history, according to the finalized fall 2019 census of enrolled students released by all three campuses.
November 20, 2019
UW researchers have found that air pollution from electricity generation emissions in 2014 led to about 16,000 premature deaths in the continental U.S. In many states, the majority of the health impacts came from emissions originating in other states.
November 19, 2019
Across its three campuses, the University of Washington generated a total impact on the state’s economy of more than $15.7 billion in FY 2018, according to an economic contribution analysis released today. The study further concludes that the economic activity of the UW system supported or sustained 100,520 jobs throughout the state.
November 18, 2019
New findings from the largest study of socially-transitioned transgender children in the world, conducted by researchers at the University of Washington, show that gender identity and gender-typed preferences manifest similarly in both cis- and transgender children, even those who recently transitioned.
November 15, 2019
An interdisciplinary team of researchers from multiple institutions — including the University of Washington — has received a two-year $1.7 million National Science Foundation grant to study coral growth.