A University of Washington team won first place in a science communication video contest that culminated during the recent Ocean Sciences Meeting.
UW News blog
The UW Information School’s 2015-16 undergraduate cohort in informatics is not only the school’s largest yet with 210 students, it also includes more women students than ever before — about 40 percent.
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded the University of Washington a three-year, $750,000 grant to support guest artists in developing new works, and to better integrate arts disciplines into the broader university curriculum.
The grant will support a Creative Fellowships Initiative, under which guest performing artist fellows will be recruited from around the world for one- to three-year residencies in dance, music and theater.
If people find it easier to get data from the city of Seattle going forward, they can in part thank the University of Washington. A team of UW faculty members and doctoral students spent the past six months working with the city on a new open data policy unveiled last week by Mayor Ed Murray. The policy requires all city departments to make their data as accessible as possible to the public while upholding privacy and security considerations. The UW…
For soldiers serving in the Vietnam War, music was a salve, a connection to home and a temporary respite from the horrors of combat. In “We Gotta Get Out of This Place,” Rolling Stone’s #1 Best Music Book of 2015, Doug Bradley and Craig Werner explore the importance of music to U.S. troops in Vietnam, relaying powerful, intimate stories told by veterans themselves. Bradley, a Vietnam veteran, teaches a course on the war with Werner, a professor of Afro-American studies…
Investigate a real ice core from Greenland, survey microbes from the coldest parts of the world, explore an Arctic ice camp and meet with polar scientists – many of whom are from the University of Washington. It’s all part of Polar Science Weekend, returning to Seattle’s Pacific Science Center March 4-6. The three-day event features interactive exhibits and opportunities to talk with top polar scientists who work in some of the most remote and challenging places on Earth. New this…
University Book Store announced Thursday that it has opted to close its store in the University’s South Campus building and move its products and services to the flagship store on University Way Northeast. Though the relocation date has yet to be determined, University Book Store is planning for sometime before June. “Our lease was up for renewal, so it was time to evaluate whether we were successfully fulfilling our mission to provide our students with the materials they needed to succeed,” said…
The University of Washington was ranked No. 7 by Business First, a Buffalo-based publication, for America’s top 10 best public colleges and universities, the publication released Tuesday, Feb. 23. Business First, owned by American City Business Journals, used a 20-part formula based on academic excellence, prestige, affordability, diversity and economic strength to calculate each of the 477 participating universities’ scores. Out of the six Washington institutions included in the report, the UW ranked first, following by Washington State University (No. 112). UC Berkeley…
The cherry trees in the Quad at UW will likely be in full bloom the week of March 14.
UW employees are invited to attend an open forum March 2 to learn more about the university’s plans to create an HR/Payroll Integrated Service Center.
The University of Washington is one of the top producers of Fulbright students for 2015-16, according to lists released Monday in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
A new study of fishing practices found that the “risky” behavior that makes fishing one of the most dangerous lines of work dropped sharply following the adoption of catch shares management in the West Coast fixed gear sablefish fishery.
If you are a University of Washington supervisor, you have probably participated in the Strategic Leadership Program — a customized training program enhancing communication and managerial skill. Developed and taught by University of Washington Professional & Organizational Development, the program has graduated over 4000 supervisors since it launched almost 16 years ago. On Feb. 4, the Strategic Leadership Program received the top leadership excellence award for Best Corporate University at the national LEAD2016 conference sponsored by HR.com and held at…
The University of Washington campus already is home to a lot of great public art. Now there are two additions to the campus collection — one at the Odegaard Undergraduate Library and the other at wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House.
Tom Anderson, a University of Washington professor of computer science and engineering and alumnus, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering. Also elected are UW civil engineering alumnus Jon Magnusson and computer science alumnus Albert Greenberg.
We know the Earth is habitable because — well, here we are. But would it look like a good candidate for life from hundreds of light-years away?
UW seismologist John Vidale will participate in a White House summit focusing on national earthquake preparedness.
The acclaimed 2012 book “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” is the foundation for a daylong “teach-in” at the University of Washington Feb. 9. The event is titled “Perpetual Displacement and Bondage: Understanding Historical and Contemporary Intersections of Mass Incarceration, Racism, and Health.” It’s free and open to the public, and will include four sessions on various aspects of mass incarceration featuring UW faculty members and community speakers. Alison Holcomb, director of the American Civil…
The UW has signed on to a new report and initiative encouraging changes to the college admissions process to promote greater ethical and intellectual engagement on the part of prospective students.
Two University of Washington teams claimed top prizes in a national competition to design a game about climate adaptation.
First-time visitors and regulars to Washington Park Arboretum can now learn the names and origins of plants as well as save favorites while strolling through the grounds.
Helen Garrett has been selected as the University of Washington’s new university registrar and chief officer for enrollment information services. “Helen emerged as the top candidate from a very deep pool of applicants. Her substantial experience in enrollment management combined with her wealth of knowledge regarding data and student information services were exactly what the registrar search committee was looking for,” said Philip Reid, chair of the registrar search committee and professor of chemistry. “She has the right combination of…
In December, the University of Washington’s Department of Bioengineering began accepting applications for its newest graduate degree program, the Master of Applied Bioengineering. The one-year, full-time program begins in August, and will train students to apply engineering design and entrepreneurship skills to address unmet clinical needs and to transform biomedical research into technologies for improving health care. The degree will position graduates to respond to market-based demands of industry, medicine and translational research.
Kellye Y. Testy, dean of the University of Washington’s law school, will give her inaugural address as president of the Association of American Law Schools tomorrow night in Washington, D.C. Testy previously served on the association‘s executive committee and was voted in as its president in October 2014. She takes over from 2015 president Blake Morant, dean of The George Washington University Law School. “It is an incredible honor for me to be elected president of AALS, and I look forward…
Astronomers with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) announced that a distant quasar ran out of gas. Their conclusions, reported Jan. 8 at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Kissimmee, Florida, clarify why quasar SDSS J1011+5442 changed so dramatically in the handful of years between observations.
Two University of Washington faculty members joined Washington Gov. Jay Inslee Wednesday as he announced a new initiative to reduce gun-related deaths by strengthening background checks and implementing a statewide suicide prevention plan. Jennifer Stuber, an associate professor at the UW School of Social Work, and Monica Vavilala, director of the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, stood alongside Inslee as he made the announcement at a mental health center in Burien. “This is a public health response to a…
UW scientists will give free talks on climate change for three consecutive Saturdays at Mt. Baker Ski Area.
DO-IT, a University of Washington program, is looking for high school students with disabilities to apply to be program scholars. Applicants must be a current high school sophomore or junior in Washington, have an aptitude and interest in attending college, have any disability, and must be motivated to participate and interested in interacting with other students with a variety of disabilities. The application can be found online. Applicants who are selected as DO-IT scholars are loaned computers and adaptive technology needed to…
Today’s college graduates tend to be highly trained and employable but often lack a key skill needed for post-college life: how to identify and ask their own questions, according to a new study.
Eric Agol, a University of Washington professor of astronomy, will receive the 2016 Lecar Prize from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. The award, now in its third year, recognizes exceptional contributions to the study of exoplanets — those beyond our solar system — and theoretical astrophysics. It is named for Myron S. “Mike” Lecar, who was with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory from 1965 to 2009, researching planet formation and the dynamics of gravity and our solar system. Lecar died in…
When campaigning for social change, disruptive protests may win a few battles but education is more likely to win the war, according to research by Abhinav Gupta, an assistant professor of strategic management at the University of Washington Foster School of Business. Gupta and co-authors studied “Rein in Russell,” a 2009 campaign by United Students Against Sweatshops at Pennsylvania State University and other institutions designed to pressure the company Russell Athletic to change its anti-union business tactics and reopen a…
The University of Washington College of Built Environments and School of Public Health have been selected as part of a national initiative seeking to translate research on how design impacts public health into architectural practice. The two UW schools have been selected to join the American Institute of Architects’ multi-school Design & Health Research Consortium. Over a three-year period, the institute and the Architects Foundation will provide support for the new members, promoting local and national partnerships and the sharing…
University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce joined a small group of UW students Monday morning to get a crash course in coding as part of Code.org‘s Hour of Code event during Computer Science Education Week. Cauce worked with Sukhdeep Singh, a freshman at UW who hopes to double major in business and computer science, in the Hour of Code Monday. See GeekWire’s coverage of Monday’s events at the UW and across Seattle. For more information about Computer Science Education Week and the Hour of Code,…
The University of Washington Sephardic Studies Program will host its third annual International Ladino Day, celebrating Sephardic language and culture, in a free event at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, in Room 130 of Kane Hall. The event will be followed by a kosher reception. This year’s featured speakers are members of Los Ladineros, a long-running local Ladino conversation group, and scholars Julia Phillips Cohen of Vanderbilt University and Sarah Abrevaya Stein of the University of California, Los Angeles, who…
Each year, hundreds of volunteers spread across Washington’s forests and grasslands to look for the state’s rarest, most sensitive plant species. Many of these endangered populations live in remote valleys or along unseen slopes and haven’t been seen in a decade or more. That’s where the University of Washington’s Rare Plant Care and Conservation program comes in. Its team of more than 200 volunteers fans out each summer to gather intel, one plant population at a time, on some 4,000…
The New York Times has named a recent book by two faculty members in the UW’s Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies to its list of 100 Most Notable Books of 2015. “The Shape of the New: Four Big Ideas and How They Built the Modern World,” by Scott L. Montgomery and Daniel Chirot was published in May by Princeton University Press. “Our approach is simple and direct,” Montgomery said in an interview with UW Today about the book….
President Obama has been leading the charge for criminal justice reform in recent months, calling for sweeping changes to reduce mass incarceration and commuting sentences for non-violent offenders. This week, the White House and Department of Justice are bringing together researchers, legal system practitioners and advocacy organizations at events focused on criminal justice system reform — and two University of Washington sociologists are among the participants. Alexes Harris and Hedwig (Hedy) Lee, UW associate professors of sociology, will be at…
Women routinely outperform men in university classrooms across the United States and are invited more often than men to join student honors societies — yet women continue to be paid far less than similarly qualified male colleagues. Adding to that inequity, women also fare poorly when suing to recover damages for workplace sex and gender discrimination in the courts, with only 6 percent of such cases going to trial and then only one-third of even those cases being successful. These…
Interested in the Syrian refugee crisis? A public discussion at the University of Washington Tuesday, Nov. 24 aims to provide information about how local residents and communities can help advocate for Syrian refugees. Sponsored by UW Law’s Immigrant Families Advocacy Project, the “Social Justice Tuesday” event will be held from 12:30 to 1:20 p.m. in Room 127 in William H. Gates Hall, with a reception and snacks afterward in Room 115. Speakers are: Rahaf Baker, who migrated from Syria to…
Neutrinos may be small, but when it comes to prizes, they pack quite a punch. In October, it was announced that two scientists who headed international projects to study these miniscule, seemingly ephemeral subatomic particles will share the Nobel Prize in Physics. On Nov. 8, these same scientists joined five of their colleagues from other neutrino projects to accept the 2016 Breakthrough Prize in Physics. The $3 million prize will be shared among the over 1,300 scientists, including University of…