News releases
May 8, 2019
One-third of the world’s longest rivers remain free-flowing, new analysis finds
Just over one-third of the world’s 246 longest rivers remain free-flowing, according to a new study published May 8 in Nature. Dams and reservoirs are drastically reducing the diverse benefits that healthy rivers provide to people and nature across the globe.
ARTSUW Roundup: Peruvian Textiles, This Moment, Innovation the Nordic Way, International Experimental Music Ensemble, MFA Concert, and more!
This week in the arts, examine up-close a selection of Peruvian textiles from the Henry’s collection, attend a lecture about Nordic innovation at the Nordic Museum, go to a graduation exhibition at the Jacob Lawrence Gallery, and more! From the Collection: Peruvian Textiles May 9, 6:30 pm | Henry Art Gallery Quipus, knotted strings used for…
May 3, 2019
Researchers take a bottom-up approach to synthesizing microscopic diamonds for bioimaging, quantum computing
Researchers at the University of Washington, the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory discovered that they can use extremely high pressure and temperature to introduce other elements into nanodiamonds, making them potentially useful in cell and tissue imaging, as well as quantum computing.
May 2, 2019
Bats evolved diverse skull shapes due to echolocation, diet
In a paper published May 2 in Nature Communications, a University of Washington team reports that two major forces have shaped bat skulls over their evolutionary history — echolocation and diet — generating a huge diversity of skull shapes across 1,300 bat species today.
May 1, 2019
Arsenic-breathing life discovered in the tropical Pacific Ocean
In oxygen-poor parts of the ocean, some microorganisms survive by breathing arsenic. This holdover from the ancient Earth was not thought to still exist in the open ocean.
US public support for undocumented immigrants seeking citizenship stronger if pathway includes military service, UW research shows
Americans appear more willing to support a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants if that path includes serving in the United States military, according to new research from UW political scientists Sophia Jordán Wallace and Geoffrey Wallace.
Chemical records in teeth confirm elusive Alaska lake seals are one of a kind
Lifelong chemical records stored in the canine teeth of an elusive group of harbor seals show that the seals remain in freshwater their entire lives and are likely a distinct population from their relatives in the ocean. Their home territory, Iliamna Lake, is in the heart of the proposed Pebble Mine project.
April 30, 2019
Flowering plants, new teeth and no dinosaurs: New study sheds light on the rise of mammals
A new study published April 30 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences identified three factors critical in the rise of mammal communities since they first emerged during the Age of Dinosaurs: the rise of flowering plants; the evolution of tribosphenic molars in mammals; and the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs, which reduced competition between mammals and other vertebrates in terrestrial ecosystems.
UW OMA&D receives $3.6 million gift commitment from Armon Dadgar and Joshua Kalla to support underrepresented students
The University of Washington today announced a $3.6 million gift commitment awarded over 12 years to the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity (OMA&D). The gift commitment will fund full scholarship packages for approximately 30 underrepresented undergraduate students based on financial need.
April 29, 2019
Patterns of compulsive smartphone use suggest how to kick the habit
UW researchers conducted in-depth interviews to learn why we compulsively check our phones.
April 22, 2019
Brains of blind people adapt to sharpen sense of hearing, study shows
Research from the University of Washington uses functional MRI to identify two differences in the brains of blind individuals — differences that might be responsible for their abilities to make better use of auditory information.
April 19, 2019
New space race: Essays from Jackson School symposium explore changing law, policy
A new space race is underway, characterized by the intersecting trends of democratization, commercialization and militarization. Saadia Pekkanen, UW professor of international relations, is lead guest editor for a group of essays addressing such issues and more published online this month in the American Journal of International Law.
April 18, 2019
Project Sidewalk helps users map accessibility around Seattle, other cities
UW researchers have led the development of Project Sidewalk, an online crowdsourcing game that lets anyone with an internet connection use Google Street View to virtually explore neighborhoods and label curb ramps, missing or rough sidewalks, obstacles and more.
April 16, 2019
Mindful body awareness training during treatment for drug addiction helps prevent relapse
A novel type of body awareness training helps women recover from drug addiction, according to new research from the University of Washington. People in the study made marked improvement, and many improvements lasted for a year.
April 15, 2019
Historic logging site shows first human-caused bedrock erosion along an entire river
Over many years, a University of Washington team has shown how logging on the Teanaway River in central Washington caused dramatic changes to the river channel.
Synthetic peptide can inhibit toxicity, aggregation of protein in Alzheimer’s disease, researchers show
A team led by researchers at the University of Washington has developed synthetic peptides that target and inhibit the small, toxic protein aggregates that are thought to trigger Alzheimer’s disease.
April 10, 2019
David Thouless — Nobel laureate and UW professor emeritus — dies at age 84
David James Thouless, Nobel laureate and a professor emeritus at the University of Washington, died in Cambridge in the U.K. on April 6, 2019. He was 84 years old.
National Academies join colleges and universities, including UW, to found Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have joined with over 40 colleges, universities, and research institutions, including the University of Washington, to launch an Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education.
April 9, 2019
ArtsUW Roundup: The Hip Hop Architect, Anne Focke Leadership Award, Basara 婆娑羅 and the Medieval Origins of Japanese Maximalism, and more!
This week in the arts, celebrate 100 years of influence of the iconic choreographer Merce Cunningham; attend an East African Retro Pop concert with Alsarah and the Nubatrones, attend a graduation exhibition opening the Jacob Lawrence Gallery, and more. The Hip Hop Architect: Michael Ford April 10, 6:30 pm | Kane Hall, Room 130 The…
April 8, 2019
Water and wastewater disinfection can help prevent the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria, but what about their genes?
A UW team tested how well current water and wastewater disinfecting methods affect antibiotic resistance genes in bacterial DNA. While these methods work well to deter bacterial growth, they had varied success in either degrading or deactivating a representative antibiotic resistance gene.
April 4, 2019
April ‘Weather Madness’: UW wins top team, individual prizes in national forecasting contest, now enters tournament round
A University of Washington team placed first in a national weather forecasting contest that began in September. A UW graduate student also developed a model that for the first time beat out all human competitors.
Golden State Warriors President and COO Rick Welts to deliver UW’s 2019 commencement address
Rick Welts, president and chief operating officer of the back-to-back NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2018, and a University of Washington alumnus, will be the featured speaker at the UW’s Commencement exercises Saturday, June 15.
April 3, 2019
ArtsUW Roundup: Ballet Preljocaj, Sara Siestreem, Art+Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon, and more!
This week in the arts, explore the private studios of the Master of Fine Arts students in Painting + Drawing at the Sandpoint Studios + Gallery and talk with the artists about their completed artworks and work in progress, experience the music of Harry Partch on his original instruments, participate in a Art+Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon…
UW virtuoso of mobile sensing technology receives ACM Prize in Computing
A University of Washington professor, Shwetak Patel, is the recipient of the 2018 ACM Prize in Computing for contributions to creative and practical sensing systems for sustainability and health, the Association for Computing Machinery or ACM announced today.
March 29, 2019
North Dakota site shows wreckage from same object that killed the dinosaurs
A new excavation site in North Dakota shows evidence from the day a giant meteor struck Earth, marking the beginning of the end for the dinosaurs and 75 percent of animal life.
March 26, 2019
Advice from UW pharmacists on senior use of marijuana
Marijuana use among older adults has soared in recent years despite little being known about the effectiveness and safety of the drug in people 65 and older. That’s resulted in more seniors asking health care providers about marijuana use: Is it safe? How much to use? Where to buy?
New tool maps a key food source for grizzly bears: huckleberries
Researchers have developed a new approach to map huckleberry distribution across Glacier National Park that uses publicly available satellite imagery. Tracking where huckleberry plants live now — and where they may move under climate change — can help biologists predict where grizzly bears will also be found.
March 21, 2019
Hundreds of bubble streams link biology, seismology off Washington’s coast
The first survey of methane vent sites off Washington’s coast finds 1,778 bubble columns, with most located along a north-south band that is in line with a geologic fault.
With a ‘hello,’ Microsoft and UW demonstrate first fully automated DNA data storage
UW and Microsoft researchers have demonstrated the first fully automated system to store and retrieve data in manufactured DNA — a key step in moving the technology out of the research lab and into commercial data centers.
March 20, 2019
University of Washington among Peace Corps’ top 5 volunteer-producing schools in 2019
The Peace Corps today announced that the University of Washington ranked No. 5 among large schools on the agency’s list of top volunteer-producing colleges and universities in 2019. There currently are 62 UW alumni volunteering in countries around the world.
March 19, 2019
Managed retreat due to rising seas is a public health issue
Sea-level rise associated with climate change is a concern for many island and coastal communities. While the dangers may seem far off for large coastal cities like Miami or New Orleans, the advancing oceans are already displacing some small indigenous communities, and many others are at risk around the world.
March 18, 2019
Information School to welcome high school students March 19 for ‘MisInfo Day’ – from ‘Calling BS’ faculty duo
The UW Information School is taking a leading role in helping people better navigate this era of increasing online fakery and falsehood. On March 19, the school will welcome 200-some Seattle-area high school students for “MisInfo Day,” a daylong workshop on how to navigate the misinformation landscape, from Jevin West and Carl Bergstrom, the faculty duo behind “Calling BS in the Age of Big Data.”
March 14, 2019
Jackson School’s Devin Naar featured in documentary premiering March 24 at Seattle’s Jewish Film Festival
Devin Naar, UW professor of international studies and history, is featured in “Children of the Inquisition,” a new documentary film about descendants of the Spanish and Portuguese inquisitions discovering their Sephardic Jewish heritage. The film will premiere March 24 as part of the Seattle Jewish Film Festival.
March 13, 2019
New method to assess platelet health could help ER doctors
UW researchers have created a novel system that can measure platelet function within two minutes and can help doctors determine which trauma patients might need a blood transfusion upon being admitted to a hospital.
March 12, 2019
ARTSUW Roundup: The Bomba Experience, Seattle Symphony with UW Music Faculty, and more
This week in the arts, see In the Heart of America, experience recent augmented reality and virtual reality (AR/VR) projects from UW students, attend a free concert with the Seattle Symphony and UW School of Music faculty, and more! In the Heart of America March 6 – 17 | Floyd and Delores Jones Playhouse In the…
A school that values diversity could have health benefits for students of color
Students of color who attend schools with a culture and mission statements that emphasize the value of diversity show better cardiovascular health than peers whose schools do not express such values, according to a new study.
March 11, 2019
University of Washington graduate and professional disciplines rank highly in US News’ Best Graduate School lists
The University of Washington’s graduate and professional degree programs were widely recognized as among the best in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2020 Best Graduate School rankings released March 12.
When coyote parents get used to humans, their offspring become bolder, too
When coyote parents are habituated to humans, their offspring are more habituated, too — potentially leading to negative interactions between coyotes and humans.
Black and Hispanic Americans bear a disproportionate burden from air pollution
Black and Hispanic Americans bear a disproportionate burden from air pollution generated mainly by non-Hispanic white Americans, according to new research from a team led by the University of Washington and the University of Minnesota.
How to train your robot (to feed you dinner)
Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a robotic system that can feed people who need someone to help them eat.
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