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The latest news from the UW

Tag: College of Arts & Sciences

February 14, 2022

DNA testing exposes tactics of international criminal networks trafficking elephant ivory

A team led by scientists at the University of Washington and special agents with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has used genetic testing of ivory shipments seized by law enforcement to uncover the international criminal networks behind ivory trafficking out of Africa. The genetic connections across shipments that they’ve uncovered exposes an even higher degree of organization among ivory smuggling networks than previously known. The paper, published Feb. 14 in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, incorporates results from DNA testing of more than 4,000 African elephant tusks from 49 different ivory seizures made in 12 African nations over a 17-year period.

February 10, 2022

ArtSci Roundup: Charles Yu at Benaroya Hall, Faculty Recital: Melia Watras: The almond tree duos, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Charles Yu at Benaroya Hall February 15, 7:30 PM | Benaroya Hall & Online Shawn Wong, Professor of English, will moderate the Q&A at the upcoming lecture with celebrated author Charles Yu (HBO’s “Westworld;” “How to Live Safely in a Science Fiction Universe”).  Interior Chinatown is a deeply…

February 9, 2022

New IAU center to focus on solutions to satellite interference in astronomical observations

The International Astronomical Union has launched the Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference to coordinate collaborative multidisciplinary international efforts with institutions and individuals — including researchers at the University of Washington’s DiRAC Institute — to help mitigate the negative impacts of satellite constellations on ground-based optical and radio astronomy observations as well as humanity’s enjoyment of the night sky.

New Center for Environmental Forensic Science aims to disrupt and dismantle international illegal wildlife trade

seized ivory

Across the globe, endangered species are at risk for illegal poaching. African elephants are sought out for their ivory, rhinoceros for their singular horns, and armadillo-like pangolins for their protective, brittle scales. Add to that list valuable and environmentally sensitive trees illegally harvested throughout the world where entire ecosystems are being deforested and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing that is devastating oceans. These illicit markets, estimated at $1 trillion annually, cause enormous environmental impacts and have the potential to unleash new, deadly pathogens.

February 4, 2022

Mosquitoes are seeing red: Why new findings about their vision could help you hide from these disease vectors

New research led by scientists at the University of Washington indicates that a common mosquito species — after detecting a telltale gas that we exhale — flies toward specific colors, including red, orange, black and cyan. The mosquitoes ignore other colors, such as green, purple, blue and white. The researchers believe these findings help explain how mosquitoes find hosts, since human skin, regardless of overall pigmentation, emits a strong red-orange “signal” to their eyes.

ArtSci Roundup: UW 2022 Heritage Language Symposium, Inequity at Boiling Point, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Inequity at Boiling Point February 9, 4:00 PM | Online via Zoom Join us in conversation with Somini Sengupta, an award-winning New York Times foreign correspondent, on what she’s learned as a journalist covering the human toll of global warming. Sponsored by The Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies in…

January 27, 2022

ArtSci Roundup: UW Symphony, Photograph 51, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  UW Symphony February 4, 7:30 PM | Meany Hall David Alexander Rahbee leads the University Symphony in a program of music by Klengel, Mahler, Pärt, and Schubert. With graduate student conductors Daren Weissfisch and Rylan Virnig. $10 | Buy tickets & more info 2022 History Lecture Series: Capitalism…

January 26, 2022

Four UW faculty members, incoming Burke Museum leader named 2021 AAAS Fellows

Four current faculty members and the incoming executive director of the UW’s Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture have been named AAAS Fellows, according to a Jan. 26 announcement by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. They are among 564 new fellows from around the world elected in 2021, who are recognized for “their scientifically and socially distinguished achievements” in science and engineering.

January 25, 2022

Hungry yeast are tiny, living thermometers

University of Washington researchers report that yeast cells can actively regulate a process called phase separation in one of their membranes. During phase separation, the membrane remains intact but partitions into multiple, distinct zones or domains that segregate lipids and proteins. The new findings show for the first time that, in response to environmental conditions, yeast cells precisely regulate the temperature at which their membrane undergoes phase separation.

January 20, 2022

ArtSci Roundup: Small Island Big Song: Our Island, Photograph 51, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Small Island Big Song: Our Island January 29, 7:30 PM | The Great Hall and online In partnership with the UW Taiwan Studies Arts & Culture Program, Town Hall Seattle is thrilled and honored to serve as the first stop on Small Island Big Song’s 2022 U.S. and European…

January 12, 2022

ArtSci Roundup: Re/frame: Illumination, 2022 Critical Issues Lecture Series: Andrea Chung, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Re/frame: Illumination January 20, 12:00 – 1:00 PM | Online Light allows us to perceive our surroundings, it shows us the path ahead, and it focuses our attention. It evokes emotions and sensations, bringing us comfort, highlighting tension, or provoking playfulness, to name a few. Join the Henry Art…

January 11, 2022

Researchers find concerns for animals tied to same habitats

Like humans, wild animals often return to the same places to eat, walk on the same paths to travel and use the same places to raise their young. A team led by researchers at the University of Washington and the University of Wyoming has reviewed the scientific literature and found that, while “consistent” behavior may be beneficial when environmental conditions don’t change very fast, those benefits may not be realized in the ever-changing world dominated by humans.

January 6, 2022

ArtSci Roundup: Virtual Artist Panel, EL SUEÑO: THE FLOWERS THAT BLOOM, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Virtual Artist Panel: The Work of Collaboration with Barbara Earl Thomas, Derrick Adams, Janelle Iglesias, and Lisa Iglesias January 13, 6:00 PM | Online This virtual panel is hosted by the National Nordic Museum, in partnership with the Henry Art Gallery. On the occasions of M(other) Tongues: Bodhild and…

January 4, 2022

Mass die-off of Magellanic penguins seen during 2019 heat wave

In 2019, University of Washington researchers witnessed the consequences of an extreme heat event in Argentina at one of the world’s largest breeding colonies for Magellanic penguins. On Jan. 19, temperatures at the site in Punta Tombo, on Argentina’s southern coast, spiked in the shade to 44 C, or 111.2 F. As the team reports in a paper published Jan. 4 in the journal Ornithological Applications, the extreme heat wave killed at least 354 penguins, based on a search for bodies by UW researchers in the days following the record high temperature. Nearly three-quarters of the penguins that died — 264 — were adults, many of which likely died of dehydration, based on postmortem analyses.

December 22, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: UW Dance Presents, 2022 History Lecture Series, and more

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Restoring Public Trust in Higher Education January 6, 6-7:30 PM | Online Recent studies show a trend of declining trust in higher education among Americans of both major political parties – but is this trend warranted? The 8th annual UW Impact Legislative Preview brings leaders from the worlds…

December 9, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Diana Al-Hadid: Archive of Longings, Burke Museum Exhibitions, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! Relax toward the end of the quarter by visiting on-campus museums and watching recorded events. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Diana Al-Hadid: Archive of Longings Through February 6 | Henry Art Gallery Diana Al-Hadid’s work explores the interplay between the female body and the European art canon; Syrian, Muslim, and immigrant histories and…

December 8, 2021

‘Would you like a little ice with your exoplanet?’ For Earth-like worlds, that may be a tall order

An artistic rendering showing an exoplanet with polar ice caps.

A team at the University of Washington and the University of Bern has computationally simulated more than 200,000 hypothetical Earth-like worlds all in orbit of stars like our sun. As they report in a paper accepted to the Planetary Science Journal and submitted Dec. 6 to the preprint site arXiv, on these simulated exoplanets, one common feature of present-day Earth was often lacking: partial ice coverage. About 90% of these potentially habitable hypothetical worlds lacked partial surface ice like polar caps.

December 1, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: 9th Annual Ladino Day, CarolFest, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend concerts, lectures, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Gospel Choir December 6, 7:30 PM | Meany Hall Phyllis Byrdwell, School of Music alumni and Minister of Music at Mount Zion Baptist Church of Seattle leads the 100-voice gospel choir in songs of praise, jubilation, and other expressions of the Gospel tradition….

November 23, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: “Working, Together” Seminar Series, First Wednesday Concert Series: UW Baroque Ensemble, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend concerts, exhibitions, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Roundtable – Challenging Hegemony: Taiwan, the Baltic, and the EU November 30, 7:00 PM | Online Lithuania’s recent decision to accept a Taiwan Representative Office has created outsized reverberations across Europe, Asia, and the world.  With the decision to utilize the name “Taiwan,”…

November 18, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Astria Suparak: Asian futures, without Asians, Jazz Innovations, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend lectures, exhibitions, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Astria Suparak: Asian futures, without Asians November 30, 6:00 PM | Online What does it mean when so many white filmmakers envision futures inflected by Asian culture, but devoid of actual Asian people? This is the central question posed by artist…

November 10, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Political Science Faculty Panel: Is Democracy Dead?, Benaroya Lecture, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend lectures, exhibitions, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Sharing Indigenous Knowledge Across Boundaries: Fishing Sovereignty in Alaska and British Columbia November 16, 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM | Online Pacific herring are foundational to the lifeways of First Nations and Indigenous communities up and down the coast of British…

ArtSci Roundup: DXARTS Fall Concert: Real & Imagined Soundworlds, The Importance of Being Earnest, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend lectures, concerts, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  DXARTS Fall Concert: Real & Imagined Soundworlds November 9, 7:30 PM | Meany Hall–Katharyn Alvord Gerlich Theater The Department of Digital Art and Experimental Media (DXARTS) is pleased to present a program of the very latest holographic sound works from DXARTS composers…

October 29, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Global Month

November is UW Global Month!  UW Global Month celebrates our University’s global impact and community. During the month of November, we highlight the connections and relationships the UW has all over the world and the impact of our University’s global engagement. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Converge: Virtual Series Ongoing Without borders, registration fees or the challenges of travel, last year’s “Convirtual” created a historic gathering…

October 27, 2021

Fossil dental exams reveal how tusks first evolved

Illustration of an ancient mammal-like creature in a forest setting.

Many animals have tusks, from elephants to walruses to hyraxes. But one thing tusked animals have in common is that they’re all mammals — no known fish, reptiles or birds have them. But that was not always the case. In a study published Oct. 27 in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, a team of paleontologists at Harvard University, the Field Museum, the University of Washington and Idaho State University traced the first tusks back to dicynodonts — ancient mammal relatives that lived before the dinosaurs.

October 21, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Maysoon Zayid – Survival of the Unfittest, BOOK TALK: Automation and Autonomy, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend lectures, book talks, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Maysoon Zayid – Survival of the Unfittest October 26, 6:30 PM | Meany Performing Arts Center Join comedian, disability advocate, and author Maysoon Zayid for “Survival of the Unfittest.” This one-hour talk will tackle everything from diversity to cats named…

October 20, 2021

The Jackson School’s Taso Lagos reflects on becoming American at his family’s restaurant, the Continental

sketch of a restaurant

In 2013, Seattle’s U District neighborhood lost one of its most cherished businesses. The Continental Greek Restaurant and Pastry Shop, owned by the family of the Jackson School’s Taso Lagos, sat on University Way for nearly 40 years before closing its doors that June. Lagos looks back on the restaurant and what it meant to his family in a memoir due to be released this fall.

October 15, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Frontiers of Physics Lecture, Chamber Dance Company: 30th Anniversary Season, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend performances, lectures, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Frontiers of Physics Lecture: Gravity: The Biggest Open Question in Fundamental Physics October 20, 7:30 – 9:00 PM | Online The Frontiers of Physics Lecture Series brings renowned scientists to the UW to offer free lectures on exciting advances in physics with the…

October 5, 2021

Education should focus on ‘heads and hearts,’ UW researcher says

A college classroom with students seated in a lecture hall.

In a Policy Forum piece published Oct. 1 in Science, a group led by Nesra Yannier at Carnegie Mellon University is advocating for a fresh look at active learning and its potential as classrooms and lecture halls again fill with students. Two co-authors from the University of Washington’s Department of Biology — assistant teaching professor Elli Theobald and lecturer emeritus Scott Freeman — highlight the role that active learning methods have in promoting equity STEM education.

October 4, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Math Bass: a picture stuck in the mirror, The World of Noh Drama with Takeda Munenori, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, lectures, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Math Bass: a picture stuck in the mirror October 16 – March 6 | Henry Art Gallery Los Angeles-based artist Math Bass (b. 1981, New York, NY) will create a site-specific installation at the Henry Art Gallery featuring a series of recent oil paintings…

September 28, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Fossil Costume Contest, Packaged Black, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, lectures, and more. Many of these opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Fossil Costume Contest October 2 – 31 | Burke Museum Celebrate the 12th anniversary of National Fossil Day with the Burke Museum’s Fossil Costume Contest! Draw your costume inspiration from the museum’s collection, or the National Park Service National Fossil Day…

New NSF-funded institute to harness AI for accelerated discoveries in physics, astronomy and neuroscience

A venn diagram

On Sept. 28, the National Science Foundation announced $15 million, five-year grant to integrate AI tools into the scientific research and discovery process. The award will fund the Accelerated AI Algorithms for Data-Driven Discovery Institute — or A3D3 Institute — a partnership of nine universities, led by the University of Washington.