UW News

Research Makes America


October 8, 2025

‘Much-loved’ UW collaborator John Clarke wins the Nobel Prize in Physics

Leslie Rosenberg and Gray Rybka lower a large dark matter scanning device into the ground

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on Tuesday awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics jointly to John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret and John M. Martinis, “for the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunneling and energy quantization in an electric circuit.” Clarke, a professor emeritus of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, collaborates with the Axion Dark Matter Experiment at the University of Washington.


October 6, 2025

UW alum Mary E. Brunkow awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

A person sitting at a table reacting to something off camera

The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute on Monday awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly to Mary E. Brunkow — an alum of the University of Washington — along with Frederick J. Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi “for groundbreaking discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance that prevents the immune system from harming the body.”


September 25, 2025

Q&A: Insect pollinators need more higher-quality habitats to help farmers, new research says

A bee hovers over a yellow flower

In a new study, a team of scientists determined the minimum natural habitat on agricultural land that will allow insect pollinators — including bumble bees, solitary bees, hoverflies and butterflies — to thrive. UW News reached out to co-author Berry Brosi, UW professor of biology, to learn more about these results and how habitat is important to two types of bees native to Washington.


September 23, 2025

Longer body size means more female calves for baleen whale moms

Two whales, a mother and her calf, swim toward the surface of the ocean.

University of Washington researchers found, in historical whaling data, that longer baleen whale mothers were more likely to birth female calves than males. These results run contrary to a leading evolutionary theory that suggests that fit mothers will benefit more from male offspring.


September 22, 2025

Inconsistent charging stations hinder EV adoption

A row of white electric vehicles charge at a public charging station.

New research from the UW tested how much a car owner’s perception of public charger reliability influences their willingness to buy their first EV. The results were dramatic: Participants with a negative view of public charging were far less likely to choose an EV than those with a moderate view.


September 16, 2025

Q&A: From TVs to the future of computing, UW professor explains what makes quantum dots shine

Two white diamond shapes on a black background

Quantum dots, which are 10,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair, are unique materials that generate very specific colors of light. Researchers, including Brandi Cossairt, UW professor of chemistry, hope that quantum dots can one day be useful for more than just illuminating TV screens. UW News asked her to compare the quantum dots in QLED TVs with the ones her lab makes.


September 10, 2025

Researchers find key to Antarctic ice loss blowing in the north wind

A large wall of ice sits atop the ice-covered surface of west Antarctica. Penguins walk across the surface of the sea ice.

Antarctic ice is melting at a startling pace, and the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is one of the greatest sources of uncertainty in climate projections. Researchers thought westerly winds were accelerating ice loss, but a new study from UW flips the narrative by 90 degrees, pointing instead to winds from the north.


September 8, 2025

Ocean warming puts vital marine microbe at risk

Sunset aboard the Thomas G. Thompson research vessel during a research cruise.

Prochlorococcus, the most abundant photosynthesizing organism in the ocean, might be more vulnerable to climate change than researchers thought. Population decline could weaken the foundation of subtropical and tropical ecosystems as ocean temperatures continue to rise.


August 27, 2025

New ad highlights national impact of Big Ten universities

Big10 we are here

The positive impact of Big Ten universities across the Pacific Northwest and around the nation will be highlighted in a new 30-second ad that will air during sporting events featuring conference members, starting with this week’s season-opening football games. The ad – entitled “We Are Here” – will air alongside the fan-favorite “Maps” spot. The…


Fund for Science and Technology invests in the UW College of the Environment to further innovation and research related to climate solutions

three researchers collecting specimens in a marsh

The University of Washington’s College of the Environment will expand its work related to climate solutions thanks to a grant announced today from Fund for Science and Technology, FFST, a new foundation within the Paul G. Allen philanthropic ecosystem.


August 25, 2025

This AI model simulates 1000 years of the current climate in just one day

Satellite image of the US showing a low pressure weather system hovering over the midwest and extending east. Exemplary of the simulations the model creates.

University of Washington researchers use AI to simulate the Earth’s current climate and interannual variability for up to 1,000 years. The model runs on a single processor and takes just 12 hours to generate a forecast.


August 19, 2025

UW research shows Fresh Bucks program improves fruit and vegetable intake, food security

Fruits and vegetables on a shelf at a grocery store

A new study from the University of Washington shows that households enrolled in the City of Seattle’s Fresh Bucks program experience a 31% higher rate of food security and consume at least three daily servings of fruits and vegetables 37% more often than those assigned to a program waitlist. Fresh Bucks, a $40 a month benefit, works with local partners to help residents access fresh food.


August 4, 2025

Video: USDA freezes UW project that turns Washington shellfish farmers’ seaweed problem into soil solution for land farmers

A man in bright orange waders holds a small clam.

A UW-led project aimed to test the viability of seaweed as a soil amendment, and, if successful, develop a market for sea-based farmers to sell excess seaweed to their counterparts on land. The USDA froze the project’s funding, and for now, a solution remains just out of reach.


‘The discovery of the decade’: Researchers have found the culprit behind sea star wasting disease

the underside of a sea star

An international research effort, including scientists from the University of Washington, has finally revealed the cause of sea star wasting disease: a strain of the bacterium Vibrio pectenicida.


April 2, 2025

Children exposed to higher ozone levels early in life are more likely to develop asthma

A pair of hands opens a gray inhaler.

Children exposed to higher levels of ozone in their first two years of life were significantly more likely to be diagnosed with asthma or wheezing at ages 4-6 — but researchers didn’t observe the increased risk of asthma at ages 8-9.  


February 3, 2025

Q&A: UW researchers are designing cancer therapeutics that can kill cancer cells and restore healthy tissue

A graphic for World Cancer Day. Two different hands holding cancer ribbon with heart shaped globe in background.

Two University of Washington researchers are developing treatments that aim to simultaneously treat cancer and improve patients’ quality of life. For World Cancer Day, UW News asked them to discuss their novel materials and how these materials can treat both the cancer and the patient.


December 19, 2024

By looking at individual atoms in tooth enamel, UW and PNNL researchers are learning what happens to our teeth as we age

A person stands behind a white machine

A research team at UW and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory examined the atomic composition of enamel samples from two human teeth.


November 18, 2024

Q&A: UW professor discusses how academia can help battery manufacturing in the US

Two lithium ion batterys on a conveyer belt

Jie Xiao, University of Washington professor of mechanical engineering, talks about batteries and how academia can help support the growing domestic battery manufacturing industry.


October 29, 2024

Q&A: After developing a better way to count homelessness, UW researchers discuss how more accurate data can help providers and people

Seattle buildings at sunset

America’s homeless services system relies on a massive amount of data, and at first glance, that data is exacting. Federal reports describe the country’s unhoused population in granular detail, listing precisely how many people are experiencing homelessness in each city along with detailed demographic data. Want to know how many people ages 55-64 slept outside…