UW News
The latest news from the UW
September 24, 2020
Colleges with primarily in-person instruction leading to thousands of COVID-19 cases per day in US
As universities and colleges struggle to find the right combination of in-person and online classes combined with protective measures to help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, a new study by researchers from four institutions has reached a troubling conclusion. Reopening university and college campuses with primarily in-person instruction is associated with a significant…
Tag(s): Anirban Basu • CHOICE Institute • COVID-19 • COVID-19 studies • School of Pharmacy
Age restrictions for handguns make little difference in homicides as US deals with ‘de facto availability’ of firearms
In the United States, individual state laws barring 18- to 20-year-olds from buying or possessing a handgun make little difference in the rate of homicides involving a gun by people in that age group, a new University of Washington study has found. “The central issue is that there’s a very high degree of informal access…
Tag(s): Ali Rowhani-Rahbar • Andrew Bowen • Caitlin Moe • Department of Epidemiology • Frederick Rivara • Harborview Injury Prevention & Research Center • Miriam Haviland • School of Public HealthSeptember 23, 2020
Video: UW students move into residence halls
Around 4,000 students are moving into the residence halls at the University of Washington this week. This number is less than half the UW’s normal residence hall capacity. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of special precautions are being taken to ensure minimal contact and proper physical distancing during the move-in process.
Tag(s): COVID-19 • UW Housing & Food Services
Some polar bears in far north are getting short-term benefit from thinning ice
The small subpopulation of polar bears in Kane Basin were doing better, on average, in recent years than in the 1990s. The bears are experiencing short-term benefits from thinning and shrinking multiyear sea ice that allows more sunlight to reach the ocean surface, which makes the system more ecologically productive.
Tag(s): Applied Physics Laboratory • climate change • College of the Environment • Kristin Laidre • polar science • Polar Science Center • School of Aquatic and Fishery SciencesSeptember 22, 2020
Soundbites & B-roll: UW students move into residence halls
University of Washington students living in residence halls began moving in on Tuesday, and about 4,000 students total will move in this week. This number is less than half the UW’s normal residence hall capacity.
Tag(s): COVID-19 • UW Housing & Food Services
UW Podcasts: ‘Coastal Café’ explores marine, shoreline issues — and ‘Voices Unbound’ on racism in COVID-19 responses
A talk with the hosts of Washington Sea Grant’s “Coastal Café” podcast, which is also a radio show. And EarthLab’s podcast “Voices Unbound” releases a new season of timely topics.
Tag(s): Aaron Barnett • Christopher Schell • EarthLab • MaryAnn Wagner • Robin Evans-Agnew • UW Tacoma • Voices Unbound • Washington Sea Grant
Muslims, atheists more likely to face religious discrimination in US
A new study led by the University of Washington found that Muslims and atheists in the United States are more likely than those of Christian faiths to experience religious discrimination. Researchers focused on public schools and tested how principals responded to an individual’s expression of religious belief.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Sociology • Steve Pfaff
ArtSci Roundup: Community and Solidarity on the Frontlines, Election 2020, and More
During this time of uncertainty and isolation, find solace in digital opportunities to connect, share, and engage. Each week, we will share upcoming events that bring the UW, and the greater community, together online. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT. Community…
Tag(s): ArtsUW • Department of Anthropology • Department of History • Department of Political Science • Jackson School of International Studies • Jacob Lawrence Gallery • School of Art + Art History + Design • School of Drama • School of MusicSeptember 17, 2020
Watching over whales: Online tool detects whales and ships in California’s Santa Barbara Channel in near real-time
Whale Safe — an online tool launched Sept. 17 by scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, the University of Washington and other partner institutions — allows users to detect and better protect these endangered animals in the Santa Barbara Channel. It is a mapping and analysis tool to help prevent ships from running into whales.
Tag(s): Briana Abrahms • College of Arts & Sciences • conservation • Department of Biology • whales
Environmental health professor emeritus Sverre Vedal serves on committee studying respiratory effects of Southwest Asia military service
Dr. Sverre Vedal, UW professor emeritus of environmental and health sciences, served on an expert committee for the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine studying the long-term respiratory health impacts of military service in Southeast Asia.
Tag(s): Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences • Sverre VedalSeptember 16, 2020
Most landslides in western Oregon triggered by heavy rainfall, not big earthquakes
Researchers at the University of Washington, Portland State University and the University of Oregon have shown that deep-seated landslides in the central Oregon Coast Range are triggered mostly by rainfall, not by large offshore earthquakes. The open-access paper was published Sept. 16 in Science Advances. “Geomorphologists have long understood the importance of rainfall in triggering…
Tag(s): Alison Duvall • College of the Environment • Department of Earth and Space Sciences • earthquakes & seismology • geology • landslide
Marine animals live where ocean is most ‘breathable,’ but ranges could shrink with climate change
New research shows that a wide variety of marine animals — from vertebrates to crustaceans to mollusks — already inhabit the maximum range of breathable ocean that their physiology will allow. The findings provide a warning about climate change: Since warmer waters will harbor less oxygen, some stretches of ocean that are breathable today for a given species may not be in the future.
Tag(s): climate change • College of the Environment • Curtis Deutsch • oceanography • School of OceanographySeptember 15, 2020
The University of Washington mourns the loss of Bill Gates Sr.
Though Bill Gates, Sr., may have graduated from the University of Washington nearly 70 years ago, in many ways he never really left.
Gates was a standout Husky — as a Regent for 15 years, leader of ground breaking philanthropic campaigns and a recipient of numerous accolades, including the Alumnus Summa Laude Dignatus Award in 2013. He loved Husky football and cheered on from Husky Stadium, Row K, Seat 32.
Gates died Monday. He was 94.
Tag(s): Bill Gates Sr.
UW political scientist Megan Ming Francis named one of 12 grant-supported ‘Freedom Scholars’ for work on economic and social equity
Megan Ming Francis, University of Washington associate professor of political science, has been named one of 12 grant-supported “Freedom Scholars” in a new $3 million initiative by the Marguerite Casey Foundation and Group Health Foundation, working together.
Tag(s): Department of Political Science • Megan Ming Francis
Wildfire smoke disproportionally harms poorer communities, remedies necessary to address health inequity
With most of the Northwest blanketed by wildfire smoke, public officials and health experts suggest staying inside as much as possible to reduce exposure to the significant health risks of wildfire smoke. However, inequity in our communities means not every home provides great protection and many workers in disadvantaged populations can’t afford to stay home,…
Tag(s): Anjum Hajat • COVID-19 • Department of Epidemiology • population health • School of Public Health • wildfires
Video: How to make your own home air purifier
With wildfire smoke blanketing most of the western U.S. this week, public health experts suggest staying inside as much as possible to protect yourself from smoky air. If you don’t have air conditioning or an air purifier in your home, it’s possible to make your own inexpensive purifier. Here’s how.
Tag(s): Dan Jaffe • population health • UW Bothell • wildfiresSeptember 14, 2020
UW announces COVID-19 testing program for students, faculty and staff across all three campuses
The University of Washington on Monday announced a comprehensive COVID-19 fall quarter testing program in advance of some students, faculty and staff returning to the Seattle, Bothell and Tacoma campuses later this month.
September 11, 2020
‘Dancing in the sky’: UW professor Cecilia Aragon tells of beating fear, becoming competitive pilot in memoir ‘Flying Free’
A conversation with UW professor Cecilia Aragon about her new memoir, “Flying Free: My Victory Over Fear to Become the First Latina Pilot on the US Aerobatic Team”
Tag(s): Cecilia Aragon • College of Engineering • Continuum College • Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering • HumanCentered Data Science Lab
Evans School interim dean receives $2M NSF grant to study ‘megafires’
Alison Cullen, professor and interim dean of the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Washington, will study “megafires” with a new $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
Tag(s): Alison Cullen • Evans School of Public Policy & GovernanceSeptember 10, 2020
Four UW professors win 2021 Breakthrough Prize — so-called ‘Oscars of Science’
Four University of Washington professors were among the winners of the 2021 Breakthrough Prize, which recognizes groundbreaking achievements in the life sciences, fundamental physics and mathematics.
David Baker, a professor in the UW School of Medicine’s department of biochemistry, won the prize for life sciences, while a team of UW physics professors, including Eric Adelberger, Jens Gundlach and Blayne Heckel, earned the prize for fundamental physics.
Tag(s): Blayne Heckel • Breakthrough Prize • College of Arts & Sciences • David Baker • Department of Biochemistry • Department of Physics • Eric Adelberger • Institute for Protein Design • Jens Gundlach • School of MedicineSeptember 9, 2020
English Department discusses coronavirus, ‘politics of care’ in ‘Literature, Language, Culture’ podcasts, videos — plus Devin Naar of Sephardic Studies interviewed on two podcasts
The Department of English has introduced its new “Literature, Language, Culture” Dialogue Series, a series of podcasts and YouTube videos — and Devin Naar of Sephardic Studies is interviewed on two podcasts
Tag(s): C.R. Grimmer • Department of English • Devin Naar • Jackson School of International Studies • Jake Huebsch • Jesse Oak Taylor • Michelle Liu • Sephardic Studies Program • Stephanie Clare • Stroum Center for Jewish Studies
UW joins Public Interest Technology University Network
The University of Washington has joined forces with schools across the country to be part of the Public Interest Technology University Network, or PIT-UN.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Evans School of Public Policy & Governance • Information School • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • School of LawSeptember 8, 2020
How birth control, girls’ education can slow population growth
Education and family planning have long been tied to lower fertility trends. But new research from the University of Washington analyzes those factors to determine, what accelerates a decline in otherwise high-fertility countries.
Tag(s): Adrian Raftery • College of Arts & Sciences • Daphne Liu • Department of Sociology • Department of Statistics • population health
ArtSci Roundup: Re/frame at the Henry, Coexisting with COVID-19, and more
During this time of uncertainty and isolation, find solace in digital opportunities to connect, share, and engage. Each week, we will share upcoming events that bring the UW, and the greater community, together online. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT. Re/frame:…
Tag(s): Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture • Department of Anthropology • Department of Dance • Department of Political Science • Department of Psychology • Department of Scandinavian Studies • Henry Art Gallery • Jacob Lawrence Gallery • School of DramaSeptember 4, 2020
Mask mandates delayed by nearly a month in Republican-led states, UW study finds
Political science researchers at the University of Washington examined the factors associated with statewide mask mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. When controlling for other factors, states with Republican governors delayed imposing broad indoor mask requirements by nearly a month.
Tag(s): Christopher Adolph • College of Arts & Sciences • COVID-19 • Department of Political Science • John Wilkerson
Rankings: UW is among the best in the nation, world according to three news outlets
Three new rankings out this month place UW among the best schools in the nation and the world.
Tag(s): rankings • UW Tacoma
UW political science expert on the value of mail-in voting
Jake Grumbach, assistant professor of political science at the University of Washington, answers questions about mail-in voting.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Political Science • Jake GrumbachSeptember 3, 2020
First responders get training on how to decontaminate masks
A University of Washington-led team has developed a box that can decontaminate N95 respirator masks using ultraviolet light.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • COVID-19 • COVID-19 studies • Department of Chemical Engineering • Department of Mechanical Engineering • Engineering Innovation in Health • Jonathan Posner
Fighting fire with fire in the Methow Valley
Agencies that are well practiced in putting out wildfires are now learning a new skill: how to set the spark and fan the flames. That’s the case for the state Department of Natural Resources, which is starting to use prescribed burning as part of its strategy for fighting wildfires.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Susan Prichard • wildfiresSeptember 2, 2020
UW Books: Climate change meets restoration science in ‘Anticipating Future Environments’; ‘Building Reuse’ in paperback — and Anu Taranath’s ‘Beyond Guilt Trips’ named a Washington State Book Award finalist
Recent news about UW-authored books includes a UW Press book on salmon habitat restoration amid climate change and a paperback edition of a book on building reuse. Also, Anu Taranath’s “Beyond Guilt Trips: Mindful Travel in an Unequal World” is a Washington State Book Award finalist.
Tag(s): Anu Taranath • College of Built Environments • College of Engineering • Department of Architecture • Department of English • Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering • Department of the Comparative History of Ideas • Kathryn Rogers Merlino • Shana Lee Hirsch • University of Washington PressSeptember 1, 2020
UW launches Institute for Foundations of Data Science
The University of Washington will lead a team of institutions in establishing an interdisciplinary research institute that brings together mathematicians, statisticians, computer scientists and engineers to develop the theoretical foundations of a fast-growing field: data science.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • College of Engineering • Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering • Department of Mathematics • Department of Statistics • Maryam Fazel • Zaid HarchaouiAugust 31, 2020
ArtSci Roundup: “From Ours to Alien: The Journey of Polish OBCY” lecture, MELTED RIOT: RGB performance, and more
During this time of uncertainty and isolation, find solace in digital opportunities to connect, share, and engage. Each week, we will share upcoming events that bring the UW, and the greater community, together online. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT. Lecture:…
Tag(s): Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture • Department of Communication • Department of Dance • Henry Art Gallery • Jacob Lawrence Gallery • School of Art + Art History + Design • School of Drama • School of Music
B-roll: UW Health Sciences Education Building breaks ground
UW Health Sciences leadership and Washington state legislators celebrated the start of construction of the Health Sciences Education Building with a small, physically distanced groundbreaking ceremony Aug. 27.
UW receives NSF funds for investment in an interdisciplinary quantum future
The National Science Foundation has awarded $3 million to establish a NSF Research Traineeship at the University of Washington for graduate students in quantum information science and technology. The new traineeship — known as Accelerating Quantum-Enabled Technologies, or AQET — will make the UW one of just “a handful” of universities with a formal, interdisciplinary QIST curriculum.
Tag(s): Clean Energy Institute • College of Arts & Sciences • College of Engineering • Department of Chemistry • Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering • Department of Materials Science & Engineering • Department of Physics • Institute for Nano-Engineered Systems • Kai-Mei Fu • Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute • Northwest Quantum Nexus • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • UW Quantum XAugust 28, 2020
UW breaks ground on the future of health sciences education and improving our health
The future of our health and the health of the communities we live in relies, in many ways, on students in the health sciences. The education and experiences that future doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, social workers and public health experts receive will to a large degree shape how those professionals work and work together when…
Tag(s): Azita Emami • Edwina S. Uehara • Gary Chiodo • Hilary Godwin • School of Dentistry • School of Medicine • School of Nursing • School of Pharmacy • School of Public Health • School of Social Work • Sean D. SullivanAugust 27, 2020
Frequently asked questions: torpor in Antarctic Lystrosaurus
This FAQ discusses evidence for a hibernation-like condition in Lystrosaurus, a mammal relative that lived in the Antarctic portion of Pangea about 250 million years ago. This discovery was enabled by high-resolution of incremental growth marks preserved in the tusks of Lystrosaurus.
Tag(s): Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture • Christian Sidor • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Biology • evolution • paleontology
Weathering the tough times: Fossil evidence of ‘hibernation-like’ state in 250-million-year-old Antarctic animal
University of Washington scientists report evidence of a hibernation-like state in Lystrosaurus, an animal that lived in Antarctica during the Early Triassic, some 250 million years ago. The fossils are the oldest evidence of a hibernation-like state in a vertebrate, and indicate that torpor — a general term for hibernation and similar states in which animals temporarily lower their metabolic rate to get through a tough season — arose in vertebrates even before mammals and dinosaurs evolved.
Tag(s): Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture • Christian Sidor • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Biology • evolution • paleontologyAugust 26, 2020
Faculty from Allen School, Evans School tapped for NSF institutes on artificial intelligence
The National Science Foundation has announced five new institutes devoted to AI research and based at universities around the country. Six University of Washington faculty will be affiliated with the institutes.
Tag(s): Ann Bostrom • Byron Boots • College of Arts & Sciences • College of Engineering • Department of Statistics • Evans School of Public Policy & Governance • Jamie Morgenstern • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Sewoong Oh • Sham Kakade • Zaid Harchaoui
Mount Everest summit success rates double, death rate stays the same over last 30 years
A new study led by researchers at the University of Washington and the University of California, Davis, finds that the success rate of summiting Mount Everest has doubled in the last three decades, even though the number of climbers has greatly increased, crowding the narrow route through the dangerous “death zone” near the summit. However, the death rate for climbers has hovered unchanged at around 1% since 1990.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Biology • Raymond Huey
Global ranking: UW is No. 16 in the world
The University of Washington is No. 16 in the world — No. 3 among U.S. public universities — on the 2020 Academic Ranking of World Universities, released this month.
Tag(s): rankingsNext Page »
