UW News
The latest news from the UW
April 24, 2017
Scientific discovery game significantly speeds up neuroscience research process
Mozak, a new scientific discovery game from the UW team that created Foldit, is allowing video gamers and citizen scientists to speed up a fundamental task in brain science: reconstructing the intricate architecture of brain neurons.
Tag(s): Center for Game Science • College of Engineering • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Zoran Popovic
Conservation not an effective tool for reducing infectious disease in people, study finds
Conservation projects that protect forests and encourage a diversity of plants and animals can provide many benefits to humans. But improved human health is not among those benefits ― at least when health is measured through the lens of infectious disease. That’s the main finding of a paper published April 24 in Philosophical Transactions of…
Tag(s): Chelsea Wood • College of the Environment • School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences
Military service boosts resilience, well-being among transgender veterans
Transgender people make up a small percentage of active-duty U.S. military personnel, but their experience in the service may yield long-term, positive effects on their mental health and quality of life. A study from the University of Washington finds that among transgender older adults, those who had served in the military reported fewer symptoms…
Tag(s): Hyun-Jun Kim • Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen • School of Social WorkApril 20, 2017
Research team tracks complex web of monetary sanctions in 9 states
UW sociologist Alexes Harris leads a team of researchers at nine universities who are exploring the role of monetary sanctions in the criminal justice system. They recently completed a review of financial punishments in the laws of each of their home states. Based on their preliminary findings, the impact to a person’s pocketbook depends largely on his or her location on a map.
Tag(s): Alexes Harris • College of Arts & Sciences • criminal justice • Department of Sociology
Toward greener construction: UW professor leads group setting benchmarks for carbon across life of buildings
A UW-led research group has taken an important step toward measuring — and ultimately reducing — the global carbon footprint of building construction and long-term maintenance.
Tag(s): Carbon Leadership Forum • College of Built Environments • embodied carbon • Kate Simonen
UW ranks seventh in Milken Institute’s ranking of universities for technology transfer and commercialization
The University of Washington ranks seventh among national universities in a new Milken Institute report on technology transfer, “Concept to Commercialization: The Best Universities for Technology Transfer.” The report highlights the vital role research universities play in spurring economic growth.
Tag(s): RankingsApril 19, 2017
Official notice: Housekeeping amendments to various Title 478 WAC rules
Notice of Expedited Rule Making (Per RCW 34.05.353) Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: Housekeeping amendments to various Title 478 WAC rules. Statutory Authority for Adoption and Statute Being Implemented: RCW 28B.20.130. Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: Housekeeping changes to Title 478 WAC rules are…
Two UW faculty named to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Two University of Washington faculty members are among the leaders from academia, business, philanthropy, humanities and the arts elected as 2017 fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • College of Engineering • Department of Chemistry • Karen Goldberg • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Tom Anderson
More than recess: How playing on the swings helps kids learn to cooperate
A favorite childhood pastime — swinging on the playground swing set — also may be teaching kids how to get along. The measured, synchronous movement of children on the swings can encourage preschoolers to cooperate on subsequent activities, University of Washington researchers have found. A study by the UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences…
Tag(s): Andrew Meltzoff • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Psychology • I-LABS • Tal-Chen Rabinowitch
Proxima b discoverer to join UW astrobiologists for May 3 lecture, discussion
The lead investigator of the research team that discovered Proxima Centauri b, the closest exoplanet, will join UW astrobiologists May 3 to discuss the planet’s potential for life and even the possibility of sending spacecraft to the world.
Tag(s): Astrobiology Program • Rory Barnes • Victoria Meadows • Virtual Planetary LaboratoryApril 17, 2017
Remembering Ernest Henley, physicist and UW College of Arts & Sciences dean emeritus
Ernest Mark Henley, a celebrated nuclear physicist and University of Washington administrator, died on March 27, 2017, at age 92.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Physics • Ernest Henley
New many-toothed clingfish discovered with help of digital scans
Scientists at the University of Washington, Texas A&M University and the Western Australian Museum have discovered and named a new genus and species of clingfish after stumbling upon a specimen preserved in a jar dating back to the 1970s. High-resolution scans and 3-D printing helped the researchers make their discovery.
Models, observations not so far apart on planet’s response to greenhouse gas emissions
New analysis debunks reports that recent observations are showing that Earth’s temperature responds less to greenhouse gases than predicted by climate models.
Tag(s): climate • climate change • College of the Environment • Department of Atmospheric Sciences • Kyle Armour • School of Oceanography
Retreating Yukon glacier caused a river to disappear
A new study provides a postmortem on the Yukon’s Slims River, whose flow was diverted in early 2016. It is the only documented case of “river piracy” in modern times.
Tag(s): climate change • Dan Shugar • geology • glaciers • UW TacomaApril 14, 2017
UW tax program takes law students to remote corners of Alaska
Tax Day can mean different things to different people: stacks of paperwork; evenings at the kitchen table; appointments with the accountant; the rush to the post office to meet the deadline. For about 20 University of Washington law students, it means a February trip to the frozen tundra. Each year, in advance of the April…
Tag(s): Jeff Feldman • School of Law • Scott Schumacher • UW Rural Alaska Tax Assistance Program
UW, Tohoku University establish Academic Open Space partnership for innovations in aerospace, clean energy, disaster preparedness
The University of Washington and Japan’s Tohoku University have agreed to create an Academic Open Space to foster collaborations and academic exchanges between these two leading research institutions of the Pacific Rim. The agreement, signed April 14 by leaders of both institutions at the UW campus in Seattle, is expected to build upon current collaborations in aerospace design and materials, as well as launch new science and engineering partnerships.
Tag(s): Ana Mari Cauce • Clean Energy Institute • clean or renewable energy • College of Engineering • Fumio OhuchiApril 13, 2017
Married LGBT older adults are healthier, happier than singles, study finds
Same-sex marriage has been the law of the land for nearly two years — and in some states for even longer — but researchers can already detect positive health outcomes among couples who have tied the knot, a University of Washington study finds. For years, studies have linked marriage with happiness among heterosexual couples….
Tag(s): Jayn Goldsen • Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen • School of Social Work
UW College of Engineering announces Direct to College admission for 2018 incoming freshman class
The University of Washington’s College of Engineering will offer Direct to College admission beginning with the entering freshman class of 2018, assuring students who are admitted into the college and their families that they will be able to pursue an engineering degree at the UW.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Michael B. BraggApril 12, 2017
Arts Roundup: Amazing Animals, Marc Seales — and Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band
This week in the arts, wrap up spring break at the Burke; hear a noted Northwest jazz pianist; see classically-inspired textural print works in Edmonds; experience the School of Art’s Painting + Drawing Graduate Exhibition; and hear the UW Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band present their spring quarter concert. AMAZING ANIMALS: WATER & SKY EDITION…
Undergraduate Theater Society unleashes ‘Wolves’ April 13-23
The story of Little Red Riding Hood takes on a new dimension in the UW Undergraduate Theater Society’s new production, “Wolves,” by Steve Yockey, running April 13 to 23 in the Cabaret Theater in Hutchinson Hall.
Tag(s): Undergraduate Theater Society
Why treating animals may be important in fighting resurgent tropical disease
As the World Health Organization steps up its efforts to eradicate a once-rampant tropical disease, a University of Washington study suggests that monitoring, and potentially treating, the monkeys that co-exist with humans in affected parts of the world may be part of the global strategy. Yaws, an infectious disease that causes disfiguring skin lesions…
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Anthropology • Department of Global Health • Department of Medicine • Lisa Jones-Engel • School of Medicine • School of Public Health • Sheila LukehartApril 11, 2017
New cloud-based payroll system coming to UW in June
In June, the UW’s antiquated, 35-year-old payroll software system will be replaced by Workday, a modern, easy-to-use, cloud-based software system. Workday has the potential to transform the way we work at the University, making us more streamlined and employee friendly.
Tag(s): Human Resources
University of Washington and Starbucks to create unique coffeehouse destination at Suzzallo Library
The University of Washington and Starbucks Coffee Company are coming together to create a world-class coffeehouse destination in the historic and iconic Suzzallo Library. The design of the new café, set to open this fall, will honor the library’s rich history and legacy.
Tag(s): Pamela Schreiber • Suzzallo Library • UW Housing & Food Services
Technology to improve rockfall analysis on cliffs could save money, lives
University of Washington civil engineers have developed a new, automated technology to analyze the potential for rockfalls from cliffs onto roads and areas below.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering • Joseph WartmanApril 10, 2017
USGS, partners launch a unified, West Coast-wide earthquake early warning system
Events Monday celebrated the launch of a West Coast-wide earthquake early warning prototype system, and initial test users in Washington and Oregon.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Department of Earth and Space Sciences • earthquakes & seismology • John Vidale • Pacific Northwest Seismic Network • ShakeAlertApril 5, 2017
Arts Roundup: Jacob Lawrence, 3D4M Grad Exhibition, A Final Look at the Wild Nearby, and Dido and Aeneas
This week in the arts, get one final look at the Burke’s Wild Nearby; see student’s capstone in ceramics, glass, and sculpture; celebrate the centennial of Jacob Lawrence; experience an experimental performance using a mind-driven instrument; and hear voice students in a monumental Baroque opera. Music of Today: DXARTS 7:30 p.m., April 6| Meany Theater The University…
April 4, 2017
The science of sight: Transplant recipient, UW professor to share perspectives on vision restoration
UW psychology professor Geoffrey Boynton and corneal transplant recipient Michael May to speak April 5.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Psychology • Geoffrey BoyntonApril 3, 2017
UW lands at No. 9 with 45 subjects ranked in the top 10 in Center for World University Rankings inaugural subject list
The University of Washington landed at No. 9 with 45 subjects ranked in the top 10 in the Center for World University Rankings’ inaugural subjects ranking. The ranking features the top global universities in 227 subjects covering all academic disciplines in the sciences and social sciences. This is the highest the UW has placed in a global subject ranking.
Tag(s): Rankings
UW security researchers show that Google’s AI tool for video searching can be easily deceived
University of Washington security researchers have shown that Google’s new tool that uses machine learning to automatically analyze and label video content can be deceived by inserting a photograph periodically into videos. After they inserted an image of a car into a video about animals, for instance, the system thought the video was about an Audi.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering • Radha PoovendranMarch 31, 2017
Music played by EEG featured in DXARTS Spring Concert April 6
The Disklavier is an electromagnetic piano that — like the UW-created encephalophone recently reported on by the Seattle Times — is played by brain waves alone, via an electroencephalogram. UW audiences can see and hear this new technology in “Music of Today: The DXARTS Spring Concert,” April 6, in Meany Hall.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • DXARTS • Juan Pampin • Richard Karpen • School of Music • Stuart DempsterMarch 29, 2017
Arts Roundup: Last chance for Chuck Close Photographs, Piano and Cello Faculty Recital, Brechemin Piano Series; Music of Today: DXARTS
This week in the arts, get a last look at the comprehensive survey of the photographic work of Chuck Close; hear faculty artists play Beethoven; enjoy piano works from School of Music students; check out groundbreaking new works and modern classics by faculty and guest composers. Chuck Close Photographs Through April 2| Henry Art Gallery Don’t…
Tackling resilience: Finding order in chaos to help buffer against climate change
A new paper by the University of Washington and NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center aims to provide clarity among scientists, resource managers and planners on what ecological resilience means and how it can be achieved.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • School of Marine and Environmental Affairs • Terrie KlingerMarch 28, 2017
After much media attention, UW Information School’s ‘Calling BS’ class begins
The very name of the class, when proposed, seemed to fire imaginations nationwide and beyond. Now with the beginning of spring quarter, the UW Information School’s new course “Calling Bullshit in the Age of Big Data” is getting started.
Tag(s): Calling BS in the Age of Big Data • Carl Bergstrom • Information School • Jevin West
Public notice: Availability of a final supplemental environmental impact statement
The University is proposing a site selection and construction of a new above and below grade building to create a physical convening space and compelling catalyst for Population Health endeavors across all three UW campuses, the region and the world, creating a high profile marker for the UW’s commitment to Population Health, as outlined in President Ana Mari Cauce’s May 2016 address to the community.
Parents who play ‘Pokémon GO’ with kids: ‘It wasn’t really about the Pokémon’
In the first study to survey and interview parents who play Pokémon GO with their children, families report a number of side benefits, including increased exercise, more time spent outdoors and opportunities for family bonding.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering • Information School • Jason Yip • Jin Ha Lee • Julie Kientz
Using a method from Wall Street to track slow slipping of Earth’s crust
An algorithm for stock prices can be used with GPS data to automatically detect slow-slip earthquakes at a single station, offering a new way to monitor seismic activity.
Tag(s): Brendan Crowell • College of the Environment • Department of Earth and Space Sciences • earthquakes & seismologyMarch 27, 2017
15 years of success for UW center in recruiting, supporting female STEM faculty
In the 15 years since the ADVANCE Center for Institutional Change opened its doors, the UW has nearly doubled the number of female faculty across 19 science, technology, engineering and math departments.
Tag(s): ADVANCE Center for Institutional Change • College of Arts & Sciences • College of Engineering • College of the Environment • diversity • diversity, equity and inclusion in academia • Eve Riskin • Joyce Yen
Distinguished educator and humanitarian Dr. Johnnetta Cole to be UW’s 2017 commencement speaker
Dr. Johnnetta Betsch Cole, former president of Spelman College and Bennett College, and recently retired director of the National Museum of African Art, will be the featured speaker at the University of Washington’s Commencement exercises Saturday, June 10.
Tag(s): Ana Mari CauceMarch 23, 2017
Jackson School to offer lectures for students on ‘Trump in the World’
Faculty with the UW Jackson School of International Studies will explore the impact of the 2016 election on their respective areas of expertise in a new two-credit class titled “Trump in the World: International Implications of the Trump Presidency.”
Tag(s): Anand Yang • Angelina Godoy • College of Arts & Sciences • Daniel Chirot • Devin Naar • Ernesto Penas • Jackson School of International Studies • Kathie Friedman • Resat Kasaba • Sabine Lang • Scott Radnitz • Vanessa Freije
UW Chemistry to establish a prestigious postdoctoral fellowship thanks to $12 million commitment from professor emeritus Larry Dalton and Nicole Boand
Building upon a long legacy of supporting scientific innovation and education, professor emeritus Larry Dalton and his wife, Nicole Boand, have committed $12 million to the UW Department of Chemistry.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Chemistry • Larry Dalton« Previous Page Next Page »
