The latest news from the UW

Catherine Brazil, who brings more than two decades of public affairs experience in Eastern Washington, has been appointed director of government and community relations for Spokane and Eastern Washington at the University of Washington, effective May 26, 2015. In this new role, Brazil will represent the UW and coordinate government, business and community relations from the new UW Spokane Center. Brazil will be a critical voice for the UW and the School of Medicine in Spokane, building and maintaining relationships…

Bill Clinton and Prince have embraced it, as have Moby, Ellen DeGeneres and Alec Baldwin. Veganism has moved from the foodie fringes into the mainstream in recent years, as celebrities and others are adopting a plant-based diet over concerns about health, animal welfare and the environment. Vegan celebrity chefs, meat-free products in grocery stores and a proliferation of innovative new restaurants boasting cruelty-free cuisine have helped broaden veganism’s appeal. UW lecturer Katie Gillespie will join Farm Sanctuary co-founder Gene Baur…

After months of negotiations, and just hours before the current collective bargaining agreement expired, the University of Washington and UAW 4121, representing nearly 4,500 academic student employees (ASEs) including teaching assistants, research assistants, readers, graders and tutors, reached a tentative agreement Thursday for a new three-year contract. A ratification vote by union members on the contract will take place in the coming weeks. “We are very pleased that the negotiations concluded successfully and we were able to reach agreement with…

Keiko Torii, a UW professor of biology, this month was awarded the 35th annual Saruhashi Prize, given each year to a female researcher in the natural sciences. Each year, one woman scientist receives the award recognizing both exceptional research accomplishments and mentoring of other women scientists. “I am especially pleased that the selection committee recognized and highly valued my demonstrated mentoring of women postdocs balancing career and family,” Torii said. She has helped several researchers in her lab balance starting…

Faith Ramos, a junior studying sustainable urban development at UW Tacoma, was named one of 50 students nationally to receive the prestigious Udall Scholarship. Ramos worked for 15 years in arts and other nonprofits, including for National Parks programs that bring economically disadvantaged youth to the parks, before enrolling at UW Tacoma. She also has a strong background in filmmaking and singlehandedly produced, shot, edited, and narrated the documentary, “Heart & Sold,” which addresses gentrification in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. She is an…

Two University of Washington faculty members are among the leaders from academia, business, philanthropy, humanities and the arts elected as 2015 fellows of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies. Stanley Fields, a professor of genome sciences and medicine, and David B. Kaplan, a professor of physics and director of the UW-based Institute for Nuclear Theory, join 197 new academy members announced today. “We are honored to elect a new…

Tatiana Toro, a University of Washington professor and associate chair of mathematics, is among 175 new fellows from the U.S. and Canada recognized this year by the Guggenheim Foundation. Winners, chosen from more than 3,100 applicants, receive grants of varying amounts that allow them to pursue creative projects of six to 12 months in the fields of science, academic scholarship and the arts. Toro, who holds the Robert R. and Elaine F. Phelps endowed professorship, earned her doctorate at Stanford…

At the University of Washington’s first engineering open house, visitors marveled at early-1900s scientific advances: using electricity to cook and curl hair, sending wireless messages over a distance of five miles, experimenting with lightning. Engineering Discovery Days Fri., April 24, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. (registration full) Sat., April 25, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Exhibit location map Fast forward a century, and this week’s on-campus activities for the 100th anniversary of Engineering Discovery Days include forming nanoparticles, extracting DNA…

The UW Stroum Center for Jewish Studies will host its third annual Spring Research Symposium 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Friday, May 1, in room 214 of the HUB. The event is free but advance registration is recommended. This half-day event highlights research by the five members of the 2014-15 Jewish Studies Graduate Fellowship, with topics ranging from biblical interpretation to Jewish animated short films. The graduate students are Summer Satushek of comparative religion, Christina Sztajnkrycer of French and Italian studies, Katja Schatte…

Last summer, a team of University of Washington oceanographers successfully installed hardware deep underwater for an Internet-connected observatory off the Washington and Oregon coasts. Now scientists from around the country are meeting to discuss how this will change how people monitor and study seafloor geology. The Networked Observations and Visualizations of the Axial Environment, or NOVAE, workshop, titled “Axial volcano: Wired and restless,” will take place April 20 through 22 at the Talaris Conference Center near the UW. The program…

Craig Sheppard, professor of piano in the School of Music, will perform all of the 24 Preludes and Fugues, Opus 87, by Dmitri Shostakovich in a faculty recital at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 25, in Meany Hall. He answered a few questions about the music and his approach to the performance. In a 1993 review of a performance of the Preludes and Fugues by well-known Russian pianist Tatyana Nikolayeva, for whom Shostakovich composed the music, the New York Times…

The University of Washington will be working with the Bainbridge Island-based Puget Sound Restoration Fund to see whether growing seaweed could help combat ocean acidification in Puget Sound waters. Like plants on land, kelps and other seaweeds naturally take up carbon dioxide. Puget Sound waters are already high in carbon dioxide and are projected to become more so in the future. Seaweeds, which are naturally abundant in Puget Sound, could help address this growing problem. The team proposes to cultivate…

Some people think Jonathan Bricker is a geek, and they mean it in the best way possible. Bricker, an affiliate professor of psychology at the UW and a psychologist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, is among five finalists for the annual “Geek of the Year Award” from Seattle technology news site GeekWire. The award honors “someone who created a technological breakthrough that made the world a better place, or strengthened the community through their work or good deeds.” Bricker,…

UW Interim President Ana Mari Cauce will give remarks and lead a conversation about equity, racism and difference Thursday afternoon on campus at the Intellectual House. Updated 4/14: Transcript of Cauce’s remarks The roundtable event, which starts at 2 p.m., will encourage students to participate in a discussion about these issues. Space is limited and participants were asked to RSVP in advance. “As one of the world’s great public universities, we have a responsibility to live out our core values…

Katie Davis, assistant professor at the University of Washington Information School, has received a Faculty Early Career Development Award from the National Science Foundation. Davis, who studies the role of digital media technologies in the lives of teenagers, will receive $759,462 over five years for a project titled “Digital Badges for STEM Education.” The work aims to develop and implement a system to identify and reward science, technology, engineering and math skills and achievements in a science-based after-school program at…