The latest news from the UW

The November issue of Seattle Magazine includes a list of 51 local people who made 2014 what it was. Along with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and the Seahawks team’s “12th man” fans, it includes UW glaciologist Ian Joughin, whom the magazine dubs the “ice breaker.” The magazine notes: “In the face of global warming, it’s people like Ian Joughin—a glaciologist and affiliate professor of earth and space sciences at University of Washington, researching the surface motion and topography of ice…

The UW and other Washington schools hog half the spots on a new list of the West Coast’s 10 best-landscaped colleges, with the UW coming in at No. 4. The amount of green space, unique landscaping and attention to lawns earned the UW its ranking. The list was created by inspecting hundreds of photos, interviewing students, alumni and faculty, and scanning message boards. The accompanying website shows an image of the Quad and says: “University of Washington, a ‘public ivy’…

The University of Washington landed in a three-way tie for No. 14 in U.S. News & World Report’s first ranking of Best Global Universities – a new ranking that is separate from its annual Best Colleges list. The publication released world rankings, it said, in recognition of the fact that more students are looking beyond their own borders for higher education options and universities are competing worldwide for the best students. The new U.S. News rankings, released last week, were…

Classroom décor may seem relatively unimportant, but it can play a surprisingly big role in influencing student learning and achievement. That’s among the key findings in a new paper co-authored by University of Washington researchers. Published this week in the inaugural issue of Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, the paper finds that classroom features such as light, temperature and décor can profoundly influence learning. Students exposed to more natural light perform better, the analysis found, but research…

The University of Washington School of Law is introducing two new programs to expand its degree offerings and provide more options for students. Beginning in January 2015, the school will offer an accelerated Juris Doctor/Master’s in Business Administration program that will enable students to earn degrees from the school the Foster School of Business in four years. Students will be encouraged to start the master’s courses in their first year and their doctorate curriculum in the second year. In the…

The latest KCTS-9 Washington Poll has found strong support for the background checks on gun sales promoted by Initiative 594 and the reduced classroom sizes sought by Initiative 1351, and slightly less support for Initiative 591, which seeks to prohibit background checks for gun sales minus a national standard. The poll, directed by Matt Barreto, a University of Washington professor of political science, interviewed 602 registered voters statewide. Of these, 64 percent expressed support for the expanded gun sales background…

Genesee Adkins, who brings 12 years of experience in the halls of state government, has been appointed director of state relations at the University of Washington, effective Nov. 12. “We are getting an experienced, highly capable government relations professional who understands the subtleties of Olympia and will be able to represent the university’s interests extremely well,” said Randy Hodgins, UW vice president for external affairs.  “This coming legislative session will be one of the most important in recent years, and…

David Montgomery, a UW professor of Earth and space sciences, took home the 2014 James H. Shea Award, given annually since 1991 by the National Association of Geoscience Teachers. The award, presented Oct. 21 during the national meeting of the Geological Society of America in Vancouver, British Columbia, was for “exceptional contributions in the form of writing and or editing of Earth science information” that is of interest to the public and Earth science teachers. The award was established in…

The University of Washington’s innovative “Ride in the Rain challenge” is among the reasons the university has just moved up to the highest gold level set by the League of American Bicyclists. Among the 100 current Bicycle Friendly Universities recognized by the league, only 10 have achieved gold. The league’s president and a panel of city and university experts talking about current progress and the path forward for bicycling around the region will kick off the annual November “Ride in…

Political scientist Christopher Parker: ‘If it were not for big government…” Christopher Parker, University of Washington associate professor of political science, rarely minces words when debating about American politics and government.He has done much research on philosophical differences between the tea party and traditional conservatives, and was co-author, with fellow UW political scientist Matt Barreto, of the 2013 book, “Change They Can’t Believe In: The Tea Party and Reactionary Politics in America.” He also has some new research about conservative…

“I’ve had my leg crushed; been in a full-leg cast for 16 months; put more of my buddies six feet under than I care to think about; been frost bitten and treated for heat exhaustion; and had every one of my fingers and most of my toes broken. [But] when I’m at the top of that mountain of one of those perfect mornings and the sun is just cresting the ridge, nothing else really seems to matter. I guess I…

When Thomas Jarboe and Derek Sutherland took their concept for an economically feasible fusion reactor into the public sphere two weeks ago, they expected some negative loud mouths and naysayers. After all, this is fusion physics, a field that seems so inaccessible to most people that it carries a certain mystique and inspires an almost religious fervor to see it succeed or fail. That’s the playing field that Jarboe, a professor of aeronautics and astronautics, and Sutherland, a graduate student,…

The University of Washington’s Jackson School of International Studies will host a daylong conference titled “Kurdistan and the Changing Middle East” on Thursday, Nov. 6, in the Peterson Room on the fifth floor of Allen Library. Reşat Kasaba, Jackson School director, will give introductory remarks and moderate panels titled “Regional Dynamics” and “State-Society Relations in Northern Iraq.” Arbella Bet-Shlimon, UW assistant professor of history, also will participate in the latter panel. The keynote address, “Kurdistan, the Changing Middle East, and…

The UW won Seattle Business Magazine’s 2014 Community Impact Award for Sustainability in Business Operations this week for demonstrating how businesses can have a beneficial impact on their communities. Seattle Aquarium and Harley Marine Services won silver awards for their sustainable business operations. UW’s award recognizes its overall environmental stewardship, Climate Action Plan, many LEED certified buildings and the connection to the UW Business Diversity Program. “This award reflects the terrific work by the entire UW community over the past…

Brewster Denny, great-grandson of Seattle and University of Washington founders Arthur and Mary Denny, rang the Denny Bell for UW homecoming ceremonies nearly every autumn for 51 years. He died in 2013 at the age of 88, but his family is carrying on the tradition. Denny’s daughter Maria Denny will gather with her mother, Patricia, husband, Jim Kodjababian, and their children, Jacob and Ella, at 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 24 — at Denny Hall, of course — to ring the…

Seats are still available for three of the four UW Graduate School Public Lectures of 2014, presented in cooperation with the UW Alumni Association. The lectures are all free, but advance registration is required. The series begins with a lecture by Olympia Snowe, a former U.S. senator from Maine, who will speak at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 6, in Room 130 of Kane Hall. Her lecture is titled “Anything is Possible — How to Overcome Obstacles and Make a Difference.”…

UW faculty, other academic personnel and senior graduate students are being invited to apply for the chance to visit the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia during 2015. There is financial support for two UW participants staying for two to four weeks. Each is expected to give lectures, interact with Slovenian students and collaborate with Slovenian faculty members in their field of study. The visits must be completed by the end of 2015 and should take place during the spring or…

The four evenings that comprise the 2014 History Lecture Series have already sold out, but no one needs to miss the lectures themselves. The lectures will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday evenings from Nov. 5 to Dec. 3, all in Room 130 of Kane Hall. The series topic is “1914: The Great War and the Modern World.” There will be on-site waiting lists each evening and a televised feed will be broadcast in Room 210 of Kane…