October 24, 2012
SpaceScout app hunts for study spaces, and MyUW goes mobile for students
SpaceScout, available on the web or as an iPhone app, lets users enter various criteria to find the perfect study space on campus. The tool was developed by UW-IT, which this week also launched a mobile version of MyUW for students.
October 17, 2012
Living Voters Guide adds fact-checking by Seattle librarians for 2012 election
The Living Voters Guide, created by the UW and presented with Seattle’s CityClub, just won a regional award and has been updated for the 2012 election. This year the guide has expanded to include a California edition, and the Washington guide will include fact-checking of selected points by Seattle Public Library staff.
October 12, 2012
Maria Klawe, national leader promoting women in science and technology, speaks Tuesday at UW
Maria Klawe, professor of computer science and president of Harvey Mudd College, will speak Tuesday at the UW about how her institution over three years quadrupled its female representation in undergraduate computer science majors, to 40 percent.
October 11, 2012
Molecular engineering is focus of College of Engineering’s fall lectures
Three public lectures by UW engineering professors will give an overview of molecular engineering and applications in biotech and alternative energy.
October 2, 2012
Sticky paper offers cheap, easy solution for paper-based diagnostics
Global health researchers are working on cheap systems like a home-based pregnancy test that might work for malaria, diabetes or other diseases. A new chemical technique makes medically interesting molecules stick to regular paper — a possible route to building such paper-based diagnostics from paper you could buy at an office-supply store.
September 27, 2012
Browser plug-in helps people balance their political news reading habits
As the U.S. presidential election approaches, many voters become voracious consumers of online political news. A new tool tracks whether all those articles really provide a balanced view of the debate – and, if not, suggests some sites that offer opinions from the other side of the political spectrum.
September 20, 2012
The original Twitter? Tiny electronic tags monitor birds’ social networks
A tiny digital tag developed at the UW can for the first time see when birds meet in the wild, offering a window into animal social networks. A study in Current Biology used the tags to track the social habits of New Caledonian crows, and found a surprising amount of interaction among the tool-using birds.
September 18, 2012
Local scientists chosen for NIH High Risk High Rewards program
The scientists were selected for their inventive ideas to transform their field of research and improve the health of the public.
App lets you monitor lung health using only a smartphone
Feeling wheezy? You could call the doctor. Or soon you could use your smartphone to diagnose your lung health, with a new app that uses the frequencies in the breath to determine how much and how fast you can exhale.
September 12, 2012
UW celebrates opening of new Molecular Engineering & Sciences Building
The UW’s new Molecular Engineering and Sciences Building opens this fall with a series of kick-off events focused on this emerging area of research. The associated Institute will focus on research applications in medicine and clean energy.
August 30, 2012
New program joins computer science and design experts at UW, Tsinghua University
This summer the UW hosted the first World Lab Summer Institute, which brings together computing and design students from the UW and Beijing’s Tsinghua University. The students spent seven weeks devising ways that technology could be used to address global issues in health, environment and education.
August 10, 2012
Student-built rocket with experimental motor blasts to 1st-place finish
A team of University of Washington students designed a unique rocket motor and launched it 5 miles up to claim first prize this summer in the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition. The UW students built a new type of motor powered by a combination of solid paraffin and liquid nitrous oxide. So-called hybrid propulsion systems are…
August 9, 2012
Crowd funding on campus: UW scientists raise money for research online
When Rachel Aronson travels this month to Alaska, she and a local research assistant will interview people who are in danger of being displaced by climate change. She will also send about 100 postcards to her funders. Aronson is among a growing number of University of Washington students, faculty and staff who are using online…
August 3, 2012
Summer programs aim to encourage and prepare minorities to attend college
Some high school students, especially underrepresented minorities and those from low-income, first-generation and migrant worker backgrounds, lack access to resources for college preparation. Here is a round-up of programs taking place this summer on the UW Seattle campus that help inspire high school students to pursue higher education and prepare them for college life. ‘Upward…
July 24, 2012
‘Control-Alt-Hack’ game lets players try their hand at computer security
Do you have what it takes to be an ethical hacker? Can you step into the shoes of a professional paid to outsmart supposedly locked-down systems? Now you can at least try, no matter what your background, with a new card game developed by University of Washington computer scientists. “Control-Alt-Hack” gives teenage and young-adult players…
July 20, 2012
Engineering students race first 3-D printed boat in Milk Carton Derby – with slideshow
Mechanical engineering students last weekend braved uncharted waters as they paddled to the finish line at the annual Milk Carton Derby at Green Lake, in what they believe is the world’s first boat made using a 3-D printer.
July 17, 2012
DO-IT celebrates 20 years preparing students with disabilities for college
A group of Washington high-school students will arrive at the University of Washington campus this week for the annual DO-IT Scholars Summer Study program. It’s the 20th anniversary of the summer program, which has now helped launch the careers of hundreds of students from Washington and beyond who have a wide range of disabilities. DO-IT…
July 13, 2012
3-D printed boat to enter tomorrow’s Milk Carton Derby
Students in the UW’s new 3-D printing club plan to enter tomorrow Milk Carton Derby at Green Lake with what they believe is the world’s first 3-D printed boat, made from more than 150 recycled, melted and extruded milk cartons.
July 9, 2012
UW students win NASA contest with their plan for mining the moon
A senior class in Aeronautics & Astronautics won a national competition with the students’ detailed plan to travel to the moon, establish a mining outpost and jettison the product back to Earth.
June 28, 2012
Plasma startup creates high-energy light to make smaller microchips
In one of the twists of scientific discovery, a UW duo working on fusion energy — harnessing the energy-generating mechanism of the sun — may have found a way to etch the next generation of microchips.
May 28, 2012
Engineered microvessels provide a 3-D test bed for human diseases
Bioengineers have developed the first structure to grow small human blood vessels, creating a 3-D test bed that offers a better way to study disease, test drugs and perhaps someday grow human tissues for transplant.
May 9, 2012
Portable diagnostics designed to be shaken, not stirred
A textured surface mimics a lotus leaf to move drops of liquid in particular directions. The low-cost system could be used in portable medical or environmental tests.
March 1, 2012
UW students to design alternative-fuels vehicle for EcoCAR 2 competition
Over the next three years, a team of UW students will convert a 2013 Chevy Malibu into a fuel-efficient, low-emissions vehicle that still meets consumer demands for a driver-friendly car. The UW is one of 15 schools participating in the EcoCAR 2 contest, sponsored by General Motors and the U.S. Department of Energy.
February 21, 2012
Design eye for the science guy: Drop-in clinic helps scientists communicate data
The Design Help Desk offers scientists a chance to meet with a student who can help them create more effective figures, tables and graphs. This visual equivalent of a Writing Help Desk is also a study on how to teach data visualization.
February 9, 2012
UW’s David Stahl elected to National Academy of Engineering
David Stahl, a UW professor of civil and environmental engineering, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering. Also elected are UW affiliate professor Henrique Malvar and UW alumnus Peter Farrell.
January 30, 2012
Ferroelectric switching discovered for first time in soft biological tissue
The walls of the aorta, the largest blood vessel carrying blood from the heart, exhibits a response to electric fields known to exist in inorganic and synthetic materials. The discovery could have implications for treating human heart disease.
January 12, 2012
Surgical robots to provide open-source platform for medical robotics research
Seven identical robots created and built at the UW will be flown to campuses across the country, where they will provide the first common research platform to develop the future of surgical robotics. The robots will be display Friday at an open house.
October 13, 2011
Improving the physics of grocery store display cases to save energy
Aeronautical engineers are devising ways to boost the efficiency of open-air refrigerated cases, which are increasingly common in supermarkets. Results could lower the energy use of existing cases by up to 15 percent — potentially saving $100 million in electricity costs each year.
September 20, 2011
Proton-based transistor could let machines communicate with living things
Materials scientists at the University of Washington have built a novel transistor that uses protons, creating a key piece for devices that can communicate directly with living things.
August 31, 2011
Boeing 787’s certification puts spotlight on UW materials lab (with slide show)
On the eve of the certification of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner by the Federal Aviation Administration, Washington Senator Maria Cantwell held a press conference on the UW campus highlighting the work of a federally funded research center that helped realize that goal.
February 15, 2011
Six faculty from engineering, chemistry and genome sciences awarded Sloan Research Fellowships
UW engineers and chemists have been awarded Sloan Research Fellowships, prestigious awards for early-career scientists.
February 1, 2011
New center aims to dramatically lower barrier to making silicon photonic chips
The University of Washington has launched a new program, co-funded by Intel Corp., to make it easier and cheaper to build silicon photonic circuits. Sending information using light, instead of electrons, will allow for faster, lower-power and more versatile microchips.
January 20, 2011
Encouraging women scientists in industry, government to enter academia
The On-Ramps into Academia workshop at the UW aims to lure women researchers working in government, industry or as consultants to academic positions. Applications for the second workshop, this spring, are due Feb. 15.
January 3, 2011
Engineering students hack Kinect for surgical robotics research
Students in the Biorobotics Laboratory hacked the Kinect, a motion-based controller for Microsoft’s Xbox 360 gaming system, for research on telerobotic surgery.
December 20, 2010
Students water-testing tool wins $40,000, launches nonprofit
UW engineering students won an international contest for designing a way to monitor water disinfection by solar rays. The students will share a $40,000 prize from the Rockefeller Foundation and are now working with nonprofits to turn their concept into a reality.
December 13, 2010
Assessing the environmental effects of tidal turbines
UW scientists are helping to prepare for a tidal energy project in Puget Sound. Researchers say this pilot project will have the most comprehensive environmental monitoring of any tidal energy installation to date.
November 15, 2010
Scented consumer products shown to emit many unlisted chemicals
Widely used fragranced products — including those that claim to be “green” — give off many chemicals that are not listed on the label, including some that are toxic, a UW study found.
November 9, 2010
Undergraduates’ low-cost ultrasound system wins Gates Foundation grant
UW undergraduate students will travel to Africa to test an ultrasound system aimed at lowering childbirth-related mortality, which kills an estimated 1,000 women each day, almost entirely in the developing world.
November 1, 2010
Molecular imaging and therapy center to develop, commercialize technologies
Ultrasound could soon be a way for spotting cancerous cells before a tumor develops, precisely monitoring how a person responds to treatment or delivering genetic therapies.
August 19, 2010
Deaf, hard-of-hearing students do first test of sign language by cell phone
Editor’s note: Each year the summer academy hosts a premier of the students’ animated short films.
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