Archive

June 24, 2004

A harvest of fun: Staffer works in technology, plays in a garden

Shortly after Ian Taylor arrived in Seattle in 1975, he got a job at the UW.

Departments innovate to help people with disabilities

The Internet has opened up Distance Learning to a whole new level, with courses once offered through the mail being delivered instantaneously online — across town or worldwide.

Welcome mat is out: ‘U Dub Club’ emphasizes open-door policy with new name

Quick quiz: Which members of the campus community get to use the UW Faculty Club?

You could hardly be blamed for answering only “faculty.

Broken chimneys: Is Seattle fault to blame?

When the Nisqually earthquake struck western Washington in 2001, brick chimneys in parts of West Seattle and Bremerton were left looking like so much straw after the Big Bad Wolf had gone huffing and puffing through.

Mystery photo

Where are we? The photo above was taken somewhere on campus.

Students GEAR-UP for summer sessions

For five weeks this summer, the University will be home to about 1,000 middle school and high school students from throughout Washington State, here to soak up atmosphere, see the sights and begin considering their college options.

Mary-Claire King to receive Gruber Genetics Prize

Dr.

Artificial cornea implanted

A UW eye surgeon performed the Pacific Northwest’s first artificial cornea implant June 9 at UW Medical Center-Roosevelt.

June 22, 2004

Brick chimneys can double as strong-motion sensors in earthquakes

When a magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck western Washington in 2001, hundreds of brick chimneys in two neighborhoods were seriously damaged or toppled. New research suggests the shaking in these areas might have been intensified by the Seattle fault, even though it was not the source of the earthquake.

USDA study to address obesity and poverty

The major trends in the American diet can be described as more calories, more refined grains, more added sugars, and more added fats. The reasons behind these trends are largely economic, says Dr. Adam Drewnowski, director of the Nutritional Sciences Program in the UW School of Public Health and Community Medicine

June 21, 2004

Virtual reality significantly reduces pain-related brain activity

Virtual reality appears to dramatically change how the brain physically registers pain, not just how people subjected to pain perceive the incoming signals, according to a new study by a group of University of Washington researchers.

June 17, 2004

A celestial surprise: Comet Wild 2 unlike any other body in solar system

Scientists expected the Stardust spacecraft to send back pictures of comet Wild 2 showing a chunk of rock and ice coated with dust, obscuring any interesting features. Instead, they got images filled with sharply defined mesas, craters, pinnacles and canyons.

June 16, 2004

Banks in Pacific Northwest, Hawaii prove to be a boon for shareholders

Banks located in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii did a better job of managing operating costs in 2003 than the national average, yielding investors a healthy 12 percent return on equity.

June 15, 2004

Monkey business: Studies show tiny callimicos have unusual characteristics

New findings indicate that the endangered callimicos are not a missing link between small and large New World monkeys.

Light trucks pose greater injury risk to pedestrians

Although pedestrian injuries have decreased in recent years, they still remain a significant health problem, accounting for 13 percent of traffic fatalities in the U.S. The growing popularity of light trucks, a category that includes sport utility vehicles (SUVs), has presented a new challenge for pedestrians and raises an important question: Do light trucks increase the risk of severe injury and death for pedestrians?

June 14, 2004

Brains at work: Learning a second language may not be as laborious as believed

Adults often struggle trying to learn a second language, but the process may not be as tedious and slow as commonly believed.

June 8, 2004

Seventh Annual University of Washington Faculty Field Tour: Five-day journey connects new faculty to Washington’s communities

Thirty new UW professors and librarians will venture on a five-day tour of Washington in order to discover the culture, geography and economics of the state as part of the seventh annual Faculty Field Tour.

Top astronaut Bonnie Dunbar visits campus as UW alum of the year for 2004

Bonnie Dunbar, one of the world’s most experienced women astronauts and a 1970s-era engineering graduate, will be honored this week as the UW’s Alumna Summa Laude Dignata winner for 2004.

Certain symptom patterns may provide clues for presence of ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer has often been called the silent killer because it’s so hard to detect. New UW research indicates that ovarian cancer may not be silent, and both women and their health-care providers should be alert for symptoms.

June 3, 2004

First TA union contract OK’d

Members of the Graduate Student Employee Action Coalition/United Auto Workers union, representing 4,600 academic student employees, have voted overwhelmingly to ratify the first-ever agreement reached between the union and the UW.

Research reinforces evidence for Tacoma fault

Scientists know that tectonic stresses have left dips and folds deep within the Earth’s crust across a large swath of the Puget Sound region called the Seattle uplift.

Graduates converge for commencement

About 12,000 students will receive their degrees and stroll toward the future in University of Washington commencement exercises this month that will feature two two-time Pulitzer Prize-winners, an author-activist and an astronaut.

As summer approaches, so does work on Stevens Way

The signs have begun to appear on campus.

Campus news & notes

OUTSTANDING DIETITIANS: The Washington State Dietetic Association named Cristine Trahms the 2004 Outstanding Dietitian of the Year at its recent annual meeting.

Three UW math departments win $3 million grant

Three UW mathematical science departments have received top billing in a National Science Foundation program designed to bolster mathematics as it relates to student research and fellowships, and have won $3 million in funding over the next five years.

TV journalist Russert cancels appearance

Tim Russert, host of NBC’s Meet the Press and other programs, has canceled his appearance Wednesday evening at the University Book Store to participate in NBC’s coverage of the state funeral for former president Ronald Reagan.

Peer Portfolio

KENTUCKY HEALTH: The University of Kentucky will open a College of Public Health, its Board of Trustees voted on May 4.

Brochure will invite UW campus community to donate

Faculty and staff already make a contribution to the University, but soon they’ll be asked to consider a different kind of contribution.

Climate disaster film The Day After Tomorrow wildly incorrect — but fun

A much-publicized new action thriller on the perils of climate change hit theaters last Friday, but UW climate experts who got a sneak peek agree moviegoers can rest assured that a real-life version of The Day After Tomorrow won’t be anything like what they see on the screen.

Notices

Academic Opportunities

Summer Institute

Washington Campus Compact (WACC) is sponsoring two professional development programs this summer, “Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Institute,” to be held June 28–29, and “Self-Reflection and Renewal Activity,” to be held June 29–30.