UW News blog
October 28, 2019
Hubble captures galaxies’ ghostly gaze
An image captured earlier this year by the Hubble Space Telescope may look like a ghostly apparition, but it is not. Hubble is looking at a titanic head-on collision between two galaxies.
October 24, 2019
NSF invests in cyberinfrastructure institute to harness cosmic data
The National Science Foundation awarded the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and nine collaborating organizations, including the University of Washington, $2.8 million for a two-year “conceptualization phase” of the Scalable Cyberinfrastructure Institute for Multi-Messenger Astrophysics.
New fossil trove documents recovery of life on Earth after dinosaur-killing asteroid impact
Scientists have discovered an extraordinary collection of fossils that reveal in detail how life recovered after a catastrophic event: the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs 66 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous Period.
October 23, 2019
UW team sending autonomous surfboard to explore Antarctic waters
This week a UW team is releasing a robotic surfboard to explore the surface ocean around Antarctica.
October 15, 2019
New pronoun option coming for students; celebrate International Pronouns Day Oct. 16
On International Pronouns Day (Oct. 16) the University of Washington community is invited to celebrate the ways in which using someone’s pronouns have a positive impact on the community as a whole.
UW’s Ashleigh Theberge receives Packard Fellowship for research on cell communication signals
Ashleigh Theberge, a University of Washington assistant professor of chemistry, has been named a 2019 Packard Fellow for her research on cell signaling. Every year since 1988, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation has awarded Packard Fellowships in Science and Engineering to early-career scientists to pursue the types of innovative projects that often fall outside…
October 14, 2019
To reduce gun violence, lift roadblocks to firearm data
While gun violence in America kills more than 35,000 people a year and as calls for policies to stem the crisis grow, University of Washington researchers point out in a new analysis that barriers to data stand in the way of advancing solutions. “Firearm data availability, accessibility and infrastructure need to be substantially improved to…
October 10, 2019
Personal comments from Hans Rosling’s family about UW’s new Hans Rosling Center for Population Health
The new building on the University of Washington’s Seattle campus that will be home to some of the key departments at the center of the university’s Population Health Initiative was named in honor of Dr. Hans Rosling on Oct. 10, 2019, by the UW Board of Regents. The $230 million building under construction on the…
October 8, 2019
Genes contribute to dog breeds’ iconic traits
A new study by a research team that included the University of Washington offers new evidence to support what scientists have long suspected about dogs: that some dog behaviors that help characterize breeds — a drive to chase, for example, or aggression toward strangers — are associated with distinct genetic differences among them.
October 7, 2019
How bike sharing in Seattle rose from the ashes of Pronto’s failure
University of Washington transportation researchers looked into why the docked bike-share program Pronto failed while dockless bike sharing has been so successful.
October 2, 2019
Abigail Swann on Science News’ list of 10 young scientists to watch
The University of Washington’s Abigail Swann is honored by Science News on its list of 10 promising early- and mid-career scientists.
October 1, 2019
Engineering lecture series focuses on future of food
This fall the University of Washington’s annual engineering lecture series will feature three UW engineers and scientists who are working across disciplines to manage the quality and quantity of the food we eat and grow.
September 25, 2019
Joel Migdal, founder of International Studies Program, to mark UW retirement with public lecture, workshop, Oct. 3
Joel S. Migdal, professor in the UW Jackson School of International Studies, will celebrate retirement after 39 years at the UW on Oct. 3 with a daylong workshop featuring current and former students, followed by a lecture on “State and Society: Then and Now.”
September 20, 2019
Two UW ice researchers to participate in year-long drift across Arctic Ocean
Two UW researchers — Bonnie Light, a principal physicist at the UW’s Applied Physics Laboratory and an affiliate associate professor of atmospheric sciences, and Madison Smith, a recent UW graduate who is now doing her postdoctoral research at the UW — will join for the fifth of the six two-month legs, in summer 2020.
September 19, 2019
Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies receives $1.8M grant
The UW Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies has received a $1.8 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, which will fund four years of work at the UW around Native student support, academics, research and cultural programs.
September 10, 2019
Hugo House documentary ‘Where the House Was’ to debut Sept. 21 at Northwest Film Forum
“Where the House Was,” a new, 58-minute documentary produced by France McCue, UW senior lecturer in English, tells of the old location for Hugo House, the place for writer, and its subsequent demolition.
September 9, 2019
Breakthrough Foundation honors UW researcher studying ‘exotic’ states of matter
Lukasz Fidkowski, an assistant professor of physics at the University of Washington, is one of the winners of a 2020 New Horizons in Physics Prize from the Breakthrough Foundation. The prize to early-career scientists, announced Sept. 5, recognizes Fidkowski and his three co-recipients “for incisive contributions to the understanding of topological states of matter and the relationships between them.”
September 5, 2019
Study shows exposure to multiple languages may make it easier to learn one
A new study from the University of Washington finds that, based on brain activity, people who live in communities where multiple languages are spoken can identify words in yet another language better than those who live in a monolingual environment.
September 4, 2019
New study tracks sulfur-based metabolism in the open ocean
UW oceanographers used lab experiments and seawater samples to learn how photosynthetic microbes and ocean bacteria use sulfur, a plentiful marine nutrient.
August 27, 2019
Rankings: UW is No. 14 in the world, third among U.S. public universities; makes Money and Washington Monthly lists
The University of Washington held its position at No. 14 in the world — No. 3 among U.S. public universities — on the 2019 Academic Ranking of World Universities, released this month.
August 21, 2019
3 UW graduate students earn NASA fellowships, continue legacy of success
Three University of Washington graduate students are among this year’s recipients of a prestigious NASA fellowship that funds student research projects in the fields of Earth and planetary sciences and astrophysics.
August 19, 2019
Starbucks, United Way, Mary’s Place and Wellspring welcome UW to coalition supporting local unsheltered families
Today local community leaders welcomed University of Washington to a coalition dedicated to supporting unsheltered families across Puget Sound. The University will host three Family Resource Exchanges that will take place on its campuses in Bothell, Seattle and Tacoma, expanding the coalition’s ability to help unsheltered families in the region. This commitment comes shortly after the one-year anniversary of the first exchange in King County last summer.
August 13, 2019
HUB closed starting at 2 p.m. on Aug. 14 and Sept. 4 for police training activities
The Husky Union Building (HUB) will be closed from 2 to 9 p.m. on Aug. 14 and Sept. 4 for the UW Police Department to conduct training exercises inside the building.
August 12, 2019
First evidence of human-caused climate change melting the West Antarctic Ice Sheet
A new study by U.S. and U.K. scientists finds that in addition to natural variations in winds that drive warmer water to the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which last about a decade, there has been a longer-term change in the winds that can be linked with human activities.
August 9, 2019
Artificial intelligence could yield more accurate breast cancer diagnoses
Researchers at UW and UCLA have developed an artificial intelligence system that could help pathologists read biopsies more accurately, and lead to better detection and diagnosis of breast cancer.
August 8, 2019
UW, UC San Diego, UC Berkeley receive $5M NSF award to simplify researcher access to public clouds
The National Science Foundation has awarded a five-year, $5 million grant to the University of California, San Diego, the University of Washington and the University of California, Berkeley to develop CloudBank, a suite of managed services to simplify public cloud access for computer science research and education.
August 1, 2019
UW Division of Design faculty, Seattle Children’s physicians collaborate on more effective anesthesia cart organization
In recent years, physicians at Seattle Children’s Hospital have worked with UW faculty members in design to come up with a better, safer, more reliable way to order and use drugs on an operating room’s anesthesia cart.
July 26, 2019
UW moves up to No. 5 on Kiplinger’s list of ‘best value’ public universities
The University of Washington is now fifth on Kiplinger’s list of best values among U.S. public universities, according to a new ranking published this week. Last year, the UW placed No. 7.
July 23, 2019
What motivates people to join — and stick with — citizen science projects?
After more than 20 years, the UW’s Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team, or COASST, is itself the subject of scientific study. Social scientists are studying the program’s success to extract lessons for all citizen science efforts.
July 16, 2019
8 UW professors elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences in 2019
Eight scientists and engineers from the University of Washington have been elected this year to the Washington State Academy of Sciences.
July 11, 2019
National attention, praise for new Silicon Valley history ‘The Code’ by UW historian Margaret O’Mara
Her sweeping new book about the history of Silicon Valley has UW history professor Margaret O’Mara on a busy national book tour this summer. The book, “The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America,” was published this month by Penguin Press and is receiving many positive reviews.
UW recognized as Commute Trip Reduction Champion
The University of Washington was recognized with platinum-level distinction, the highest, at the City of Seattle’s 2019 Commute Trip Reduction Champion Awards on June 5, 2019.
July 9, 2019
UW professors to receive 2019 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers
Six University of Washington professors are to receive a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, according to an announcement July 2 from the White House. The award, also known as the PECASE, is the highest honor given by the U.S. government to early-career scientists and engineers “who show exceptional promise for leadership in science and technology.”
June 24, 2019
Creating community, battling loneliness among LGBTQ seniors
Research shows that LGBTQ older adults are at higher risk for social isolation. To that end, UW social work professor Karen Fredriksen Goldsen helped establish an LGBTQ senior center in Seattle.
June 21, 2019
New awards for UW research to probe solar cell defects, develop energy-boosting coatings
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office selected two University of Washington professors in the Department of Chemistry and the Clean Energy Institute to receive nearly $1.5 million in funding for two separate endeavors in solar photovoltaic research. The projects are led by Daniel Gamelin, director of the UW-based Molecular Engineering Materials Center, and David Ginger, chief scientist at the CEI and co-director of the Northwest Institute for Materials Physics, Chemistry and Technology, a partnership between the UW and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
June 20, 2019
Mammals and their relatives thrived, diversified during so-called ‘Age of Dinosaurs,’ researchers show
Old myths state that, during the time of the dinosaurs, mammals and their relatives were small and primitive. But new research shows that, during the time of the dinosaurs, mammals and their relatives actually underwent two large ecological radiations, diversifying into climbing, gliding and burrowing forms with a variety of diets.
June 19, 2019
Partnerships for Impact: NSF Awards an additional $4M to the West Big Data Innovation Hub co-led by the UW eScience Institute
The National Science Foundation is awarding a second round of funding for the Regional Big Data Innovation Hubs — organizations launched in 2015 to build and strengthen data science partnerships across industry, academia, nonprofits and government to address scientific and societal challenges. The University of Washington, in collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, San Diego, will continue to coordinate the West Big Data Innovation Hub.
June 18, 2019
UW holds No. 4 position on global rankings among US universities
The University of Washington again placed fourth among U.S. higher education institutions, according to the NTU Rankings released Tuesday.
Of octopuses and astrobiology: Conference talk speculates on cognition beyond Earth
Of the many papers and presentations scheduled for AbSciCon2019, the conference on astrobiology and the search for life in space happening in Bellevue the week of June 24, the UW’s Dominic Sivitilli’s is perhaps unique — he’ll discuss his research into how octopuses “think.”
June 10, 2019
UW is a top place to work in Washington, and top school nationally for LGBTQIA+ students
The has been ranked the No. 5 best place to work in the state by Forbes. The UW also topped the national list of best colleges for LGBTQIA+ students published by Best Colleges, an organization that ranks higher education institutions in various categories.
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