UW News

Engineering


October 25, 2013

New UW-Pacific NW National Lab computing-research institute holds first public workshop

Co-directors Jandhyala and Dunning.

Based at the University of Washington, the Northwest Institute for Advanced Computing’s first public event on Oct. 30 will feature speakers from the UW, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and industry, as well as breakout sessions that explore various aspects of science and engineering technologies.


October 23, 2013

Stephen Boyd: Making the best decisions in smart systems, products

photo of stephen boyd

Stephen Boyd of Stanford University is the speaker at this year’s Lytle Lecture Series hosted by the UW’s Department of Electrical Engineering. He will give a free public talk at 3:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28.


October 17, 2013

Yoga accessible for the blind with new Microsoft Kinect-based program

Example of how the Kinect reads incorrect body posture.

A team of University of Washington computer scientists has created a software program that watches a user’s movements and gives spoken feedback using a Microsoft Kinect on what to change to accurately complete a yoga pose.


October 15, 2013

Local infrastructure focus of College of Engineering’s fall lecture series

Part of the lecture series brochure cover.

The University of Washington College of Engineering fall lecture series will feature faculty researchers and industry leaders who work to maintain and improve our region’s critical infrastructure. The lectures are at 7 p.m. on Oct. 23, Oct. 30 and Nov. 14.


October 9, 2013

New strategy lets cochlear implant users hear music

Photo of piano keys

University of Washington scientists have developed a new way of processing the signals in cochlear implants to help users hear music better. The technique lets users perceive differences between musical instruments, a significant improvement from what standard cochlear implants can offer.


October 8, 2013

UW, local company building innovative deep-sea manned submarine

Image of submersible

The UW, Boeing and an Everett company are building a carbon-fiber submersible that will carry five passengers almost 2 miles deep.


September 30, 2013

3 UW professors honored by NIH for innovative biomedical research

Drumheller Fountain and Gerberding Hall on the UW campus.

Three University of Washington faculty members are among those honored with a grant from the National Institutes of Health’s High Risk-High Reward program.


UW engineers invent programming language to build synthetic DNA

An example chemical program.

A team led by the University of Washington has developed a programming language for chemistry that it hopes will streamline efforts to design a network that can guide the behavior of chemical-reaction mixtures in the same way that embedded electronic controllers guide cars, robots and other devices.


September 16, 2013

Depletion of ‘traitor’ immune cells slows cancer growth in mice

A stained cross-section of a mouse tumor. In this image, red areas are macrophages, and green indicates the presence of the peptide that can bind with macrophages in cancer cells.

Scientists at the University of Washington have developed a strategy to slow tumor growth and prolong survival in mice with cancer by targeting and destroying a type of cell that dampens the body’s immune response to cancer.


September 11, 2013

UW engineers to make cookstoves 10 times cleaner for developing world

An example of one of the more efficient cookstoves used in developing countries.

University of Washington engineers have received a $900,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to design a better cookstove, which researchers say will use half as much fuel and cut emissions by 90 percent.


September 4, 2013

Pico-world dragnets: Computer-designed proteins recognize and bind small molecules

Protein design team

Computer-designed proteins that can recognize and interact with small biological molecules are now a reality. Scientists have succeeded in creating a protein molecule that can be programmed to unite with three different steroids.


August 27, 2013

Researcher controls colleague’s motions in 1st human brain-to-brain interface

A photo showing both sides of the demonstration.

University of Washington researchers have performed what they believe is the first noninvasive human-to-human brain interface, with one researcher able to send a brain signal via the Internet to control the hand motions of a fellow researcher.


August 26, 2013

Microneedle patch could replace standard tuberculosis skin test

A chitin microneedle patch tested on human skin.

A team led by University of Washington engineers has created a patch with tiny, biodegradable needles that can penetrate the skin and precisely deliver a tuberculosis test. The researchers published their results online Aug. 26 in the journal Advanced Healthcare Materials.


August 21, 2013

Julie Kientz named one of world’s top innovators under 35

Logo for TR35.

Julie Kientz, a UW assistant professor of human centered design & engineering, has been named one of the world’s top 35 innovators under age 35 by MIT Technology Review magazine.


August 13, 2013

Wireless devices go battery-free with new communication technique

Two devices communicate without using battery power.

University of Washington engineers have created a new wireless communication system that allows devices to interact with each other without relying on batteries or wires for power.


July 28, 2013

Breakthrough in detecting DNA mutations could help treat tuberculosis, cancer

A conceptual image showing examples of mutations and no mutations.

Researchers have developed a new method that can look at a specific segment of DNA and pinpoint a single mutation, which could help diagnose and treat diseases such as cancer and tuberculosis.


July 23, 2013

Pain of artificial legs could be eased by real-time monitoring

Ron Bailey walks on a treadmill while testing the new technology.

University of Washington engineers have developed a device that tracks how much a person’s limb swells and shrinks when inside a prosthetic socket. The data could help doctors and patients predict how and when their limbs will swell, which could be used to build smarter sockets.


July 18, 2013

UW launches record 17 startup companies

A large 'W' is at the north entrance to the UW campus.

The University of Washington launched a record 17 startup companies this fiscal year.


July 16, 2013

Eye-tracking could outshine passwords if made user-friendly

A human eye.

University of Washington engineers found in a recent study that the user’s experience could be key to creating an authentication system that doesn’t rely on passwords.


July 15, 2013

Ecological forces structure your body’s personal mix of microbes

Researchers hope to build a predictive model of the human microbiome to study what affects this massive biological system and to design ways to manipulate the microbiome to achieve desired clinical outcomes.


June 27, 2013

Competitive STEM program at UW targets deaf, hard of hearing students

Teaching assistant works with student.

The Summer Academy for Advancing Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Computing at the University of Washington is the only program of its kind in the nation that offers a full quarter of academic credit to incoming college students or those who just finished their first year.


UW gas-, electric-powered cars claim 1st and 2nd in national contest

Racecar competing in Lincoln, Neb.

The University of Washington Formula Motorsports team took first place at the Formula Society of Automotive Engineers competition held June 19-22 in Lincoln, Neb.


June 25, 2013

UW awarded $10 million to design paper-based diagnostic medical device

Simulated computer image of portable diagnostic device

The University of Washington has received nearly $10 million from the U.S. Department of Defense to continue a project aimed at building a small, paper-based device that could test for infectious diseases on-demand in areas where diagnostic capabilities are limited.


June 12, 2013

Silicon-based nanoparticles could make LEDs cheaper, greener to produce

LumiSands red phosphors

Researchers at the University of Washington have created a material they say would make LEDs cheaper and greener to manufacture, driving down costs to consumers.


June 11, 2013

New tasks become as simple as waving a hand with brain-computer interfaces

A human brain depicted in a movie poster.

University of Washington researchers have demonstrated that when humans use brain-computer interfaces, the brain behaves much like it does when completing simple motor skills such as kicking a ball or waving. Learning to control a robotic arm or a prosthetic limb could become second nature for people who are paralyzed.


June 4, 2013

Wi-Fi signals enable gesture recognition throughout entire home

A hand gesture changes the TV channel.

University of Washington researchers have shown it’s possible to leverage Wi-Fi signals around us to detect specific movements without needing sensors on the human body or cameras.


May 30, 2013

Transportation fuels from woody biomass promising way to reduce emissions

Log ends include one with green arrows going round and round signifying the sustainable potential of biofuels,

Two processes that turn woody biomass into transportation fuels have the potential to exceed current Environmental Protection Agency requirements for renewable fuels.


May 29, 2013

UW to host student steel bridge competition this weekend

UW team competes at regional competition 2013

Just a week after the Interstate 5 Skagit River Bridge collapse north of Seattle, the University of Washington will host a national steel bridge competition for undergraduate civil engineering students. Forty-nine finalist teams will converge on campus for the 2013 National Student Steel Bridge Competition.


May 24, 2013

Infrastructure experts: Engineers who can speak about bridge collapse

University of Washington structural engineers, architects and freight transportation experts are available to speak with reporters about the I-5 Skagit Bridge collapse on Thursday, May 23. Charles Roeder Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Office: 206-543-6199 E-mail: croeder@uw.edu   Web: http://www.ce.washington.edu/people/faculty/faculty.php?id=36 Expertise: Gusset plates and steel bracing frames; seismic behavior of steel and composite structures; fatigue…


May 22, 2013

News Digest: Seaglider technology licensed, lecture revisits the Boldt decision, U. of Minnesota president to speak

Seaglider

UW Seaglider technology is licensed commercially; Richard Whitney, emeritus professor of fisheries, will deliver a talk about the Boldt decision; U. of Minnesota president and former UW faculty member Eric Kaler will deliver a talk about challenges facing research institutions.


May 20, 2013

New K-12 science standards add focus on practices, engineering and early learning

Student using bunsen burner

The recently updated K-12 science education learning goals outline a vision for what all U.S. citizens should know about science. Philip Bell, director of UW’s Institute for Science and Math Education, talks about what’s new about the goals.


May 14, 2013

Engineered biomaterial could improve success of medical implants

Two tissue samples showing differences in collagen build-up.

University of Washington engineers have created a synthetic substance that fully resists the body’s natural attack response to foreign objects. Medical devices such as artificial heart valves, prostheses and breast implants could be coated with this polymer to prevent the body from rejecting an implanted object.


May 8, 2013

New ‘academic redshirt’ program to support undergraduate STEM education

Math Academy 2012 students

The University of Washington in collaboration with Washington State University is developing an “academic redshirt” program that will bring dozens of low-income, Washington state high school graduates to the two universities to study engineering in a five-year bachelor’s program.


May 6, 2013

New device can extract human DNA with full genetic data in minutes

close-up view of the device.

A new device will give hospitals and research labs a much easier way to separate DNA from human fluid samples to help with genome sequencing, disease diagnosis and forensic investigations.


April 29, 2013

Grocery delivery service is greener than driving to the store

Webvan.com was a one-time grocery delivery company.

New University of Washington research shows it’s much more environmentally friendly to leave the car parked at home and opt for groceries delivered to your doorstep.


April 23, 2013

Robots, solar-powered cars at Engineering Discovery Days, April 26-27

A student gets a hug from a robot.

Engineering Discovery Days is April 26-27 at the UW campus and will feature exhibits and demonstrations from engineering departments and student groups.


April 22, 2013

Professor of computer science and engineering remembered through UW scholarship fund

David Notkin, professor of computer science and engineering at UW.

David Notkin, University of Washington professor of computer science and engineering, died April 22. He was 58.


April 15, 2013

Preparing to install the world’s largest underwater observatory

Applied Physics Laboratory engineer Mike Harrington leads development of the science junction boxes for the underwater laboratory..

Engineers at the UW’s Applied Physics Laboratory are under pressure to build and test parts for installation this summer in the world’s largest deep-ocean observatory off the Washington and Oregon coasts.


High glucose levels could impair ferroelectricity in body’s connective tissues

Figure shows how glucose can suppress ferroelectric switching

Researchers found that a protein in organs that repeatedly stretch and retract can lose their functionality when exposed to sugar.


April 12, 2013

New device could cut costs on household products, pharmaceuticals

Surfactant gel structure forms after passing through device.

A new procedure that thickens and thins fluid at the micron level could save consumers and manufacturers money, particularly for some soap products.



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