Engineering
October 12, 2020
Engineering lecture focuses on contact tracing: Monitoring COVID-19 infections while respecting privacy
![A photo of the front of the Gates Center](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/03/31095615/Gates-Center1-150x150.jpeg)
This fall the UW’s annual engineering lecture will feature Stefano Tessaro, an associate professor in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering.
October 8, 2020
Airdropping sensors from moths: Researchers use flying insects to drop sensors from air, land them safely on the ground
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/10/07143951/airdropping_sensorsWEB004-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers have created a sensor system that can ride aboard a small drone or an insect, such as a moth, until it gets to its destination.
October 6, 2020
All together now: Experiments with twisted 2D materials catch electrons behaving collectively
![A diagram showing the overlap between the atomic layout of sheets of 2D materials](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/10/06085014/tDBG-Schematic-150x150.png)
In a paper published Sept. 14 in the journal Nature Physics, a team led by the University of Washington reports that carefully constructed stacks of graphene — a 2D form of carbon — can exhibit highly correlated electron properties. The team also found evidence that this type of collective behavior likely relates to the emergence of exotic magnetic states.
September 30, 2020
UW researchers driving around Seattle to track COVID-19 response over time
![A panoramic view of a street corner. Cars and a pedestrian are labeled](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/09/29140730/Streetview-example-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers developed a project that scans the streets every few weeks to document how Seattle has reacted to the pandemic and what recovery looks like.
September 28, 2020
Q&A: UW researchers clicked ads on 200 news sites to track misinformation
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/09/28110134/ads-1663031_1280-150x150.png)
A study by UW researchers found that both mainstream and misinformation news sites displayed similar levels of problematic ads. UW News had a conversation with the team about this research, where ads on news sites come from, and how things might change leading up to the election.
September 3, 2020
First responders get training on how to decontaminate masks
![N95 masks under a green light](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/09/03141524/training-N95-37-150x150.jpg)
A University of Washington-led team has developed a box that can decontaminate N95 respirator masks using ultraviolet light.
August 31, 2020
UW receives NSF funds for investment in an interdisciplinary quantum future
![A person standing smiling at the camera](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/08/26093700/kaimeifu-150x150.jpg)
The National Science Foundation has awarded $3 million to establish a NSF Research Traineeship at the University of Washington for graduate students in quantum information science and technology. The new traineeship — known as Accelerating Quantum-Enabled Technologies, or AQET — will make the UW one of just “a handful” of universities with a formal, interdisciplinary QIST curriculum.
August 26, 2020
Faculty from Allen School, Evans School tapped for NSF institutes on artificial intelligence
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/08/26115347/NSF-AI-web-image-150x150.jpg)
The National Science Foundation has announced five new institutes devoted to AI research and based at universities around the country. Six University of Washington faculty will be affiliated with the institutes.
August 20, 2020
Faculty/staff honors: Public service award, endowed professorship, cybersecurity grant — and a UW professor among Talented 12
![Jessica Ray, UW assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, has been named a member of the 2020 Talented 12 list of young chemists working to solve world problems by the weekly newsmagazine Chemical & Engineering News, or C&EN.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/08/19101900/Ray-150x150.jpeg)
Recent honors and grants to University of Washington faculty and staff have come from the American Chemical Society, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the National Science Board and the family of engineers Ganesh and Hema Moorthy.
August 14, 2020
UW team developing model to help lower COVID-19 infections in King County, guide eventual vaccine distribution
![A UW Medicine worker wearing personal protective equipment stands outside a car at a drive up testing clinic](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/08/14094023/UW_Medicine_Frontline_web-150x150.jpg)
A UW team has received a grant to develop a model that uses local data to generate policy recommendations that could help lower COVID-19 infections in King County.
July 16, 2020
7 University of Washington researchers elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences in 2020
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/07/16150934/20200515_May-Campus-1112-Edit-Edit_web-150x150.jpg)
Seven scientists and engineers at the University of Washington have been elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences, according to an announcement July 15 by the academy.
July 15, 2020
A GoPro for beetles: Researchers create a robotic camera backpack for insects
![A beetle with a camera system on its back moves through a patch of moss](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/07/14115419/BeetleCameraWEB012-150x150.jpg)
Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a tiny wireless steerable camera that can ride aboard an insect or an insect-sized robot.
June 23, 2020
Laser allows solid-state refrigeration of a semiconductor material
![A diagram showing the set up of an experiment for solid-state refrigeration using a laser.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/06/23094650/cantilever_diagram-150x150.jpg)
A team from the University of Washington used an infrared laser to cool a solid semiconductor by at least 20 degrees C, or 36 F, below room temperature, as they report in a paper published June 23 in Nature Communications.
June 17, 2020
Is the air getting cleaner during the COVID-19 pandemic?
![San Francisco at sunset](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/06/16160922/sasha-stories-c6g-26myD34-unsplash-150x150.jpg)
Using air quality data from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency monitors across the U.S., a UW-led team looked for changes in two common pollutants over the course of 2020.
June 10, 2020
Passing crucial, challenging introductory chemistry course gives biggest boost to underrepresented students
![A person at a chalkboard delivering a chemistry lecture](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/06/10104920/277869765_c965d8a070_o-150x150.jpg)
Researchers examined 15 years of records of student performance, education and demographics for chemistry courses at the University of Washington. They found that underrepresented students received lower grades in the general chemistry series compared to their peers and, if the grade was sufficiently low, were less likely to continue in the series and more likely to leave STEM. But if underrepresented students completed the first general chemistry course with at least the minimum grade needed to continue in the series, they were more likely than their peers to continue the general chemistry series and complete this major step toward a STEM degree.
June 4, 2020
UW guidelines helping to ramp up research safely during COVID-19
![A person speaking at a lecturn](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/06/04131152/Lidstrom-NWQuantum-150x150.jpg)
Mary Lidstrom, vice provost for research at the University of Washington, talks about the evolving picture of research at the UW in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
April 29, 2020
Solar researchers across country join forces with industry to boost U.S. solar manufacturing
![A person inside a laboratory demonstrating printer technology for flexible electronics](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/04/29080356/Devin-MacKenzie-on-R2R-Testbeds-150x150.jpg)
The University of Washington and its Washington Clean Energy Testbeds, the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Toledo have formed the U.S. Manufacturing of Advanced Perovskites Consortium, or US-MAP. This research and development coalition aims to accelerate the domestic commercialization of perovskite technologies.
April 22, 2020
A contact-tracing app that helps public health agencies and doesn’t compromise your privacy
![A person on a train looking at their phone. Other people are on their phones behind that person.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/04/22122644/rasheed-kemy-oqY09oVTa3k-unsplash-150x150.jpg)
Researchers from the University of Washington and UW Medicine, along with volunteers from Microsoft, have developed a new contact-tracing app called CovidSafe.
April 16, 2020
‘Hands-on’ classes online? How some instructors are adapting to a new teaching environment
![A postal service box with lab materials inside](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/04/17142008/ENGR105kits_web007-150x150.jpg)
When the UW announced it was moving its spring quarter 2020 classes entirely online to combat the novel coronavirus, instructors across campus faced a new, uncharted challenge.
April 14, 2020
How families can use technology to juggle childcare and remote life
![A child in front of a laptop.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/04/14090658/LJcompy1-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers are beginning a national study to help families discover technology that helps them both successfully navigate home-based learning and combat social isolation.
April 13, 2020
‘I saw you were online’: How online status indicators shape our behavior
![A closeup of a hand holding a phone](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/04/10124918/iphone-388387_1920-150x150.jpg)
After surveying smartphone users, UW researchers found that many people misunderstand online status indicators but still carefully shape their behavior to control how they are displayed to others.
April 3, 2020
Watch videos of UW students’ ideas for public toilets, road safety and job matches in India
![Students painting a wall a copper color](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/04/03113526/GCIL_web-150x150.jpg)
A UW study abroad program empowers students from all disciplines to apply their skills to real-life problems.
March 31, 2020
UW researchers need your (digital) coughs
![A photo of the front of the Gates Center](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/03/31095615/Gates-Center1-150x150.jpeg)
UW researchers are developing an app that will allow health organizations to monitor coughs from self-quarantined COVID-19 patients from home.
March 30, 2020
Three UW students selected as 2020 Goldwater Scholars
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2016/04/04154306/IMG_3973-150x150.jpg)
Three undergraduate students at the University of Washington are among 396 around the country who have been named Goldwater Scholars for 2020.
March 19, 2020
‘Sushi parasites’ have increased 283-fold in past 40 years
![anisakis in salmon filet](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/03/19081748/Anisakis-worm-in-salmon-150x150.jpg)
A new study led by the University of Washington finds dramatic increases in the abundance of a worm that can be transmitted to humans who eat raw or undercooked seafood. Its 283-fold increase in abundance since the 1970s could have implications for the health of humans and marine mammals, which both can inadvertently eat the worm.
March 18, 2020
How people investigate — or don’t — fake news on Twitter and Facebook
![A Facebook post that shows a picture of a crazy cloud formation over Sydney. The text above the picture says "A friend posted this pic of last night's storm in Sydney. Think there might be a craft in there somewhere?"](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/03/17103209/storm-150x150.png)
UW researchers watched 25 participants scroll through their Facebook or Twitter feeds while, unbeknownst to them, a Google Chrome extension randomly added debunked content on top of some of the real posts.
March 17, 2020
Survey: What blocks your bus?
![A King County Metro bus in Seattle.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2018/08/16145323/MetroBus48_1-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers are inviting the public to share their experiences on their regular commutes in a survey.
March 10, 2020
UW faculty join radio debate on climate change solutions
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/03/10085717/KUOW-thats-debatable-photo-150x150.jpeg)
KUOW’s That’s Debatable on Wednesday will feature two University of Washington faculty members: Dan Schwartz, professor of chemical engineering and director of the Clean Energy Institute, and Kate Simonen, upcoming chair of the Department of Architecture and director of the Carbon Leadership Forum.
March 9, 2020
Book notes: UW architectural historian Tyler Sprague explores the work of Kingdome designer Jack Christiansen
![Tyler Sprague is an assistant professor of architecture who studies and teaches structural design and architectural history. A former structural engineer himself, Sprague is the author of "Sculpture on a Grand Scale: Jack Christiansen's Thin Shell Modernism."](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/03/09090555/SculptureonGrandScale_cover_use-150x150.jpg)
A talk with UW architecture professor Tyler Sprague about his book “Sculpture on a Grand Scale: Jack Christiansen’s Thin Shell Modernism.” Plus books from Rick Bonus and Yong-Chool Ha.
March 2, 2020
Navigating the potential pitfalls of tracking college athletes
![A close up of a hand holding oars. On the person's wrist is a fitness tracker](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/02/27171311/college_athlete_data_web004-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers interviewed 22 athletes and staff members from three college athletics programs to see how collecting data from college athletes might encroach on their autonomy.
February 18, 2020
Simple, fuel-efficient rocket engine could enable cheaper, lighter spacecraft
![A rocket takes off](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/02/17101335/37086510161_69f8ff1d66_o-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers have developed a mathematical model that describes how rotating detonation engines work.
February 13, 2020
Researchers at AAAS to discuss latest science on Cascadia earthquake hazards
![earthquake damage to brick building](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/02/13141855/5d98ba6b6e7b48be79050301_FEMA_-_1430_-_Photograph_by_Kevin_Galvin_taken_on_03-05-2001_in_Washington-1024x686-150x150.jpeg)
At a Saturday afternoon session, researchers from the University of Washington and federal agencies will discuss the emerging research on Pacific Northwest megaquakes.
Hydropower dams cool rivers in the Mekong River basin, satellites show
![A river in the foreground while children run on the beach in the background](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/02/13120424/sesan-150x150.jpg)
Using 30 years of satellite data, UW researchers discovered that within one year of the opening of a major dam in the Mekong River basin, downstream river temperatures during the dry season dropped by up to 3.6 degrees F (2 degrees C).
Immune cells consult with neighbors to make decisions
![An illustration showing immune system cells migrating to a wound site.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/02/12144022/QL_Cartoon_03Feb2020_rev1-150x150.jpg)
Scientists and physicians have long known that immune cells migrate to the site of an infection, which individuals experience as inflammation — swelling, redness and pain. Now, researchers at the University of Washington and Northwestern University have uncovered evidence that this gathering is not just a consequence of immune activation. Immune cells count their neighbors before deciding whether or not the immune system should kick into high gear.
February 3, 2020
The one ring — to track your finger’s location
![A close up of the ring with the wristband in the background](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/01/31114737/AuraRing_web009-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers have created AuraRing, a ring and wristband combination that can detect the precise location of someone’s index finger and continuously track hand movements.
January 22, 2020
What’s in Puget Sound? New technique casts a wide net for concerning chemicals
![A researcher works in a chemical hood](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2020/01/21153303/PugetSoundWater_web002-150x150.jpg)
Using a new “non-targeted” approach, UW and UW Tacoma researchers screened samples from multiple regions of Puget Sound to look for potentially harmful compounds that might be present.
December 16, 2019
Faculty/staff honors: Distinguished teaching honor, new editor for environmental health journal, overseeing education in Uganda, Allen School honors
![statue of George Washington on UW campus](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2012/10/04204128/george2-tile-150x150.jpg)
Recent honors to UW faculty and staff include the new editorship of a major journal, a post with the Republic of Uganda and honors from the American College of Physicians, the Association for Computing Machinery and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
December 9, 2019
Brian Johnson receives $4.9 million from U.S. Department of Energy to support solar energy systems
![Brian Johnson, assistant professor in the UW Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, has received a $4.9 million grant across three years from the U.S. Department of Energy.](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/12/09120339/brianbj-20191113-150x150.jpg)
Brian Johnson, assistant professor in the UW Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, has received a $4.9 million grant across three years from the U.S. Department of Energy.
December 4, 2019
Warmer temperatures will increase arsenic levels in rice, study shows
![closeup of rice grains on rice plants](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/12/03124002/ArsenicandRice001-web-150x150.jpg)
UW researchers have found that warmer temperatures, at levels expected under most climate change projections, can lead to higher concentrations of arsenic in rice grains.
December 3, 2019
Communities around Sea-Tac Airport exposed to a unique mix of air pollution associated with aircraft
![](https://uw-s3-cdn.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/12/03121554/Screen-Shot-2019-12-03-at-12.15.34-PM-150x150.png)
Communities underneath and downwind of jets landing at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport are exposed to a type of ultrafine particle pollution that is distinctly associated with aircraft, according to a new University of Washington study, the first to identify the unique signature of aircraft emissions in the state of Washington. The finding comes from the two-year…
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