Research
January 31, 2019
Iguana-sized dinosaur cousin discovered in Antarctica, shows how life at the South Pole bounced back after mass extinction
Scientists have just discovered a dinosaur relative that lived in Antarctica 250 million years ago. The iguana-sized reptile’s genus name, Antarctanax, means “Antarctic king.”
January 28, 2019
Even a one-hour ‘planting party’ can lift spirits, build skills among women in prison, study shows
Exposure to nature, even through a brief gardening activity, can improve well-being among women in prison, a UW Tacoma-led study finds.
UW’s Stroum Center affiliates present on Holocaust, Ladino archives and more at 50th anniversary Jewish studies conference
The Stroum Center for Jewish Studies, in the UW Jackson School of International Studies, was well represented at the 50th annual conference of the Association for Jewish Studies Dec. 16-18 in Boston.
January 23, 2019
One year into the mission, autonomous ocean robots set a record in survey of Antarctic ice shelf
A team of ocean robots developed at the UW is the first group of self-guided ocean instruments to travel under an ice sheet and come back to report long-term observations.
First-of-its-kind center hosts tools to analyze the effects of natural disasters
A center housed at the University of Washington offers a new way for scientists to get their hands on state-of-the-art equipment to study the effects of natural disasters. The RAPID Facility, which is the first of its kind in the world, contains over 300 instruments that are available for researchers around the world to use.
January 16, 2019
Three awards from US Department of Energy to fuel UW solar cell research
Three teams led by University of Washington researchers — Scott Dunham, Hugh Hillhouse and Devin MacKenzie — have received competitive awards totaling more than $2.3 million from the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office for projects that will advance research and development in photovoltaic materials, which are an essential component of solar cells and impact the amount of sunlight that is converted into electricity.
For 35 years, the Pacific Ocean has largely spared West’s mountain snow from effects of global warming
A new study has found that since the early 1980s, a pattern of ocean temperatures and atmospheric circulation has offset most of the impact of warming on the West’s mountain snowpack.
January 15, 2019
Researchers can predict childhood social transitions
A new University of Washington study suggests that the children most apt to socially transition to the gender “opposite” their sex at birth are those who already demonstrate the strongest “cross-gender” identities, and that the transitions don’t appear to alter a child’s gender identity or preferences.
January 14, 2019
UW, partners reach milestone in program using robots to monitor world’s oceans
The UW is part of an international program that has revolutionized ocean measurements. This fall, the program made its 2 millionth measurement, reporting temperature and salinity in the top mile of the world’s oceans.
January 10, 2019
Astronomers find signatures of a ‘messy’ star that made its companion go supernova
On Jan. 10 at the 2019 American Astronomical Society meeting in Seattle, an international team of astronomers announced that they have identified the type of companion star that made its partner in a binary system, a carbon-oxygen white dwarf star, explode. Through repeated observations of SN 2015cp, a supernova 545 million light years away, the team detected hydrogen-rich debris that the companion star had shed prior to the explosion.
Evans School researchers study options for possible Washington public bank
If Washington state were to establish a public bank, what type of bank might work best? One that can provide targeted products and services to local governments across the state, says a new report by UW researchers from the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance.
January 9, 2019
First smartphone app to detect opioid overdose and its precursors
UW researchers have developed a smartphone app that uses sonar to monitor someone’s breathing rate and sense when an opioid overdose has occurred.
January 8, 2019
Triangulum Galaxy shows stunning face in detailed Hubble portrait
As part of a University of Washington-led project, NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has produced a stunningly detailed portrait of the Triangulum Galaxy, displaying a full spiral face aglow with the light of nearly 25 million individually resolved stars.
January 2, 2019
The number of single male Magellanic penguins is rising at this breeding colony. Here’s why.
Female Magellanic penguins are more likely to die at sea as juveniles, which has caused a skewed sex ratio of nearly three adult males to every female, as well as population decline of more than 40 percent since 1987 at one of their largest breeding colonies — Punta Tombo in Argentina.
How economic theory and the Netflix Prize could make research funding more efficient
In a paper published Jan. 2 in PLOS Biology, two scientists at the University of Washington and North Carolina State University use the economic theory of contests to illustrate how the competitive grant-application system has made the pursuit of research funding inefficient and unsustainable — and that alternative methods, such as a partial lottery to award grants, could relieve pressure on professors and free up time for research.
December 24, 2018
New global migration estimates show rates proportionally steady since 1990, high rate of return migration
Two University of Washington scientists have unveiled a new statistical method for estimating migration flows between countries. They show that rates of migration are higher than previously thought, but also relatively stable, fluctuating between 1.1 and 1.3 percent of global population from 1990 to 2015. In addition, since 1990 approximately 45 percent of migrants have returned to their home countries, a much higher estimate than other methods.
December 19, 2018
Researchers develop a new houseplant that can clean your home’s air
Researchers at the University of Washington have genetically modified a common houseplant to remove chloroform and benzene from the air around it.
December 18, 2018
February’s big patch of open water off Greenland? Not global warming, says new analysis
New analysis shows that odd winds, not warming, caused the unusual patch of open water north of Greenland last February.
Salmon may lose the ability to smell danger as carbon emissions rise
New research shows that the powerful sense of smell Pacific salmon rely on for migration, finding food and avoiding predators might be in trouble as carbon emissions continue to be absorbed by our ocean.
December 17, 2018
UW Evans School study of Fauntleroy ferry service proposes improvements to technology, engagement
Suggested upgrades to technology, training and communication — and funding them appropriately — lie at the heart of recommendations to the state from UW Evans School researchers after a study of service at the Fauntleroy Ferry Terminal in West Seattle.
How a workshop about getting along became a story stoking division
A small study about a workshop to bring together students of different political persuasions found that workshop participants were able to better understand their fellow students as individuals, but their attitudes about opposing beliefs, in general, did not change.
December 14, 2018
UW glaciologist gets first look at NASA’s new measurements of ice sheet elevation
UW glaciologist Ben Smith shared a first look at the NASA ICESat-2 satellite’s view of Greenland and Antarctic glaciers at the American Geophysical Union’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
December 13, 2018
Underwater sensors for monitoring sea life (and where to find them)
A UW team created a mechanical eye under the ocean’s surface that could live near renewable-energy sites and use a series of sensors to watch nearby animals. On Dec. 13, the researchers put the newest version of the AMP into the waters of Seattle’s Portage Bay for two weeks of preliminary testing before a more thorough analysis is conducted in Sequim, Washington.
Hark! UW talents — on page and disc — for the good Dawgs on your holiday shopping list
As the year comes to a close and festivities abound, some UW faculty creations can make great gifts for the thinking Dawg on your giving list.
December 12, 2018
Teens get more sleep, show improved grades and attendance with later school start time, researchers find
In 2016, Seattle Public Schools pushed back the start times for the district’s 18 high schools by 55 minutes, from 7:50 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. And as hoped, teenagers used the extra time to sleep in.
Attention, please! Anticipation of touch takes focus, executive skills
A study by the University of Washington and Temple University examines what happens in children’s brains when they anticipate a touch to the hand, and relates this brain activity to the executive functions the child demonstrates on other mental tasks.
December 11, 2018
What social stress in monkeys can tell us about human health
A new University of Washington-led study examines one key stress-inducing circumstance — the effects of social hierarchy — and how cells respond to the hormones that are released in response to that stress.
Researchers create first sensor package that can ride aboard bees
Farmers can already use drones to soar over huge fields and monitor temperature, humidity or crop health. But these machines need so much power to fly that they can’t get very far without needing a charge. Now, engineers at the University of Washington have created a sensing system that is small enough to ride aboard a bumblebee.
December 10, 2018
Ancient whale named for UW paleontologist Elizabeth Nesbitt
A new species of whale discovered in 33-million-year-old Oregon rock has been named for Elizabeth Nesbitt, a curator at the Burke Museum and faculty member in the UW’s Department of Earth and Space Sciences.
December 6, 2018
Two-dimensional materials skip the energy barrier by growing one row at a time
A new collaborative study led by a research team at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Washington could provide engineers new design rules for creating microelectronics, membranes and tissues, and open up better production methods for new materials.
Biggest extinction in Earth’s history caused by global warming leaving ocean animals gasping for breath
New research from the University of Washington and Stanford University combines models of ocean conditions and animal metabolism with published lab data and paleoceanographic records to show that the Permian mass extinction in the oceans was caused by global warming that left animals unable to breathe. As temperatures rose and the metabolism of marine animals sped up, the warmer waters could not hold enough oxygen for them to survive.
November 30, 2018
UW professors Terrance Kavanagh, Jay Shendure elected as fellows of the AAAS
Two University of Washington researchers, Terrance Kavanagh and Jay Shendure, are among the 416 new fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, announced in November.
November 29, 2018
Forests, human health, Northwest outlook: UW researchers involved in Fourth National Climate Assessment
University of Washington researchers contributed to the Fourth National Climate Assessment that considers impacts, risks and adaptation across the United States.
Why culture is key to improving the ‘interpretive power’ of psychology
Three researchers from the University of Washington Department of Psychology say existing practices overlook the importance of culture, and suggest how individuals and institutions can be more inclusive.
November 28, 2018
UW-led philosophy team receives $1.5M grant to study the ethics of neurotechnology research
University of Washington researchers in the Center for Neurotechnology are studying how brain-computer interfaces affect whether patients feel they are in charge of their own actions.
November 27, 2018
Threatened tropical coral reefs form complex, ancient associations with bacteria, researchers say
In a comprehensive study of healthy corals published Nov. 22 in the journal Nature Communications, a team of scientists from the University of Washington Bothell, Pennsylvania State University and Oregon State University report that coral bacteria are a surprisingly diverse bunch — and that different sections of the coral body can host unique communities of bacteria.
November 26, 2018
Papyrus scrolls to Kindle and beyond: UW professor pens meditation on ‘the book’
What is a “book” in the digital age — and what will it become? Amaranth Borsuk, assistant professor in the UW Bothell School of Interdisciplinary Studies, discusses the idea of “the book,” from clay tablets and papyrus scrolls to the hyperlinked, multimedia format of the digital age. She has her own new book out on the topic, titled “The Book.”
UW, Tableau create interactive tool to explore more than a century of Pacific Northwest weather observations
A new, free tool with temperature and precipitation records across Washington, Oregon, Idaho and western Montana as far back as 1881 lets users play around to discover significant trends. It also includes historical snow records for Washington state.
November 20, 2018
Study brings new climate models of small star TRAPPIST 1’s seven intriguing worlds
Not all stars are like the sun, so not all planetary systems can be studied with the same expectations. New research from a University of Washington-led team of astronomers gives updated climate models for the seven planets around the star TRAPPIST-1.
November 19, 2018
UW’s Marina Alberti to lead new NSF-funded research network to study impact of cities on Earth’s evolutionary dynamics
Here in what is called the Anthropocene era, humans and our urban environments appear to be driving accelerated evolutionary change in plants, animals, fungi, viruses and more — changes that could affect key ecosystem functions and thus human well-being. These interactions between evolution and ecology are called “eco-evolutionary feedback.” The National Science Foundation has awarded…
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