Science
July 9, 2013
Biceps bulge, calves curve, 50-year-old assumptions muscled aside
The basics of how a muscle generates power remain the same: Filaments of myosin tugging on filaments of actin shorten, or contract, the muscle – but the power doesn’t just come from what’s happening straight up and down the length of the muscle, as has been assumed for 50 years. The rest of the force should be credited to the lattice work of filaments as it expands outward in bulging muscle – whether in a body builder’s buff biceps or the calves of a sinewy marathon runner.
Link between low vitamin D blood levels and heart disease varies by race
Low vitamin D levels are linked to higher risk of heart disease in whites and Chinese, but not in blacks or Hispanics. The findings underscore the importance of designing medical research that includes a diverse ethnic and racial makeup of participants.
Hazy days of summer: Southeast U.S. field work measures mercury, smog
Dozens of atmospheric scientists, including three University of Washington faculty members, are taking part in what’s being described as one of the largest atmospheric field campaigns in decades.
July 3, 2013
Great ape genetic diversity catalog frames primate evolution and future conservation
A model of great ape history during the past 15 million years has been fashioned through the study of genetic variation in a large panel of humans, chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans.
July 1, 2013
Work this summer extends reach of cabled deep-ocean observatory
A UW research vessel leaves July 2 for six weeks at sea, during which oceanographers will install miles of cable for a new type of deep-sea observatory.
June 25, 2013
UW awarded $10 million to design paper-based diagnostic medical 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.
Astronomers find three ‘super-Earths’ in nearby star’s habitable zone
A UW astronomer is part of an international team that found six or seven planets orbiting a nearby star where only two or three were thought to exist.
Clearing up confusion on future of Colorado River flows
Leading experts on water issues in the Western U.S. have come together to establish what is known about the future of Colorado River water, and to understand the wide range of estimates for future flows.
June 21, 2013
Airborne gut action primes wild chili pepper seeds
Seeds gobbled by birds and dispersed across the landscape tend to fare better than those that fall near parent plants. Now it turns out it might not just be the trip through the air that’s important, but also the inches-long trip through the bird.
June 20, 2013
U.S. Supreme Court decision to bar gene patents opens genetic test options
The U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous decision June 13 to bar the patenting of naturally occurring genes opens up important clinical testing options for a variety of diseases.
June 19, 2013
Detour ahead: Cities, farms reroute animals seeking cooler climes
In the first broad-scale study of its kind, UW led research finds half a dozen regions that could provide some of the Western Hemisphere’s more heavily used thoroughfares for mammals, birds and amphibians seeking cooler environments in a warming world.
June 13, 2013
UW research: World population could be nearly 11 billion by 2100
A new United Nations analysis, using statistical methods developed at the University of Washington, shows the world population could reach nearly 11 billion by the end of the century, about 800 million more people than the previous projection issued in 2011.
June 12, 2013
Silicon-based nanoparticles could make LEDs cheaper, greener to produce
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
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 7, 2013
Treks reveal distinctive forests of Cascade Mountains — with photo gallery
In “Spring Comes to the Cascades,” students don’t just read about the forests – they hike and snowshoe through them.
June 6, 2013
Pollution in Northern Hemisphere helped cause 1980s African drought
Air pollution in the Northern Hemisphere in the mid-20th century cooled the upper half of the planet and pushed rain bands south, contributing to the prolonged and worsening drought in Africa’s Sahel region. Clean air legislation in the 1980s reversed the trend and the drought lessened.
June 4, 2013
Scientists resolve a 3.5 billion-year-old mystery of life
New research demonstrates that life as we know it might never have come to exist on Earth if meteorites didn’t deliver a key element billions of years ago.
May 30, 2013
Transportation fuels from woody biomass promising way to reduce emissions
Two processes that turn woody biomass into transportation fuels have the potential to exceed current Environmental Protection Agency requirements for renewable fuels.
News Digest: Seattle Science Festival June 6-16, Honor: Alison Wylie, Charles Wolfe e-book
UW part of second Seattle Science Festival || Alison Wylie honored by Society for Women in Philosophy || Sustainability studied in Charles Wolfe’s ‘Urbanism Without Effort’
Big feet preference in rural Indonesia defies one-size-fits-all theory of attractiveness
In most cultures, a woman’s small feet are seen as a sign of youth and fertility, but that’s not true of all cultures, including the Karo Batak on the island of Sumatra.
May 29, 2013
Early brain responses to words predict developmental outcomes in children with autism
The pattern of brain responses to words in 2-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder predicted the youngsters’ linguistic, cognitive and adaptive skills at ages 4 and 6, according to a new study by UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences.
Traffic air pollution turns good cholesterol bad
Exposure to diesel exhaust undermines one of the body’s protections against heart and blood vessel disease.
May 23, 2013
Clinical trial aims to prevent type 2 diabetes through medication
The UW and the VA Puget Sound will be among the sites for the national RISE study. The researchers want to see if treating patients to preserve insulin secretion keeps diabetes from forming or slows its progression.
May 22, 2013
News Digest: Seaglider technology licensed, lecture revisits the Boldt decision, U. of Minnesota president to speak
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.
New documentary on cabled ocean observatory airs on UWTV
A new half-hour documentary about a UW research expedition to Axial Seamount, an underwater volcano off the Washington coast, airs tonight at 9:30 p.m. on UWTV.
May 20, 2013
New K-12 science standards add focus on practices, engineering and early learning
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.
Amazon River exhales virtually all carbon taken up by rain forest
A study published this week in Nature Geoscience shows that woody plant matter is almost completely digested by bacteria living in the Amazon River, and that this tough stuff plays a major part in fueling the river’s breath.
May 15, 2013
Tropical air circulation drives fall warming on Antarctic Peninsula
New UW research shows that, in recent decades, fall is the only time of extensive warming over the entire Antarctic Peninsula, and it is mostly from atmospheric circulation patterns originating in the tropics.
May 14, 2013
DNA analysis unearths origins of Minoans, the first major European civilization
The maternal genetic information passed down through many generations of mitochondria is still present in modern-day residents of the Lassithi plateau of Crete.
Engineered biomaterial could improve success of medical implants
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 13, 2013
Using earthquake sensors to track endangered whales
Oceanographers are using a growing number of seafloor seismometers, devices that record seafloor vibrations, to carry out inexpensive and non-invasive studies of endangered whales.
May 8, 2013
Do peppers reduce risk of Parkinson’s?
New study suggests dietary nicotine may protect against this disorder, which results from the loss of dopamine-producing brain cells.
Pioneer bacteria lay down trails that draw new recruits
New research shows bacteria may draw other bacteria to an infection site by laying down trails of a “molecular glue” that attract free-swimming individual bacteria.
New ‘academic redshirt’ program to support undergraduate STEM education
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 7, 2013
Spokane physician participates as patient in breast cancer vaccine trial
Dr. Alisa Hideg, who teaches UW medical students, is grateful for the chance to move science forward toward a future with more options for other patients.
May 6, 2013
UW research vessel Clifford A. Barnes marks its 1,000th cruise
This week marks the 1000th cruise for the UW’s Clifford A. Barnes research vessel, a converted tugboat that has spent decades exploring Puget Sound and Pacific Northwest waters and is now reaching the end of its UW career.
April 30, 2013
Tactics of new Middle East virus suggest treating by altering lung cells’ response to infection
The Erasmus virus resets 207 genes in lung cells to hamper the cells’ ability to launch an antiviral reaction. Available drugs might correct this sabotage.
April 29, 2013
Blast concussions could cause pituitary deficiencies in war vets
Low pituitary hormone levels can mimic symptoms of depression and post-traumatic stress syndrome, but are easily treated.
Dinosaur predecessors gain ground in wake of world’s biggest biodiversity crisis — with photo gallery
Newly discovered fossils reveal a lineage of animals thought to have led to dinosaurs taking hold in Tanzania and Zambia, many millions of years before dinosaur relatives were seen in the fossil record elsewhere on Earth.
Grocery delivery service is greener than driving to the store
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.
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