Technology
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.
July 10, 2013
Functional genomics lab to predict potential AIDS vaccines efficacy and find protection markers
Funded by the NIH at $15 million over five years, the lab will be a national resource to evaluate candidate vaccines from studies around the country.
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.
June 27, 2013
Competitive STEM program at UW targets deaf, hard of hearing students
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.
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 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 4, 2013
Wi-Fi signals enable gesture recognition throughout entire home
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 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.
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 8, 2013
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
New device can extract human DNA with full genetic data in minutes
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 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 23, 2013
Robots, solar-powered cars at Engineering Discovery Days, April 26-27
Engineering Discovery Days is April 26-27 at the UW campus and will feature exhibits and demonstrations from engineering departments and student groups.
April 15, 2013
Preparing to install the world’s largest underwater observatory
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.
April 12, 2013
New device could cut costs on household products, pharmaceuticals
A new procedure that thickens and thins fluid at the micron level could save consumers and manufacturers money, particularly for some soap products.
April 4, 2013
Listening to the Big Bang – in high fidelity (audio)
A UW physicist has used new satellite data to update his decade-old recreation of the sound of the Big Bang at the birth of the universe.
Rocket powered by nuclear fusion could send humans to Mars
Astronauts could be a step closer to a fast journey to Mars using a unique manipulation of nuclear fusion devised by UW scientists and those at a Redmond company.
April 3, 2013
Brain cell signal network genes linked to schizophrenia risk in families
The genetic variants disturb the functioning of the same brain signal receptors affected by hallucinogenic drugs.
April 1, 2013
UW Medicine launches multi-media health and wellness initiative April 1
In partnership with Fisher Communications, UW Medicine Health will provide information on healthy living and on the latest treatments and medical breakthroughs
March 29, 2013
Head-on collisions between DNA-code reading machineries accelerate gene evolution
Bacteria speed up their evolution by positioning specific genes along the route of expected traffic jams in DNA encoding. Collisions can result in mutations.
March 26, 2013
Gene therapy may aid failing hearts
Scientists come closer to boosting heart muscle by powering its contractile machinery.
February 20, 2013
Searchable by cell phone or GPS unit, interactive map for arboretum being created
UW Botanic Gardens is digitizing 55 years of handwritten plant records and creating an interactive GIS map for the Washington Park Arboretum.
February 15, 2013
Firing range lead exposure reduced with UW workplace health expertise
UW’s Field Research and Consultation Group in Environmental and Occupational Health assess ventilation systems and airborne lead levels in firing ranges, and offer advice on lowering exposure.
February 6, 2013
Smartphones, tablets help UW researchers improve storm forecasts
Atmospheric scientists are using pressure readings from some new smartphones and tablet computers to improve short-term thunderstorm forecasts. A weather station in every pocket would offer an unprecedented wealth of data.
January 24, 2013
Organic ferroelectric molecule shows promise for memory chips, sensors
A paper in Science describes an organic crystal that shows promise as a cheap, flexible, nontoxic material for the working parts of memory chips, sensors and energy-harvesting devices.
January 9, 2013
UW, Pacific NW National Lab join forces on computing research
The University of Washington and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have formed the Northwest Institute for Advanced Computing, a joint institute based at the UW that will foster collaborative computing research.
December 31, 2012
News Digest: Honor: Daniela Witten
Daniela Witten named one of Forbes’ rising stars
December 28, 2012
Surgery establishes penile sensation in men with spina bifida
The new procedure may improve the quality of life for men with spinal cord lesions or injuries.
December 27, 2012
Academic medicine has major economic impact on the state and the nation
The Association of American Medical Colleges reports that its member medical schools and teaching hospitals had a combined economic impact of more than $587 billion in the United States in 2011
December 21, 2012
Training Xchange puts UW research advances into practitioners’ hands
The UW is expanding its Training Xchange initiative to help researchers transmit innovations in healthcare and other fields to professionals locally and beyond the Northwest.
December 20, 2012
Mild brain cooling after head injury prevents epileptic seizures in lab study
Traumatic head injury is the leading cause of acquired epilepsy in young adults, and at present there is no treatment to prevent or cure it.
December 7, 2012
Crowdsourcing site compiles new sign language for math and science
The ASL-STEM Forum is a crowdsourcing project, similar to Wikipedia or the Urban Dictionary, that creates a new sign language for the latest scientific and technical terms.
November 30, 2012
Electrically spun fabric offers dual defense against pregnancy, HIV
Electrically spun cloth with nanometer-sized fibers show promise as a cheap, versatile platform to simultaneously offer contraception and prevent HIV. New funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will further test the system’s versatility and feasibility.
November 29, 2012
Rules devised for building ideal protein molecules from scratch
These principles could allow scientists to custom-make, rather than re-purpose, protein molecules for vaccines, drugs, and industrial and environmental uses.
November 8, 2012
Extra chromosome 21 removed from Down syndrome cell line
The approach could lead to cell therapy treatments for some of the blood-forming disorders that accompany the common genetic condition.
October 25, 2012
Students win $100K for 3-D printer to turn waste plastic into composting toilets, rainwater harvesting systems
Three undergraduates won $100,000 to form a company that will work with partners in Oaxaca, Mexico, to build machines that can transform waste plastic into composting toilets and pieces for rainwater harvesting systems.
October 17, 2012
Living Voters Guide adds fact-checking by Seattle librarians for 2012 election
The Living Voters Guide, created by the UW and presented with Seattle’s CityClub, just won a regional award and has been updated for the 2012 election. This year the guide has expanded to include a California edition, and the Washington guide will include fact-checking of selected points by Seattle Public Library staff.
October 11, 2012
Mug handles could help hot plasma give lower-cost, controllable fusion energy
New hardware lets engineers maintain the plasma used in fusion reactors in an energy-efficient, stable manner, making the system potentially attractive for use in fusion power plants.
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