College of Arts & Sciences
October 2, 2017
UW alumnus Jeffrey C. Hall awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute has awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly to Jeffrey C. Hall — an alumnus of the University of Washington — along with Michael Rosbash and Michael W. Young “for their discoveries of molecular mechanisms controlling the circadian rhythm,” according to an announcement Monday morning.
September 26, 2017
Scientists come to the aid of Puerto Rican community, research station
Researchers from the University of Washington and seven other institutions are working together to restore a Puerto Rican research station and its nearby community following the damage wrought last week by Hurricane Maria. The research station known as Monkey Island is located on Cayo Santiago, off the southeast coast of mainland Puerto Rico,…
Jackson School hosts lectures on ‘Trump in the World’ Mondays through fall
Faculty members in the UW’s Jackson School of International Studies will explore the ongoing impact of the Trump presidency in weekly lectures each Monday through fall quarter.
September 25, 2017
UW to host $15.6M NSF-funded center for innovation, education in materials science
The University of Washington is home to a new national center of excellence for research, education and training in materials science. The Molecular Engineering Materials Center is funded by a $15.6 million, six-year grant from the National Science Foundation as part of its highly competitive Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) program.
Group project? Taking turns, working with friends may improve grades
It has become an almost essential element of academic life, from college lecture halls to elementary classrooms: the group assignment. Dreaded by some, loved by others, group projects typically aim to build teamwork and accountability while students learn about a topic. But depending on the assignment and the structure of the groups, a project…
September 21, 2017
Scott Montgomery makes case for nuclear power in new book ‘Seeing the Light’
Scott L. Montgomery of the UW Jackson School of International Studies discusses his new book, “Seeing the Light: The Case for Nuclear power in the 21st Century.”
September 13, 2017
Offhand comments can expose underlying racism, UW study finds
Blatant racism is easy to identify — a shouted racial slur, a white supremacist rally, or the open discrimination, segregation and violence of the pre-civil rights era. But more subtle forms of bias, called microaggressions, emerge in the everyday exchanges among friends and strangers alike and can offend racial and ethnic…
August 24, 2017
Scientists to create digital encyclopedia of 3-D vertebrate specimens
A $2.5 million National Science Foundation grant will daylight thousands of specimens from their museum shelves by CT scanning 20,000 vertebrates and making these data-rich, 3-D images available online to researchers, educators, students and the public. The University of Washington is a partner institution contributing most of the fish and bat scans.
August 17, 2017
Q & A: Sarah Quinn lifts the curtain on the ‘hidden state’
Given today’s political climate, one might assume that terms like “administrative state” and “deep state” are merely examples of polarized rhetoric. But the wariness underlying those terms goes back much further, said Sarah Quinn, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Washington. Try colonial America. “Some historians will say this is something…
August 10, 2017
Public has rare opportunity to view work on T. rex skull
Starting Aug. 12, the public can watch fossil preparation of the University of Washington Burke Museum’s Tyrannosaurus rex skull “live.”
August 1, 2017
English professor William Streitberger honored for book on Queen Elizabeth I’s Revels Office
William Streitberger, UW professor of English, has been honored for his book “The Masters of Revels and Elizabeth I’s Court Theatre.” Decades in the making, the book was published in 2016 by Oxford University Press.
July 31, 2017
Earth likely to warm more than 2 degrees this century
A new UW statistical study shows only 5 percent chance that Earth will warm less than 2 degrees, what many see as a “tipping point” for climate, by the end of this century.
Heavier Asian Americans seen as ‘more American,’ study says
What makes people look “American”? The way they dress? Maybe their hairstyle, or mannerisms? How much they weigh? A University of Washington-led study has found that for Asian Americans, those who appear heavier not only are perceived to be more “American,” but also may be subject to less prejudice directed at foreigners than Asian…
July 27, 2017
Even babies can tell who’s the boss, UW research says
This video acquaints the viewer with the puppets and introduces the idea of which is socially dominant. The charismatic colleague, the natural leader, the life of the party – all are personal qualities that adults recognize instinctively. These socially dominant types, according to repeated studies, also tend to accomplish and earn more, from accolades…
July 24, 2017
Dark matter is likely ‘cold,’ not ‘fuzzy,’ scientists report after new simulations
Scientists have used data from the intergalactic medium — the vast, largely empty space between galaxies — to narrow down what dark matter could be.
July 20, 2017
Bringing a ‘trust but verify’ model to journal peer review
In a commentary published in the journal Science, Carole Lee, associate professor of philosophy and co-author David Moher identify incentives that could encourage journals to “open the black box of peer review” for the sake of improving transparency.
July 19, 2017
Artifacts suggest humans arrived in Australia earlier than thought
When and how the first humans made their way to Australia has been an evolving story. While it is accepted that humans appeared in Africa some 200,000 years ago, scientists in recent years have placed the approximate date of human settlement in Australia further and further back in time, as part of ongoing questions…
July 6, 2017
Policy and progress in the Arctic: Essays by students in the Jackson School’s International Policy Institute
Graduate student fellows with the International Policy Institute in the UW Jackson School of International Studies have begun publishing a 13-part series of blogs exploring aspects of the intergovernmental Arctic Council as a 21st-century institution.
July 3, 2017
Q & A: Janelle Taylor on ‘exemplary friends’ of people with dementia
Dementia affects millions of people around the world; the World Health Organization estimates 9.9 million new cases each year, and the total number of people with dementia is expected to nearly triple by 2050. And for every person with dementia, there are family members and friends who also experience their loved one’s decline. University of…
June 29, 2017
Study shows high pregnancy failure in southern resident killer whales; links to nutritional stress and low salmon abundance
A multi-year survey of the nutritional, physiological and reproductive health of endangered southern resident killer whales suggests that up to two-thirds of pregnancies failed in this population from 2007 to 2014. The study links this orca population’s low reproductive success to stress brought on by low or variable abundance of their most nutrient-rich prey, Chinook salmon.
As metro areas grow, whites move farther from the city center
In the middle of the 20th century, cities began to change. The popularity of the automobile and the construction of interstate highways fueled the growth of suburbs, while discriminatory housing policies segregated neighborhoods and helped create the phenomenon of “white flight” away from downtowns. Decades later, the average white person still lives farther…
June 20, 2017
UW-led scientists ‘closing the gap’ on malaria in India
The National Institutes of Health has renewed a major grant that funds a University of Washington-led research center to understand malaria in India.
June 19, 2017
To connect biology with electronics, be rigid, yet flexible
Researchers uncover design principles to make polymers that can transport both ions and electrons, which will help create new devices like biosensors and flexible bioelectronic implants
June 16, 2017
What the bond between homeless people and their pets demonstrates about compassion
A video camera captures an interview with a man named Spirit, who relaxes in an outdoor plaza on a sunny afternoon. Of his nearby service dogs, Kyya and Miniaga, he says, “They mean everything to me, and I mean everything to them.” In another video, three sweater-clad dogs scamper around a Los Angeles park, while…
June 13, 2017
Abstraction, family memories — even a touch of voodoo — highlight annual graduate show at Henry Art Gallery
Absurdity and abstraction, artistic dualisms, long-held family memories — and even some gentle voodoo — mingle together in the annual exhibition by UW art and design graduate students, on display through June 25 at the Henry Art Gallery.
Tribal gaming certificate addresses economic reality of Indian reservations
Managing a casino might not be the first career path envisioned with a degree from the University of Washington. But 22 tribes across Washington state depend on tribal casino resorts to provide jobs, generate revenue to operate tribal governments and promote economic development. So for UW students who call those reservations home – or simply…
June 7, 2017
Scientists discover a 2-D magnet
A team led by the University of Washington and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has for the first time discovered magnetism in the 2-D world of monolayers, or materials that are formed by a single atomic layer. The findings, published June 8 in the journal Nature, demonstrate that magnetic properties can exist even in the 2-D realm — opening a world of potential applications.
June 6, 2017
Hiding in plain sight: new species of flying squirrel discovered
A new study published May 30 in the Journal of Mammalogy describes a newly discovered third species of flying squirrel in North America — now known as Humboldt’s flying squirrel, or Glaucomys oregonensis. It inhabits the Pacific Coast region of North America, from southern British Columbia to the mountains of southern California.
June 2, 2017
UW, UW Bothell scientists explain new discovery in gravitational wave astronomy
The announcement that a third collision of black holes has been detected three billion light years away validates the work of hundreds of scientists, including teams at the University of Washington and UW Bothell.
May 25, 2017
UW anthropologist: Why researchers should share computer code
For years, scientists have discussed whether and how to share data from painstaking research and costly experiments. Some are further along in their efforts toward “open science” than others: Fields such as astronomy and oceanography, for example, involve such expensive and large-scale equipment and logistical challenges to data collection that collaboration among institutions has become…
May 15, 2017
Code of conduct needed for ocean conservation, study says
A diverse group of the world’s leading experts in marine conservation is calling for a Hippocratic Oath for ocean conservation ― not unlike the pledge physicians take to uphold specific ethical standards when practicing medicine.
May 10, 2017
Seattle Art Museum to exhibit work by UW art professor Denzil Hurley
The Seattle Art Museum will feature work by abstract artist and UW art professor Denzil Hurley. The exhibit, titled “Disclosures,” will be on display from May 20 through November. It’s a fitting tribute, as Hurley will retire from the UW at the end of the school year.
May 9, 2017
Early human fossils found in South African cave system
An international team of scientists, including one from the University of Washington, has announced the discovery of additional remains of a new human species, Homo naledi, in a series of caves northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa. The find includes the remains of two adults and a child in the Lesedi Chamber of the Rising…
April 27, 2017
Can early experiences with computers, robots increase STEM interest among young girls?
Girls start believing they aren’t good at math, science and even computers at a young age — but providing fun STEM activities at school and home may spark interest and inspire confidence. A study from the University of Washington’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences (I-LABS) finds that, when exposed to a computer-programming activity, 6-year-old…
April 20, 2017
Research team tracks complex web of monetary sanctions in 9 states
UW sociologist Alexes Harris leads a team of researchers at nine universities who are exploring the role of monetary sanctions in the criminal justice system. They recently completed a review of financial punishments in the laws of each of their home states. Based on their preliminary findings, the impact to a person’s pocketbook depends largely on his or her location on a map.
April 19, 2017
Two UW faculty named to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Two University of Washington faculty members are among the leaders from academia, business, philanthropy, humanities and the arts elected as 2017 fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies.
More than recess: How playing on the swings helps kids learn to cooperate
A favorite childhood pastime — swinging on the playground swing set — also may be teaching kids how to get along. The measured, synchronous movement of children on the swings can encourage preschoolers to cooperate on subsequent activities, University of Washington researchers have found. A study by the UW’s Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences…
April 17, 2017
Remembering Ernest Henley, physicist and UW College of Arts & Sciences dean emeritus
Ernest Mark Henley, a celebrated nuclear physicist and University of Washington administrator, died on March 27, 2017, at age 92.
April 12, 2017
Why treating animals may be important in fighting resurgent tropical disease
As the World Health Organization steps up its efforts to eradicate a once-rampant tropical disease, a University of Washington study suggests that monitoring, and potentially treating, the monkeys that co-exist with humans in affected parts of the world may be part of the global strategy. Yaws, an infectious disease that causes disfiguring skin lesions…
April 4, 2017
The science of sight: Transplant recipient, UW professor to share perspectives on vision restoration
UW psychology professor Geoffrey Boynton and corneal transplant recipient Michael May to speak April 5.
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