UW News

College of Arts & Sciences


April 29, 2014

Benjamin Hall, Eric D’Asaro elected to National Academy of Sciences

Benjamin Hall and Eric D’Asaro are among the 84 new members elected fellows the National Academy of Sciences.


April 25, 2014

Online ‘Legislative Explorer’ uses big data to track decades of lawmaking

John Wilkerson, creator of the Legislative Explorer

University of Washington political scientist John Wilkerson has matched data visualization with the study of lawmaking to create a new online tool for researchers and students called the Legislative Explorer. Think of it as big data meeting up with How a Bill Becomes a Law. “The goal was to get beyond the ‘Schoolhouse Rock’ narrative…


April 23, 2014

Academy of arts and sciences inducting Franklin, Fine

Drumheller Fountain and Gerberding Hall on the UW campus.

Jerry Franklin and Arthur Fine have been elected fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences


April 14, 2014

Babies prefer fairness – but only if it benefits them – in choosing a playmate

During the "choice trial" of a research experiment, a baby chooses one experimenter to play with.

Babies as young as 15 months preferred people with the same ethnicity as themselves — a phenomenon known as in-group bias, or favoring people who have the same characteristics as oneself.


When job security becomes insecurity: Inequality the topic of April 25 conference

Economic inequality will be the topic when activists, academics and policymakers meet the public for a conference presented by the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies titled “Working Democracy: Labor and Politics in an Era of Inequality.”


April 10, 2014

Fruit flies, fighter jets use similar nimble tactics when under attack

Close up of fruit fly

Get on your 3-D glasses for one of the animations of tiny fruit flies employing banked turns to evade attacks just like fighter jets.


March 31, 2014

School of Music’s Tom Collier celebrates ’60 Years Behind Bars’ with concert

Tom Collier, age 5, April 2, 1954.

Longtime School of Music Professor Tom Collier celebrates 60 years of performing with a concert on April 2 in the Meany Studio Theater.


UW launches online bachelor’s degree completion program in social sciences

A large 'W' is at the north entrance to the UW campus.

A new UW online bachelor’s degree completion program in social sciences is intended to provide a flexible, lower-cost option for individuals who want to finish their college education without coming to campus.


March 28, 2014

“Simming” a mile in others’ shoes

Role players in a simulated Iraqi village

A waiter in a logging camp, Mexican migrant trying to cross into the U.S, and observer during an attack on an Iraqi village are examples of roles played by Scott Magelssen, a UW associate professor of drama, and described in his new book about simulated experiences.


March 26, 2014

Decline of natural history troubling for science, society

Two people kneel by tide pool

Seventeen North American scientists outline the importance of natural science and call for a revitalization of the practice.


March 24, 2014

Stellar names in classical music part of collector’s gift to UW Music Library

Judy Tsou, head of the UW Music Library, with a copy of Benjamin Britten's opera "Peter Grimes." The score is part of a large donation to the UW by the estate music collector William Crawford III.

Beethoven, Brahms, Handel, Tchaikovsky, Wagner, Gershwin — the names alone are enough to quicken the pulse of any classical music lover. Those greats and many more are represented in a gift of rare classical music scores to the University of Washington Music Library.


March 17, 2014

Hold that RT: Much misinformation tweeted after 2013 Boston Marathon bombing

A graph shows hashtags on Twitter and how they are related to each other.

University of Washington researchers have found that misinformation spread widely on Twitter after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing despite efforts by users to correct rumors that were inaccurate.


March 10, 2014

Scientists build thinnest-possible LEDs to be stronger, more energy efficient

This graphical representation shows the layers of the 2-D LED and how it emits light.

University of Washington scientists have built the thinnest-known LED that can be used as a source of light energy in electronics. The LED is based off of two-dimensional, flexible semiconductors, making it possible to stack or use in much smaller and more diverse applications than current technology allows.


March 7, 2014

UW composers discuss collaboration with visiting JACK Quartet

The JACK Quartet -- violinists Christopher Otto and Ari Streisfeld, violist John Pickford Richards, and cellist Kevin McFarland -- will perform two shows in the Meany Hall Studio Theater March 15.

UW music faculty and composers Richard Karpen and Juan Pampin discuss their collaboration with the visiting JACK Quartet.


February 25, 2014

Joel Migdal book ‘Shifting Sands’ considers American role in Middle East

Book cover for Joel Migdal's book "Shifting Sands"

Migdal, UW professor of international studies, discusses his latest book, “Shifting Sands: The United States in the Middle East.”


February 18, 2014

Personal stories behind Exxon Valdez spill in book ‘Red light to Starboard’

"Red_Light_at_Starboard," by Angela Day, University of Washington doctoral student in political science.

Angela Day, UW doctoral student in political science, discusses her book, “Red Light to Starboard: Recalling the Exxon Valdez Disaster.”


Chemistry’s Matthew Bush named Sloan fellow

Mug shot of man

UW’s Matthew Bush has been selected as one of 126 Sloan Research Fellows for 2014.


February 12, 2014

Jake Rosenfeld explores the sharp decline of union membership, influence

Book cover of "What Unions No Longer Do"

Jake Rosenfeld, a University of Washington associate professor of sociology, examines the far-reaching economic and social consequences of the decline of organized labor in his new book, “What Unions No Longer Do.”


February 5, 2014

Public lecture series will explore the science of decision making

The ninth annual Allen L. Edwards Psychology Lecture Series will delve into “The Science of Decision Making,” to explain how the brain and an individual’s expectations influence decisions made in uncertain conditions.


February 4, 2014

Fruit flies – fermented-fruit connoisseurs – are relentless party crashers

Flies on banans and grapes

That fruit fly appearing moments after you poured that first glass of cabernet, has just used a poppy-seed-sized brain to conduct a finely-choreographed search and arrive in time for happy hour.


February 3, 2014

Solving a physics mystery: Those ‘solitons’ are really vortex rings

An example of a vortex ring, also called a toroidal bubble, which dolphins create under water. The concept of vortex rings lies at the heart of new University of Washington physics research.

The same physics that gives stability to tornadoes lies at the heart of new UW research and could lead to a better understanding of nuclear dynamics in studying fission, superconductors and the workings of neutron stars.


January 30, 2014

When songs trumped rifles, new book by Guntis Šmidchens

A black and white photo of a Baltica Folklore Festival procession in Riga, Latvia in July 1988.

In his new book “The Power of Song,” Šmidchens explores what is often dubbed “the Singing Revolution,” a passive resistance movement that took hold in the Baltic nations.


January 29, 2014

Deaths attributed directly to climate change cast pall over penguins

Six penguin chicks stand under shrub

Climate change is killing penguin chicks from the world’s largest colony of Magellanic penguins, not just indirectly but directly because of drenching rainstorms and heat.


January 28, 2014

New book explores mixed success of China’s ‘Emperor Huizong’

"Emperor Huizong," a new biography of the Chinese emperor by the UW's Patricia Ebrey.

Patricia Ebrey, professor of history, is the author of “Emperor Huizong,” a new biography of a Chinese emperor who lived from 1082 to 1135 and ruled for 26 years during China’s Song Dynasty.


December 30, 2013

David Shields acts, James Franco directs: A report from the set

An English professor turned actor? David Shields answers a few questions about “playing himself” in a film directed by James Franco based on Shields’ forthcoming book with colleague Caleb Powell, “I Think You’re Totally Wrong: A Quarrel.”


December 19, 2013

Sinuous skeletons, glowing blue and crimson, leap from lab to art world

Skeleton

Fish “stripped” to their skeletons and stained for UW research are now part of an art exhibit at the Seattle Aquarium.


December 17, 2013

Hack the planet? Geoengineering research, ethics, governance explored

ship that sprays clouds

A special interdisciplinary issue of the journal Climatic Change includes the most detailed description yet of the proposed Oxford Principles to govern geoengineering research, and surveys the technical hurdles, ethics and regulatory issues related to deliberately manipulating the planet’s climate.


December 12, 2013

New state-funded Clean Energy Institute will focus on solar, battery technologies

Gov. Jay Inslee (center) shakes hands with Dan Schwartz, director of the new Clean Energy Institute, with UW President Michael Young (left).

A new University of Washington institute to develop efficient, cost-effective solar power and better energy storage systems launched Dec. 12 with an event attended by UW President Michael K. Young, Gov. Jay Inslee and researchers, industry experts and policy leaders in renewable energy.


December 3, 2013

Signalers vs. strong silent types: Sparrows exude personalities during fights

Song sparrow on a tree branch..

Like humans, some song sparrows are more effusive than others, at least when it comes to defending their territories. New UW findings show that consistent individual differences exist not only for how aggressive individual song sparrows are but also for how much they use their signals to communicate their aggressive intentions.


‘Spooky action’ builds a wormhole between ‘entangled’ particles

An illustration depicting a wormhole between two black holes.

New research indicates that a phenomenon called “quantum entanglement” could be intrinsically linked with the creation of wormholes.


November 21, 2013

David Barash explores science, religion and meaning of life in ‘Buddhist Biology’

book cover of Buddhist Biology

David Barash, a UW psychology professor, is an evolutionary biologist, unapologetic atheist, and self-described Jewbu. In his latest book, “Buddhist Biology: Ancient Eastern Wisdom Meets Modern Western Science,” Barash examines the overlap between Buddhism and biology.


November 6, 2013

UW scholars offer short takes on Shakespeare Nov. 14 at ACT Theatre

The UW English Dept will hold "Shakespeare Ever After," a series of short presentations on the Bard, Nov. 14 at ACT Theater.

Ten Shakespeare scholars, students and actors, most from the University of Washington, will discuss the Bard’s life and work at Seattle’s ACT Theatre on Nov. 14 — and verily, they’ll be quick about it.


A shot in the dark: Detector at UW on the hunt for dark matter

Physicists examine components of the axion detector at the University of Washington.

Physicists are using a detector at the UW to search for a particle called an axion, which would be the first physical evidence of the universe’s dark matter.


November 5, 2013

‘Music is an infinite thing’: Jazz great Bill Frisell joins School of Music

Guitarist and trumpet player rehearse

The School of Music has lured Bill Frisell, one of modern jazz’s premier guitarists, to a position on the faculty.


October 28, 2013

New musical theater degree begins with outreach, talent search

Student Annmarie Morro caught in motion during a class in advanced jazz and theater dance taught by Wilson Mendieta. Morro was accepted into the new musical theater degree program.

The first order of business for the UW’s new degree in musical theater is not greasepaint or tap shoes but public outreach and finding talented, committed students.


October 10, 2013

Arts Roundup: Music, film, drama, lectures — and Chamber Dance Company

This week, the Chamber Dance Company’s 2013 concert is the icing on the cake in a busy week of arts events that also includes the School of Drama’s opening of “The Real Inspector Hound” and the Emerson String Quartet performing with School of Music Professor Craig Sheppard.


September 26, 2013

History lecture series to explore slavery in making of America

Part of a poster for 2013 history department lecture sereis.

The UW history department will review America’s history of slavery from four different angles in its annual lecture series, which begins on Oct. 23.


September 19, 2013

Mantas, devil rays butchered for apothecary trade now identifiable

Side view of manata ray swimmming

Dried filters from the mouths of filter-feeding rays started appearing in apothecary shops in recent years, but there’s been no way to know which of these gentle-natured rays was being slaughtered. Now scientists have discovered enough differences to identify the giant manta and eight devil rays using the dried filters.


August 5, 2013

Compile and create: Early book collecting examined in Jeffrey Todd Knight’s ‘Bound to Read’

"Bound to Read," by Jeffrey Todd Knight

Jeffrey Todd Knight, UW professor of English, discusses his new book, “Bound to Read: Compilations, Collections, and the Making of Renaissance Literature.”


July 30, 2013

Fifty years of ecological insights earn UW biologist international award

Several many-legged starfish in water at base of kelp covered boulder

Biologist Robert Paine has been awarded this year’s International Cosmos Prize that carries a cash award of about $408,000 and has previously gone to well-known conservationists such as David Attenborough and the leaders behind the Census of Marine Life project.



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