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The latest news from the UW

Expert quotes

August 6, 2021

UW expert discusses protecting workers from wildfire smoke

  With wildfire smoke forecast for next week in Seattle and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in Oregon posting rules for keeping workers safe during increasingly smoky conditions and heat in that state, we caught up with a University of Washington expert on worker safety for advice. Check out Professor Baker’s advice on worker safety in this video.   Journalists can download the video here. Marissa Baker, an industrial hygiene program director and assistant professor in the UW Department of…

News releases | Research | Science

August 5, 2021

Now how did that get up there? New study sheds light on development and evolution of dolphin, whale blowholes

New research by scientists at the University of Washington and Duke University is shedding light on how the nasal passage of dolphins and whales shifts during embryonic development from emerging at the tip of the snout to emerging at the top of the head as a blowhole. The findings, published July 19 in the Journal of Anatomy, are an integrative model for this developmental transition for cetaceans.

Environment | News releases | Research

Drier, warmer night air is making some Western wildfires more active at night

Firefighters have reported that Western wildfires are starting earlier in the morning and dying down later at night, hampering their ability to recover and regroup before the next day’s flareup. A study by University of Washington and U.S. Forest Service scientists shows why: The drying power of nighttime air over much of the Western U.S. has increased dramatically in the past 40 years.

News releases | Research | Science

Superflares may be less harmful to exoplanets than previously thought, study shows

Astronomers have long suspected that superflares, extreme radiation bursts from stars, can cause lasting damage to the atmospheres — and thus habitability — of exoplanets. A new study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society reports that they pose only a limited danger to planetary systems.

Arts and entertainment

August 4, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Grit City Think and Drink, Unpacking Form and Function: Ceramics, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, watch recorded events, and more. While you’re enjoying summer break, connect with campus through UW live webcams of Red Square and the quad. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Unpacking Form and Function: Ceramics August 12, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Online via Zoom Join Associate Curator of Collections…

News releases | Population Health | Public Health

Fine particulate air pollution associated with higher risk of dementia

Using data from two large, long-running study projects in the Puget Sound region — one that began in the late 1970s measuring air pollution and another on risk factors for dementia that began in 1994 — University of Washington researchers identified a link between air pollution and dementia. In the UW-led study, a small increase in the levels of fine particle pollution (PM2.5 or particulate matter 2.5 micrometers or smaller) averaged over a decade at specific addresses in the Seattle…

Environment | News releases | Research | Science

August 2, 2021

New report: State of the science on western wildfires, forests and climate change

Seeing the urgent need for change, a team of scientists from leading research universities, conservation organizations and government laboratories across the West has produced a synthesis of the scientific literature that clearly lays out the established science and strength of evidence on climate change, wildfire and forest management for seasonally dry forests. The goal is to give land managers and others across the West access to a unified resource that summarizes the best-available science so they can make decisions about how to manage their landscapes.

Population Health | Public Health | UW News blog

July 30, 2021

Food insecurity remains high and need for assistance dramatically up in Washington

Washington residents continue to experience a dramatically higher level of food insecurity — from 10% before the COVID-19 pandemic to 27%, according to the latest University of Washington and Washington State University research on food insecurity and food assistance in the state. The study team also found that need for food assistance has continued to rise. Before COVID-19, about 29% of respondents reported using food assistance. In wave 1 of the survey, food assistance use increased to 33% of respondents;…

Honors and awards | UW and the community | UW Notebook

July 29, 2021

Lincoln Institute of Land Policy honors UW College of Built Environments faculty, Nehemiah Studio for curriculum on mitigating gentrification

The Nehemiah Studio, a UW class on mitigating gentrification in Seattle’s Central District, has been honored by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Arts and entertainment

ArtSci Roundup: Lux Aeterna, Faculty Trio: Beethoven Piano Trios, Part 3, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, watch recorded events, and more. While you’re enjoying summer break, connect with campus through UW live webcams of Red Square and the quad. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Unpacking Form and Function: Ceramics August 12, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Online via Zoom Join Associate Curator of Collections…

News releases | Research | Science

Climate change to fuel increase in human-wildlife conflict, UW biologist says

Climate change is further exacerbating human-wildlife conflicts by straining ecosystems and altering behaviors, both of which can deepen the contacts — and potential competition — between people and animals. In an article published July 30 in the journal Science, Briana Abrahms, an assistant professor of biology at the University of Washington and its Center for Ecosystem Sentinels, calls for expanding research into the many ways that climate change will impact the complex interplay between human activities and wildlife populations.

Engineering | News releases | Research | Science | Technology

UW to lead new NSF institute for using artificial intelligence to understand dynamic systems

The UW will lead a new artificial intelligence research institute that will focus on fundamental AI and machine learning theory, algorithms and applications for real-time learning and control of complex dynamic systems, which describe chaotic situations where conditions are constantly shifting and hard to predict.

Education | Environment | Learning | Public Health | UW and the community | UW News blog | Video

July 28, 2021

Video: scientist tests soil for hidden contaminants in community gardens

Soil, particularly in urban areas, can hold contaminants that are unhealthy for people who handle it or eat things grown in the ground. Chemicals left behind by vehicles, air pollution and heavy industry can show up in the ground and in plants. Melanie Malone, assistant professor in UW Bothell’s School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences investigates these contaminants and their prevalence in shared garden spaces.

Environment | News releases | Research | Science

July 27, 2021

Possible future for Western wildfires: Decade-long burst, followed by gradual decline

A model of the eastern California forests of the Sierra Nevada looks at the longer-term future of wildfires under future climate change scenarios. Results show an initial roughly decade-long burst of wildfire activity, followed by recurring fires of decreasing area — a pattern that could apply to other hot, dry forests in the West.

Health and medicine | Interactive | News releases | Research | Science

July 26, 2021

Scientists model ‘true prevalence’ of COVID-19 throughout pandemic

Two University of Washington scientists have developed a statistical framework that incorporates key COVID-19 data — such as case counts and deaths due to COVID-19 — to model the true prevalence of this disease in the United States and individual states. Their approach, published the week of July 26 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, projects that in the U.S. as many as 60% of COVID-19 cases went undetected as of March 7, 2021, the last date for which the dataset they employed is available.

Public Health | Research | UW News blog

July 23, 2021

Older workers needed for UW study on worker safety during COVID-19 pandemic

Public health researchers have learned a lot about how the pandemic affected workers and exacerbated existing health disparities that exist in many communities. However, there’s still a lot we don’t know about the experience of workers deemed essential in the food industry and who were at higher risk of contracting COVID-19, such those working in grocery stores, restaurants, delivery and factories. To find out how food workers were or were not protected and how they can be better protected going…

Environment | News releases | Research | Science

July 20, 2021

New 3D images of shark intestines show they function like Nikola Tesla’s valve

For more than a century, researchers have relied on flat sketches of sharks’ digestive systems to discern how they function — and how what they eat and excrete impacts other species in the ocean. Now, researchers have produced a series of high-resolution, 3D scans of intestines from nearly three dozen shark species that will advance the understanding of how sharks eat and digest their food.

Engineering | Environment | Health and medicine | Honors and awards | Population Health | Science | UW News blog

July 16, 2021

20 UW researchers elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences for 2021

Twenty scientists and engineers at the University of Washington are among the 38 new members elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences for 2021, according to a July 15 announcement. New members were chosen for “their outstanding record of scientific and technical achievement, and their willingness to work on behalf of the Academy to bring the best available science to bear on issues within the state of Washington.”

Arts and entertainment

ArtSci Roundup: Will Rawls: Everlasting Stranger Performance, Northwest Modernism: Four Japanese Americans, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, watch recorded events, and more. While you’re enjoying summer break, connect with campus through UW live webcams of Red Square and the quad. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Will Rawls: Everlasting Stranger Performance July 24, 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM | Henry Art Gallery In Everlasting Stranger, New York-based choreographer…

Engineering | Expert quotes | UW News blog

July 9, 2021

‘We need to be patient’ — UW’s Dawn Lehman on the collapse of the Champlain Towers South

While there is currently no explanation for why the Champlain Towers South building collapsed, Dawn Lehman, a University of Washington professor of civil and environmental engineering, has been studying photographs, videos, drawings, reports and permits to investigate this tragedy to understand what happened. UW News asked her to help us understand why buildings fail.

News releases | Politics and government | Public Health

Study model explores impact of police action on population health

A specific police action, an arrest or a shooting, has an immediate and direct effect on the individuals involved, but how far and wide do the reverberations of that action spread through the community? What are the health consequences for a specific, though not necessarily geographically defined, population? The authors of a new UW-led study looking into these questions write that because law enforcement directly interacts with a large number of people, “policing may be a conspicuous yet not-well understood…

Honors and awards | Technology | UW and the community | UW Notebook

Faculty/staff honors: Early career honor in communication, distinguished service award in theoretical computing

Recent honors and achievements by UW faculty include an early career award for study of family communication and a distinguished service award for decades in support of theoretical computing.

Arts and entertainment

July 6, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Will Rawls: Everlasting Stranger, Grit City Think & Drink: Global Themes in World History since 1500 in Five Images, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, attend gallery exhibitions, watch recorded events, and more. While you’re enjoying summer break, connect with campus through UW live webcams of Red Square and the quad. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Will Rawls: Everlasting Stranger July 17 – August 15 | Henry Art Gallery In Everlasting Stranger, New York-based choreographer and writer Will…

News releases

Last ice-covered parts of summertime Arctic Ocean vulnerable to climate change

The region north of Greenland and the Canadian Arctic has been termed the Last Ice Area, where sea ice will remain the longest in summertime, providing a refuge for ice-dependent Arctic species. But conditions last summer show that parts of this region are already experiencing less summer ice due to climate change.

UW and the community | UW Notebook

June 29, 2021

From the Jackson School: Endowed scholarship for India study, book on angels in ancient Jewish culture

Recent news from the Jackson School of International Studies includes a new endowed scholarship for study of India made possible by two alumni, and a book on angels in ancient Jewish culture by Jewish Studies professor Mika Ahuvia.

Environment | Interactive | News releases | Research | Science

Air pollution from wildfires impacts ability to observe birds

Researchers from the University of Washington provide a first look at the probability of observing common birds as air pollution worsens during wildfire seasons. They found that smoke affected the ability to detect more than a third of the bird species studied in Washington state over a four-year period. Sometimes smoke made it harder to observe birds, while other species were actually easier to detect when smoke was present.

Arts and entertainment

June 28, 2021

ArtSci Roundup: Serious Tings, Sonolocations: A Sound Works Series, and More

Through public events and exhibitions, connect with the UW community every week! This week, watch a UW alum on NBC’s Making It, attend a discussion hosted by the Henry Art Gallery, and more. While you’re enjoying summer break, connect with campus through UW live webcams of Red Square and the quad. Many of these online opportunities are streamed through Zoom. All UW faculty, staff, and students have access to Zoom Pro via UW-IT.  Serious Tings: Wayne Chen in Conversation with Steve…