UW News
The latest news from the UW
October 30, 2018
UW is No. 10 in US News Best Global Universities ranking; No. 2 among US public institutions
The University of Washington maintained its No. 10 spot on the U.S. News & World Report’s Best Global Universities rankings, released Tuesday. The UW is second among American public institutions.
Tag(s): Rankings
Study reconstructs Neandertal ribcage, offers new clues to ancient human anatomy
An international team of researchers, including from the University of Washington, has completed a 3D virtual reconstruction of a Neandertal thorax a model that indicates an upright individual with greater lung capacity and a straighter spine than today’s modern human.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Anthropology • Patricia Kramer
Suicide more prevalent than homicide in US, but most Americans don’t know it
First-of-its kind research, led by the University of Washington, Northeastern University and Harvard University, delves into public perceptions of gun violence and the leading causes of death in the U.S.
Tag(s): Department of Epidemiology • Erin Morgan • School of Public HealthOctober 29, 2018
UW books in brief: Postwar Japan, American Indian businesses, dictatorship to democracy — and more
Recent notable books by UW faculty members study politics and culture in post-World War II Japan, explore regime change, nonprofit management, documents from the ancient world and more.
Tag(s): books • College of Arts & Sciences • College of Engineering • Deanna Kennedy • Department of Asian Languages & Literature • Department of Political Science • Evans School of Public Policy & Governance • Jackson School of International Studies • Justin Jesty • Kenneth Pyle • Mary Kay Gugerty • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Rajesh Rao • South Asia Center • South Asia Studies Program • Sunila S. Kale • UW Bothell • Victor MenaldoOctober 25, 2018
Q&A: Provost Mark Richards’ welcome lecture asks: ‘What really killed the dinosaurs?’
Provost Mark Richards answers questions surrounding the topic of his welcome lecture, Tuesday afternoon in the HUB Lyceum.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Department of Earth and Space Sciences • dinosaurs • Mark Richards • paleontology • Q&A
Urban Freight Lab will help UPS evaluate its new e-bike delivery service in Seattle
UPS announced today that it will be pilot-testing deliveries with cargo e-bikes in downtown Seattle. This test is expected to last a year, and the University of Washington’s Urban Freight Lab at the Supply Chain Transportation and Logistics Center will help UPS evaluate the study’s outcomes.
Tag(s): Anne Goodchild • Barbara Ivanov • College of Engineering • Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering
Valuing older buildings: Architecture professor’s book argues for reuse rather than wrecking ball
In her new book, Kathryn Rogers Merlino, UW associate professor of architecture, argues for the environmental benefit of reusing buildings rather than tearing them down and building anew.
Tag(s): books • College of Built Environments • Department of Architecture • Kathryn Rogers Merlino
Creating curious robots: UW researchers get Honda grant to build a mathematical model of curiosity
The University of Washington will lead one of three teams that will partner with the Honda Research Institute to explore the mechanisms behind curiosity and seek advances in artificial cognition. The UW-led team will receive $2.7 million over the next three years to generate a mathematical model of curiosity.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Dieter Fox • Maya Cakmak • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Siddhartha SrinivasaOctober 24, 2018
UW physicist Jiun-Haw Chu named Packard Fellow for research on quantum materials
Jiun-Haw Chu, a University of Washington assistant professor of physics and faculty member at the UW’s Clean Energy Institute, has been named a 2018 fellow by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation for his research on quantum materials — substances that exhibit novel combinations of quantum-mechanical properties that could one day transform information technology.
Tag(s): awards • Clean Energy Institute • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Physics
A dose of nature: New UW initiative to spearhead research on health benefits of time outside
A new University of Washington initiative seeks to advance research on the health benefits of time spent in nature, connecting academic researchers with pediatricians, childcare providers, mental health practitioners and others who work with various populations on critical health issues.
Tag(s): Ben Packard • EarthLab • Joshua Lawler • School of Environmental and Forest Sciences • School of Public Health
New center to recognize American Indian and Indigenous Studies
As the discipline of American Indian Studies approaches its 50th year at the University of Washington, a new research center is in the works: the Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies, which is supported by multiple colleges and schools.
Tag(s): Chadwick Allen • Christopher Teuton • College of Arts & Sciences • College of Education • College of the Environment • Department of American Indian Studies • Department of Anthropology • Department of English • Jean Dennison • School of Public Health • School of Social Work • UW Graduate SchoolOctober 23, 2018
ArtsUW Roundup: Opening weekend of Between Bodies, Incident at Vichy, and more!
This week in the arts, attend UW School of Drama’s season opener, see several musical performances, and attend a exhibition opening. Incident at Vichy October 24 to November 4 | Floyd and Delores Jones Playhouse UW School of Drama’s season opener is a production that the New York Times considered “one of the most important…
Tag(s): ArtsUW • DXARTS • exhibits & exhibitions • Henry Art Gallery • Meany Center for the Performing Arts • Meany Hall for the Performing Arts • School of Drama • School of Music • UW Drama
Sockeye carcasses tossed on shore over two decades spur tree growth
In a 20-year study, UW researchers and colleagues have found that nearly 600,000 pounds of sockeye salmon carcasses tossed to the left side of a small, remote stream in southwest Alaska, helped trees on that side of the stream grow faster than their counterparts on the other side.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences • Tom QuinnOctober 19, 2018
PTSD symptoms improve when patient chooses form of treatment, study shows
A study led by the University of Washington is the first large-scale trial of hundreds of PTSD patients, including veterans and survivors of sexual assault, to measure whether patient preference in the course of treatment impacts the effectiveness of both cognitive behavioral therapy and use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, a type of antidepressant often prescribed for PTSD.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences • Department of Psychology • Lori Zoellner • School of MedicineOctober 18, 2018
New Faculty Chair George Sandison outlines his priorities
The incoming chair of the Faculty Senate sat down for a Q and A with UW News.
Tag(s): George Sandison • School of MedicineOctober 17, 2018
UW atmospheric scientists to study most extreme storms on Earth, up close
UW atmospheric scientists leave next week for a six-week field campaign in South America to study the most intense storms on the planet.
Tag(s): Angela Rowe • College of the Environment • Department of Atmospheric and Climate Science • Lynn McMurdie • weatherOctober 16, 2018
Once there were camps: New book by UW historian Jordanna Bailkin remembers Britain’s ‘forgotten’ 20th-century refugee camps
Today, Britain is not known as a land of camps, but through much of the 20th century — from after World War I to the 1980s — the country was home to dozens of refugee camps housing thousands of Belgians, Jews, Basques, Poles, Hungarians, Anglo-Egyptians, Ugandan Asians and Vietnamese. As University of Washington history professor…
Tag(s): books • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of History • Jordanna Bailkin
ArtsUW Roundup | Peacock in the Desert Lecture, Earshot Jazz Festival Concerts, and more!
This week in the arts, UW faculty take us into the community, from the Seattle Art Museum to the Royal Room. There will be music, art history lectures, drama, and more! SAM Talks: Peacock in the Desert Discussion October 18, 7:00 pm | Seattle Art Museum, 1300 First Avenue, Seattle Dr. Karni Singh Jasol, Director…
Tag(s): ArtsUW • College of Arts & Sciences • exhibits & exhibitions • Jazz • School of Art + Art History + Design • School of Drama • School of Music • UW DramaOctober 12, 2018
New UW-authored children’s book offers a robot’s-eye view of the deep ocean
In a new UW-authored book, a cartoon robot takes young readers on a School of Oceanography voyage to explore the deep ocean.
Tag(s): Applied Physics Laboratory • Dana Manalang • oceanography
UW ranked among top 5 most innovative universities in the world by Reuters
The University of Washington is listed at No. 5 on the Reuters Top 100: The World’s Most Innovative Universities, released Thursday. Now in its fourth year, the list ranks the educational institutions doing the most to advance science, invent new technologies and help drive the global economy.
Tag(s): Rankings
Could parcel lockers in transit stations reduce traffic congestion in Seattle?
The University of Washington’s Urban Freight Lab at the Supply Chain Transportation and Logistics Center has been looking for solutions to Seattle’s traffic congestion: Parcel lockers that aren’t owned by a specific company could alleviate the strain. Now the researchers have identified five viable locker locations at three different Seattle Link light rail stations for a future pilot test.
Tag(s): Anne Goodchild • Barbara Ivanov • College of Engineering • Department of Civil & Environmental EngineeringOctober 11, 2018
380,000+ donors help the UW reach campaign milestone two years early
Thanks to the generosity of more than 380,000 donors, the University of Washington met its fundraising campaign goal two years ahead of schedule, and will now seek broad support to enhance the experiences of undergraduate and graduate students, as well as a range of identified college and school priorities.
UW professor of global health a lead author on new climate report
Kristie Ebi, a UW professor of global health, was a lead author on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s “Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 C” that compares the effects of 1.5 versus 2 degrees Celsius of global warming.
Tag(s): climate change • Department of Global Health • Kristie Ebi • School of Medicine • School of Public HealthOctober 10, 2018
How a community reclaimed its Southeast Seattle high school
When Rainier Beach High School was proposed to close in 2008, community members rallied around a new vision for the school, which has since nearly doubled its enrollment and introduced a more rigorous curriculum.
Tag(s): Ann Ishimaru • College of Education
Prescience: Helping doctors predict the future
Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a new machine-learning system, called Prescience, which uses input from patient charts and standard operating room sensors to predict the likelihood that a patient will develop hypoxemia — a condition when blood oxygen levels dip slightly below normal. Prescience also provides real-world explanations behind its predictions.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • School of Medicine • Su-In LeeOctober 9, 2018
ArtsUW Roundup: Last chance to see 10 Études for Summer, Chamber Dance Company concert, music and fin-de-siecle Vienna, and more
This week in the arts, attend the 2018 Chamber Dance Concert, see the works by ten second year MFA students, attend Cello faculty artist-in-residence Sæunn Thorsteinsdóttir’s recital, and more. Chamber Dance Company October 11 to 14 | Katharyn Alvord Gerlich Theater For its 28th season, the Chamber Dance Company received a National Endowment for the Arts:…
Tag(s): ArtsUW • Chamber Dance Company • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Dance • exhibits & exhibitions • Jacob Lawrence Gallery • Jazz • Meany Center for the Performing Arts • Meany Hall for the Performing Arts • School of Art + Art History + Design • School of Music
Researchers develop 3D printed objects that can track and store how they are used
Engineers at the University of Washington have developed 3D printed devices that can track and store their use — without using batteries or electronics. Instead, this system uses a method called backscatter, through which a device can share information by reflecting signals that have been transmitted to it with an antenna.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering • Department of Mechanical Engineering • Jennifer Mankoff • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Shyam Gollakota • Vikram Iyer
Polar bears gorged on whale carcasses to survive past warm periods, but strategy won’t suffice as climate warms
A new study led by the University of Washington found that while dead whales are valuable sources of fat and protein for some polar bears, this resource will likely not be enough to sustain most bear populations in the future when the Arctic becomes ice-free in summers.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Kristin Laidre • Polar Science Center • School of Aquatic and Fishery SciencesOctober 8, 2018
Awards to UW affiliate professor recognize career of conservation and research on penguins
Pablo García Borboroglu, president of the Global Penguin Society and a UW affiliate associate professor of biology, has won the Whitley Gold Award and the National Geographic/Buffett Award for Leadership in Conservation, as well as accolades from the Argentine National Congress, for his research and advocacy for penguin conservation.
Tag(s): awards • College of Arts & Sciences • conservation • Department of Biology • Pablo Garcia Borboroglu
High-res data offer most detailed look yet at trawl fishing footprint around the world
A new analysis that uses high-resolution data for 24 ocean regions in Africa, Europe, North and South America and Australasia shows that 14 percent of the overall seafloor shallower than 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) is trawled. The paper shows that the footprint of bottom-trawl fishing on continental shelves and slopes across the world’s oceans often has been substantially overestimated.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Ray Hilborn • School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences
Race, empire, agency explored in UW history professor’s book ‘Risky Shores: Savagery and Colonialism in the Western Pacific’
A new book by University of Washington history professor George Behlmer seeks to improve understanding of the British colonial era by “reconsidering the conduct of islanders and the English-speaking strangers who encountered them.”
Tag(s): books • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of History • George BehlmerOctober 4, 2018
Q&A with Harold Tobin, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network
Harold Tobin, who joins the UW this fall as a faculty member in Earth and space sciences and director of the regional seismic sensing network, discusses earthquake early warning, seismic risks and the Pacific Northwest’s “big one.”
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Department of Earth and Space Sciences • earthquakes & seismology • Harold Tobin • Pacific Northwest Seismic Network • Q&A • ShakeAlert
UW’s Kristina Olson wins MacArthur Foundation ‘genius grant’
Kristina Olson, University of Washington associate professor of psychology, has been named one of the 2018 MacArthur Fellows. The Fellowship from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation comes with a $625,000 stipend, commonly known as the “genius grant,” for recipients to use as they see fit.
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Psychology • Kristina OlsonOctober 3, 2018
ArtsUW Roundup: Nrityagram Dance Ensemble, Michael Bierut Lecture, and more
This week in the arts, see a performance by an all-female Indian Classical dance ensemble, go to an exhibition opening at 4Culture Gallery, attend a lecture with a renowned graphic designer, and more! Nrityagram Dance Ensemble October 4 to 6, 8 pm | Katharyn Alvord Gerlich Theater The all-female Indian Classical dance ensemble’s daily life…
Tag(s): CoMotion MakerSpace • Department of Dance • Department of Landscape Architecture • DXARTS • exhibits & exhibitions • Henry Art Gallery • Meany Center for the Performing Arts • School of Art + Art History + Design
3,500-year-old pumpkin spice? Archaeologists find earliest use of nutmeg as a food
On a small island in Indonesia, University of Washington researchers found evidence of nutmeg as residue on ceramic potsherds and is estimated to be 3,500 years old — about 2,000 years older than the previously known use of the spice.
Tag(s): Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture • College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Anthropology • Peter LapeOctober 2, 2018
Video: Washington’s state climatologist predicts this will be an El Niño year
Washington state climatologist Nick Bond explains what our upcoming El Niño winter means for the Pacific Northwest.
Tag(s): College of the Environment • Department of Atmospheric and Climate Science • Nick Bond • Office of the Washington State Climatologist • weather
Former Interior Secretary Sally Jewell brings leadership to UW community, new EarthLab initiative
Former Interior Secretary Sally Jewell brings a lifetime of experience in business, nonprofits, government and the outdoors to the University of Washington, where one of her tasks is to help shape the future of EarthLab, a new university-wide institute that seeks to connect scholars with community partners to solve our most difficult environmental problems.
Tag(s): Ben Packard • Climate Impacts Group • College of the Environment • EarthLab • Lisa Graumlich • Sally Jewell • Washington Ocean Acidification CenterOctober 1, 2018
Engineering lecture series focuses on engineering for social good
This fall, the University of Washington’s annual engineering lecture series will feature three College of Engineering faculty whose research is accelerating positive impact here and around the world.
Tag(s): College of Engineering • Department of Chemical Engineering • Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering • Julian Marshall • Lilo Pozzo • Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering • Siddhartha Srinivasa
High CO2 levels cause plants to thicken their leaves, which could worsen climate change effects, researchers say
When levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rise, most plants do something unusual: They thicken their leaves. Now two University of Washington scientists have shown that this reaction by plants will actually worsen climate change by making the global “carbon sink” contributed by plants was less productive.
Tag(s): Abigail Swann • climate change • College of Arts & Sciences • College of the Environment • Department of Atmospheric and Climate Science • Department of Biology • plant scienceSeptember 28, 2018
Researchers release endangered crows into the forests of Pacific island
For more than 2 million years, the native forests on the Pacific islands of Guam and Rota were home to several thousand crows, members of a species found nowhere else on Earth. But over the last 60 years, the Mariana crow — called the Aga in the Chamorro language — has completely disappeared from…
Tag(s): College of Arts & Sciences • Department of Psychology • Renee Ha« Previous Page Next Page »
