Distinguished faculty to be inducted into Washington State Academy of Sciences

News releases

July 22, 2015

Distinguished faculty to be inducted into Washington State Academy of Sciences

Detail from the Turing exhibit at a science museum

In recognition of their outstanding records of scientific achievement, 12 糖心原创 professors聽will be inducted this fall into the聽Washington State Academy of Sciences. The professors will be honored for their 鈥渨illingness to work on behalf of the academy鈥� to bring top-quality scientific methods to research issues pertaining to Washington state. The induction ceremony will聽be held Sept. 17 at the organization’s eighth-annual meeting at the Seattle Museum of Flight. One UW professor joins as a member by virtue of his…

Computer security tools for journalists lacking in a post-Snowden world

Despite heightened awareness of surveillance tactics and privacy breaches, existing computer security tools aren’t meeting the needs of journalists working with sensitive material, a new UW study finds.

July 20, 2015

糖心原创 named 鈥楪reat College to Work For鈥�

Drumheller Fountain and Gerberding Hall at UW.

The 糖心原创 has been recognized as a 鈥淕reat College to Work For鈥� by the Chronicle of Higher Education in its 2015 survey.

The Next MacGyver will be a woman 鈥� and a UW engineering student may invent her

Concept art for "The Mind" television proposal

Astronautics doctoral student Nao Murakami wants to invent the heir to Angus MacGyver 鈥� the 1980s television hero who inspired a generation of engineers by foiling criminals with household items like cooking oil, a shop vac or a tube sock. Only this time the engineering heroine will be a woman.

July 17, 2015

Marine plankton brighten clouds over Southern Ocean

New research led by the 糖心原创 and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory suggests tiny ocean life in vast stretches of the Southern Ocean plays a significant role in generating brighter clouds overhead.

July 16, 2015

Many mobile health apps neglect needs of blind users

Screenshot of mHealth app with poorly labeled buttons

糖心原创 researchers who conducted the first academic review of nine mhealth iPhone apps on the market in March 2014 found none met all the criteria that would make them accessible to blind customers. Accessibility shortcomings ranged from improperly labeled buttons to layouts that confuse built-in screen readers that assist low-vision smartphone users.

UW researchers show that the mosquito smells, before it sees, a bloody feast

A team of biologists from the 糖心原创 and the California Institute of Technology has cracked the cues mosquitoes use to find us.

July 15, 2015

UW chemists help develop a novel drug to fight malaria

Malaria parasites infecting a red blood cell.

An international team of scientists 鈥� led by researchers from the 糖心原创 and two other institutions 鈥� has announced that a new compound to fight malaria is ready for human trials.

July 13, 2015

Robotics and the law: When software can harm you

An artist's concept of a NASA robotic refueling mission. Shown here, cameras light the way as a tool from a robotic refueling mission approaches a satellite to cut wire, one of the steps to remotely accessing a satellite's triple-sealed fuel valve.

Twenty years in, the law is finally starting to get used to the Internet. Now it is imperative, says Ryan Calo, assistant professor in the UW School of Law, that the law figure out how to deal effectively with the rise of robotics and artificial intelligence.

July 8, 2015

Seafloor hot springs a significant source of iron in the oceans

seafloor topography with colored water above

A two-month voyage tracking a deep current flowing from one of the most active underwater volcanoes proves that iron released from hydrothermal vents travels thousands of miles, providing a significant source of iron to support life in the broader oceans.

July 6, 2015

In a cosmic ‘call to arms,’ UW astronomer proposes new deep-space telescope to scan the sky for signs of life

Artist's rendition of the planet Kepler-69c.

On July 6, a team of astronomers proposed a new type of mission to crack some of the universe鈥檚 most intriguing mysteries and search for life on distant worlds.

Risk of interbreeding due to climate change lower than expected

Despite worries about interbreeding due to climate change, a new study finds that only about 6 percent of closely related species in the Americas are likely to come into contact by the end of this century.

June 30, 2015

‘The Shape of the New’: Two UW profs, four ‘big ideas’ in new book

"The Shape of the New: Four Big Ideas and How they Made the Modern World," by UW Jackson School faculty Scott L. Montgomery and Daniel Chirot, was published in May be Princeton University Press.

The concepts of freedom, equality, evolution and democracy lie at the heart of “The Shape of the New: Four Big Ideas and How they Changed the World,” by Scott L. Montgomery and Daniel Chirot of the UW’s Jackson School of International Studies.

Statement from UW interim President Ana Mari Cauce on the two-year state budget approved by the Washington Legislature

“On behalf of 糖心原创 students, faculty, staff and alumni, I want to express my thanks and appreciation to our elected officials for making investments in higher education a true budget priority during the 2015 legislative session…”

UW team programs solitary yeast cells to say ‘hello’ to one another

UW researchers have produced cell-to-cell communication in baker’s yeast — a first step in learning to build multicellular organisms or artificial organs from scratch.

June 29, 2015

Researchers discover how petunias know when to smell good

A team of UW biologists has identified a key mechanism plants use to decide when to release their floral scents to attract pollinators.

June 25, 2015

UW researcher helping pinpoint massive harmful algal bloom

A UW research analyst who monitors harmful algae in Washington state is aboard a federal research vessel surveying a massive bloom that stretches from California up to Canada.

June 24, 2015

Group at UW shows how to account for nature’s benefits in decisions

Planting mangroves for coastal protection in Placencia, Belize.

The Natural Capital Project, with offices at UW, wants to integrate the socioeconomic, cultural and spiritual values of nature into all major decisions affecting the environment and human well-being.

June 22, 2015

Spectrum of life: Nonphotosynthetic pigments could be biosignatures of life on other worlds

Laguna Colorada is a shallow salt lake in the southwest of Bolivia. One of several places on Earth whose colors are dominated by nonphotosynthetic pigments. Eddie Schwieterman of the 糖心原创 has research on how such nonphotosynthetic biosignatures might appear on exoplanets, or those outside our solar system.

To find life in the universe, it helps to know what it might look like. If there are organisms on other planets that do not rely wholly on photosynthesis 鈥� as some on Earth do not 鈥� how might those worlds appear from light-years away?

June 19, 2015

Access to electricity is linked to reduced sleep

New research comparing traditional hunter-gatherer living conditions to a more modern setting shows that access to artificial light and electricity has shortened the amount of sleep humans get each night.

June 18, 2015

UW and Tsinghua University create groundbreaking partnership with launch of the Global Innovation Exchange

In pursuit of solutions to some of the biggest global challenges, two of the world鈥檚 leading research universities, the 糖心原创 and Tsinghua University, are partnering to create the Global Innovation Exchange (GIX), an institute dedicated to educating the next generation of innovators. With $40 million in foundational support from Microsoft, GIX will bring together students, faculty, professionals and entrepreneurs from around the world to collaborate on real-world technology and design projects. Based in a new facility in the…

Evidence from ivory DNA identifies two main elephant poaching hotspots

糖心原创 biologist Samuel Wasser uses DNA evidence to trace the origin of illegal ivory and help police an international trade that is decimating African elephant populations. New results show that over the past decade, ivory has largely come from just two areas in Africa.

Saharan silver ants use hair to survive Earth’s hottest temperatures

An international team of researchers that includes a 糖心原创 electrical engineer has discovered two key strategies that enable Saharan silver ants to survive in one of the hottest terrestrial environments on Earth.

June 17, 2015

Plants make big decisions with microscopic cellular competition

A team of 糖心原创 researchers has identified a mechanism that some plant cells use to receive complex and contradictory messages from their neighbors.

June 15, 2015

UW notified of Office for Civil Rights inquiry

The 糖心原创 has received notice from the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) that a complaint has been filed by a student alleging discrimination under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for failing to provide the student with a prompt and equitable grievance process after the student reported an incident of sexual violence. Filing a complaint under Title IX triggers an inquiry from OCR, which has requested information from the University. As…

Genetic switch lets marine diatoms do less work at higher CO2

Oceanographers found the genetic ‘needles in a haystack’ to gain the first hints at how diatoms — tiny drifting algae that carry out a large part of Earth’s photosynthesis — detect and respond to increasing carbon dioxide from burning of fossil fuels.

June 12, 2015

UW LEADs nation in female engineering faculty

The 糖心原创 has the nation’s highest percentage of women in tenure-track engineering faculty positions. An online toolkit based on UW’s leadership workshops for department chairs could help replicate that success at other institutions.

Microsoft dedicates $10M gift to new UW Computer Science & Engineering building

Microsoft Corp. is awarding a $10 million gift to kick-start a campaign to build a second Computer Science & Engineering (CSE) building on the 糖心原创 campus as an “investment in students who will become the innovators and creators of tomorrow,”

June 11, 2015

140th commencement for UW鈥檚 Seattle campus at Husky Stadium June 13

A scene from last year's commencement at the UW.

A record 5,600-plus graduates, along with more than 40,000 family members, friends, faculty and other observers, are expected to attend the 140th 糖心原创 commencement ceremonies June 13 at Husky Stadium.

How the hawkmoth sees, hovers and tracks flowers in the dark

A hawkmoth clings to a robotic flower used to study the insect鈥檚 ability to track the moving flower under low-light conditions.

What researchers have discovered about the hummingbird-sized hawkmoth could help the next generation of small flying robots operate efficiently under a broad range of lighting conditions. The research is published in the June 12 edition of Science.

June 10, 2015

Prolific and profound: UW professor named U.S. Poet Laureate

Juan Felipe Herrera, visiting professor of ethnic studies at the 糖心原创, was named the 21st United States Poet Laureate on Wednesday. Herrera, who for the past two years has been the California Poet Laureate, is the first Latino honored since the U.S. Consultant in Poetry program began in 1937 (the title changed to Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry in 1986). In addition to writing poetry, Herrera also explores issues relevant to Latino culture through his novels, short stories…

June 9, 2015

Early intervention improves long-term outcomes for children with autism

A toddler takes part in early intervention activities at the UW Autism Center.

Early intervention for toddlers with autism spectrum disorder helps improve their intellectual ability and reduces autism symptoms years after originally getting treatment, a new study shows.

June 8, 2015

Atmospheric signs of volcanic activity could aid search for life

An eruption of the Calbuco Volcano in southern Chile. A team led by the UW's Amit Misra used data from volcanic eruptions on Earth to predict what an Earth-like exoplanet might look like during such eruptions.

Planets with volcanic activity are considered better candidates for life than worlds without such heated internal goings-on.
Now, graduate students at the UW have found a way to detect volcanic activity in the atmospheres of faraway planets when they transit, or pass in front of their host stars.

June 4, 2015

Warmer, lower-oxygen oceans will shift marine habitats

Warming temperatures and decreasing levels of dissolved oxygen will act together to create metabolic stress for marine animals. Habitats will shift to places in the ocean where the oxygen supply can meet the animals’ increasing future needs.

June 3, 2015

‘Stable beams’ achieved: Large Hadron Collider at CERN research facility begins recording data

Scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research are dwarfed by the Atlas particle detector, part of the Large Hadron Collider.

The Large Hadron Collider has started recording data from the highest-energy particle collisions ever achieved on Earth. This new data, the first recorded since 2012, will enable an international collaboration of researchers 鈥� including many from the UW 鈥� to study the Higgs boson, search for dark matter and develop a more complete understanding of the laws of nature.

Ocean Modeling Forum to bring human element to herring fishery, others

The Ocean Modeling Forum is trying something very rare — bringing together multiple science models and people who care about a particular ocean resource or fishery to decide what’s most important for its vitality and the communities it serves.

June 2, 2015

UW psychology professor Yuichi Shoda honored for famous long-term study on delayed gratification

Yuichi Shoda, UW professor of psychology and recipient of 2015 Golden Goose Award from AUP.

糖心原创 psychology professor Yuichi Shoda has been honored for his ongoing participation in a well-known 鈥� and perhaps slightly misunderstood 鈥� long-term study about delayed gratification.