Category Science & Technology
Stuff ‘n’ food: Can collectible toys overcome fascination with fast food?
Every parent seems to know what McDonald's knows: Food and toys outsell food alone. But could toys be used to promote the sale of healthy food as well as calorie-rich fast food? Read More
Jumping gene enabled key step in corn domestication
In seeking to better understand how teosinte gave rise to corn, a scientific team has pinpointed one of the key genetic changes that paved the way for corn's domestication. Read More
Study: Advantages of single-sex schooling a myth
As Madison deals with a proposal to establish a single-sex charter school, a University of Wisconsin–Madison professor of psychology is one author of an article that calls the scientific case for single-sex schools "pseudoscience." Read More
UW–Madison botanist plucks new flower from Isle Royale
One of the world's newest sunflower species, discovered by a University of Wisconsin–Madison botanist, has carved out a very small but safe niche on an island in Lake Superior. Read More
Wisconsin engineer, entrepreneur move ‘green’ diesel engine closer to market
A University of Wisconsin–Madison engineer is collaborating with a Wisconsin entrepreneur to produce a diesel engine that could be a quieter, more efficient power source for a variety of household and industrial applications, including lawn equipment and electric generators. Read More
Mouse genome sequences reveal variability, complex evolutionary history
The genome of even a single organism is packed with information. A new paper, building on recent advances in sequencing capability, now reports the complete genomes of 17 different strains of mice, creating an unparalleled genetic resource that will aid studies ranging from human disease to evolution. Read More
Interim chancellor’s memo to lawmakers regarding proposed fetal tissue ban
Here is the text of a memo sent by UW–Madison Interim Chancellor David Ward to all members of the state Legislature regarding a bill that would ban the acquisition and use of fetal tissue in scientific research. Read More
Study reveals critical similarity between two types of do-it-all stem cells
Ever since human induced pluripotent stem cells were first derived in 2007, scientists have wondered whether they were functionally equivalent to embryonic stem cells, which are sourced in early stage embryos. Read More
In cell culture, like real estate, the neighborhood matters
Ever since scientists first began growing human cells in lab dishes in 1952, they have focused on improving the chemical soup that feeds the cells and helps regulate their growth. But surfaces also matter, says Laura Kiessling, a professor of chemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, who observes that living cells are normally in contact with each other and with a structure called the extracellular matrix, not just with the dissolved chemicals in their surroundings. Read More
Organic Field Day set Aug. 30
University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers will host an Organic Field Day on Tuesday, August 30 from 1–3:30p.m. at the UW Arlington Agricultural Research Station. Read More
Climate change could drive native fish out of Wisconsin waters
The cisco, a key forage fish found in Wisconsin's deepest and coldest bodies of water, could become a climate change casualty and disappear from most of the Wisconsin lakes it now inhabits by the year 2100, according to a new study. Read More
Surgeon to be next UW–Madison vet research dean
Longtime professor Dale Bjorling has been named associate dean for research and graduate training at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Veterinary Medicine. Read More
New neutrino detection experiment in China up and running
Deep under a hillside near Hong Kong, a pair of new antineutrino detectors are warming up for some serious physics. Read More
Is hunting wolves key to their conservation?
Hunters have been credited with being strong conservation advocates for numerous game species in multiple countries. Would initiating a wolf hunt invoke the same advocacy for the carnivores? Read More
Digitization project promises lichens and mosses at our fingertips
Lichens and mosses are well-known barometers of the environment. But soon lichens and mosses could assume a new and much broader importance as harbingers of environmental change, thanks to an effort to digitize the lichen and moss collections of U.S. herbaria. Read More
Award allows UW biochemist to investigate mitochondria mystery
Every student of basic biology learns that mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cell - little factories turning oxygen and food into energy. Read More
UW study finds that larger dairy farms tend to have better milk quality
Wisconsin's larger dairy operations tended to fare better than the state's small farms in a University of Wisconsin–Madison study of milk quality, although all of the state's farms - both large and small - produced milk that easily met federal food safety guidelines. Read More
Sea level rise less from Greenland, more from Antarctica, than expected during last interglacial
During the last prolonged warm spell on Earth, the oceans were at least four meters - and possibly as much as 6.5 meters, or about 20 feet - higher than they are now. Read More
Chinese high schoolers to learn from stem cells
Eighteen students participating in the inaugural Global Wisconsin Idea Program -- a unique pairing of American and Chinese teenagers -- will join a Chinese university dean this week to learn more about the science of stem cells during a hands-on workshop hosted by the Morgridge Institute for Research. Read More