UW In The News

Chancellor calls free tuition plan ‘real incentive’ for first-generation transfer students

Rebecca Blank: University of Wisconsin at ‘crucial point’ with next state budget

Sleep Shrinks the Brain — and That’s a Good Thing

Ah, to sleep, perchance … to shrink your neural connections? That’s the conclusion of new research that examined subtle changes in the brain during sleep.

Gard stumps for votes to beat cancer

Greg Gard needs your vote. Gard, in his first full season as Wisconsin’s head men’s basketball coach, is participating in the seventh annual Infiniti Coaches’ Charity Challenge.

New Center at UW-Madison To Research Emerging Vector-Borne Diseases In Wisconsin

A new center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will be researching the spread of new diseases in Wisconsin and the upper Midwest region carried by ticks and mosquitoes.

Bronson Koenig becomes Native American role model he never had

MADISON, Wis. — Google Maps told the Koenig brothers the trip to Standing Rock would take nine hours. But Google didn’t know how how many donated items — warm clothing, camping supplies and dry food — filled the 18-foot trailer they drove, slowing them down for all the right reasons. They put a flag for their Ho-Chunk tribe on the trailer, so it could fly alongside them as they drove.

‘Modern Family’ co-creator Levitan to give UW commencement

The University of Wisconsin-Madison announced Wednesday its spring commencement speaker will be alumnus Steven Levitan, co-creator and executive producer of the ABC hit comedy “Modern Family.”

UW-Madison team key in developing weather satellite

The first images were stunning, like switching from black-and-white to a color high-definition television.

UW study uses video games to help smokers quit

A study being conducted by the UW Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention is looking into whether video games on a smart phone can help smokers quit.

Stoneman’s got Badger spirit

Competitive dancing was not part of Hayley Stoneman’s college plan. Sure, the 2016 McFarland High School graduate had been dancing competitively since the age of 10, but she figured once she started at UW-Madison, she’d hang up her dance shoes.

Why You Should Ditch Your New Year’s Resolutions

Noted: “Few people ask themselves why they set the goal they chose,” says Christine Whelan, Ph.D., a clinical professor in the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin. “Accomplishing your goal can feel empty without understanding the motivation behind it.”

Remains From 800-Year-Old “Trojan Woman” Record Early Maternal Infection

In 2013, archeologists discovered the body of a 13th century farmwoman in a graveyard outside the former city of Troy in western Turkey. She sported strawberry-sized calcified nodules below her ribs, which they assumed were a sign of tuberculosis, a common disease for people of her era. But it turns out, they were wrong.

Badgers men’s basketball: Wisconsin to name Kohl Center court after Albert ‘Ab’ Nicholas

The University of Wisconsin announced at Thursday night’s game that the basketball court at the Kohl Center will be named after former Badgers player and booster Albert “Ab” Nicholas following the 2016-17 season.

Dave Skoloda: Tommy still leads the charge for UW

Gov. Scott Walker’s State of the State message this week expanded on his recent theme of how bright the future is for the state — a bright future that must assume a strong contribution from the University of Wisconsin System if it is to be a reality.

Hazmat Suits and 500 Shelter Cats: Rare Flu Forces New York Quarantine

Noted: “Any time influenza viruses start to behave in an unusual way, there’s a concern about what might happen,” said Aleisha Swartz, a doctor on loan from the University of Wisconsin veterinary school’s shelter medicine program, which is managing medical care at the quarantine center. “There’s this virus that popped up, and if we didn’t respond, it could have become widespread in cats all over the place.”

New UWPD chief hopes to bring change to strengthen trust with UW community

On her third day as the newly inducted police chief of the UW-Madison Police Department, Kristen Roman spent part of her afternoon inducting three new officers to the police force.

Chief Kristen Roman writes new chapter with UW-Madison police

As Chief Kristen Roman swore in three new police officers, it was symbolic of a new beginning for the University of Wisconsin-Madison Police Department. The three officers join the department the same week Chief Roman assumed the leadership role.

Genome of Deadly 800 Year Old Infection Found in Byzantine Skeleton

A skeleton from the outskirts of what was once the ancient city of Troy, has yielded the genome of an 800 year old mystery infection.

UW researcher unlocks story of 800-year-old skeleton

As archaeologists excavating a cemetery near Troy, the fabled city from Homer’s Iliad, carefully removed the skeleton of a woman buried eight centuries ago, they noticed two chalk-like strawberry-sized nodules near her ribs.

Hayes, Koenig named candidates for Senior CLASS Award

Senior standouts both on and off the court for the Wisconsin men’s basketball program, Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig were each announced this week as candidates for the 2017 Senior CLASS Award, which recognizes notable achievements in community, classroom, character and competition.

Hugh Iltis was noted UW botanist

A journey with noted University of Wisconsin-Madison botanist Hugh Iltis usually took much longer than normal because he frequently pulled the car over to show passengers a plant he noticed on the side of the road.

Virtual canaries

Imagine an app on your phone that can sense whether there is carbon monoxide in a room. If the display doesn’t change, you’re safe. But if the screen changes, “maybe it’s time to get out of the room,” says Manos Mavrikakis.

New UW video games institution will get in GEAR Tuesday

Games Education and Research, or GEAR for short, will be the spiritual successor to the now-defunct Games+Learning+Society group, an institution that pioneered the study of games and their educational properties and made the university a hub of video game scholarship. GLS disintegrated this year after the organization’s leaders — education professors Kurt Squire and Constance Steinkuehler — announced they were leaving for new jobs at the University of California-Irvine.

Hanns Kuttner: A first gentleman

Hanns Kuttner loves “It’s a Small World stories, and last September he shared one with Madison philanthropist Jerry Frautschi.

Editorial: Take a close look at the UW System

The University of Wisconsin-Madison, long one of the nation’s most highly regarded research institutions, is a little less well-regarded these days. For the first time in 44 years, UW-Madison fell out of the top five U.S. research universities.

Obama Bans Drilling in Parts of the Atlantic and the Arctic

Noted: It is not unusual for presidents to be seized by a sense of urgency in their final weeks in office, said Kenneth R. Mayer, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin. Last week, the Obama administration issued a final rule to bar states from withholding federal family-planning funds from Planned Parenthood affiliates and other health clinics that provide abortions, a measure that will take effect two days before Mr. Trump takes office.

Lands’ End Hires New CEO

Noted: Hart Posen, associate professor of management at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said the desire for a new image was probably why Marchionni, and now Griffith, were hired.

Astronaut James Lovell speaks at UW-Madison’s winter commencement

Astronaut James Lovell returns to Madison to speak at UW-Madison’s winter commencement.

University students around the area celebrate their graduations

UW Madison students are looking ahead to a new chapter, after getting their diplomas Sunday. More than 1,000 students gathered at the Kohl Center bright and early for winter commencement, receiving their diplomas, and getting the once in a lifetime opportunity to hear Wisconsin astronaut and UW Madison Alum, James Lovell speak.

Jim Lovell returns to Madison where he washed dishes, cared for lab rats and began heroic career

Jim Lovell brought a love of model rocketry, the rank of Eagle Scout, few finances and hopes of becoming a pilot when he came to UW-Madison in the fall of 1946 for the start of his freshman year.