Tag Research
Report, experts analyze surging STEM activity at UW–Madison
A recent report on instructional activity in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines at the University of Wisconsin–Madison shows significant advances in enrollment and degrees since 2000, which campus experts attribute to a number of factors, including job placement, greater career opportunities and enhanced teaching methods. Read More
Plump turtles swim better: First models of swimming animals
For the first time, researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Florida Atlantic University (FAU), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have measured the forces that act on a swimming animal and the energy the animal must expend to move through the water. Read More
WISCIENCE to expand possibilities for science education, outreach
The University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Institute for Biology Education is announcing its expansion to become the Wisconsin Institute for Science Education and Community Engagement, or WISCIENCE. The new mission extends across the natural sciences and expands responsibility for facilitating cross-campus collaboration and coordination in the areas of science outreach and support for groups underrepresented in science. Read More
Wisconsin’s new ‘bug guy,’ insect detective arrives on campus
His favorite insect is one he has actually never seen alive in the wild. It lives on snowfields and glaciers in the American West, aptly named an ice crawler. But PJ Liesch, the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s new “bug guy,” continues to search for it. “I’ve been out West looking for them a couple of times and haven’t had any luck, so they’re kind of one I have on my bucket list, just to see one of those out in the wild,” says Liesch. The insect specialist officially took over as manager of the UW–Madison Insect Diagnostic Lab this summer. Read More
UW to serve as national hub for mentor training as part of diversity consortium
The University of Wisconsin–Madison will serve as a national hub for research mentor and mentee training for the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) recently announced by NIH as part of a national Diversity Program Consortium. The NIH will award the Diversity Program Consortium nearly $31 million in fiscal year 2014 funds to develop new approaches that engage researchers, including those from backgrounds underrepresented in biomedical sciences, and prepare them to thrive in the NIH-funded workforce. Read More
Seven receive Fulbright awards for doctoral research
The U.S. Department of Education has awarded grants totaling $306,628 to seven doctoral students at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, through the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) program. Read More
See-through sensors open new window into the brain
Developing invisible implantable medical sensor arrays, a team of University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers has overcome a major technological hurdle in researchers’ efforts to understand the brain. The team described its technology, which has applications in fields ranging from neuroscience to cardiac care and even contact lenses, in the Oct. 20 issue of the online journal Nature Communications. Read More
UW physicist receives American Ingenuity Award for IceCube effort
Francis Halzen, the University of Wisconsin–Madison physicist who was the driving force behind the giant neutrino telescope known as IceCube at the South Pole, has been named a winner of the 2014 American Ingenuity Award. Read More
UW-Madison chemist named Packard Fellow
Trisha Andrew, a University of Wisconsin–Madison assistant professor of chemistry, is one of 18 early career scientists from around the country named a Packard Fellow for Science and Engineering. The award includes a grant of $875,000 over five years to pursue research and is given in recognition of the potential significance of scholarship and innovation from the nation’s most promising young scientists and engineers. Read More
WCER: Five decades of improving teaching and learning
One of the first centers of its kind, the Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER) is preparing to celebrate 50 years of educational policy research and initiatives. Read More
Balancing birds and biofuels: Grasslands support more species than cornfields
In Wisconsin, bioenergy is for the birds. Really. In a study published today in the journal PLOS ONE, University of Wisconsin–Madison and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) scientists examined whether corn and perennial grassland fields in southern Wisconsin could provide both biomass for bioenergy production and bountiful bird habitat. The research team found that where there are grasslands, there are birds. Grass-and-wildflower-dominated fields supported more than three times as many bird species as cornfields, including 10 imperiled species found only in the grasslands. Read More
Company developing radio frequency technology to localize breast tumors
Breast cancer may inspire more public discussion, advocacy and charitable giving than almost any other disease besides HIV and AIDS. But people rarely talk about the specific experiences to which cancer patients are subjected. Read More
New nonprofit supports women in science
Tracey Holloway was a postdoctoral researcher at Columbia University in 2002, Ph.D. from Princeton University freshly in hand, when she and five colleagues teamed up to create an informal support network for other women in their field. Read More
Influenza researcher Yoshihiro Kawaoka wins Breakthrough Award
The University of Wisconsin–Madison's Yoshihiro Kawaoka has been recognized as a 2014 Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Award recipient for his efforts to understand and prevent pandemic influenza. Read More
‘Bigger is better,’ Blank says in State of the University speech
After a year on campus, Chancellor Rebecca Blank says she has come to appreciate that the scope and breadth of the University of Wisconsin–Madison is what makes it a world-class university. Read More
With NIH New Innovator Award, engineer to study how ovarian cancer spreads
With approximately 22,000 diagnoses annually in the United States, ovarian cancer isn't among the most commonly occurring cancers. Yet, the mortality rate for women who have ovarian cancer hovers above 60 percent. Read More
Lubar gift innovates to diversify Law School research
A $3 million gift will allow the University of Wisconsin Law School to support top legal scholars in a new and creative way, Dean Margaret Raymond announced today. Read More
CIMSS Tropical Cyclones Group to receive AMS Special Award
The Tropical Cyclones Group at the University of Wisconsin–Madison Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) has been selected for an American Meteorological Society (AMS) Special Award. Read More
Unique MOOC with in-person sessions offered for future and current college STEM faculty
A new MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) offering an in-person twist — local weekly facilitated meetings — debuts next week to help future and current college STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) faculty become better teachers. It is designed to be of special interest to grad students planning to teach professionally. Read More