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Tag Research

Mouse studies reveal promising vitamin D-based treatment for MS

September 26, 2013

A diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) is a hard lot. Patients typically get the diagnosis around age 30 after experiencing a series of neurological problems such as blurry vision, wobbly gait or a numb foot. From there, this neurodegenerative disease follows an unforgiving course. Read More

Students game the system, train computer to play Angry Birds

September 25, 2013

Angry Birds sounds simple: Just slingshot a digital bird at a pile of evil pigs. You could teach a child to play. But could you teach a computer? Read More

Observations reveal critical interplay of interstellar dust, hydrogen

September 25, 2013

For astrophysicists, the interplay of hydrogen - the most common molecule in the universe - and the vast clouds of dust that fill the voids of interstellar space has been an intractable puzzle of stellar evolution. Read More

John Hawks explores how celiac disease evolved

September 25, 2013

Celiac disease is an evolutionary paradox, says University of Wisconsin–Madison anthropologist John Hawks. Read More

A shot of anxiety and the world stinks

September 24, 2013

Researchers using powerful new brain imaging technologies are revealing how anxiety or stress can rewire the brain, linking centers of emotion and olfactory processing, to make typically benign smells malodorous. Read More

Marginal land in demand: researchers explore farmer willingness to grow energy crops

September 24, 2013

In their quest to make cellulosic biofuel a viable energy option, many researchers are looking to marginal lands - those unsuitable for growing food - as potential real estate for bioenergy crops. However, few people have asked: how do farmers feel about using their marginal lands for fuel production? Read More

Decades on, bacterium’s discovery feted as paragon of basic science

September 17, 2013

Over time, the esoteric and sometimes downright strange quests of science have proven easy targets for politicians and others looking for perceived examples of waste in government - and a cheap headline. Read More

Brain pathways tie together mental maps

September 16, 2013

To find its way in the world, your brain has to decipher a set of directions muddled by different points of view. Read More

Researchers capture speedy chemical reaction in mid-stride

September 13, 2013

In synthetic chemistry, making the best possible use of the needed ingredients is key to optimizing high-quality production at the lowest possible cost. Read More

Presidential panel taps political scientist’s election expertise

September 12, 2013

UW–Madison political science professor Barry Burden is helping provide academic research to a bipartisan presidential commission looking into how to improve federal elections. Read More

Weather: More data + more computers = better forecasts

September 9, 2013

Been beefing about weather forecasts? Did the “experts” miss a thunderstorm, botch the rainfall prediction, mistake cloudy for sunny or windy for calm? You’re not alone. Forecasts of weather are already way better than forecasts of, say, unemployment or grain harvests, but that doesn’t lead us to predict that the caterwauling over weather forecasts will dampen. Read More

In whole-lake experiment, have invasive crayfish met their match?

September 6, 2013

Four years ago, University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers wrapped up a multi-year effort to dramatically reduce the population of a destructive invasive species in a northern Wisconsin lake. Read More

Improved computing provides a better look at the cosmos

September 6, 2013

Building a neutrino telescope - a unique instrument that detects extremely small, high energy particles - out of 5,000 optical sensors embedded in a cubic kilometer of Antarctic ice, a tremendous engineering feat, was just the first challenge. Read More

Campus was hopping, at a summertime pace, while you were gone

September 5, 2013

Rebecca Blank arriving, Kevin Reilly leaving. Budget cuts and tuition freezes. Even if you were vacationing and unplugged over the summer, it was hard to miss these headlines. But you can be excused for not being on top of everything that happened on campus while you were away. Read More

Massive storm pulls water and ammonia ices from Saturn’s depths

September 3, 2013

Now, thanks to near-infrared spectral measurements taken by NASA’s Cassini orbiter and analysis of near-infrared color signatures by researchers at UW–Madison, Saturn’s superstorm is helping scientists flesh out a picture of the composition of the planet’s atmosphere at depths typically obscured by a thick high-altitude haze. Read More

Language can reveal the invisible, study shows

August 26, 2013

It is natural to imagine that the sense of sight takes in the world as it is - simply passing on what the eyes collect from light reflected by the objects around us. Read More