Newsmakers

(Every week faculty and staff from across campus are featured or cited in newspapers, magazines, broadcasts and other media from around the country. The listings that follow represent a small selection of the many stories that spotlight UW–Madison and its people. More newsmaker listings)

Computers come to life?
The notion of a computer powered by biological life is still just a notion, but it’s getting closer to reality. Researchers have believed that biochemicals may make an ideal medium for storing data and performing calculations because of their ability to keep enormous amounts of information in tiny strands of DNA. Lloyd Smith, a professor of chemistry, led the first team to perform calculations using synthetic DNA that had been affixed to a gold chip. Although there’s no immediate use for DNA that can do math, the research does open the door to one day tapping into its enormous capacity. “It’s a route to scaling up DNA computing to larger problems,” Smith tells U.S. News and World Report (Feb. 14).

Not as cold as we think
New data are suggesting that it’s not as cold during a Wisconsin winter as we think. A study by a Purdue professor suggests that the wind chill index overstates the actual effect of wind on how cold it feels. He and other scientists are pushing for a new, more accurate index. And while Wisconsin researchers agree that the methodology could be improved, they’re not convinced that the inaccuracy is worth debating. John Norman, a professor at atmospheric and oceanic sciences, tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Feb. 5) that any index will have some imprecision to it, suggesting that perhaps the error in wind chill may be too small to worry about. Whether it feels like it’s 40 degrees below or 30 below, adds fellow professor Steve Ackerman, “it’s really cold.”

Case could redefine harassment
A federal agency’s interest in a Wisconsin harassment case signals that the federal government has an interest in regulating the use of vulgar language in the workplace. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a petition with a Milwaukee district court which indicates to law experts that the EEOC wants a role in redefining workplace harassment as it applies to language. “What the EEOC has done is to put a flag up all over the country,” law professor Jane Larson tells Associated Press (Feb. 2). “They’re interested in changing the law around the whole country.” Two employees of a Burlington company who felt harassed by vulgar comments made by a coworker brought the case. The EEOC has made the case a class-action lawsuit.

Snoring: More than annoying
Health experts say that a new study illustrating harmful effects among women who snore shows that it is more than a disturbing habit. “Snoring is no longer just a benign, comical condition,” Terry Young, an epidemiology professor, tells USA Today (Feb. 2). “It does seem to be associated with significant morbidity.” The latest findings, released by Boston researchers, show that women who snore regularly have a 33 percent higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Young, who is lead investigator of the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study, says that physicians and researchers need to be examining snoring as a real health risk.

Soybean death syndrome?
Some farmers have been so plagued by the sudden death of their soybean crops that they’ve even tried moving to get away from the plant disease. Yet “even that may not be a long-term cure,” says Craig Grau, a plant pathology professor. Grau tells Soybean Digest (Feb. 1) that soybean sudden death syndrome may be inevitable, since the fungus that causes the disease may be present even in soils where the disease hasn’t victimized plants.