Category Science & Technology
Combining on and off switches, one protein can control flowering in plants
With Wisconsin's short growing seasons, reducing a plant’s life cycle and completing the season earlier "could be very important for many crops.”
Elementary and middle-school-aged girls show off their AI skills
A summer-term course for 4th- to 6th-grade girls taught them the basics of programming and AI, and even more importantly, taught them they belong in the STEM world.
Nanoparticles improve tumor treatment in mice
In mouse models of human lung cancer, the improved drug inhibited tumor growth more effectively than the standard drug. “Ultimately, our goal is to get this into human beings,” says pharmacy professor Glen Kwon.
Strong showing from Badgerloop at SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition
The UW–Madison Badgerloop team was among the top teams at the 2018 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition, reaching the final four.
National Atmospheric Deposition Program moves to hygiene lab
The NADP monitors North America’s precipitation and atmosphere for a range of chemicals, and uses the data to determine trends in where pollution is concentrated and over what period of time.
Meditation affects brain networks differently in long-term meditators and novices
UW-Madison researchers examined brain activity in non-meditators, new meditators, and long-term meditators, and they discovered differences in emotion networks of the brain among these groups.
Eagle-eyed machine learning algorithm outdoes human experts
UW–Madison's Dane Morgan and collaborators used machine learning to make artificial intelligence better than experienced humans at analyzing damage to potential nuclear reactor materials.
Can plants and trees change the weather?
An array of towers, aircraft and researchers will keep watch over the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in northern Wisconsin, focusing on an area from a region of the country sensitive to changes in climate.
Data Science Initiative supports faculty research
Ten highly innovative projects, addressing such diverse topics as the microbiome, climate change, limnology, Alzheimer's disease, genomics and math, have been chosen to receive funding.
Study suggests buried internet infrastructure at risk as sea levels rise
The most susceptible U.S. cities are New York, Miami and Seattle, but the effects would ripple across the internet — potentially disrupting global communications.
UW–Madison’s Mathieu appointed to National STEM Education Advisory Panel
Mathieu is a leading academic voice for transforming undergraduate teaching and learning within STEM disciplines, experience he will contribute as one of nine higher education representatives on the 18-member NSF panel.
Chemistry professor awarded prestigious Steenbock Professorship
In addition to advancing fundamental science, Shannon Stahl has been involved in numerous industrial collaborations that have led to practical applications and has been recognized nationally for his contributions to "green chemistry."
Sussman to lead Genome Center of Wisconsin
Mike Sussman, longtime director of the UW–Madison Biotechnology Center, has announced that he is stepping down from that position to serve as director of the genome center. Chris Bradfield has been named interim Biotechnology Center director.
California-bound Badgerloop team aims for top prize
Badgerloop Pod III, a teardrop-shaped vehicle designed and built by UW–Madison students, is making its way from Madison to Hawthorne, California, to compete in the third SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition on July 22.
In a warming world, could air conditioning make things worse?
A team of UW–Madison researchers forecasts as many as a thousand additional deaths annually in the Eastern United States alone due to elevated levels of air pollution driven by the increased use of fossil fuels to cool the buildings where humans live and work.
Zika virus infection may multiply risk of miscarriage, stillbirth
Researchers at six National Primate Research Centers (NPRCs) combined results from individual studies to find that 26 percent of pregnancies in 50 monkeys infected with Zika virus during the first trimester of pregnancy ended in miscarriage or stillbirth.
Cell therapy is the future, and Wisconsin is the place, UW–Madison expert tells Technology Council
UW–Madison has doctors willing to guide the studies that will make or break cell therapy companies. “If you are a clinician, you need a pioneer spirit to do something that has never been done before,” Jacques Galipeau says, “and there are already many like that here.”
Map helps guide public health decision-making
“We want this to be a tool that everyone can use,” said Amy Kind, an associate professor of medicine. “We hope this will be a catalyst to ... eliminate U.S. health disparities.”
“Ring around bathtub” at giant volcano field shows movement of subterranean magma
It’s a major task to understand a Laguna del Maule mountaintop region that has erupted 50 times over the past 20,000 years. But the starting point of a UW–Madison study is simple: It’s the ring that standing water leaves on a bathtub.