Science news from around campus
- New study shows persistence of anxietyWe all know people who are tense and nervous and can't relax. They may have been wired differently since childhood.
July 2, 2008
- Lignin expert chooses to pursue biofuels research at UW-MadisonA UW-Madison biochemistry professor will stay at the university to join its Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center.
July 1, 2008
- Ice creamier: ‘Edible antifreeze’ puts the smooth in smoothieIt's Friday night, and the movie's already spinning in the DVD player. You run to the kitchen to grab a gallon of ice cream and a spoon, but you find the tub nearly empty.
July 1, 2008
- Curiosities: Why does it seem like mosquitoes are attracted to some people more than others?
June 30, 2008
- Working to bring individuals with large-animal interest into veterinary medicineThere has been much publicity lately about changes in the agricultural industry, accompanied by speculation that there will be fewer large-animal veterinarians.
June 26, 2008
- Airless tire project may prove a lifesaver in military combatAn ambitious startup company in Wausau is working on a project to develop tires that can withstand extreme punishment, even those meted out in military combat zones.
June 26, 2008
- Synchronized swimming: Collections of microorganisms make their own wavesSome microorganisms prefer the breaststroke while swimming. Others move along by essentially twisting their tail. How populations of bacteria and other microorganisms swim is more than just a matter of style, according to Mike Graham, University of Wisconsin-Madison Harvey D. Spangler Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering.
June 25, 2008
- Public events slated at UW-Madison research stationsThe following is a list of public events currently scheduled at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Agricultural Research Stations, the Kemp Biological Station and the O.J. Noer turfgrass facility.
June 25, 2008
- Studies of cell traits nets big award for UW-Madison researcherUW-Madison biochemist Doug Weibel has received a prestigious Searle Scholar Award.
June 24, 2008
- Recent sightings: Algae on Lake Mendota
June 24, 2008
- Study uncovers how Ritalin works in brain to boost cognition, focus attentionIn a paper publishing online this week in Biological Psychiatry, UW-Madison psychology researchers report that Ritalin fine-tunes the functioning of neurons in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) - a brain region involved in attention, decision-making and impulse control - while having few effects outside it.
June 24, 2008
- BIO 2008: Targeted therapies enjoy banner yearWith all the buzz about stem cell research breakthroughs and other highlights in a year of life-science innovation, it was targeted therapies with companion molecular diagnostics that gained the most in terms of development and usage, according to a new study released by Deloitte Consulting.
June 23, 2008
- Wiley to tackle interim role leading new instituteOutgoing University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor John D. Wiley has been named the new interim director of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID), the public half of the new research center that promises to be a model of interdisciplinary science and public-private collaboration.
June 22, 2008
- UW-Madison grad student to meet with Nobel laureatesUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison nuclear engineering doctoral student Rachel Slaybaugh never dreamed she'd have the opportunity to chat with a Nobel Prize-winning physicist - much less several of them.
June 20, 2008
- Great people. Great place. Fundraising initiative built around campus’s top prioritiesThree synergistic components define a world-class university: the most promising undergraduates, top graduate and professional students, and stellar faculty. Take away any of the three and what remains is just another university.
June 19, 2008
- Survey: Misconduct in research likely underreportedInstances of falsified results, fabricated data and plagiarism in scientific research may be vastly underreported, according to findings published in a commentary in the current (June 18) issue of Nature.
June 19, 2008
- Newly born twin stars show surprising differencesThe analysis of the youngest pair of identical twin stars yet discovered has revealed surprising differences in brightness, surface temperature and possibly even the size of the two.
June 18, 2008
- Study: Breast cancer patients with greater need seek more information onlinePatients with more concerns about their breast cancer are heavier users of online information, according to a new study conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Excellence in Cancer Communications Research, funded by the National Cancer Institute.
June 18, 2008
- Ebb and flow of the sea drives world’s big extinction eventsA new study, published online June 15 in the journal Nature, suggests that it is the ocean, and in particular the epic ebbs and flows of sea level and sediment over the course of geologic time, that is the primary cause of the world's periodic mass extinctions during the past 500 million years.
June 16, 2008
- Ancient mineral shows early Earth climate tough on continentsA new analysis of ancient minerals called zircons suggests that a harsh climate may have scoured and possibly even destroyed the surface of the Earth's earliest continents.
June 13, 2008
- Pioneer of climatology dies at 88Reid Bryson, a towering figure in climatology and interdisciplinary studies of climate, people and the environment, and the founder of the University of Wisconsin-Madison's meteorology department and Center for Climatic Research, and the first director of the Institute for Environmental Studies, died in his sleep early June 11 at his home in Madison.
June 12, 2008
- Town hall meeting set on study of state-owned heating and cooling plantsA town hall meeting detailing the progress of a study on state-owned heating and cooling facilities in Madison will be held Tuesday, June 17, from 5:30-8:30 p.m. in the Mechanical Engineering Building at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
June 9, 2008
- Curiosities: Why does the sky turn green before a tornado?
June 6, 2008
- Scientific information largely ignored when forming opinions about stem cell researchWhen forming attitudes about embryonic stem cell research, people are influenced by a number of things. But understanding science plays a negligible role for many people, according to a recent UW-Madison study.
June 5, 2008
- Agent in red wine found to keep hearts youngHow, scientists wonder, do the French get away with a clean bill of heart health despite a diet loaded with saturated fats?
June 4, 2008
- Milky Way’s infrared portrait gives new view of galaxyAstronomers have obtained an entirely new perspective of our home galaxy: a complete mosaic portrait of the Milky Way in infrared light, a picture that when printed measures 180 feet long by 4 feet wide.
June 3, 2008
- Entrepreneurship becoming acceptable, even fashionable, in WisconsinWith the sixth annual Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Conference set for June 9-10 in Milwaukee, there are increasing signs the state is becoming a place where entrepreneurs can survive — and even flourish.
June 3, 2008
- Curiosities: Are there years when dandelions are more plentiful?
May 27, 2008
- Green highways: Research targets environmentally friendly asphalts For those hoping to create a greener world, our country's millions of miles of asphalt roads may seem like an odd place to seek solutions. Yet, it's precisely because asphalt is so common that we have much to gain from making it more eco-friendly, says University of Wisconsin-Madison civil engineering professor Hussain Bahia.
May 27, 2008
- Hartwell fellowship aids childhood asthma researchPostdoctoral fellow Lisa Lenertz spends her days at the University of Wisconsin-Madison studying how one protein, critical for proper immune function, moves from the inside to the surface of white blood cells.
May 23, 2008