The world’s best-selling author of the past 20 years is coming to Camp Randall for UW-Madison’s 2020 spring commencement.
Author James Patterson to speak at UW-Madison’s 2020 spring commencement
Wisconsin State Journal
February 20, 2020
Top Stories
Best selling author to be 2020 UW-Madison commencement speaker
WKOW-TV 27
Patterson has had 96 titles reach No. 1 on the New York Times Best Sellers List and is featured in the “Guinness Book of World Records” as the first author to sell 1 million e-books.
Novelist James Patterson to give UW-Madison spring commencement speech
WISC-TV 3
“Very few people have reached Mr. Patterson’s level of success or had such a profound impact on education and the lives of students,” says Chancellor Rebecca Blank.
James Patterson to be Spring 2020 commencement keynote speaker
Daily Cardinal
“We are thrilled that someone of James Patterson’s stature, international acclaim and generosity has agreed to share his insights with our graduates,” Chancellor Rebecca Blank said.
James Patterson, John Felder to speak at spring commencement
Badger Herald
Patterson is world’s best selling author, Felder was the spokeperson for the Black Student Strike of 1969.
James Patterson to speak at UW-Madison spring graduation
NBC-15
He has had 96 titles reach the top of the New York Times Bestsellers List. Patterson’s wife, Susan, is a UW-Madison alumna.
Research
Scientists Jump-Started Consciousness in Monkeys by Pinpointing This Brain Region
Singularity Hub
Built on decades of previous research, a team from the University of Wisconsin-Madison teased out a tiny chunk of brain tissue within the thalamus, a nub above the brain stem, as a critical part of NCC. As proof of concept, they gave it several bouts of electrical shocks, and restored awareness in unconscious monkeys under heavy anesthesia.
Scientists jump-start consciousness in brains of monkeys
Zime Science
In a new study, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison took this a step further, performing experiments on sleeping or anesthetized macaques.
Think tank offers housing recommendations to improve community health
The Capital Times
Research for the project was done in partnership with the California-based Human Impact Partners and with UW-Madison professors Geoffrey Swain and Marah Curtis.
Higher Education/System
Wisconsin Assembly To Vote On GOP Tax Cut, Dairy Bills
Wisconsin Public Radio
Two other bills would require the University of Wisconsin System to study the current problems facing farmers and evaluate how the university, through existing curriculum and programs, supports the industry, and require UW-Madison to conduct a research study on developing a science and technology program specific to agriculture.
Campus life
Students push universities to stop investing in fossil fuels
AP
Georgetown University’s board of directors announced this month that it will end private investments in coal, oil and gas companies within the next decade, and some faculty at Harvard have called for a similar shift. There were sit-ins and demonstrations last week at dozens of schools, including Gonzaga University, the University of Wisconsin, University of Pittsburgh and Cornell University.
In ’63 Up,’ the landmark documentary series grapples with mortality
The Capital Times
“63 Up” has its only Madison screenings at 7 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday at the UW Cinematheque, 4070 Vilas Hall, 821 University Ave. The screenings are free and open to the public.
Community
UW Student Elena Haasl Looking to Amplify Young Voices on the Dane County Board
Madison365
University of Wisconsin-Madison Sophomore Elena Haasl would like to be the next person elected to serve District 5 on the Dane County Board of Supervisors.
Health
UW Health Nurse Residency Program addresses nurse shortage
NBC-15
Wisconsin is leading the pack when it comes to addressing the growing nursing shortage. At UW Health, the Nurse Residency Program was recently expanded in an effort to deal with the problem.
Athletics
Badgers women’s swimming team wins 800 freestyle relay at Big Ten championships
Wisconsin State Journal
The University of Wisconsin women’s swimming team won the 800-yard freestyle relay on Day 1 of the Big Ten Conference swim and dive championships on Wednesday.
Opinion
Op-Ed: Sacramento’s army of interns deserves to be paid
Los Angeles Times
Matthew T. Hora, a professor and director of the Center for Research on College-Work Transitions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, surveyed students at five colleges and universities about why they chose not to intern as undergraduates.
Business/Technology
Thompson leadership center allocates $1 million for public policy research, conferences
Badger Herald
Grant will bring prominent speakers to UW System campus.
UW Experts in the News
Knowing how plants and microbes work together can boost crop yields
The Economist
That, Jo Handelsman of the University of Wisconsin–Madison told the meeting, is where they have gone wrong. Soil microbes interact. And mixtures of species can do things individual bugs cannot manage. As an example, she gave an ecological triangle that her laboratory has been working on.
Falling US solar-plus-storage prices start to level as batteries supersize
S&P Global Market Intelligence
Noted: There is still room for reducing the cost of solar, both by improving the physical workings of the technology itself and by reducing the cost of production and deployment of solar photovoltaics, said Greg Nemet, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who researches technological shifts and how public policy can affect those changes. Once denounced as too expensive, solar energy is already displacing other fuel sources as the cheapest form of generation in some regions.
Obituaries
David Ruder Weathered Black Monday as SEC Chairman in Late 1980s
Wall Street Journal
Though his application to Harvard Law School was accepted, he chose the University of Wisconsin law school, closer to home, and was editor of the law review there. He worked for a law firm in Milwaukee for several years and was recruited to the Northwestern law faculty in 1961.
David Ruder Weathered Black Monday as SEC Chairman in Late 1980s
Wall Street Journal
Though his application to Harvard Law School was accepted, he chose the University of Wisconsin law school, closer to home, and was editor of the law review there. He worked for a law firm in Milwaukee for several years and was recruited to the Northwestern law faculty in 1961.