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August 6, 2021

Research

How the daddy-long-legs gets long legs

Posted on
Nature

The first sequenced genome of a daddy-long-legs has revealed the genetic tricks that these creatures use to make their lengthy, grasping legs.

Most of these leggy invertebrates are not spiders but belong instead to a group called harvestmen (order Opiliones). Guilherme Gainett at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Vanessa González at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC and their colleagues sequenced the genome of the long-legged harvestman Phalangium opilio and found that the creature has a single cluster of Hox genes, a type of master gene that influences the body plan of all animals.

How a Daddy Longlegs Grows Such Strange Legs

Posted on
New York Times

Noted: Some scientists have wondered whether such duplications might help explain some of the wild variety of the animal kingdom, said Prashant Sharma, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and also an author of the study. Complex genomes and more varied organisms might seem to go together.

But despite harvestmen’s variety — there are more than 6,000 species in the group — there is no sign of duplication in the harvestman genome, the researchers report. And horseshoe crabs, arachnids that had at least one genome duplication in their evolution, have only a handful of species.

“Arachnids really challenge this idea,” Dr. Sharma said. Having more genes might help organisms diversify, but only if environmental conditions and other factors line up correctly as well, he speculates.

Researchers Look For Ways To Stop Flow Of PFAS Into Rhinelander’s Water Supply

Posted on
Wisconsin Public Radio

After Rhinelander Mayor Chris Frederickson found out in 2019 that at least one of his city’s municipal water wells was contaminated with a dangerous compound, he got in touch with Jim Tinjum.

Tinjum is an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also heads the geological engineering program, which is how Frederickson found him.

“I was contacted to help them figure out where the PFAS was coming from and what to do about it,” Tinjum said.

Wisconsin Wants To Let Hunters Slaughter More Wolves

Posted on
HuffPost

Noted: University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers warned in a new study that Wisconsin’s plans for another hunt “raise questions about sustainability.”

The state’s stated goal is maintaining a stable population of wolves, a top predator that helps sustain ecosystem health, study co-author and Madison environmental studies professor Adrian Treves told The National Geographic.

Treves called plans for a November hunt unwise, particularly since officials have no clear understanding of the impact of the February killings. Hunters often seek out the largest animals, for example, which are frequently pack leaders whose loss could leave entire groups to starve to death. The killing of fertile females would further reduce the population.

Higher Education/System

UW Milwaukee chancellor: UW System affirms school’s authority to implement COVID-19 protocol

Posted on
NBC-15

Despite a state legislative committee’s determination that it could overrule COVID-19 restrictions issued by the UW System, the chancellor of its Milwaukee campus told faculty and staff Thursday that the UW System has affirmed the schools’ authority to enact these precautions. UW Milwaukee Chancellor Mark Mone stated Thursday that his university will keep its mask and testing mandates in place to keep its students safe against the coronavirus.

Campus life

Native American burial mounds stall plans to remove ‘racist’ rock at UW-Madison

Posted on
The College Fix

University of Wisconsin Madison leaders have yet to make good on their promise to remove a 70-ton boulder on campus deemed racist by some student protesters.

Progress has stalled as officials review concerns that its removal could interfere with Native American effigy mounds.

Campus spokesperson Meredith McGlone told The College Fix the project to move Chamberlin Rock is on standby.

State news

The Truth Behind The So-Called Labor Shortage

Posted on
WORT FM

“No one wants to work anymore.” This is a common refrain from business owners around the country as the economy opens back up. Conservative commentators claim that unemployment insurance is keeping people from going back to work and fueling widescale laziness—but is that really what’s going on?

Today on the show, labor economist Laura Dresser joins Thursday host Allen Ruff to challenge these myths of the “labor shortage” narrative. They talk about the working class in Wisconsin, the pandemic economy, the importance of worker power, and the real reason employers are struggling to hire.

Laura Dresser is associate director of the Center On Wisconsin Strategy (COWS) and assistant clinical professor in the School Of Social Work at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She is co-editor of The Gloves-Off Economy: Workplace Standards at the Bottom of America’s Labor Market(Cornell University Press, 2008) and co-author of the annual State of Working Wisconsin report from COWS.

Study: Masks, Social Distancing Still Necessary To Combat COVID-19

Posted on
Wisconsin Public Radio

Quoted: Thomas Friedrich is a professor of virology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and another study author. He said vaccination, while extremely effective, is not necessarily a magic shield.

“This does not indicate that the vaccine is not effective,” said Friedrich. “What it does mean is that in some people who are vaccinated — at least for a certain amount of time after infection — there’s enough virus around in their systems that they could pass the virus on to others.”

Dave O’Connor, also a UW-Madison professor of virology and the third co-author of the study, said it’s important to continue to recalibrate expectations as circumstances change.

“The vaccines are imperfect, but they’re still going to help keep me out of the hospital right now, and we should be really thankful for that,” said O’Connor. “But we also need to be on guard, because just because we might be done with the virus doesn’t mean the virus is done with us.”

Environmental, Ag Experts Warn Drought Conditions Sign Of What’s To Come With Climate Change

Posted on
Wisconsin Public Radio

Much of southern and western Wisconsin has continued to experience abnormally dry conditions this year, with far southeastern Wisconsin seeing severe drought earlier this summer.

But agronomist Chris Kucharik from the University of Wisconsin-Madison said lower precipitation hasn’t had as much of an impact on the state’s crops as he was anticipating.

“I’m a bit surprised at how well the crops have been doing,” Kucharik said. “Honestly, once the crop is in the ground, (farmers) are kind of at the mercy of what happens during the growing season with the weather.”

Charts show 2020 was not as bad a year for the dairy industry, but the crisis continues

Posted on
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Quoted: Even though the situation in the industry remains tough, Mark Stephenson, head of dairy policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said “2020 was not as bad a year for dairy farmers.”

Milk prices had been low since 2015 — “for a longer period of time than we’ve seen in quite a while,” according to Stephenson. Farmers did their best to cut costs, and waited for demand to increase and boost prices with it.

Health

Protecting your baby from the COVID-19 resurgence

Posted on
WKOW-TV 27

Welcoming a new baby into your family is stressful enough, and adding the COVID-19 resurgence to the mix only makes things more complicated. A pediatrician from UW Health recommends having a conversation with close friends and family, and asking them to get vaccinated before spending time with your newborn.

Athletics

Opinion

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