The eyes are vestigial organs, or the remnants of body parts that no longer function—they are the “leftovers of evolution,” as study co-author Guilherme Gainett, who was a biologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison when he conducted the research but now works at Boston Children’s Hospital, tells Science News’ McKenzie Prillaman. In humans, vestigial organs include wisdom teeth and the appendix.
Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have spent years trying to unravel the details of Down syndrome: What happens inside the womb, how the genetic disorder alters the formation of neurons, and what specific processes affect brain development. The work can’t proceed without studying fetal tissue. Anita Bhattacharyya, an associate professor of cell and regenerative biology, said her lab’s findings so far are significant, having identified a layer of late-developing neurons that are reduced in the brains of fetuses with Down syndrome. If she were to start her career again, however, she isn’t sure she would follow the same path. “It seems too risky,” she said.
Zach Feiner is a research scientist at the state Department of Natural Resources and at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Limnology. On WPR’s “The Morning Show,” Feiner said the state hopes lowering the number of fish caught can help walleye recover.
The School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences (CDIS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is currently facing a $15 million budget shortage for construction of its new building, set to open in 2025.
Months after a controversial deal which exchanged funds for capped diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) positions, the University of Wisconsin-Madison is looking for ways to protect itself and fight against a nationwide anti-DEI movement.
“Computing was going to be a big deal,” says Charles Isbell, a former dean of Georgia Tech’s college of computing and now the provost at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Emancipating the field from its prior home within the college of engineering gave it room to grow, he told me.
Marquette University announced it’s planning for budget cuts. Although the specifics are unknown, the university plans to cut the annual operating budget by $31 million in six years.
The yearly tradition started with the work of three students at UW who were looking to raise money for the Badgers’ athletic teams at the time. In 1982, Tom Grantham, Ken Sparks and Rich Backus approached Elroy Hirsch, who was the current Athletic Director, the website home page said.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison waived more than $4,000 in security and event fees for an event hosted by Wisconsin Young Americans for Freedom on March 11 after a lawsuit threat from conservative law firm Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty.
As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into education, both students and faculty are grappling with the question ‘How can AI support learning?’
UW’s generative AI policies vary from classroom to classroom, depending on instructor preference, and students are responsible for getting permission ahead of time if they are unsure of classroom expectations. But, students are always required to cite paraphrasing and word for word text created through instructor-approved AI usage.
Students in the teacher education program at the University of Wisconsin’s School of Education recently voiced concerns with administrators’ failure to adhere to an emergency rule that would allow students to stop participating in teacher education programs upon graduation.
University of Wisconsin students are banding together to evict Starbucks from campus. Specifically, students want the university to end the licensing contract that allows Starbucks to have a location inside of Smith Residence Hall, which opened in 2020.
MADISON, Wis. (WKOW) — Award-winning actor and entrepreneur Danny Trejo is speaking at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Wednesday night.
“This is a huge step in the right direction to break down barriers to access contraceptives,” Dr. Abigail Cutler, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin’s School of Public Health said.
Johnson “has become an influential voice in his party because of his outspoken nature and eagerness to weigh in on issues even when his position is unpopular,” said Barry Burden, a UW-Madison political science professor and the director of the Elections Research Centerthere, in an email.
“But Johnson is unlikely to become party leader because he has not developed a network of trusting relationships with his colleagues,” Burden continued. “Although fellow Republicans often appreciate his bold critiques of Democrats and other authority figures, Johnson has not shown himself to be a coalition builder who carefully attends to the concerns of his Senate colleagues. He tends to oppose measures that are moving forward rather than finding ways to bring them to fruition.”
Supporters of the amendment argue outside money can “create undue influence on elections and the work of election officials,” said Emily Lau, a staff attorney with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s State Democracy Research Initiative. Lau said that can hamper trust in elections.
Those opposed to the amendment say election work is underfunded, which sows distrust as well.
“There are concerns that bans on private funding without accompanying guarantees of adequate and sufficient public funding could impede the work of election officials,” said Lau.
Samuel Lateju stepped off the plane for his Junior Day visit with the Wisconsin football program and immediately could see he was in Badger Country.
The UW logos and merchandise inside the terminal at the Dane County Airport seemed everywhere. People wore Badgers gear.
As automation and artificial intelligence become bigger parts of the workplace, employees will be relied on more for their “soft skills” like time management and interpersonal communication. We talk to Matthew Hora, an education professor at UW-Madison, about where and how we teach and learn those skills and how we can improve them.
To see what other scientists thought of this petunia, I emailed Simon Gilroy, a botanist who leads a lab at the University of Wisconsin at Madison that uses green fluorescent proteins to study how a plant sends signals through its body. But the fluorescence of those proteins—originally synthesized from a jellyfish—is visible only with specialized lights, unlike the petunia now in my house, which glowed on its own. When I visited Gilroy’s lab in 2022, he showed me a tiny plant beneath a microscope lens, handed me a pair of tweezers, and instructed me to pinch it. I watched as a green luminance moved through the entire plant body: The experience permanently changed my view of plant life. Here was a lively, dynamic creature that absolutely knew I was touching it. Gilroy quickly wrote back: “I actually have 2 of those luminescent petunias on pre-order.”
There’s also reason to believe that using cellphones in class is bad for learning. Studies on doctors, nurses, and others have shown that “multitasking during learning interferes with the long-term processing and retention of what you learn,” said Megan Moreno, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Some research suggests that curbing smartphone use in the classroom could help students stay focused on their lessons.
“It’s not a death knell,” said Charles Lee Isbell Jr., who studied at MIT’s AI Lab and recently became provost at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Isbell is pushing for classroom emphasis on AI data-driven simulations and so-called deep learning, which uses multiple layers of what are called “artificial neural networks” — complex algorithms designed to mimic the human brain to generate new data.
Ion Meyn, an associate professor of law at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and former supervising attorney at the Wisconsin Innocence Project, said his experience representing incarcerated people showed him that correctional staff frequently ignore written policy.
“It’s just shocking — the kind of neglect and disregard that occurs in prison on a daily basis, regardless of whatever is written,” Meyn said. “Guards don’t follow it. They don’t.”
