Soon after police officers removed protesters’ tents and withdrew from the scene on May 1, a pro-Palestinian encampment reemerged on Library Mall, forcing University of Wisconsin-Madison leaders to contemplate their next step.
October 9, 2024
Top Stories
Research
Wisconsin is on the front lines of psychedelic research that could reach millions
Researchers say people with clinical depression could be helped by a treatment involving psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in magic mushrooms. Wisconsin scientists are among those conducting dozens of clinical trials worldwide on the use of the drug in treating depression. They say the evidence shows that, in combination with therapy, it shows great promise.
“It works,” said psychiatrist Charles Raison, a professor of human ecology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “How far (psychedelics) get into the culture, how far they get into the clinical space? That’s a mystery.”
Study: Over 50% of returned tests in Wisconsin Indigenous community had high levels of radon
“We successfully increased knowledge of radon in this community, and more importantly, they could not have afforded the radon mitigation without our project’s support. This community had noted higher rates of cancer among their people for many generations and expressed concern that their land was poisoning them. They were correct,” said lead study author and associate professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Noelle LoConte in a release.
Remote drivers could someday help self-driving semi-trucks
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are studying what needs to happen for a person to remotely operate long-haul trucks that are otherwise autonomous.
“The vehicle operates on its own until it needs you,” said lead researcher David Noyce. “And then when it needs you, it calls you and says, ‘Can you get on the joystick here, and have control of the vehicle? Because I don’t understand what to do.’”
Campus life
In Defense of Hillel
Hillel has been foundational to so many Jewish stories over the past century. In the 1930s, it established a student refugee program, saving the lives of nearly 150 young European Jews. In 1947, it helped Hungarian-born Tom Lantos come to the U.S., where he became the only Holocaust survivor to ever be elected to Congress. In the 1950s and ’60s, Hillels across the country organized robust support for the civil-rights movement. In 1960, at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, the Hillel director Max Ticktin addressed 500 students in a march on Library Mall and called for an end to both local and national discrimination, and encouraged students to fight against racist Jim Crow laws.
Students for Justice in Palestine call for an end to the genocide in Gaza on one-year anniversary of Oct. 7
“They are not numbers. We will remember their names,” said Students for Justice in Palestine (SPJ) on the one-year anniversary since the genocide began while pro-Israeli counterprotesters mocked them at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
UW Hillel hosts vigil commemorating Oct. 7 attacks
Speakers share their accounts of the day, hopes for the future.
Students for Justice in Palestine hold Oct. 7 rally on Bascom Hill, met with pro-Israel counter-protest
‘I’m disappointed, but not shocked,’ SJP member said of counter-protest.
Students for Justice in Palestine rally on Oct. 7, decry recent violence in Gaza
“Many people on campus on both sides were touched by the news of this conflict a year ago, but today they are just used to it and have stopped caring,” SJP protester Junyao Wang told The Daily Cardinal. “We are not going to give up because we’re tired. We need to give people stimulation.”
One year later: UW-Madison students hold Oct. 7 vigil
Roughly 200 students gathered in Library Mall Monday night to remember the victims of the Hamas attack on Israel.
State news
Wisconsin family farms increasingly relying on off-farm employment to supplement income
The economic relationship between Wisconsin family farms and the rural communities that surround them is changing.
UW-Madison agricultural and applied economics professor Steve Deller said that smaller farms are struggling to generate enough income to support themselves, so families are more often turning to off-farm employment to help pay the bills.
Athletics
Why Camp Randall concerts stopped in 1997 and why they’re coming back in 2025
The answer isn’t straightforward, those involved with bringing a concert back to Camp Randall said Tuesday when the details were unveiled. The tendency has been for big shows to go to larger cities like Chicago, Milwaukee and Minneapolis than to try to fill a venue in Madison that will have a 58,000 capacity for the Coldplay date.
UW Experts in the News
News on Hurricane Milton
The amount of lightning in Hurricane Milton is “unlike any event” meteorologist Chris Vagasky has ever seen in the Atlantic Basin. Hurricane Milton’s eyewall, where the storm’s strongest winds are, exhibited more than 58,000 lightning events in just 14 hours, according to Vagasky, a meteorologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. That’s more than one lightning event every second, which he described as “astounding.”
UW Health psychologist weighs in on parental mental health
UW Health Distinguished Psychologist Dr. Shilagh Mirgain joined WMTV Monday to talk about the issues parents are facing. One change Mirgain said needs to happen is a change in the “culture of comparison,” which she explained is the habit of comparing one’s family to others, especially on social media.
Out-of-state college students could impact outcome of election
Mike Wagner is a professor and election expert at UW-Madison. He says no one person or individual will change the outcome of the November 5th election, but says it’s groups of people who could have the biggest impact. This means students, specifically out-of-state students.
UW-Madison Related
Wisconsin’s 36 Most Influential Latino Leaders for 2024, Part 3
Dr. Dominic J Ledesma is assistant vice provost for culture, climate and engagement at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Division of Information Technology (DoIT).