Greek yogurt is frequently praised for its health benefits, but its acid whey byproduct is a growing concern for the environment.
These scientists could finally solve Greek yogurt’s big problem
The Week
Author: jplucas
UW-Madison marching band dazzles at Wausau East
MyFoxWausau
Wausau East High School received a special musical visit Sunday afternoon.
Reader’s View: Walker’s attack on UW system harmful
Duluth News Tribune
The current crisis facing the University of Wisconsin system is part and parcel to the agenda of the administration of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker to open the state to the tyranny of the “free market.” Much of the rhetoric of “flexibility” and “autonomous” that has been discussed in relation to the budget cuts gives off the impression that the schools in the UW system are cleaving themselves from an ineffective system that would not provide them with the resources to operate at optimum level. However, the rhetoric mis-recognizes the true effects of the budget cuts: hiking tuition rates, massive layoffs, and the potential brain drain from some of the system’s most prestigious institutions.
Reader’s View: Walker’s attack on UW system harmful
Duluth News Tribune
The current crisis facing the University of Wisconsin system is part and parcel to the agenda of the administration of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker to open the state to the tyranny of the “free market.” Much of the rhetoric of “flexibility” and “autonomous” that has been discussed in relation to the budget cuts gives off the impression that the schools in the UW system are cleaving themselves from an ineffective system that would not provide them with the resources to operate at optimum level. However, the rhetoric mis-recognizes the true effects of the budget cuts: hiking tuition rates, massive layoffs, and the potential brain drain from some of the system’s most prestigious institutions.
UW Chancellors Give Rough Estimates Of Job Cuts Under Proposed Budget
Wisconsin Public Radio
Some University of Wisconsin chancellors brought rough estimates of how many jobs they may have to eliminate under the governor’s proposed budget at a Board of Regents meeting on Thursday.
Donna Shalala to head Clinton Foundation
POLITICO.com
The Clinton Foundation will get new leadership in the form of longtime Clinton ally and former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala as it continues to face ongoing questions about its foreign fundraising practices, former President Bill Clinton announced in Coral Gables, Florida, on Friday.
Third time’s a charm for Miss Oshkosh 2015 MeKenzie Lund
Oshkosh Northwestern
One could say Miss Oshkosh 2015 MeKenzie Lund knows more than just a little about pageants.In fact, pageants have been a part of her entire adult life. The 21-year-old, who graduated from Oshkosh West High School in 2012 and now attends the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has competed in seven pageants during the past four years, and that experience finally paid off as she took home her first crown.
Wausau Welcomes Rare Performance by UW-Madison Varsity Band
WSAW-TV, Wausau
Hundreds of Wausau Badger fans welcome the U-W Madison Varsity Band, as they put on a high-energy show Sunday in the Wausau East High School gym.
Scott Walker: UW tuition will be lower than “just about any other campus”
PolitiFact Wisconsin
As Gov. Scott Walker’s presidential star continued to rise, Chris Wallace, host of Fox News Sunday, challenged him on how his budget treats the University of Wisconsin System.
Proposed UW System Public Authority to end faculty and staff’s “state employment” status
WQOW-TV, Eau Claire
Chippewa Valley WQOW – Some UW System employees are concerned about a plan that could end their status as state employees. It’s part of Gov. Scott Walker’s budget proposal and his plan to allow the UW System Board of Regents to have public authority.
Scott Walker Proposal Splits University of Wisconsin Administrators, Faculty
U.S. News & World Report
Faculty members from across the University of Wisconsin’s campuses are clamoring to halt plans for the schools to sever ties with the state and become more autonomous, even as administrators are urging lawmakers and the system’s governing board to move forward, saying the shift will help the 26-campus system operate more efficiently.
Wisconsin Passes Walker-Backed Labor Bill in 19-Hour Debate
Bloomberg
Quoted: The right-to-work bill is unlikely to have a major economic effect, because unions have been in decline for three decades, said William Jones, a University of Wisconsin-Madison labor historian.
UW System And Lawmakers Look To Reduce Need For Remedial Math
Wisconsin Public Radio
A full 21 percent of University of Wisconsin System students have to take remedial math classes before diving into college courses. University officials are trying to drive down that number and are exploring whether a new bill in the state Legislature could help that goal.
UW Regents Will Protect Tenure And Shared Governance Amid Budget Changes
Wisconsin Public Radio
The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents says it’s dedicated to protecting shared governance and tenure if state lawmakers eliminate them in the budget process.
Regents air grievances over Walker budget proposals
AP
Regents and chancellors in the University of Wisconsin System vowed Thursday to push back against Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed budget cuts to higher education.
Opinion: 2 governors confronting universities
The Sacramento Bee
Jerry Brown and Scott Walker would seem to have little in common other than both govern states with big dairy industries and Brown won his one and only 1980 presidential convention delegate in Walker’s Wisconsin.
What would a UW System authority look like?
Wisconsin Public Radio
University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross is seeking a smaller budget cut than the $300 million Gov. Scott Walker is proposing. He’s also asking for greater autonomy for the system. Joy Cardin’s guest education policy expert discusses what a UW System Authority would look like and why…
Beagles bred at two Dane County facilities go to labs around the country
Isthmus
Noted: The vast majority of Ridglan Farms’ beagles are sold as puppies to research institutions, including the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The mission of the company, according to its website, is to “to provide purpose-bred beagles for research that increases scientific knowledge and exceeds the expectation of the scientific community.”
A critic of the Wisconsin Idea
Wisconsin Public Radio
According to Joy Cardin’s guest, the University of Wisconsin System’s mission statement has some serious flaws. He explains why he says the Wisconsin Idea is not unique, does not tolerate conservative viewpoints, and is committed to ideology instead of truth….
Asia’s cities swell as population surges
Science
“The assumption from past research has been that cities of all sizes will eventually decline in density,” says author Annemarie Schneider, a geographer at University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Music cats can really chill out to: When scientists become composers
Sydney Morning Herald
Scientists in the US have come closer to solving that perennial problem for pet lovers – what kind of music would my cat like to listen to?
Wisconsin Assembly slogs through debate on right-to-work bill; unions cry foul
Reuters
Quoted: “The law is a symbol of the weakness of unions,” University of Wisconsin-Madison political scientist John Ahlquist said.
Human Price of Forest Destruction Paid in Plague
Scientific American
Quoted: “There is a common mantra that if you reduce biodiversity, that’s bad for infectious disease. That’s too simple,” said Tony Goldberg, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, who was not involved in the study. “It’s not biodiversity that matters; it’s the species.”
Why Scott Walker should hope the Supreme Court leaves Obamacare in place
Crain's Chicago Business
Quoted: “The success of his policy of transitioning adults off of BadgerCare is built on the existence of the ACA and the availability of those subsidies,” says Donna Friedsam, Researcher and Health Policy Programs Director at the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.
States Are Slashing College Budgets and Raising Tuition
Bloomberg
In 48 U.S. states, government spending on each college student is still below where it was before the recession that ended almost six years ago. Now, at least seven governors propose cutting deeper.
What a Promise of Financial Aid Might Mean to a Middle Schooler
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Noted: A new analysis estimates the effect of committing Pell Grants to low-income students in the eighth grade, including a cost-benefit analysis. A paper on the study, by Robert Kelchen, an assistant professor of higher education at Seton Hall University, and Sara Goldrick-Rab, a professor of educational-policy studies and sociology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, finds that such a program could increase the enrollment rate of low-income students.
Fashion forward
Isthmus
Madison fashion has been heavy on accessories lately: scarves, mittens and balaclavas. Earmuffs are the new black. Meanwhile, students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have been thinking warmer thoughts as they prepare for UW Fashion Week. It kicks off Monday, March 9, and is organized by MODA magazine.
Letter: Budget cuts put University of Wisconsin System in jeopardy
Wausau Daily Herald
I have had communications with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank, the UW Marathon County Dean Keith Montgomery, a biophysics professor of UW-La Crosse and many others on the impact proposed state budget cuts will have on our currently outstanding UW System. Their universal opinion is that the cuts will seriously, in Blank’s words, “risk the investment that generations of Wisconsinites have made to create a highly ranked university in our state.”
Letter: Budget cuts devastating to UW-Madison campus
Oshkosh Northwestern
As a current undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and member of the Legislative Affairs Committee of the Associated Students of Madison, the student association on campus, I am deeply concerned about the possible ramifications of Scott Walker’s proposed budget on students such as myself. When I was a junior in high school, I dreamed of going out-of-state for school. However, I realized that I could obtain the same caliber of education at an in-state price – at UW-Madison.
SPASH graduate to perform with UW Varsity Band
Stevens Point Journal
WAUSAU — The University of Wisconsin Varsity Band is bringing its rousing, high-energy show to central Wisconsin on Sunday, and 2014 Stevens Point Area Senior High graduate Caitlyn Emrick, a freshman tuba player with the band, is excited to perform near her hometown.
Letter: Cutting UW System to plug state deficit is a bad idea
Fond du Lac Reporter
I am deeply concerned about the proposed cuts to the UW system, and the proposed loosening of public control.
Republican Governors’ Shared Goals for Higher Ed: Accountability and Work-Force Preparation
Chronicle of Higher Education
Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin is proposing to cut $300-million from the state’s university system over the next two years. Across the Great Lakes, his fellow Republican governors in Michigan and Ohio are pushing for increases in their states’ higher-education spending. (Subscription required.)
Cuts could be devastating for campuses like UW-Fond du Lac
Fond du Lac Reporter
Officials say Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed biennial budget plan to whittle down the University of Wisconsin System budget by $300 million over two years could lead to devastating cuts to smaller two-year campuses across the state.
UWGB students rally against Walker’s proposed cuts
Green Bay Press-Gazette
With chants of “No if’s, no but’s, just say no to budget cuts!” about 50 University of Wisconsin-Green Bay students rallied on campus Wednesday to oppose Gov. Scott Walker’s plan to trim UW System funding by $300 million.
What Would A UW System Authority Look Like?
Wisconsin Public Radio
University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross is seeking a smaller budget cut than the $300 million Gov. Scott Walker is proposing. He’s also asking for greater autonomy for the system. Joy Cardin’s guest education policy expert discusses what a UW System Authority would look like and why she says it’s a bad deal.
Schools facing investigations on sexual violence: Now more than 100
The Washington Post
Four more schools have joined the ranks of colleges and universities under federal investigation for their handling of sexual violence reports, the government said Wednesday, pushing the total for the first time past 100.
Chryst jokes that if he can get degree, so can his players
AP
MADISON, Wis. AP — Wisconsin football coach Paul Chryst jokes that if he can get a college degree, it’s not too much to ask of his players.
Legislator Rejects UW Economist’s Report Disputing Benefits Of Right-To-Work Laws
Wisconsin Public Radio
A Republican state lawmaker and outspoken critic of the University of Wisconsin took aim at a UW economist on Monday for producing research that disputes the benefits of right-to-work laws.
Jennifer Lawrence to star in Spielberg war biopic
Actress Jennifer Lawrence will play war photographer and UW alum Lynsey Addario in a film directed by Steven Spielberg, based on Addario’s memoir.
Rising price of Virginia public universities disproportionately hurts low-income students
Inside Higher Education
Like their peers across the country, Virginia public institutions have responded to state funding reductions in recent years by raising tuition.
UC to freeze California enrollment, cap UCLA, Berkeley non-residents
Los Angeles Times
The UC system will not expand enrollment of California freshmen and transfer students in the fall unless more state revenues are appropriated and will cap enrollment of out-of-state students at UCLA and UC Berkeley, UC President Janet Napolitano said Tuesday.
UW System President Asks Lawmakers To Scale Back $300M Cut
Wisconsin Public Radio
University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross is asking the Legislature’s budget committee to scale back Gov. Scott Walker’s plan to cut $300 million from the system.
UW Report: Demand For Organic Produce, Meat Is Outstripping Supply In Wisconsin
Wisconsin Public Radio
A University of Wisconsin-Madison report says that the demand for organic produce and meat is outpacing the supply in Wisconsin.
Aceti: Those UW Folks Are Doing Research
Wall Street Journal
The editorial “Scott Walker’s School Days” Feb. 23 is misleading on at least two points. First, it states that, “the demonstrators even object to Mr. Walker’s suggestion that UW’s ‘Wisconsin idea’ mission include a goal ‘to develop human resources to meet the state’s workforce needs.’” In fact, the objection was to the removal of phrases including, “basic to every purpose of the system is the search for truth” and “to extend knowledge and its application beyond the boundaries of its campuses.” (Subscription required.)
A dream come true: Paul Chryst returns home as Badgers’ head football coach
WTMJ-TV, Milwaukee
As we met up under the stands, Camp Randall Stadium was buried in a blanket of white, but Wisconsin weather doesn’t faze new Badgers football coach Paul Chryst.
UW coach Paul Chryst, the husband and dad
WTMJ-TV, Milwaukee
Being a coach’s wife is not easy. How has Robin Chryst done falling into that role?
Supreme Court Ruling on ACA Would Impact Thousands in Wisconsin
WUWM-FM, Milwaukee
Quoted: Prof. Tom Oliver researches health policy and politics at UW Madison. He says a Supreme Court ruling against tax subsidies in states like Wisconsin would be a huge blow to thousands.
Committee Seeks Assurances Of No UW Tuition Surge
AP
Republicans on the Legislature’s finance committee demanded assurances Tuesday from University of Wisconsin System officials that they won’t dramatically increase tuition if they’re uncoupled from state oversight under Gov. Scott Walker’s budget plan.
UW’s Cross asks lawmakers to reduce budget cut
Wisconsin Radio Network
University of Wisconsin System officials briefed members of the legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance, on how the proposed UW System public authority and increased flexibilities included in Governor Scott Walker’s budget could impact the UW.
Republican calls UW research on right-to-work ‘partisan, garbage’
Isthmus
State Sen. Steve Nass blasted a UW-Madison economics professor in a scathing email Monday afternoon, calling the academic’s report on right-to-work legislation and economic performance “partisan, garbage research.”
What Is the duty of public colleges?
Huffington Post
In his recent budget proposal, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker sparked a national debate on whether institutions of higher learning should primarily focus on classroom teaching to promote workplace readiness or public service and conducting research with a global impact. As part of his proposal, Walker changed the language of the 100-year-old mission of the University of Wisconsin System UW, known as the “Wisconsin Idea,” removing the portion that calls for extending “knowledge and its application beyond the boundaries of its campuses.”
A store for bad moms?
New York Post
Quoted: Christine Whelan, a professor of consumer science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, says there’s a a reason for this arrangement of stocking clothes months before you can wear them: “It’s aspirational.”
Russia experts criticize ‘absurd’ US response to Nemtsov murder
Deutsche Welle
Quoted: For Yoshiko Margaret Herrera, a Russia expert and co-director of the International Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the US response wasn’t good enough. “We know that the justice system in Russia is deeply flawed,” she told DW. “I think essentially asking the Putin regime to investigate amounts to basically zero.”
UW-Madison chancellor comes under fire for comments about how she matches outside faculty offers
Inside Higher Education
The chancellor of the University of Wisconsin at Madison came under fire last month for publicly admitting to a tactic common among her counterparts at research universities. To keep top faculty members from accepting outside offers, she sometimes will reduce their teaching loads. Critics seized on Chancellor Rebecca Blank’s comments as an example of what’s wrong with higher education, saying that rewarding good professors by reducing their exposure to students was a kind of perverse incentive — and an expensive one, to boot. But how fair is the criticism, and just how common and how bad — if at all — is the practice? It depends on whom you ask.
Finance committee starts 2015-17 budget revision process with agency briefings
AP
MADISON, Wisconsin — The Legislature’s finance committee began on Monday a months-long push to revise Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s budget proposal for the next two fiscal years, grilling a handful of state officials on cuts to the University of Wisconsin System, plans for a new Milwaukee Bucks arena and the manning of prison towers.
Hungry insects may halve forest carbon sink capacity
New Scientist
Noted: Bugs, however, could lessen this capacity dramatically, according to a new study. “Insects may change in response to elevated carbon dioxide levels and limit or compromise the capacity of forests to serve as carbon sinks,” says Richard Lindroth, an ecologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
A Surgery Standard Under Fire
New York Times
Quoted: “Thirty days is a game-able number,” said Dr. Gretchen Schwarze, a vascular surgeon at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and co-author of an editorial on the metric in JAMA Surgery. Last fall, she led a session about the ethics of 30-day mortality reporting at an American College of Surgeons conference.
Expert: Ten super smart ways to build good habits — and make them stick
The Washington Post
Humans are creatures of habit. And some of them don”t make us very happy. So how can we change behavior, learn a new habit or make a fresh start? Christine Whelan, a public sociologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an expert with AARP’s Life Reimagined Institute who studies happiness, human ecology and habits, provided some answers:
Silly, Saucy, Scary: Photos Show The Many Faces Of Ugly Fruit
NPR News
So what gives these fruits and veggies their curious and crazy shapes? Rest assured: These aren’t genetic mutants, says Irwin Goldman, a professor of horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. While malformed produce can result from genetic mutations, “most of the time it’s just an environmental effect,” he says.
Who’s poor? Depends how you measure it
The Boston Globe
Quoted: “It’s not a lot of money,” says Timothy Smeeding, an economist and former director of the University of Wisconsin’s Institute for Research on Poverty. “If you think of what it costs to give a kid a fair chance, you’ve got to do better than the poverty line.”