Video of new Housing initiative.
Author: jplucas
Big Ten Conference looking into expanding to 12 teams?
Chicago Tribune
Jim Delany never will be a contestant on “Top Chef,” but the Big Ten commissioner frequently has used a cooking analogy when asked about the prospects of Big Ten expansion.”A back-burner issue,” he has called it. Not anymore. According to a league official, the Big Ten will release a statement Tuesday saying the matter has moved to the front burner.
The first sign of change came from former Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez, who told Wisconsinâ??s athletic board on Friday that Delany “is going to take this year to really be more aggressive about it. I just think everybody feels [expansion] is the direction to go, coaches and administrators.”
NIH approves 27 more stem cell lines
USA Today
National Institutes of Health chief Francis Collins approved another 27 human embryonic stem cell lines for federal research funding Monday, but limited support to diabetes-related pancreatic cell experiments. The 27 Harvard University cell lines join 13 from Childrenâ??s Hospital Boston added earlier this month to a NIH stem cell registry.
On Campus: Doyle vetoes bill requiring regents to come from all over the state
Wisconsin State Journal
Gov. Jim Doyle vetoed a bill that would require members of the UW Board of Regents to come from all over the state. He said the Regents might begin to lobby for the campuses in their districts, rather than keeping the best interest of the entire University of Wisconsin System in mind.
Doyle vetoes bill to change makeup of UW regents
Madison.com
Gov. Jim Doyle on Monday vetoed a bill that would have required geographic diversity among University of Wisconsin System regents, saying the change would undermine the systemâ??s governance. The bill, approved by lawmakers last month, would have carved the state into seven geographic districts and required governors to appoint at least one regent to the 18-member board from each starting in 2012. Supporters of the change complained Doyle had appointed too many regents from Madison and Milwaukee, which was unfair to campuses in other areas.
Lost Giants: Did Mammoths Vanish Before, During and After Humans Arrived?
Scientific American
Noted: To pin down when the megafauna vanished, paleoecologist Jacquelyn Gill of the University of Wisconsinâ??Madison and her colleagues analyzed fossil dung, pollen and charcoal from ancient lake sediments in Indiana.
Main Library should be open 24 hours all year â?? not just during finals week (The Daily Iowan)
Quoted: Carrie Kruse, the director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison library, told the DI last month she believes itâ??s â??pretty importantâ? to have a building with extended hours.â??Our society is a 24-hour society,â? she said. â??Thereâ??s a frame of mind that we need to do anything weâ??re able to at any hour of the day.â?
Frazier: The 100 Most Influential Journals (The Journals of Opthalmology)
The librarians of the University of Wisconsin-Madison took particular notice when the Archives of Ophthalmology was named as a “Top 100” biomedical and life sciences journal.1 We have long been aware of the quality of the journal and its association with our university. Still, it was especially gratifying that our peers in the Special Library Association voted the Archives of Ophthalmology into the distinguished company of the “Top 100 Journals in Biology and Medicine.”
UW To Push Students To Graduate Sooner
WISC-TV 3
An effort to get college students to graduate in four years is the latest initiative by University of Wisconsin officials as they try and get the message of affordability out to families. However, some students and their families said that isnâ??t as easy as it once was.
Officials said that currently only 29 percent of UW system students graduate with a bachelorâ??s degree in four years. The other 71 percent take between four-and-a-half to six years to complete their degree, WISC-TV reported.
UW Institutes for Discovery almost half completed
WKOW-TV 27
A new focal point of the University of Wisconsin campus is almost half finished. The project manager for the Wisconsin Insitutes for Discovery says the building is 46% completed.
Wisconsin administrators question student debt report
Wisconsin Public Radio
A new national report on student debt ranks Wisconsin 19th for graduates owing money on student loans. Thatâ??s up from previous years.
The Project on Student Debt based its rankings on data from the U.S. Education Department. The new Wisconsin figures show that 64-percent of graduates from both public and private, non-profit four-year colleges had debt. The average amount: $21,386. Thatâ??s an increase of more than $2,000 from the year before, when Wisconsin ranked 26th nationally for graduates with debt.
Governor vetoes UW board regional diversity bill
Wisconsin Radio Network
Governor Jim Doyle vetoes a bill (Senate Bill 223) that requires members of the UW Board of Regents to come from all geographical areas of the state. Michael Moscicke (moh-SIHK-ee), government relations director with United Council of UW Students, is very disappointed.
Obituary: W. Thomas Lamm
W. Thomas Lamm, age 60, died on Thursday, December 3, 2009. His first job after school was at the UW Environmental Awareness Center where, working for Phil Lewis, he wrote the landmark Open Space Preservation Plan for the Town of Dunn, and developed similar plans for municipalities around Wisconsin. In 1989 he went to work for the UW Water Resources Center, where he wrote and edited the center’s newsletter, “Keeping Current.”
Obituary: Larry J. Bolan
Madison.com
Larry J. Bolan, age 61, passed away on Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009. He worked for the University of Wisconsin for 35 years.
For-profit colleges have higher rate of student loan defaults
USA Today
The Education Department is releasing data today on the percentage of students at more than 5,000 colleges and universities who defaulted on student loans over a three-year period. The data, which are preliminary, appear consistent with a congressional report out in August showing that students who took out federal loans to attend for-profit colleges have higher default rates than those who attended public or private non-profit schools.
For these young composers, music is a calling
Wisconsin State Journal
Quoted: Stephen Dembski, professor of composition at UW-Madisonâ??s school of music, and James Smith, director of orchestras at UW-Madison and music director for WYSO.
Ask Us: Why do we blink?
Wisconsin State Journal
Quoted: Paul E. Miller, a clinical professor of ophthalmology at the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine.
Off the wall: Cambridge artist harkens back to springtime
Wisconsin State Journal
In January and February, consecutive shows at State Street Gallery will feature work by UW-Madison art students (undergraduates in January, graduate students and faculty in February).
UW System to market cost-saving as tuition rises
Madison.com
The University of Wisconsin System will encourage students to graduate faster as a way to save money as some campuses seek tuition increases to improve their quality, its president said Friday. President Kevin Reilly told the Board of Regents that 29 percent of students graduate within four years, and increasing that rate would allow students to enter the work force faster and free up spots for others. A student can save $15,000 or more in tuition and room and board by graduating in four years instead of five, Reilly said, and that can be accomplished by taking 15 or more credits per semester.
On Campus: Advice to college students: Graduate in four years
Wisconsin State Journal
For students concerned about affording college, University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly has a piece of advice: Graduate in four years. Only about 29 percent of UW System students graduate in four years. But a student who takes 15 credits per semester and graduates in four years will save about 20 percent in tuition and fees – or the equivalent of around $14,000 – compared to a student who takes 12 credits per semester and graduates in five years.
Blog: 12th team for Big Ten?
Madison.com
The long-debated addition of a 12th team to the Big Ten Conference could be on the front burner, at least if you are to believe University of Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez. During the monthly meeting of the UW Athletic Board on Friday afternoon, Alvarez told board members that Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany will aggressively pursue a 12th conference member in the coming year.
Clay photo graces SI cover
Madison.com
A Nov. 14 photo of a reflection off John Clay’s visor has been commemorated by Sports Illustrated, which made Clay the cover image for its Year in Pictures issue that hit newsstands this week.
Former UW regents leaders ask Doyle to veto bill
Madison.com
Eight former presidents of the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents are asking the governor to veto a bill that would require regional representation on the board. The past presidents told Gov. Jim Doyle in a letter this week the change could hamper the operations of the board and damage the quality of the system.
Heavy snow slows remaining corn harvest in Wis.
Madison.com
Quoted: Jerry Clark of the University of Wisconsin Extension.
DNA science makes freedom a reality
Wisconsin State Journal
When Forest â??Woodyâ? Shomberg was freed Nov. 13, he became the ninth Wisconsin prisoner whose conviction was overturned at least in part on the strength of DNA test results, according to a review of the stateâ??s online court database and cases examined by the Wisconsin State Journal and the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism. To date, about one-third of the post-conviction DNA testing in Wisconsin has resulted in a conviction being overturned, the review found, with several cases still pending. That number could increase as the Wisconsin Innocence Project embarks next year on an 18-month, $647,000 federally funded project to identify potential DNA exoneration cases and officials scramble to collect DNA profiles from 12,000 convicted felons discovered missing this fall from the stateâ??s database.
ALS slowly drains Racine lawyer’s world
Madison.com
Cynthia Murphy has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, and connected with an organization formed to advocate for medical research. At the end of March a group of people toured the Wasiman Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and met with Gov. Jim Doyle to ask for more state funding for research. Cynthia didnâ??t go; itâ??s too difficult, she wrote to the governor, to see other people in other stages of the disease — the stages where she may go. Last December scientists at Waisman used modified stem cells to deliver a nerve growth factor directly to muscle cells in mice. An editorial in the scientific journal that published the results called it a major step because the growth factor did seem to work in animals not showing any symptoms, however it didnâ??t slow the progress of the disease.
Some Workers Will Get Paid For Snow Day
WISC-TV 3
Most people stayed home from work on Wednesday during the blizzard, but the snow day had many state government workers wondering if they would be paid for the day.
‘Broken’ teacher evaluation system defended (Cincinnati Enquirer)
Quoted: But University of Wisconsin professor Allan Odden, co-director of the think tank Strategic Management of Human Capital, said the New Teacher Projectâ??s own research shows the system is much more effective than Weisberg said.
Wisconsin lawmakers wave flag for bacterium
Los Angeles Times
State budgets are tight and getting tighter, but politicians in Wisconsin are determined to promote the Badger State in a slightly cheesy way: The state Assembly is considering a bill that would name the bacterium that converts milk into cheese as — ready for it? — the official state microbe.
Former UW regents leaders ask Doyle to veto bill (AP)
Eight former presidents of the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents are asking the governor to veto a bill that would require regional representation on the board.
Survey: UW binge drinking down (Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune)
The number of students in the UW System who binge drink has dropped in the past two years, according to a survey released this week by the system.
Research spending on the rise at U of M
Star Tribune
The University of Minnesota is making progress toward its goal of becoming one of the nationâ??s top public research universities.
Coast Guard targets foreign aquatic species in nation’s freshwater systems (AP)
Appleton Post-Crescent
Quoted: “Itâ??s almost impossible,” said Jake Vander Zanden, a biologist at the University of Wisconsin. “Thatâ??s why Iâ??m a firm advocate for preventing them from getting here in the first place.”
University of Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan reaches milestone in Badgers’ win over Marquette University (AP)
Appleton Post-Crescent
Noted: It was career victory No. 200 at Wisconsin for Bo Ryan and the second straight big scoring performance by Leuer for the Badgers (7-2), who jumped into the Top 25 after beating Duke last week â?? only to lose at UW-Green Bay on Wednesday despite getting a career-high 26 points from Leuer.
The Ninth Annual Year in Ideas: Music For Monkeys
New York Times
When David Teie, a cellist with the National Symphony Orchestra, wanted to test his ideas about where our emotional response to music originates, he decided to try them out on monkeys. He figured that if his theories were right â?? namely, that our response to the “emotional vocalizations,” pulses and heartbeats that we first hear in the womb establishes our sense of music â?? then he should “be able to write music for another species thatâ??s effective for that species.” He contacted Charles Snowdon, a psychology professor who ran a colony of cotton-top tamarins in Madison at the University of Wisconsin, who sent him recordings of tamarin calls that demonstrated fear and calm.
Economic Crisis Is on Curriculum at Columbia and Elsewhere
New York Times
Noted: At the University of Wisconsin, Menzie D. Chinn, a professor of public affairs and economics in the La Follette School of Public Affairs, is teaching a new graduate seminar, â??Policy Responses to the Great Recession.â? His students are analyzing the causes of the crisis and the impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on the gross domestic product, employment and state budgets.
Representative Obey See Echoes of Vietnam in Afghan Troop Surge
New York Times
Quoted: â??The main thing for Obey is his longstanding commitment to the domestic policies that he cares about, especially when the competition for the money is a war he disagrees with,â? said David Canon, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin.
Menopause, as Brought to You by the Drug Companies
New York Times
Noted: The company also paid $12 million to sponsor continuing medical education programs from 2002 through 2006 at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The programs, including an assertion that the Womenâ??s Health Initiative and another heart-risk study â??miss the mark on quality of life,â? reached thousands of doctors.
Book Review: ‘Woodrow Wilson — A Biography,’ by John Milton Cooper Jr.
New York Times
â??Woodrow Wilson,â? John Milton Cooper Jr.â??s monumental new biography, seeks to revive Wilson for the 21st century â?? not simply to narrate a presidential life, but to explain why he deserves our national esteem.
Can city teachers be sold on merit pay plan?
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Quoted: “I think thereâ??s still plenty of room in the vanguard,” said Chris Thorn, associate director of the Value-Added Research Center, housed in the Wisconsin Center for Education Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The center works with 33 recipients of TIF grants, representing about 50 school districts and more than 100 charter schools nationwide.
Delaware business: As land lines get cut, phone companies cut back (The News Journal, Delaware)
Quoted: Fiber-to-the-home is where the money is, said Barry Orton, a professor of telecommunications at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Fox Cities taxpayers could share part of Fox River PCB cleanup bill
Appleton Post-Crescent
Quoted: Stephanie Tai, a law professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said courts in large environmental cases generally apportion culpability based on such factors as how much contamination the parties contributed, how much they tried to control their contamination and how cooperative they have been in the cleanup.
UW system to market cost-saving (AP)
The University of Wisconsin System will encourage students to graduate faster as a way to save money as some campuses seek tuition increases to improve their quality, its president said Friday. President Kevin Reilly told the Board of Regents that 29 percent of students graduate within four years, and increasing that rate would allow students to enter the work force faster and free up spots for others.
Businesses using social websites to save money
Wisconsin Public Radio
Quoted: Advertising on social websites is relatively inexpensive compared to print and television ads according to Deborah Mitchell. Sheâ??s an executive fellow with the Center for Brand and Project Management at UW-Madisonâ??s Business School. (Ninth item.)
UW-Madison Chancellor pushes international research
Wisconsin Public Radio
UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin wants the Board of Regents to keep the UW System competitive in the global economy by investing in international research. (Fourth item.)
Democrats push jobs plan
Wisconsin Radio Network
State lawmakers are considering legislation designed to help businesses grow and add new jobs. The proposed Wisconsin CORE Jobs Act would expand tax credits for the stateâ??s angel investor program, foster stronger ties between UW researchers and the private sector, and provide several other incentive programs for businesses looking to expand.
Reilly touts faster graduation times as money saver
Wisconsin Radio Network
University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly is working on a plan to encourage students to graduate faster as way to save money as some campuses seek tuition increases to improve their quality. Reilly addressed the issue during Fridayâ??s meeting of the UW Board of Regents.
A Violent Shift
Inside Higher Education
The protests over budget cuts to higher education in California have repeatedly featured civil disobedience in recent weeks, with numerous building takeovers and sit-ins. But the protests took a more violent turn Friday night with an attack on the home of the chancellor of the University of California at Berkeley.
New Rules for Colleges on Defaults (AP)
New York Times
More than one in five borrowers of federal student loans who attend commercial colleges default within three years of beginning repayment, according to new figures being made available on Monday by the Department of Education.
Attorney continues diploma privilege challenge (Wisconsin Law Journal)
Christopher L. Wiesmueller is in a class of his own, so to speak. Last week, U.S. District Court Judge Barbara B. Crabb decertified the attorneyâ??s class action challenging the stateâ??s diploma privilege. Wiesmueller is now left to pursue the case on behalf of his wife Corrine. Both are graduates of Oklahoma City University Law School, though Wiesmueller has since passed the bar exam in Wisconsin.
Gators gag in New York’s sewers; the strongest human muscle (Pocono Record)
Q. Are there really alligators living in the sewers of New York, flushed down as overgrown pets, or is this just a fanciful urban legend? A. “I suppose they could live there for a time,” says University of Wisconsin zoologist Jeffrey R. Baylis. Sewer water is warmer than groundwater; this would help. Gators hunt at night, so darkness would not be a problem so long as they got some light. Rats and other small animals could provide food.
Why can’t U students finish on time?
Star Tribune
Graduating students hasnâ??t always been one of the University of Minnesotaâ??s strong suits. Less than a quarter of undergrads who began at the U as recently as 1995 finished in four years. About half of that class graduated in six.
Asian carp raises fear and loathing on Great Lakes (AP)
Quoted: Even if a few Asian carp reach the lakes, “its not the end of the game yet, said Phil Moy, a researcher with the University of Wisconsin. In fact, a few have turned up in Lakes Erie and Michigan over the past couple of decades but apparently didnt reproduce.
Qatarâ??s top-selling English daily newspaper (Gulf Times, Qatar)
Qatar University QU has signed an agreement with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, to establish a framework to explore future collaboration.
On Campus: Student creates “Do Nothing But Read Day”
Wisconsin State Journal
A graduate student in the UW-Madison library and information studies department has created a day just for pleasure reading. Called “Do Nothing But Read Day,” Amanda Lanyon-LeSage wants people to remain in their pajamas, find a comfy chair, and curl up and read on Sunday, Dec. 20.
Doug Moe: Madison rugby scene looks for ‘Invictus’ boost
Wisconsin State Journal
Directed by Clint Eastwood, â??Invictusâ? stars Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman in a movie centered around the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The story of rugby in Madison is itself a good one. It dates to the early 1960s, according to a brief history on the Wisconsin Rugby Clubâ??s website. According to that history, the first rugby game played in the Midwest occurred in the spring of 1962 and matched a club from UW-Madison against a Notre Dame squad.
Dane County economy: Some businesses ‘are holding their breath’
Wisconsin State Journal
Local business leaders are bracing for another difficult year, the head of a prominent Madison insurance company told a forum at Monona Terrace on Thursday. Scott Converse, director of technology programs for the UW-Madison School of Business, said technology and service companies are a bit more upbeat than those in manufacturing or retail.
Hanukkah starts at sundown Friday
Wisconsin State Journal
The jelly doughnuts are back at the kosher coffee shop inside the UW-Madison Hillel, a sure sign of Hanukkah. The eight-day Jewish holiday starts at sundown Friday.
Asian carp raises fear and loathing on Great Lakes
Madison.com
Quoted: Phil Moy, a researcher with the University of Wisconsin.
Badgers closing out Big Ten’s run with Champs
Madison.com
The Big Ten Conferenceâ??s new bowl lineup comes a year late for University of Wisconsin football fans frustrated with another trip to Orlando, Fla. This is the last year of the Champs Sports Bowlâ??s agreement with the Big Ten and it will be dropped from the schedule, along with the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio.