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Author: rueckert

Look! Webb Recaptures a Famous Hubble Image in Incredible New Detail

Inverse

“Our whole program was ~24 hours, which isn’t that much time in the grand scheme of how much time other observatories have looked at it,” said Michael Maseda, an assistant professor of astronomy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in a statement. “But, even in this relatively short amount of time, we’re starting to put together a new picture of how galaxies are growing at this really interesting point in the history of the Universe.”

Why Wisconsin Has Republicans Worried

The Atlantic

“Extreme” is no overstatement. Robert Yablon, a law professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and a faculty co-director of the State Democracy Research Initiative, told me by email that although Democrats have won more of Wisconsin’s statewide elections in recent years than their Republican opponents have, “under the maps that the Republican-controlled legislature drew in 2011, Republicans maintained an iron grip on the legislature throughout the last decade—even in years when Democratic candidates won more votes statewide.”

‘A nightmare’: Texas parents say their baby was taken by CPS after using midwifery care for jaundice

Yahoo News

Jaundice occurs when blood contains an excess amount of bilirubin. “For most babies, this is not a big deal, it clears out,” Tiffany Green, an associate professor in the obstetrics and gynecology department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told Yahoo News. “But for a certain small subset of babies, high levels of bilirubin can lead to brain damage, including cerebral palsy and other illnesses.”

NATO Ally Bordering Russia to Meet With Top U.S. Weapons Makers

Newsweek

“I think it is important for Poland to keep up its credentials as an indispensable ally of the United States in Europe—especially in light of the pre-war frictions that marred Poland’s relationship with European Union bodies,” Mikhail Troitskiy, professor of practice at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told Newsweek via email. “Warsaw is likely to be considering various scenarios of continuation of the war in Ukraine and various designs for post-war Europe.

Roland Griffiths’ Magical Profession

Chronicle of Higher Ed

Meanwhile research centers are popping up like — what else? — mushrooms after a rainstorm, including at the University of California at Berkeley, the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and the University of Texas’ Dell Medical School, in Austin. Psychedelics are in the midst of what journalists inevitably refer to as a “renaissance.”

The myth of ‘woke’ indoctrination of students

The Hill

Other studies yield similar results. At the University of Wisconsin system, “students reported substantially more frequent encouragement than discouragement of exploring a variety of viewpoints.” While a little over one third indicated they ever felt pressure “by an instructor to agree with a specific view,” only one third in that cohort said they felt such pressure often.”

Abortion Ruling Could Undermine the F.D.A.’s Drug-Approval Authority

The New York Times

R. Alta Charo, a professor emerita of law and bioethics at the University of Wisconsin and an author of a brief by drug-policy scholars in support of the F.D.A., said, “The biggest threat that a decision like this brings is the threat of creating chaos.” The ruling, she added, could empower a range of groups to begin “looking over the shoulder of the F.D.A., re-evaluating their risk-benefit analyses.”

Declines in Loan Values Are Widespread Among Banks

WSJ

“Fair values of loans and securities are not qualitatively different,” said Tom Linsmeier, an accounting professor at the University of Wisconsin and former member of the Financial Accounting Standards Board. “They measure the same amount: the price at which the asset can be sold in an orderly transaction in the market today.”

Without the right to adequate counsel, is our criminal justice system legitimate? 

The Hill

After 60 years of deliberate indifference to the right to counsel, our criminal justice system is on the verge of collapse. Only a large, overdue investment can save it and restore the noble ideal that justice shouldn’t be based on how much you can afford. –John P. Gross is a clinical associate professor at University of Wisconsin Law School and director of the Public Defender Project.

Trump indictment and Wisconsin election revealed the GOP’s 2024 dilemma

Vox

Second, Republicans lost control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court in an off-year election — a campaign where abortion was “the dominating issue,” per University of Wisconsin political scientist Barry Burden. The repeal of Roe v. Wade brought back an 1849 state law, never technically repealed, that banned abortion at all stages of pregnancy (with an exception for the mother’s life). Janet Protasiewicz, the liberal candidate in the Supreme Court race, openly campaigned on her support for abortion rights. She won by a comfortable margin in a closely divided state — yet another sign that strict abortion bans are seriously unpopular.

How Much Does Tumor Removal for Dogs Cost? (2023 Guide)

Forbes Advisor

Cancer is the No. 1 cause of illness and death in the aging dog population. According to the School Of Veterinary Medicine at University Of Wisconsin-Madison, roughly one out of every three dogs is affected and 6 million new cancer diagnoses are made in dogs each year.

Wisconsin Stalagmite Records North American Warming

Eos

Although documented in the Greenlandic ice cores, “prior to this study, there was a lack of evidence that suggested that the Midwest responded to DO events,” said Cameron Batchelor, a geologist and postdoctoral fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Batchelor, the first author on the study, completed this work during her doctoral degree at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. “For the first time, we have proof that this region of the world was sensitive to DO events.”

Wisconsin Supreme Court race breaks records

NPR

JOHNSON: In swing state Wisconsin, election after election, people are used to hearing that this campaign is the most important. But University of Wisconsin-Madison political science and law professor Howard Schweber says there’s actually so much riding on Wisconsin’s court race that this time it might be true.

Wisconsin election: In crucial 2024 swing state, Supreme Court control and abortion access at stake

AP

“The policy direction of Wisconsin is going to be determined in large part by this Supreme Court race,” said University of Wisconsin-Madison political science professor Barry Burden. “Everything from abortion to disputes over the 2024 presidential election are going to land in the lap of this court. And the winner will be the deciding justice on these issues.”

Opinion | Colleges Should Be More Than Just Vocational Schools

The New York Times

Mr. Walker reportedly attempted to cut phrases like “the search for truth” and “public service” — as well as a call to improve “the human condition” — from the University of Wisconsin’s official mission statement. Gov. Ron DeSantis’s attack on academic freedom in Florida that has captivated the national press, alongside his preference for vocational classes, is from the same playbook.

‘A truly incredible amount of money’: millions ride on one US judicial election

The Guardian

“What has been most surprising is that Dan Kelly has basically raised no money as a candidate … So all of his backing has been from outside groups,” said Barry Burden, the director of the Elections Research Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “It’s hard to understand. Legally, they’re not allowed to coordinate. So he’s essentially handed over messaging to groups that he cannot control.”

Red America is growing because blue America is shrinking

The Washington Post

Overall, large urban counties (using definitions from the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute) saw a slight decline in population, while rural ones saw a slight increase. Since “urban” and “rural” correspond to “strongly Democratic” and “strongly Republican,” the same pattern applies to counties that voted most heavily for President Biden or Donald Trump in 2020.

How to Tell If a Photo Is an AI-Generated Fake

Scientific American

Creating these AI detective programs works the same way as any other machine learning task, says Yong Jae Lee, a computer scientist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. “You collect a data set of real images, and you also collect a data set of AI-generated images,” Lee says. “Then you can train a machine-learning model to distinguish the two.”

How to choose from 7 of the best meditation apps

Mashable

The Healthy Minds Program app was developed at the Center for Healthy Minds at University of Wisconsin—Madison. The Healthy Minds framework is based on four pillars critical for mental health and emotional well-being: awareness, connection, insight, and purpose.

What to know about active learning and college student identities

Inside Higher Ed

“Sustained lecturing, or a chalk-and-talk approach, continues to be the dominant mode of instruction across all subject areas—which, as the survey data strongly indicate, leaves more than half of learners behind,” says Thomas J. Tobin, a teaching and learning consultant and founding member of the University of Wisconsin at Madison’s Center for Teaching, Learning & Mentoring. “The survey data about the perceived fit of instructor methods underlines a challenge that we’ve known about for a long time: our teaching methods have long been out of step with the learning needs of our students.”

Ukraine Goes Dark: NASA Images Drive Home a Nation’s Anguish

The New York Times

The nighttime images come from a satellite named after Verner E. Suomi, a scientist at the University of Wisconsin who pioneered early satellite cameras. Suomi is run jointly by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Previously, the satellite’s night sensor has captured images of wildfires, gas flares, lava flows, light pollution and power outages from hurricanes.

The Best Places to Buy a House on a Budget

The New York Times

Median home prices were sourced from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Other data were drawn from the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the American Community Survey, state and local income tax tables, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the F.B.I., and Bestplaces.net.

The Danger of Cameras to the Supreme Court

The Wall Street Journal

It is unclear if Congress has the constitutional authority to require the court to allow cameras. What is clear is that it has costs as well as benefits. Because the court’s support is fragile, broad institutional changes should occur incrementally and with sufficient analysis. If Congress is serious about this issue, it should commission further research to examine the consequences before it takes action.

-Mr. Owens is a professor of American politics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Mr. Black is a professor of political science at Michigan State University.

The Big Oil Firms Are Giving Up on Researching Algae Biofuels

The Nation

“It’s very challenging and very expensive to bring these technologies to market,” said George Huber, whose biofuels research at the University of Wisconsin at Madison was funded by Exxon for years. “It’s not gonna happen overnight. It’s great they make these commitments, but you know they need to start putting in more capital into these projects.”

COVID-19: A look back on where the US succeeded and where we didn’t

ABC News

“I think that that kind of mixed messaging created enormous space for doubt enormous space for skepticism among the public,” Dr. Richard Keller, a professor in the department of medical history and bioethics at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, told ABC News. “It created levels of uncertainty that were really unnecessary and deep and eventually became harmful.”

Want to help pollinators this spring? Expert suggests these tips

The Hill

“Compared to some other native bees, honey bees are less efficient or unable to pollinate some of our food crops,” Susan Carpenter, native plant garden curator at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum, tells Nexstar. Honey bees are, instead, “domestic animals, maintained and cared for by beekeepers” that can be “detrimental to the wide diversity of native bees” around you.

“Pinball,” Reviewed: A Remedy for Your Post-Oscar Hangover

The New Yorker

The Braggs dramatize Sharpe’s pinball life, starting with his early days as a pinball wizard, as a student at the University of Wisconsin in 1971. The character—call him Roger—is played by Mike Faist, in his first-released film since his breakout role in Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story,” and the new film gives him the time, the space, and the pace to deliver a far subtler and richer performance.

Big oil firms touted algae as climate solution. Now all have pulled funding

The Guardian

“It’s very challenging and very expensive to bring these technologies to market,” said George Huber, whose biofuels research at the University of Wisconsin at Madison was funded by Exxon for years. “It’s not gonna happen overnight. It’s great they make these commitments, but you know they need to start putting more capital into these projects.”