“The wet springs become even wetter, the drier springs become even drier. That creates risk that these producers need to manage,” said Jeff Hadachek, assistant professor of agricultural and applied sciences at UW-Madison.
Category: Experts Guide
What First Amendment lawsuit means for designated protest zones at RNC in Milwaukee
Howard Schweber, an emeritus professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, thinks the judge still has enough time to rule on this case, which he expects will be in favor of the city of Milwaukee.
Schweber spoke to WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” about the First Amendment arguments in the case and the lack of clearly defined legal guidelines on the issue.
Denied the ‘right to hug’: In many U.S. jails, video calls are the only way detainees can see loved ones
Julie Poehlmann, a professor of human development and family studies from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, has studied the impact of incarceration on families and children for 25 years. “One hug is worth a thousand video visits,” she said. “Young kids, they need that form of comfort and connection in order to have a deep connection with that parent or family member.”
Clarence Thomas’ originalist interpretations go too far, even for fellow conservatives
“This is a case where, if you invalidate this statute on the basis of originalism, you go back in time and say, essentially, at the time of the original ratification of the Constitution, domestic violence was tolerated — and therefore, based on originalism, we need to invalidate the statute,” John P. Gross, a professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School who’s also the director of the Public Defender Project, told BI. “And that is, of course, an absurd, horrible result.”
Wisconsin prisons need federal oversight. Arrest of ex-warden shows why.
Column authored by Steven Wright, a clinical professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School, where he directs the Constitutional Litigation, Appeals, and Sentencing Project.
What are pollinators and how do they ‘hold entire ecosystems together’? We explain.
Susan Carpenter, the native plant garden curator at UW-Madison’s arboretum, said she also likes to keep an eye out for the yellow bumble bee. It’s one of the species in Wisconsin in need of conservation, she said.
How to stay safe during lightning storms – summer is the highest-risk season
Authored by Chris Vagasky, a meteorologist at UW-Madison and the manager of the Wisconsin Environmental Mesonet. Vagasky is an expert on topics related to lightning data and lightning safety, meteorological measurements, and applications of weather measurements.
Wisconsin Supreme Court overturns OWI conviction of man who fell asleep at drive-thu
“It’s the idea that law enforcement kind of wears several hats,” said Rachel Burg, a clinical assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School. “One is monitoring and investigating crime and preventing crime but also protecting people and property and doing welfare checks on folks. So the community caretaker exception allows law enforcement to to take action if they have a concern about the welfare of a person.”
Wisconsin’s partial veto has stood for nearly a century. The Wisconsin Supreme Court will give it another look.
University of Wisconsin Law School State Democracy Research Initiative Attorney Bryna Godar told WPR governors have gotten creative with how they’ve used partial vetoes, “but we now have this very long standing practice that is really codified in state law.”
Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar on addiction and imprisonment
UW Health Behavioral Health and Recovery Clinic addiction medicine physician Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar examines how incarceration impacts people struggling with mental health and substance abuse.
Eradication of insect pests and invasive plants
UW-Madison entomologist PJ Liesch is back. We talk with him about what’s hampering the spread of spongy moths in Wisconsin. We also talk about how climate change is aiding the spread of joro spiders to northern regions. Then, two WDNR invasive species specialists share success stories from across the state.
Fathers suffer from postpartum depression, too, UW-Madison professor’s research shows
University of Wisconsin-Madison social work professor Tova Walsh is glad more people are paying attention to postpartum depression in moms. She said that’s a big improvement.
US Supreme Court ruling on abortion pills, The murky market for legal weed products, How pagans celebrate summer solstice
With a wave of new hemp-derived THC alternatives hitting the market in Wisconsin, we check in with a cannabis historian about what these products are and how they’re shaping policy discussions around marijuana in the state. Interview with Lucas Richert, professor in the School of Pharmacy at UW-Madison.
In Focus with Courtney Bell: Teachers, students in Wisconsin
Murv Seymour talks with Courtney Bell at the Wisconsin Historical Society about leading the Wisconsin Center for Education Research in its work on classroom innovations, challenges and inequities.
New federal grant sends more OBGYNs to train in rural areas
New federal funding will help place more OBGYNs in training in Wisconsin’s rural communities.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Medicine and Public Health will receive a $750,000 grant over the next three years to expand their rural OBGYN residency track.
UW-Madison sociologist’s new book says women fill gaps in US social programs
University of Wisconsin-Madison sociologist Jessica Calarco believes her profession is an act of “un-gaslighting people.” She said she wants to help others see the challenges they face in their lives as products of large social structures and forces. In particular, she said she wants women to let go of guilt they might feel when they face struggles because of the unfair burden of social structures place on women.
In her new book, “Holding It Together: How Women Became America’s Safety Net,” Calarco said women are often tasked with more of the unpaid or underpaid care work that keeps the economy moving.
Partisan gridlock leaves millions in state funds for Wisconsin communities unspent
Officials with La Crosse County, the town of Campbell, UW-Madison, U.S. Geological Survey and the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey earlier this week drilled three “sentinel” wells to help identify PFAS migration in the area and monitor the untainted aquifer.
Wisconsin cows must test negative for bird flu to attend fairs, state says
Bird flu has not been found in Wisconsin cows, but voluntary testing has been minimal since late April, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture mandated testing of dairy cattle moving between states and quarantines of herds that test positive, said Keith Poulsen, director of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at UW-Madison.
Scorpion, moths, beetles: Wisconsin bugs skitter into spotlight
UW-Madison Extension Entomologist PJ Liesch spends much of his time identifying and confirming insect sightings. This spring has brought him a number of unusual observations, including a scorpion.
Pleasure Practices with Sami Schalk: The pleasure of endings
I am back this month to say goodbye. This will be my last “Pleasure Practices” column for Tone Madison. I had discussed ending the column earlier this year to make some space for my new book projects during my upcoming sabbatical, but my recent experience with police violence has accelerated my timeline for wrapping up this series.
UW-Madison to strengthen first OB-GYN rural track program in the US
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded $750,000 to the University of Wisconsin-Madison on Thursday, directed toward the establishment of new residency programs in rural communities.
Best student checking accounts
“When looking for a new checking account, students should take their time to identify accounts specifically tailored to their needs – frequently these are promoted on college campuses in the fall,” says Anita Mukherjee, an associate professor in Risk and Insurance Department at the Wisconsin School of Business. “Many banks offer student-specific checking accounts that come with perks such as no monthly fees, lower minimum balance requirements, and free online banking.”
For our children’s mental health: Ban cell phones in Ripon schools (editorial)
Answering the political science professor’s query was Dr. Jenny Higgins, director of UW Collaborative for Reproductive Equity and professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“How do you feel, right now, being here in person?” Higgins asked the audience in the Great Hall of Harwood Memorial Union.
“I see some nods,” Higgins said. “Now think about trying to communicate that with somebody on your phone or even on Zoom.”
Wisconsin prisons lag in treating substance use disorders
“At the time of reentry, we know that rates of returning to use – to substance use – are very high. That in combination with someone having no really no tolerance puts them at super high risk for having an overdose if they return to use,” explained Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, an addiction medicine physician and professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. She treats patients with substance use disorders at UW Health’s Behavioral Health and Recovery Clinic.
Worried about losing Medicaid access in Wisconsin? Here’s what to know
Some people face disenrollment despite still qualifying for Medicaid. So before looking for new coverage, first check on whether you still qualify for Medicaid, said Adam VanSpankeren, navigator program manager for Covering Wisconsin, a University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension program that helps people enroll in publicly funded health care.
UW Health nurses using AI to improve patient messaging
As the health care industry continues to struggle with staffing, UW Health is looking to artificial intelligence to help nurses respond to patient messages more efficiently.
Polarization and party future: UW experts make predictions for RNC in Milwaukee
Protests, polarization, voter outreach, and the future of the Republican Party. Political experts from UW-Madison on Tuesday shared their expectations for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
The latest in eye health; How one woman helped her friend by donating a kidney
More than 12-million Americans aged 40 and over have some level of vision impairment, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. David Gamm, an ophthalmologist from UW Health, joins us to talk all about the eyes — from macular degeneration to glaucoma.
‘Army of hope:’ UW Health opens walk-in clinic specializing in opioid use disorder
The clinic opened in January and specializes in opioid use disorder. It offers walk-in appointments and free services to people with or without insurance. Patients can get prescription medication for opioid use disorder and medical treatment like basic wound care, family planning or hepatitis C treatment.
Constant rain showers delay planting for Wisconsin farmers, impedes weed management
“You would have to go back to the big drought year of 1988 to find a drier May, and before that, all the way back to the thick of the Dust Bowl in 1934,” said Steve Vavrus, a climatologist with the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
UW experts weigh in on which issues could win Wisconsin in November
If there is just a single issue that matters to most voters, it’s the economy. However, experts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison at Tuesday’s WisPolitics event said don’t count out what each party is pushing either.
Wisconsin’s system to block ineligible voters misses some on felony probation
Ion Meyn, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School, said voter disenfranchisement laws typically affect people of color disproportionately.
“If you take a map of where Black people live, in terms of concentration … and then you map over that rates of incarceration, it maps out exactly,” he said. “And then if you put that same map and put in … the highest disenfranchisement rates — exact same place.”
Summer books and summer science
UW-Madison emeritus professor of chemistry Bassam Shakhashiri is back to talk about the science behind fireworks and, in this election year, how science is part of the political process.
Dane County monitoring lakes as water levels rise from recent rainfall
Forecasted rainfall is expected to be “on the high side” in the next few weeks, according to Ken Potter, a UW professor emeritus of civil and environmental engineering who focuses on water management and flood risk mitigation.
New study finds Earth warming at record rate, but no evidence of climate change accelerating
“Choosing to act on climate has become a political talking point but this report should be a reminder to people that in fact it is fundamentally a choice to save human lives,” said University of Wisconsin climate scientist Andrea Dutton, who wasn’t part of the international study team. “To me, that is something worth fighting for.”
How It’s Made: Wisconsin Dairy Products
June is Dairy Month in Wisconsin! Learn how your favorite Wisconsin dairy products – from cheese curds to ice cream – are made with these episodes from PBS Wisconsin.
Wisconsin scientist: Plants respond to biting insects faster than you might think
Simon Gilroy, a University of Wisconsin-Madison botany professor, is among a handful of scientists uncovering how plants respond to the world. But Gilroy hesitates to use the word “intelligence” when talking about them.
“One of the things that we do as humans is we anthropomorphize all the time. Inanimate objects, we attribute them human characteristics. And it’s just built into our DNA of how we interact with the world … so that must be how everything else operates,” Gilroy told WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” recently. “That can sometimes totally get in the way.”
UW-Madison professor traces the ways women are pushed to serve as a social safety net
Jessica Calarco, a sociologist and associate professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison, says writing her book “Holding It Together: How Women Became America’s Safety Net” was a “labor of fury” and a “labor of love.”
‘Cicadapalooza’ party set for Saturday in Lake Geneva
The 45-minute, mile-long walking tours are set to be led by UW faculty, starting at 12:30 p.m., and every hour after that up to 4:15 p.m.
Liesch also plans to join Dan Young, a UW-Madison entomologist, in a presentation at 3:30 p.m. at Library Park near the library which will cover cicada basics and feature an up-close look at periodical cicadas.
Project seeks to define presence of PFAS in deep aquifer on French Island
A project on French Island near La Crosse aims to define the movement of PFAS in groundwater and to determine whether a deep aquifer could serve as a source of safe drinking water for residents with contaminated wells.
On Monday, a team of partners will drill to create three wells at depths ranging from 85 to 400 feet within the town of Campbell on French Island. Researchers with the University of Wisconsin-Madison will collect samples of sediment and rock beneath the surface.
Cicada records help scientists study long-term health impact of pesticide exposure
Jason Fletcher, professor of public affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said during the early 20th century, producers of tree crops like apples commonly used the chemicals when preparing for an emergence.
“Because cicadas are known, when they’re coming and where they’re going to be in general terms, certainly in the past, farmers tried to protect their crops by dousing everything with pesticide,” he said.
Rainfall leads to improvement in Wisconsin drought conditions
Less than 1 percent of the state is considered to be experiencing drought, according to the latest map from the U.S. Drought Monitor.
It’s made for a quick end to a long period of drought, state climatologist Steve Vavrus said.
“Drought has virtually disappeared from Wisconsin finally, after 12 solid months,” he said.
Farm safety experts say Wisconsin law may let youth operate tractors too early
John Shutske, professor and agricultural safety & health specialist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said from the beginning, Wisconsin’s age minimum has been much younger than other farm states who have similar requirements. National best practices for farm safety recommend youth be at least 14 years old before being allowed to operate equipment.
UW-Madison Marching Band director speaks at Watertown Public Library
Every band has a leader; and, when Mike Leckrone left his post as director of the University of Wisconsin Marching Band after five decades, Corey Pompey took over the podium from his legendary predecessor in the spring of 2019.
Deadly domestic abuse cases show why gun violence is a top concern in Wisconsin
Written by Mariel Barnes, an assistant professor with the La Follette School of Public Affairs. Her research examines everyday forms of violence against women, gender, and the politics of the welfare state.
You can try beer, and a dessert, made with cicadas at Lake Geneva’s ‘Cicadapalooza’
Director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Insect Diagnostics Lab PJ Liesch received the first reports of Brood XIII cicadas in Wisconsin this year out of the Lake Geneva area just over a week ago. With some of the best-documented historical cicada activity in the state, Lake Geneva could very well be Wisconsin’s “bug central” this summer. Residents have already shared photos of cicadas covering tree trunks, sidewalks and other surfaces.
UW survey finds inflation, gun violence and health care top issues for Wisconsin residents
The Main Street Agenda is a project designed to focus on the issues Wisconsinites rank as most important heading into the 2024 election. The topics come from a survey of nearly 4,000 residents conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Survey Center in partnership with the La Follette School of Public Affairs.
Periodical cicadas won’t be coming to Madison — here’s why
Still, this is a unique phenomenon that people in the Badger State won’t experience again until 2041. Known on social media as the “Wisconsin Bug Guy” P.J. Liesch is particularly excited about the swarms of cicadas that have already started to pop up and make noise here.
“I turn 40 years old next year, and I have not seen these yet with my own eyes,” said Liesch, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Insect Diagnostic Lab.
Wave Watch buoys aim to improve safety for boaters in the Apostle Islands
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are partnering with the Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and the National Park Service to launch the buoys. It’s a relaunch of a program that was discontinued last year because of a lack of funding.
See photos of the hordes of 17-year cicadas currently emerging throughout Wisconsin
Over the past few weeks, Brood XIII 17-year cicadas have emerged in parts of Wisconsin for the first time since 2007.
DACA immigrants in the Madison area live with fear and uncertainty
Dreamers live under a microscope; any mistake could jeopardize their status, said Erin Barbato, director of the Immigrant Justice Clinic at the University of Wisconsin Law School.
“Someone who has DACA is already incredibly accomplished and has had no errors in their ways for their entire life because they basically have been forced to have a perfect life — in academics and employment and with their character — in order to qualify for DACA,” Barbato said.
Act 10 is back in court. Here are the stakes for Wisconsin unions
“I think you can show what has happened to real wages for teachers in Wisconsin when they’re not allowed to bargain over wages,” said Michael Childers, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor who researches organized labor issues. “And what does that do to every other aspect in terms of teacher turnover and the ability to recruit and retain people to come to the profession. We’re 10 years in, there’s enough data.”
UW-Madison researchers look to take 3D printing out of this world, making computer components in zero gravity
Researchers with the University of Wisconsin-Madison are looking to take 3D printing out of this world, successfully manufacturing computer components in zero gravity.
What to know from the latest inspection of Wisconsin’s only ICE detention center
Gita Connolly, who works with people detained at Dodge through the University of Wisconsin Law School’s Immigrant Justice Clinic, said these documents are extremely important for people to proceed with their immigration cases. Even those who have chosen to leave the U.S. voluntarily cannot leave without their identity documents.
Abortion a risky campaign topic for GOP candidates, experts say
These are the voters whom Republican candidates risk losing if they take a strong stance on abortion bans, according to Mariel Barnes, a political scientist at the La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“This presents a problem for the Republican Party and Republican candidates,” Barnes told the Cap Times. “Because they’re trying to satisfy this more extreme wing in the party that wants to restrict abortion under almost all circumstances, when it is actually very unpopular with the center of the party, and you need the center of the party to get elected.”
One of a kind meat training program brings people from across the country to Madison
UW–Madison is home to a two-year training program, known as the Master Meat Crafter Program, that offers members of the meat industry new skills and knowledge to take their careers to the next level. Created in 2010 by Jeff Sindelar, Ph.D., a professor and extension meat specialist in Animal & Dairy Sciences, it is a one-of-a-kind program that brings people from across the country and abroad to Madison to earn the “Master Meat Crafter” distinction upon graduation.
Why Race Matters — discussing COVID-19
UW–Madison’s Kevin Lawrence Henry Jr., an assistant professor in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, has been working to improve educational outcomes for underserved students and shares his experiences and recommendations.
“Studies have shown that students who were engaged in longer periods of distance learning or virtual learning fared far worse than some of their counterparts,” he explains. “And that particularly hurt Black and brown students in the state of Wisconsin.”
Milwaukee County won’t see swarms of cicadas this summer. Here’s why
Brood XIII cicadas haven’t been documented in Milwaukee County for “several decades” and aren’t expected to emerge there this summer, said PJ Liesch, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Insect Diagnostics Lab.
Wisconsin is in the minority of states shielding police data. We’re suing to change that.
Access to police employment data could also help groups like the Wisconsin Innocence Project, said Christopher Lau, a co-director of the project and law professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Being able to use data to get background on officers in support of the cases of their clients, which often involve allegations of police misconduct, “would make our litigation much stronger,” he said.
Move over, cicadas, Wisconsinites have other bugs to dodge. What about mayflies, or lake flies?
“These insects spend over 99% of their life cycle in the water as juveniles, feeding and growing and developing. When they emerge as adults, they are really short-lived,” said PJ Liesch, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Insect Diagnostic Lab