Category: UW Experts in the News

Quoted: Alta Charo, professor of law and medical ethics at the University of Wisconsin Law School

Quoted: Political scientist Barry Burden of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

President Barack Obama?s visit to Bascom Hill on the University of Wisconsin Madison campus Thursday has elicited support from those who hope the event brings good publicity to the university, excitement from Obama supporters and joy from throngs of students whose classes have been cancelled. But the day before the speech, some are questioning the role the University, a public institution, is playing in what is a clearly partisan campaign event.

A recent study conducted by the University of Wisconsin suggests despite voters? ability to turn their ballots in early, the practice does not facilitate a greater election turnout.

Quoted: Brent McCown, emeritus professor of horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Quoted: ?That?s where you have Republicans seeing this as an issue they can push, that having a photo ID handy is not a big deal for Mr. Middle Class Voter, and, secondly, the powerful appeal [of the idea that] ? your vote should not be diluted by the votes of ineligible voters,? says Charles Franklin, a polling expert at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison.

Noted: Although instances of research misconduct are few, they can have a substantial ripple effect, notes Heather McFadden, who heads the Responsible Conduct of Research program at the University of Wisconsin at Madison?s Graduate School Office of Research.

Noted: That?s according to University of Wisconsin Journalism Professor James L. Baughman, who documents the rapid rise of TV in American life. ?No other household technology,? he writes, ?not the telephone or indoor plumbing, had ever spread so rapidly into so many homes.?

Noted: University of Wisconsin-Madison entomologist Phil Pellitteri said 2012 has been one of the worst years for box elder bugs since 1988 when Wisconsin endured drought-like conditions during the spring and summer months.

Quoted: Nina Emerson, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison?s Resource Center on Impaired Driving, said it?s incorrect to assume chronic offenders have a deep disregard of the law.

Noted: That?s why initiatives like New York?s proposed ban on mega-sized sodas make sense, says University of Wisconsin psychologist Tanya Schlam, the study?s lead author. ?The best self-control is setting up a situation where you don?t need to exercise self-control,? she says.

Quoted: “Tommy Thompson has gotten himself into somewhat of a hole,” said Barry Burden, a politics professor at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. “He?s taken a pounding and he?s not where he wants to be with less than six weeks to go.”

Quoted: “One of the biggest reasons that it isn?t easy to find an investor is that the movie is about punishment,” said Kim Nak-ho, a Korean comics researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “While other Gwangju-related movies focused on victims? suffering, this thriller shows people who retaliate against Chun and his collaborators.”

Quoted: Sara Souther, a University of Wisconsin-Madison botanist who worked on the West Virginia University ginseng team, said multiple times she has encountered poachers trying to harvest the plant.

Quoted: But Joanne Cantor, a University of Wisconsin psychologist who specializes in the stressful aspects of the digital revolution, said LovePalz could be a poor substitute for the real deal.

Quoted: Kenneth Mayer, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said as long as the President Obama and Mitt Romney campaigns continue to invest in Wisconsin, it means both sides think the state is still up for grabs.

Noted: Patricia McConnell, adjunct associate professor of zoology at UW-Madison and the author of several books on dog behavior, told the board that dog-wolf conflicts are nearly certain to occur.

Dean of Students Lori Berquam presented their plans for funding for a project that would examine salaries of Division of Student Life employees at a meeting of the student government Tuesday evening.

Legal experts say if Governor Scott Walker testifies in an upcoming criminal trial of one of his former aides, he will join the ranks of other top officials in the unenviable position of having to take the witness stand.

Noted: “Our brains are constantly being shaped, most often unwittingly,” says Richard Davidson, director of the Lab for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “But there are things we can do to purposefully shape them and reduce anxiety.”

Quoted: Bruce Hansen, professor of economics at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, said he admires Fair?s work.