Quoted: “I?d sure like to see him in my clinic,” said Dr. Patrick McBride, a preventive cardiology specialist at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
Category: UW Experts in the News
We dare you to take a real vacation
Quoted: “A lot of people are really busy because they take a little dose of family and then they want to back off,” says Joanne Cantor, a communications professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. “You can see parents with teenagers and see teens going for their gadgets all the time. It?s a good thing, but not necessarily the easiest thing to devote more time to your family.”
Bill would limit growth of N.Y. dairy farms
Noted: Mark Stephenson, director of dairy policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, has confirmed that this alternative will help dairy farmers turn a profit without also limiting New York?s opportunity to grow its dairy industry.
Brad Schwartz: Embrace scientific research despite politics
The National Institutes of Health provides over $400 million in support for biomedical research in Wisconsin (over $260 million at the University of Wisconsin), resulting in jobs, intellectual property and the formation of more new companies and medical advances. Take a break from partisan politics and publicly endorse support of our nation?s investment in scientific research. Let our politicians know that research needs to be supported, regardless of who wins the election.
— Brad Schwartz, Stoughton, UW-Madison professor of medicine
Curiosities: What exactly is in a hot dog?
A: “The short answer is, exactly what is listed on the label,” said Jeff Sindelar of the University of Wisconsin?Madison Meat Science and Muscle Biology Laboratory. The most common hot dog formula is poultry and pork meat, salt, sugar or other sweeteners, spices and other flavorings such as mustard or garlic, and two additives called sodium erythorbate and sodium nitrite.
Ask the Weather Guys: Are there fall weather changes beyond turning leaves and falling temperatures?
A: As we head into the second half of August a subtle transition in our weather begins to occur ? a transition that is probably hard to detect at first but that eventually becomes very obvious and then lasts for approximately eight months. We are not talking about the gradual reduction in daytime high temperatures or the increasingly cooler to cold nights, though these are also beginning to invade. Instead, we are talking about the nature of the storms that deliver our precipitation.
Scientists in town for topics cosmic and microscopic
Quoted: “Baum tackled inherently controversial topics – global climate change, for instance, surging population growth, disease, violence and war and the denial of basic human rights,” said ACS president Bassam Shakhashiri, who is a chemistry professor at the University of Wisconsin. Baum will be among the panelists, as well as National Center for Science Education director Eugenie Scott, veteran science journalists Deborah Blum and Tom Siegfried, and Pennsylvania State University climatologist Michael Mann, whose recent book, The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars, recounts his much-attacked research.
Whooping cough on rise despite immunizations
Quoted: Dr. Patrick Remington, a professor with the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, suggests that whooping cough is on the rise because vaccination rates have declined, in part due to perceived concerns over vaccine safety and potential side effects.
Dane County cracks down on sale of illegal synthetic marijuana
The Dane County Narcotics & Gang Task Force is putting area retailers on notice after seizing more than $60,000 worth of an illegal marijuana-like drug being sold at 10 area gas stations and shops. They also want the public ? including parents ? to know that federal and state laws prohibit the possession or sale of so-called synthetic cannibinoids, which are marketed as incense. Also known as “Spice” or “K2,” the chemical-laden plant substances are usually smoked in joints or pipes, and can cause heart palpitations, strong hallucinations and amnesia as well as feelings of euphoria, said UW-Madison police Det. Carol Kashishian.
Chazen gets exceptional ‘Offering of the Angels’
Forty-five artworks traveling from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, will be featured in “Offering of the Angels: Painting and Tapestries from the Uffizi Gallery,” a historically important exhibition that opens Friday Aug. 24 at the Chazen Museum of Art, 750 University Ave. “It?s thrilling and a very rare opportunity to be able to show works of art from this period of such high quality ? and from the museum that is really at the foundation of our idea of museums,” said Chazen curator of paintings and sculpture Maria Saffiotti Dale, whose expertise is in Italian Renaissance art.
Lake protection must continue
“I?m looking at Mendota now,” lake expert Steve Carpenter said Thursday from his UW-Madison office. “It?s windy and wavy, and it?s looking pretty good.” But we?re not going to have ? nor would we want ? a drought every year, Carpenter stressed. The extremely dry weather damaged crops, lawns and the economy. “So what we want to do is find a way to improve the quality of the lakes without having a drought,” said Carpenter, the director of the university?s Center for Limnology.
Dealing with post-drought lawns
Quoted: Many lawn owners may have already noticed some greening up of dead patches, following recent rainfalls. And, chances are that the greening trend will continue through the rest of August, according to Doug Soldat, associate professor and University of Wisconsin-Extension specialist in the Department of Soil Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Kentucky bluegrass, which is the most common lawn grass in Wisconsin, has underground stems called rhizomes which can regenerate new plants, Soldat explained.
Mitt Romney pick of Paul Ryan gives GOP ticket boost in Wisconsin
Quoted: ?In Wisconsin, you?d have to see Ryan being a plus point or two for Romney,? said David Canon, a political-science professor at the University of Wisconsin.
Watch a Robotic Squid Change Its Color
Quoted: The robot?s color-changing ability doesn?t have much in common with its biological inspiration?s, according to Douglas Weibel, a professor of biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin?Madison who is unaffiliated with the paper. The squid in the wild doesn?t use biochemical processes like fluid and air manipulation to create its color-changing effect. Rather, the animal uses an optical illusion to reflect light and blend in to whatever background it finds itself within. “It?s structural color, and I think that?s pretty hard to do,” Weibel says. “People know how to make iridescent structures, but I don?t know any really good examples of structured color.”
Policing by bike a growing trend nationally
UW-Madison officer Erik Pearce says 15 cops and 11 security officers patrol the campus regularly, logging above 2,200 hours on bikes last year, and more than 3,100 in 2010. The UW police have used bikes since 1992. Pearce likes to point out that bike policing is green and cost-effective. According to Madison police officials, purchasing and equipping a squad car can cost about $47,000, not to mention the approximately 2,400 gallons of gas each burns in a year.
Ryan faces struggle to win home state
Quoted: ?He?s definitely extremely conservative but his vote for Tarp showed he was more of a [George W.] Bush loyalist than an ideologue,? says Ken Mayer, professor of politics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Paul Ryan liked at home, but doubts persist
Quoted: David Canon, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said adding Ryan to the ticket should help Romney gain 1 or 2 percentage points but probably not enough to carry the state. Ryan isn?t particularly well-known to voters statewide, Canon said.
NewPage files Chapter 11 restructuring plan
Quoted: In a typical restructuring, the company must develop a plan that all of its creditors agrees to, said Jim Seward, an associate professor of finance and academic director of the Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance and Investment Banking at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
More teens have oral sex earlier than vaginal intercourse
Quoted: The new figures suggest that sex education programs need to directly address oral sex as well as vaginal intercourse, says Craig Roberts, an epidemiologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison?s University Health Services department and a member of the American College Health Association.
Allergy season to make school day challenging for sufferers
Quoted: ?This is an unprecedented allergy season,? said Dr. Mark Moss, an allergist with the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health.
Experts say this allergy season one of the longest
MADISON, Wis. – Hang on to your tissues. Experts in Wisconsin said this allergy season will be one of the longest. Dr. Mark Moss at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health said the allergy season began about two to three weeks early. The mild winter and unseasonably warm spring temperatures caused trees to bud and bloom and release pollen and mold much earlier.
Allergy season starts early, but it could be a mild one
The season began early because of the mild winter and unseasonably warm spring weather, causing trees to bud and bloom and release pollen and mold much earlier, said Dr. Mark Moss at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health.
Drought creates danger of toxic fungi in surviving crops
“It?s going to take a really unique year if we?re going to see it here, and we?re having that unique year,” said Joe Lauer, an agronomy professor at UW-Madison. Lauer said farmers also need to be on the lookout at harvest time for toxins from another genus of fungi called Fusarium. Those toxins can cause milking cows to become less productive and can induce farm animal miscarriages if ingested in high enough concentrations.
Recall leaves Wisconsin voters exhausted for GOP Senate primary
Quoted: University of Wisconsin Professor Charles Franklin.
Could Ryan Tip Wisconsin Toward Romney?
Quoted: Charles Franklin, the director of the Marquette University Law School Poll and a professor in the political science department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Ryan makes history, brings attention to Wisconsin
Quoted: ?It?s like what happens when the Packers win the Super Bowl. Concretely, not a whole lot. But symbolically, it makes a difference,? said Kenneth Mayer, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an affiliate professor in the La Follette School of Public Affairs. ?It puts Wisconsin on the national map.?
All the President’s Mystery Men (and Women)
Quoted: “George Shultz is a gimme,” says the University of Wisconsin at Madison political science professor Ken Mayer, of the man who has run Labor, Treasury, and State. “People who have served in nine different capacities are easy.”
Dean Foods’ Spinoff Shows Lure of Organic Milk
Quoted: “If you are producing organic dairy products, you must have organic feed,” said Ed Jesse, a retired professor of agriculture and economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
U.S. Cheese Industry Works to Reduce Sodium and Fat
Quoted: ?Salt serves as a preservative, as a director of flavor development,? said Mark Johnson, senior scientist with the Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. ?If I remove it, my flavor goes in a different direction.?
New test results illustrate Madison schools’ achievement gap
A new student test in Madison schools that could help gauge the effectiveness of the school district?s achievement gap plan suggests an average student?s knowledge grew at or slightly below the rate of their national peers in math and reading and ended the year about a half-grade level behind….One advantage of MAP is it allows schools to closely track the growth of students over a school year, said Bradley Carl, a researcher at the Value-Added Research Center at UW-Madison. While attainment levels are important for setting high expectations for students and schools, growth more accurately reflects the impact of a school, program or teacher.
Business interests wary of tangling with labor over California’s Proposition 32
Quoted: Ken Mayer, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin in Madison
Ryan’s fortune has increased in past decade
Quoted: Tim Smeeding, a UW-Madison professor of public affairs and economics
Day cares focus on nutrition with help of federal program
?The schools have to start out with one hand tied behind their backs when a child starts school already thinking that Pop Tarts are breakfast and that pop is what you drink at lunch,? said Susan Nitzke, cooperative extension nutrition specialist and professor emerita at the University of Wisconsin.
Nitzke and colleague Dave Riley, an expert on child development and early education for Cooperative Extension and a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, wrote ?Rethinking Nutrition: Connecting Science and Practice in Early Childhood Settings.?
Campus Connection: College threat assessment teams face challenging task
Peter Ystenes, a detective lieutenant with UW-Madison Police and a co-chair of the university?s threat assessment team, says it?s always a good idea to examine individual cases and ask if a situation could have been handled differently — but he isn?t about to make judgments on a case he knows little about. ?It?s fair to question, but my issue right now is we only know half the story, or a quarter of the story, and (the media is getting) information second- or third-hand and then reporting it as truth,? says Ystenes. ?That irritates me a bit knowing how difficult these situations can be, and frankly how sad some of the cases have been.?
Indeed, keeping a campus community safe, while at the same time not overreacting and respecting the rights of individuals, can put those charged with assessing potential threats in a tough spot.
Ryan makes history, brings attention to Wisconsin
Quoted: Kenneth Mayer, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an affiliate professor in the La Follette School of Public Affairs.
Ryan Provides Wisconsin Lift but No Guarantee
Quoted: UW-Madison political scientist Charles Franklin, director of the Marquette Law School Poll.
Ask the Weather Guys: What is a drought?
A. A drought means different things to different people. Technically, a drought is a period of abnormally dry weather sufficiently long enough in a given area to cause a shortage of water, whether it is for crops, recreation, water supply utilities or other purposes. As you can imagine, a drought for someone who lives in a desert region would be very different than for a person living among Wisconsin?s many lakes.
Weather conditions fuel bumper crop of insects in Green Bay area
Quoted: University of Wisconsin-Madison entomologist Phil Pellitteri.
Experts say stress is causing trees to show their colors ahead of schedule
Quoted: Jiwan Palta, a University of Wisconsin-Madison horticulture professor and Stanley Temple, a Beers-Bascom Professor Emeritus in Conservation.
Seely on Science: Exploring the human side of nanotechnology
In today?s fast-moving technological world, some words can quickly lose their meaning. Take the word “nanotechnology,” for example. We see and hear it all the time. But, other than a vague sense that some pretty amazing things are being done with very small things, most of us don?t really have a handle on the promise of this science.
Exact Sciences expects to raise $50 million through additional stock offering
Exact Sciences Corp. wants to raise $50 million to get its test for colon cancer ready to go to market, even though it will be more than a year before that happens, in the best of circumstances.
“Part of the thinking behind that decision has to be a reflection of their concerns about the general stock market overall,” said Brian Hellmer, director of the Hawk Center for Applied Security Analysis at the UW-Madison School of Business.
Campus Connection: Is it worth spending $2.5 billion to send a rover to Mars?
….I posed that question to a handful of academics around town to get their thoughts. Ed Churchwell, a UW-Madison professor emeritus of astronomy and an expert on topics such as star formation, infrared and radio astronomy, and issues of extraterrestrial life, says ?it depends on what value one puts on new knowledge.? Sanjay Limaye, a senior scientist with UW-Madison?s Space Science and Engineering Center, believes strongly in the value of space exploration but adds it?s worth asking whether NASA has focused too much attention on Mars.
UW scientists receive $1 million grant to study genome production
Four UW-Madison professors will receive a $1 million dollar grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation to study genome production, according to a release from the university Wednesday. Aseem Ansari, Jennifer Reed, Parmesh Ramanathan and David Schwartz will lead the research into more efficient and less expensive ways to produce genomes, which contain the biological information about an organism encoded as DNA.
Lawsuit seeks to stop wolf hunting season
Several acknowledged wolf experts in Wisconsin, including retired DNR managers Dick Thiel and Randy Jurewicz as well as University of Wisconsin researcher Adrian Treves, filed statements warning against the use of dogs to hunt wolves.
Dairy industry still draws vets
The University of Wisconsin?s School of Veterinary Medicine in Madison continues to enroll students who want to work with large animals, said Dr. Christopher Olsen, associate dean for academic affairs and professor of public health with the School of Veterinary Medicine.
There may never be answers in Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting
Quoted: University of Wisconsin-Madison law professor Michael Scott.
Thompson’s lead tightening in U.S. Senate race, according to Marquette poll
Quoted: UW-Madison political scientist Charles Franklin.
Dean Foods’ Spinoff Shows Lure of Organic Milk
Quoted: UW-Madison ag economist Ed Jesse.
Separating the Skeptics from the Denialists
Quoted: Terry Devitt, director of research communications at the University of Wisconsin?Madison.
U.S. Cheese Industry Works to Reduce Sodium and Fat
Quoted: Mark Johnson, senior scientist with the Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Campus Connection: Researchers scour Twitter for bullying language
At first glance, Jerry Zhu seems like one of the last people on the UW-Madison campus you?d expect to be engaged in research on bullying. His website explains that he?s an associate professor in the university?s computer sciences department, and that his area of expertise is in machine learning. But Zhu is one of the leaders of a UW-Madison research team that has programmed a computer to scour millions of Twitter posts each day for cases of bullying in a unique, interdisciplinary project designed to compile vast amounts of information on this hot-button topic.
In the Spirit: Muslims battle ?un-American? bias
?Muslims are feeling more than welcome here,? said Saeed, 55, a UW-Madison academic staff member who has lived in Madison nearly 30 years. ?Most people realize we?re hard-working citizens ? people of faith raising children who are Americans. We care about our neighbors and our community just like everyone else.? Instances of blatant discrimination against Muslims are rare here, Saeed said. However, he said some retail outlets have a reputation within the Muslim community of never hiring women who wear the traditional Muslim head covering, called a hijab.
Just read it: Jerry Apps
Jerry Apps started his career as a county extension agent in Green Lake and Brown counties in 1957, then moved on to work as publications editor in the State 4-H Office. Born and raised on a Wisconsin farm, Apps is now the author of more than 30 books, many of them on rural history and country life, and is an emeritus professor at UW-Madison. Apps suggested three books, one published in 2010, one in 1939, and one in 1854. ?I believe all three of them have much to say to us today,? he said.
Ask the Weather Guys: Are there different types of lightning?
A. Lightning is a huge electrical discharge that results from the rising and sinking air motions that occur in thunderstorms. Lightning can be either cloud-to-cloud or cloud-to-ground and is accompanied by thunder. Lightning also has different appearances.
Gurdwara shootings, IAC?s fall: Failures of modern democracy
Quoted: Dhavan Shah, a communications and political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Cattle sales first sign of drought’s ripple effects
Quoted: Paul Mitchell, an associate professor of agricultural and applied economics of at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Dry conditions affect insect population
Quoted: University of Wisconsin-Madison entomologist Phil Pellitteri.
Campus Connection: Markel named dean of UW?s School of Veterinary Medicine
UW-Madison decided to stay in-house in naming its next dean of the university?s School of Veterinary Medicine. Mark Markel, a professor of medical sciences and associate dean for advancement in UW-Madison?s vet school, will assume the dean?s post on Sept. 1, according to this university news release. Markel will be only the third dean in the school?s 29-year history and replaces Daryl Buss, who retired in June after heading the school for 18 years.
New dean named for UW School of Veterinary Medicine
The UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine appointed a new dean on Thursday, just the third dean in the school?s nearly three-decade history. Mark Markel, already a professor and associate dean at the school, will start his new job on Sept. 1. He replaces Daryl Buss, who led the school for 18 years.
Drought endangers goat milk supply
Contrary to conventional wisdom, goats really don’t eat just any old thing. And what they’re eating this summer is profits, to a point that the goat milk supply and some farms are threatened.The largest goat milk buyer and goat cheese maker in the country ? Montchevre, based in Belmont since 1989 ? this week upped by some 3 percent the price it pays for raw goat milk from its 350 suppliers in an effort to preserve its milk stream. Thomas Cox, a UW-Madison agriculture economist, said the increase is a necessary response to the drought that will probably be copied by the dairy industry as feed cost increases ripple through agriculture.