Barry Burden, a UW-Madison political science professor, says it?s “not out of the question” that Ryan could lose. “He could be made unpopular with senior citizens. He could be linked to Scott Walker. But it?s a high hurdle.”
Quoted: To identify the things that contribute to feeling fulfilled and purposeful, Carol Ryff, the director of the Institute on Aging at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, developed a list of questions to measure well-being and divided them into six broad categories.
The drug Ritalin has been used for years to help people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). But it wasn?t until now that researchers at UW-Madison have discovered where in the brain the drug works. Psychology professor Craig Berridge and graduate student Robert Spencer have identified the upper portion of the brain?s prefrontal cortex as the key area where Ritalin works.
Long-time University of Wisconsin-Madison Ag Economist Bruce Jones will have a little more responsibility going into the new year. He has been named the new director of the school?s Renk Agribusiness Institute, which coordinates UW-Madison agribusiness teaching, research and outreach activities.
Researchers will be able to simulate the superheated gases that form the suns magnetic field with a one-of-a-kind sphere that moved Wednesday into a new physics lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Jerry O?Brien, executive director of the Kohl?s Center for Retailing Excellence at UW-Madison, believes the move to focus on smaller communities could be a boon for the Shopko brand and its customers.”To find new places right now with the growth that Target and Walmart have had is very challenging,” O?Brien said. “I think it?s really good for these towns. Some of these more outlying towns are not very well served. This will be fun to watch.”
Four UW-Madison professors earned recognition from Education Week blogger Rick Hess as being among the top 50 most influential education scholars in America. That figure was more than all other Big Ten Conference institutions combined, with the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor placing two academics in the top 50 and Northwestern one. Those being recognized on the UW-Madison campus include: Gloria Ladson-Billings, Adam Gamoran; Sara Goldrick-Rab, and Douglas Harris. John Witte, a professor of public affairs and political science, was also recognized.
It was the week before Christmas, and D.A. Henderson was alarmed about germs. He isn?t easily rattled: Dr. Henderson led the successful worldwide effort to eradicate smallpox in the 1970s, and he directed the U.S. Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness after the deadly anthrax letter attacks and the destruction of the World Trade Center in 2001. But recently not just one but two laboratories had engineered the virus known as bird flu to make it easily transmissible?through the air, among mammals?and that was a scary development. “Compared to plague or to anthrax, this one has a potential for disaster that dwarfs all others,” says Dr. Henderson, now a distinguished scholar at the Center for Biosecurity of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. “Given our flu-vaccine capacity, which is limited, this could be a catastrophe if it gets out.” The experiments shouldn?t have been done, in his view, and?partly because they could give terrorists a blueprint for making a more deadly form of H5N1 avian-influenza virus?they certainly shouldn?t be published.
UW-Madison virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka and Ron Fouchier, a virologist at the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands, are mentioned in this article.
Like some in the newspaper industry wish it was possible to turn back the clock, Ken Frazier admits to having a certain affinity for the library of not-so-long-ago. “There?s a lot of nostalgia in both worlds for the way things used to be,” says Frazier, who has spent the past 33 years working in libraries on the UW-Madison campus. “There is a lot of affection for the print culture.” Indeed, while Frazier can appreciate history, his affection for the way things used to be didn’t stand in the way of his drive to change with the times and keep libraries relevant for the campus community of today.
RUSSELL PANCZENKO, Director, Chazen Museum of Art: No one knows exactly how many people showed up for the October opening of the expanded Chazen Museum of Art because a mechanism meant to count visitors malfunctioned. But that was about the event?s only major glitch, according to museum director Russell Panczenko. Not bad for a $43 million construction project that nearly doubled the size of the campus art museum and added 22,500 square feet of gallery space that the public can browse for free.
Each season in 2011 had a memorable weather event, some with negative impacts. There were two good snow storms in February. The Groundhog Day blizzard had wind gusts of up to 60 mph and snowfall depths ranging from 1 to 2 feet. That resulted in snow drifts of 6 to 10 feet. The second storm occurred on February 20-21 with snow accumulations between 8 and 15 inches. Freezing rain and sleet also fell across southern Wisconsin.
….During the year, 10 people were directly killed by weather events: one person from a blizzard, one from lightning, one from a tornado, one from non-tornadic thunderstorm winds, one from flooding and five during the July heat wave.
A. Ever wonder why Tupperware containers retain huge droplets of water after a dishwasher cycle, or why plastic cups take longer to air-dry than their glass counterparts? UW-Madison physics Professor Clint Sprott explains that two factors are at play: cohesion and adhesion.
A deadly influenza virus has circulated widely in birds in recent years, decimating flocks but rarely spreading to humans. Nonetheless, because of its persistence in bird flocks, this highly pathogenic virus has loomed as a major public health threat. Seasonal influenza kills less than 1 percent of the people it infects. In contrast, human infections with the H5N1 virus, though exceedingly rare, are fatal in most cases. Should this virus mutate in a way that allows it to be transmitted as efficiently among people as seasonal influenza viruses are, it could take an unprecedented toll on human life.
A number of important scientific and public health questions regarding this virus remain unanswered, including the likelihood of such mutations arising and the mechanisms by which they may occur. Two recent studies co-funded by the National Institutes of Health (including research conducted by UW-Madison bird flu expert Yoshihiro Kawaoka) have shed light on how this potentially grave human health threat could become a reality.
Quoted: “It was a dramatic change in policy direction,” said Charles Franklin, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin. “Certainly the spark was the governor?s decisions of changing employment relations in the state.”
Quoted: The regulatory crackdown comes amid what some experts say is frothy, if hard-to-measure, growth for garage sales. “There are no scientific systems for measuring it, but absolutely the growth right now is significant,” said Alfonso Morales, a University of Wisconsin urban-planning professor who studies street markets. “The publications where these people advertise are getting thicker.”
Quoted: Sean Carroll, a geneticist at the University of Wisconsin, says: ?The inventory of genes in a bird would be very similar to the inventory of genes in a dinosaur.
They will have wings. They will shine like a mallard?s feathers. They will do just about everything but take flight. The uniforms the Oregon Ducks will wear to the Rose Bowl are “the most advanced football uniform system ever assembled,” according to uniform designer Nike. Nike unveiled the new uniform designs Tuesday with the flourish of a bird shaking its tail feathers.
Quoted: Justin Doherty, UW associate athletic director
Quoted: Steven Deller, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of agriculture and applied economics, predicted that the funding cuts included in Walker?s current two-year budget will result in 20,000 job losses.
Quoted: “If you compare approval ratings, you may think that just muddling along is not the wrong approach,” said Charles Franklin, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Quoted: “In most of the states where bills were introduced last year, legislators are planning to introduce them again,” said Sam Munger, managing director of the Center for State Innovation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which has researched the issue. Lawmakers in other states (Colorado, Montana, Pennsylvania, New Jersey) also are planning bills, he said. “The banking collapse of 2007 made a lot of people nervous about too-big-to-fail banks,” Munger said.
Winter has been a bust so far in Madison, not only for those trying to ski or sled, but for those who would normally take to the frozen expanses of Lakes Mendota and Monona. We are about to turn the calendar page to January, and there are still large areas of open water on the two big lakes as of Dec. 27, an unusual but not completely unheard of event here, according to UW-Madison?s Stephen Carpenter.
For smokers, there are just a few more days left if you want to kick the habit in 2011. Doctor Michael Fiore of the UW Tobacco Cessation and Prevention Program says most smokers do want to quit, but may need a little extra help getting there. He says that?s why the Tobacco Quit line remains available.
Quoted: Deborah Mitchell, a senior lecturer in marketing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Early in the debate, the state Department of Public Instruction said it could support the school only if it could prove that single-sex classes were effective. UW-Madison professor Janet Hyde was quick to point out such research did not exist. Yet we have ample proof that the current school model fails minority students, especially boys.If Hyde and the DPI applied the same test to Madison schools, the whole district would be shut down!
A: A snowflake can be an individual ice crystal or an aggregate of ice crystals. Ice crystals can grow by water vapor deposition on the crystal or by collisions with other cloud particles.
A: To stave off flu or measles or other afflictions, vaccines prepare our immune systems to identify particular sets of antigens, chemical markers that cover the exterior of viruses.
Communities around Wisconsin can apply next month for a share of a $23.5 million federal grant that state officials initially opposed but that was eventually awarded to UW-Madison to prevent chronic diseases. The five-year grant, awarded in September, targets three efforts: smoke-free apartment complexes, access to exercise and fresh foods, and heart disease screening in underserved areas.
The grant will boost disease prevention programs around the state, said Tom Sieger, prevention coordinator for UW-Madison’s University Health Services.
Quoted: Local councils and board seats are nonpartisan to negate the influence of political machines, said Dennis Dresang, professor of public affairs and political science at the La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison. Those elected are supposed to serve the community with no other agendas.
Quoted: ?Land sales are where the big money is,? Edward Friedman, a political science professor and a China scholar at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said in a telephone interview. ?Every level can see how much better the level above it is doing. And each one wants to live at least that well. The system has within it a dynamic which makes people feel it?s only fair that they get their share of the wealth.?
Quoted: Steven Deller, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of agriculture and applied economics.
There are more mixed signals on the Wisconsin jobs scene. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Thursday released a report showing Wisconsin with the second-highest number of unemployment claims from mass layoff events in the nation last month. A “mass layoff” is any event affecting at least 50 workers, according to the BLS. Its mass layoff report for November estimated Wisconsin with 90 such events in the month, impacting 9,359 individuals.
“The tilt against manufacturing over the last few months is hitting Wisconsin pretty hard,” says Laura Dresser, a labor economist with the Center on Wisconsin Strategy, a UW-Madison think tank.
Quoted: Dr. Ken Nordlund, DVM and clinical professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Officials with the National Institutes for Health are recommending restrictions on the publishing of the findings of a UW-Madison?s researcher?s work on avian flu, over fears bioterrorists could use the information.
AT&T may very well look for a smaller wireless company to buy now that it has given up on plans to acquire T-Mobile USA, or it may just wait for a new administration in Washington, D.C., two UW-Madison School of Business finance experts say. “They?ve got some difficult decisions to make. The government now has set the bar,” said Jim Seward, director of the Nicholas Center for Corporate Finance and Investment Banking. Assistant professor Oliver Levine said he thinks AT&T may wait until a new president is elected before trying another merger. “In a different political environment … they may try to do it again,” Levine said.
A committee that advises the federal government on biosecurity issues is recommending that the details of two experiments on the H5N1 avian influenza virus — including research conducted by UW-Madison bird flu expert Yoshihiro Kawaoka — not be made public due to fears that terrorists could use the information to create a bioweapon.
WASHINGTON ? The U.S. government asked scientists at two research centers, including UW-Madison, not to reveal all the details of how to make a version of the deadly bird flu that they created in labs in the U.S. and Europe. Bill Mellon, UW-Madison associate dean for research policy, said virology professor Yoshihiro Kawaoka has gone through several iterations of a manuscript to the journal Nature to comply with the recommendations.
“That is an awkward situation to be in because, obviously, we?re interested in disseminating science,” Mellon said.
A liberal-leaning Milwaukee think tank is out with a new report blaming state budget program cuts and public worker paycheck reductions for exacerbating Wisconsin?s job struggles. The report from the Institute for Wisconsin?s Future says the reduction in take-home pay for tens of thousands of public employees is now hurting the private sector, as are the drastic state budget cuts for K-12 education. Steve Deller, an economics professor at UW-Madison, says that reducing spending during a deep recession can often make things worse, as this blog chart suggests.
“Economic modeling shows that the extreme cuts to state and local programs cost thousands of jobs and put Wisconsin in a weak position to create jobs,” says Deller, who appeared at the Capitol on Tuesday with Norman and Rep. Brett Hulsey, D-Madison, to introduce the IWF report.
Based on the best and latest weather science, it appears that you will look out your window on Christmas morning and see mostly brown grass. Maybe. Jonathan Martin, professor and chairman of the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the UW-Madison, said that everything from satellite data to computer models to numerical weather forecasts are telling us that, though snowless Christmases are rarer than skinny mall Santa Clauses, this coming holiday may indeed buck the trend.
The following is a guest post by Gilles Bousquet, the dean of the Division of International Studies and vice provost for globalization at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. He is also chair of the Statewide International Education Council and co-chair of the University of Wisconsin System Task Force on Economic Development and Globalization.
At a roundtable discussion last spring in Milwaukee hosted by the Wisconsin International Education Council, the vice president of global human resources at Johnson Controls told educators: ?Our talent development and acquisition activities across the organization are the most critical factors for us as a company to grow and to thrive. So, it is all about people.? At a series of meetings I had with business officials in Beijing, Hong Kong, and Shanghai in November, executives at several American companies ? including giants like 3M and Caterpillar in addition to up-and-coming ones like Madison-based Promega and TrafficCast ? vigorously repeated that same message.
Quoted: ?With Walker?s recent defense of his actions it?s hard to square any cooperation with labor unions, let alone expanding their benefits, with where the GOP is today,? said University of Wisconsin-Madison Professor Charles Franklin. ?This critique of Thompson as an accomodationist, one willing to work with unions to expand their power, seems tailor-made for the campaign.?
Quoted: Meg Gaines, director of the Center for Patient Partnerships at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School, likens the experience to the game Mouse Trap, with patients moving around a board trying to avoid hidden pitfalls.
Quoted: “(Surgeons) feel the advance directive basically ties their hands behind their back, and they?re not given the tools to get them through the surgery,” said Margaret Schwarze, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, who was one of the survey?s authors.
“I think it?s safe to say the goals of Madison Prep would be universally shared,” said Adam Gamoran, director of the university?s Wisconsin Center for Education Research and a supporter of the school. But there’s disagreement among faculty about whether Madison Prep is “the right vehicle,” he said, and “for that reason, it would not be appropriate for the university as a whole or the school of education or WCER to take a stand as an institution.”
Quoted: ?Those are the people on the doorsteps of the service system,? said Marsha Mailick Seltzer, an autism expert at the University of Wisconsin. ?They may not have a diagnosis, but they are there.?
Quoted: “Voters are getting signals from sources that they trust, conservative and Republican sources, that that candidate (Gingrich) has flaws, and some significant flaws,” said Charles Franklin, a University of Wisconsin political scientist and founder of the website PollsandVotes.com.
“If you look broadly across the state, it?s still really rare for a retail establishment to take a stand,” said Dan Olszewski, director of the Weinert Center for Entrepreneurship at UW-Madison. The standard business maxim is that there?s little upside to mixing politics and commerce, although there are notable exceptions, Olszewski said.
Quoted: “A lot of consumers believe it?s a way to assist in all the issues we?re dealing with,” said University of Wisconsin consumer science professor Cynthia Jasper. “They believe that the money spent is reinvested in the local community in terms of taxes and jobs. Many consumers, because of the economic climate, want to to support their local communities.”
A. In geometry, pi (3.14159?.) is defined as the ratio of circumference to diameter, and “if this is the only definition of pi, then computing it to many decimal places would be impossible,” said Jordan Ellenberg, professor of mathematics at UW-Madison.
The winter solstice (from the Latin sol, or “sun,” and stice, or “come to a stop”) is the day of the year with the fewest hours of daylight. This year, this occurs for the Northern Hemisphere at 11:30 pm Wednesday.
Editorial mentions that the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Urban Land Economics Research studied the impact of low- to moderate-income housing developments on communities.
Quoted: Randy Stoecker, UW-Madison professor of Community and Environmental Sociology, has provided support to a number of local community organizations and has worked with Neuschel on several projects. He says he is particularly impressed with how the nurses have used community dinners as an “organizing process” and encouraged residents to take the reins.
Some two dozen people with ties to the University of Wisconsin-Madison joined the prime minister of Norway and a contingent of scientists and explorers at the bottom of the earth on Wednesday to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Norwegian Roald Amundsen becoming the first person to reach the South Pole.
Quoted: “It?s gone under the radar with the stalled reauthorization process,” said Doug Harris, a University of Wisconsin professor who wrote a recent book on education performance metrics. “You get really different answers depending on what you do with these numbers. You can talk all you want about what you do with failing schools but if you haven?t identified schools that are failing, it?s a waste of time.”
Noted: Flirtation-themed Ryan Gosling blogs have been trending on the Web for months as Gosling?s reputation as a sex symbol has grown. The ?Hey girl? meme, which started when one blogger started writing captions on paparazzi photos of the actor, took a turn for the academic in October when Danielle Henderson, a graduate student in gender studies at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, started Feminist Ryan Gosling.
Noted: And in a new twist, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have identified the development of ?superjets? in the Pacific ocean that may have fueled some of this year?s severe weather and heavy rains. These superjets form in the western Pacific when the subtropical jet stream lifts north and combines with polar jet stream. Jon Martin, one of the researchers, says these superjets can bring powerful storms to the Nation?s mid-section and Southeast 7-10 days after they form.
The race for the White House is heating up, and with the Iowa caucus just three weeks away, a University of Wisconsin professor said a pattern in polling numbers may point to a surprise in the race for the Republican nomination.
A UW researcher was honored at the White House Friday for her work to provide more opportunities for women and underrepresented minorities in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
The University of Wisconsin?s IceCube Research Center will be hosting celebrations in honor of the 100th anniversary of the first-ever trek to the South Pole this upcoming Tuesday.
Early in my career, years before I recall being pejoratively called a “filter” or a member of the “mainstream media,” discussions of journalism ethics focused on the straightforward divide between so-called “objective” news reporting and editorial page writing. Today, the Internet has blown up traditional definitions of who is and isn?t a journalist by removing virtually all barriers to entry. There was this adage: Don?t start a fight with someone who buys his ink by the barrel or paper by the boxcar. So obsolete.
Quoted: UW-Madison professor of journalism Stephen Ward, director of the Center for Journalism Ethics.
In response to the recent shooting of a Virginia Tech campus police officer, UW-Madison Police Chief Sue Riseling discussed improvements the university and campus police departments have made to their crisis prevention and response strategies.
Assistant Director for UW Communications Terry Devitt said many of these improvements come in thanks to text alerts and emails, which can reach students instantly. ?[There are] lots of different tools that one can use to get to the university community and beyond very quickly, and we would use the whole menu if the situation warranted it,? Devitt said.
