There are many ways walking benefits the mind. For example, it can improve sleep and reduce stress. We talk with Dr. Shilagh Mirgain, a Distinguished Psychologist and Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, about how walking helps our mental health.
Category: UW Experts in the News
UW Health expert weighs in on nationwide liquid Albuterol shortage
Pharmacy Director at UW Health Philip Trapskin said the shortage is being experienced in Dane County too. He adds the future of the shortage is hard to predict, but it’s not something to panic about.
Stalagmite from Cave of the Mounds shows evidence of sudden warming during last ice age
Researchers with the University of Wisconsin-Madison say a stalagmite from Cave of the Mounds in southern Wisconsin holds clues about the impact of abrupt, global climate changes during the last ice age. A team of UW-Madison scientists led by Cameron Batchelor removed a stalagmite about the length of a pinky finger and used chemical and physical analysis to detect telltale signs of sudden warming in the atmosphere. A paper on their research was published this month in the journal Nature Geoscience.
“This work really puts Wisconsin on the map in terms of showing that this region of the world is not immune to these abrupt climate change events,” Batchelor told Wisconsin Public Radio.
Varying temperatures mean different maple syrup seasons for northern, southern Wisconsin producers
Dane County resident Dominic Ledesma is one hobbyist who jumped on the early warm weather. Ledesma, who is chief diversity officer for the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Division of Extension, started tapping trees at his home and his family’s cabin in Jackson County last year after learning about the craft from his colleagues. He said sap was flowing in when he first tapped his trees in February, but collection slowed down in Jackson County as the weather turned cold again.
“The season really didn’t take off,” he said. “In talking with other colleagues in Extension, I certainly noticed some very significant differences between the southern part of the state and Jackson County.”
Can new, sweeter beets defeat stigmas? Wisconsin breeders hope so
“It’s no longer your grandmother’s pickled beets,” said Adam D’Angelo, a UW-Madison graduate student and plant biologist. “You go to the grocery store, and you find beet juice, beet chips, beet this and beet that.” D’Angelo and UW-Madison horticulture professor Irwin Goldman recently appeared on Wisconsin Public Radio’s “The Larry Meiller Show” to discuss their work redesigning beets for modern tastes. Goldman said people often complain “about the fact that they taste like dirt.”
“You look at it, and you think of the huddled masses of our ancestors and their old-style foods,” Goldman said. “But there’s something about its earthiness, about its color and its beauty that I find has grown on me over the years I’ve worked on it.”
Ad war heats up as spending shatters records in Wisconsin Supreme Court race
“We’re not going to set the record, we’re gonna blow it out of the water,” said David Canon, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Canon said it was hard to say what WMC’s ad buy would mean for the race because there hasn’t been any public polling. “Although one thing that I think you can infer from that is that if they thought this was not a winnable race, they wouldn’t be putting more than $3 million into it,” Canon said.
What happened to ‘Milwaukee-ese’? It hasn’t gone anywhere, but it has changed.
Noted: Joe Salmons, a linguist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, says this is not just a Milwaukee concern — it’s a national and an international perception that dialects are disappearing.
Children who grew up in Milwaukee at the turn of the 20th century spoke languages besides English at home and likely learned English as adults, Salmons said.
When it comes to smog, Cook County in Illinois is the worst neighbor in the country, EPA finds
“The good news is the air is getting cleaner,” said Tracey Holloway, an air quality researcher at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. “But the bad news is researchers are finding there are health effects at lower levels of exposure.”
Strep throat has hit Wisconsin hard. Here are answers to 10 important questions.
Dr. Greg DeMuri, a pediatric infectious disease doctor for UW Health Kids and professor at UW-Madison’s School of Medicine and Public Health, said this year’s strep season has been unlike anything he’s seen in his decade studying and treating the disease.
High stroke risk threatens the keepers of Oneida culture. Now, tribe works with UW to improve health.
Now, at a special health education event on the farm, she watched as Chef Arlie Doxtator, her nephew, cooked roasted corn mush in a clay pot and taught attendees about the benefits of traditional foods. Joining Doxtator remotely was Dr. Robert Dempsey, a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher and neurosurgeon.
Free meals for Wisconsin students would have broad benefits, Dems say
Jennifer Gaddis, a University of Wisconsin-Madison associate professor and expert on school food programs who has advocated for universal free meals, said she’s heard from food and nutrition directors around the state that the number of students receiving free school meals has dropped — despite efforts to inform parents about the process.
Georgia Lawmakers Throw Punches Over Russian-Inspired ‘Foreign Agent’ Law
Mikhail Troitskiy, professor of practice at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, formerly worked at the MacArthur Foundation in Russia for almost six years “until the Kremlin’s restrictive measures on NGOs kicked in and made philanthropy in Russia almost impossible.”
What Scientists Know About Long COVID, 3 Years In
Dr. Nasia Safdar, medical director of infection control at the University of Wisconsin, told CNET in 2021, when scientists were first getting a grip on long COVID, that the key to discerning the condition is to pay attention to new symptoms that develop or ones that never go away, starting about 30 days post-infection. This separates long COVID from the initial viral infection itself.
China population: How slower growth could hit the global economy
“China’s one-child policy was a mistake,” said Yi Fuxian, an expert on Chinese population trends at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “China is worried because its economic outlook is bleak.”
Bioacoustics is revolutionizing conservation
One of the biologists researching this issue was Zach Peery, from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Peery had been tracking the spotted owl’s decline since 2001, and he knew that a team in the state of Washington had been experimenting with ARUs to help identify northern spotted and barred owls there.
Wisconsin lawmakers return focus to public school reading struggles
Lawmakers will hear from reading experts, including experts from the University of Wisconsin.
Forthcoming genetic therapies raise serious ethical questions, experts warn
Despite the advances, Professor Alta Charo, a bioethicist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, suspects most people will stick with having babies the old-fashioned way. “The biggest risk I see at the moment is that discussion around germline editing will continue to present such dystopian visions as realistic,” she said.
Genome summit to weigh pros and cons of gene-editing
“The summit is a chance to really hear about what’s happening in the field that has the greatest potential for improving human health,” says R. Alta Charo, a professor emerta of law and bioethics from the University of Wisconsin, who helped organize the summit.
Against a more topical opponent, Dan Kelly pins hopes on broad appeal to protecting the Constitution
UW-Madison journalism professor Mike Wagner and UW-Madison political science professor Barry Burden are quoted.
Roadblocks put homeowners in the middle of dispute between tribe, town of Lac du Flambeau
Richard Monette, an expert on Native American issues and director of the Great Lakes Indian Law Center at UW-Madison, said easement issues are not uncommon. In late January, a federal appellate court ruled that a lawsuit filed by the Seneca Nation of Indians against New York state may proceed over the tribe’s longstanding claims that a 1954 land deal permitting a highway to cut through part of its Cattaraugus Reservation was illegal.
A Supreme Court justice’s paragraph could mean weaker protections for voters of color
But the judge cited Gorsuch’s one-paragraph opinion and decided the case had to be thrown out. That’s because, the judge said, the Voting Rights Act does not explicitly say private groups can bring Section 2 lawsuits. Dan Tokaji, dean of the University of Wisconsin Law School, says that literal interpretation of the law doesn’t make sense.
More Doctors Can Now Prescribe Buprenorphine to Opioid Users. Will It Help?
Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, an addiction physician at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who has trained doctors in prescribing buprenorphine, said there were “so many health shortage concerns in rural areas” that it would be hard for health providers to meet demand, “because there aren’t enough clinicians.”
Fossil fuel companies donated $700m to US universities over 10 years
Some researchers argue that partnerships with the oil majors help keep their work relevant to the real world. “They provide a lot of guidance and they keep you honest,” George Huber, at the University of Wisconsin, told the Guardian. Huber’s cellulosic biofuels research has received funding from a variety of fossil fuel companies, including ExxonMobil.
Putin One Skirmish Away From Reaching 150,000 Battlefield Losses: Ukraine
Mikhail Troitskiy, professor of practice at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told Newsweek that it’s difficult for one military faction to calculate its own losses—let alone tally that of an adversary.
Burning Poop Causes – Why Poop, Diarrhea Burns After Spicy Food
“Just apply a dab the size of a dime to the anal opening and create a thin smear,” advises Arnold Wald, M.D., a professor of gastroenterology and hepatology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Sarah Davis and Jill Jacklitz: Don’t nickel and dime patients for online messages to their health providers
Davis and Jacklitz are co-directors of the Center for Patient Partnerships at UW-Madison, which teaches health advocacy.
Video games are not damaging children’s brains: Study
Professor Shawn Green, from the Department of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, added: “The current study found results consistent with previous research showing that types of gameplay that seem to augment cognitive functions in young adults don’t have the same impact in much younger children.”
What is red light therapy? Benefits, uses and more
“In terms of red light therapy for facial rejuvenation, we don’t really have many human studies to look at,” said Dr. Apple Bodemer, a board-certified dermatologist and associate professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. According to the Cleveland Clinic, “most experts say that they don’t know yet if red light therapy is effective for all its claimed uses. Most say that the studies so far show some potential,” but ultimately, more studies are needed to prove its efficacy.
What Ivanka’s Testimony May Reveal to Trump Special Counsel
Ion Meyn, an assistant professor of law at the University of Wisconsin, said that the prosecution is also likely to ask Ivanka about other key players, which could be used to impeach those who denied being a part of certain conversations that day.
Mike Lindell’s ‘No Merit’ Lawsuit Over Jan. 6 Tapes Is Doomed to Fail
Ion Meyn, an assistant professor of law at the University of Wisconsin, also told Newsweek on Friday that Lindell, as a network owner, is “not part of a protected class under the equal protection clause.”
Democracy has a customer-service problem
Think income inequality, an extortionate health-care system, and rural decay. Think, too, about the senses many people have that the sources of power—both public and private—are far away and unresponsive, and that when something goes wrong, they’re on their own. Katherine Cramer, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, has argued that this anger breeds a “politics of resentment.”
Voting Rights Act’s private right of action is in danger
“I think it’s an open question only in the sense that no court has ever felt compelled to expressly say that people whose voting rights have been violated can sue under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act because everyone — and I do mean everyone — understood that that’s what Congress meant,” says Dan Tokaji, dean of the University of Wisconsin Law School, who has written about private individuals suing for violations of federal election laws.
China, Needing Babies, Eases Limits on Births
“The two-child policy failed. The three-child policy failed,” said Yi Fuxian, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who has studied Chinese population trends. “This is the natural next step.”
Inflammation of the body may explain depression in the brain
“Activation of these inflammatory pathways in the body and brain is one of the ways through which depressive symptoms can be produced,” said Charles Raison, a professor of human psychology, human ecology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
After receiving tens of millions from federal government for internet upgrades, big telecom companies ask state for millions more
Despite all the federal money that’s already been distributed, much work still needs to be done to bring high-speed internet to the entire state, said Gail Huycke, a community development outreach specialist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension who focuses on broadband expansion.
Covid-19 pandemic: Celebrities may have helped shape anti-vaccine opinions, study finds
The study doesn’t get into exactly why celebrity tweets would have such an impact on people’s attitudes about the vaccine. Dr. Ellen Selkie, who has conducted research on influence at the intersection of social media, celebrity and public health outcomes, said celebrities are influential because they attract a lot of attention.
Outcomes in Wisconsin Supreme Court race, challenge to abortion law seen as inextricably linked
“We are in fairly new territory here,” said Ryan Owens, a UW-Madison political science professor who briefly ran for attorney general as a Republican. “We have seen candidates in the past lay out their judicial philosophies pretty clearly. Judge Protasiewicz, however, takes this beyond what we have seen before.”
Slamming the Door on Scholarship
“It’s a significant rupture,” said Theodore P. Gerber, a professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and director of its Wisconsin Russia Project. “It seems like there’s not going to be a happy ending any time soon.”
Sexual attacks against teen girls increased in 2021, CDC report found
“We really don’t have that robust evidence-based, supportive, trauma-informed education at scale in the United States. And at this particular time in history, it is especially needed given what we’re seeing,” said LB Klein, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Such a curriculum would be included in what’s known as comprehensive sex education.
Wagner’s Ammo Problem Could Cost Them Bakhmut Amid Massive Losses
The contention of Mikhail Troitskiy, professor of practice at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is that Prigozhin is “going all in now” due to the number of mercenaries within his group being “decimated” in cities like Bakhmut and otherwise.
Abortion, redistricting loom large over Wisconsin Supreme Court race
“I’m not sure that there’s going to be much oxygen in the room for anything beyond that, frankly. It just seems to be where the left has made its home in this race, as it did in the midterms,” said University of Wisconsin-Madison political science professor Ryan Owens.
‘Extremely consequential’ Supreme Court primary race
“If one of the liberal candidates win it means that the state Supreme Court is likely to hear more cases that might advantage more liberal constituencies in the state and potentially decide cases in ways that advantage them,” said Mike Wagner, political analyst and professor in the School of Journalism at UW-Madison.
Breaking down the big races in Wisconsin’s Feb. 21 primary election
Video: Prof. Mike Wagner from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication joins Live at Four to talk about the key races on the ballot for Tuesday’s primary.
Weekly checkup with UW Health’s Dr. Jeff Pothof
Video: UW Health’s chief quality officer Dr. Jeff Pothof joins Live at Four to talk about the latest COVID-19 news, including an analysis of immunity after a previous infection.
In New York, 2 Teens’ Deaths Underscore Dangers of ‘Subway Surfing’
In an increasingly digital world, the blurring of lines between screen and reality can normalize risky behavior, said Dr. Megan Moreno, interim chair of the department of pediatrics and principal investigator of the Social Media and Adolescent Health Research Team at the University of Wisconsin.
In Wisconsin’s supreme court race, a super-rich beer family calls the shots
“It’s escalating rapidly,” said Barry Burden, a political science professor at University of Wisconsin – Madison. “If $15m, $20m, $25m is spent on this race it’s more than you see in governor’s races in some states.”
Wisconsin Supreme Court race could be the most consequential, expensive judicial race ever
“If the Supreme Court election went to a liberal candidate, it’s quite likely that the [1849 abortion ban] would get contested in the state Supreme Court,” UW-Madison professor of journalism and mass communications Mike Wagner said. “And we might then predict that that law would be overturned, kind of re-establishing abortion rights in Wisconsin.”
Wisconsin Supreme Court race holds high stakes for abortion, redistricting and 2024
“This seat is crucial to the balance of the court, and the court is crucial to the balance of the state,” said Barry Burden, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and director of its Elections Research Center.
GOP, Tony Evers look to lower-cost housing as potential middle ground
“The idea is that the cost to build a new apartment is the same whether its intended for market rate occupancy or affordable occupancy,” said Kurt Paulsen, UW-Madison professor of urban planning. “If you want developers to build affordable units, you need to provide a capital subsidy.”
How to let go of a grudge
Grudges exist on a spectrum, says Robert Enright, a professor in the department of educational psychology at the University of Wisconsin Madison and a founding board member of the International Forgiveness Institute. Some grievances don’t impact your daily life, but you remember them nonetheless. These surface-level grudges are easier to relinquish, Enright says. Others take root in the soul and can grow into hatred.
Mother Nature Has the Best Climate-Fixing Technology
Gregory Nemet, a co-author of the “State of Carbon Dioxide Removal” report and a public policy professor at University of Wisconsin at Madison, told me that pretty much all successful CO2 removal to date has come from natural climate solutions like protecting forests, planting trees and better managing soils. So I asked him, “Why not invest heavily in that?” To my mind, supporting and expanding the extraordinary potential of natural ecosystems to perform carbon removal is what investors and policymakers should be focusing on — not fantastical machines.
Q&A: UW professor explains why you should care about shared revenue
Though you may not have heard of it, shared revenue is a financial lifeline for local governments in Wisconsin — and it’s entered the spotlight as communities scramble to fund essential services.
The EPA is updating the social cost of carbon to better fight climate change
I called up a philosopher to help me make sense of this. His name is Paul Kelleher. He’s a bioethicist at the University of Wisconsin.
Invasive Rusty Crayfish Appear to Be Dying Off and It’s Not Clear Why
“It can be tough to get an actual population estimate because there’s so many rusty crayfish in a lake,” lead study author Danny Szydlowski, a Ph.D. researcher at University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Limnology, told Newsweek.
Expanding paid family leave ‘critically important’ to attracting workers, Gov. Tony Evers says
“Having access to paid family leave makes it more likely that people will stay in the labor force after having a child,” said Sarah Halpern-Meekin, a UW-Madison associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies.
Rusty crayfish disappearing from some northern Wisconsin lakes — and that’s a good thing
Many of the lakes have seen steady declines of the crustacean, with a handful of lakes falling to nearly zero. Szydlowski, who is now working on a PhD in freshwater and marine science at UW-Madison’s Center for Limnology, said that the declines could be caused by a fungal disease and by crayfish destroying their own habitat.
Rural Americans hit harder by inflation, economists say
“I think that the rural households are getting sort of nickel and dimed on inflation,” said Tessa Conroy, an economic development specialist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Animals with love lives more complicated than yours
Male Neopyrochroa flabellata beetles are attracted to a chemical called cantharidin. “Males eat the stuff like candy,” said Dan Young, a professor of entomology at the University of Wisconsin Madison. “They then sequester it away in their bodies, and they then transfer it to females when they copulate.”
Rebuilding public’s trust in government requires good governance and celebrating often invisible successes
Column by Manuel P. Teodoro, associate professor of public affairs at the La Follette School of Public Affairs.
It’s Time We Talked About Our Bambi Problem
In the forests of Wisconsin and Michigan, research suggests, expanding whitetail populations are responsible for at least 40 percent of the change observed in forest structure. “It’s rare in ecology to find one factor that accounts for so much change,” says Donald Waller, a retired professor of botany at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, who has studied white-tailed deer for over 20 years.