I&D

• Flu-infected fly cells reveal dependencies of the virus July 9, 2008 By giving fly cells the flu, scientists have identified scores of host genes the pathogen requires for successful infection, revealing a raft of potential new pressure points to thwart the virus.
• Zero-gravity team finds spray cooling works in space July 8, 2008 For the 10th consecutive year, University of Wisconsin-Madison students have found themselves floating upside down over the Gulf of Mexico.
• Green snowmobile logs first month at Arctic research station July 3, 2008 An electric snowmobile built by student members of the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering Clean Snowmobile Team is now in Greenland, on loan to the National Science Foundation (NSF) for the summer to support climate research projects at the Greenland Environmental Observatory (GEO Summit Camp).
• Ice creamier: ‘Edible antifreeze’ puts the smooth in smoothie July 1, 2008 It's Friday night, and the movie's already spinning in the DVD player. You run to the kitchen to grab a gallon of ice cream and a spoon, but you find the tub nearly empty.
• Political science researchers partner to improve Wisconsin elections June 30, 2008 University of Wisconsin-Madison political science researchers are taking a key role in a federally funded project to improve the state's ability to collect accurate election returns.
• Airless tire project may prove a lifesaver in military combat June 26, 2008 An ambitious startup company in Wausau is working on a project to develop tires that can withstand extreme punishment, even those meted out in military combat zones.
• Studies of cell traits nets big award for UW-Madison researcher June 24, 2008 UW-Madison biochemist Doug Weibel has received a prestigious Searle Scholar Award.
• Study uncovers how Ritalin works in brain to boost cognition, focus attention June 24, 2008 In a paper publishing online this week in Biological Psychiatry, UW-Madison psychology researchers report that Ritalin fine-tunes the functioning of neurons in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) - a brain region involved in attention, decision-making and impulse control - while having few effects outside it.
• Newly born twin stars show surprising differences June 18, 2008 The analysis of the youngest pair of identical twin stars yet discovered has revealed surprising differences in brightness, surface temperature and possibly even the size of the two.
• Study: Breast cancer patients with greater need seek more information online June 18, 2008 Patients with more concerns about their breast cancer are heavier users of online information, according to a new study conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Excellence in Cancer Communications Research, funded by the National Cancer Institute.
• Ebb and flow of the sea drives world’s big extinction events June 16, 2008 A new study, published online June 15 in the journal Nature, suggests that it is the ocean, and in particular the epic ebbs and flows of sea level and sediment over the course of geologic time, that is the primary cause of the world's periodic mass extinctions during the past 500 million years.
• Ancient mineral shows early Earth climate tough on continents June 13, 2008 A new analysis of ancient minerals called zircons suggests that a harsh climate may have scoured and possibly even destroyed the surface of the Earth's earliest continents.
• Agent in red wine found to keep hearts young June 4, 2008 How, scientists wonder, do the French get away with a clean bill of heart health despite a diet loaded with saturated fats?
• Milky Way’s infrared portrait gives new view of galaxy June 3, 2008 Astronomers have obtained an entirely new perspective of our home galaxy: a complete mosaic portrait of the Milky Way in infrared light, a picture that when printed measures 180 feet long by 4 feet wide.
• Students design ‘disaster’ for Wisconsin rescue training facility June 2, 2008 When University of Wisconsin-Madison civil and environmental engineering students Dan Zignego, Jake Varnes, Bill Schmitz and Nick Bobinski began a design project meant to be the crowning glory of their educational careers, they never thought it would turn into such a disaster.
• UW-Madison students design ‘disaster’ for Wisconsin rescue training facility May 30, 2008 When University of Wisconsin-Madison civil and environmental engineering students Dan Zignego, Jake Varnes, Bill Schmitz and Nick Bobinski began a design project meant to be the crowning glory of their educational careers, they never thought it would turn into such a disaster.
• Book details provocative, sometimes gruesome history of organ, blood donations May 29, 2008 Today, a "blood drive" is a cheerful community event, featuring cookies and chats with the neighbors in the high school gym. But a century ago, the first successful blood donations occurred when two people were sewn together by their blood vessels as blood flowed from the donor to the recipient.
• Green highways: Research targets environmentally friendly asphalts May 27, 2008 For those hoping to create a greener world, our country's millions of miles of asphalt roads may seem like an odd place to seek solutions. Yet, it's precisely because asphalt is so common that we have much to gain from making it more eco-friendly, says University of Wisconsin-Madison civil engineering professor Hussain Bahia.
• Astronomers witness the birth of a supernova May 21, 2008 An international team of astronomers, acting on a tip from a NASA satellite that serves as an early warning system for the most violent astronomical events, has caught a supernova in the act.
• African dust forecast may help hurricane season predictions May 20, 2008 As the official June 1 start of the Atlantic hurricane season approaches, forecasters are developing predictions about the severity of this year's season. For the first time this year, African dust may provide a piece of this puzzle.