UW-Madison in the Media

A selection of media coverage about the university and its people.

• Badgers, brats and beauty Columbus Dispatch Sept. 22, 2008 MADISON, Wis. -- Ohio State might have the better football team, but the University of Wisconsin just might have the prettier setting. Blame Mother Nature, or whoever it was who decided to stick Wisconsin's capital city and state university on an isthmus between the shimmering blue lakes Mendota and Monona.
• As the Battle Rages, It's Time to Check the Pulse of Swing States Washington Post Sept. 22, 2008 The newly minted Big Ten Battleground Poll, conducted by two University of Wisconsin political science professors, showed Obama with 47 percent and McCain with 45 percent.
• Tight White House race keeps political pollsters busier than ever Detroit Free Press Sept. 22, 2008 Quoted: Charles Franklin, a University of Wisconsin political science professor and co-founder of pollster.com, a website devoted to polling.
• UW Scientists Predict Plants and Biomass Will Be Transportation Fuel Of Future Wisconsin Public Radio Sept. 19, 2008 (MADISON) Scientists have taken another step toward developing cost-effective ways to turn plants and other biomass sources into alternatives to fossil fuels. One challenge has been to remove most of the oxygen atoms to form molecules that will burn. UW Madison chemical engineering professor James Dumesic says in the laboratory, he and some UW colleagues have found a way to make that happen, by passing sugars over catalysts “consisting of nano-particules of precious metal”, in a process that helps remove oxygen atoms from sugar molecules. (Tenth item.)
• The 6 Coolest Jobs for Weird Majors U.S. News and World Report Aug. 29, 2008 Quoted: Cynthia Jasper, chair of the Department of Consumer Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
• New chancellor offers fresh start Wisconsin State Journal Aug. 25, 2008 Incoming UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin arrived on campus last week — just in time to witness the latest spat between staunch supporters and critics of Wisconsin's flagship university.
• Hello, Biddy! UW-Madison's new chancellor arrives on campus Capital Times Aug. 21, 2008 Incoming UW-Madison Chancellor Carolyn "Biddy" Martin moved to town on Friday -- and her belongings finally arrived at Olin House, the official residence of the chancellor, on Monday. "I've started the process of unpacking and moving in," said Martin. "It's a lot of work but I've cleared a path from my bedroom to the coffee maker, and I thought maybe that would do for now."
• Once popular college humor magazines on decline, new exhibit shows off some of the greats (AP) Aug. 27, 2008 MADISON, Wis. (AP) _ The college graduate, wearing the traditional cap and gown, sits on top of the world. A closer look shows the world is actually a bomb and a lit fuse is coming out of one side. The date on the cover is May 1939, more than two years before the United States entered World War II, but the University of Michigan Gargoyle humor magazine was clearly on to something. Published near the end of what is considered the heyday of college humor magazines, that issue of Gargoyle is one of more than 1,000 recently donated to the University of Wisconsin-Madison from what may be the largest collection of its kind.
• Helping boys minus any harm to girls Chicago Tribune Aug. 20, 2008 Remember back in the old days when we used to fret about how girls weren't doing as well as guys in school, especially in math and science? Ah, that seems so last century. Gender gap? What gender gap? That's the message in a new study by five professors at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of California-Berkeley. Although other studies have found similar results, this one is the most sweeping. Comparing math test scores of 7 million students in 10 states from 2005 to 2007, the study found that girls and boys do equally well.
• The healing power of forgiveness San Diego Union-Tribune Aug. 20, 2008 Quoted: UW-Madison professor Robert Enright, who has done extensive work on forgiveness.
• Yellowstone: Back from the Ashes Salt Lake Tribune, The Aug. 18, 2008 Quoted: Monica G. Turner, a University of Wisconsin fire research specialist, wrote along with others in an Ecological Society of America paper.
• Capacity lift for hard disc drives Financial Times Aug. 18, 2008 Materials which have the remarkable ability to assemble themselves spontaneously into microscopic structures are promising to make possible higher-capacity computer hard disc drives at lower cost. The new fabrication method comes as manufacturers reach the limits of hard disc miniaturisation using traditional manufacturing techniques and look to so-called "patterned media" - regular arrays of magnetic material on the disc surface - as the way ahead. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Hitachi scientists have combined the conventional way of creating microelectronic devices - lithography - with these unusual materials, called block co-polymers.
• Editorial: Growing our own Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Aug. 18, 2008 The renewed focus on developing entrepreneurs at the Wisconsin School of Business is an important ingredient for a state that needs more home cooking. Incomes in Wisconsin lag the national average, making economic growth an imperative. But with the exception of communities like Hudson and Kenosha that border large metropolitan areas, most communities in Wisconsin traditionally haven't been able to attract companies from outside the state. That doesn't mean they shouldn't try, but realistically, most growth has to come from existing businesses - or by creating new ones. Under the leadership of University of Wisconsin-Madison business school dean Michael Knetter, and with the strong support of UW's vast network of alumni, the school is trying to produce more graduates interested in starting companies.
• Professor creates microscope program for elementary school kids Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Aug. 13, 2008 When Doug Weibel spotted an $85 microscope at Toys “R” Us, he immediately bought it and brought it home for his children. His children started magnifying everything they could get their hands on - wires, sponges, insects - capturing images and recording movies on a computer linked to the microscope. It struck Weibel, however, that this was not only fun, but also educational. Last December, Weibel, an assistant professor of biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, decided to start an outreach program called MicroExplorers to bring microscopes to classrooms and after-school activities.
• N.O. could see homes values rise New Orleans Times-Picayune Aug. 12, 2008 Quoted: Morris Davis, a professor in the real estate and urban land economics department at the University of Wisconsin, disagreed that increases in home prices should always track increases in rents. Houses in desirable locations can be expected to appreciate, and he said the buyer has to pay upfront for the right to partake of that appreciation.
• Airless Tire Promises Grace Under Pressure for Soldiers Scientific American Aug. 12, 2008 To keep troops from being stranded and easily ambushed on the battlefield, the Army is working with researchers to develop tires for their Humvees that can better withstand roadside attacks. One such design comes from Resilient Technologies, LLC, based in Wausau, Wis., and the University of Wisconsin–Madison's Polymer Engineering Center. With a four-year, $18-million grant from the Pentagon, Resilient is working to create a "non-pneumatic tire" (NPT) technology, called that because it doesn't require air.
• With Drug Testing System Broken, Let Olympic Games Be Doped New York Times Aug. 12, 2008 Quoted: Norman Fost, a professor of pediatrics and bioethics at the University of Wisconsin.
• Between a maverick and a hard place Los Angeles Times Aug. 11, 2008 Quoted: Charles H. Franklin, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin.
• UW-Madison Opens Newest Dairy Facility Ag Weekly (Twin Falls, ID) Aug. 8, 2008 It has been a long road, but one goal of the UW-Madison Dairy Science Department is now reality. The newest addition to UW-Madison’s dairy facilities dedicated to serving Wisconsin’s and the nation’s dairy producers, was officially dedicated last week on location in Arlington. “It has been a relatively long journey for our department and college,” noted Ric Grummer, Dairy Science Department chairperson. But the department now has an elite facility for research to prove that it is the premier dairy science department and school in the country. The new facility is located on Badger Lane outside of Arlington. It includes a parlor and two freestall barns that are all specially geared to foster research projects in an environment that closely resembles a typical dairy operation today.
• Researchers craft curved, eyelike electronic camera Chicago Tribune Aug. 7, 2008 Quoted: Max Lagally, a professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
• Adolescents' TV Watching Is Linked to Violent Behavior Los Angeles Times Aug. 6, 2008 Quoted: Joanne Cantor, professor emeritus of the University of Wisconsin in Madison and a longtime media violence researcher.
• Friedman: China a great power? Then make a deal with the Dalai Lama The Daily Star (Lebanon) Aug. 6, 2008 On the eve of the Beijing Olympic Games, many human rights activists and observers continue to hope that the Chinese Communist Party's embrace of odious regimes such as Burma's and Sudan's, and its oppression of Tibetan Buddhists, Uighur Muslims and Falun Gong spiritualists, will lead democratic heads of state to boycott the Olympics, or athletes and spectators to demonstrate on behalf of the victims. I doubt it. The only demonstrations are likely to be those celebrating China's massive gold medal count.
• Erratic climate predicted Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Aug. 6, 2008 A University of Wisconsin-Madison climatologist has found that increased year-to-year climate fluctuations are expected to have drastic effects on the world’s ecosystems. “Climate variability reduces total vegetation cover,” said Michael Notaro, an assistant scientist at the UW Center for Climatic Research. Notaro presented his findings Tuesday at the Ecological Society of America’s annual meeting in Milwaukee.
• Cheese scholar finds magic in milk's transformation Chicago Tribune July 28, 2008 When Scott Rankin smells stinky cheeses—the kind so potent that the French refer to them as "the feet of God"—he doesn't just use his nose. In spite of such a rarefied interest, Rankin isn't an evangelist of the curd, a champion of cheese. No, he's a food scientist, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. He studies not only the chemistry of cheese, but also the intricacies of production (10 gallons of milk equals 1 pound of cheese) and the evolution of craft. He experiences dairy's golden cousin like few others.
• Math Scores Show No Gap for Girls, Study Finds New York Times July 25, 2008 Three years after the president of Harvard, Lawrence H. Summers, got into trouble for questioning women’s “intrinsic aptitude” for science and engineering — and 16 years after the talking Barbie doll proclaimed that “math class is tough” — a study paid for by the National Science Foundation has found that girls perform as well as boys on standardized math tests. Janet Hyde, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, who led the study, said the persistent stereotypes about girls and math had taken a toll. “The stereotype that boys do better at math is still held widely by teachers and parents,” Dr. Hyde said. “And teachers and parents guide girls, giving them advice about what courses to take, what careers to pursue. I still hear anecdotes about guidance counselors steering girls away from engineering, telling them they won’t be able to do the math.”
• The Myth of the Math Gender Gap Time July 25, 2008 A new report by researchers at University of Wisconsin and University of California, Berkeley, aims to overturn the long-held belief that girls aren't as good at math as boys. According to new data, the researchers say, that gender gap has become a myth — a finding they hope will help shift the very real gender gap in math, science and technology professions, which are currently dominated by men.
• X-citement builds for sequel San Diego Union-Tribune July 22, 2008 Quoted: Dean A. Kowalski, a professor at the University of Wisconsin and author of the book “The Philosophy of the X-Files.”
• Explore the world of American cheddar Chicago Daily Herald July 16, 2008 Quoted: Bill Wendorff, dairy professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and cheddar judge for the American Cheese Society.
• Foodies go crackers for Potter's Capital Times July 15, 2008 Thanks to an innovative pair of Madison food entrepreneurs, the lowly cracker gets to be a star at the snack table, rather than just the unsung transport vehicle for cheese or savory dips. But it's not just any cracker that chefs like Chicago's Rick Bayless of Frontera Grill fame are raving about and local consumers are craving.
• How Ritalin Works Popular Science July 14, 2008 You’d think that a drug prescribed to 10 million Americans would be well understood. But until now, scientists haven’t firmly grasped why Ritalin helps the scatterbrained. In a University of Wisconsin-Madison study published recently in Biological Psychiatry, researchers found that the stimulant works by optimizing brain signals in the prefrontal cortex.