The Wisconsin Week Wire — Feb. 6, 2008
Top News
Afternoon, evening classes cancelled
In light of deteriorating weather and road conditions, UW–Madison will cancel all afternoon and evening classes at 3:30 p.m., Provost Patrick Farrell has announced.
Madison declares snow emergency
The City of Madison has declared a snow emergency. That means that alternate side parking restrictions will be in effect throughout the entire City of Madison including the downtown/isthmus snow emergency zone.
With a jolt, ‘nanonails’ go from repellant to wettable
Sculpting a surface composed of tightly packed nanostructures that resemble tiny nails, UW–Madison engineers and their colleagues from Bell Laboratories have created a material that can repel almost any liquid.
Research
Unique whey protein is promising supplement for strict PKU diet
In an effort to expand the dietary options for people with phenylketonuria (PKU), a team of UW–Madison scientists is assessing a protein found only in whey, the liquid byproduct of cheese.
Particle accelerator may reveal shape of alternate dimensions
Researchers from UW–Madison and the University of California–Berkeley say that the telltale signatures left by a new class of particles could distinguish between possible shapes of the extra spatial dimensions predicted by string theory.
On Campus
Events calendar
Undergraduate inventors to compete Feb. 11 and 12
Fourteen inventions will debut at the annual Innovation Days competitions, to be held Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 11 and 12, at Engineering Hall.
Submit nominations for Classified Employee Recognition Awards
The nomination process is under way for the 2008 Classified Employee Recognition Awards, which honor classified employees who have done outstanding work for the university community. Nominated candidates are evaluated on key factors that include promoting excellence within the work unit, performing well under pressure, developing innovative solutions to everyday problems and participating in public-service activities outside normal work responsibilities. The deadline to submit nominations is Friday, Feb. 22. A committee will review nominations and make the final choices. Recipients will receive a commemorative plaque, paid registration to an employee development program of their choice and a cash award. They also are recognized in Wisconsin Week and will be honored at a spring ceremony. For more information, visit Classified Employee Recognition Awards
Third annual Darwin Day planned for Feb. 9
UW–Madison will celebrate its third annual Darwin Day starting at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9, in the Ebling Symposium Center at the Microbial Sciences Building. The morning program includes talks by evolutionary scientists Don Waller, John Yin and Neil Shubin. Afternoon activities will be held from 1–4 p.m. in the Geology Museum at Weeks Hall. All events are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dana Geary at dana@geology.wisc.edu or 263-7754; Mara McDonald at mamcdona@wisc.edu or 263-8941; or Brooke Norsted at brooke@geology.wisc.edu or 262-1412. You also can visit the Department of Geology to learn more.
Professor to perform all 32 Beethoven piano sonatas
An associate professor of piano will perform Beethoven’s piano sonatas in a series of concerts this semester.
Faculty book series features human rights around the world
The International Institute’s book series will celebrate the contributions that faculty make to the study of human rights.
Students choose service over sun on alternative breaks
Alternative Breaks challenges hundreds of students each year to participate in hands-on volunteer experiences in environments drastically different from home.
Black History Month events planned on campus
February is Black History Month, and it will be celebrated in many ways at UW–Madison.
Milestones
Political scientist named to panel studying pre-primary polling
Unraveling the mystery behind why pre-election polls in the New Hampshire presidential primary were so dramatically off-target is the mission of a select panel that includes a UW–Madison political scientist.