The Wisconsin Week Wire — June 14, 2006
Top News
Diet, aging study gains $7.9 million grant
A pioneering long-term UW–Madison study of the links between diet and aging in monkeys will continue through 2011 with the help of a new $7.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.
On Campus
Events calendar
Chilled water line bursts near Memorial Union
A deteriorating chilled water line underneath North Park Street near the Memorial Union burst on June 8, causing water to bubble up through the roadbed and flood the area. It lifted up the road and the sidewalk on the west side of the Union. The resulting damage has required several days of repairs. Because of the break, some 11 buildings in the lower campus area were temporarily without air conditioning. All but a few were back on line the next day. At the Memorial Union, there was water damage reported in a basement art storage area and in computer support. A damage estimate is not yet available. Kevin Corcoran of the Physical Plant’s steamfitter shop says the old cast iron chilled water lines deteriorate over time because of various forms of corrosion. “The outside of the cast iron lines was coated with a thin layer of tar, which breaks down over time. Anaerobic corrosion begins and over the years turns the cast iron into a hard, nonmetallic material. Since all of the strength is gone, the pipe begins to leak and, like all leaks, gets bigger and bigger until a major failure occurs.” Corcoran says new ductile water mains are installed with a polyfilm between the pipe and ground to stop the anaerobic corrosion.
Milestones
Political scientist named to Fulbright professorship in Australia
Kenneth Mayer, a UW–Madison professor of political science, has been named to a Fulbright Distinguished Chair at the Australian National University in Canberra.
Hybrid-vehicle team places second nationally
A group of UW–Madison engineering students has spent the last three years building one of the cleanest and most fuel-efficient SUVs in North America. The principles behind the vehicle, appropriately named the “Moovada,” could one day be incorporated into mass-production hybrid SUVs. The effort is part of a contest, “Challenge X: Crossover to Sustainable Mobility,” sponsored by General Motors and U.S. Department of Energy.
Track athlete finishes third in NCAA 100 meters
UW–Madison junior Demi Omole finished third in the 100-meter dash on the final day of the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Sacramento, Calif. Omole’s six points allowed the Badger men to finish eighth with 30 points in the final team standings, their highest outdoor finish since tying for fourth in 1997.
Community
Mental health professionals can study violence, suicide
Fox Valley mental health professionals can learn about the risk assessment and management of suicide and violence in two UW–Madison seminars scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, June 26 and 27, in Appleton.
Play to learn: Team brings video games to the classroom
Researchers at UW–Madison and elsewhere are increasingly arguing that well-designed video games can be powerful tools for learning. That sentiment will be at the heart of the second annual Games, Learning and Society Conference, to be held Thursday–Friday, June 15–16, at the Monona Terrace in Madison.