1. Biodegradable gel boosts immune system’s attack on several cancers in mice

    Photo of a high-magnification of the hydrogel (in blue) encapsulating T cell-activating platelets (in red) and nanoparticles that release a drug to inhibit tumor-boosting cells (in green). This gel inhibited the growth of cancer cells after surgical removal of different types of tumors.

    A new biodegradable gel improves the immune system’s ability to keep cancer at bay after tumors are surgically removed. The gel, tested in mice, releases drugs and special antibodies that simultaneously deplete immune-blocking cells called macrophages from the surgical site and activate T cells so they can attack cancer. University of Wisconsin–Madison scientists tested the […]

  2. UW-Madison: Canine TV preferences could lead to answers in protecting dogs’ eyesight

    Photo of Freya Mowat, UW-Madison, feature image

    Television: It’s not just for people anymore. These days, programming created specifically for dogs is more frequently popping up on our screens. YouTube offers a nearly endless supply of dog-centered videos, and there’s a growing number of television and streaming channels promising 24/7 content to keep pups entertained or even alleviate stress or separation anxiety […]

  3. A science trailblazer retires: Stem cell researcher James Thomson’s legacy changed the future of biology

    Photo of James Thomson, who says the unique landscape at UW–Madison helped stem cell science thrive in ways that aren’t possible at most universities. DAVID NEVALA FOR THE MORGRIDGE INSTITUTE

    The developing human body will eventually grow from a tiny two-celled zygote to a massively complex system comprising more than 37 trillion cells. If a single cell represented one second in time, all of our cells combined would span 1.8 million years. James Thomson helped the scientific world turn its attention to the shape-shifting stem […]

  4. UW-Madison: New lightweight super material could battle bullets, deflect space debris

    Photo of Ramathasan Thevamaran

    University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers have created a nanofiber material that outperforms its widely used counterparts — including steel plates and Kevlar fabric — in protecting against high-speed projectile impacts. Basically, it’s better than bulletproof. “Our nanofiber mats exhibit protective properties that far surpass other material systems at much lighter weight,” says Ramathasan Thevamaran, a UW–Madison […]

  5. UW-Madison: Ultraprecise atomic clock poised for new physics discoveries

    Photo of one of the first steps in creating the optical atomic clocks used in this study, which is to cool strontium atoms to near absolute zero in a vacuum chamber, which makes them appear as a glowing blue ball floating in the chamber. IMAGE PROVIDED BY SHIMON KOLKOWITZ

    University of Wisconsin–Madison physicists have made one of the highest performance atomic clocks ever, they announced Feb. 16 in the journal Nature. Their instrument, known as an optical lattice atomic clock, can measure differences in time to a precision equivalent to losing just one second every 300 billion years and is the first example of […]

  6. Research to application — Fog detection software helps airlines keep travelers safe

    Satellite image: In 2021, the GOES-R Fog and Low Stratus satellite product became operational in National Weather Service offices across the country. Helping airlines and passengers avoid costly delays and warning smaller aircraft of potential danger. Credit: Corey Calvert

    Fog and low stratus clouds over airports can create dangerous travel conditions that result in costly delays and disrupted travel plans. The US National Weather Service offices monitor and issue warnings when conditions are favorable for the formation of fog and low-level clouds. These warnings are used by the airlines to anticipate conditions, avoid delays and […]

  7. New Immersive Simulator Lets Game Players Reimagine Land Use Based on Real Science

    Photo of land use simulator

    UW–Madison researchers teamed with New England conservation nonprofit Mass Audubon to create an online learning game that lets players model how different zoning choices would affect the environment, jobs, housing and other real-world factors for any location in the contiguous U.S. Built using a variety of state and federal data sets, the free game, known as iPlan, lets […]

  8. New UW–Madison research projects to benefit Great Lakes

    Photo of Lake Michigan shoreline as seen from Sheboygan. Six research projects at UW–Madison will examine aspects of lakes Michigan and Superior. SSEC

    The Great Lakes contain 95 percent of all the fresh surface water in the United States, and Wisconsin is fortunate that two of those lakes make up its northern and eastern borders — 1,000 miles in all, supporting 105 Great Lakes communities. Stewardship of the lakes is critical for the entire state, which benefits from […]

  9. UW-Madison teams up with NFL on research designed to reduce head injuries in athletes

    Photo of Daniel Cobian holding a specialized mouthguard that will be used by football players involved in the study. The sensors in the mouthguard will collect data on head impacts.

    Researchers at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health are partnering with the National Football League (NFL) to study how on-field head impacts can inform injury reduction efforts at the professional and collegiate levels. Researchers will collect data from high-tech mouthguard sensors currently being used by the football team at University of Wisconsin–Madison […]

  10. “The implications are enormous”: UW-Madison graduate student’s innovative climate research could change building design

    Photo of Gesang, who presented her research at the 100th American Meteorological Society annual meeting, in Boston, January 2020. Her poster was also named outstanding student poster at the conference.

    When she was young, Gesangyangji would stare at the peaks on the mountains surrounding Lhasa, her birthplace in the Tibetan Plateau. They were covered in snow. But as she grew up she noticed the snow disappearing, the white lines chased up the mountain by gray and green rock. “I was wondering,” she said, “Why is […]