1. Better pay for truckers may save money over the long haul, UW-Milwaukee study finds

    Photo of James Peoples: “This problem was there long before COVID, but COVID just made it worse,” said UWM economist James Peoples, referring to a shortage of truck drivers that is projected to hit a record high. (UWM Photo/Elora Hennessey)

    Increasing average pay for truck drivers by about 6% might entice them to stay longer in an occupation that historically has had high turnover, while also saving trucking companies money, a study says. The promise of higher pay, of course, typically helps to keep workers in any occupation from looking around for new jobs. But […]

  2. Freshwater science: A knockout for mercury?

    Photo of Working in a lab made Ashley Lutzke realize how much she loved science.

    When Elizabeth Johnson, graduated with a Biology degree from the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire in May 2021, she had a big advantage in the job market. She knew how to use CRISPR, a rapidly advancing technology that can be used to edit genes.   “I’ve had many job opportunities because they see that I’ve worked with […]

  3. UW-Milwaukee history alum forges cultural connections at Luxembourg museum

    Photo of UWM history alumna Serena Stuettgen holding up an artifact from the archives at the Luxembourg American Cultural Society museum, where she is a curator. (Photo courtesy of Serena Stuettgen)

    The only thing that Serena Stuettgen knew about Luxembourg was that it was a small country in Europe. Even so, she applied as a curator at the Luxembourg American Cultural Society Museum (known as LACS) in 2019, hoping to land her first full-time museum job. Today, she helps museum patrons track their Luxembourg lineage, helps tell the […]

  4. A greener business model: How the private sector can lead where government hasn’t

    Photo of UW-Milwaukee professor Melissa Scanlan, who provides a blueprint for an alternate business model that incorporates green practices, pays living wages and preserves community jobs in her new book, “Prosperity in the Fossil-Free Economy.” (UWM Photo/Elora Hennessey)

    Countries have debated how to combat climate change since the early 1990s. And yet little progress has been made as governments grapple with how to set and enforce emissions-reduction commitments. That’s what motivated Melissa Scanlan to investigate how action by the private sector might spur business to do what governments have not: prioritize environmentally sustainable […]

  5. UW-Milwaukee student takes an unanticipated path to becoming a water scientist

    Photo of UW-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences student Tyler Kunze, who developed an appreciation for the environment while growing up on a dairy farm outside of Green Bay. (UWM Photo/Heidi Jeter)

    Tyler Kunze never anticipated a career as a water scientist. Yet in May, he became the first student to earn a bachelor’s degree in water science from UW-Green Bay. He’s now a graduate student in UW-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences. “It’s been a long and winding road getting here,” said Kunze, who grew up on […]

  6. The future looks fresh: New collaboration will boost Wisconsin water research, policy, and economy

    Photo of faculty from five UW campuses who met in July at the UW-Waukesha field station for a daylong retreat to plan Freshwater Science 101, a new course to be offered to students at UW-Madison, UW-Milwaukee, UW-La Crosse, UW Oshkosh, and UW-Parkside. Pictured are Eric Strauss, Robert Stelzer, Jake VanderZanden, Mike Carvan, Greg Kleinheinz, Jessica Orlofske, and Marlin, who gave them a tour of the station. Taking the photo was Tracy Boyer. Photo courtesy of Heidi Jeter.

    On a sunny afternoon in late September, a group of undergraduate students boarded Limnos II, UW-Madison’s Center for Limnology (CFL) pontoon boat, for a field trip on Lake Mendota with CFL director, Jake Vander Zanden. Onboard, they learned about the formation of Wisconsin’s lakes, tried their hand at using limnological tools like Secchi disks and zooplankton […]

  7. UW-Milwaukee anthropology field school teaches students how to unearth the past

    Photo of field school students excavating a patch of farm field to expose pit and post hole features at the Koshkonong Creek Village site. (Photo courtesy of the Anthropology Department)

    As he ventured through the field towards the dig site, Seth Schneider had to be careful where he put his feet. To his left were rows of newly planted tobacco, and to his right were the uncovered remains of an ancient village site. Nestled on a small strip of dirt at the edge of the […]

  8. UW-Milwaukee researchers create a breakthrough tool for superfast molecular movies

    Photo of UW-Milwaukee researchers who contributed to the paper, including Peter Schwander (from left), Abbas Ourmazd, Marius Schmidt, Russell Fung and Ahmad Hosseinizadeh, who is the first author. (UWM Photo/Troye Fox)

    Scientists are trying to discover the exact sequence of events that occurs when light strikes photoactive proteins, changing their atomic structure, or “shape.” That biochemical process unfolds in processes like photosynthesis. Until now, only the first and last states of a molecule before and after certain ultrafast chemical reactions could be determined. Scientists want to […]

  9. Mystery radio wave signal from the heart of our galaxy found

    Image of strange radio waves from an unknown source, which have been discovered in the direction of the center of our galaxy. (Illustration by Sebastian Zentilomo)

    An international team of astronomers that includes one from UWM has discovered unusual radio signals coming from the direction of the center of the Milky Way galaxy, but they don’t have any idea what the source is. The pattern of the radio waves fits no currently understood variable radio source and could suggest a new […]

  10. UW-Milwaukee children’s center celebrating 50 years of care, learning, and fun

    Photo of Ryan Rupp, who attended the Children’s Learning Center as a child and now, his children are there. Rupp is pictured at the 50th anniversary celebration with his wife, Brenda Hasse-Rupp, and their two children, Arthur and Margot. (UWM Photo/Elora Hennessey)

    Fifty years ago, the Children’s Learning Center at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee opened its doors to serve students who needed child care. Since then, thousands of children have gotten an educational foundation as well as care through the center, which serves children from six weeks old to 12 years. The center kicked off its 50th anniversary […]