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  • Hummingbirds don't use their beak like a straw to drink nectar

    According to a study by the UW, hummingbirds move their bills and tongues very quickly to drink a flower's nectar. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.
    12/10/2024 | BBC Newsround
  • UW study finds big risks, little protections for whales from ship strikes worldwide

    Whether its smartphones or sneakers, toys or tents, about 80% of commercial goods are transported to markets around the world using giant container ships. As global shipping routes grow to meet increasing demand, so too does the likelihood of fatal collisions with whale species whose ranges overlap with them. Anna Nisi, a postdoctoral scholar of biology at the UW, is interviewed.
    12/10/2024 | Oregon Public Broadcasting
  • Ship strikes now leading cause of whale deaths, UW study finds

    With the near complete end of commercial whaling, ship collisions are now a leading cause of death worldwide for large whale species, according to new research published in Science. Yet little is done to manage this risk. Anna Nisi, a postdoctoral scholar of biology at the UW, is quoted.
    12/10/2024 | The Seattle Times
  • Bendy bills allow hummingbirds to down nectar quickly

    Hummingbirds, among the smallest birds on the planet, flap their wings at as much as 80 beats a second. And scientists have been studying how they get enough nectar to satisfy that energy demand. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.
    12/09/2024 | Cosmos Magazine
  • Hummingbird bills are an evolutionary wonder

    At first glance, hummingbird bills look like straws — long and thin, perfect for sipping nectar. But a new study reveals that this comparison is far from accurate. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.
    12/09/2024 | Earth.com
  • The GPT era is already ending

    This week, OpenAI launched what its chief executive, Sam Altman, called “the smartest model in the world”—a generative-AI program whose capabilities are supposedly far greater, and more closely approximate how humans think, than those of any such software preceding it. The start-up has been building toward this moment since September 12, a day that, in OpenAI’s telling, set the world on a new path toward superintelligence. Emily M. Bender, professor of linguistics at the UW, is quoted.
    12/09/2024 | The Atlantic
  • More than 10,000 supernovae counted in stellar census

    More than 10,000 supernovae counted in stellar census

    Since 2018 the Zwicky Transient Facility, an international astronomical collaboration based at the Palomar Observatory in California, has scanned the entire sky every two to three nights. As part of this mission, the ZTF's Bright Transient Survey has been counting and cataloging supernovae — flashes of light in the sky that are the telltale signs of stars dying in spectacular explosions.

    12/06/2024 | UW News
  • Exotic new superconductors delight and confound

    Three new species of superconductivity were spotted this year, illustrating the myriad ways electrons can join together to form a frictionless quantum soup. Matthew Yankowitz, assistant professor of physics and of materials science and engineering at the UW, is quoted.
    12/06/2024 | Quanta Magazine
  • That’s no straw: Hummingbirds evolved surprisingly flexible bills to help them drink nectar

    That's no straw: Hummingbirds evolved surprisingly flexible bills to help them drink nectar

    Hummingbird bills — their long, thin beaks — look a little like drinking straws. But new research shows just how little water, or nectar, that comparison holds. University of Washington scientists have discovered that the hummingbird bill is surprisingly flexible.

    12/05/2024 | UW News
  • Professor Kai-Mei Fu preparing a quantum experiment in a lab.

    The Quantum Quest

    Quantum science is poised to tackle problems of mind-boggling complexity, with UW faculty and students in Arts & Sciences and Computer Science & Engineering playing a key role in quantum research.

    December 2024 Perspectives