Research Landing Page

  • Can Machines Learn Morality?

    UW researchers at the Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences and in the Allen School are exploring the potential for training AI to value altruism.

    September 2025 Perspectives
  • Get to know the ratfish and the forehead teeth it uses during sex

    Scientists studied how ratfishes, also known as chimaeras or ghost sharks, ended up with one of evolutions most bizarre appendages. Research by Karly Cohen, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Washingtons Friday Harbor Labs, is mentioned.
    The New York Times
  • Will the James Webb telescope lead us to alien life? Scientists say we're getting closer than ever

    Three years into its mission, the James Webb Space Telescope has advanced the search for alien life more than any machine before it. What will it find next? Victoria Meadows, professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.
    Live Science
  • Deep beneath the French Alps, dark matter hunters narrow their search

    Physicists have floated numerous theories to explain what dark matter might be, but to date, no experiment has turned up compelling evidence to support any of them. An international team of physicists, including researchers from the UW, is now working on a new kind of dark matter detector with the goal of capturing the first direct observation of the puzzling material. Results from the detectors prototype have already ruled out one of the leading theories of how dark matter originated.
    UW News
  • Washington schools to enforce stricter cell phone policies this fall

    When State Superintendent Chris Reykdal urged Washington school districts to crack down on in-class cell phone use last year, he was echoing a national outcry from educators struggling to keep students focused. This fall, most districts are rolling out new policies aimed at curbing smart device distractions during school hours. Luca Magis-Weinberg, assistant professor of psychology at the UW, is quoted.
    The Seattle Medium
  • Little shrimp, big problem: Farming, science and politics collide on the coast

    Its been seven years since Pacific Seafood stopped trying to grow oysters on a particular mudflat on the Washington coast. Two years since the Washington Department of Natural Resources last experimented with killing the shrimp infesting it by compacting the sediment with an amphibious, tracked vehicle known as the Marshmaster. Jennifer Ruesink, professor of biology at the UW, has been monitoring the ground ever since. But the latest round of funding for the project will be drying up at the end of the month, and this trip will be her last. Haleh Mawson, research scientist in biology at the UW, is also mentioned.
    Chinook Observer
  • Donald Trump is waging war on woke AI

    The American people do not want woke Marxist lunacy in the AI models, proclaimed President Donald Trump in July just before signing a series of executive orders, including one apparently aimed at stopping artificial intelligence (AI) models from brainwashing users with left-wing propaganda. Jillian Fisher, doctoral student of statistics and of computer science and engineering at the UW, is quoted.
    The Economist
  • UW study shows how a Seattle program offering cash for produce is faring

    A city program that gives low-income households $40 a month to buy fruits and vegetables significantly improved their food security, a new University of Washington study found. Melissa Knox, UW teaching professor of economics, is quoted.
    The Seattle Times
  • Fresh Bucks boosts fruit and veggie intake in Seattle

    New research from the UW indicates that Seattles Fresh Bucks program, which provides monthly stipends to buy fruits and vegetables, significantly improves food security and boosts fruit and vegetable consumption among low-income residents. Melissa Knox, UW teaching professor of economics, is quoted.
    The Seattle Medium
  • The robots are here to fix your relationships

    Couples are using (and loving) AI-powered apps for everything from conversation starters to sex tips. Therapists are less convinced they can replace the human touch. The UW's Nicholas Velotta, doctoral student of sociology, and Pepper Schwartz, professor of sociology at the UW, are mentioned.
    Allure
  • Rubin Observatory is ready to revolutionize astronomy

    Perched on a high, flat-topped mountain called Cerro Pachn, the Rubin Observatory was conceived back in the 1990s to give astronomers the unprecedented ability to probe the cosmos in every dimension. With a wide and deep view of the sky, Rubin can investigate some of the universes slowest, most eternal processes, such as the assembly of galaxies and the expansion of the cosmos. eljko Ivezi, professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.
    Science News
  • Q&A: How marginalized artists invented the Broadway musical

    A new book from David Armstrong, University of Washington affiliate instructor of drama, is an historical and cultural account of how the Broadway musical was predominantly created by people marginalized from mainstream society. The book, Broadway Nation: How Immigrant, Jewish, Queer, and Black Artists Invented the Broadway Musical, traces this history through four major eras.

    UW News
  • New salamander-like species, saber-toothed predator and others uncovered from Permian Period

    What was the Permian Period like? What creatures thrived there before the period came to an abrupt end? Thanks to efforts by an international research team, 17 years of fossils collected in Africa may help us paint a better picture of this time period before the Great Dying event altered life on our planet. Christian Sidor, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Burke Museum and professor of biology, is quoted.
    Discover Magazine
  • Going deep on the Vera Rubin Observatory, with eljko Ivezi

    What will Rubin Observatory discover that no ones expecting? Neil deGrasse Tyson and comedian Chuck Nice learn and answer cosmic queries about the Vera Rubin Observatory, the Legacy Survey of Space and Time and our next big tool to uncover more about the universe with Zeljko Ivezi, professor of astronomy at the UW.
    StarTalk
  • AI chatbots sway political opinions but education could offer protection

    If youve faced the frustrating challenge of trying to pull a friend or family member with opposing political views into your camp, maybe let a chatbot make your case. New research from the UW found that politically biased chatbots could nudge Democrats and Republicans toward opposing viewpoints. Jillian Fisher, doctoral student of statistics and of computer science and engineering at the UW, is quoted.
    GeekWire