Natural Sciences Division

DANCE 345: “Boogie, Break, Blues: American Popular & Social Dance Histories” explores the history of social dance movements.

Anyone who has been stung by a jellyfish might think they know more than enough about cnidocytes, the cells that deliver the sting. But a researcher has found that these cells have much more to tell, including insight into a simple evolutionary mechanism that may enable jellyfish, sea anemones, corals, and their relatives — collectively known as cnidarians — to quickly adapt to new environments. Billie Swalla, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

“Death penalty advocates most frequently focus on deterrence [as a justification for the death penalty] — but as research including my own work shows, it has not been shown to be effective,” writes David Barash, professor emeritus of psychology at the UW.

Carley Long, a senior studying art and psychology, and Shiuan Chu, a junior studying art, explain what it is like to learn the art of ceramics at home.

A South African tip led to the discovery of mutations around the world. With infections skyrocketing, “it’s a race against time.” Carl Bergstrom, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

Interested in the College of Arts & Sciences but don’t know what to study? Here are six majors that you may not have discovered yet.

It’s a moth, it’s a plane, it’s … the Smellicopter, a little drone that senses odors with an onboard moth antenna. Seriously, that’s the scientists’ real name for their creation, a system that monitors the electrical signals sent from the antenna of an actual moth, allowing the drone to lock onto the source of a scent and navigate toward it. The UW’s Melanie Anderson, a doctoral student in mechanical engineering, and Thomas Daniel, professor of biology, are quoted.

Whether you want to run a marathon, eat more healthfully or just get off the couch a little more, “for the majority of people, setting a goal is one of the most useful behavior change mechanisms for enhancing performance,” says Frank Smoll, professor of psychology at the UW. “It’s highly individual.” But goal-setting strategies will help you stay the course.

Department of Statistics faculty are featured in this article about their COVID-19 research.

A 19th-century claim has fueled a 21st-century debate about how a warming climate might reshape animals. One "rule," declaring that animals in warmer regions usually have darker exteriors, whereas those in cooler regions are lighter, is being reconsidered. Lauren Buckley, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

For months, Jonathan Kanter, research associate professor of psychology at the UW, has been leading local and national studies on how people have been coping with quarantines and isolation. Yet he’s not doing any better than the rest of us. Adam Kuczynski, a graduate student in psychology at the UW, is mentioned.

A trove from a Portuguese trading ship that sank in 1533 preserved genetic traces of whole elephant lineages that have vanished from West Africa. Sam Wasser, research professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

Daniel Kuo-Ching Chen, director general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Seattle, signed a memorandum of understanding of cooperation with UW President Ana Mari Cauce on Dec. 8. Based on the memorandum, the Taiwan government provided $1.8 million for the UW to strengthen its Taiwan studies program in the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies and launch a Taiwan arts and culture program.

Jason Hodin, a biology research scientist at UW’s Friday Harbor Laboratories, talks about his work successfully breeding sunflower sea stars.

Election-related falsehoods have subsided, but misleading claims about the coronavirus vaccines are surging — often spread by the same people. Carl Bergstrom, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.