Natural Sciences Division

When astronomers first dreamt up the Vera Rubin Observatory in the 1990s, the sky above the Chilean Cerro Pachn, where the star-observing machine was to be located, looked different than it does today. Meredith Rawls, a research scientist of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.

The College of Arts & Sciences celebrates undergraduate and graduate students from across all four divisions, who are recognized for making the most of their time at the UW. 

Imagine an art class where you only did paint by numbers, or a music class where you werent allowed to play a song until you practiced scales for 20 years. This is often what its like to take a math class, where students spend most of their time learning to solve problems that have already...

Alejandro Rico Guevara is one of the foremost researchers on hummingbird bills. He has spent years studying how hummingbirds use their beaks to feed and fight. But his latest research looked at how human actions seem to be driving a high-speed example of evolution in hummingbird bills.Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is interviewed.

A new type of computer simulation predicts that the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile will discover millions of previously undetected objects in the solar system over the course of the coming decade. Mario Juri, professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.

A group of astronomers from across the globe, including a team from the University of Washington and led by Queens University Belfast, have revealed new research showing that millions of new solar system objects will be detected by a brand-new facility, which is expected to come online later this year.

On June 3, scientists working on the Muon g-2 experiment (pronounced "mew-on gee-minus-two") released the third and final measurement of the muon magnetic anomaly. This result agrees with the published results from 2021 and 2023 but with a much better precision of 127 parts per billion, surpassing the original experimental design goal of 140 parts per billion.

Using a powerful research telescope, astronomy and physics major Max Frissell identified a never-before-seen active comet. Now he’s hooked.

"The new executive order allows political appointees to undermine research they oppose, paving the way for state-controlled science," co-writes Carl Bergstrom, professor of biology at the UW.

Nine months ago, the Seattle school implemented one of the strictest phone bans in the citys public school district, requiring its 755 students to lock up their devices in pouches for the school day. Luca Magis-Weinberg, assistant professor of psychology at the UW, is quoted.

Many bird enthusiasts like to hang bright red feeders filled with homemade sugar water to attract hummingbirds to their gardens. Now, new research suggests this common practice may be driving rapid evolutionary change in one species in California. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.

A new study suggests that Anna's Hummingbirds in the western United States are not only keeping up with human influence on their habitat, they're thriving. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, assistant professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.

As researchers at American universities face an uncertain future, other countries are doing their best to lure scientists away.Is the US set to face a brain drain as top talent moves overseas or into other fields? Carl Bergstrom, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

These birds have evolved to withstand the equatorial sun and shelter in volcanic rocks along a subtropical coastline. After 50 years, biologist Dee Boersma, professor of biology at the UW, continues to learn new things about the species.

"President Donald Trump and members of his administration have long used allegations of anti-Christian discrimination as a rallying cry for supporters, arguing that policies and laws on issues like school prayer and LGBTQ+ rights threaten Christians right to express their beliefs," co-write the UW's Clara Wilkins, associate professor of psychology, and Rosemary (Marah) Al-Kire, a postdoctoral researcher of psychology.