Research

The U.S. National Science Foundation today announced 11 new artificial-intelligence research institutes, including one led by the University of Washington. These institutes are part of a $220 million investment spanning seven research areas in AI. Each institute will receive about $20 million over five years.

In 1920, Serbian-born inventor Nikola Tesla designed and patented what he called a "valvular conduit" — a pipe whose internal design ensures that a fluid will flow in one preferred direction, with no need for moving parts. Based on new CT scans of shark intestines, scientists have concluded that the intestines are naturally occurring Tesla valves. Adam Summers, a professor of biology and of aquatic and fishery sciences at UW Friday Harbor Laboratories on San Juan Island, is quoted.

As many as 60% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. have gone unreported, and the coronavirus has infected nearly 1 in 5 Americans, according to a new model out of the University of Washington. The UW's Nicholas Irons, a doctoral student in statistics, and Adrian Raftery, professor of statistics and of sociology, are quoted.

The number of COVID-19 cases across the U.S. may have been undercounted by as much as 60%, researchers at the UW have found. Adrian Raftery, professor of statistics and of sociology at the UW, is quoted.

Two UW scientists have developed a statistical approach to model how common COVID-19 is in the United States.

By early March 2021, roughly 65 million people in the U.S. — or one out of every five people — had been infected by the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, a new analysis shows. The findings, described in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggest that roughly 60% of coronavirus infections had gone uncounted at that point — adding to a growing body of evidence that the pandemic’s true toll is far greater than official tallies show. Nicholas Irons, a doctoral student in statistics at the UW, is quoted.

Hubble fans, rejoice. After more than a month with its camera eye closed, the famed Hubble Space Telescope is snapping photos of the cosmos once more. Julianne Dalcanton, professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.

Adam Summers, a professor based at UW Friday Harbor Labs, discusses a new study he authored on how shark intestines function.

It's official — NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is back in action after a computer anomaly suddenly shut down the 32-year-old system for a month. And in celebrating its comeback, Hubble released two spectacular new images on Monday showing the depths of the universe. The images were captured as part of a program at the University of Washington.

The odds of living past age 110 are becoming more likely, according to a new study from the UW, which used mathematical modeling to predict the probability of people becoming “supercentenarians” in the years 2020 through 2100. Michael Pearce, a doctoral student in statistics at the UW, is quoted.

Seattle-based health data company Truveta today announced $95 million in fresh funding and the addition of three new participating health care systems, bringing its total to 17. Tyler McCormick, associate professor of statistics and of sociology at the UW, is quoted.

Kevin Kuehn, a UW doctoral student in clinical psychology, discusses the results of his new study on student mental health.

Michael Pearce, a doctoral student in statistics at the UW, talks about his study quantifying how likely it is that someone could live to extreme ages.

In the Honors course "Abolishing Poverty," students untangle the interwoven complexities that lead to impoverishment.

Seattle-based Icosavax has filed to go public via an IPO, just four years after it launched out of the University of Washington. The company, a spin-out from the UW’s Institute for Protein Design, is developing vaccines to resemble naturally occurring viruses. The UW’s Neil King, assistant professor of biochemistry, and David Baker, director of the institute, are mentioned.