Technology

A new study from Jade d'Alpoim Guedes, UW associate professor of anthropology, warns that the future of rice arguably the most important crop on Earth is in danger. Due to rising temperatures driven by climate change, projections show that Asias major rice-producing regions may soon pass the thermal limits that have remained consistent throughout the crops history. This would create unparalleled challenges in a region where more than a billion people rely on rice cultivation for their livelihoods.

In March 2021, a group of four linguists and computer scientists published their now legendary paper On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots: Can Language Models Be Too Big? It argued that large language models generate text by statistically predicting likely sequences of words rather than understanding what they are saying. Emily M. Bender, professor of linguistics at the UW, is featured.

Explore recent research from the University of Washington: low-income communities and communities of color disproportionately impacted by air pollution, an unfathomably fast chemical reaction, ups and downs in the methane record, and the cigar galaxy pictured at high resolution.

The Simonyi Survey Telescope at the NSFDOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory has officially begun its ten-year survey of the southern sky, the Legacy Survey of Space and Time.

The Seattle Homelessness Count is a UW Department of Sociology project led by Professor Almquist with graduate students and UW partners. It develops and pilots new methods for counting unsheltered people experiencing homelessness, with particular attention to individuals who do not actively engage with services and are most likely to be missed by conventional enumeration.

A growing body of research shows how air pollution, fertilizers and fungicides are altering the chemical signals that plants and animals use to communicate. Scientists warn that insect reproduction, foraging, navigation and even the pollination of crops could be affected. Jeff Riffell, professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

AI-generated journalism provokes distrust from readers, with audiences favoring a human touch. Matthew Powers, professor of communication at the UW, is quoted.

As students, teachers and employers wrestle with the demands of an increasingly AI-powered world, the UW has a new proposition: an interdisciplinary AI minor, with an anthropologist and a computer scientist at the helm. The UW's Magdalena Balazinska, professor and director of the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, and Ben Marwick, professor of anthropology, are quoted.

For decades, scientists have understood that plants can release volatile organic compoundsessentially airborne chemical signalsto attract the natural enemies of the things that eat them, like caterpillars. What we didnt know was exactly how a plant translates the physical act of being eaten into a specific, predator-summoning distress signal. Adam Steinbrenner, an associate professor of biology at the UW, is quoted.

A hummingbird darts up to a flower, slips in its long, thin beak and drinks. The whole visit lasts a fraction of a second, and for years scientists assumed the bird simply sucked the sweet liquid up and swallowed. Alejandro Rico-Guevara, associate professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is mentioned.

Elissa Khodikian, a graduate student in the Department of Biology, researches how certain mosquito species adapt to saline environments in the Pacific Northwest. Originally from Lebanon and later studying in Canada, Elissa came to UW to continue her research under Dr. Andrea Durant. Her story highlights her passion for evolutionary biology and the important role mentorship as well as community have played in shaping her experience at UW.

Mary Brunkow's unconventional journey from UW genetics student to Nobel laureate was shaped by a love of discovery.

Bean plants have been recruiting wasps to fight their battles for them since long before anyone noticed. A caterpillar bites down, the plant releases a chemical signal, and predatory wasps come flying in to finish it off. That part biologists already knew. What they couldnt explain was how the plant told the difference between a caterpillar and a rainstorm. Adam Steinbrenner, an associate professor of biology at the UW, is mentioned.

Included in this science round up is a story about how plants call wasps to their defense. Adam Steinbrenner, an associate professor of biology at the UW, is interviewed.

Explore recent research from the University of Washington: how climate change is redirecting rivers, what bean plants use to protect themselves from pests, where the water in an atmospheric river comes from and how researchers are making tensegrities tiny.