Science Writer & Editor based in Seattle

UW News • 22nd March 2024

Signs of life detectable in single ice grain emitted from extraterrestrial moons

The ice-encrusted oceans of some of the moons orbiting Saturn and Jupiter are leading candidates in the search for extraterrestrial life. A new lab-based study led by the University of Washington and Freie Universität Berlin shows that individual ice grains ejected from these planetary bodies may contain enough material for instruments headed there in the fall to detect signs of life.

UW News • 6th December 2022

Newly documented population of polar bears in Southeast Greenland sheds light on the species’ future in a warming Arctic

Scientists have documented a previously unknown subpopulation of polar bears living in Southeast Greenland. The polar bears survive with limited access to sea ice by hunting from freshwater ice that pours into the ocean from Greenland’s glaciers. Because this isolated population is genetically distinct and uniquely adapted to its environment, studying it could shed light on the future of the species in a warming Arctic.

UW News • 3rd May 2021

Earthquake early warnings launch in Washington, completing West Coast-wide ShakeAlert system

When the Big One hits, the first thing Washington residents notice may not be the ground shaking, but their phone issuing a warning. The University of Washington-based Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, the USGS and the state Emergency Management Division have activated a system called ShakeAlert that sends earthquake early warnings throughout Washington state.

UW News • 28th April 2020

Agricultural pickers in US to see unsafely hot workdays double by 2050

The conditions for workers who pick crops, from strawberries to apples to nuts, are expected to worsen with climate change. The average picker now experiences 21 days each year when the daily heat index — a mix of air temperature and humidity — exceeds workplace safety standards. New UW research shows the number of unsafe days in crop-growing counties is expected to double on average by 2050.

UW News • 15th April 2020

UW Center for Philosophy for Children helps families explore ‘big questions’ around COVID-19

The UW Center for Philosophy for Children provided resources to support kids' big questions and feelings surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. This article led to the center being covered by The New York Times.

UW News • 10th June 2019

Mysterious holes in Antarctic sea ice explained by years of robotic data

The winter ice on the surface of Antarctica’s Weddell Sea occasionally forms an enormous hole. A new study led by the University of Washington combines satellite images of the sea ice cover, robotic drifters and even seals outfitted with sensors to better understand the phenomenon. The research explores why this hole appears in only some years, and what role it could play in the larger ocean circulation.

UW News • 16th August 2016

Twins, especially male identical twins, live longer

Twins not only have a "bestie" from birth — they also live longer than singletons. And those two factors may be related, according to new University of Washington research.

UW News • 17th November 2015

New report outlines Puget Sound region’s future under climate change

The Puget Sound watershed — the area west of the Cascades Mountains that stretches from the state capitol up to the Canadian border — is warming. It also faces rising seas, heavier downpours, larger and more frequent floods, more sediment in its rivers, less snow, and hotter, drier summer streams. A new report by the University of Washington synthesizes all the relevant research to help people prepare.

UW News • 12th May 2014

West Antarctic Ice Sheet collapse is under way

The West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which holds enough water to raise global seas by several feet, is known to be thinning at its edges. University of Washington glaciologists used detailed maps and computer modeling to show that an inevitable collapse appears to have already begun.

UW News • 15th April 2013

Preparing to install the world’s largest underwater observatory

The University of Washington is preparing to build the world’s largest underwater observatory. The National Science Foundation launched the $239 million effort to create a cabled observatory that will bring power and Internet to the ocean floor. This new concept will use remote-controlled instruments and high-bandwidth video to create an enduring, real-time presence in the deep ocean.

UW News • 14th August 2010

Gaming for a cure: Computer gamers tackle protein folding

Biochemists and computer scientists at the University of Washington have launched an ambitious project harnessing the brainpower of computer gamers to solve medical problems.The game, Foldit, turns one of the hardest problems in molecular biology into a game. Results published Thursday show that the collaboration can lead to scientific discoveries.

UW News • 10th February 2009

Bus left you waiting in the cold? Use your cell phone to track it down

Brian Ferris, a PhD student in computer science at the UW, spent one too many rainy nights waiting for the bus before deciding to take action. He and a classmate launched OneBusAway, which later became the focus of his graduate research.

UW News • 10th April 2008

Popcorn-ball design doubles efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells

By using a popcorn-ball design — tiny kernels clumped into much larger porous spheres — UW researchers are able to manipulate light and more than double the efficiency of converting solar energy to electricity.

UW News • 17th January 2008

Contact lenses with circuits, lights a possible platform for superhuman vision

University of Washington electrical engineers have for the first time used manufacturing techniques at microscopic scales to combine a flexible, biologically safe contact lens with an imprinted electronic circuit and lights.

Nature News • 27th February 2006

Butterflies poke holes in DNA barcodes

A study of butterflies has highlighted a hotly debated glitch in DNA barcoding, a scheme by which some researchers hope to quickly catalogue vast numbers of species.

UCSC Science Notes • 1st June 2005

The coming cure for AIDS?

This feature article explores the Step Study, a clinical trial led by the Seattle-based HIV Vaccine Trials Network to test a promising Merck candidate for a vaccine against HIV.