8.25.2022

Flipping out

It’s a gnawing question for anyone who’s hovered anxiously over the backyard grill: Should I flip them again? Backyard wars have been launched over the question of the optimal number of times to flip hamburgers, steaks or zucchini on the grill—is once sufficient? Does ten flips result in a better, more quickly cooked burger? It’s a question that also fascinated Professor of Mathematics Jean-Luc Thiffeault, who was inspired to develop a simple mathematical model to explore the issue. The upshot? Well—you’ll have to read more to find out. Read More

Graphic depicting a pattern committing to memory.

Stereotypes persist

Stereotyping is a hard habit to break, according to a new study co-authored by Patricia Devine, a UW-Madison psychology professor, William Cox, a scientist at UW–Madison who studies prejudice, and former Cox lab manager Xizhou Xie. More than 1,000 people participated in a task that involved deciding whether men in social media profiles were gay or straight. People’s responses were not as surprising as their learning patterns, say researchers.

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Photograph of a scanned Korean text, with X-ray fluorescence.

Pressing influence

The invention of the printing press was a watershed moment in human history. Though Johannes Gutenberg often receives credit as the inventor, Koreans were actually the first to develop a movable-type printing press. UW physicist Uwe Bergmann and student Minhal Gardezi are working with international experts to determine whether Gutenberg knew about the Korean printing press. Read More

Clean energy

John Berry, a professor of chemistry, just snagged a Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation patent for a novel catalytic process involving the oxidation of ammonia through bonds with a quirky element called ruthenium. The process can potentially be harnessed to produce electricity—cleanly. Funding from the U.S. Department of Energy is powering Berry and his students to work on fuel cells that could pave the way to a nitrogen-based fuel economy. Read More

This story appeared in Letters & Science Magazine

Chancellor Mnookin at milwaukee state fair.

Whirlwind week

Chancellor Mnookin’s first week on the job looked exciting – she was everywhere, it seemed, including on the pitcher’s mound at a Brewers game! Campus photographers caught the highlights, and the play-by-play offers a stirring look at your alma mater through the eyes of its new leader. Read the Photo Essay

Instagram Takeover Promo Summer 2022 screenshot

Summer Takeover

Remember those "What I Did This Summer" presentations your teachers made you do when you were younger? Our Dean's Ambassadors spent their summers enjoying some amazing experiences—and shared them with our Instagram Nation through weekly takeovers. Come with us and experience a summer in France, a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin, a view of the front lines in a Menominee Tribe Health Center and more @UWMadisonLS

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