Wisconsin Engineer Magazine
UW-Madison’s legacy in stem cell research continues – molding cell behavior through material, ex-vitro modeling made in-vitro Just over 26 years ago, developmental biologist James Thomson of UW-Madison isolated human embryonic stem cells for the first time, ushering in a new age of medical research, controversy, and possibilities. Less than a year after his breakthrough, […]
Mass spectrometers are one of the most essential tools in geology. It’s time for their story to be told. It’s traveled to other planets, helped build atomic bombs, and made some of the most important discoveries in geology, but unless you’re a specialist, you probably have no idea what a mass spectrometer is. These machines […]
The UW-Madison Geology Museum celebrated its 175th anniversary over the last few months with many new exhibits – but how does it create its famous displays? Attracting tens of thousands of visitors each year, the Geology Museum at UW-Madison is a campus icon. Featuring lustrous crystals, Cretaceous dinosaur fossils, and a Dane County meteorite, the […]
Mechanical Engineering Associate Professors Corinne Henak and Melih Eritan developed a portable device patented by WARF that tests the failure threshold of soft materials, helps design medical devices, and diagnoses tissue damage. Sound moves through the air as undulating waves of pressure, which sensory receptors on the tiny stereocilia hairs in our ear convert into […]
As the ubiquity of AI seems increasingly certain, we must ask ourselves if it’s being implemented in the right way. This summer marked the return of the NCAA Football Video Game series with the release of College Football 25, or CFB25. Within weeks, the video game exploded in popularity, quickly becoming the highest selling video […]
Madison is committed to eliminating serious injuries and fatalities due to traffic accidents. In 1975, Oslo, Norway had 41 fatalities due to traffic accidents. Forty-four years later, the city lost zero pedestrians and cyclists and had only one total fatality due to traffic accidents. How did Oslo fall from 41 deaths to one? The answer […]
The College of Engineering’s most decorated alum…a fashion designer? Before his passing in 2021, Virgil Abloh achieved global fame and recognition from around the world. Abloh founded the world-renowned clothing brand Off-White, which he headed as CEO. He was the first African American artist director at luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton, and he worked as […]
Materials Science and Engineering Professor Xudong Wang is improving the electrical efficiency and biocompatibility of batteries and implantable electrostimulation devices for tissue repair. When light hits the nacre of an oyster’s inner shell, variations in thickness create shimmering interference patterns, resulting in the lustrous glow of mother-of-pearl. Nacre is composed of thin, microscopic layers of […]
The Máquina fountain has been a popular topic among Wisconsin Engineer writers, but its recent demolition closes an important chapter for the College of Engineering. “That’s supposed to be a fountain?” “Does it actually work?” “I heard that if you turn it on, Agricultural Hall will fall down.” These rumors, exchanged amongst UW–Madison’s student population, […]