UWM Today

As a top tier research university faculty at UWM are engaged in groundbreaking discoveries every day. We feature many of their stories on this program each week. But the impact of that research goes far beyond the confines of the campus.

This week the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Donald Trump for the second time. The historic event followed the tragedy in the U.S. Capitol last week when groups of Trump supporters staged an insurrection — storming the symbol of American democracy in an unsuccessful attempt to stop Congress from certifying the election of Joe Biden as president. Today thousands of national guardsmen are stationed in and around the U.S. Capitol, bracing themselves for potentially more violent demonstrations when Biden is inaugurated on Wednesday. 

Giant kelp is usually found thousands of miles from Milwaukee. It’s known for being an incredibly fast-growing seaweed in the Pacific Ocean. But recently, scientists have learned that the kelp could be a huge source for biofuel. That’s where a UWM scientist, Filipe Alberto, comes into the picture. He is a biologist in UWM’s College of Letters and Science and has received millions of dollars in federal funding to help unlock the secret of how this amazing plant can be engineered to become an important source of energy. 

All of us know the power of the internet to connect people across the world. But there is another type of internet that is designed to optimize the way millions of machines operate. It’s called the Industrial Internet of Things. At UWM there is a new unit on campus working with dozens of companies to learn how the Internet of Things can make manufacturing more efficient and productive. The Connected Systems Institute recently opened its doors and its executive director, Mary Bunzel is our guest today.

On today’s Chancellor’s Report we take a look at what UWM is doing to retain students that have been affected by the on-going pandemic, especially students of color.  We will also explore the recently completed education survey conducted by Strada Education Network and the perils of delaying college and the value of UWM in a post-pandemic world.

Climate change, pollution and over demand are just a few of the challenges that are forcing us to rethink how we use and conserve water. Both globally and in the water-rich Great Lakes region, there's also a need to train the next generation of scientists and technicians to work in the water industry.

Each year, more than 150,000 Americans learn their cancer has spread — or metastasized — to their brain. The UWM App Brewery has partnered with Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Network to develop a smartphone app that streamlines communication among doctors treating these patients. The app not only allows a team of doctors and specialists to reach a consensus on the patient’s care within hours but also recommends best treatment options.

For decades, low-income and minority communities across the United States were intentionally cut off from lending and investment through a system known as redlining. The practice started in the 1930s and lasted decades before being declared illegal. But the impact of redlining remains today as many neighborhoods suffer not only from reduced wealth and greater poverty but from lower life expectancy and a higher incidence of chronic diseases.

Over the past 40 years, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of inmates in America’s prisons and jails. Today more than 2 million people are imprisoned in this country — a 500% increase since 1978. There are many consequences of the mass incarceration in the United States, which has affected families and communities nationwide.

As we move into the homestretch of the presidential election, the political rhetoric is heating up, especially in a battleground state like Wisconsin. While we can all switch the channel or turn off the TV when we have our fill of political advertising, it is not easy knowing how to handle those uncomfortable moments when we are face-to-face with someone we disagree with.

For the past four years, UWM scientists have been involved in one of the largest studies ever conducted into the brain development of adolescents. Funded by the National Institutes of Health, the study is tracking nearly 12,000 kids across the United States — about 400 of them here in southeastern Wisconsin — to see how their brains mature. It’s a fascinating story we have been following here on UWM Today for some time.

We are all getting older with every birthday we celebrate. But we don’t all age the same way. And how we approach aging affects not only us but the people around us.

On this edition of UWM Today, we talk to a UWM English professor who has just published a book about getting older and finding lessons in films, literature and works of art. Ellyn Lem’s new book is titled Gray Matters: Finding Meaning in the Stories of Later Life.

The toll of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused enormous pain and suffering – both in terms of the number of people infected and killed by the virus and those who have lost their jobs. It’s estimated that more than 30 million people continue to be unemployed in our country because of the effects the pandemic has had on society.

The racial equity protests around the country sparked by the death of George Floyd have shed new light on longstanding issues of race and inequality in the United States. In Milwaukee, the protests have once again highlighted the impact of the segregationist practices that were once common in the area and that have contributed to socioeconomic inequality for people of color in the region, especially for the Black population.

As we continue to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, important environmental research continues to take place at top tier research universities across America like UW-Milwaukee.

All too often we take our ability to move for granted. Going for a walk, riding a bike, getting in and out of a chair comfortably. If we can do those activities without pain or discomfort, it becomes second nature. But injuries or illness can have a profound impact on our ability to get around. At UW-Milwaukee’s research park in Wauwatosa, a team working in the Innovation Accelerator building is finding ways to improve health and function of people with disabilities.

Research shows that the main antibacterial ingredients in soaps and personal care products carry health risks when used daily. So when the FDA banned them in 2017, manufacturers chose different agents. Hongbo Ma in the UWM Zilber School of Public Health has tested some of those replacement antibacterial agents and found that they are no safer than the banned ones — and, in some cases, they're worse.