Roundup of campus research news
PostedFebruary 4, 2026
New Resource on Ensuring Science Rigor
Explore the Libraries’ new website—developed in partnership with the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research—that connects researchers to tools, guidance, and training that support rigor, transparency, and integrity throughout the research lifecycle.
Visit the new page: https://www.library.wisc.edu/research-support/ensuring-scientific-rigor/
New UW Data Center Working Group is officially underway
The Data Center Working Group is fostering research connections and collaboration on data center-related topics. The group recently held a kickoff meeting hosted by the Sustainability Research Hub and the Data Science Institute with more than 40 people in attendance.
The Data Center Working Group is led by the
Data Science Institute and the
Sustainability Research Hub. It is a cross-campus, interdisciplinary community focused on advancing research, collaboration, and strategic engagement related to data centers and their technical, environmental, social, economic, health, and policy dimensions. The group connects faculty, researchers and staff to share expertise, surface emerging research opportunities, and support early-stage team formation in a rapidly evolving funding and industry landscape. Initially guided by an ad hoc coordinating group, the Working Group provides a forum for dialogue, idea development, and external engagement, with the long-term goal of positioning UW–Madison as a leader in data center related research, innovation, and broader societal impact.
Affiliation with the Working Group is open to any UW–Madison faculty member, academic staff, postdoctoral researcher, or graduate student with an interest in data centers or related research areas. Participation is voluntary and non-exclusive.
Dark Energy Survey scientists release new analysis of how the universe expands
The latest results combined weak lensing and galaxy clustering and incorporated four dark energy probes from a single experiment for the first time.
The Dark Energy Survey (DES) collaboration — including scientists at the UW–Madison — is releasing results that, for the first time, combine all six years of data from weak lensing and galaxy clustering probes. In the paper, which represents a summary of 18 supporting papers, they also present their first results found by combining all four probes — baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO), type-Ia supernovae, galaxy clusters, and weak gravitational lensing — as proposed at the inception of DES 25 years ago.
“We combined multiple approaches to measure dark energy from a single dataset into a summative result,” says Keith Bechtol, physics professor at UW–Madison and DES collaboration scientist. “More than one hundred people have been working on these results for over a decade, and our group is one of many who contributed.”
The analysis yielded new, tighter constraints that narrow down the possible models for how the universe behaves. These constraints are more than twice as strong as those from past DES analyses, while remaining consistent with previous DES results.
Read the story here.
Healthy Living with Mild Cognitive Impairment program empowers participants across Wisconsin, globally
What began as an educational resource for Wisconsinites is now reaching participants across the country and around the world. The Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center’s (ADRC) Healthy Living with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) educational program is drawing strong participation and positive feedback, connecting people across Wisconsin and beyond with science-backed education on brain health, Alzheimer’s disease prevention strategies and practical tools and resources to support living well with MCI.
The series is hosted by Nathaniel Chin, MD, a memory clinic physician with UW Health and medical director of the Wisconsin ADRC. Jennifer McAlister, BA, outreach and partnerships manager for the Wisconsin ADRC, serves as co-host. Sessions are free and open to everyone.
Read the full story here.
Deciphering the Regulatory Network of a Pathogenic Fungus
In a
new study, researchers from the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID) have created a software tool that can help reveal biological pathways of a notorious pathogenic fungus.
Aspergillus fumigatus, which is found worldwide, can infiltrate a human body and quickly overwhelm the immune system. In immunocompromised individuals, this fungus can cause major damage and has a high mortality rate. The new tool may eventually help researchers address the problems caused by
A. fumigatus.
Read the full story
here.
From the lab to the NICU: UW–Madison researchers pioneer contactless health monitoring
A team of UW–Madison computer scientists is pioneering a new approach to health monitoring: using radar to measure breathing and heart rate without physical contact. Their multiview sensing system could pave the way for safer, more comfortable patient care in settings ranging from neonatal units to in-home recovery.
Read the full story
here.
Undergraduate research inspires community, confidence and growth
Lauren Jacobs is a University of Wisconsin–Madison junior from Oak Creek, Wisconsin with goals of becoming a small animal veterinarian. She wasn’t sure research would be the right fit for her until she learned about Professor Lautaro Rostoll-Cangiano’s lab in Animal and Dairy Sciences. Cangiano and his team, which now includes Jacobs, study on-farm management factors that influence the gut and immune health of calves. They’re currently looking into potential benefits of adding a postbiotic to the diet of crossbreed calves.
Learn more about the research she does and how the opportunity has shaped her UW experience and prepared her for the next steps in her career. Read the full story here.
UW–Madison Research Develops New Framework to Strengthen Instruction for Multilingual Learners
‘LIFT’ Model Integrates Language Development into Core Teaching Practices
As multilingual learners make up a growing share of U.S. classrooms, educators face increasing pressure to support students who are learning academic content and the language of instruction at the same time.
In response, a recent working paper from the Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER), part of UW–Madison’s School of Education, introduces the Language‑Integrated Framework for Teaching (LIFT). It’s a model designed, with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), to help teachers across the country embed a language focus directly into core teaching practices.
“Embedding language into core teaching practices fosters an environment where multilingual learners can thrive academically and linguistically,” says education researcher Mariana Castro, co-director of WCER’s Multilingual Learning Research Center (MLRC).
The paper, “Language-Integrated Framework for Teaching (LIFT): A Framework Supporting Multilingual Learners Through Core Teaching Practices,” is part of an NSF project that supports the preparation of future science teachers in developing the skills necessary to engage multilingual learners in teaching and learning.
Read the full story here.
UW–Madison Report: Math Achievement Challenges Begin Early, Intensify for MMSD Elementary Students
A new report by the Madison Education Partnership (MEP) is helping guide efforts by the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) to strengthen elementary mathematics fluency by providing insights on students’ math performance during the 2024–2025 school year.
“This report provides a clear baseline,” the document notes, “for understanding where students are in elementary math and for monitoring whether future investments lead to meaningful improvements in learning and equity.”
Fewer than half of students in grades 3 through 5 in MMSD met grade-level expectations, the report noted. Additionally, the analysis shows math achievement challenges begin early and intensify as students progress through elementary school. On the state’s Forward Exam, administered in spring 2025 for a snapshot-style result, the share of students performing at the lowest level increased steadily from grade 3 to grade 5. These results show the need to address cumulative learning gaps before students enter middle school.
Read the full story here.
New UW-Madison Study Offers Ways to Increase Adult Enrollment in College
A new journal article co-authored by School of Education doctoral student Sky Duke and professor Taylor Odle recommends ways for states to increase older-adult enrollment in college by examining whether a large program in Michigan offering free community college tuition for adults aged 25–64 actually worked.
The paper’s aim was to measure the “causal impact” of the statewide program, known as “Michigan Reconnect,” on older-adult enrollment overall and on enrollment of older adults by gender, full- or part-time status, and age. The information is important because these impacts have rarely been rigorously studied, despite rapid growth in free or reduced tuition programs across the country.
Read the full story here.
