News and Events
Great ideas sought for WID competition
To chart the direction of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID), the committee and campus leaders charged with formulating the vision for the new interdisciplinary institute have issued a call for research theme proposals from UW–Madison faculty.
Morgridge Institute to hold symposium on integration of math, biology
To address the challenge and position UW-Madison scientists for the future, the Morgridge Institute for Research, part of the new Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, has slated the first symposium on the Integration of the Mathematical and Biological Sciences, to be held Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 2-3.
Wiley to tackle interim role leading new institute
Outgoing University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor John D. Wiley has been named the new interim director of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID), the public half of the new research center that promises to be a model of interdisciplinary science and public-private collaboration.
Institute sponsors symposium to explore integration of math, biology
The Morgridge Institute for Research and the Graduate School are sponsoring a two-day symposium open to faculty and academic staff interested in exploring the interfaces connecting the mathematic, computational and biological sciences, and the major impact of these evolving interactions on research, education, training and discovery.
Competition sets focus for WID
As construction of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery gets under way, many are wondering exactly what will happen inside the new research facility on University Avenue when it opens in 2010.
Groundbreaking held for Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery
Gov. Jim Doyle and UW-Madison alumni John and Tashia Morgridge joined the UW-Madison community on May 2 to celebrate the start of construction of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
Groundbreaking ceremony for Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery planned
Gov. Jim Doyle and University of Wisconsin-Madison alumni John and Tashia Morgridge will join the UW-Madison community at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, May 2, to celebrate the start of construction of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
WID established as Graduate School center
In fall 2007, the proposal (1.5 Mb PDF) for the public Wisconsin Institute for Discovery was approved by the University Academic Planning Council, establishing the institute as a center within the Graduate School.
Stem cell pioneer James Thomson to steer regenerative medicine at MIR
The Morgridge Institute for Research, the private, not-for-profit side of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, is announcing the appointment of world-renowned stem cell pioneer and researcher James Thomson as the first member of its multidisciplinary scientific leadership team.
Morgridge Institute launches Web site
The Morgridge Institute for Research launched a new Web site today, Feb. 25, 2008.
Campus learns about building plans at town hall meetings
Throughout the month of October, the UW–Madison and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation hosted a series of town hall meetings on campus to inform the university community about the latest building plans for the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
Planning for interaction at Institutes for Discovery
As a first-generation college student at a small liberal arts school on the East Coast, Gwen Drury was struck by how physical space influenced the way people interact.
Work begins on future site of Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery
A major change will begin to take shape on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus this month as construction begins at the future site of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
Town hall meetings to introduce building plans for Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery
On October 1, 8 and 10, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) are hosting a series of town hall meetings to inform the UW-Madison community about the latest building plans for the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
Institutes will provide space for science, arts, community
Faculty, staff and graduate students are invited to give input on the design of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery during upcoming town hall meetings, planned for Oct. 1, 8 and 10.
Town hall meetings scheduled for Oct. 8, 10 and 25
Join colleagues from across campus in learning about the new interdisciplinary Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, designed to foster collaborations that result in breakthrough discoveries.
Team seeks to add advanced microlenses to technology
Most of us peer through lenses every day, but the “microlenses” devised by engineering professors Hongrui Jiang and Dave Beebe aren’t nearly so ordinary. Made of liquid and designed to be self-adjusting, these tiny lenses are a breed apart from their counterparts in eyeglasses and cameras.
Healing chronic wounds through use of nanoscale surfaces
It’s both costly and frustrating when doctors are unable to heal persistent wounds, such as diabetic ulcers or pressure sores in patients with limited mobility. Traditional treatments are often less than satisfactory. But thanks to funding from the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery seed grant program, UW–Madison researchers have been freed to explore a novel and revolutionary approach to coaxing persistent wounds to heal.
Researchers seek early detection for hard-to-diagnose disease
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is characterized by infertility due to anovulation, abnormal secretion of androgens and other hormones, and insulin resistance. PCOS is the most common female endocrine disorder, affecting 4-7 percent of women in their reproductive years — the syndrome accounts for 75 percent of all anovulations. PCOS has staggering adverse physiological, psychological and financial consequences for women’s reproductive health.
Fishing for new anti-inflammatory, cancer drugs
Though cell movement and migration in the body play a central role in mediating injury and disease, including inflammatory responses and cancer metastasis, drugs designed to stifle cells’ nomadic tendencies are scarce. A new interdisciplinary research project funded by the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery seed grant program seeks to develop a novel drug-discovery process that may start to fill this gap.
Scaling up stem cells: Project aims to churn out cells in quantity, quality
For scientists, one of the charms of human embryonic stem cells is their ability to divide and replicate — as far as we know — forever in the culture dish. That defining trait, the ability to constantly make new cells, suggests it might be possible to generate a limitless supply for therapy, research and industrial applications such as high-throughput drug screens.
In quest for less risky drugs, scientists listen to neurons
Since the 1950s, doctors have been ordering medications such as Ritalin to ease symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and prescriptions now number in the millions. Still, though highly effective, so-called “psychostimulant’” drugs are not without risks, leaving many seeking safer alternatives, especially for children.
Breaching a gateway to the cell, drug discovery
With support from the Discovery Seed Grant Program, Wisconsin scientists are poised to bring a novel approach to finding new medicines by deploying the atomic force microscope — the foremost tool of the nanotechnologist — to screen agents as they dock with critical cell receptors.
Study focuses on closing school achievement gap
Despite decades of interventions and billions of dollars spent, a large gap in school achievement stubbornly persists between underprivileged children and their more advantaged peers. With funding from the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery seed grant program, UW–Madison scientists will now bring their collective expertise to bear on one important, but overlooked, cause of this troubling problem.
Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery seed grant winners named
The research program of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery at the University of Wisconsin-Madison gets underway today (Feb. 21), as officials announce the results of a campus-wide competition for the institutes' Discovery Seed Grants.
Construction manager chosen for Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery
Findorff Mortenson, a joint venture of J.H. Findorff & Son of Madison and M.A. Mortenson of Minneapolis, will build the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery and the Morgridge Institute for Research on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, officials announced today (Jan. 23).
Morgridge Institute seeks director
The Morgridge Institute for Research at the University of Wisconsin seeks nominations and applications for the position of Executive Director.
35 research teams invited to submit proposals
Thirty-five research teams encompassing a wide array of disciplines have been selected to submit full proposals as part of the Discovery Seed Grant Initiative at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
Architects chosen to design Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery
Uihlein Wilson Architects of Milwaukee, together with Ballinger of Philadelphia, will design the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery and the Morgridge Institute for Research on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, officials announced today.
Seltzer named interim director of Wisconsin Institute for Discovery
Marsha Mailick Seltzer, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Waisman Center and an internationally recognized scholar of developmental disabilities, has been named interim director of the new Wisconsin Institute for Discovery