UW News and Information Web     |     UW News     University Week UW News+Community     Mary Levin Season of change As the winds of change blew in a new president this week, they also blew many of the colorful leaves off the trees on campus. This photo preserves the beautiful autumn view around the School of Art. Photo by Mary Levin. VOLUME 26, NUMBER 7   |   11/6/2008  –  11/12/2008  |   UWEEK.ORG Climate Survey 2008: Satisfaction, and continued improvement The results of the 2008 climate survey are in, and show UW faculty and staff are generally satisfied, though there remain areas that need improvement. A homecoming for director of opera ‘Il Mondo della Luna’ Noel Koran, new School of Music lecturer and director of the year’s first opera, Il Mondo della Luna (The World in the Moon), grew up near Edmonds and graduated from the UW. “I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve done in my career,” he says, “but I wanted to come home.” Inspirations for Seales’ music range from Paris to Bellingham Music Professor Marc Seales and his quartet will perform original works from his Paris Suite and also from his upcoming CD, American Songs, in a concert Nov. 14 in Brechemin Auditorium. Home sweet pond: Salmon return to campus For nearly 60 years, salmon raised at the UW's research and teaching hatchery have returned in the fall, having made the arduous trek from the ocean back to their home pond on campus. View our slide show about the chinook and coho being harvested for spawning so that next spring another generation of fish can be released. DNA provides 'smoking gun' in the case of the missing songbirds A tale of two species of songbird separated by glaciers, and how one came to dominate the other. Not unlike a CSI case, DNA evidence showed which songbird was the villain of the piece. Postdocs show their work at 4th annual research symposium Nov. 14 in the HUB Every year, UW postdoctoral students gather and explain their research at the annual Research Symposium. Now in its fourth year, the symposium will be held Nov. 14 in the HUB. Official Notices A Board of Regents meeting, campus blood drives, English language courses, Petty Cash's move and more. UWT and Russian journalism students collaborate on news project Journalism students from Russia and UW Tacoma got an up-close look at American-style journalism in action as election-night guests of the Tacoma-based News Tribune newspaper Nov. 4. It’s all part of an exchange program that brought the Russian students to Tacoma and sent the UWT students to Moscow in March. Writing Day launches second phase of Writing in the Majors Seattle University Professor John Bean will talk about integrating writing into coursework across the curriculum as part of Writing Day at the UW, Thursday, Nov. 13. Planetarium open to public for winter of starry, starry nights Cloudy skies in the Pacific Northwest from December through February mean that the Jacobsen Observatory is closed. But you can still “see” the stars this winter at twice-monthly shows in the Astronomy Department’s Planetarium. The first one is on Nov. 19. By popular demand: Department of Scandinavian Studies celebrates its centennial The Department of Scandinavian Studies traces its beginning to 1908, when students and community members petitioned the Legislature for classes in Scandinavian languages. Two profs to talk about ‘What Really Happened’ in election Last spring, UW professors David Domke and Mark Smith made bold presidential predictions during the widely popular “Faith & Finance” lecture series. Now it’s time to find out what these experts have to say about the 2008 election. The two will give the Provost Distinguished Lecture on Nov. 13. Second lecture in ‘Lucy Talks’ features forensic anthropologist Nov. 13 The second lecture in the “Lucy Talks” series, on Nov. 13, will feature Dr. Katherine Taylor, a forensic anthropologist with the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, who will discuss the basics of her field and the science of reading bones. Man who committed suicide in Red Square identified The person who committed suicide in Red Square Oct. 30 has been identified as In Soo Chun, 61. UW Bothell celebrates new Cultural Studies Program with guest lecturer Toby Miller Guest lecturer Toby Miller of the University of California, Riverside will speak on Green Cultural Citizenship: A Future for Cultural Studies at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12, in UWB’s North Creek Events Center. Gerberding bells to ring in honor of mathematician The Gordon Stuart Peek Foundation Memorial Change Ringing Bells in Gerberding’s tower will ring from 7:30 to 8 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 9, half-muffled in memory of Oded Schramm, a world-famous mathematician from Microsoft Research, and an affiliate professor in the UW Department of Mathematics. Expert on foster care to lecture Nov. 13 Social Work Professor Mark Courtney has been conducting research on the transition to adulthood for foster youth for more than 15 years, and he will share the results and implications of that research in his lecture, including suggestions for how society can better help parent foster youth in transition. Math series kicks off with talk by Felsenstein Joseph Felsenstein, professor of Genome Sciences and of Biology at the UW, will speak on Evolutionary Trees, Coalescents and Gene Trees: Can Mathematicians Find the Woods? at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, in 210 Kane. Researchers find that mouse heart can regenerate diseased tissue A study of mice shows that fetal hearts can grow healthy cells to compensate for disease damage. UW receives nearly $17 million to study emerging respiratory viruses Researchers will analyze and model virus-host interactions during acute respiratory infection. UW Medical Center expansion project to break ground this winter Phase 1 of the UWMC construction project will add more space for neonatal intensive care, surgical oncology and diagnostic imaging. Green neighborhoods may reduce childhood obesity Researchers find that greener neighborhoods are associated with lower body mass in children. The silver lining of lost parking privileges When his parking rates went from free to too much, UW staffer Brian Donohue took to the streets. UW Photographers Group launches fall exhibit Nov. 11 The Photographers Group exhibit, titled Composite, will be on display in UWMC's Skylight Gallery through December. Inauguration of Diabetes and Obesity Center set for Nov. 14 The new UW Medicine Diabetes and Obesity Center of Excellence will celebrate its opening with an inaugural research symposium. Can you guess where this photo was taken? Guess correctly, and you might win a gift certificate to the University Book Store!