• 💡 WSU's national ranking among public universities dropped from 71st in 2016 to 96th in 2023.
• 📉 Faculty numbers at WSU decreased by 11% since 2019.
• 🎓 Total enrollment on all five WSU campuses decreased by 16.2% since 2019.
• 🏫 Fall 2023 freshman enrollment at the Everett campus was only nine students.
• 📈 Meanwhile, enrollment at other Washington universities remained unchanged or increased.
• 🚪 WSU's leadership faces criticism for failing to address enrollment challenges effectively.
• 💰 WSU's administrative expansion hasn't shown added value and has duplicated duties.
• 💼 Budget cuts at WSU have been successive, threatening core education and research programs.
• 📚 Limiting teaching assistants could prolong graduation times for students.
• 📊 Surveys reflect dissatisfaction with WSU's leadership and operations.
• 🏛️ WSU's role in statewide thought leadership regarding higher education policy has reportedly diminished.
• 🔄 Former WSU provosts advocate for change in university direction.

• 🐻 Polar bears, when stranded on land during longer ice-free seasons, face significant risk of starvation.
• 📹 Researchers used video/GPS collars to track 20 polar bears during ice-less summer weeks.
• 🍴 Polar bears attempted various strategies to maintain energy reserves, including resting, scavenging, and foraging.
• ❌ Despite efforts, almost all polar bears observed lost weight rapidly, indicating challenges in adapting to longer summers.
• 🌊 Some bears resorted to long swims, up to 175 kilometers, but couldn't feed on carcasses found in water.
• 📉 The study highlights a decline in polar bear population, particularly in regions experiencing faster climate warming.
• 🏞️ Increased land use due to longer ice-free periods is expected to lead to heightened starvation risk for polar bears.
• 💰 The research received support from various organizations including the National Science Foundation and U.S. Geological Survey.

Effective scheduling, involving both increased weekly hours for part-time Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) and maintaining consistent teams, significantly reduces turnover in long-term care facilities, as indicated by research led by Washington State University.

Key Takeaway

Bees originated on an ancient supercontinent, Gondwana, more than 120 million years ago, and diversified and spread faster than previously believed. Their point of origin was in western Gondwana, which included present-day Africa and South America. The study provides insight into the evolutionary history of bees and their geographic expansion.

Summary

• Bees evolved on an ancient supercontinent, Gondwana, over 120 million years ago.
• The study, led by Washington State University researchers, reconstructed bee evolution, estimated their antiquity, and identified their geographic expansion.
• The point of origin for bees was in western Gondwana, which included Africa and South America at that time.
• The research utilized genetic analysis of over 200 bee species and compared them with traits from 185 bee fossils and extinct species.
• Bees likely originated from wasps and transitioned from predators to collectors of nectar and pollen.
• Their point of origin was in arid regions of western Gondwana during the early Cretaceous period.
• Bees moved north as continents formed, diversified, and spread, often in partnership with angiosperms (flowering plants).
• The study shows that bees colonized India and Australia and split into major bee families prior to the Tertiary period, around 65 million years ago.
• Bees played a significant role in the rich flora of the western hemisphere's tropical regions, aiding in the diversity of flowering plants.
• The study contributes to understanding bee conservation and ecological roles in modern niches.
• The research team plans to continue studying the genetics and history of more bee species to uncover more about their evolution and ecological significance.

Key Takeaway

Astronaut Scott Kelly, who spent 340 days aboard the International Space Station, will keynote TwinFest 2023, shedding light on the effects of extended space travel on the human body and the scientific value of twin studies.

Summary

• Astronaut Scott Kelly will be the keynote speaker at TwinFest 2023, an event sponsored by Washington State University (WSU) and scheduled for July 22 in Everett.
• Kelly's 340-day stay on the International Space Station while his identical twin remained on Earth provided valuable insights into the molecular and physiological effects of extended space travel and demonstrated the scientific significance of twin registries.
• The study conducted on Kelly's samples and data, along with his twin brother Mark, revealed findings related to aging, cognition, immunology, and various aspects of the human body during long stretches in space.
• One surprising discovery was that Kelly's telomeres, which typically shorten with age, actually lengthened in space, suggesting a possible influence of radiation beyond Earth's atmosphere.
• Twin studies enable researchers to control for genetic effects when investigating health outcomes, allowing a focus on specific conditions of interest and the impact of environmental factors on health.
• WSU's Twin Registry, with nearly 10,000 twin pairs, collaborates with researchers from across the country and offers opportunities for scientific studies.
• The experience left Kelly confident in the potential for manned flights to Mars, although successful missions to more distant planets would require scientific innovations like artificial gravity.
• This year's TwinFest will be the first since the Twin Registry's move to WSU, following disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The event information is available on the Washington State Twin Registry's website.

[Note: The web page did not provide more information beyond the featured news, so the report focuses on the details available in the provided content.]

• 🕷️ Blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) are resilient to extreme temperatures, including both cold and heat.
• 🌡️ Larval ticks are more impacted by heat and dry conditions, while nymph and adult ticks can survive hot and cold weather with little impact.
• 🌍 A large field study conducted by Washington State University (WSU) and the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies collected valuable data on ticks' response to climatic conditions.
• 🌡️ Extreme weather conditions don't have as much of an effect on tick mortality as previously thought, but they can shorten the window of time for ticks to find a host.
• 🦠 Tick larvae have shorter median survival times when exposed to frequent periods of hot and dry weather.
• 🌱 Environmental factors such as arthropods or fungi may contribute to variations in tick survival on a small scale.
• 🦠 Targeting interventions during the larvae stage could be an effective strategy to reduce tick populations and mitigate the risk of disease transmission.
• 🧪 The study aims to develop a comprehensive framework to predict and manage tick populations for improved public health outcomes.
• 📚 The research team plans to further investigate the factors leading to localized tick mortality and the role of host species in tick survival.

A Washington State University-led study has shown that adding water to whisky can enhance its aroma, but beyond 20%, the whisky's flavor and aroma can become indistinguishable from each other. The addition of water leads to changes in volatile compounds that are attracted to water, and those that are repelled by it. Dilution affects what's in the "headspace," or the area above the liquid. American bourbons were mostly associated with vanilla and oak scents at first, but as more water was added, they took on more aromas of corn and grains.

Researchers at Washington State University have developed a carbon-negative concrete that is almost as strong as traditional concrete.

The team infused cement with biochar, a type of charcoal made from organic waste, that had been treated with concrete wastewater.

The biochar could absorb up to 23% of its weight in carbon dioxide from the air while retaining a strength comparable to regular cement.

Cement production is responsible for around 8% of global carbon emissions, and the development could significantly reduce emissions. The research was published in Materials Letters.

Very interesting approach to cleaning removing moon dust from lunar space suits. Lunar dust is VERY abrasive and damaging to the suits. Unlike sand, which at the ocean is in a perpetual rock tumbler of waves and water, moon particles do not move or tumble and soften their sharp edges.