Karen Schloss is one of eighteen faculty that have been honored with the H.I. Romnes Fellowships to recognize exceptional research contributions within their first six years from promotion to a tenured position. The award is named in recognition of the late WARF trustees president H.I. Romnes and comes with $60,000 that may be spent over five years.

Created for the advancement of learning and supported by the estate of professor, U.S. senator and UW Regent William F. Vilas (1840-1908), Vilas Research Professorships are granted to UW–Madison faculty with proven research ability and unusual qualifications and promise.

Hryckowian was among eighteen professors receiving Vilas Faculty Early Career Investigator Awards, recognizing research and teaching excellence in faculty who are relatively early in their careers. The award provides flexible research funding for three years.

Supported by the Provost’s Office and the Hilldale Fund, this fellowship provides undergraduate students with $4,000 to pursue an independent research project under the mentorship of UW–Madison faculty or staff. Her project, One Size Does Not Fit All: Challenging the Use of Overarching Guidelines for Data Visualizations will be mentored by Karen Schloss.

The triple major in data science, entrepreneurship and philosophy and Rath Merit Scholar in the Wisconsin School of Business, has spent much of his time at UW–Madison empowering fellow students to launch entrepreneurial careers through our Entrepreneurial Science Lab.

The Vilas Associates Competition recognizes new and ongoing research of the highest quality and significance. Recipients are chosen competitively by the divisional Research Committees on the basis of a detailed proposal.

On November 3, 2025, WID brought together leaders from its past, present, and future for a powerful and inspiring celebration of the institute’s journey and impact. In addition to a State-of-WID address by current director Jo Handelsman, the event featured keynote remarks from WID alumna and founding faculty Patti Brennan, a panel with the founding five faculty, a retrospective video, and presentations from first-generation hires reflecting on their research and the ways WID shaped their scientific paths. The day concluded with a poster session showcasing the extraordinary research of students, postdoctoral researchers, and scientists across the WID community. Altogether, it [...]

This prestigious honor recognizes outstanding early-career faculty members who have demonstrated exceptional research accomplishments and show great promise for continued scholarly excellence. The award will enable WID Discovery Fellow, Dr. Hryckowian to continue advancing this critical research, contributing to a deeper understanding of the microbiome and its role in health and disease.

Karen Schoss and colleague Steve Palmer wanted to find out where color preferences come from and discovered that preference is informed by experience. This article appears in Issue 77 of Breathe Magazine.

There's still time to unleash your curiosity! Supported by Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, Wisconsin Science Festival runs through 10/26 with venues all over the state! Go to wiscifest.org to find out more.

Audrey Rothermel Bascom Professor of Design Studies Kevin Ponto and a team of fellow researchers have received a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation to continue developing a new tool that uses augmented reality to help older adults and people with disabilities remain safely in their homes.

We celebrate WID faculty member, Rupa Sridharan as she receives a Romnes Award and Discovery Fellow, Tim Kamp who is named Craig T. January Professor of Medicine, Cell and Regenerative Biology.

Colors convey meaning, influence behavior and make us experience emotions. To explain why this is, Larry Meiller of WPR’s The Larry Meiller Show talks with Karen Schloss, associate professor of cognition in UW-Madison’s Department of Psychology and the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery.

WID Discovery Fellow, Kris Sankaran of the Department of Statistics and Jacob Thebault-Spieker of the Information School—have received the 2025 College of Letters & Science (L&S) Distinguished Honors Faculty Award for the significant positive impact they have made on their students’ experiences at UW–Madison.

Election to FRSC status reflects Professor Turng’s sustained excellence, leadership, and impact in the field. A highly productive and respected scholar, he continues to drive the development of innovative processes, high-performance materials, and sustainable products that contribute to the well-being of society.