Discovery Building
Crossroads of Ideas: Living and Learning with Animals
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesFrom the mellowest Labrador to the wiliest coyote, experts in animal behavior & wildlife management discuss human interactions with canines.Join UW–Madison’s Dr. David Drake and Carroll University’s Dr. Mindy Waite for an engaging Crossroads of Ideas conversation exploring the dynamic relationship between humans and animals, both wild and domestic. From what we can teach animals to what they can teach us, how retrofitting animals into the human world has changed our relationships, and discovering new insights into behavior, adaptation, and the possibilities for living together in a changing world. Hosted by Director of the WID – Illuminating Discovery Hub.
WID Seminar Series
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesConnecting natural and artificial intelligence in cognition and neuroscienceCollaborative Complex Systems: The Year of Discovery FellowsRob Nowak, WID Discovery Fellow and professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering introduces Tim Rogers, WID Discovery Fellow, professor of Psychology.
Michelle Thaller: Cosmic Treasures
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesChasing Asteroids for Clues to the Origins of LifeJoin Michelle Thaller, former NASA science communicator, for an evening exploring the origins of life. Thaller, in conversation with Eric Wilcots, Dean of the College of Letters & Sciences and Professor in the Dept of Astronomy, will talk about the OSIRIS-REx mission – an audacious project to return a sample from an asteroid. No problem, right? Just chase down a small rock 200 million miles away, traveling literally faster than a speeding bullet, vacuum up a sample of its surface, and shoot it back to Earth. The story turned out to be more [...]
Crossroads of Ideas: Threading the Story of Earth’s Oldest Rocks
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesAncient geology meets modern creativity! Scientists studying the Earth’s oldest rocks collab with a textile artist to bring them to life!Join us for a very special Wisconsin Science Festival edition of Crossroads of Ideas, where ancient geology meets modern creativity. This engaging evening features scientists Tyler Blum, Annie Bauer, and Emily Mixon, who have been studying the Earth’s oldest rocks - Acasta Gneiss (that’s pronounced “nice”) - and collaborating with local textile artist, Leah Evans, to bring 4-billion-year-old stories to life.In conversation with UW-Madison Geology Museum Associate Director, Brooke Norsted, learn how these researchers and artist have explored deep time, planetary [...]
Finding Your Place in Science
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesA reflective workshop on belonging, identity, and the paths of science, guided by Madison author, editor, and writing mentor. All Welcome.Finding Your Place in Science: A Writing Workshop to Explore Scientific IdentityOct. 20, 3 pm, Location: 1145 Discovery BuildingLight snacks providedMichelle Wildgen is an editor, teacher, and writer of literary fiction and essays, as well as the author of four novels and cofounder of the Madison Writers’ Studio.A scientific identity – essentially, whether a person feels they belong in the world of science —is associated with longevity and success in STEM-related fields. But what does it mean to belong in science? [...]
Sci-prov
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesScience Meets Improv Comedy in this special Wisconsin Science Festival edition! Presented in partnership with Amalgam Improv.Join the Wisconsin Science Festival and Amalgam Improv for an evening fusing science and spontaneous improv comedy like no other at Sci-prov!Sci-prov combines science and improv in creative, funny, and never before seen ways. In this special, fusion event, scientists Rachael Shields and Amy Koike will present their work in short, digestible presentations followed by brief Q&A, all of which will become fodder for the improv scenes. The improv scenes are created on the fly, unique to each show, and performed by a troupe of [...]
Reproducible Software
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-08-25-uwmadison-ReproducibleSoftware/
Introduction to Machine Learning
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-07-30-uwmadison-IntrotoML/
REU / Undergrad Only – Software Carpentry
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-06-09-uwmadison-reuswc/Software Carpentry aims to help researchers get their work done in less time and with less pain by teaching them basic research computing skills. This hands-on workshop will cover basic concepts and tools, including program design, version control, data management, and task automation. Participants will be encouraged to help one another and to apply what they have learned to their own research problems.
Geospatial Data Carpentry Workshop
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-06-02-uwmadison-dc-geospatial/The goal of this workshop is to provide an introduction to core geospatial data concepts and dive into working with raster/vector data, including how to open, work with, and plot vector and raster-format spatial data in R. Additional topics include working with spatial metadata (extent and coordinate reference systems), reprojecting spatial data, and working with raster time series data. This lesson assumes you have some knowledge of R. If you’ve never used R before, or need a refresher, start with our Introduction to R for Geospatial Data lesson webpage.
REU / Undergrad Only – Data Carpentry
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-06-02-uwmadison-reudc/Data Carpentry develops and teaches workshops on the fundamental data skills needed to conduct research. Its target audience is researchers who have little to no prior computational experience, and its lessons are domain specific, building on learners' existing knowledge to enable them to quickly apply skills learned to their own research. Participants will be encouraged to help one another and to apply what they have learned to their own research problems.
Intro to Deep Learning with Keras
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-05-19-uwmadison-DeepLearningKeras/
Sci-prov
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesScience Meets Improv ComedyJoin the Illuminating Discovery Hub and Amalgam Improv for an evening fusing science and spontaneous improv comedy like no other at Sci-Prov!Sci-prov combines science and improv in creative, funny, and never before seen ways. Scientists Laura Hernandez and Leslie Holland will present their work in short, digestible presentations followed by brief Q&A, all of which can become fodder for the improv scenes. The improv scenes are created on the fly & unique to each show.Light refreshments and cash bar available. Tickets are free and registration is requested to ensure adequate seating.Parking: The closest parking ramps to the Discovery [...]
Crossroads of Ideas: Toxins at the Tap
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United StatesNavigating the Future of PFAS and Our Water SupplyJoin us on Earth Day 2025 for a thought-provoking fireside chat featuring experts Hilary Dugan, Manny Teodoro, and Christy Remucal. Delve into the world of PFAS—per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances—often referred to as "forever chemicals." Our distinguished panel will explore the complex challenges these contaminants pose to our environment and public health, their impact on water systems, and the urgent policy changes needed to safeguard our future. This conversation will shed light on the critical decisions and innovations required to address one of today’s most pressing environmental issues.We value inclusion and access for all [...]
Intermediate Research Software Development with Python
Discovery Building 330 North Orchard Street, Orchard View Room, Madison, WI, United Stateshttps://uw-madison-datascience.github.io/2025-03-24-uwmadison-intermedpython/Intermediate Research Software Development with Python aims to teach a core set of established, intermediate-level software development skills and best practices for working as part of a team in a research environment using Python as an example programming language (see detailed learning objectives). The core set of skills we teach is not a comprehensive set of all-encompassing skills, but a selective set of tried-and-tested collaborative development skills that forms a firm foundation for continuing on your learning journey.
