The 2021 edition of UWM Research magazine has launched online, detailing the work of dozens of faculty members, students and staff. The magazine’s 40-page print edition is being distributed to campus departments and mailed to UWM faculty members, friends and influencers in the coming days.
This latest edition contains stories about work done in each of UWM’s research-conducting schools and colleges across a variety of academic fields. It also puts a particular focus on research efforts spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“UWM researchers, like so many of their colleagues around the world, went right to work on pandemic-related issues in the areas of prevention, treatment, education, information, communication and more,” UWM Chancellor Mark Mone wrote in the magazine’s welcome message. “In our Spotlight on COVID-19, you’ll get a closer look at their progress, including the promising research explored in our cover story about Sandra McLellan.”
McLellan, a professor in the School of Freshwater Sciences, is exploring how wastewater treatment facilities can give health officials a clearer picture of the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. Wastewater samples can serve as a COVID-19 early-warning system, revealing trends that testing alone can’t provide. She’s also helping lead a national effort to develop protocols for such wastewater-based epidemiology testing to help fight not only the current pandemic, but also future ones.
The magazine also features in-depth stories about other important research, including an exploration of Black communities rallying for fair housing practices. You’ll learn about efforts to train culturally sensitive advocates who can assist Native Americans who have experienced sexual assault. You’ll see how UWM engineers are working on the leading edge of water purification technology and also get a glimpse of the next chapter of data transmission technology. You’ll read about how gender matters in American politics and how getting at the genetic roots of autism could provide earlier treatment for the developmental disorder.
Research done by UWM’s undergraduate and graduate students is also highlighted, as are several recent books published by UWM faculty members.
Taken as a whole, the magazine is a celebration of how Wisconsin’s only urban, engaged research university performs public-impact research, work that has a positive impact on campus, in our community and around the world.
