Can videogames create mindful teens? UW-Madison researchers look into the therapeutic possibilities
Teenagers spurning family time and conversation for Candy Crush during the holiday season is nearly as common a sight these days as turkey and baked ham.
December 19, 2013
Poverty influences children’s early brain development
Poverty may have direct implications for important, early steps in the development of the brain, saddling children of low-income families with slower rates of growth in two key brain structures, according to researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
December 13, 2013
Susan Boyle among those who find autism diagnosis a relief
Scott Heppell / AP Scottish singer Susan Boyle recently revealed that she has been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome. Susan Boyle, the Scottish singer, spent a lifetime believing she had “brain damage.” Christina Gleason, a …
December 9, 2013Davidson’s study reveals gene expression changes with meditation
With evidence growing that meditation can have beneficial health effects, scientists have sought to understand how these practices physically affect the body.
December 4, 2013Exam jitters? Professors battle test anxiety, too
Students aren’t alone when it comes to exam nerves. Turns out some professors grapple with worry and angst at test time, too.
December 4, 2013Busta benefit has record-setting year, generates $55,000
The 11th annual David Busta Basketball Tournament and Silent Auction once again proved successful as the benefit attracted many families, friends and community members to the Chetek-Weyerhaeuser High School Saturday, Nov. 30. After raising $26,000 …
December 3, 2013Su-Chun Zhang has a unique view of Wisconsin Institutes for Medical Research
From his sixth-floor laboratory in the University of Wisconsin Waisman Center, Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD, has a unique vantage point on the second tower of the Wisconsin Institutes for Medical Research (WIMR II), which is nearing completion.
December 2, 2013Dan Bier honored by ACUD
Dan Bier, Associate Director of the Waisman Center’s University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities received the Association of University Centers on Disabilities 2013 Meritorious Service Award in recognition and honor of his contributions to …
December 1, 2013Inside Wis: Fifty years after his death, JFK’s science and technology legacy endures
The wave of remembrances tied to the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination have necessarily stressed his role in pushing the frontiers of space exploration, but his contributions to innovation in other realms of science and technology reach well beyond.
November 22, 2013Madison remembers JFK
Stu Levitan, Isthmus Wednesday, Nov. 20, 1963 Cloudy, humid, high 48 President John F. Kennedy begins his last full day in the White House with a Western Union telegram to UW-Madison President Fred Harvey Harrington. …
November 20, 2013Rare disease yields clues about broader brain pathology
Alexander disease is a devastating brain disease that almost nobody has heard of — unless someone in the family is afflicted with it. Alexander disease strikes young or old, and in children destroys white matter in the front of the brain.
November 20, 2013Get on board with startup series ‘Entrepreneurons’
Entrepreneurons brings together thoughtful leaders from across the country and our own backyard to exchange perspectives on core topics ranging from identifying an opportunity to building a startup team to financing and beyond.
November 19, 2013Julie Poehlmann, Sesame Workshop help kids
“Lots of families didn’t know how to talk about it. Does a 3-year-old really understand when one of their parents in is jail?"
November 15, 2013Marsha Mailick discusses the Waisman Center’s Kennedy Connection
As the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy nears, Marsha Mailick, PhD, discusses the role the Kennedy family played in establishing the precursor to the Waisman Center and their greater legacy …
November 7, 2013
Susan Ellis Weismer selected to receive ASHA Honors of the Association
ASHA Press Release Susan Ellis Weismer, a professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Waisman Center Principal Investigator, and Associate Dean in the College of Letters & Science at UW-Madison has been selected …
November 5, 2013Waisman Center 40th anniversary celebratory dinner
More than 450 people gathered at the Monona Terrace on October 17 to celebrate 40 years of the Waisman Center’s groundbreaking research, clinical care and outreach services. Community members, Waisman Center scientists, early education advocates …
October 30, 2013Giizhik’s holiday cards for autism research available
Giizhik Klawiter has autism and began drawing at six years old as a therapeutic outlet. For the last five years, Giizhik and his brother Mino have designed holiday greeting cards and sold them in their …
October 30, 2013Next-gen sequencing identifies genes associated with speech disorder
A collaborative team of researchers has used next generation sequencing to identify clinically relevant genetic variants associated with a rare pediatric speech disorder. The findings are published in the September 16, 2013 issue of the …
October 25, 2013Little people conference in Madison shines light on UW clinic
“Carrying a child puts such a restraint on the space our lungs have to breathe,” said Edelman, whose husband, Matt, and 2-year-old daughter, Madelyn, are also of short stature.
October 25, 2013Campus diversity and inclusion committee to present engagement sessions
Susannah Brooks, UW Communications As UW-Madison makes plans to create a new framework for diversity and inclusion, each member of the UW-Madison community is being asked to bear shared responsibility for success — moving “Forward …
October 24, 2013Biomanufacturing center takes central role in developing stem-cell therapies
David Tenenbaum – University Communications Developing a new drug takes enormous amounts of time, money and skill, but the bar is even higher for a promising stem-cell therapy. Many types of cells derived from these …
October 17, 2013Editorial: A Community ‘Focal Point’ for 40 Years
Neil Heinen, Editorial Director, Channel 3000 Click image to play news clip.
October 16, 2013Waisman Center featured on “For the Record”
Neil Heinen, WISC-TV editorial director, recently sat down with Marsha R. Mailick, PhD, Waisman Center Director, along with Anita Bhattacharyya, PhD, Senior Scientist and Maria Stanley, MD, Waisman Center Clinics Medical Director, to discuss the …
September 30, 2013The Wisdom of Waisman
It has always been a challenge to describe the Waisman Center on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus.
September 20, 2013Friends of the Waisman Center 2013 Annual Reception
The Friends of the Waisman Center Annual Meeting was held on Tuesday, August 13, 2013 in the Waisman Center’s Ziemann Suite to celebrate the previous year’s achievements.
August 22, 2013David Egan has developed mainstream appeal
It was during a recess of a U.S. Senate committee hearing in Washington, D.C., in March 2011 when David Egan cracked up Al Franken.
August 5, 2013Waisman Center joins disability partners to support governors’ employment initiative
Finding workers who improve the bottom line is the goal of any successful business.
August 2, 2013Hormones may usher abused girls into early adulthood
During the sort of tense situation that makes palms sweat and voices quaver, children and young adults are typically awash in cortisol, a stress hormone that sounds an alarm and prepares the body for fight-or-flight responses to danger.
July 19, 2013A Fond Farewell
From students to campus leaders, the Wards have helped to shape the course of the UW and have been shaped by it.
July 13, 2013Encore ending, Ward reflects on transition, innovation
When David Ward returned to UW-Madison as its interim chancellor in 2011, he took over after an acrimonious attempt to create a public authority to govern UW-Madison failed in the state Legislature and then-Chancellor Biddy Martin left for Amherst College.
July 11, 2013A Call for Open Access to Autism Diagnostic Tools
Few studies of autism prevalence have been conducted in low- and middle-income countries. Freely available screening and diagnostic tools could help address this disparity
July 3, 2013Love In The Time of Autism
Every couple struggles with maintaining intimacy, and kids always add stress. But few people—including the parents themselves—understand the unique effect raising an autistic child can have on a union.
July 2, 2013Waisman scientists model human disease in stem cells
Many scientists use animals to model human diseases. Mice can be obese or display symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Rats get Alzheimer's and diabetes. But animal models are seldom perfect, and so scientists are looking at a relatively new type of stem cell, called the induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS cell), that can be grown into specialized cells that become useful models for human disease.
June 26, 2013
UW-Madison researchers discuss procedure that helped boy hear
"When we think in general about children who are deaf and could benefit from the opportunity to gain access to speech and to language be mainstreamed... there's a lot of excitement," Professor Ruth Litovsky says about the surgery Grayson received.
June 23, 2013
Grandparents gather for support at Waisman Center
By Käri Knutson You’re not alone. It’s a simple message but one that can provide great comfort. That is just part of what those who gather at the Waisman Center as part of the Grandparents’ …
June 14, 2013
Professor helps ‘Sesame Street’ reach children of imprisoned parents
By Käri Knutson It doesn’t get talked about much, yet nearly 2.7 million children are growing up with a parent who is in prison, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. What do you tell …
June 12, 2013Cap Times’ Evjue Foundation distributes $1 million to UW, area nonprofits
Checks totaling more than $1 million have been sent to 74 area nonprofits and to 17 project managers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison by The Evjue Foundation, the charitable arm of The Capital Times.
June 5, 2013
A Promising Sight
But the specks in the Petri dishes were the result of years of research in the laboratory of David Gamm, an ophthalmologist at the UW’s Waisman Center. And as members of the Reese family carefully cradled the dishes, they held the future of their descendants’ eyesight in their hands.
June 4, 2013
Down syndrome neurons grown from stem cells show signature problems
Down syndrome, the most common genetic form of intellectual disability, results from an extra copy of one chromosome. Although people with Down syndrome experience intellectual difficulties and other problems, scientists have had trouble identifying why that extra chromosome causes such widespread effects.
May 27, 2013Sensory friendly dining event breaks down barriers
For many families, the occasional evening out for dinner at a restaurant is an enjoyable treat. But for parents who care for children with autism, the notion of eating out can be panic inducing. “We …
May 16, 2013Children’s Theatre opens door to Waisman Center resources
By Susannah Brooks Harry Waisman was a pediatrician, as well as a biochemist and researcher of developmental disabilities. Throughout its history, the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Waisman Center has built strong relationships with children and families, …
May 9, 2013Adult cells transformed into early-stage nerve cells, bypassing the pluripotent stem cell stage
A University of Wisconsin-Madison research group has converted skin cells from people and monkeys into a cell that can form a wide variety of nervous-system cells -- without passing through the do-it-all stage called the induced pluripotent stem cell, or iPSC.
May 2, 2013
The World Wide Web
Compassion is now a core component of Davidson’s groundbreaking work at the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Investigating Healthy Minds, the brain research facility at the Waisman Center where the Dalai Lama visited for its grand opening and to which he recently made a rare personal donation of $50,000.
April 25, 2013Stem cell transplant restores memory, learning in mice
For the first time, human embryonic stem cells have been transformed into nerve cells that helped mice regain the ability to learn and remember. A study at UW–Madison is the first to show that human stem cells can successfully implant themselves in the brain and then heal neurological deficits, says senior author Su-Chun Zhang, a professor of neuroscience and neurology.
April 21, 2013In autism, age at diagnosis depends on specific symptoms
The age at which a child with autism is diagnosed is related to the particular suite of behavioral symptoms he or she exhibits, new research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison shows. Certain diagnostic features, including poor nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviors, were associated with earlier identification of an autism spectrum disorder, according to a study in the April issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Displaying more behavioral features was also associated with earlier diagnosis.
April 9, 2013
Transplanted brain cells in monkeys light up personalized therapy
For the first time, scientists have transplanted neural cells derived from a monkey’s skin into its brain and watched the cells develop into several types of mature brain cells, according to the authors of a new study in Cell Reports. After six months, the cells looked entirely normal, and were only detectable because they initially were tagged with a fluorescent protein. Because the cells were derived from adult cells in each monkey’s skin, the experiment is a proof-of-principle for the concept of personalized medicine, where treatments are designed for each individual.
March 14, 2013Dalai Lama to lead ‘Change your Mind Change the World 2013’ event May 15
Event organizers today announced that the Dalai Lama will visit Madison on May 15, 2013, to lead “Change your Mind Change the World 2013,” a series of panel discussions with thought leaders from a variety of fields, including neuroscience, economics and sustainability, moderated by Arianna Huffington and Daniel Goleman.
March 12, 2013
Denise Ney is a Rare Disease Hero
Denise Ney, professor of nutritional sciences, is a rare disease hero. We all know that, but now it’s official. Ney is one of 30 Rare Disease Heroes named by the Office of Orphan Products Development at FDA. This is part of the agency’s sixth international Rare Disease Day. This is an opportunity to reflect on what has been accomplished for rare diseases, while looking forward to the work that has yet to be done.
March 4, 2013Authors: Develop Digital Games to Improve Brain Function and Well-Being
Neuroscientists should help to develop compelling digital games that boost brain function and improve well-being, say two professors specializing in the field in a commentary article published in the science journal Nature.
February 25, 2013Research quest aims to cure hearing loss at its root
The ultimate cause of hearing loss is usually found in the tiny hair cells that play the crucial role of converting sound waves into nerve impulses for delivery to the brain.
February 12, 2013After 40 years, Waisman Center still at forefront of research on the brain
The telegram from President John F. Kennedy to University of Wisconsin President Fred Harrington was both eerie and visionary. Eerie because it was delivered Nov. 20, 1963 – just two days before Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas – and visionary because it seemed to anticipate the challenges confronting science in its quest to explore the human brain.
February 8, 2013Waisman Center: Celebrating 40 years of advancing knowledge about developmental disabilities
Although its roots are deeper, going back to its earliest iteration as the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Memorial Laboratories in the early 1960s, the Waisman Center this year celebrates 40 years of research, teaching and outreach in the interest of developmental disabilities.
January 24, 2013Explaining Down syndrome to children: Book by Waisman Center parent
When Becky and Dan Carey's daughter Tessa was born in 2011 with Down syndrome they wanted to share her diagnosis with their seven-year-old son in an age-appropriate way.
January 15, 2013- More 2013 posts
Advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases.