UW in the News

State, national and international media frequently feature the University of Wyoming and members of its community in stories. Here is a summary of some of the recent coverage:

UW President Shane Reeves and College of Education Dean Jenna Shim were interviewed by Your Wyoming Link while they were attending the Wyoming Department of Education’s TeacherCon event in Casper last week. The two UW leaders were among the speakers at the gathering of K-12 educators from around the state.

In a Cowboy State Daily article about a proposal to extend the payment period for federal coal lease bonus bids from five years to 10 years, UW economist Rob Godby says the measure could make pursuing federal leases more attractive because companies would have greater financial flexibility. But he questioned whether improving payment terms alone is enough to convince companies to accelerate their leasing activity.

UW Professor Bryan Shuman is quoted in another Cowboy State Daily article about a proposed pumped-water storage project at Seminoe Reservoir. He says this year has been exceptionally bad for water because of high temperatures and a lack of precipitation.

Retired UW Professor Jim King says last week’s telephone rally by President Donald Trump for Wyoming gubernatorial candidate Megan Degenfelder could mean the GOP primary race is close, according to WyoFile.

Development of a new, more accurate flu test by UW Professor Debashis Dutta and doctoral student Amit Acharzo was highlighted by the Casper Star-Tribune. Their approach combines 3D-printed dissolvable nasal swabs with a proprietary testing platform designed to improve how quickly and accurately flu infections can be identified.

UW graduate student Julie Hampton-Lyon’s efforts to address food insecurity in Wyoming were highlighted by the Casper Star-Tribune. Hampton-Lyon, a master’s student in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences’ Food Science and Human Nutrition Program, has spearheaded six Hunger in Wyoming workshops sharing information about Wyoming food policy with communities across the state.

WyoFile featured female researchers who made significant wildlife discoveries in recent years while studying at UW. They include Rhiannon Jakopak, Brittany Wagler, Tayler LaSharr and Anna Ortega.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide highlighted the research of UW graduate student Lena Wigger, who is studying how beaver ponds of different ages influence the spread of chytridiomycosis, a fungal disease, in boreal toads of the Bridger-Teton National Forest.

Wyoming Public Radio publicized upcoming Bat Walks conducted by UW’s Biodiversity Institute around the state. This summer, the Biodiversity Institute has been hosting the guided walks in Pinedale, Cody, Lander, Sheridan, Casper and Laramie.

Another Utah media outlet -- KUER -- highlighted the work of UW’s King Air research aircraft in that state this summer. It’s being used by a team studying the formation of ozone in the atmosphere above the Salt Lake Valley through the end of August.

Wyoming Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio and KUNR were among the outlets reporting on a research team from Wyoming, Nevada and Idaho that is trying to make it easier to get information about critical minerals in the region. Quoted in the article are Alathea Davies, a research scientist in UW’s School of Computing, and Tyler Brown, minerals program manager in the School of Energy Resources.

The Bozeman Daily Chronicle was among the outlets that published UW’s release about a sweeping new study on the history of North American bison. Specimens from UW’s collections played a key role in the study.

David Kopel, a senior fellow at the UW College of Law’s Firearms Research Center, was quoted in a Cowboy State Daily article about a federal judge’s ruling that major portions of the 1934 National Firearms Act are unconstitutional and can’t be enforced on Wyoming’s government and a number of other plaintiffs.

And UW Professor George Mocsary, of the Firearms Research Center, says the Second Amendment covers knives as well as firearms in another Cowboy State Daily article.

WyoToday Media published UW’s releases about the Wind Ridge Foundation Astro Camp, which brought 28 middle-schoolers to campus this summer for hands-on science and engineering activities, as well as the Teton STEM Academy, which attracted 23 high school students to UW for a week of activities.

WyoToday Media also published UW’s release about an article by UW researchers published in the journal Advances in Geo-Energy Research. It’s a comprehensive review that presents a unified, “gas-aware” framework for evaluating subsurface storage sites for carbon dioxide, hydrogen and natural gas.

The Powell Tribune covered the recent field day at UW’s Powell Research and Extension Center. The center showcased its facilities and the various trials taking root in its fields.