Mexican sound artist Hugo Solis, a graduate of the University of Washington’s Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media’s Ph.D. program, looks to an underwater volcano for data and inspiration in his new installation, “Axial.” John Delaney, leader of the National Science Foundation’s Regional Scale Nodes program, collaborated on the project.  Read more here. 

The latest installment of “Lost and Found Films” features footage of Friday Harbor Labs, circa 1958.  At 2:28 and silent, it’s both relatively mundane and also a bit mysterious.  What is the purpose of this film, and what experiment is being done at the end?  Help UW Libraries Special Collections’ film archives specialist Hannah Palin out: if you can place what’s going on here, comment at the bottom of this link! 

This great blog, a joint effort of SAFS’ Steven Roberts and Carolyn Friedman, features active research being done on ocean acidification within the College’s School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences.  A recent post features the Washington Sea Grant’s autumn newsletter (pdf).  Among the many insightful articles is one highlighting how students at Seattle’s Garfield High School got to learn about ocean acidification.  

Sunset hits Seattle at 4:18 p.m. through Dec. 17 — the earliest time of the year — though the shortest day of the year isn’t until several days later. Dale Durran, professor of atmospheric sciences, is quoted. 

Newly published research from College researchers Qinghua Ding, Eric Steig, David Battisti, and Marcel Küttel shows how warmer-than-usual sea-surface temperatures, especially in the central tropics, lead to changes in atmospheric circulation that influence conditions near the Antarctic coast line.  Anomalously warm waters set up westerly winds that push surface water away from glaciers lining the Amundsen Sea and allow warmer deep water to rise to the surface under the edges of the glaciers.