Latest news with #UW
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Wisconsin men's basketball officially announces Villanova game at Fiserv Forum
Wisconsin men's basketball's second trip to Fiserv Forum in 2025-26 is official. The Badgers announced their Dec. 19 game against Villanova in Milwaukee in a press release on Friday. The tip time and television information will be announced at a later date. "Any time you get the chance to schedule a powerhouse program like Villanova it's a win-win," Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said in a release. "We get the chance to measure ourselves in the non-conference and Badgers fans in Wisconsin get to see a big-time college basketball game.' Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Sept. 24, with a presale opportunity for UW donors and men's basketball season ticket holders happening in mid-September. The Milwaukee game will be the third all-time meeting between Wisconsin and Villanova. The most recent game was in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, when the Badgers upset top-seeded Villanova, 65-62. Wisconsin also will play Oklahoma at Fiserv Forum on Oct. 24 for an exhibition game. 'Much like our exhibition against Oklahoma, I'm excited for our fans and alumni in Milwaukee to get a game in their backyard,' Gard said in the Friday release. 'The atmosphere has been awesome every time we've played in that area and I have no doubt Fiserv will be filled with red for these games as well." This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin officially announces Villanova game at Fiserv Forum
Hamilton Spectator
7 days ago
- Science
- Hamilton Spectator
Enlisting drones in the fight against phragmites
Drone technology is the latest weapon in the fight against invasive species of plants, particularly phragmites. Researchers at the University of Waterloo have been investigating a new method for spreading herbicide to combat phragmites, also known as common reed. Phragmites has been called Canada's worst invasive plant, causing problems for humans and ecosystems alike. 'But especially in wetlands, preventing people from accessing their docks and affecting water quality, affecting habitat for birds and for turtles, and displacing our native plants,' said Rebecca Rooney, an associate professor and one of the authors of a paper looking at the use of drones to combat phragmites. Rooney described trying to walk through phragmites like 'trying to walk through wicker furniture,' noting the reeds can grow up to four metres tall, which is the height of a single-storey home. They also pose a fire risk and can block sightlines on highways and county roads, making the control of phragmites spread a vital yet costly endeavour. 'We're spending millions of dollars in Ontario alone trying to control it,' said Rooney, pointing to the likes of the Invasive Phragmites Control Fund, with the province announcing last year some $16 million over three years to combat invasive species. 'Which is just a drop in the bucket of what's needed to eradicate this plant.' This has led researchers to explore the use of a remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS) to apply herbicide, with a reported effectiveness of 99 percent. They observed a short-term decline in plant diversity after the RPAS applications, but the native species reappeared in treated areas within a year, the research found. Rebecca Rooney/University of Waterloo. 'So being efficient is important. We're not spending as much money because we can do it faster, more precisely, and more effectively. I feel that's a really important step in managing it sustainably in Ontario,' added Rooney. 'We wanted to look at ways we could try to manage this aggressive, invasive grass more precisely and in a way that minimizes the amount of environmental impact.' The current method of spreading herbicides in wetlands has raised numerous challenges and difficulties. Using ground access with heavy equipment can potentially trample wildlife and desirable vegetation. RPAS technology provides more convenient access to spraying the weeds than with ground-control methods, with less risk of trampling or disturbance, the UW researchers note. In the past, helicopters were also used to spread herbicides, but this method made it difficult to achieve precision and created off-target problems. 'It's important to avoid the potential for herbicide drift and any collateral damage to native vegetation, which is especially valuable in ecologically sensitive wetlands,' said Rooney. 'The precision from RPAS applications may help land managers to minimize off-target herbicide exposure, reducing impacts to surrounding vegetation and improving conditions for native plant recovery.' That's why they are trying to use innovation to combat the difficulties that come with doing it on foot and with machinery, as in the past. 'We were being innovative in terms of applying a new tool to an old problem and coming up with an improvement in terms of how effective it is and how efficient it is.' Pesticides are closely regulated, and the researchers obtained special research authorization from the Pest Management Regulatory Authority. The hope is that this study will lead to a new form of invasive species control that can be used more widely. There are many different types of herbicides, but the one that this study is working with is called s habitat Aqua, which is an Imazapyr-based herbicide. This is safe to use over water. They had received authorization to research the RPAS method. The goal was to show that this method can be effective and safe, and then provide that data to BASF, the manufacturer of Imazapyr. They're using it to submit to the Pest Management Regulatory Authority, and they can be approved for wider use, said Rooney. 'This approach also holds promise for accelerating ecological recovery in wetland habitats. Future research should focus on long-term native vegetation recovery and quantify the accuracy of RPAS-based herbicide applications to minimize off-target damage to native vegetation in wetlands.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
USA Today
7 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Wisconsin basketball officially reveals 2025-26 non-conference schedule
Wisconsin basketball officially revealed its 2025-26 nonconference schedule on Wednesday. Following several reports throughout the offseason, the Badgers confirmed their slate of matchups for their non-Big Ten bouts, including the dates for each contest. In total, Wisconsin will face 13 teams from Oct. 24 to Dec. 30, with two of those contests being exhibitions before the official start of the regular season. While the program has yet to receive specific dates for its conference tilts, UW will host Iowa, Maryland, Michigan State, Northwestern, Rutgers, UCLA and USC, travel to Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State and Washington, then face Minnesota, Ohio State and Purdue both home and away. The Badgers will begin their non-conference journey with exhibitions against the Oklahoma Sooners at Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum on Oct. 24 before hosting UW-Plateville in another exhibition on Oct. 29. The Campbell Fighting Camels will make the trek to Madison for Wisconsin's first regular season game on Nov. 3, followed by a trio of bouts against Northern Illinois (Nov. 7), Ball State (Nov. 11) and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (Nov. 17). Gard's group will then transition to its most difficult stretch of the non-conference season, beginning with a test against future lottery pick A.J. Dybantsa and the BYU Cougars. The contest, set to take place in Salt Lake City on Nov. 21, will be a rematch of the Badgers' loss to the Cougars in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. That high-profile meeting comes just six days before UW ventures to San Diego, California, for the Rady Children's Invitational, where it will face Providence and the winner of TCU/Florida on Nov. 27 and Nov. 28, respectively. UW will then wrap its pre-Big Ten portion of the season with its I-94 battle against Marquette on Dec. 6, a showdown vs. Villanova in the Milwaukee Hoops Showdown at Fiserv Forum on Dec. 19, a Dec. 22 game against Central Michigan and an in-state tune-up vs. UW-Milwaukee on Dec. 30. Fresh off a 27-10 output a season ago, Wisconsin will look to returning starters John Blackwell and Nolan Winter, plus transfers Nick Boyd, Andrew Rohde and Austin Rapp, to make the most significant impacts on both ends of the floor this season. In a crowded 18-team Big Ten, a strong performance against non-conference foes will prove beneficial as the postseason rolls around. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
Time Magazine
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Time Magazine
The Legacy of Robert La Follette's Progressive Vision
President Donald Trump's return to the White House has left many progressive Americans feeling disillusioned, resigned, and apathetic. Warnings about the dangers of the former president fell flat with a little more than half the electorate last fall. And many Trump supporters remain fiercely loyal—despite his most egregious violations of democratic principles. Democrats have spent the last several months struggling to fight back against Trump's policies—even those that are massively unpopular. The story of Senator and Governor Robert M. La Follette, a Republican from Wisconsin who is widely regarded as one of the greatest progressive politicians in American history, might offer some inspiration for progressives struggling today. His legacy suggests that securing political change requires persistent activism, tempered by patience. La Follette's history reminds activists that continuing to push steadily forward toward specific objectives offers them the best chance of eventually achieving their political goals. In 1873, just before becoming a student at the University of Wisconsin, La Follette heard Edward Ryan, soon to become the state's Chief Justice, give a commencement speech. Ryan bluntly defined the central questions of the coming era: 'Which shall rule—wealth or man; which shall lead—money or intellect; who shall fill public stations—educated and patriotic freemen, or the feudal serfs of corporate capital?' This question would animate La Follette's career as he tried to live up to UW president John Bascom's insistence that students accept the obligations of citizenship and their duty to serve the state. La Follette came to share Bascom's passion for social and economic justice, including his support of labor associations and women's rights. In preparation for a career in public service, he honed his considerable oratory skills and ultimately earned a law degree in 1880. La Follette became a part of the burgeoning progressive movement, that rose in response to conditions of the long Gilded Age. By the late 19th century, the economy was unregulated, unstable at best, and frequently rocked by recessions and depressions. Immigrants poured into cities, providing much of the labor force of a newly industrialized America, which saw its economy become the largest in the world—thanks in large part to their low wages. Dreams of the U.S. as a land of glorious opportunity seemed available exclusively to the already wealthy. Most Americans worked menial, often dangerous, jobs that were so low paying that entire families had to work to survive. After long hours in dangerous conditions, workers returned to urban ghettos rife with poverty, crime, and disease. Precious, nonrenewable resources were decimated, with no thought to their conservation, let alone preservation. Read More: As Schumer's Stock Falls, Here's Who's Vying to Lead Democrats Against Trump Too often, government appeared, at best, helpless to curb the harmful excesses, and, at worst, a willing collaborator in the profitable carnage. Politicians like New York's Boss George Plunkett spoke openly and approvingly of 'honest graft.' A seat in the Senate (often referred to as "the Millionaire's Club") could be purchased merely to increase a wealthy man's status. State legislators frequently chose U.S. senators thanks to backroom bribes. Powerful trusts cornered markets and set prices, controlling such necessities as beef, steel, sugar, oil, and money. The attitudes of the wealthy businessmen who dominated the Gilded Age were summarized by George Frederick Baer, the spokesman for the coal mine owners during the anthracite strike of 1902: 'The rights and interests of the laboring man will be protected and cared for—not by the labor agitators, but by the Christian men of property to whom God in His infinite wisdom has given control of the property rights of the country.' La Follette fiercely disagreed, and saw the ownership class as a 'hostile force' that threatened to 'thwart the will of the people and menace the perpetuity of representative government.' La Follette and his fellow progressives dedicated themselves to fighting for a better future of the nation. He won election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1884 and served three terms. But his first two bids for Wisconsin's governorship failed because opponents bribed delegates at the state's Republican nominating convention. In 1900, he undertook a third bid, promising to eliminate the corruption of the increasingly powerful political bosses and machines by enacting the direct nomination of all political candidates. His determination to return power to the people galvanized voters and carried him to victory. Under La Follette's leadership, Wisconsin pioneered many initiatives to more equitably redistribute America's wealth and power. Most importantly, he took on big interests, especially the railroads and other powerful utilities. At La Follette's behest, the state legislature enacted a thoroughgoing and efficient reform of these industries. The governor also pioneered civil service reform, insisting that government jobs be awarded on merit. Additionally, his administration regulated lobbyists, enacted stronger provisions against corrupt practices, implemented environmental measures, and reformed Wisconsin's tax system to be more equitable, nearly doubling the amount paid by railroads. He also changed how the state elected officials, fulfilling his pledge to enact primary elections for all elected offices so no one could purchase them in back room deals. By 1906, when La Follette moved to the U.S. Senate, progressive governors across the nation were eagerly trying to duplicate many of his initiatives. In the Senate, La Follette continued his push to regulate the railroads, including by beefing up the powers of Interstate Commerce Commission, and limiting the number of consecutive hours railroads could require employees to work. He contributed significantly to the passage of two constitutional amendments: The 16th, which allowed the federal government to levy a graduated income tax (which La Follette saw as a path toward more equitable income redistribution) and the 17th, which established the direct election of U.S. senators, so that voters couldn't be corrupted like state legislators had been. In 1915, La Follette pushed through the Seaman's Act, which required ships to carry enough lifeboats for all passengers and crew. He saw the recent Titanic disaster as proof that the lives of the poor were less valued, and argued that all lives were worthy of equal protection. Perhaps La Follette's most controversial act as a senator was his outspoken opposition to U.S. entry into World War I. President Woodrow Wilson presented the war as a culmination of progressive reform ideas, promising it would 'make the world safe for democracy.' La Follette dismissed this assertion, warning that war was "a dreadful diversion for peoples demanding juster distribution of wealth. War is the money changer's opportunity, and the social reformer's doom.' Read More: How Wisconsin Became the Ultimate Purple State This position fueled massive blowback. Despite this national vilification, however, Wisconsin voters reelected La Follette in 1922. In 1924—only a year before he died—La Follette ran for president as an independent and captured 17% of the vote. And after he died, his son was elected to the Senate for another 21 years. One of La Follette's greatest gifts was the ability to recognize that achieving progressives' goals was not a short term project. 'We are,' he said, 'slow to realize that democracy is a life and involves continual struggle.' He set out to inspire the like minded to take part in what he envisioned as a perpetual movement. La Follette counseled both immediate action…and patience: 'It will not be possible to restore industrial and commercial freedom at once.' But it was important to begin the process. For as much as La Follette achieved, his prediction that the struggle would be long proved accurate. Much of the original progressive agenda, with its emphasis on federal regulation, stalled during the final years of La Follette's career. After World War I, the nation experienced a period of disillusionment and reform fatigue. The successes as well as the failures of the progressive movement contributed to its stagnation: with the worst excesses remedied, it was hard to create consensus on next steps. Progressives also encountered reversals as the wealthy fought to regain undue political influence. La Follette anticipated this regression too, noting that 'tyranny and oppression are just as possible under democratic forms [of government] as any other.' Yet, he counseled hope rather than despair. Again, this proved prescient. Reformers kept fighting after La Follette died in 1925, and their perseverance paid off during the New Deal in the 1930s. Later, the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s reactivated other dormant progressive ideas. During his presidential campaign, La Follette urged his fellow citizens to recognize that 'There is an unending struggle to make and keep government representative…Mere passive citizenship is not enough. Men must be aggressive for what is right if government is to be saved from those who are aggressive for what is wrong.' That statement—and La Follette's philosophy more broadly— provides a blueprint for liberals navigating the Trump era. For disillusioned progressives feeling powerless to stop President Trump's initiatives, La Follette's career exemplifies the value of rejecting the siren song of frustration and complacency in favor of persistence in pursuing progressive ideals. Only continuous efforts and vigilance can safeguard American democracy and create a more equal and just society. Nancy C. Unger is professor of history at Santa Clara University, and the author of the prize-winning biography Fighting Bob La Follette: The Righteous Reformer. Made by History takes readers beyond the headlines with articles written and edited by professional historians. Learn more about Made by History at TIME here. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of TIME editors.
USA Today
16-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
The daughter of PGA Tour star Steve Stricker is on a heater. Here's her latest win
The trophy case at the Stricker household must be overflowing. And among Wisconsin's foremost golfing family, Izzi Stricker is swinging the hottest club right now. Stricker, who is a rising sophomore on the University of Wisconsin golf team, won the Wisconsin Women's Amateur Championship on July 15 in a playoff at Maple Bluff Country Club. Stricker outlasted Janesville's Hannah Dunk and UW golfer Hadley Ashton over two playoff holes. Izzi Stricker is the youngest daughter of Steve Stricker Stricker's pedigree is well-known as the youngest daughter of Steve Stricker, the most successful golfer in state history. Stricker's mother, Nicki, and older sister, Bobbi, are also former UW golfers who are fixtures in local events with Bobbi now forging a pro career. Nicki's brother, Mario Tiziani, also is a well-known golfer and their father, Dennis Tiziani, is a former Badgers coach for the men's and women's teams. Izzi Stricker is red-hot this summer in Wisconsin State Golf Association play. In late June, she teamed with Nicki to win the Women's Four-Ball Championship at the Legend of Bergamont in Oregon. The week before that, Izzi won the Women's Match Play Championsip at Old Hickory Golf Course in Beaver Dam. For the Women's Amateur, Izzi carded rounds of 77, 72 and 77 to force the playoff. Steve and Nicki were at Maple Bluff to celebrate the win. Izzi Stricker has been on national golf radar since battle with Tiger Woods and son Izzi won multiple WIAA state championships at Waunakee High School, but she hit the national radar over the last few years at the PNC Championships in Orlando, Florida, in which she shared the course with women's star Nelly Korda and competed alongside Steve against Tiger Woods and his son, Charlie. The Stricker family is also highly visible every summer at the American Family Insurance Championships, the PGA Tour Champions event hosted by Steve in Madison. This year, the event moved to TPC Wisconsin, which is owned by Dennis Tiziani. After finishing second at this year's AmFam Championships in a team with brother-in-law Mario Tiziani, the 58-year-old Steve said that he would undergo neck surgery soon to alleviate pain that also extended to his back. In his career, Steve has won 12 PGA Tour events and 18 on the Champions Tour. He also captained the United States to victory at the Ryder Cup held at Whistling Straits.
