Celebrating the Wisconsin Science Festival!

UW Madison has long followed the tradition of the Wisconsin Idea, ensuring we impact peoples lives beyond the classroom and our campus borders. One way that UW Madison meets this mission head on is by having agricultural research stations embedded in Wisconsin’s communities. Travel with Mike Peters as we take a photo tour of the history, beauty, and impact of these Wisconsin treasures.

Mike Peters has served as the director of the Agricultural Research Stations for the last 7 years. In his 20 years with UW Madison he has served in various agricultural research and compliance roles. He prides himself in helping scientists and students succeed, and makes it his personal mission to guarantee agricultural research work receives the TLC needed to ensure UW is a continual leader in feeding the world.

Dairy production in Wisconsin creates opportunities and challenges when it comes to soil and water conservation. This presentation will explore both of these aspects and highlight farmer-collaborations to address these important issues.

Dr. Matt Ruark is a professor in the department of soil and environmental sciences and a state specialist in the UW Division of Extension. His research and extension programs focus on nitrogen cycling in Wisconsin, with the goal improving nitrogen use efficiency in grain, dairy, and potato production systems.

If you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes. We often hear that phrase in Wisconsin (though it applies to most of the United States). The new Wisconsin Environmental Mesonet is helping Wisconsinites monitor Wisconsin’s weather; learn more about what it takes to measure Wisconsin’s weather extremes every five minutes with the manager of Wisconet.

Chris Vagasky is a meteorologist and the Research Program Manager for Wisconet, where he manages the day-to-day operations of the quickly growing weather station network. He has more than a decade of experience working with meteorological measurements and lightning data. Chris is often called upon by groups around the world for advice on lightning safety and deploying meteorological measurement equipment.

Sam Mulrooney, Director of the Wisconsin Science Festival (October 14-20), talks with Buzz Kemper about this year’s Science Festival activities and events.

Sam Mulrooney is the Director of the Wisconsin Science Festival and Outreach Program Manager at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. She began working with the Wisconsin Science Festival in 2015 as the statewide coordinator and operations manager and has been the director since December 2022. With extensive event design and management experience in both academic and recreational settings, Sam loves creating opportunities for others to authentically connect with people, places, and new perspectives. She holds a master’s degree from University of North Carolina – Greensboro and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse, both in Kinesiology, and is passionate about sports and coaching youth.

Jane Rotonda, Director of the Wisconsin Book Festival (October 17-20), talks with Buzz Kemper about this year’s Book Festival activities and events.

Jane Rotonda began work on the Wisconsin Book Festival in February 2023. Jane joined the team after eight years at the nonprofit Wisconsin Public Radio, where she worked closely with numerous author guests on WPR programming, and her love of reading inspired her to found WPR’s first-ever book club. She graduated from the UW-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication.