MSE Seminar: Fang Liu
Title: Fang Liu, Michigan Technological University, will present "Large scale production of artificial two-dimensional superlattices." Abstract: Two-dimensional (2D) materials and their engineered lattices offer exciting opportunities for next-generation electronic, optoelectronic, and electrochemical devices. Yet, studies of high-quality heterostructures have been largely constrained to microscopic flakes. Here, we present scalable, controllable top-down methods that transform a wide range of van der Waals (vdW) single crystals into twisted moiré superlattices with high yield, exceptional uniformity, and macroscopic dimensions from millimeters to centimeters. Access to such large-area structures has enabled new discoveries, including ultrafast thermal exchange at bilayer interfaces, rapid photoinduced tuning of moiré patterns, and markedly reduced Debye temperatures in deformed monolayers compared to their isolated counterparts. Furthermore, by patterning 1D features—such as nanoribbon arrays and…
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, April 6, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
ChemE Graduate Seminar Series: Ying Diao
Unexpected “Twist” in Conjugated Polymers Opens a “Wonderland” of Chiral Electronics
Ying Diao
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Tuesday, April 7, 2026
4-5 p.m.
PAA A110
Abstract
Chiral assemblies are ubiquitous and intimately related to the evolution of life on Earth. Chiral assemblies of pi-conjugated molecules are particularly fascinating, which Nature uses to efficiently transfer electrons and transduce energies leveraging their electronic conductivity, redox activity as well as the chirality-induced spin selectivity effect. To date, the intriguing properties of chiral assemblies remain largely unexplored and unknown in synthetic electronic systems such as p-conjugated polymers. This is largely due to the synthetic bottleneck to develop chiral semiconducting molecules that exhibit both high performance in terms of charge, exciton or spin transport and exceptional chiral optical properties – the ability to twist light. Further, it is widely believed that the spin-orbit coupling is weak in organic…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Physics-Astronomy Auditorium (PAA). Campus room: PAA A110. Accessibility Contact: dso@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Tuesday, April 7, 2026, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM.
Guest Lecture: Frederick Kin Hing Phoa, "A Uniform Placement of Alters on Spherical Surface (U-PASS) for Ego-Centric Networks with Community Structure and Alter Attributes"
Join the UW Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering for a talk by Dr. Frederick Kin Hing Phoa of Academia Sinica about new approaches to visualizing ego-centric networks. He will introduce U-PASS (Uniform Placement of Alters on Spherical Surface), a method designed to better represent relationships, communities, and node attributes in complex network systems.
A Uniform Placement of Alters on Spherical Surface (U-PASS) for Ego-Centric Networks with Community Structure and Alter Attributes
Frederick Kin Hing Phoa, Institute of Statistical Science, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan Talk abstract
The analysis of large-scale networks, in which the number of nodes ranges from thousands to millions, has grown its importance since the turn of the millennium, and it has widely been applied in various scientific researches like anthropology, biomedical research, communication studies, and social sciences. An ego-centric network consists of a particular node (ego) that has relationships to all neighboring…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Sieg Building (SIG). Campus room: Sieg 420. Accessibility Contact: cplee@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, April 9, 2026, 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM.
“Levers of Mastery” Community Lecture
Abstract
Universities teach many cognitive skills designed to launch students into career competence. But how does one move from competence to mastery? What skills must be developed for a career to become a true vocation?
In this lecture, sculptor, master stonemason and CEE Burges Visiting Professor Richard Rhodes reflects on what art and sculpture can teach engineers and architects. How do we nurture creativity, intuition and somatic intelligence to produce masterful work? Drawing on his own career at the intersection of engineering and art, Rhodes investigates the winding path toward mastery.
About the speaker
Richard Rhodes is a professional sculptor, master stonemason and scholar of stonework whose career bridges art, craft and the built environment. His work includes public art, private commissions and architectural collaboration around the world. He is the author of the 2025 book “Stone: Ancient Craft to Modern Mastery” and is serving as the 2025-26 Burges Visiting Professor in the UW Department…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Alder Hall (ALD). Campus room: Alder Auditorium. Accessibility Contact: Jon Emard, jmemard@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, April 9, 2026, 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM.
ASCE Pacific Northwest Concrete Canoe Competition
The University of Washington will host the on-campus portion of the 2026 ASCE Pacific Northwest Student Symposium’s concrete canoe competition on Saturday, April 11. Activities will begin in the morning with canoe set-up on HUB Lawn and technical presentations in Alder Auditorium, followed by a prototype display and educational workshop on HUB Lawn in the afternoon.
The ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition gives civil engineering students hands-on experience in design, concrete mix development, project management and racing. Student chapters from across the Pacific Northwest region will participate, with race events continuing Sunday, April 12, at Lake Sammamish State Park.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: 2026PNWSymposium@gmail.com. Event Types: Special Events. Student Activities. Exhibits. Academics.
Saturday, April 11, 2026, 9:00 AM – 2:30 PM.
Alder Auditorium and HUB Lawn, University of Washington Seattle campus.
For more info visit studentsymposium.asce.org. MSE Seminar: Jun Xiao
Title: TBD
Abstract: TBD
Bio: TBD.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, April 13, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
ChemE Graduate Seminar Series: John Frostad
Advances in the characterization of soft matter
John Frostad
Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering and Food Science
University of British Columbia
Tuesday, April 14, 2026
4-5 p.m.
PAA A110
Abstract
Soft matter is a broad class of materials that includes things like polymers, gels, foams, emulsions, and suspensions. These materials are ubiquitous and understanding them is often key to the optimization of many products and processes. As such, the ability to characterize them is critical to making new breakthroughs. My lab specializes in pioneering new experimental techniques for advancing this understanding, with a recent focus on foams and soft microparticles. In this talk I will introduce two of the instruments that we have developed: a Cantilevered-Capillary Force Apparatus and an Interfacial Dilational Rheometer. The Cantilevered-Capillary Force Apparatus is capable of measuring and/or applying forces from 1 nN to 1 mN on particles on the order of 100 microns in diameter and is highly versatile for…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Physics-Astronomy Auditorium (PAA). Campus room: PAA A110. Accessibility Contact: dso@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Tuesday, April 14, 2026, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM.
Information Session: Graduate Certificate in User Centered Design
Interested in learning more about the Graduate Certificate in User Centered Design? Join HCDE advisors for an upcoming Information Session.
This session will provide an overview of the degree program, including curriculum, admissions requirements, and application.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/95541649533. Accessibility Contact: Alex Llapitan. Event Types: Information Sessions. Target Audience: Prospective HCDE User Centered Design Students.
Wednesday, April 15, 2026, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
Zoom.
Campfire Sessions: Climate Topics With Katya Cherukumilli, HCDE Assistant Professor
Join the Information School, the Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering, and UW peers to explore the areas where climate research meets human experience – using human‑centered approaches to turn data into practical solutions that help communities, inform decisions and strengthen our shared future.
What's a campfire session?
It’s a fresh twist on the usual lecture. Instead of lengthy presentations, each speaker will offer a focused 5–7 minute overview of their research.
Then things shift: The speaker becomes a facilitator, and the audience takes part in an open, guided conversation. Everyone can share ideas, ask questions, and learn from each other. Curious questions and new viewpoints are welcome. It’s relaxed, interactive and built around the perspectives people bring to the group.
Add your voice to the community of climate conversation on April 15.
Details & RSVP here ».
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: mewing3@uw.edu. Event Types: Special Events.
Wednesday, April 15, 2026, 5:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
For more info visit events.uw.edu. Campfire Conversation: Climate (iSchool + HCDE)
Join the iSchool and HCDE for an informal, community-oriented conversation with UW faculty on tech and climate at the Ravenna Brewing Co.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: kdanson@uw.edu. Event Types: Special Events. Lectures/Seminars. Target Audience: Alum and community members interested in research and conversations on tech and climate.
Wednesday, April 15, 2026, 5:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
For more info visit discover.uw.edu. Distinguished Lecture Series: Mike Dodds - What Happens to Software When Proof is Cheap?
Abstract
In July 2025, three AI systems independently achieved gold-medal standard at the International Math Olympiad. One of them, Harmonic's Aristotle, did it by constructing formal proofs in the Lean proof assistant. Six months later, several AIs working together used Lean to solve an open problem posed by Paul Erdős. We may soon live in a strange world where AI is better at math than any human expert.
Lean and tools like it bridge two worlds: mathematicians use them to formalise theorems, but engineers use them to prove that code behaves correctly. This second use, formal verification, has a long history and a few notable successes in cryptography, operating systems, and parser security. But these successes have always been limited by the sheer difficulty of the mathematical reasoning they require.
Now, AI may be changing this picture. If mathematical reasoning is cheap, we could eliminate entire classes of bugs from systems at scale, guarantee that safety-critical code behaves as intended, or verify au…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus room: Gates Center (CSE2), G20 | Amazon Auditorium. Accessibility Contact: dso@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, April 16, 2026, 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM.
Gates Center (CSE2), G20 | Amazon Auditorium.
For more info visit www.cs.washington.edu. MSE Seminar: Timothy Hebrink
Title: TBD
Abstract: TBD
Bio: TBD.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, April 20, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
ChemE Graduate Seminar Series: Stephanie Wettstein
Solvent effects and data-driven strategies for 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid production from 5-hydroxymethylfurfural
Stephanie Wettstein
Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Montana State University
Tuesday, April 21, 2026
4-5 p.m.
PAA A110
Abstract
The transition to renewable carbon sources requires new catalytic and separation strategies for
producing polymer precursors from biomass. Polyethylene furanoate (PEF) is a biobased plastic that can be produced from 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA). One promising pathway is the oxidation of 5 hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a key monomer for the bio-based plastic polyethylene furanoate (PEF). However, FDCA production is often limited by low solubility in aqueous systems and reduced yields over traditional oxidation catalysts.
Recent work has shown that organic solvents can significantly improve FDCA solubility and reaction performance, yet solvent selection has largely relied on empirical “guess-and-check”…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Physics-Astronomy Auditorium (PAA). Campus room: PAA A110. Accessibility Contact: dso@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM.
Digital Accessibility Liaisons' Meeting
Join us as we welcome new and existing Digital Accessibility Liaisons members to our third Community of Practice meeting of the 2025-2026 academic year! We hope you can join us. Agenda Highlights , 1:00 to 1:10 — Opening and Welcome , 1:10 to 1:20 — How are we doing two days away from the DOJ deadline? Including updates on new tools and procedures , , 1:20 to 1:30 — Comments and Q&A , 1:30 to 1:35 — Break , 1:35 to 2:15 — Community Partners: Working together to build digital accessibility UW Tacoma , UW Bothell , UW Medicine , , 2:15 to 2:25 — Updates & What’s next , 2:25 to 2:30 — Closing message How far we’ve come , Looking ahead to an even more accessible future , , To become a Digital Accessibility Liaison, please visit the Digital Accessibility Liaisons webpage.
The University of Washington is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, activities, education and employment for individuals with disabilities. To request…
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/96052250328. Accessibility Contact: ats-events@uw.edu. Event Types: Meetings. Target Audience: Digital Accessibility Liaisons.
Wednesday, April 22, 2026, 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM.
Human Centered Design & Engineering Research Showcase
The HCDE Research Showcase highlights ongoing work by faculty, research scientists, postdocs, PhD students, and undergraduates. The event is designed to build community around HCDE research and create space for conversation across our community of students, alumni, friends, and the broader UW community.
Attendees will explore posters and interactive project demos and have the opportunity to speak directly with researchers across HCDE’s research clusters and topic areas.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: University of Washington Club (Faculty Center) (FAC). Accessibility Contact: welliver@uw.edu. Event Types: Exhibits. Special Events.
Tuesday, April 28, 2026, 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM.
For more info visit hcde.uw.edu. MSE Seminar: Chenhao Jin
Title: TBD
Abstract: TBD
Bio: TBD.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, May 4, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
Distinguished Lecture Series: Kevin Weil - Accelerating Science with AI
Abstract is forthcoming. BIO:
Kevin Weil is VP of OpenAI for Science, focused on building the next great scientific instrument: an AI-powered platform that accelerates scientific discovery. Previously, Kevin served as the Chief Product Officer at OpenAI, where he led the teams turning frontier models into products like ChatGPT, Codex, and the OpenAI API.
Before joining OpenAI, Kevin was the President, Product and Business at Planet Labs. He was previously the co-founder of the Libra cryptocurrency and VP of Product for Novi at Facebook, VP of Product at Instagram and SVP of Product at Twitter. Earlier in his career, Kevin held software engineering and data science roles at Cooliris, Tropos Networks, Microsoft Research and the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center.
Kevin graduated summa cum laude in physics and mathematics from Harvard University and has an M.S. in physics from Stanford University. He is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and serves on the boards of Cisco and The Nature Co…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus room: Gates Center (CSE2), G20 | Amazon Auditorium. Accessibility Contact: dso@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, May 7, 2026, 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM.
Gates Center (CSE2), G20 | Amazon Auditorium.
For more info visit www.cs.washington.edu. MSE Seminar: TBD
Title: TBD
Abstract: TBD
Bio: TBD.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, May 11, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
MSE Seminar: Robert Hickey
Title: TBD
Abstract: TBD
Bio: TBD.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, May 18, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
UW GAAD (Global Accessibility Awareness Day) 2026
The purpose of GAAD is to get everyone talking, thinking, and learning about digital access and inclusion. This will be a hybrid event. Registration is required as the in-person space available is limited.
The University of Washington is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, activities, education and employment for individuals with disabilities. To request disability accommodation contact the Disability Services Office at least ten days in advance at: 206.543.6450/V, 206.685.7264 (FAX), or e-mail at dso@uw.edu.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/93396848075. Accessibility Contact: ats-events@uw.edu. Event Types: Meetings. Target Audience: UW.
Thursday, May 21, 2026, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM.
Memorial Day
Holidays
No classes. Most University offices and buildings are closed. Check with specific offices to confirm.
Event interval: Single day event. Year: 2026. Quarter: Spring. Event Types: Academics.
Monday, May 25, 2026.
For more info visit www.washington.edu. CREATE Community Day
CREATE Community Day is an annual half-day forum for discussing the concerns about and approaches to sustainable accessibility research and a showcase of research led by CREATE and HuskyADAPT. Student researchers highlight their work and showcase a variety of individual and team projects.
We are currently making plans for Community Day 2026. Details available in spring.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Bill & Melinda Gates Center for Computer Science & Engineering (CSE2). Campus room: Zillow Commons. Accessibility Contact: oliviapb@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Diversity Equity Inclusion. Exhibits. Information Sessions. Meetings. Special Events. Target Audience: Anyone interested in research on accessible technology & making the world accessible through tech.
Wednesday, May 27, 2026, 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit create.uw.edu. MSE Seminar: Joe Falson
Title: TBD
Abstract: TBD
Bio: TBD.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: Matthew Yankowitz, myank@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Monday, June 1, 2026, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM.
HCDE Capstone Showcase
Join the University of Washington's Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering for our 2026 Capstone Showcase.
Student teams solve real-world problems through a human-centered lens. Projects are proposed by industry sponsors or driven by an interest from the students on the team. Details about projects will be added as the showcase nears.
Questions? Contact Melissa Ewing at mewing3@uw.edu.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Student Union Building (HUB). Campus room: HUB Ballroom. Accessibility Contact: mewing3@uw.edu. Event Types: Exhibits. Special Events.
Wednesday, June 3, 2026, 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM.
For more info visit www.hcde.washington.edu. Instruction Ends - Spring 2026
Instruction ends.
Event interval: Single day event. Year: 2026. Quarter: Spring. Event Types: Academics.
Friday, June 5, 2026.
For more info visit www.washington.edu. Final Examinations - Spring 2026
Week of final examinations for spring quarter.
Event interval: Ongoing event. Year: 2026. Quarter: Spring. Event Types: Academics.
Saturday, June 6, 2026 – Friday, June 12, 2026.
For more info visit www.washington.edu. Juneteenth
Holidays
No classes. Most University offices and buildings are closed. Check with specific offices to confirm.
Event interval: Single day event. Year: 2026. Quarter: Summer. Event Types: Academics.
Friday, June 19, 2026.
For more info visit www.washington.edu. Instruction Begins - Summer 2026 - Full and A-term
Instruction begins.
Event interval: Single day event. Year: 2026. Quarter: Summer. Event Types: Academics.
Monday, June 22, 2026.
For more info visit www.washington.edu.