Her associate dean role was half-time and Lidstrom, a professor of applied microbiology in the UW鈥檚 chemical engineering and microbiology departments, was determined that if she accepted the role she would keep her research going. But accepting the position would mean giving up instruction 鈥� including a program she loved, teaching biology to engineers 鈥� and limiting some of her laboratory work. She negotiated a 75% position as VP for Research in November 2005, reserving 25% of her time to maintain her lab and research.

Since then, Lidstrom and her team in the Office of Research have made it their mission to support research by supporting researchers. Key among their priorities is helping faculty navigate and make sense of the bureaucracy, paperwork and regulations that come along with their jobs.

鈥淔aculty spend way too much time on administrative issues,鈥� Lidstrom said. 鈥淲e have a specific initiative to give time back to faculty so that they can do research, mentor trainees, teach and interact with students 鈥� all of the things that make the faculty job so amazing and their research so successful. It isn鈥檛 easy to achieve this goal in the face of ever-increasing regulations from the federal government, but because of the strong team we have in the Office of Research and with our partners across the university, we are making progress.鈥�

Now, after more than 15 years of providing that time for others, she鈥檚 taking a little for herself. Lidstrom will step down from her position on Aug. 31, 2021, with plans to return full time to the faculty, concentrate on her research, and establish mentoring and diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

鈥淚鈥檓 looking forward to several years of pretty intense activity in these areas,鈥� Lidstrom said. 鈥淚’ve been putting these things off for 15 years, basically, because I haven’t had time to pursue them and now I鈥檓 going to indulge myself. It鈥檚 a little selfish, in some ways, but I鈥檝e convinced myself it鈥檚 not selfish because I do think after 15 years it will be very healthy for the University to bring in somebody with new ideas and new perspective.鈥�

Lidstrom鈥檚 ongoing ability to keep her research in progress no doubt contributed to her election to the National Academy of Sciences in 2013. Her research team studies bacteria that live on methane, and they are working on projects that will increase sustainable production of fuels and industrial chemicals, while also removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere to help slow global warming.

The University鈥檚 research portfolio has grown from $996 million when Lidstrom took on her role to an astounding $1.63 billion in 2020. Over the past decade, the UW has received more externally sponsored research funding than any other U.S. public university, and recent global rankings that emphasize research place the UW in the range of sixth聽to 16th聽in the world.

Lidstrom is quick to credit the faculty and scholars for those accolades, noting that the depth and breadth of the UW鈥檚 expertise is rare among research universities and has helped the University weather the ebbs and flows of funding in any particular areas. That said, she has been successful in significant fundraising for research and researchers, and has played an important role in a number of high impact interdisciplinary programs in the past 15 years covering research, education and outreach.

鈥淚t is always true that research is about recruitment and retention of top faculty, and having a supportive environment for them,鈥� Lidstrom said. 鈥淎 lot of universities have four or five areas of excellence and they focus on those. But here we have dozens. That鈥檚 what makes the research enterprise so strong.鈥�

Mark Richards, the UW鈥檚 provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, said it鈥檚 difficult to overstate Lidstrom鈥檚 contributions to the UW.

鈥淪he has brought strength and stability to our research enterprise during challenging times, including the pandemic and the several times in her tenure when federal funding and support of science have been uncertain,鈥� Richards said. 鈥淢oreover, Mary鈥檚 wisdom and savvy about the national and international research landscape have helped keep UW at the forefront of many fields.鈥�

Collaborative research 鈥撀爓ithin the UW and with other organizations 鈥撀爃as been a priority for Lidstrom, with 27% of UW research funding involving partnerships with other entities. Interdisciplinary research centers and institutes are also thriving across the UW鈥檚 campuses.

鈥淲hat I knew before I came in is how collaborative researchers are at the UW compared to other places I’ve been,鈥� Lidstrom said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just in the culture here. That actually makes it easy for the VPR to do this job, because you can reach out and you can work with people and they are willing to discuss new ideas and to help.鈥�

Lidstrom, who got her start doing research as an undergraduate, said a hallmark of her academic career has been maintaining a tiered mentoring community in which students sometimes as early as high school are working in concert with undergraduates, graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, along with professors.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a very healthy environment for people to learn in, and to support diversity, because that鈥檚 really important to me,鈥� she said. 鈥淎 significant amount of research funding at the UW goes to support undergraduate learning 鈥� hands-on, experiential learning. At a public research institution like the UW, you can鈥檛 separate out research and education, because they鈥檙e just inextricably intertwined.鈥�

The Frank Jungers Endowed Chair of Engineering, Lidstrom first joined the UW as an assistant professor in 1978, earning tenure and promotion, before going to Caltech in 1987. She returned 25 years ago as professor and took on the role of vice provost for research from 2005 to 2010. She served as interim provost for the 2010-11 academic year, and then returned to the Office of Research as vice provost.

As for what the next 15 years and beyond may bring in the world of academic research, Lidstrom expects to see changes in the research training and funding processes to make them more diverse.

鈥淚 think it must change and become more inclusive,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we have to completely revamp the whole system to get that to happen, but I think there will be some growing pains there.鈥�

Provost Richards will soon launch an internal search to find Lidstrom鈥檚 successor and will be seeking nominations of outstanding faculty leaders from within the UW for consideration.

Under guidelines first released in late March by the office 鈥� and in line with the 鈥淪tay Home, Stay Healthy鈥� orders from Gov. Jay Inslee that took effect on March 25 鈥� most UW researchers, which include faculty, staff, postdoctoral researchers, graduate and undergraduate students, were directed to start working from home if they had not done so already. Only essential research could continue at UW facilities, and then only with safety measures such as social distancing, using personal protective equipment, and decontaminating equipment and surfaces.

Those experiences early in the pandemic made UW an example for other U.S. institutions as the novel coronavirus spread. In May, the Office of Research released guidelines for a safe 鈥渞amp up鈥� of in-person, on-campus research activities that had been paused. Lidstrom and colleagues from five other prominent research universities also co-authored a , published May 28 in Science, highlighting key issues that institutions must address as they proceed with research ramp-up plans.

Lidstrom, who is also a UW professor of chemical engineering and of microbiology, sat down virtually with UW News to discuss the evolving picture of research at the UW.

What happened to research at the UW when COVID-19 hit the Seattle region?

ML: Within days of Gov. Inslee鈥檚 鈥淪tay Home, Stay Healthy鈥� order in late March, we distributed guidelines for UW-related research activities. Understandably, a lot of research ramped down, but the university also allowed certain essential research to continue. This included all COVID-19 research, which was cast quite broadly; biomedical and public health research; long-term experiments; work needed to maintain equipment or for animal care; and research that graduate students needed to complete their degrees by the end of the school year. All of these activities could continue, provided strict safety and social distancing requirements were followed.

Many research-related activities continued remotely: data analysis, group meetings, seminars, preparing manuscripts and proposals, online trainings, even remote data collection 鈥� like in astronomy.

But non-essential, on-campus research activities ramped down pretty quickly. We also paused most research with human subjects and field research. Depending on the area, some research laboratories did close, but almost all had some people coming in for safety and maintenance issues 鈥� animal care, maintenance and related activities.

In addition, I would like to point to the amazing people in the UW research administration and compliance offices, who moved all possible workload online in a matter of days, continued to support the research enterprise without a pause, and set up processes to prioritize COVID-19 related research. In most cases they turned around complex applications in a matter of hours.聽 Without them, we could not have accomplished what we have to date.

What considerations did you take as the Office of Research prepared these guidelines?

ML: Our focus is on helping people 鈥� and safeguarding their health and well-being. We really wanted to keep the number of people coming to campus for research purposes at a minimum. And even for essential research activities, no one is required to come to campus. If people cannot come to campus due to health concerns, child care issues, transportation issues or having vulnerable family members, we must accommodate them. That has been the university鈥檚 policy since the pandemic started, and that remains in place even as we have made preparations to 鈥渞amp up鈥� some research activities once again.

How has the move to 鈥渞amp up鈥� research changed these guidelines?

ML: In early May, the governor announced plans for a of Washington鈥檚 economy. In response, we prepared and distributed guidelines for allowing certain in-person research activities on campus, provided a set of strict safety measures were met.

What was the motivation behind these new guidelines?

ML: Research is one of the core functions of this university. And in early May, the public health metrics of the COVID-19 pandemic in Washington were looking sufficiently positive that we thought we could start to allow small numbers of individuals to return to campus for research once again. That is happening now. But, we are phasing it in gradually and thoughtfully.

We are also very much aware that, now and moving forward, there are circumstances where coming to campus is not an option. We don鈥檛 want anyone to feel pressured to come in. We are recognizing that careers are at stake, and many researchers are eager to resume research. So, we are trying to make it permissive to come to campus in a safe way 鈥� but this is in no way required.

How did the Office of Research prepare these guidelines?

ML: We have a whole team working on this within the Office of Research. We鈥檝e also gotten a great deal of input from academic units, campus leaders and advisory groups 鈥� including department chairs, deans鈥� offices and the Faculty Council on Research. We also worked closely with UW . Everyone stepped up and was very helpful. We had quite a bit of excellent advice.

What are some steps that researchers must take to be able to return to campus?

ML: There are many steps, more than I can cover here. But I can give you an overview.

Every principal investigator 鈥� a professor or head of a research group 鈥� must prepare a detailed plan for resuming in-person research while maintaining social distancing requirements and other safety measures. There鈥檚 quite a lot that must go into this plan: strict limits on the number of people in each room in the research space; moving equipment and staggering schedules to accommodate social distancing; use of personal protective equipment; designating who will do what; educating team members about health attestation and safety requirements; and staying home if they come down with symptoms.

Then, they must get that plan approved by their department chair or equivalent, order and receive all necessary supplies 鈥� including personal protective equipment 鈥� and that鈥檚 all before anyone can even show up to campus.

Have UW policies shaped what鈥檚 happened at other universities?

ML: Yes, they have. We were one of the first major research universities to have to deal with COVID-19. We made our initial guidelines public for other institutions to view. They could even use them as templates for their own guidelines. Some of my counterparts in the University of California system reached out to me and ultimately used our framework to help create guidelines for the UC system. That in turn went out to colleagues across the country, being improved upon at each step. The whole community of research offices has worked together and helped each other. It鈥檚 just been amazing.

That鈥檚 what led to this policy forum article, as well. We wanted to share the considerations we鈥檝e made and raise important issues like safety, social distancing, and the need for gradual, thoughtful ramping up. We鈥檙e not going through this alone, and we should continue to help one another.

For more information, contact Lidstrom at lidstrom@uw.edu.

“Excitation” is not just a scientific term or perfect Beach Boys lyric, it’s also the topic of this year’s cross-disciplinary , an intensive summer research program for undergraduate students.

This year’s institute, lasting through summer quarter, is “.” Guided by four UW instructors, about 20 selected students will attend lectures and seminars and gather for small group critiques, workshops and tutorial sessions, all on that theme.

They will study theoretical writing on the topic, and create a project that, program notes state, “reflects their unique insights into the role of energy in the arts and humanities.” These projects can be digital or physical, and they may include performances, visual artworks and creative writing as well as scholarly research.

Participating instructors are:

• , professor, School of Art + Art History + Design
• lecturer, Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering (formerly with UW Bothell)
• , associate professor, Comparative History of Ideas Program
• , doctoral student, Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media

“To be excited means to be excited about something 鈥� which means that you’re actively engaged in the world in a certain way,” said Thurtle in a video you can view below. “And so, to get students to start thinking about how they are actively engaged in the world, and how they can best research that by using the tools of the arts and humanities 鈥� is the aim and purpose of this particular summer institute.”

The institute will conclude on Aug. 18 with a “works in progress exhibition” and a daylong seminar where students will present or perform the results of their research and inquiry. That will be from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Allen Library Auditorium, and open to the public.

“We’ve got four amazing faculty, so this is going to be a very hands-on summer institute,” Thurtle said. “In some sense, this could be one of the most intense academic experiences the students will have during their lifetime.”

The institute was created by the Undergraduate Research Program in collaboration with the Simpson Center for the Humanities. Other sponsors are the Office of Research, Summer Quarter and the Mary Gates Endowment for Students.

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For more information, visit or contact the Undergraduate Research Program at urp@uw.edu, or Thurtle at 206-543-7333 or thurtle@uw.edu.

• Watch a video about the 2016 Summer Institute in the Arts and Humanities:

The large X-ray computed tomography scanner, also known as a CT scanner, can penetrate steel, concrete, bone 鈥揺ven nanofabricated electronic sensors and microchips 鈥� to generate high-resolution, three-dimensional images. The instrument will let researchers see virtual slices of the insides of objects at high resolution, capturing a level of visual detail often not possible with current lab equipment.

“This has the potential to be an interdisciplinary piece of research equipment that we think will be really valuable for the university as a whole,” said , a UW associate professor of civil and environmental engineering who is leading the project. “I think it will get a lot of use.”

Researchers across campus will be able to use the machine to answer questions such as how concrete and steel components are damaged in earthquakes, what the inside of a 3-D printed object looks like, and how models of the skulls and jawbones of mammals can shed light on their diet changes over time.

The scanner arrives next spring and will be the only publicly available 3-D scanner of its size in the Pacific Northwest, Berman said. It also will be available for researchers at other schools in the region to use. The National Science Foundation recently awarded the UW a $1 million grant to buy the equipment.

The works like the familiar 3-D CT scanners in many hospitals and clinics, but comes enclosed in a 10-foot cube. Objects are placed inside the box, where a robot rotates and spins them to allow the instrument to X-ray through the object at various angles. A computer then digitally reconstructs the object in 3-D with resolution as small as 2 microns, about one-fiftieth the diameter of a human hair.

http://youtu.be/xZC9qZeBLpY

There are no health risks or concerns from scanning because the machine is enclosed in a steel lead case.

The idea for the scanner came from Berman’s structural engineering group in civil engineering. He and his colleagues often test large components of infrastructure for their resistance to earthquakes and other loads. This scanner will help researches see cracks and damage in key components that are not visible on the surface, ultimately leading to recommendations for safer structural design, Berman said.

Berman also heard from colleagues across campus in biology and anthropology labs and at the Burke Museum who want to analyze large skeletal pieces, fossils and animal remains. Aerospace researchers were curious about the internal structure of composite materials that are known to crack in places that are hard to see from the outside.

In lab, anthropology students will use the CT scanner to see changes in the relationship among the bones of human feet while force is applied to them. This will help her team understand the foot structure of our hominin ancestors, which is different from anything alive today.

“The most exciting thing that I think will come of having this machine on campus is that our students and other scholars from diverse fields will be able to work side by side,” Kramer said. “This opportunity allows us to do exactly what a great university is supposed to do 鈥� open doors for people to rooms full of ideas, in fields that they didn’t know existed.”

Initially, several technicians at the UW will operate the machine, then train graduate students to take full control of the scans for their labs and research groups.

“A fair amount of experimentation will need to happen to get the best scan for your application,” Berman said, adding that different materials will require different resolutions and light intensities during the X-ray scans.

Along with the National Science Foundation, a number of UW units funded this project, including the Office of Research, the College of Engineering, the College of Arts & Sciences, the College of the Environment, and the departments of civil and environmental engineering, aeronautics and astronautics, biology, anthropology and Earth and space sciences.

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Lidstrom is vice provost for research and a professor of chemical engineering and microbiology. Her research focuses on developing environmentally friendly and economically viable alternatives to chemical fuels. Lidstrom was elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences in 2011. She also is a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Lidstrom has been at the UW twice, from 1978 to 1985 and again since 1996. She received her bachelor’s in microbiology from Oregon State University and her master’s and doctorate in bacteriology from the University of Wisconsin.

Kaplan is a professor of physics and the director of the UW’s Institute of Nuclear Theory. He did his undergraduate work at Stanford University and earned a doctorate in physics from Harvard University in 1985. He joined the UW faculty in 1994 and became director of the Institute for Nuclear Theory in 2006. Kaplan’s research focuses on the application of quantum field theory to the strong interaction, lattice field theory, cosmology and physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. The Standard Model is the well-tested theory of the strong, weak and electromagnetic interactions that predicted the existence of the Higgs boson, which was discovered last year at the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland.