Shawn Vestal

Spokane

Editor and operations coordinator of InvestigateWest, and author of Godforsaken Idaho, a collection of short stories, and the novel Daredevils.

Articles

Students use AI to learn about the future of farming

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | Aniela Shauck |Voiland College |Josh Babcock |Shawn Vestal

Students at the 95th annual Washington Future Farmers of America State Convention and Expo held earlier this month on the Washington State University campus learned about computer science, robotics, and technological tools shaping the future of farming.
Swindell receives inaugural Assessment Champion Award

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | Beverly Makhani |Josh Babcock |Shawn Vestal |Bryan Boyle

May 29, 2025 By Beverly Makhani, Division of Academic Engagement and Student Achievement (DAESA) Samantha Swindell has received the first Assessment Champion Award presented by the Office of Assessment for Curricular Effectiveness (ACE) in recognition of her long-standing support and partnership in advancing undergraduate program assessment at Washington State University.
WSU Pullman oversight transitions to President Cantwell

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | Josh Babcock |Shawn Vestal |Bryan Boyle

As part of WSU’s continued efforts to improve operational and financial efficiency, the Office of the Chancellor for WSU Pullman is being dissolved effective June 1. The move, recommended by both Pullman Chancellor Dave Cillay and Provost and Executive Vice President Chris Riley-Tillman, reflects a strategic shift in leadership structure as well as President Elizabeth Cantwell’s direct commitment to the Pullman campus.
See new climate-smart technology for dairies at May 30 field day

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | Seth Truscott |Josh Babcock |Shawn Vestal |Bryan Boyle

ROYAL CITY, Wash. —Scientists from Washington State University and Cornell University will share an in-person look at their experiments this spring field-testing new technologies that could help dairy producers curb their farms’ greenhouse gas emissions.
WSU students meet winemakers, learn about sustainability during Walla Walla trip

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | Josh Babcock |Shawn Vestal |Bryan Boyle |RJ Wolcott

A spring field trip helped undergraduates in Washington State University’s Department of Viticulture & Enology (V&E) learn more about the intricacies of Merlot while visiting a thriving winemaking region in southeast Washington state. While it was still too early to visit the area’s vineyards, the students spent the day touring a handful of Walla Walla wineries for a firsthand look at how they use Merlot, an oft-overlooked grape cultivar, to craft their wines.
Rare surgery buys Rottweiler invaluable time with family

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | Josh Babcock |Shawn Vestal |Bryan Boyle |RJ Wolcott

Following his dog’s sudden diagnosis of an aggressive skin cancer, Gavin Rogers couldn’t fathom putting down his 10-year-old Rottweiler, Howie. Besides the rapidly growing malignant tumor that started inside and quickly worked its way outside of Howie’s nose in less than two months’ time, Howie was, up until that moment, a healthy family dog showing no signs of slowing. “I talked it over with my fiancé and did some real soul searching,” Rogers said.
Emotional responses crucial to attitudes about self-driving cars, study suggests

1 month ago | techxplore.com | Shawn Vestal |Gaby Clark |Andrew Zinin

When it comes to public attitudes toward using self-driving cars, understanding how the vehicles work is important—but so are less obvious characteristics like feelings of excitement or pleasure and a belief in technology's social benefits.
3D printing tech improves durability of 'smart wearables'

1 month ago | electronicsonline.net.au | Shawn Vestal

Imagine a T-shirt that could monitor your heart rate or blood pressure. Or a pair of socks that could provide feedback on your running stride. It may be closer than you think, with new research from Washington State University demonstrating a particular 3D ink printing method for so-called smart fabrics that continues to perform well after repeated washings and abrasion tests.
Wild spinach offers path to breed disease resistance into cultivated varieties

1 month ago | phys.org | Shawn Vestal |Gaby Clark |Robert Egan

Several varieties of wild spinach that originated in Central Asia show resistance to a destructive soil-borne pathogen that beleaguers growers of spinach seed in the Pacific Northwest—a finding that can be used to breed hardier crops.
WSU researcher joins Sen. Cantwell for press conference on impact of proposed cuts to NSF

1 month ago | news.wsu.edu | RJ Wolcott |Christina Mancebo |Shawn Vestal |Devin Rokyta

Washington State University researcher Ananth Kalyanaraman was among a panel of top U.S. scientists Tuesday expressing concern over the impact of federal cuts to the National Science Foundation on studies that help fuel American innovation. The online news conference, led by U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell of Washington and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, included first-hand examples of how the significant proposed NSF cuts imperil the nation’s position as a leader in scientific research and discovery.