Are you a dog person or a cat lover? Like to vacation at the beach or the mountains? The work of two researchers shows that human beings are compelled to express who they are and what they think through what they buy. The urge is so strong that it can be leveraged to increase charitable donations and tipping, using a simple strategy called “dueling preferences.” This approach, which frames the act of giving as a choice between two options, is more effective at raising money than traditional appeals, the researchers found.On this episode of Curious Campus, we’ll learn more about dueling preferences with Katherine Du, an assistant professor of marketing at UW-Milwaukee, and Jacqueline Rifkin, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. 

The universe is full of massive celestial bodies that slam into each other. Albert Einstein predicted that these cosmic collisions send out invisible shocks called gravitational waves through the universe, warping space-time. Think of a bowling ball tossed onto a trampoline.One of the two kinds of gravitational waves has already been detected. Scientists are still looking for the other – the kind called “low-frequency” gravitational waves that are monster-sized compared to those that have been detected.On this episode of Curious Campus, we’ll learn more about gravitational waves with Sarah Vigeland, an assistant professor of physics at UW-Milwaukee, and Xavier Siemens, an associate professor of physics at Oregon State University.

Right now, the two Mars Rovers, Perseverance and Curiosity, are exploring the surface of the Red Planet to help scientists learn more about its history, soil and atmosphere. This is an initial step in figuring out if humans can live — or even land —on Mars. Finding out more about Mars could help us learn how atmospheric changes there happened and better understand the potential impact of climate change on Earth.On the debut episode of Curious Campus, we’ll talk to Jean Creighton, a professor of physics and director of the Manfred Olson Planetarium, and Darien Dixon, a UWM alum who is one of the lead camera operators on NASA’s Mars Perseverance Rover, to learn more about the exploration of Mars.