Bourns College of Engineering

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Sunlight Takes Center Stage at CE-CERT

November 19

UCR officially opened a new solar initiative called SC-RISE earlier this month with a summit meeting and ribbon-cutting ceremony at the College of Engineering-Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT). Approximately 150 UCR officials, business leaders and community members attended, and listened to remarks by UCR Chancellor White, the College's Dean Reza Abbaschian, CE-CERT Director Matt Barth and Riverside Mayor Ron Loveridge (speaking in the photo at left).

SC-RISE, the So Cal Research Initiative for Solar Energy, originated from a four-party agreement made at the 50th anniversary celebration of the Sister City relationship between Riverside and Sendai City in Japan. UCR and Sendai's Tohoku University joined in collaboration with the two cities. Tohoku Professor Tadahiro Ohmi is pictured below answering a question at the summit meeting.

The new center intends to become a vertically integrated magnet for research and a clearinghouse for information to help bring about the adoption of affordable solar energy, taking advantage of an abundance of sunshine here.

Prior to the ceremony engineers, educators and industry representatives discussed the direction and potential of SC-RISE. They listened to CE-CERT director Matt Barth, Dean Abbaschian, several academic researchers and Rajan Kasetty, CEO of Terrafore Inc. whose company is collaborating with CE-CERT on solar energy storage technology. Beginning its life being incubated at CE-CERT, the solar center will benefit from the long tradition of the environmental center as an "honest broker" to establish alliances aimed at advancing the effective utilization of solar power.

 

Engineers Without Borders Holds Fundraiser for Village

November 14

The BCOE chapter of Engineers Without Borders (pictured at left) presented a 5K race at UCR on Oct. 31 to raise funds for a water quality and distribution system in a small village in Guatemala. Besides entry fees for the 98 runners, members put on a pancake breakfast and sold Guatemalan hand-crafted items brought back from their initial trip to assess water needs. All funds for such trips, including supplies, are raised by the students.

Since it was the same day as Halloween and a costume contest with prizes was also part of the event, some runners wore costumes. One even raced with his dog, who was dressed as a pumpkin. The 5K women's and men's winners, pictured below left to right, were Rachel Vandenberg (3rd), Jessica Moncayo (2nd), Lizette Macias (1st), Phillip Orr (1st), Jaime Torres (2nd) and Robin Lie (3rd).

The UCR chapter of EWB was started last year. It collaborates with civil engineering students from another university as well as members form the Inland Empire professional chapter of EWB. Chemical and Environmental Engineering Professor David Cwiertny is the club's advisor.

The chapter's project in the Guatemala village will improve the quality of life for the residents in a three-stage effort: analyzing the water quality and repairing the existing water delivery system; developing a better distribution system; and improving sanitation to ensure clean water. Their other goal is to increase the number of hours the community receives water (currently two hours a day).

Click here for more information about EWB at UCR.

Chen Developing Low-cost Method to Produce Fuel

November 7

Wilfred Chen, professor of chemical and environmental engineering, is leading a consortium that is developing a one-step consolidated bioprocessing method for direct fermentation of cellulose to ethanol. This would create a cost-effective way to convert an abundant non-food related agricultural residue into vehicle fuel. The result would be reduction of environmental pollution, enhancement of the value of farmers' crops, and less need for imported petroleum.

The new Energy Policy Act is requiring that several billion gallons of renewable fuel must be produced by 2012, with most produced as biofuel using renewable biomass. While the cost of other raw materials can be high, this form of lignocellulosic biomass is especially well-suited for energy applications because of its availability, low cost and environmentally benign production. The raw material can be found in wheat straw, corn stalk and soybean residues, industrial waste from the pulp and paper industry, forestry residues and municipal solid waste.

Chen is the Principal Investigator for the project, which also involves researchers at two other universities. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is providing the funding; Riverside's portion of the award is $600,000. Continuing synthetic yeast cellusome research at UCR is being funded by NSF and the Department of Energy.

Link to campus news release

College Recognized for Extraordinary Success at ABET Annual Meeting

November 2

Bourns College of Engineering was honored on Oct. 28 in San Antonio, Texas as one of three universities nationwide to receive the Claire Felbinger Award for Diversity from ABET, the engineering and technology accreditation organization. The award was presented at a luncheon at the association's annual meeting. Chinya Ravishankar, Associate Dean and computer science professor, was designated to attend the awards presentation in place of UC President Mark Yudof. He is pictured at left with ABET President-Elect David Holger.

After receiving the award, Ravishankar talked about the excellence Bourns College has achieved in the short time it has been around. "I emphasized the deep commitment that our faculty have to ensuring student success, and how involved they are in various activities that promote this success," he said. "I especially mentioned our undergraduate research program, how well it has grown, and how deeply both faculty and students are engaged in it."

BCOE's citation read: "In recognition of extraordinarily successful initiatives for recruiting undergraduate and graduate students from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds, retaining them though the bachelor's degree, and advancing them to graduate studies and careers in engineering." Our faculty and staff truly appreciate this recognition of their efforts by ABET.

Link to campus news release

Tsotras' GAANN grant will support grad students

October 28

Vassilis Tsotras, professor of Computer Science and Engineering, has received a grant from the United States Department of Education to provide three years of support for six graduate students with excellent records who demonstrate financial need and plan to pursue Ph.D.s in Computer Science. Students that are U.S. citizens or permanent residents are eligible to be GAANN Fellows.

The Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) program provides graduate fees, a stipend and continued Teaching-Assistanceship and/or Research-Assistanceship support for the remainder of the recipient's graduate career at the College. GAANN Fellows receive thorough training on effective teaching and research, and have various opportunities to do teaching/outreach work with K-12 students and in the local community. Fellows are also given funding for research-related travel such as national conferences, and paid membership in a top scientific society in their field of study such as the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM).

This award, building on previous GAANN funding at BCOE, will ensure through an innovative combination of educational experiences, that the Fellows will be well-prepared for careers of research and teaching in computer science, thereby helping to satisfy the regional and national need in this field.

Tsotras is the Principal Investigator (PI) for the project. His team also includes Co-PIs Frank Vahid, Eamonn Keogh and Walid Najjar, all professors in the College's Department of Computer Science and Engineering.

Dames Chosen to Receive DARPA Young Faculty Award

October 23

Chris Dames, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, has been selected for a Young Faculty Award by DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). The award is given to non-tenured faculty working in the areas of physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics of interest to its Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) and Defense Sciences Office (DSO).

Dames' investigation concerns a high-performance thermal rectifier, a material that conducts heat easily in one direction while blocking heat flow in the reverse direction. Applications include thermal barrier coatings that enable rapid cool-down for turbine blades, spacecraft re-entry and high-power electronics; continuous solar-thermal power generation even at night without batteries or fuel; and thermoelectric refrigeration for spot cooling of power electronics and to replace vapor-compression refrigeration. Dames has received initial funding for one year with a strong chance for a second year of funding at the same level.

The Young Faculty Award program provides high-impact funding to these rising stars early in their careers to develop research ideas of interest to the Department of Defense. The long-term goal is to develop the next generation of academic scientists, engineers, and mathematicians in key disciplines who will focus a significant portion of their career on national security and defense issues.

BCOE Environmental Projects Capture Two Awards

October 19

Two teams from the Chemical and Environmental Engineering Department at BCOE were awarded $10,000 each and the opportunity to compete at the highest level in the Environmental Protection Agency's P3 competition. Four California universities were chosen for the awards, but UCR was the only campus with two prize-winning teams.

"P3" stands for People, Prosperity and the Planet. Winners of Phase I receive $10,000 at the start of the academic year and use the grant to develop their design projects. In April, all teams must submit their final reports from Phase I as well as their proposals for Phase II. All P3 grant recipients attend the National Sustainable Design Expo featuring the highest level P3 competition, held in Washington, D.C. Up to $75,000 is given to the best student designs, providing an opportunity to further these designs, implement them in the field, and move them to the marketplace.

One of the BCOE teams developed a solar concentration concept where the sun's rays are focused through a Fresnel lens (originally developed for lighthouses), with the resulting heat used to distill clean water out of dirty water. The team, pictured above with a mock-up of their device, is (l. to r.) Professor Mark Matsumoto (Principal Investigator), John Johnson, Chris Salinas, Parham Javadinajjar, Wesley Chen, Alex Chen, Luke Chen and Professor Kawai Tam (advisor). Wesley, Alex and Luke are recent additions to the team as a former member, Elizha West, graduated and is working on a remediation project for URS Corporation's Washington Division in Washington State. Elizha will rejoin the team in Washington, D.C. for the next level of the competition.

The other award-winning group is working with cellulosic ethanol made from waste wood, an effort that helps clean up the environment at the same time it is creating fuel. They are pictured at right with their equipment at the College of Engineering-Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT). Left to right are Anthony Turgman, Vu Nguyen, Jian Shi (post-doctoral student), Ramon Josh Garong and Christine Kwon in front of Ramon. The Principal Investigator for this project is Charles Wyman (not in picture).

This isn't the first time BCOE teams have captured the P3 award; they also won the first phase in 2005 and in 2007. Professor Tam has coordinated the teams since 2004, the year after the EPA and its partners began the award program to promote innovative thinking for moving the world toward sustainability. The competition is designed to help college students gain new skills as they research, design, develop and implement scientific solutions to environmental challenges.

Link to UCR news release

Princevac Presented with Kipp & Zonen Award in France

October 8

Marko Princevac, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, received the 2009 Kipp & Zonen Award for Boundary Layer Meteorology Research, presented at the 9th annual meeting of the European Meteorological Society (EMS) in Toulouse, France. Princevac (at right in photo) specializes in urban and complex terrain boundary layer meteorology. The honor included travel expenses to attend the conference and a cash award.

Princevac's laboratory contains a large glass tank where he arranges transparent building models to obtain flow measurements in a horizontal plane. The models range from simple boxes to scale models of downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach. When combined with field studies using meteorological towers in urban coastal, urban desert, desert and agricultural settings, the research provides detailed wind flow and air pollution dispersion patterns in Southern California cities.

The award-winning research led to the development of new models to estimate surface heat fluxes over different surfaces and surroundings and for the first time explained the phenomenon of lateral wind channeling in regular arrays of buildings, responsible for enhanced spreading of gases and pollutants.

The objective of the EMS conference is to provide a multidisciplinary forum for the exchange of ideas on all aspects of future strategies in meteorology and climatology, involving atmospheric and related communities: scientists, service providers, manufacturers and users. Kipp & Zonen is a manufacturer of environmental monitoring instrumentation for measuring solar radiation and atmospheric properties.

BCOE Selected for ABET National Diversity Award

October 1

Bourns College of Engineering has been chosen to receive one of three 2009 Claire Felbinger Awards for Diversity from ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology), the recognized accrediting body for college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and technology. All of Bourns College's programs are ABET accredited.

UC President Mark Yudof, or his designated representative, has been invited to attend the ABET Commission Summit on October 28 in San Antonio, Texas to accept the award. It is presented to recognize U.S.-based educational units, individuals, associations and firms for extraordinary success in achieving or facilitating diversity and inclusiveness in the technological segments of our society.

Bourns College is being honored "in recognition of extraordinarily successful initiatives for recruiting undergraduate and graduate students from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds, retaining them though the bachelor's degree, and advancing them to graduate studies and careers in engineering."

The award was named to honor the late Dr. Claire Felbinger (pictured at left), former Chair of American University's Masters of Public Administration program and a Public Member of the ABET Board of Directors. Under her leadership the Public Member Committee was responsible for many of ABET's diversity initiatives for technical fields and the diversity award's creation.

Bhanu's Prestigious IGERT will Study Moving Biological Images

September 23

Bir Bhanu is leading an interdisciplinary team of investigators from Engineering and Life Sciences that will develop a program in video bioinformatics, the study of 5-D (3-D space, time and wavelength) biological processes captured live by video in real-life experiments. The Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, will support 25-30 Ph.D. students. This highly competitive award is the first for Bourns College of Engineering and the second for the UCR campus.

Bhanu, the Principal Investigator for the project, is a professor of Electrical Engineering and director of the Center for Research in Intelligent Systems (CRIS). His team brings together expertise from engineering, information technology and life sciences: bioengineering professor Victor Rodgers, computer science and engineering professor Vassilis Tsotras, cell biology and neuroscience professor and director of UCR Stem Cell center Prudence Talbot and botany and plant sciences professor Zhenbiao Yang.

The advances of live cell video imaging and high-throughput technologies for functional and chemical genomics provide unprecedented opportunities to understand how biological processes work in subcellular and multicellular systems. But traditional curriculum doesn't include video computing techniques for biological scientists, or give engineering researchers an understanding of critical biological issues that 5-D analysis can help illuminate. Therefore a new interdisciplinary curriculum is being developed to train the next generation of engineers and scientists to solve old and new biological and computational problems.

In the past, living systems have been studied as static images; scientists must infer the processes that produce growth, disease, healing and death since there has not been a systematic way of examining moving biological images and understanding their dynamics. This IGERT addresses the need by bringing experts from widely divergent backgrounds and by integrating multiple imaging modalities with computational techniques for video data mining, knowledge discovery and visualization.

Information technology students will learn about the unique needs of studying living systems, and develop methods to enhance the study of these systems. Students in the life sciences will learn how to develop and apply effective computing techniques to dynamic biological problems. Interdisciplinary project-oriented team-taught courses and group projects are being developed. Each student will participate in an intensive workshop before the first year of graduate study. The program will provide continuous mentoring, teaching and leadership opportunities, internship in industry or government, weekly seminars, yearly retreats, and workshops on ethics and communication skills.

The students will be enrolled as Ph.D. students in one of the participating programs and perform research in video bioinformatics. This Video Bioinformatics IGERT will train the Ph.D. students at the forefront of science and technology in biological video computing. This will provide revolutionary foundational advances and a deeper understanding of continuous and dynamic life processes.

Tsotras' Team Anticipating Information Explosion

September 16

In the past 10-15 years the evolution of the human side of the Web has revolutionized the way that most of us find things, buy things, and interact with our friends and colleagues. Behind the scenes, semistructured data formats and Web services are having a similar impact on the machine side of the Web. Current indications are that the IT world will soon be awash in a sea of semistructured data - much of it XML (Extensible Markup Language), a set of rules for encoding documents electronically.

In anticipation of the semistructured information explosion, Computer Science and Engineering Professor Vassilis Tsotras is part of a team from UC Irvine, UC Riverside and UC San Diego that are targeting the problems of ingesting, storing, indexing, processing, managing, and monitoring vast quantities of semistructured data with the emphasis being on scale. The team brings together five researchers drawn from the three UC campuses, with expertise spanning structured, semistructured, and unstructured data. The National Science Foundation is providing $2.7 million in support of their project.

The goal of the collaborative project is to design and implement ASTERIX (Active, Scalable, Transactional Enterprise Repository for Information in XML), an open source platform designed to address the aforementioned problems and to be shared and used by research groups around the country who have semistructured information management needs or who want to experiment with their own semistructured data management ideas in the context of a community software platform.

The project will also serve as a training ground for systems-oriented information management students at the three UC campuses, training students in software technologies related to data-intensive computing as well as XML standards and technologies in preparation for the probable semistructured information explosion.

Hybrid Multiprocessor is the Answer to High-performance Computing

September 3

Laxmi Bhuyan is working to demonstrate the feasibility of hybrid high-performance computing, where part of the program is executed in software and the other part by specialized hardware. The National Science Foundation has awarded him $800,000 to support his research to develop hardware/software partitioning of applications, redesign the architectural components, optimize the compiler, and develop reconfigurable hardware.

Bhuyan is the Principal Investigator on the project. Rajiv Gupta and Walid Najjar are Co-principal Investigators. The three are professors of Computer Science & Engineering at Bourns College of Engineering. The research will benefit from detailed measurements using the department's 64-processor SGI Altix 4700 CC-NUMA supercomputer and Intel FSB-FPGA architecture accelerator.

The proposed research will have tremendous impact on future multiprocessor technology development that can be transferred to industry. The project will also have high impact on education and research. The SGI Altix supercomputer is already being used in the College's graduate classes. Tools and techniques developed under this project will find direct application in those classes.

Yan Makes Breakthrough in Fuel Cell Technology

September 1

Yushan Yan, professor and chair of the chemical and environmental engineering department, has made a major discovery in the field of fuel cells. He and his team have developed a high performance, low cost hydroxide conducting polymer membrane that allows for the replacement of precious metal fuel cell catalysts. The work is the cover story for the international edition of the German chemical engineering journal Angewandte Chemie.

The membrane conducts hydroxide ions instead of hydrogen ions, which increases fuel cell efficiency. The new technology also has the potential to be used with a variety of fuels besides hydrogen, including sustainable and biodegradable ones.

As Yan's innovation is commercialized, a massive drop in the cost of goods needed to produce fuel cells is expected, resulting in a lower price point per watt than internal combustion engines and batteries. It has been licensed to Full Cycle Energy for commercialization. The company is already commercializing Yan's platinum nanotube fuel cell catalyst (PtNT) which is expected to cut the cost of conventional platinum fuel cells by at least two-thirds while improving durability tenfold.

Yan says that this new breakthrough will make fuel cells so efficient and inexpensive that it could revolutionize energy conversion and storage on a global scale.

Link to PDF of Angewandte Chemie article

UCR Offers Graduate Materials Science and Engineering Program for Nanotech, Energy Environment 

August 25

Applications are now being accepted for the first time for graduate training in Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) at the University of California, Riverside.

On Aug. 24, 2009 UC President Mark G. Yudof approved a proposal to establish an interdepartmental graduate program leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in MSE at the University of California, Riverside. MSE is one of the most dynamic fields in the world of science and technology today.

UCR Chancellor Timothy P. White welcomed the new graduate program saying, "For years much new knowledge has come from the intersections of traditional fields. Today in materials research biologists, chemists, physicists, engineers and other scientists are asking key questions from different perspectives at the atomic level. The new worlds to be discovered when these specialists teach each other are some of the most exciting I can imagine," White added.

Over the past six decades the dominant focus of technological innovation has been creating new devices, according to Alexander A. Balandin, director of the new program and Professor of Electrical Engineering. Advances in this century increasingly will be controlled by the invention of new materials, he said.

At UCR's Bourns College of Engineering, for instance, engineers are making important contributions toward building nanoscale transistors based on exotic materials such as graphene and carbon nanotubes, affordable zero-emissions fuel cells, medicines that target single cells, materials that can store many times more data than is possible today, and many other innovations. (Pictured above right, a microscope's view of the top-gate low-noise graphene transistor pioneered in Prof. Balandin's lab. Click here for the latest report in Nature Nanotechnology of this breakthrough.)

"We have structured the MSE program very differently from other campuses where materials science and engineering is a separate department, or is hosted by another department," Balandin said. Overall 39 UCR faculty are signed on to the program, including 29 engineering faculty representing the points of view of all of the College's departments (bioengineering, chemical and environmental engineering, computer science and engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering). "In addition, faculty come from the physics and chemistry departments and we expect more departments will join us," Balandin said.

This will promote the broadest acceptance of approaches of all disciplines rather than following the perspectives and traditions of one department.

"This is the new paradigm of materials education where old disciplinary barriers to engineered solutions disappear under truly interdisciplinary scrutiny," said Reza Abbaschian, Dean of the Bourns College of Engineering. The program is also set apart by its focus on nanotechnology, energy generation and conversion, and environmentally friendly technologies, he added.

In just 20 years, the Bourns College has developed into a very active research institution ranking among the top engineering schools. The new MSE program will receive another big boost when MSE moves into its new $56 million facility in 2010. The MSE Building will include space for labs, classrooms, faculty offices and a 20,000-square-foot clean room facility.

"Only the top schools can afford to offer materials science and engineering programs," Balandin said. "It requires a critical mass of faculty and resources and the necessary infrastructure which is well established at UCR. Our nanotech initiative is now 10 years old and we have made major progress in recruiting faculty and they have become very competitive in attracting research sponsors and are participating in major national research centers."

Energy is a particular strength of the MSE program because of Southern California sun, the college's success in biofuels research and the history of large scale research projects at the College of Engineering Center for Environmental Research and Technology, Balandin added.

High tech sectors in Southern California, especially in manufacturing, alternative energy and biotechnology are also well positioned to take advantage of expanding nanotechnologies and create new engineering jobs. "There is already a demand for engineers and scientists who can move easily from semiconductors to metals, and from inorganic to organic materials in a short period of time," he said.

But an important feature of the graduate programs is that students will receive complete engineering training with a specialization of their choice. This is intended to prepare students for the broadest career possibilities whether in industry, government labs or academia. "Here we are preserving the balance and educate students with a wide background," Balandin said.

Princevac, Collaborators Studying "Superfog" Formation Following Prescribed Fires

August 21

Marko Princevac, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, is using laboratory experiments and modeling to study the processes that govern the formation of "superfog," fog in which visibility is less than three meters, or 10 feet. Princevac is the Principal Investigator (PI); Co-PIs are mechanical engineering professors Akula Venkatram and Shankar Mahalingam. The Federal Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP) is funding the research.

According to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), 2.18 million acres of wild land have been managed by prescribed fires by state and federal agencies over the past 10 years. Dense fogs can develop during the low intensity phase of prescribed burns of fuel with high fuel moisture content. It is believed that emissions from such burns contain enough moisture that when they mix with relatively cool air with high relative humidity, dense superfog can condense on smoke particles.

There is documented evidence that suggests that superfog events have caused several major accidents on highways as a result of very poor visibility. Land managers involved in planning and executing prescribed fires need better tools for predicting the formation of superfog and its dispersion.

The researchers will use a wind tunnel in which they will control the environment and the composition of fuels to identify the conditions favorable to superfog initiation and persistence. They will develop a detailed mechanistic model for the behavior of plumes from smoldering fires, and evaluate and improve the model with data from the wind tunnel experiments. The model will provide information for interpreting field studies, and facilitate development of simple methods that can be used by land managers to predict the likelihood of superfog.

Stahovich Developing More Effective Instructional Techniques for Engineering Education

August 20

Tom Stahovich, associate professor of mechanical engineering, is conducting research to develop more efficient and effective instructional techniques for engineering education. This research, which is funded by the National Science Foundation, will ultimately lead to students who are better prepared for engineering jobs.

The project will begin with a fine grained analysis of the process by which students solve complex problems. The research will rely on inexpensive pen-based computing technology that will digitize students' solutions to problems. This technology will make it possible to examine not only the final answers to problems, but also the dynamic processes by which they were created.

Guided by insights into student problem-solving approaches, the researchers will develop principles for designing practice exercises that efficiently guide novice students toward expert understanding of complex subjects. The research will initially be applied to improving instruction in undergraduate Statics, which concerns the study of the application of forces to structures. The benefits of improved learning in Statics may have far reaching effects, as it is a cornerstone of engineering education and practice. Improved successes in Statics could have a strong impact on student retention.

Tan and Hua Mapping Hot Spots on Chips

August 19

Sheldon Tan is the Principal Investigator (PI) and Yingbo Hua the co-PI on a project that is exploring new techniques for building mathematical models to simulate how multicore microprocessors handle heat. The two electrical engineering professors were awarded a three-year grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC).

Multicore microprocessors, where two or more CPUs (Central Processing Units) are integrated into a single microprocessor, are the trend for current and future microprocessor designs. They provide better performance; however, managing power requirements and heat buildup is still a major challenge for multicore microprocessor designs. Thermal-aware design space explorations at the core and architecture level for multicore microprocessors become critical design issues.

The project is jointly supported by NSF and SRC. UCR's team will work closely with a SRC member company, Intel Corporation, to build more powerful and temperature-efficient chips for Intel's current and future multicore microprocessors. Results of this research will add significantly to the core knowledge of thermal modeling multicore design. The proposed technique will tell designers what the temperatures are on a chip so that more efficient cooling solutions can be used for very hot spots on a multicore processor.

Venkatram Measuring Air Quality Impact of Distributed Generation of Electricity

August 6

Akula Venkatram, professor of mechanical engineering, is leading a multi-campus effort to develop and apply models to estimate concentrations of pollutants at spatial scales of a few feet to hundreds of miles from the sources of pollution. Current methods are unable to cover this range of scales. The California Energy Commission is funding the project.

These models will be used to examine the air quality impact of the growth of distributed generation of electricity in California. Distributed generation, which refers to small power sources designed to service the areas in which they are located, has several advantages over large power plants located far from populated areas. Distributed generators reduce the number and size of transmission lines, and the associated energy losses. Their exhaust heat can be used for local heating and air conditioning. However, distributed generators produce emissions that can affect air quality in populated urban areas.

The project will also involve field studies and laboratory experiments to understand the behavior of hot buoyant emissions from small power plants located in urban areas. Mechanical engineering professor Marko Princevac will lead this component of the study. He is pictured at the left in his laboratory for environmental flow modeling, with Professor Venkatram on the right.

Roy-Chowdhury Awarded $3.1 Million for Wide Area Scene Analysis Project

August 5

Electrical engineering professors Amit Roy-Chowdhury (Principal Investigator, at right in picture) and Bir Bhanu (Co-Principal Investigator, at left) are developing methods to track multiple targets, and understand their behaviors, over a large area in a video network using a combination of face, appearance and audio recognition. Camera parameters will be automatically controlled to acquire high fidelity features. The Office of Naval Research is providing $3.1 million to fund this three-year project.

Camera networks are a hot topic because of their increasing use for surveillance and security, environmental monitoring and disaster response. The research will involve tracking multiple objects in an urban environment, and analyzing the tracks formed using a network of video and audio sensors. Tracking will be accomplished by combining hard biometrics, such as face recognition, with soft biometrics including appearance, walking style, or audio footstep signals. The tracks will also be used to learn and predict the behaviors of people and their social interactions within the areas of the camera networks.

The project brings together two highly qualified teams, from academia (University of California, Riverside) and industry (West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation), to synergistically combine their expertise. They will provide a demonstration of the algorithms they develop at the Videoweb facility already in place at Bourns College -- dozens of PTZ (Pan, Tilt and Zoom) networked cameras installed in indoor and outdoor settings, providing a unique testbed for this research.

 

Liao Awarded $1.1 Million to Improve Screening Technology Inside Living Cells

August 3

Jiayu Liao, assistant professor of bioengineering, is greatly expanding a screening technology that lets researchers observe protein-to-protein crosstalks inside living cells, research which has very broad applications in physiological systems and will lead to new treatments for devastating diseases such as cancer and severe viral infections. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) have awarded him $1.1 million for his four-year project.

The ability to observe protein-crosstalk processes inside cells began with the discovery by other researchers that the fluorescent protein of a jellyfish could illuminate biological molecules that were once invisible. Refinements led to the ability to mark different proteins so that their interactions can be observed, work that earned a Nobel Prize in 2008.

Liao will fully develop and expand these techniques to an industrial level that would be impossible by other methods and is many times faster than tests performed in the standard lab. His goal is to find small-molecule pharmacological tools that would cause protein activity changes in living cells, work that will lead to drug discovery including anticancer and antiviral substances and treatments.

Dames Doing First Comprehensive Study of Graphene's Conductivity

July 27

Chris Dames, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, is performing the first comprehensive study of the thermal conductivity of encased graphene, the thin sheets of carbon that make up graphite. The National Science Foundation is providing funds for the study, which is done in collaboration with C. N. Jeanie Lau in the UCR Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Graphene is the rock star of contemporary nanotechnology these days; its superb electrical and thermal properties and prospects for wafer-scale processing make it a strong candidate to transform the era of post-silicon microelectronics.

The study will complement the work of Bourns' Electrical Engineering Professor Alexander Balandin and his UCR team, which previously conducted the first-ever measurements of the very high thermal conductivity of suspended graphene sheets.

Dames' project will initially focus on graphene encased within silicon dioxide, which is especially important for possible microelectronic applications. The study will experimentally quantify the effects of temperature, sample size and thickness, surface conditions, electron vs. phonon contributions, ballistic vs. diffusive transport, and thermal contact resistance.

Lyubovitsky Recognized for Unlocking Secrets of Protein Formation

July 24

Julia Lyubovitsky, assistant professor of Bioengineering, has been tapped for the National Science Foundation's CAREER Award, their top award to support the early career development activities of junior faculty members. The objective of her research is to understand the mechanisms that form proteins in living tissues.

Specifically, Lyubovitsky is developing a non-invasive optical microscopy method using a combination of multi-scale microscopic images that will enable biological researchers to see, for the first time, how proteins form and disassemble. An optical microscope uses visible light and a system of lenses to magnify images at very small scale. The interaction of light with matter can produce the pictures of protein samples without harming the samples.

Understanding these mechanisms will assist in inducing tissue growth for healing wounds or recovering from disease, and for other biomanufacturing applications. If scientists are able to monitor and understand the structure, composition and function of protein-derived biological materials and adhesives in a non-invasive way, they will be able to establish principles for the design, construction, modification, growth and maintenance of living engineered tissues, implants and novel adhesives.

Green Prosperity Explored at Inland Empire Summit

July 23

Creating a favorable climate for green manufacturing in California is one of the key strategies discussed at a Green Prosperity Workshop hosted by Ali Sahabi and the Green Valley Initiative (GVI) at UCR's Bourns College of Engineering July 23.

The Green Valley Initiative, a regional partnership of companies, governments, public health and economic development officials in the Inland Empire were joined by similar regional groups representing Sacramento, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles and east central California. They assembled to talk about how to promote economic prosperity in California by embracing sustainable practices and technologies.

"We need to make it easier for business to finance green technologies," said Sahabi, GVI chairman and a home builder. Sustainability activists should not just focus on new high tech businesses but also how to help existing businesses to save money, cut carbon emissions while meeting regulations, he added.

Participants said the urgency of the discussion came not just from the desire to reduce carbon emissions, but also from the need to make the most effective use of federal stimulus spending.

The potential for green manufacturing is also great, Sahabi added. The Inland Empire "because of our availability of transportation, affordable land and a ready workforce, can become the manufacturing center for the state of California. Trading can only do so much for us; we need to get back to manufacturing and production."

Reviewing multifaceted approaches to resource and energy efficiency, the experts favored innovative financing for overcoming the biggest hurdles in adoption of sustainable technologies. With ideas like AB811, last year's bill to assist municipalities with retrofitting energy efficient installations using tax assessments, California is leading the nation in progressive energy policy.

Typical residential solar retrofitting takes 15 years to show financial benefit, according to Steven Franz of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District. AB811-funded installations in Palm Desert and Berkeley are showing financial benefit in one year, he said.

Alternative energy companies are different from most developing industries because policy plays such an important role, he added.

To be more successful, groups like GVI must frame sustainability as economic opportunity, not just environmental opportunity. It is important to approach sustainable strategies as not a break with the past but part of the regular economy, they noted. Similarly the focus of sustainability should not be economic destruction but economic opportunity.

There is no case of sustainable engineering not being economically viable, said Michael Northrop, representing the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation. Regional green initiatives need to do a better job influencing policy makers, business investors and public opinion, participants said.

Participants expressed a realization that green economy advocates still have a long way to go to connect technologies to markets to consumers. The movement hasn't found a marketing approach that resonates effectively with the public. It's not easy to make "audit, implement and measure" a rallying cry.

"What we're doing here in California is going to have an impact," said Doug Hinton, Chairman and CEO, Collaborative Economics Inc. "Renewable energy is the wave of the future. You can do this and still make money without hurting the economy."

Among the priorities generated for collaboration by the regional efforts were: to develop strategies for energy efficiency; advocate for an adaptive business climate; advocate for enabling government policies; encourage development of green industries; and document approaches and models that can be copied widely.

Franz added that those interested in influencing policymakers, industry and the public should learn from the discipline of business and study consumers, technologies and business opportunities as if "there is no room for failure." A California Green Innovation Index has just been released by Next 10 which will help quantify economic benefits.

Several of the participants stressed the importance of the development of smart grid and energy storage technologies that will be essential for the state's ability to keep and develop good jobs.

Participants along with the Green Valley Initiative were representatives of the Applied Materials Climate Prosperity Initiative of Silicon Valley, the City of Sacramento, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation, the Sierra Business Council, and the Sonoma County Business Environmental Alliance.

Visit the GVI website for video coverage of the workshop.

Large Scale Video Network Research Gets More NSF Support

July 16

Electrical Engineering professors Bir Bhanu (l.) and Amit Roy-Chowdhury (r.) have received an additional $1.2 million award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for their large-scale video network research, increasingly important for critical applications such as video surveillance, traffic monitoring and elder care.

Typically, during the research and development of such systems, only a modest quantity of data from a few scenarios is used. Bhanu (Principal Investigator) and Roy-Chowdhury (Co- Principal Investigator) are teaming with colleagues from two other universities to transition from limited to large-scale operations in the real world. The team will make use of collective expertise in computer graphics and simulation, computer vision and pattern recognition, and machine and statistical learning to expand the amount of data collected.

Under NSF sponsorship, Bourns College is already developing a large-scale sensor network of around 80 color pan/tilt/zoom video cameras for monitoring people, their activities, and vehicles. To this will be added a new and unique Virtual Vision Simulator which incorporates sophisticated artificial life models of human pedestrians with autonomous movement and motor control, reactive and motivational behavior, and models of human thought processes.

The research, at the intersection of computer vision/pattern recognition, computer graphics/simulation and machine learning is expected to have wide impacts in video analysis/synthesis applications such as precision tracking, modeling of terrorist planning, human decision aids in high-stress environments, tactical planning, etc. Two new courses based on the research are being planned, and the software developed will be made available on the Web. Also planned are local and national workshops on the proposed theme in conjunction with major IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and ACM (Association of Computing Machinery) conferences.

 

Kisailus Teams with GM in Mollusk Study

July 15

David Kisailus, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, studies sea creatures to learn how to design and make cost-effective and environmentally friendly high-performance materials. He is collaborating with General Motors on a study of the iridescent lining of seashells, which has been funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.

Kisailus is applying lessons learned from the study of biological systems for the synthesis of functional engineering materials that are efficient, durable and safe that could be used to manufacture lightweight, impact-absorbing vehicles. He has observed natural systems with the ability to control nano- and microstructural features that significantly improve mechanical properties of otherwise brittle materials. An example is an organic-inorganic and impact-resistant nanocomposite that makes up the inner layer of some seashells.

By using biologically inspired synthesis strategies, Kisailus aims to develop cost-effective and environmentally friendly three-dimensional composites. The project will use natural systems to bridge multiple fields of biology, materials science and mechanical engineering to create new technological capabilities. Analysis and testing will be performed using facilities at UCR, General Motors and the Air Force Research Laboratory. Two post-doctoral researchers, a graduate student and two undergraduates will assist at Bourns College; for Kisailus, undergraduate involvement is critical to the successful development of the next generation of scientists and engineers.

Xu to Establish LED Research Center

July 14

Electrical Engineering Professor Zhengyuan (Daniel) Xu has been selected to receive $3.5 million to lead a multi-campus research center that will study how to communicate by means of light. This technology would be especially useful in hospitals and airports where radio frequency communication is banned, and could change the way houses and offices are designed.

Solid-state lighting by white LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), tiny light bulbs that can fit into an electrical circuit, is popular due to high energy efficiency, long sustainability and low production and maintenance cost. Unlike ordinary light bulbs, LEDs don't have a filament that will burn out and they don't get especially hot. They are illuminated solely by the movement of electrons in a semiconductor material. They form the numbers on digital clocks, send data from remote controls and light up watches and traffic signals, to name a few applications.

LEDs also have the ability to transmit data at high speed to electronic devices such as computers, mobile phones and TVs without noticeable effect on light output. The optical spectrum is unlicensed by state and federal entities and larger than the crowded radio frequency spectrum; thus it has huge potential for low-cost, energy saving, high data rate communication.

Xu's center will be known as UC-Light (Ubiquitous Communication by Light). The researchers will design and integrate low-cost and highly efficient communication protocols and indoor navigation into next-generation lighting systems. The project will bring together experts in lighting, interior design, optics, navigation, communication, networking and signal processing. UCR will serve as the host location, with participation from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and three other UC campuses. Graduate students across different campuses will also participate, exposing them to technological frontiers in science, engineering and architectural design.

Funding is being provided by the Multicampus Research Program and Initiatives (MRPI) as a result of a systemwide competition. Approximately $12 million per year is earmarked for the MRPI program. Funding decisions are made by a competitive peer review of proposals. The goals of this competition are to facilitate and support outstanding research and cutting edge discoveries that advance a field, impact the lives of Californians, increase UC's competitiveness, inform public policy and support innovative graduate student research.

For further information see news release.

A Small Step for Fabrication Brings Giant Leap for Bourns Nanotechnology

July 14

The Bourns College of Engineering has installed an advanced MOCVD facility to enhance the college's ability in nanoscale science and engineering. The dedicated laboratory space in Pierce Hall is hoped to form the kernel of a new nanofabrication research center at the University of California, Riverside, according to Cengiz Ozkan, professor of mechanical engineering.

An MOCVD reactor (Metal-Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition) is used to fabricate thin films, nanowires and their heterostructures having precisely controlled dimensions for applications in nanoelectronics and optoelectronics.

This technology will enable superior material quality and process efficiency from direct wafer temperature control and fast gas switching for strict control of interface abruptness.

The MOCVD reactor uses liquid precursors, which are bubbled to generate the vapors for the deposition process. For example, indium arsenide could be grown in the reactor on a substrate by using trimethylindium and trimethylarsine.

The new facility will be used for research in nanowire fabrics, transistors arrays, solar cells, chemical sensors and will provide materials for many other nanoengineering applications," he added.

This new nanofabrication tool joins a variety of technologies available to Bourns researchers including molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), chemical vapor deposition (CVD) material growth facilities and micro-Raman characterization equipment. The next leap in nanotechnology at UCR will come in 2010 when the $56 million Materials Science and Engineering Building is scheduled to open, including its 20,000 square foot clean room facility.

Seniors Take Research on the Road in Formula SAE Competition

July 10

Thirteen graduating engineering seniors built a formula-style race car from the ground up to enter the Formula SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) competition at the California Speedway in Fontana June 17-20. The team's year-long project was judged on design and endurance along with 80 other entries from the United States, Canada, China, Korea, India and Mexico. BCOE's car was one of 35 out of the 81 that passed the safety and technical examination.

Team members are pictured above: front row (l. to r.) Jun Wang, Quillan Trombley, Jeremy Chen, Adriana Figueroa, Ravi Kurani, Eugene O'Neill, Rianne Garrido and Vivian Le. Front row (l. to r.) David Lim, Ryan Kim, Clayton Stothers (in racer), Alex Khaykin and Christoper Maceyko.

The students began designing and building the formula racer during their senior year, with a few dropping out when they realized how many hours the project would take. Participants didn't receive class credit for the work, but will be able to include the project on their resumes.

"None of us had any auto experience," said Clayton Stothers, recently graduated UCR engineering student and president of UCR's chapter of SAE. "I worked on an old Mustang in high school, but that's it. It's the most challenging project any undergraduate could undertake in college."

The usual cost to build racers is between $30,000 and $90,000 although the BCOE team only spent $10,000. Funds from Bourns College of Engineering were augmented by donations they solicited from outside sponsors. While the frame, differential, wheels, shocks and tires were purchased, the rest had to be built from scratch.

The competition begins with a technical inspection. If it passes the car goes to the endurance competition, where it is tested as it maneuvers a 10.5 mile race track to see how it fares against the extremes of racing. BCOE's racer made it through with flying colors even though a wheel bearing failed and needed to be replaced quickly.

"The team did a wonderful job, especially since this is the first time we've entered the competition," said Jun Wang, the College's professional development officer and a sponsor of the team. "They spent an average of 14 hours a week on the project, besides keeping up with classes and homework, and they still managed to graduate."

Garay Developing New Laser Host Material

July 9

Javier Garay, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, is developing a new class of material for use in laser applications that will increase their power. Garay's research interest is in the broad area of advanced material synthesis and processing with a particular interest in nanocrystalline materials.

Lasers are useful in an extraordinary number of applications including medical devices, material processing and communications. Today the further improvement of solid-state laser materials faces two major impediments. The first is that traditional processing technology limits host crystal homogeneity and size. The second is that the thermal conductivity of state-of-the-art lasing ceramics is relatively low, limiting the total power of laser devices.

The proposed work will remove these two roadblocks. The processing technology will allow for making large polycrystalline ceramics with uniform properties. The composition of the ceramics will be tailored to significantly increase thermal conductivity. These proposed materials have never before been used as laser hosts (ceramic crystals that produce the laser light), but Garay's preliminary and previous work instills confidence that his processing approach will overcome problems with heat and uniformity, creating a new host material.

Garay's work is being sponsored by the Army Research Office (ARO).

Google Awards Scholarship to Ph.D. Student

July 6

Bilson Campana, a second year Ph.D. student in Computer Science, has won a 2009-2010 Google Hispanic College Fund (HCF) Scholarship for $10,000. Only 18 such scholarships were awarded nationwide.

In addition to receiving the scholarship, winners are invited to attend a two-day all expenses paid retreat at the Googleplex, Google's headquarters in Mountain View, California. There they have a chance to meet students interested in tackling the biggest problems in computer science, get a glimpse of Google employees at work, and gain understanding of what it would be like to work there.

Google Scholarships are awarded based on the strength of candidates' academic background and demonstrated passion for computer science via an essay submitted with the application. Google provides the scholarships in partnership with the Hispanic College Fund, a nonprofit organization that guides Hispanic students toward professional careers in technology.

Campana began working part time as a software engineer during his first undergraduate year, and after graduating took a year off to work full-time, affording him five years of experience in industry. He expects to use the money to support his doctoral research on video data mining. He is advised by Computer Science and Engineering Professor Eamonn Keogh.

Chen Collaborating with Squibb Company

July 2

Wilfred Chen, professor of chemical and environmental engineering, is participating in a cross industry-academic collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb Company (BMS) to investigate a new method for human antibody capture and purification that would be a lower cost, less complex alternative the current industry standard. Antibodies are used by the immune system to identify and neutralize bacteria and viruses. Therapies based on antibodies have been gaining momentum for prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, protection against biological warfare agents, and as therapeutic agents for the treatment of diseases like cancer.

The project is part of the National Science Foundation's Grant Opportunities for Academic Liaison with Industry, and includes support for two graduate students, one from UCR and one from another university. The students will be able to carry out a portion of their work in-house at BMS, who is also sponsoring visits between the company facility and the labs of the various researchers. The graduate students will gain valuable experience in protein purification and fermentation, and an integrated perspective of the important interfaces and synergies connecting biochemistry, modern genetics and process engineering.

NSF's Grant Opportunities for Academic Liaison with Industry (GOALI) program promotes university-industry partnerships by making project funds or fellowships/
traineeships available to support an eclectic mix of industry-university linkages. It allows faculty, postdoctoral fellows and students to conduct research and gain experience in an industrial setting, helps industrial scientists and engineers to bring industry's perspective and integrative skills to academe, and supports interdisciplinary university-industry teams in conducting research projects. The program targets high-risk/high-gain research with a focus on fundamental research, development of innovative collaborative industry-university educational programs, and direct transfer of new knowledge between academe and industry.

Ph.D. Student Will Do Research Abroad

June 30

Jason Morales is the recipient of an International Center for Materials Research (ICMR) International Research Fellowship. The Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. student received the $5,000 award for having won a best poster competition while at the Spring School on Thermal Conductivity and Related Transport Properties of Oxides hosted by the ICMR at the University of Florida May 18-22.

Morales and another ME grad student, Joseph Alaniz, were among approximately 35 applicants chosen to attend the Spring School, from a pool of graduate students from the U.S. and abroad. ICMR supports a series of international programs ranging from thematic Summer Schools to Overseas Workshops.

ICMR International Research Fellowships support research visits to non-U.S. laboratories for graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and junior faculty affiliated with U.S. institutions. Morales will use the award money for an extended research visit at an institution of his choice. He is currently reviewing various programs since he will wait at least a year before traveling.

ICMR seeks to promote advances in materials science and engineering by facilitating international, multidisciplinary research collaborations. Based at UC Santa Barbara, ICMR has partner institutions in Trieste, Italy (International Center for Theoretical Physics and Academy of Sciences for the Developing World), and Tsukuba, Japan (International Center for Young Scientists). The Center is funded by the Division of Materials Research and the Office of international Science and Engineering at the National Science Foundation.

Ozkan Selected to Receive National Honor

June 24

Electrical engineering associate professor Mihri Ozkan will receive the Young Investigator Medal of the Society of Engineering Science (SES) this Friday, June 26 at Virginia Tech University. This honor is bestowed upon a young researcher in his/her ascendancy whose work has already had an impact in Engineering Science.

The medal is one of three that the Society is granting this year. The citation on her certificate says she has been accorded the medal "in recognition of her multidisciplinary research contributions in nanotechnology and its applications in biology and engineering, which have impacted the development of nanoelectronic devices, photovoltaics, biosensors, bioimaging, and cancer diagnostics and therapeutics." The award includes a check for $1,000.

Ozkan has gained national recognition before: she was a featured speaker at the 2008 National Academy of Engineering's Frontiers of Engineering Symposium, received the Referee of the Year from the Journal of Biomedical Microdevices in 2007, the Distinguished Engineering Educator of the Year Award from the National Engineers' Council in 2006, the 2005 Emerging Scholar award from the American Association of University Women, and was a participant in the National Academy's Keck Future Initiatives Conference by invitation from the National Academy in 2005.

SES is comprised of scientists, engineers and mathematicians from around the world who recognize that solutions to critical modern problems transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries. Its conferences are recognized as leading forums for bringing together diverse, interdisciplinary groups of researchers to discuss advances in highly focused symposia. SES is holding its 46th Annual Technical Meeting as part of the Joint ASCE-ASME-SES Conference on Mechanics and Materials, June 24-27.

Five Chosen for EAPSI Research Abroad

June 23

Five engineering students were awarded National Science Foundation fellowships to do research abroad. The EAPSI (East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes) program provides U.S. graduate students in science and engineering opportunities for first-hand research experiences in Australia, China, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore or Taiwan. Pictured (l. to r.) are Robert Fernandez, Alfred Martinez-Morales, Chris Kieslich, Anthony Bianchi and Antony Lam.

Fernandez (Electrical Engineering) traveled to Singapore to work at the National University of Singapore and the Data Storage Institute. He will be developing materials for Heat Assisted Magnetic Recording, a new technology being developed internationally.

Martinez-Morales (Electrical Engineering) is at Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan, working on the development and testing of solar cell devices (photovoltaics) at the New Industry Creation Hatchery Center.

Keislich (Bioengineering) is working in Osaka, Japan at Osaka University using grid computing to perform a virtual screening study to find an inhibitor of the complement immune system, which complements his current Ph.D. research.

Bianchi (Electrical Engineering) is studying at National Chi Nan University in Puli, Taiwan. His project is titled "Learning Relevant Spatial Knowledge for Iconic Image Retrieval."

Lam (Computer Science and Engineering) is in Japan at University of Tokyo's Komaba campus, at the Institute of Industrial Science. He is working in the area of automatic retrieval of video activities.

Besides affording graduate students the opportunity to do research overseas, the program is designed to give them an introduction to the science and scientific infrastructure of another country, and to let them experience its society, culture and language. Awardees receive a round-trip air ticket to the host location, a pre-departure orientation in Washington, D.C., abroad living expenses and a $5,000 stipend. The institutes last approximately 8-10 weeks.

Liao's Research Published in PNAS

June 19

Jiayu Liao, an assistant professor of Bioengineering, is part of an international team that is using an FDA-approved drug to inhibit a protein that affects human stem cell growth. A paper outlining the results of the research was recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The drug, Rapamycin, is an antibiotic that blocks a protein involved in cell division and inhibits the growth and function of certain T cells of the immune system involved in the body's rejection of foreign tissues and organs, making it useful for kidney transplants. The team discovered that the drug also impairs the ability of stem cells to develop into a variety of cell types, including cancer cells - an important consideration if the stem cells are being introduced into a patient's body. This research could also prove valuable for directing stem cell differentiation and thus contribute to effective strategies for tissue repair and regeneration. Since the drug is already approved by the FDA, it can be safely used for treatment now without having to wait for clinical trial results.

Liao is the UC Riverside representative on a team that includes researchers form University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Iowa, UC San Francisco, New York University and the Institute of Zoology in Beijing, China.

For more information, see the UCR campus press release.

Commencement Launches New Tradition

June 17

For full photo coverage visit this page.

Doctoral, master's and baccalaureate degree candidates wore big smiles at the Bourns College of Engineering 2009 Commencement Ceremony at 6 p.m. June 15 on Pierce Lawn near the UCR bell tower. For the first time a reception for all majors and their families and friends immediately followed the ceremony (see lower left photo). Hundreds of new engineers and their guests celebrated their achievements and new status.

Dean Reza Abbaschian presided over the ceremony, introducing Chancellor Timothy White and Alumni President-elect David Cunningham who both addressed the graduates. Julia Nemeth, an administrative assistant at the College, sang both the National Anthem and the concluding Alma Mater.

Gordon L. Bourns, Chairman and CEO of Bourns, Inc. gave the Commencement address. He is Chairman and CEO of Bourns, Inc., an international electronics corporation, and the son of co-founders, Marlan and Rosemary Bourns, who were in attendance at the ceremony. He spoke of the early days of the company they founded in their garage, and credited their blend of competence and character with the company's worldwide success. He encouraged the graduates to apply character as well as competence throughout their careers.

Alexander Dupuy, a Mechanical Engineering undergraduate who has worked in Professor Javier Garay's lab since he was a freshman, gave the student address. When introducing Dupuy, Dean Abbaschian noted that although the outstanding student was accepted at Stanford and UC Berkeley, he will remain at Bourns to pursue his graduate studies with Garay.

More than 250 degrees were awarded at the ceremony. Two were awarded posthumously: a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering to Haney El Massry, and a Ph.D. in Chemical and Environmental Engineering to Yan (Jennie) Lee.

 

Students Put On Year-end Banquet and Ball

June 10

James Bond would have felt right at home at the student "009 Bourns Ball and Banquet" with its Casino Royale atmosphere. Held on May 29 in the Highlander Union Building, the annual tradition is planned and carried out by members of student clubs and their Leadership Council. An awards ceremony is always a highlight of the evening.

Each student organization had a responsibility, such as food, publicity, entertainment, ticket design, etc. The students arrived in black and white semiformal attire, a real change from the usual classroom jeans and tee shirts. Some sported top hats and canes. Tables in the same color scheme were sprinkled with diamonds, dice and colorful cocktail glasses.

Leadership Council President Katie Peterson (pictured at right) began with a welcome and introduction of Dean Reza Abbaschian, who praised the students for their accomplishments. Next were awards for Ambassadors (pictured below with their advisors Sonia De La Torre at center front and Thomas McGraw in second row in jeans), top achieving students who volunteer for campus and College outreach efforts. Mike Vaona received the top Ambassador award for outstanding contribution and years of service. Christian Contreras, Jose Garcia, Saurabh Jakkula, Joshua Miranda and David Shelton were recognized for outstanding contribution and support.

Representatives from student chapters of professional organizations highlighted their year's activities and projects. Awards were presented in the following categories:

Most Outstanding Organization: Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE)
Most Competitive Organization: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Most Outstanding Outreach Event: Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
Most Outstanding Professional Development Organization: National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)
Most Improved Organization: Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)
Best T-Shirt Design: American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

A buffet dinner followed, and the remainder of the evening was spent dancing, listening to music, socializing with friends and celebrating the conclusion of a rigorous academic year.

Bourns Council of Advisers Welcomes Three More Members

June 6

Three Southern California Business Executives were welcomed as the latest members of the Bourns College of Engineering Council of Advisers at its June 5-6 meeting. Jeanne-Marie Bruno, Ben Overall and Carole Sanders joined 16 other business and community leaders on the Council.

The Council is a group of senior executives with backgrounds related to the areas of emphasis at Bourns. By providing industry perspective, the Council offers guidance, support and insight to help the college achieve its vision of becoming a nationally recognized leader in engineering research and education.

Carole Sanders is a Senior Resident Engineer for Lim and Nascimento Engineering Corporation, currently in charge of the construction management of the Cypress Avenue Bridge Project over Interstate 10 in Fontana, CA.

She is a licensed Professional Engineer (Civil) and an Eno Fellow of the Board of Regents of the Eno Transportation Foundation.

Sanders earned her B.S. in Civil Engineering from Howard University, and a M.S. in Transportation Management from the Norm Mineta Transportation Institute, San Jose State University.

Ben Overall, Director of the Missile Engineering Center for Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems in San Bernardino. He completed his U.S. Air Force career as Director of the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) System Program Office at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, retiring with the rank of Colonel.

Overall has both a master's degree and a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace engineering from Mississippi State University. He also attended the Industrial College of the Armed Forces and is certified by the Defense Systems Management College in program management and systems engineering.

Jeanne-Marie Bruno is General Manager and Senior Vice President of Park Water Company, an investor-owned water utility that provides potable and recycled water service to about 110,000 people in Southern California.

She served as Chair of the California-Nevada section of the American Water Works Association and has served as an International Board Director. She is a registered Civil Engineer, A Grade 5 California water Treatment Operator, and a Grade 5 Distribution Operator.

Bruno holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a M.S. in Environmental Engineering from Stanford University.

Walker Awarded Fulbright for Research, Teaching in Israel

June 4

Sharon Walker, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship that will support nine months of water quality research in Israel, from September 2009 through July 2010. Her research has the potential to transform the way in which infectious agents in underground layers containing water used for drinking are monitored, and their presence assessed. Her work will provide insight into best practices for protection of human and animal health, and help set standards for water management.

Walker will collaborate with faculty from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, bringing together expertise in environmental and chemical engineering, and molecular and micro-biology. She will also present a two-week intensive short course at Ben-Gurion University based on a graduate-level class she developed at UCR, titled "Physical, Chemical and Biological Processes Controlling the Fate of Particles in Aquatic Environments."

Walker has previously delivered lectures abroad; she was invited to speak in China, the Netherlands and England. As she points out, issues of water management and quality are universal. Through her combination of research and lecturing, she intends to enhance international partnerships and interdisciplinary efforts by developing collaboration with Israeli researchers, students and at multi-disciplinary meetings and conferences.

Commencement 2009 Combines Graduate, Undergraduate Honors

June 2

More than 250 doctoral, master’s and baccalaureate degree candidates will don the cap and gown for the Bourns College of Engineering’s 2009 Commencement Ceremony at 6 p.m. Monday, June 15 on Pierce Lawn near the UCR belltower.

The Commencement Address will be delivered by Gordon L. Bourns, Chairman and CEO, of Bourns, Inc., the son of the co-founders of Bourns, Inc., Marlan and Rosemary Bourns, for whom the college was named by an endowment gift by the Bourns Foundation.

Bourns, Inc. is a worldwide electronics corporation employing 3,500 which produces more than 3,000 different products at 10 domestic and international facilities. Mr. Bourns holds a BS degree in electrical engineering from UC, Irvine and an MBA in finance/marketing from UC, Los Angeles.

The student address will be made by Alexander Dupuy, of Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, a Mechanical Engineering undergraduate who has been has been a leader at the college for scholarship, research and community involvement. Although accepted at Stanford University, Dupuy will remain at Bourns to work in Professor Javier Garay’s lab where he has worked since he was a freshman.

Graduates will enjoy two traditions on Commencement Day – one old and one new.
As always UCR Pipe Band will lead the Commencement Procession, one of the Highlanders’ most colorful traditions. The current Western United States Pipe Band Association champions (grade 4) will herald the arrival of the Class of 2009 with bagpipes and drums.

In what is expected to become a Bourns tradition, the graduates and their guests will be invited back to the college at 8 p.m. after the ceremony for a celebratory reception.

For more information, see the Bourns Commencement page.

 

MESA Appreciation Dinner Marks Contributions of STEM Teachers

May 28

While the economic situation increasingly makes the contributions of school teachers hard to recognize, 40 middle and high school math and science teachers were feted May 26 at the Bourns College of Engineering.

The teachers from Riverside and San Bernardino counties attended the dinner hosted at the College by the UCR MESA Program. The teachers were recognized for their success in promoting math and science achievement among local students. It was a night to reflect, but also to glean information teachers could use the following school year.

Reza Abbaschian, Dean of the Bourns College of Engineering, welcomed the teachers, encouraging them to continue preparing students to meet the overwhelming need in industry and academia for prepared scientists and engineers.

Pamela Clute, Mathematics Lecturer and Assistant Vice Provost (pictured, far right), gave the keynote address. Clute, a champion for improving math and science education, inspired attendees to teach with passion and relevancy, and instill success in students.

"Eighty-five percent of economic activity comes from new technology careers in STEM fields," Clute said. Yet  one-third of secondary math teaching positions and 40 percent of science teaching positions went unfilled. In light of those numbers, she said, it will be tremendously challenging to stimulate learning that is interesting and pertinent to a global society.

A demonstration for a summer training institute MESA is hosting here at the college was also given, bridging technology with the classroom.  Breakout sessions allowed participants to share  ideas and teaching methods.

“The work and value of mathematics and science teachers today is often unappreciated and discounted," said Carlos Gonzalez, MESA Schools Program Director. “In a society ever more dependent on technology to find solutions to energy, health and environmental problems, math and science education should be a top priority.”

“We hope that they felt valued and appreciated this one night, and encouraged to continue the invaluable work they so willingly undertake,” Gonzalez continued.

 

Mechanical Engineers Showcase Diverse Research Interests

May 28

The Bourns College of Engineering's Fourth Annual Mechanical Engineering Graduate Research Symposium showed the breadth of research in the college's labs -- encompassing smart materials, nanotechnology, environmental modeling, medicine and many others.

Alumnus Mark Johnson (in red shirt) who now works at Abbott Vascular returned to campus to make a presentation about his company's research in medical stents.

Ehsan Tarkesh Esfahani was recognized for the best oral presentation which described a text-based interface for rapid prototyping in design and manufacturing. Esfahani's work allows users to simplify modeling and simulation of mechanical systems without needing to learn complex modeling programs.

The best poster presentation was produced by Jason R. Morales who described a technique to process powders with grain sizes uniformly in the nanometer scale. These uniform particle materials display fundamentally different properties, such as complex magnetic qualities, than their more heterogenous-sized counterparts.

Hansheng Pan demonstrated her work in environmental flow modeling which seeks to understand how tall buildings can trap pollutants. Huntington Beach, Long Beach and Los Angeles were recreated inside a large wave tank to measure velocity and concentration fields at the "ground level" among urban skyscrapers. In addition to lab simulation, field measurements done in five California cities confirmed that tall buildings, not traffic conditions were the chief contributor to high pollution levels.

Francisco G. Perez-Gutierrez described his efforts to determine the optimal short pulses of laser light that can detect melanoma cancer cells in the bloodstreams of living patients. When exposed to the right laser light, cancer cells have been found to generate photoacoustic waves. The ability to detect these cells would give doctors a powerful new way to monitor disease progression.

Also recognized at the symposium was Eric Peterson as Outstanding Teaching Assistant. Peterson presented his own research on "Grouping Strokes into Shapes in Hand-Drawn Diagrams."

NSF Grant Provides $600,000 for Scholarships

May 28

Bourns College of Engineering students in financial need will gain assistance from a National Science Foundation S-STEM (Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) grant. The $600,000, five-year grant will fund the College's S-STEM project, designed to aid low-income, academically talented engineering students.

Associate Dean Chinya Ravishankar, Principal Investigator for the grant, says the project's focus is on helping students succeed academically and professionally and encouraging them to pursue graduate level degrees in engineering disciplines. A scholarship committee will review the applications and choose the recipients.

"With this grant we hope to increase the number of students attending Bourns College of Engineering from underrepresented groups in California's diverse population, and enhance their chances for success in their degree program and beyond," said Ravishankar.

The program will actively recruit students who qualify for the College's programs but need financial help, providing scholarships so they don't have to work at jobs that interfere with their studies. Other innovative features include providing an undergraduate group structure so they can build academic and social relationships with their peers, professional development and career track guidance, and project design experience to give a comprehensive view of the engineering profession.

Mihri Ozkan Captures SES National Medal

May 21

Mihri Ozkan, Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering, is the national winner of the Society of Engineering Science's SES Young Investigator Medal. It is awarded to a young researcher whose work has already had an impact in his/her field within engineering science. She will be honored at the Society's 2009 annual meeting in Blacksburg, VA in June.

While informing Ozkan and BCOE Dean Reza Abbaschian that she had been chosen to receive the medal, Penn State Professor and SES President Judith Todd congratulated Ozkan on her "very well-deserved award." Abbaschian said this honor brings great recognition to the College and thanked her for her excellent contributions.

Besides the medal, the award includes a check for $1,000. Both will be presented at the Joint ASCE-ASME-SES Conference on Mechanics and Materials banquet on June 26 at Virginia Tech University.

The Society of Engineering Science promotes the interchange of ideas among the various fields of engineering science and the fields of theoretical and applied physics, chemistry, mathematics, bioengineering and related scientific and engineering fields. It sponsors forums and meetings for the dissemination of information and ideas among its members and other interested participants.

Large-scale Video Networks Examined in High-level Workshop

May 14

More than 70 leading researchers in large-scale video networks met at the Bourns College of Engineering Monday and Tuesday, May 11-12 for a invitation-only workshop to survey the challenges facing the technology and discuss future research directions.

DVSN 2009 (Distributed Video Sensor Networks) was sponsored by the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research and the Army Research Office. The event featured numerous presentations by participants, small specialized working sessions and culminating discussions on possible future research directions.

On Wednesday the workshop was followed by a day-long exploration of this new technology by Bourns faculty representing the Departments of Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. The event attracted IT and law enforcement professionals from surrounding cities, academics saying over from DVSN, as well as sensor and security industry representatives.

Among the highlights were: a presentation by IBM Distinguished Scientist Arun Hampapur on current systems installed in Chicago and elsewhere; advances in nano sensors by Georgia Tech Distinguished Professor Ian Akyildiz; and a roundtable discussion on surveillance practices and needs by representatives of Caltrans, the FBI, Los Angeles World Airports, and a crisis response researcher from UC Irvine.  This was the third year for the technology transfer conference at the College.

Large-scale video networks are becoming increasingly important for a wide range of critical applications such as video surveillance, monitoring of disaster zones and traffic, elderly care, tracking people and vehicles in crowded environments, and providing more realistic images for consumer electronics and entertainment.

The Bourns College of Engineering has built a research environment at its UCR facility, eventually to reach 80 wired and wireless, fixed and mobile cameras to conduct its own research in the field.  Professors Bir Bhanu, Chinya Ravishankar and Amit Roy-Chowdhury are the principal investigators for a number of grants and contracts totaling more than $5 million supporting the work.

Sausman awarded Cota-Robles Fellowship

May 6

Noriko Sausman, an undergraduate student in bioengineering, has been awarded the Eugene Cota-Robles Fellowship.

This multi-year award -- two years of support during the first and fourth year of study with a guarantee of departmental support during the second and third -- was designed to release recipients from employment or loan obligations that often delay progress in graduate study, and to place students interested in teaching and research on a fast-track towards achieving their doctoral degree. This helps to increase the number of qualified candidates for faculty positions at the University of California.

Sausman came to the U.S. from Japan about 10 years ago. She married, found employment at McCrometer (a flow instrumentation company), and was attending school part-time. In 2008 she quit her job to pursue her degree full-time. She is currently studying with bioengineering Professor Victor Rodgers and Professor Prue Talbot from UCR's Stem Cell Center, working to improve methods for in vitro culturing of ovarian follicles.

The award was named in honor of one of the earliest Mexican-American professors in the University of California, who taught Microbiology at UC Riverside. Nominees must be entering their first year of graduate study and come from cultural, linguistic, geographic or socioeconomic backgrounds that are underrepresented in graduate education or that have a physical or learning disability which makes it difficult to successfully pursue an advanced degree. Only six UCR students were selected for the award this year.

Calizo Recognized for Exceptional Community Service

May 1

Irene Calizo, an Electrical Engineering Ph.D. student, will receive the Gordon Watkins Award at the UCR Honors Convocation on May 14. The award, named for UCR's first provost, is presented each year to an outstanding graduate student for exceptional community service work. The latest of Calizo's numerous volunteer activities is coaching a Lego robotics team of girls ages 8 to 14.

The group, known as Robo Girlz, is an offshoot of Engineer IT Girls, a Girl Scout residence camp presented at the College last summer. Calizo was an advisor to that group, and when the Girl Scout organization received funding for a robotics team they asked her to lead the effort.

In September the team will compete in the Southern California contest, which encourages the girls to address the issue of climate change. The girls have been meeting weekly for several months, gaining familiarity with the robot's hardware and software, designing and building robots and listening to guest speakers on the environment and wildfires. They came up with the idea to build a fireplow robot that can clear brush to make firebreaks that help control forest fires.

One student has become so enthusiastic that she did her science fair project about  robotics and won second place. She intends to study engineering at the College after she graduates from high school. This kind of enthusiasm is what drives Calizo to introduce children to the discipline and the possibility of a career in engineering.

Calizo is a researcher in Prof. Alex Balandin's Nano-Device Laboratory. Her doctoral dissertation research concerns micro-Raman spectroscopic characterization of carbon-based materials and nanostructures. Her many awards include UCR's Graduate Division Fellowship and a NASA Women in Science and Engineering full scholarship as an undergraduate. She has held intern positions and research assistantships at Foveon Inc. of Santa Clara, NASA Ames Research Center and Lawrence Livermore National Lab. At the end of Spring quarter she will be heading to the National Institute of Standards and Technology as a NRC/NIST Postdoctoral researcher.

College Keeps Its Spot as Top Public Engineering School of Its Size

April 23

The newest rankings by U.S. News and World Report released April 23 continue to place the Bourns College of Engineering as the nation's top public engineering program of its size.

Among all public engineering schools, Bourns was ranked 35th (up from 38) in the 2010 edition of Best Graduate Schools.

The biggest rise in the rankings was the Electrical Engineering program in a tie at No. 31, taking its place among the nation's stellar public departments and joining three other previously ranked Bourns programs.

The publication also listed UCR's Computer Science and Engineering Department ranked at No. 32 and the Environmental Engineering program tied for No. 25 among public programs. Environmental Engineering showed the largest jump among both public and private programs, rising from 50 to 39.

The rise of the college, which is not yet 20 years old, has been rapid. The college has risen to prominence mainly during the current decade. That fact is key to the college's distinctiveness, according to Dean Reza Abbaschian. "Bourns has the latest facilities and resources, yet we offer close student-faculty collaboration in the classroom and in the laboratory that continually sets us apart from other colleges," he said.

Abbaschian added, "While these rankings are not the final word, they are a nice indication of our growing national prominence."

Yushan Yan, Chair of Chemical and Environmental Engineering echoed those thoughts. "In 2008, chemical engineering was at 53rd and environmental engineering 50th among all engineering programs," he said. "This year I am thrilled to see that our environmental engineering program is ranked at 39th (overall) and I think this shows that our world class environmental research and facilities are being recognized by our peers."

Bourns Space Science and Engineering Day Goes Green

April 21                                                             EVENT PHOTO PAGE

A day of free activities designed to encourage young women to pursue careers in science, technology and engineering drew a record 700 participants to Bourns College on April 18. "Green Innovations for a Brighter Future" was the theme for Bourns Space Science and Engineering Day, an annual event sponsored primarily by Bourns, Inc. and hosted by the UCR student chapter of the Society of Women Engineers.

Activities designed to entertain as well as educate children ages 7 to 12 filled the Engineering courtyard and several classrooms. Children could enter large black plastic planetariums to punch out their own constellations, manipulate robotic arms (see photo above), duplicate phases of the moon by nibbling Oreo cookies, make pinwheels to learn about wind turbines, look at the sun through filtered telescopes and have a model of the Mars Rover crawl over their backs.

Speakers included female engineers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Raytheon, UCR's ALPHA (Academy of Learning through Partnerships for Higher Achievement) Center, Cal State's Department of Physics and BCOE Electrical Engineering Professor Albert Wang. In the photo at right, Cal State San Bernardino physics faculty member Sue Lederer asks the audience to determine which of the people pictured are astronauts.

Members of the Riverside Astronomical Society brought their telescopes and spent the day helping children to view sun spots and flares. For the first time, students from Riverside's King High School science club participated, bringing a hand-cranked generator. Bourns College undergraduate and graduate students plan and execute most of the activities.

Robo Girlz, an offshoot of a Girl Scout robotics camp held over the summer at the College, displayed a Lego robot they will use to compete in September in a Southern California Lego Robotics contest for girls age 9-14. The team of Girl Scouts has been meeting weekly at the College since October with Ph.D. student Irene Calizo, an advisor for last summer's program.

"Our hope is that we can use this event to introduce these young students to the excitement that is taking place in engineering," said Reza Abbaschian, dean of the Bourns College of Engineering.

 

Electron Devices Society Formed; Awards First Research Prizes

April 21

The formation of a Bourns student chapter of the Electron Devices Society (EDS) was celebrated April 17 with an IEEE Student Research Forum.

Special guest speakers for the event were Cor Claeys, president of the IEEE Electron Devices Society, and two of the society's vice presidents, Reunuka P. Jindal and Juin J. Liou.

Four student groups received cash prizes for their research poster presentations as judged by the visiting EDS engineers.

First place in the graduate division was of Mohammad Khayer, of Dhaka, Bangladesh for his work on "High-speed and Low-power Performance in InSb and InAs Nanowire Field-effect Transistors in the Quantum Capacitance Limit."
First place in the undergraduate division were seniors Margaret Ukwu of Nigeria, and Israel Ramirez of San Diego for their "Design and Fabrication of Transistors for RF and Mixed Signal ICs."

Second place among undergraduates was Jacob Relles for his work with "Statistical Capacitance Modeling for Smooth Surface Irregularities under Process Variations."

Graduate students Shermin Arab of Tehran, Craig Nolen of San Diego, and Javed Kahn of Houston won second place in their division for "Power Usage Management and Lifetime Improvement in Wireless Sensor Network and Design and Maintenance."

UCR's Electron Devices Society plans to make the student research forum an annual event.

 

 

 

 

 

Team Member Named Top Student at WERC Competition

April 15

Breanne Bornemann won the Terry McManus Memorial Award for Most Outstanding Student at the WERC Consortium competition in New Mexico on April 8. This award honors a student that goes above and beyond the academic curriculum and includes a plaque and a $1,000 cash prize.

Kawai Tam, the team's advisor, nominated Bornemann for her work and passion in starting the UCR student chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB), and her ongoing efforts in helping the adopted village of Pastores Sacatequez, Guatemala to improve water and sanitation safety.

Bornemann is one of four BCOE team members, all Environmental Engineering seniors, who participated in Task 3, a design process for pretreatment of brackish water. They were sponsored by Western Municipal Water District, a member agency of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

The team created a prototype for cascade aeration and modified activated carbon to treat key contaminants of iron, manganese, and aluminum which foul reverse osmosis and electrodialysis reversal water treatment processes. A highlight was that they incorporated sustainable energy in their process by designing a solar pond that would power all the pumps in their pretreatment process.

By being involved in the competition the team was able to benefit from the judges' expertise in the field, and gain new knowledge and perspectives. It was also an opportunity for them to network. A couple of the judges requested that the students contact them after the competition to discuss their project further. In the photo, the team is fielding questions from judges. The students, in lab coats, are (l. to r.) Mihir Desai, Tyler Colyer, Troy Ezeh, and Breanne Bornemann.

WERC is a consortium for environmental education and technology development that has come to be widely recognized for its commitment to the nation's environment and natural resources. The organization's threefold program aims to achieve environmental excellence through education, public outreach, and technology development and deployment.

May 13 Technology Conference to Examine the Future of Homeland Security

April 13

On Wednesday, May 13, TechHorizons 2009 will present a view of the coming technological revolution of Aware Sensor Systems being developed at the Bourns College of Engineering at the University of California, Riverside.

Sponsored in part by the Office of Naval Research, the daylong conference will gather computer engineers, electrical engineers and mechanical engineers who together are using the $5 million camera/sensor network test bed implemented at the college. Among their goals are to produce surveillance technologies that recognize, remember and respond to potential threats in real time.

The event is designed to be of interest to those interested in security issues, including sensor manufacturers/vendors, public safety professionals, and those responsible for homeland security and transportation logistics.

During TechHorizons they will be joined by experts representing law enforcement, transportation and sensitive facilities in a roundtable discussion of the needs and potential for surveillance technology which can intelligently provide homeland security benefits over huge areas that otherwise might be vulnerable.

Keynoting TechHorizons 09 will be: Ian F. Akyildiz, Ken Byers Distinguished Chair Professor in Telecommunications, Georgia Institute of Technology; and Arun Hampapur, Distinguished Engineer in IBM's Global Technology Services, and Manager of its Exploratory Computer Vision Group.

Hampapur is a pioneer in the development of video surveillance technology. His Exploratory Computer Vision Group at IBM has been awarded 18 patents and 31 patents pending. He will present "Large-Scale Urban Surveillance: Challenges & Opportunities."

Akyildiz is an influential researcher in the area of wireless networking and he and his colleagues at his Broadband and Wireless Networking Laboratory are among the most cited authors in that field. He will speak on "Nano-Sensor Networks Using Molecular Communication."

To create "Aware" systems, engineers must perfect "situational awareness," a form of artificial intelligence that can purposefully direct cameras and sensors, as well as new networking approaches and data-mining techniques. After being taught what normal activity is, the system will identify abnormal, and possibly dangerous, activity.

Joining TechHorizons in the wide-ranging discussion will be: Regina Casale-Miles, Special Agent of the FBI and LA InfraGard Coordinator; and David L. Hexem, Chief Information Officer for the City of Redlands, which has used cameras for six years in its downtown area to provide a "virtual police presence."

Also participating will be Joseph Palen, Senior Research Engineer for Caltrans, which has installed a 1,500 camera system across the state and has also developed a cellular communications camera that can be deployed almost anywhere in a few minutes. Nigel Smith will represent Ontario International Airport and their efforts to safeguard critical infrastructure.

With the funding of multiple federal agencies, the engineering complex at the Bourns College of Engineering has become a test bed of 80 cameras and other sensors to spur innovations in the areas of video analysis, networking, machine learning, data mining, and signal processing. The ultimate goal of this work will be persistent awareness, and intent analysis.

To register for TechHorizons, visit the website at www.engr.ucr.edu/th09.html. The full-day conference costs $125, or $90 for government, non-profit and education representatives. For more information call 951-827-2528.

Garay's DoD Award Will Enhance Research Equipment

April 7

Mechanical Engineering Assistant Professor Javier Garay has received an award from the Department of Defense (DoD) to support the purchase of research equipment that will significantly extend the range of materials that can be processed by Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) and create a one-of-a-kind processing tool.

Sintering is a method for making objects from powder, heating material until its particles adhere to one another. In Spark Plasma Sintering, the heat is generated internally, as opposed to conventional hot pressing where heat is provided by external sources. The SPS process is usually very fast, with the potential of densifying nanosize or nanostructured powders while avoiding the coarsening that happens with traditional methods.

Garay's existing SPS system was designed and built at UCR and has been used successfully in another DoD funded project. This previous experience has enabled Garay to assess critical challenges in the field and identify gaps in apparatus capabilities. He will augment the system with a gas process control and glove box features. These will allow for the suppression of volatility and the processing of materials in an inert atmosphere.

Each year the Department of Defense awards funds for the purchase of university research equipment through a program called Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP). This program makes possible the purchase of state-of-the-art equipment that augments current capabilities or develops new capabilities for research. The awards are the result of a merit competition conducted by the Army Research Office, the Office of Naval Research and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.

 

Navy Funds Intelligent Camera Network Control and Decision Making

April 1

The Navy wants smart camera networks that understand what they are seeing and work intelligently as sort of a swarm. The work fits in beautifully with the Bourns College of Engineering's unique camera test bed, developing cutting edge technologies that will be featured during TechHorizons 2009 on May 13.

Electrical Engineering professors Amit Roy Chowdhury (l.) and Jay Farrell (r.) are developing methods for controlling a network of cameras so that they can be used to selectively acquire high resolution images of certain objects of interest in a scene. One of these cameras is in the foreground of the photo. The methods developed will distribute processing power over the network of cameras so that each can behave separately without the need for a central processor, while, at the same time, collaborating with each other. The Office of Naval Research is funding the work with $524,827 over three years, for applications such as tracking, object recognition and activity recognition.

The research will look at innovative new applications of game theory and consensus algorithms that will enable distributed cameras to operate cooperatively, without the communication and computational demands involved in using a central controller. The developed methods will be demonstrated at the UCR Videoweb facility which is a large multimodal sensor network lab consisting of around 80 pan-tilt-zoom network video cameras over a wide area, dozens of audio sensors that can be rapidly deployed as needed, a number of infrared cameras and a hyper-spectral camera and 3D sensors.

All of this technology will be prominently featured at the College's TechHorizons technology transfer conference on May 13 as the theme this year is "aware" systems, sensors and networks. The project brings together two experts on the technical aspects of the proposed research. Roy Chowdhury's research concerns computer vision, signal, image and video processing, and pattern recognition. Farrell's covers learning control systems, autonomous vehicles and intelligent transportation systems and global position systems.

Analysis of video from camera networks is promising but unexplored. Roy Chowdhury and Farrell expect it to lead to the development of self-configuring camera networks able to analyze activities. Applications include monitoring borders and ports, distinguishing between routine and unusual behavior, and providing more realistic images for consumer electronics and entertainment.

 

Teams Pick Up Sponsors for Water Treatment Competitions

March 23

Western Municipal Water District (WMWD) is sponsoring a team of Chemical and Environmental Engineering students, enabling them to participate in an environmental design contest on water treatment. A second team, sponsored by a UCR undergraduate grant, hopes to enter a national Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) competition with a similar water remediation project.

Six students are entering the Waste Management, Education and Research Consortium (WERC) competition to be held on April 5-8 in Las Cruces, NM. Tyler Colyer, Mihir Desai, Ruddy Argueta, Breanne Bornemann, Troy Ezeh and Tom (Tongzhou) Wang make up the team. Their project is entitled "Brackish Water Pretreatment." They will be judged on such criteria as ease of use and reliability, affordability and cost-effectiveness, energy efficiency of their proposed method, potential cost reduction, and long-term performance.

The second team, John Johnson, Elizha West, Parham Javadinajjar and Chris Salinas, is vying to compete in the EPA "People, Prosperity and the Planet" or "P3" student design competition for which they submitted a proposal entitled "Solar Concentrated Distillation as a Means to Treat Saline/Brackish Water" in December 2008. They expect to hear in early June if their proposal was chosen. This team won an Undergraduate Research Grant from UCR to conduct experiments for their project.

In the check presentation photo the General Manager of WMWD, John Rossi is at far left and President of the Board Thomas Evans is at far right. Students (left to right) are Chris Salinas, Tyler Colyer, Parham Javadinajjar, Mihir Desai, Elizha West, Ruddy Argueta, Tom Wang and John Johnson, with their advisor Kawai Tam, CEE lecturer. Breanne Bornemann and Troy Ezeh are not pictured.

CE-CERT Presents Distinguished Service Awards

March 18

Three awards were announced at a dinner for the Board of Advisors of the College of Engineering-Center for Research in Environmental Technology (CE-CERT). Jim Guthrie, Richard Luben and James Boyd were honored for their involvement with the Center.

Jim Guthrie, president of Viresco Energy and Guthrie Construction Company, was presented the Distinguished Service Award for Industry for his many contributions to CE-CERT such as the establishment of the annual Guthrie Graduate Research Award, and Viresco's partnership with CE-CERT in the commercialization of technology to convert waste products into energy or fuel, a process developed at CE-CERT. Richard Luben (holding his award as Dean Abbaschian, at left, and CE-CERT Center Director Matt Barth look on) received the Distinguished Service Award for Academia for his exceptional contributions to CE-CERT as Vice Chancellor of Research at UCR. James Boyd, Commissioner and Vice-Chairman of the California Energy Commission, was honored with the Distinguished Service Award for Government because of his outstanding support of CE-CERT over the years. He was unable to attend the event because of a prior commitment.

The dinner, held at the Riverside International Automotive Museum, capped a day that included an overview of progress at the Center, research presentations and roundtable discussions.

 

Inland Empire Students Receive Verizon Support for Engineering, Science Success Programs

March 9

Four hundred middle school and high school students in San Bernardino Schools have received an extra boost in math and science studies, thanks to a new partnership between UCR's Bourns College of Engineering and the Verizon Foundation.

The Verizon Foundation Saturday presented a check for $105,000 for two initiatives designed to improve preparation and success of Inland Empire students for technology careers.

The foundation has awarded $80,000 to extend the work of the Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) center at the UC Riverside campus to three more high schools and 100 additional students in San Bernardino schools. The Riverside program currently oversees MESA activities at 21 area middle and senior high schools.

Verizon also awarded a $25,000 educational grant to SPIRIT (Success Partnership for Increasing Recruitment Into Technology) a new effort of the Bourns College of Engineering to benefit three San Bernardino school districts.  (More on Spirit)

The new SPIRIT Program, also supported by a $100,000 National Science Foundation grant, will collaborate with the Alliance for Education in the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools Office by developing a pre-engineering curriculum, offering teacher training opportunities and organizing design challenges to make the study of math and science more exciting and relevant to students.

The purpose of both programs is to increase the percentage of Inland Empire students who successfully graduate from college in science and engineering fields. According the California Postsecondary Education Commission 47.4 percent of 2007 California high school graduates entered college. That year the college-going rate for Riverside County was 37.9 percent and for San Bernardino County it was 33.4 percent.

MESA is a statewide program that provides academic preparation to over 17,500 educationally disadvantaged students. MESA's goal is to help these students to excel in math and science, go on to college and graduate in math-based majors. Statewide 81 percent of MESA high school graduates go directly to college. Of Latino American, African American, and American Indian MESA students, 41 percent are eligible to attend UC, compared to six percent of their statewide counterparts.

The SPIRIT program will also promote early preparation for technology careers from middle school to high school and into college. As a result, in San Bernardino 300 students and 30 teachers will participate in enrichment programs in UCR laboratories. SPIRIT also will build connections with community colleges as an affordable pathway to four-year engineering degrees.

"We want to expand the vision of these students so that they can go to college and we want them to be prepared when they get there," said Associate Dean of Engineering Chinya Ravishankar, who is the principal investigator on the SPIRIT project.

The Verizon grants to MESA will help fund materials, supplies and provide funds for teacher time to implement hands-on math and science curriculum. Verizon volunteers will participate in local and regional math, science and engineering competitions. Verizon's Thinkfinity online curriculum, lesson plans and interactive activities also will be used to stimulate student interest in math and science.

"This new program is a win-win partnership," said MESA Executive Director Oscar Porter. "San Bernardino will get the kind of academic support that its students need to succeed and go on to college and companies like Verizon will get the trained workforce they need to remain competitive."

MESA, administered by the University of California, has been named among the nation's most effective and innovative programs by Innovations in American Government, a project of Harvard University and the Ford Foundation. It also is a recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science and Engineering.

 

Students Explore Engineering, Technical Careers

March 4

Engineers and human resource staff from technical companies came to campus to gather resumes, answer students' questions, discuss employment opportunities for internships and career positions, and provide company literature at the Engineering and Technical Career Fair on Feb. 25 in the new Student Commons at UC Riverside.

About 500 students attended the event, specifically designed for students majoring in Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Information Systems, Mechanical Engineering and Physics. It offered job searches and recruiting for internships, summer jobs and career exploration.

JetHead Development, a software company that specializes in embedded device software for set-top-boxes in the satellite TV broadcast industry, was one of the companies represented. President Brian Bender and owner Ben Payne both graduated from UC Riverside. About 25 percent of the company's staff are Bourns College alums; Bender says he likes to hire them because he knows they have a firm grasp of the fundamentals and a solid background in computer science. Pictured are BCOE Alum Matt Mrosko, Technical Lead at JetHead (l.) and Marketing VP David Bye (r.).

Abbott, Jacobs Engineering, Naval Surface Warfare Center of Corona, Kleinfelder, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon were among other companies that participated.

Career Services Center counselor Jan McCorkle says employers commented that students were surprisingly effective communicators, and were most impressed that participants had researched the companies beforehand.

Students were able to RSVP for the Fair and submit their resumes electronically, and could also prepare for the event by watching videos on their computers that have been recommended by career experts.

Engineering and Technical Career Fair hosts were The Career Center of UC Riverside, the National Society of Black Engineers, the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and the Society of Women Engineers.

Transportation Research Conference Hosted by UCR Students

February 20

UCR graduate students in the transportation field welcomed researchers from other UC campuses and state agencies to the 15th Annual University of California Transportation Center (UCTC) Student Conference on Feb. 12 and 13. Participants included engineers, psychologists, planners, and librarians who presented and discussed research and applications in the field of transportation.

The conference began at the College of Engineering - Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT) with an evening welcome reception and talk by Wolfgang Hall, Principal Consultant at ESRI, a company that designs and develops geographic information systems (GIS) for transportation.

The second day took place at the new UCR Commons and included a plenary session with talks by CE-CERT Center Director Matt Barth on intelligent transportation systems and UCR Electrical Engineering Professor Jay Farrell (pictured) speaking about aided navigation, GIS, and intelligent roadways. Following these, faculty from UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, UC Davis, UCLA and Cal State San Bernardino made research presentations. At a luncheon UCR Chemical and Environmental Engineering Professor Charles Wyman spoke about powering sustainable transportation by plants.

Students displayed research posters in the afternoon. One by UCR's Julie Kang was chosen for the best poster award. Anh Vu, also from UCR, was chosen for the second place best poster award. Students from UC Berkeley, UCLA, USC, UC Santa Barbara, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC Davis and UC San Diego gave research presentations afterward. Dinner was highlighted by the Mel Webber Lecture by UCSD Electrical and Computer Engineering Professor Mohan Trivedi, "Human-centered, Holistic Systems for Safer and Smoother Traffic."

On the last day, Feb. 14, optional field trips to the Riverside Traffic Management Center and the March Field Air Museum were made available to the participants.

The University of California Transportation Center is a multi-campus research unit sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Faculty and graduate student assistants at UC Riverside, UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara and UCLA are eligible for research, education, and tech transfer funding from UCTC.

Ph.D. Student Research Finding is Highlighted in Media

February 12

An important discovery of graphene's susceptibility to electron beam irradiation, made by Ph.D. student researcher Desalegne Teweldebrhan, is attracting worldwide media attention. Graphene, which consists of just a single atomic layer of carbon atoms arranged in honeycomb lattice, appears to be a most promising new material for the next generation of ultra-high speed transistors and integrated circuits (the basis for computers).

Teweldebrhan and co-workers at the Nano-Device Laboratory found, unexpectedly, that even a short-time exposure of graphene to the low energy electron-beam irradiation results in substantial changes of its properties. The team continues to research what happens if the beams are tuned differently, changing the characteristics of the electron beams and trying to identify the conditions when there is a desirable change in the grapheme properties.

This has important implications for graphene characterization and device fabrication which rely on the electron microscopy and focused ion beam processing. Even small doses of radiation may cause graphene's ability to conduct electric current to deteriorate. Therefore determining what the effects of different doses are is useful information.

Teweldebrhan's research findings, reported recently in Applied Physics Letters, were featured in the UK-based Institute of Physics (IOP) publications and the U.S. nanotechnology information site NanoWerk.

Kisailus' Squid Study in Science Journal Nature

February 9

Chemical and Environmental Engineering Professor David Kisailus' latest work on squid sucker rings has been highlighted by Nature, the international weekly journal of science, and will be the April cover story for the peer-reviewed journal Advanced Materials.

Kisailus (left) and his research associate James Weaver (right) are investigating the sucker rings of the Humboldt squid, which are very strong and effective at immobilizing captured prey. The interdisciplinary team for this project also includes Professor Henrik Birkedal from Aarhus University in Denmark, Dr. Ali Miserez and Todd Schneeberk from UC Santa Barbara and Dr. Roger Hanlon from the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.

Kisailus and Weaver are interested in studying sea creatures in order to develop environmentally benign ways to synthesize multifunctional materials by duplicating nature's strengths. While material science constructs crystals using high temperature processing that allows little control over their size and shape, nature synthesizes them at low temperature and maintains greater control over the size and shape. Processing at lower temperatures would be much more cost-effective for making nanostructures for engineering applications and use in the energy field.

To read more, click here: http://newsroom.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=2013

 

 

EE Student Receives DARPA-SRC Best Research Award

February 3

A research presentation by Suchismita Ghosh and her colleagues from electrical engineering professor Alexander Balandin's Nano-Device Laboratory (NDL) received one of five Best Research Presentation awards at the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) - Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) review workshop.

The graduate student research competition, which took place on January 27 in Los Angeles, was judged by representatives from government funding agencies and engineers from Intel, IBM, Advanced Micro Devices and other electronic industry leaders. The NDL presentation, "Heat Propagation in Graphene: Theory and Experiment" was selected from a field of 63 submissions from top U.S. universities including Stanford, MIT, UCLA, USC, Caltech, UCSB, UCD, SUNY, NC State and Columbia University.

The graduate research competition was organized by the DARPA-SRC funded Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics (FENA) center. The mission of the national FENA center is the development of long-term strategy for the U.S. electronic industry. Professor Balandin is a FENA co-PI who deals with the thermal management problems of ultra-fast high-integration-density computer chips. Ghosh received a FENA certificate of accomplishment and a cash prize. Other members of the group who coauthored the research are Irene Calizo, Desalegne Teweldebrhan and Samia Subrina.

Bourns to Host Transportation Center Student Conference

February 2

The University of California, Riverside graduate students in transportation will host the 15th Annual University of California Transportation Center (UCTC) Student Conference on Feb. 12-13 at the new UCR Commons Building. There will be optional field trips on Feb. 14. This conference gathers researchers from UC schools to present and discuss research and applications in transportation.  For more information please visit the UCTC Student Conference website.

The center is a multi-campus research unit of whose theme is Transportation Policy and Systems Analysis. UCTC was established in 1987 to serve as the Federal Region IX University Transportation Center and as the statewide UTC for California. It is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans).

More than 100 faculty are involved in the center's activities through the graduate programs at Berkeley, Irvine, UCLA, UCR, and Santa Barbara, which offer specializations in transportation. All are eligible for research, education, and tech transfer funding from UCTC. Faculty members from other campuses also get involved in the center's research and technology transfer activities.

The 2009 Student Conference helps UCTC fulfill part of its mission, to support top-flight, multidisciplinary education programs.

Distinguished Speaker EncouragesWomen in Engineering

January 30

Maria M. Klawe, President of Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, gave a thought-provoking presentation on how young women differ from young men in their uses of and attitudes toward computing technology, and how this affects their career choices and participation in engineering. Her Jan. 27 talk was part of the College's Distinguished Lecture Series. She is pictured (in black suit) speaking with students after her presentation. BCOE Dean Reza Abbaschian is at far left.

Speaking to a crowd of administrators, faculty, students and townspeople, Klawe pointed out that although teenage girls spend more time on the Internet than boys and outperform boys in high school math, fewer females play computer and video games, major in computer science and engineering or end up in senior technology positions. One positive note is a recent rapid increase of female participation in bioengineering, chemical, civil and environmental engineering.

Most high school teachers and students are not familiar with the field of engineering, according to Klawe's research. She recommended some strategies to increase young girls' interest in computing and engineering, such as including applications in introductory classes, group assignments, unfailing encouragement, positive feedback and mentoring, all of which would increase young women's confidence and sense of belonging in the traditionally male-dominated fields.

Klawe is the former Dean of Princeton University's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. She has made significant research contributions in functional analysis, discrete mathematics, theoretical computer science, human-computer interaction, gender issues in information technology, and interactive-multimedia for mathematics education.

Read an interview with BCOE Chemical and Environmental Engineering Professor Sharon Walker on attracting more women to science and technology fields.

Fulbright Scholar Joins BCOE to Improve Thermoelectric Energy Generation

January 21

Dr. Igor Bejenari, a researcher from the Institute of Electronic Engineering and Industrial Technologies of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova, has joined the Department of Electrical Engineering as a Fulbright scholar. He will perform nanotechnology-related research in Professor Alex Balandin's Nano-Device Laboratory to achieve experimental confirmation of his theoretical predictions.

Dr. Bejenari's theoretical research concerns the effect of an electric field on the thermoelectric properties of bismuth telluride quantum wires. Quantum wires and other nanostructures made of bismuth telluride have shown promise for improving the efficiency of the thermoelectric devices used for power generation and cooling. These are safer and more environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional techniques but suffer from low efficiency. Nanostructures made of bismuth telluride may change this situation, making thermoelectric power generation and cooling more practical. The research in thermoelectric materials and devices is also synergetic with BCOE initiatives in clean energy conversion and sustainability.

The Fulbright Program, established by the U.S. Congress in 1945 following the proposal of Senator J.W. Fulbright, is the U.S. government's flagship program in international education and research. It is an integral part of U.S. foreign relations through its face-to-face exchanges, which have proven to be most effective in broadening the dialogue between U.S. citizens and institutions and their counterparts abroad.

Harvey Mudd President Presents ‘Gender, Computing and Engineering‘

January 20

Research findings on why women are not choosing careers in computing and engineering as well as best practices for increasing and retaining their participation in these fields make up the topic of the Jan. 27 Bourns College of Engineering's "Distinguished Lecture Series."

Maria Klawe, president of the Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, will talk about how girls and women differ from boys and men in their uses of and attitudes towards computing technology as part of the lecture held Tuesday, Jan. 27 from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Engineering Building Unit II Rooms 205/206. A one-hour reception with students, faculty, and members of the community will follow the lecture.

"Role modeling is so critical," added Sharon Walker, assistant professor, chemical and environmental engineering at Bourns. "And, anybody who doubts that must have grown up in an environment where everybody looked like them. When you are addressing the issue of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, you are addressing the issue of any marginalized group in theses areas and pushing for equity in these fields. Everybody benefits."

Klawe, who became president of Harvey Mudd College in June of 2006, is a former dean of Princeton University's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. In addition to research on gender issues in information technology, Klawe has also made significant research contributions in the areas of functional analysis, discrete mathematics, theoretical computer science, and human-computer interactions.

"Although female enrollment at Bourns is above average, we see it as our responsibility to continue to find ways to bring more into the computing and engineering pipeline," said Dean Reza Abbaschian, Bourns College of Engineering. "President Klawe is not only an expert on the subject, but also an excellent role model."

The Bourns College of Engineering's "Distinguished Lecture Series" is intended to allow individuals with outstanding credentials and achievements as engineers, researchers, and educators to provide their perspectives on current opportunities and future directions in engineering research and education.

Ozkans Featured on NAE Journal Cover

January 12

An article by BCOE faculty members Mihri and Cengiz Ozkan is highlighted on the cover of The Bridge, a quarterly journal magazine published by the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Theirs was selected as the frontier engineering research in emerging nanoelectronic devices.

Every year the NAE sponsors a US symposium on Frontier of Engineering, where for three days about 100 outstanding young engineers (ages 30-45) from academia, industry and government are invited to share ideas and learn about cutting-edge research. Participation is by invitation following a competitive nomination and selection process. Mihri Ozkan was selected to attend last year's symposium, and was one of 15 featured speakers.

Six papers based on the symposium's four topics were chosen for the winter issue of The Bridge. The Ozkans' paper, "Role of DNA in Nanoarchitechtonics and Future Prospects," covers the latest developments in the field of biological assembly and provides a summary of collaborative research between UC Riverside and other university teams participating in the Focus Center on Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics Center (FENA) located at UCLA.

The journal is disseminated to NAE members, members of the Congress, libraries and a wide range of interested individuals. The National Academy of Engineering was established under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, a private nonprofit society of distinguished scholars. Both academies share the responsibility for advising the federal government, and furthering science and technology and their use for the general welfare.

Wang Elevated to IEEE Fellow

January 2

Electrical Engineering Professor Albert Wang has been named a Fellow by the Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers (IEEE). Admission as a Fellow recognizes unusual distinction and accomplishments that have contributed importantly to the advancement or application of engineering, science and technology, bringing the realization of significant value to society.

IEEE cited Wang's contributions to design-for-reliability and system-on-chip. He has authored a book, "On-Chip ESD Protection for Integrated Circuits" and more than 110 peer-reviewed papers. He holds six U.S. patents. He received the National Science Foundation CAREER Award in 2002, the Sigma Xi scientific research society Award for Excellence in University Research at Illinois Institute of Technology in 2003, and the 2006 Chunhui Outstanding Overseas Scholar Award from the Ministry of Education in China.

Wang is an Editor for IEEE Electron Device Letters and Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I. He currently serves as Vice President for IEEE Electron Devices Society. He has been an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer for both the Electron Devices Society and the Solid-State Circuits Society since 2001.

IEEE is a leading non-profit professional association for the advancement of technology that claims more than 375,000 members, including nearly 80,000 student members, in more than 160 countries

Ozkan Delivers Plenary Address in Turkey

January 2

Cengiz Ozkan, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering, was a plenary speaker at the "International Workshop on New Trends in Science and Technology" in Ankara, Turkey in November. Prof. Ekmel Ozbay, Director of the Nanotechnology Center (NANOTAM) in Ankara, presented an award plaque to Ozkan.

The title of Ozkan's lecture was "One Dimensional Nanostructured Materials for Nanoelectronics, Energy and Sensing." Ozkan's research interests are in the areas of nanopatterning and nanoarchitectures for electronics, photovoltaics and biological sensing. Electrical Engineering associate professor Mihri Ozkan (pictured) also presented at the conference, speaking on "Nanotechnology: Its Applications in Renewable Energy Production and Storage."

The purpose of the event was to bring together scientists with common interests in nanoscience, nonlinear science and complexity, symmetries, super symmetries and integrability so they could exchange recent developments and progress. Applications of nanotechnology in renewable energy production and storage as well as nanostructured materials for nanoelectronics, energy and sensing were discussed, as were experimental details of detection of cancer cells, the development of sensors and massively parallel integration of nanowires for future architectures and nanosystems.

The conference was organized by the SEENET (Southeastern European Network). Cankaya University in Ankara hosted the meeting and the special events that were a part of the conference.