Top Headlines

Baby’s sleep position is major factor in ‘flat-headedness’

chughes3 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:49:00 -0700

A baby's sleep position is the best predictor of a misshapen skull condition known as deformational plagiocephaly – or the development of flat spots on an infant's head – according to findings reported by Arizona State University scientists in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Analyzing the largest database to date, more than 20,000 children, the ASU researchers found that the number of babies who have developed flat-headedness has dramatically increased since 1992. The increase coincides with the American Academy of Pediatrics launch of a "Back to Sleep" educational campaign that recommended parents place their infants on their backs to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.

"We looked at a number of risk factors, but the largest factor was the sleep position of the baby," said Brian Verrelli, an assistant professor in ASU's School of Life Sciences and researcher in the Center for Evolutionary Functional Genomics at the Biodesign Institute.

The condition is thought to occur when babies spend too much time in one position. The research team found that sleep position, and specifically, head position, are linked to flat-headedness. Babies who slept on their right-side or left-side tended to have right-side and left-side flat spots, respectively.

The study, "Risk Factors Associated With Deformational Plagiocephaly," also found that boys were twice as likely as girls to have the condition (a nearly perfect 2-to-1 ratio) and also more common in firstborn infants, babies with low birth weight, in breech and transverse positions in the womb, and in multiple births, specifically fraternal twins.

The study was designed to statistically evaluate the independent and interacting effects of biological and environmental risk factors that lead to deformational plagiocephaly, in an attempt to provide future guidance for clinical treatment.

"The unprecedented size of the sample in our study allowed us to identify potential factors, such as maternal prenatal conditions and low birth weight, that were previously unrecognized in smaller cohort studies. These other factors need to be explored further before we can begin to piece together the entire puzzle," said Jessica Joganic, who was an ASU undergraduate student at the time. She is the lead author on the study.

However, independent of the biological and environmental factors, the findings showed that sleep position was the best predictor of deformational plagiocephaly, and one that could be addressed by altering behavior, according to Verrelli.

The research was part of Joganic's undergraduate honors thesis as a student in ASU's Barrett, the Honors College. Joganic earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology in 2008 from the School of Human Evolution and Social Change in ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She currently is pursuing a doctorate in physical anthropology at Washington University in St. Louis.

Also collaborating in the study, which appeared online this week, were John Lynch, an ASU evolutionary biologist, and Timothy Littlefield with Cranial Technologies, Inc., in Phoenix, which supplied the database of more than 20,000 children who were treated for deformational plagiocephaly between 1990 and 2007.

Brian Williams receives Cronkite Award

jnewberg — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700

People are confusing "tonnage" with knowledge when it comes to the crush of information available today on the Internet, NBC anchor Brian Williams said Nov. 18 at ASU's Cronkite Award luncheon.

“Facts matter less,” Williams told an audience of more than 1,200 journalists, public officials, students, faculty and members of the public who attended the Cronkite Award luncheon in downtown Phoenix. “We are all finding it is a heck of a lot easier to voice an opinion on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan than it is to go and report back home on what you find."

Williams, who has served as anchor and managing editor of “NBC Nightly News” since 2004, received the 26th annual Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism from Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. He joins a list of honorees that includes Tom Brokaw, the anchor Williams succeeded at NBC.

The first person to receive the award since Cronkite's death in July, Williams reflected on the differences between Cronkite's era and today, starting with millions of blogs and Twitter accounts and “cable networks that agree with you from the moment you wake up in the morning.”

“All things civic, it seems some days in this country are being replaced by all things narcissistic – one of the changes in the time since Walter Cronkite ruled the airwaves and came into our homes,” Williams said.

Williams said he watched Cronkite from the time he was a child and always aspired to be like him. He called Cronkite his “North Star.”

Cronkite was ideal for his era, Williams said.

“As icons go, Walter was unique," he said. "He was the right man in the right job at precisely the right time.”

ASU Executive Vice President and Provost Betty Capaldi presented Williams with the award after recounting a long list of his accomplishments, including four Edward R. Murrow awards, five Emmys, the duPont-Columbia University Award and the George Foster Peabody Award. He also holds six honorary doctorates.

His award-winning work has included coverage of Hurricane Katrina, which the New York Times called “a defining moment as a network reporter and anchor.”

In 2007, Time magazine named him one of the 100 “People Who Shape Our World.”

During his two-day visit to the school, Williams met with Cronkite students, visited the KPNX-Channel 12 newsroom and hosted “NBC Nightly News” from the rooftop of the Cronkite School on Tuesday night. He spent more than an hour Wednesday morning with students in the school’s First Amendment Forum, answering their questions and offering advice.

At the luncheon, Williams told the crowd that he sees one sign that more of those seeking reliable information are cutting through the clutter. His show’s ratings are up this year, exceeding viewership even during the presidential election.

“We don’t know why," he said. "We guess it’s because the difference is becoming sharper, and people know where to find us and they know what they’re going to get.”

And that's where Cronkite's values can guide journalists today, Williams said.

“It's all there if you know the difference,” he said. "There's journalism, and there is everything ending in 'lol.'”

Previous Cronkite Award recipients include TV journalists Bill Moyers and Jane Pauley; newspaper publishers Katharine Graham, Al Neuharth and Otis Chandler; television executives Bill Paley, Frank Stanton and Ted Turner; and newspaper journalists Ben Bradlee, Helen Thomas and Bob Woodward. Last year’s winners were Jim Lehrer and Robert MacNeil of PBS.

Cronkite News Service contributed to this report.

ASU professor creates joint invention with MIT

jabrewe — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:31:55 -0700

For Arizona State University (ASU) Professor Thomas Moore, an invitation to guest lecture became a demonstration in a lab which led to a seafood lunch – which led to a joint invention with colleagues from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) that contributed to a sustainable energy start-up company.

Moore had been asked to speak at a summer course taught by well-known MIT Professor Daniel Nocera and, after the lecture, Moore was invited to the MIT labs for a demonstration of a new catalyst that could split water into hydrogen and oxygen – a potential pathway to sustainable energy production. As the demonstration came to a close, the group got hungry and headed to a local seafood restaurant for lunch. Over lobster and crab, the ensuing discussion led Moore to suggest that a type of solar cell he was developing could serve as a power source to enhance the ability of the catalyst to create this reaction. And the idea for a co-invention was born.

MIT scientists had developed the catalyst and Moore, along with his co-inventors, came up with a dye-sensitized solar cell that could provide the power needed to make the system more cost-effective.

“This is what happens when scientists get together to dream,” said Moore, director of the Center for Bioenergy and Photosynthesis and a professor in the department of chemistry and biochemistry in ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “A scientist’s job is to translate dreams into reality and that’s what we set in motion that day.”

Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE), which manages intellectual property and technology transfer for ASU, entered into an agreement with MIT’s technology transfer office to protect and market Moore’s joint invention with MIT. MIT then licensed the joint invention – along with other inventions from MIT – to Sun Catalytix (www.suncatalytix.com), a Cambridge, Mass.-based early-stage renewable energy start up.

This progression of events is the perfect example of the value of scientific collaboration, according to AzTE Deputy Managing Director Ken Polasko.

“Rarely does one department or one institution ever hold all the solutions to the complex scientific and economic puzzles that face society today,” Polasko said. “The open nature of the University system facilitates the interaction of highly skilled researchers that, in this case, may lead to a pathway for sustainable energy production.”

ASU program wins national award for community impact

rschube1 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:17:00 -0700

An Arizona State University program that has helped nearly 8,700 parents across the Valley improve the education of their struggling children earned one of the nation's most prestigious community engagement awards.

The American Dream Academy received the 2009 C. Peter Magrath University Community Engagement Award from A۰P۰L۰U, the oldest higher education association in America.

The American Dream Academy has had a profound impact on Phoenix's K-12 educational community. Parents of struggling K-12 students enter the nine-week program to gain knowledge and skills necessary to improve the educational development of their children, including methods to improve parent/child relationships, reduce dropout rates and ensure high school graduation.

Since October 2006, the program has "graduated" parents of students attending 41 different schools, and indirectly impacted more than 24,000 low-income, minority youth throughout the greater Phoenix region.

"The American Dream project is a model for engagement and outreach for public institutions. Its impact on the Phoenix area will be felt for years to come," said Lee Todd, chairman of the A۰P۰L۰U board of directors and president of the University of Kentucky. "Public universities, like Arizona State and the other four regional winners, exemplify the spirit and vision of university engagement championed by Peter Magrath, and we salute their fine work."

The Magrath Award recognizes the outreach and engagement partnerships of four-year public universities. It includes $20,000 and a trophy. Arizona State was chosen from a pool of regional winners that included Michigan State University, Pennsylvania State University and the University of Georgia. Pennsylvania State University was ineligible for the national award this year since it won in 2008.

"The American Dream Academy is creating opportunities for children to achieve the education they deserve," says Raul Yzaguirre, executive director of ASU's Center for Community Development and Civil Rights, which oversees the program. "The program is a mutually beneficial partnership that aids in the transformation of the community and changes the way people think about the university."

The American Dream project, which is underwritten by ASU, the Helios Education Foundation, SRP, participating schools and districts, and other funding partners, creates a community where parents and teachers collaborate to transform each child's educational environment at home and at school. The American Dream Academy is the signature program of ASU's Center for Community Development and Civil Rights at the Downtown Phoenix campus.

SRP provided audio, video and editing services for a video about the program which was used as part of the award nomination. View the video at http://copp.asu.edu/college-news/dream-award.

Made possible by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the award was presented during the A۰P۰L۰U Annual Meeting on Sunday in Washington, D.C. The award was established in 2006 and is named for C. Peter Magrath, who served as president of the association from 1992-2005.

The ASU Center for Community Development and Civil Rights works to build bridges between ASU and the community to address problems, share knowledge and act as a catalyst for transformation. Its programs are designed to strengthen low-income, marginalized populations and help them become knowledgeable in education, finance, healthcare, and the basics of housing, transportation and local ordinances. For information about the center, visit http://cdcr.asu.edu.

Founded in 1887, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (A۰P۰L۰U) is an association of public research universities, land-grant institutions, and many state public university systems. Its 219 members enroll more than 4.7 million students, award nearly one million degrees annually and conduct nearly two-thirds of all academic research, totaling more than $34 billion annually. As the nation's oldest higher education association, A۰P۰L۰U is dedicated to excellence in learning, discovery and engagement. For more information, visit www.aplu.org.

ASU plays key role in Arizona’s landing of Suntech

cderra — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:17:56 -0700

The sun shines bright in the Valley, but that is not the reason why China’s leading manufacturer of solar panels, Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd., decided to locate its first manufacturing plant here. It is its longstanding ties to Arizona State University that helped convince the manufacturer of the benefits of metropolitan Phoenix, said Jonathan Fink, a Foundation Professor professor in ASU’s School of Sustainability and the School of Earth and Space Exploration.

“These earlier steps, which date back more than a decade, represent the apolitical, technology based cultivation that universities are best suited to carry out, usually behind the scenes,” Fink said.

Suntech announced its choice of the Phoenix metropolitan area for its first U.S. plant on Nov. 15 and cited several reasons, including the research strengths of ASU, Arizona’s statewide renewable energy policies and the favorable local business climate fostered by groups like the Greater Phoenix Economic Council. While Suntech will provide a modest initial commitment of about 75 new jobs and a facility of about 100,000 sq feet of space, it is the fact that they chose the Valley that has many people excited.

“It is great news for the Valley,” said R.F. “Rick” Shangraw, ASU vice president for Research and Economic Affairs. “This is the place where the largest solar module manufacturer in the world chose to have its first U.S. manufacturing base. They chose it in large measure due to the value they see in industry university partnerships.”

But it took a personal touch to get them interested in the Valley.

"If it wasn’t for ASU and Jon Fink, I doubt Suntech, especially Dr. Zhengrong Shi its CEO, would have taken much interest in Arizona in the first place,” said Rob Melnick, executive dean of ASU’s Global Institute of Sustainability.

Suntech first learned about ASU in the 1990s through the school’s Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory (PTL), where their solar modules were tested and certified. In 2006, PTL’s director, Mani Tamizhmani, provided a group of ASU administrators a letter of introduction to Suntech’s Shi. Fink, who at the time was ASU’s vice president for Research and Economic Affairs, traveled with a small group to Suntech’s headquarters in Wuxi, China, to meet with Shi.

At the time, Fink and Melnick (then the associate vice president for economic affairs) were talking to many solar companies in Germany and China about possibly setting up operations in the Valley. Their message was simple and powerful.

“We took all of our solar pieces, some of which dated back to the 1960s, packaged them into a coherent program and then described ASU as the one place that has an end-to-end approach to solar,” Fink explained. “Not only did we have scientists discovering new materials and making new types of devices, but also architects creating new kinds of building-integrated photovoltaics (PV), the only PV testing lab in the U.S. (PTL), and dialogues with real estate developers about how you can design new communities that best incorporate renewable energy, particularly solar.”

After several formal meetings and, more importantly, many informal email exchanges, Shi and Fink found that there was more than just a good technical match between Suntech and ASU.

“Dr. Shi has a deep philosophical commitment towards sustainability,” said Fink, who also is director of the Center for Sustainability Science Applications. “As one of China’s strongest proponents of environmentally sound economic policies, he was impressed by the leading role ASU was taking in sustainability research and education.”

In 2007, Shi invited Fink to give a presentation in China on the many ways that universities can support the solar industry. “I was the only American academic to talk at this gathering of several hundred Chinese industrialists, government officials and academics, organized by the U.S. Department of Energy and Suntech,” Fink said. “It was excellent exposure for Arizona.”

When ASU sought to expand the solar expertise on its faculty, Fink turned to Shi for advice. Two recent senior recruits, Christiana Honsberg and Stuart Bowden, had been colleagues of Shi when he got his Ph.D. in Australia.

One of the most crucial pieces in the Suntech recruitment was a meeting in China in June 2007 when Shi mentioned to Fink that he and his senior leadership were planning a trip to the U.S. the following month to meet with political leaders. Along with representatives from Arizona Public Service, Fink was able to persuade the Suntech team to make their first visit to Phoenix, where he arranged for them to meet with former Governor Napolitano, William Harris of Science Foundation Arizona, staff from the Arizona Department of Commerce and several local business leaders. In the months that followed, the Suntech leaders frequently referred back to the positive impression of that early visit.

“Suntech coming to Phoenix says a great deal about how research universities, if they choose to, can help with economic development,” Fink said. “If you want to advance these new technologies, you need places where new ideas will be generated and that usually occurs in research labs. We hope their local manufacturing presence will lead Suntech to build scientific and technical collaborations with ASU, so they can tell us which important questions need to be answered to improve their ability to bring solar to market.

ASU’s expanded role in driving the Valley’s economic development has been an important part of Michael Crow’s presidency. Other recent steps include the securing of funding for several key alternative energy projects, like its new Energy Frontier Research Center, two large and highly competitive ARPA-E grants and the start up of the LightWorks initiative. Fink sees all of these as reflections of how ASU can help the Valley diversify its economy.

“We weren’t just suggesting Suntech should come here because there is a lot of sunshine,” he added. “We were saying there is also the potential for a lot of new ideas and if we partner with you, you can incorporate those into your R&D strategy.”

Cronkite School honors ESPN director

jnewberg — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Chip Dean, award-winning director of ESPN’s “Monday Night Football,” is the newest member of the Cronkite Alumni Hall of Fame.

Dean, a 1977 graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, joined ESPN 30 years ago, just two months after the network’s September 1979 launch.

He worked on “Sunday Night Football” from 2001 to 2005, then moved to one of the top positions in the industry in 2006 as director of ESPN’s “Monday Night Football.” He is one of 43 original ESPN employees still with the company. Dean will be recognized at the Cronkite School’s annual Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism luncheon on Nov. 18. This year’s luncheon at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel will feature "NBC Nightly News" anchor Brian Williams.

While at ASU, Dean studied broadcast journalism and played free safety for the Sun Devils under longtime former football coach Frank Kush.

“I wanted to be an on-air talent until I took some [broadcast] production classes and realized it’s just like playing a team sport,” Dean says. “You all work together as a team and every show and every event is different.”

A native of Ridgefield, Conn., Dean returned to his home state after graduation to work for a cable television station. But in 1979, he heard about a new sports cable television network and signed on as a production assistant without any idea that ESPN would grow into a worldwide enterprise that regularly attracts more than a million viewers.

“I was young. I wasn’t thinking about the future,” he says. “I couldn’t anticipate that ESPN would grow into such a force in sports as it is today.”

Dean went on to a number of high-profile assignments for ESPN. He was director of the network’s prime-time college football telecasts from 1987 to 1996 and the network’s lead college basketball director from 1985 to 2000. His other high-profile directorial assignments have included ESPN’s College World Series coverage, the ESPYs, the X Games, the NCAA Women’s Final Four, “Wednesday Night Baseball,” men’s college basketball and more. He also served as coordinating director for ESPN’s coverage of the NFL Draft.

In addition, Dean served as the lead director for ABC Sports’ college football telecasts from 1997 to 2000, featuring two Rose Bowls, two Orange Bowls, the Fiesta Bowl and a pair of National Championship games.

Dean’s work, along with that of producer Jay Rothman, on ESPN’s “Sunday Night Football” earned the pair sports television’s highest honor in 2004 – the Emmy in the Live Series category. Under their direction, ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” has grown to the most-watched series in cable television history. Dean also has been recognized with two other Sports Emmy Awards as well as two CableACE Awards.

Cronkite broadcast engineer Jim Dove, who has worked part-time as an editor for “Monday Night Football” for 18 years, described Dean as an innovator who understands technology, a leader who challenges and inspires others, and a hard worker who pays attention to detail.

“Work ethic says a lot about a person,” Dove says. “And you can’t find a lot of people who work harder than Chip. He’s a real role model for students.”

Dean says one of the highlights of his career was returning to ASU to direct coverage of the 1999 Fiesta Bowl – a bowl he played in as a college student.

“Walter Cronkite [was] probably the greatest newsman of our time,” he says. “And to be remembered by his school ... it’s incredible.”

Brian Williams broadcasts live from Cronkite School

jnewberg — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Brian Williams hosted the “NBC Nightly News” live from the rooftop of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication Nov. 17, the day before he was scheduled to accept the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism.

Williams hosted the news from the northwest corner of the six-story building in downtown Phoenix with a view of Camelback Mountain in the distance.

“Water is precious and contentious,” said Williams as he led into a story about water issues in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Williams also covered stories ranging from President Barack Obama’s trip to China to airline fees, taking his cues via an earpiece from the director of the newscast stationed in New York City.

Broadcasting a network television newscast from a journalism school is “if not unprecedented, certainly unusual,” said Mark Lodato, the Cronkite news director who oversees Cronkite NewsWatch, the school’s student television newscast.

Lodato said an NBC crew arrived at the school early Monday morning to prepare for the broadcast, bringing with them tons of equipment including cameras, lights, monitors, tents, air conditioning units, computers and other electronics.

The crew also ran about 400 feet of cable from the roof to an NBC satellite truck in the parking lot north of the school, said Jim Dove, the Cronkite School's chief broadcast engineer.

“Essentially, they’re building an outdoor set from scratch,” Lodato said. “It’s taking one of the most high-tech news operations in the world and putting it on the roof of our building.”

Williams promoted the live broadcast throughout the day from the set. The show went live at 4:30 p.m. for the East Coast audience and 5:30 p.m. for the West Coast.

Williams is to receive the 26th Cronkite Award Nov. 18 at the annual Cronkite Awards Luncheon, which each year honors one of the nation’s pre-eminent journalists.

Williams, the anchor and managing editor of the nation’s top-rated evening network newscast, is the first sitting network news anchor to receive the Cronkite Award.

A 16-year veteran of NBC News, Williams also is the most decorated network evening news anchor. He has received four Edward R. Murrow awards, five Emmys, the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award and the George Foster Peabody Award. In 2007, Time magazine named him one of the 100 “People Who Shape Our World.”

Williams became the seventh anchor and managing editor of “NBC Nightly News” in 2004, replacing Tom Brokaw, who won the Cronkite Award three years ago.

Williams and NBC News President Steve Capus took time during the day Tuesday to talk to students, answer their questions and even critique their work. Williams did an impromptu question-and-answer session with Cronkite NewsWatch students in their sixth-floor newsroom, and Capus “went from edit bay to edit bay looking at the students’ work and critiquing it for them,” Lodato said. “They were incredibly generous with their time and attention.”

Lodato said the experience was “a terrific opportunity for students to see what goes into a broadcast of this caliber and to work adjacent to some of the most seasoned professional in the business.”

Senior Lindsey Worthy said having Williams and Capus in the newsroom was “surreal. It was awesome to sit down with one of the greatest news anchors,” she said. “And Mr. Capus personally took time to talk to us and give us advice. It was definitely a very cool day.”

The Cronkite building in downtown Phoenix opened its doors to students in August 2008.

The building features 14 professional newsrooms and digital media labs, two state-of-the-art television studios, nearly 1,000 classroom seats and 280 digital workstations for students. The Cronkite School shares the building with local public television affiliate Eight/KAET.

Research efforts get $3M boost from NIH grants

jcasper — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:57:22 -0700

Arizona State University has been awarded nearly $3 million in federal stimulus funds from the National Institutes of Health. ASU's Stuart Lindsay and Paul Westerhoff will lead a pair of two-year, innovative projects designed to tackle challenges in the fields of rapid DNA sequencing and nanotechnology.

As part of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 (“Recovery Act” or “ARRA”), the NIH has established a new program titled Research and Research Infrastructure “Grand Opportunities,” or the ”GO” grants program. Its purpose is to support innovative ideas that lend themselves to short-term funding, and may lay the foundation for new fields of investigation and a high likelihood of enabling growth and investment in biomedical research and development, public health and health care delivery.

The race for everyday DNA sequencing

In one project, the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) will support work at ASU’s Biodesign Institute through a significant grant to boost research on rapid DNA sequencing technology.

Professor Stuart Lindsay’s two-year, $1.7 million research project will use carbon nanotubes to allow for vast stretches of DNA sequence information to be read in a single pass. Current technologies can only read about 1,000 chemical letters of the 3-billion-long human DNA chain at a time.

Lindsay, the director of the Biodesign Institute’s Center for Single Molecule Biophysics, was one of just seven researchers in the nation to receive funding to support his team’s efforts to bring low-cost DNA sequencing technology to the masses – a technology that promises to transform everyday medical care and research.

“While the costs of sequencing the complete DNA information of an individual have plummeted in recent years, from $1 billion to $100,000 or less, the field is still actively searching for a next-generation breakthrough technology,” said Lindsay, who also holds the Carson Chair in the Department of Physics. “Our goal is to simplify DNA sequencing like the invention of the transistor simplified electronics.”

The new NHGRI awards will stimulate groundbreaking research in studies mainly aimed at understanding the function of the human genome to lead to improvements in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of human illness.

NHGRI has identified the development of technologies that can sequence a human genome for $1,000 or less as its Recovery Act Signature Project. Leaders of the federal agency believe that truly inexpensive genomic sequencing will revolutionize health and medicine, and Recovery Act funding will accelerate Biodesign’s research program in this area.

In recent years, ASU has had several ongoing DNA sequencing projects funded by the NHGRI.

“We are very thankful for the NHGRI’s support to drive innovation in DNA sequencing technology,” Lindsay said. “Our technology aims to save costs because there is almost no sample preparation and use of costly reagents, and we will use a direct electronic readout from a small, computer-chip-like device.”

Nanotechnology and human health

In the other NIH-sponsored “GO” project, researchers at ASU will improve the detection and assessment of potential health risks of engineered nanomaterials in water, food, commercial products and biological samples.

The ASU team will be led by Paul Westerhoff, a professor and the interim director of the School of Sustainability and the Built Environment, a part of ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. Researchers at the Colorado School of Mines will work on the project with Westerhoff’s team.

They will be supported by a grant of more than $1.2 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The project is part of a larger endeavor involving a consortium of research teams based at 12 universities and other research institutions throughout the country. The consortium will work on methods to better measure the size and concentration of nanomaterials that are increasingly used in the manufacture of commercial products and end up in the environment and in humans.

At the same time, they will seek ways of more precisely determining exposure levels to nanomaterials and the human health risks that specific exposure levels may pose. With the proliferation of nanomaterials in manufactured products, people may eventually be exposed to thousands of different types of nanomaterials.

“Current detection capabilities fall short of enabling accurate quantification of the sizes and concentrations of nanomaterials, making it difficult to determine the potential for health risks and significant environmental impacts,” Westerhoff said.

Members of Westerhoff’s ASU team include: Rolf Halden, a Biodesign Institute researcher and an associate professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment; Pierre Herckes, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry; and Kiril Hristovski, an assistant professor in the Department of Technology Management in ASU’s College of Technology and Innovation

Project partners at the Colorado School of Mines are James Ranville (chemistry and biochemisty) and Christopher Higgins (environmental sciences and engineering).

The federal investment in ASU research in Recovery Act funds promises not only to create and retain biomedical research jobs for ASU, but advance research that should significantly enhance the knowledge of the human genome and of nanotechnology, as well as accelerate the application of that knowledge to improve human health.

ASU becomes key member of Boeing Technology Alliance

jabrewe — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:53:00 -0700

Arizona State University has been chosen as one of five universities to become a member of the Boeing Technology Alliance (BTA).

In consultation with Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE), the technology venturing arm of ASU, Boeing selected the university based on the breadth of its scientific research capabilities and ability to generate market-impacting technologies.

“As one of the nation’s fastest growing research universities, ASU leads the nation in use-inspired research across disciplines,” says R.F. “Rick” Shangraw, Jr., ASU’s vice president for research and economic affairs. “Our aerospace, computing, human factors, mechanical and electrical engineers and researchers have much to offer as Boeing seeks to find and create innovative solutions and enhance Arizona’s contribution to the global technology market of the future.”

The BTA is a network established to help Boeing identify and acquire technologies from nontraditional sources. Members of BTA are respected technology leaders from economic trade and development organizations, regional technology alliances, selected major corporations, technology incubators and university technology transfer offices.

The BTA is one of a portfolio of methods for discovering and integrating new technologies to enhance Boeing’s access to nontraditional technology sources, obtain perspectives on technology trends, and have exposure to a wide audience of active industry leaders.

As a key member of the BTA, ASU will assist Boeing in finding technology solutions and increasing the company’s long-term competitive advantage.

Through the BTA, ASU’s faculty and researchers will be able to collaborate with a network of influential BTA members on various programs and initiatives of interest.

Boeing is the world's leading aerospace company and the largest manufacturer of commercial jetliners and military aircraft combined. Additionally, Boeing designs and manufactures rotorcraft, electronic and defense systems, missiles, satellites, launch vehicles, and advanced information and communication systems. Boeing has customers in more than 90 countries around the world and is one of the largest U.S. exporters in terms of sales.

“We have already had several significant collaborations on sensors and composite materials technologies,” says Bill Loux, director of business development at AzTE. “These collaborations facilitate our institutional focus on research areas with significant commercial and public impact potential.”

ASU leads country in AIEF scholarship students

sdesgeor — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:32:14 -0700

Arizona State University is the country’s higher education destination of choice for undergraduate Native Americans attending college on an American Indian Education Foundation (AIEF) scholarship, according to numbers recently released by the foundation.

Of 176 undergraduate scholarships awarded this year by AIEF, 41 of the recipients are attending Arizona colleges and universities. Eighteen of those students are enrolled at ASU for the 2009-10 academic year. Northern Arizona University and the University of Alaska-Anchorage are second, with eight students each.

“We are just elated to see so many American Indian students seek and apply for scholarships at ASU, and particularly these from AIEF,” says Michael Begaye, executive director of ASU’s American Indian Student Support Services.

“We work very closely with 25 different reservations in Arizona and New Mexico alone, two states that AIEF and the NRC (National Relief Charities) recognize as the most impoverished or to have the least access to outside resources. This is an issue of access, and we are proud of making the programs and resources of this university available to so many students who might not otherwise have the opportunity to pursue higher education.”

Helen Oliff, NRC public relations manager, echoes Begaye’s emphasis on providing greater opportunities to Native American students.

“Many Americans believe that college is free for Native Americans. U.S.-Tribal treaties mention schools and teachers, but do not mention college," she says. “Today, when more Native American students hope to go to college, the competition for available scholarships is fierce. Native American students are half as likely as non-Natives to have a college degree in this country. AIEF and NRC want them to have more of an opportunity.”

For Angela Matus, her AIEF scholarship is the realization of an unreachable dream. A member of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Matus graduated early from Tempe Marcos de Niza High School in 2008 as a member of the dean’s list. The 20-year-old biological sciences major in ASU’s School of Life Sciences is following in the footsteps of her mother, who graduated from the Tempe campus with a B.A. in education and is currently working on her master’s in American Indian education. The younger Matus says the scholarship to ASU not only provides her with a university education, but also will allow her to pursue a dream.

“In this economic crisis, I needed to help myself – education was important to me,” she says.

“My mom brings me strength and courage to do what she did, to surpass the limits and come back home to help our people, and to receive this scholarship brings me great joy. Now, AIEF has given me the empowerment and passion to live proudly and work harder.”

She says she has found her calling at ASU.

“This year, as a college student, I have been able to do what I want to do, which is to help educate the Native American students in the ASU community the value of fitness.”

Matus has pursued her interest in fitness through her leadership of the Native American Wellness Society (NAWS) at ASU, where she serves the club as president.

“While at ASU, I am gaining knowledge, leadership and friends," she says. "Being president of NAWS is one thing that was not in my plans while attending ASU, but I am very proud to have the opportunity.

“If I didn’t have the friends I have met at ASU, native or not, I wouldn’t have been able to be where I am now – at the top of the world with an aspiration to change it.”

Laine Evans Nelson, whose tribal heritage is Navajo, Mojave and Papago, graduated with honors from River Valley High School in Mohave Valley, Ariz. The AIEF scholarship will allow the junior theater major to pursue his acting aspirations.

“Simply put, the AIEF scholarship removed my financial worry," he says. "This year in particular, my career and my life almost hinges around being able to afford the things my craft requires. From a computer to communicate, design and research; to papers, books, workshops and seminars; to acquire new skills in acting.

“I have a concentration in acting for the theater program here, but I will either stay here for a while doing theater or move directly on to graduate school.I am honing my skills as an actor to be a voice for those who want to speak but oftentimes are never heard,” says Laine, 20, who notes the large Native American student population at ASU played a part in his selection of the university.

AIEF is one of the country’s largest grantors of scholarships to Native Americans, funding about $450,000 for more than 200 undergraduate and graduate students annually. Of these recipients, nearly half are first-generation students. AIEF awards look beyond grade point averages and standardized test scores for students who exhibit passion, resiliency and leadership skills.

AIEF scholarships are awarded by a selection committee that includes enrolled tribal members from around the country. “Many American Indian students are in need of financial assistance, but do not meet the criteria that other scholarships require,” says Lyn Tysdal, program manager of AIEF’s six educational services. “ASU has a strong commitment to American Indian students, as evidenced by its American Indian Support Services office and the great support it provides.”