ASU News - Engineering + Engineering + Engineering

ASU takes on major role in cutting-edge project

jkullman — Tue, 06 May 2008 18:57:19 -0600

Scientists know that what happens in the oceans covering 70 percent of Earth has a critical impact on environmental conditions and life across the entire planet. Still, much remains unknown about the undersea domain.

“The ocean depths are the last unexplored frontier on Earth,” and a better understanding of that frontier “would revolutionize the ways humans can perceive and eventually manage their world,” says John Delaney, a professor in the University of Washington School of Oceanography.

He is among leaders of one of the most ambitious endeavors to unlock deep-sea mysteries – a program supported by the National Science Foundation to develop and deploy innovative technologies designed to probe the oceans, including a project in which ASU researchers are playing a significant role.

A key partner in the effort is the Center for Ecogenomics, which is based in ASU’s Biodesign Institute and directed by Deirdre Meldrum, dean of the university’s Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering.

Meldrum’s center is developing sensors and other sophisticated devices to measure biological, chemical and physical aspects of the sea-floor environs at the microbial level. The sensors will make use of the high power and high bandwidth of an underwater observation system designed to provide real-time data and measurements to researchers on land.

The National Science Foundation is investing $335 million in the overall program known as the Ocean Observatory Initiative. The part of the program on which Delaney’s and Meldrum’s work focuses is studying ecosystems in the depth of the Pacific Ocean across the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate off the northwestern U.S. coast.

The exploration will be enabled by an interconnected system that is to eventually include 1,500 miles of high-powered, high-bandwidth, electro-optical cable placed on the sea floor. The cable is being equipped with sensors and aided by underwater robots and submarine laboratories.

Together these tools will form an observational network to provide, among many other things, a real-time, high-definition Internet video of what’s occurring in the depths, as well as the ability to conduct experiments using the network’s sensing instruments and robotics systems.

“Such developing technologies allow us to do entirely new types of studies from remote locations,” Meldrum says. “Now we can do oceanography in the desert, as we will be doing at ASU.”

Adds Delaney: “When this new system is connected to the Internet it will allow scientists anywhere in the world to interact with the oceans.”

With the combination of advanced fiber-optic communications tools, more powerful computers for assimilating and modeling data, enhanced robotics and ecogenomic analyses all linked to the World Wide Web, “we will bring ocean exploration to laboratories, classrooms and living rooms in high-definition,” he says.

Delaney says the ecogenomics work at ASU “will become a leading test-case for this next generation of technologies for remote exploration.”

The Juan De Fuca Plate and the water mass that overlies it offer an active geo-ecosystem that includes volcanic eruptions, strong wave currents, tectonic plate movement and undersea “chimneys” that vent water that is up to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

“The oceans reflect the interconnectedness of all life and all the elements that exist on Earth,” Delaney says. “The environmental health of the planet can be gauged by assessing the health of the oceans’ biology. The ocean environments have big impacts on climate change, on the planet’s capacity for food production, on its capability to sustain human life.”

For more information on the National Science Foundation Ocean Observatories Initiative, see the Web site http://www.ooi.washington.edu.

NSF award boosts Buneo’s bioengineering research

jkullman — Fri, 02 May 2008 13:24:57 -0600

Research aimed at understanding how the brain combines different forms of sensory information to help plan and modify our physical movements will be supported by a National Science Foundation (NSF) Career Award recently won by Christopher Buneo, an assistant professor in the Harrington Department of Bioengineering in ASU’s Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering.

NSF Career Awards recognize scientists and engineers considered to be potential leaders in their fields.

The award will provide about $609,000 over five years for Buneo’s research, as well as for an educational program to develop material for a biotechnology course geared for high school students.

Buneo is studying how information about objects we perceive around us – their position and velocity – is transmitted to the brain by our senses, which describe our perceptions to us using different neural “languages.”

For example, he says, “Our eyes provide information about the visual motion of a fly buzzing around us from the perspective of the direction in which we are looking. At the same time, our ears relay information – the buzzing sound generated by the flapping of the fly’s wings.”

If we want to reach out and swat the fly, the brain must combine information from our eyes and ears with information from our moving arm, “which speaks yet another neural language,” Buneo says.

“Clearly, some sort of ‘interpreter’ is needed to allow the senses to work together to perform this task,” he says.

It’s believed that the part of the brain known as the posterior parietal cortex may serve this interpreter role, but how this is accomplished is unclear.

Buneo’s research seeks to understand the role of the posterior parietal cortex in the perception of the world around us, as well as its role in producing physical movements.

To do this, he records the activity of posterior parietal neurons as movements are made in a virtual-reality environment. This environment allows sensory information to be easily manipulated, which Buneo hopes will reveal the role of this neural information in movement production.

From a broad perspective, the work will lead to a better understanding of how our brains work. Buneo says this knowledge should help advance the development of technologies for people with nervous system dysfunction.

Buneo teaches physiology for engineers to undergraduates in the school of engineering, and a graduate-level course in modeling and simulation of physiological systems.

He has been at ASU since 2005 after earning a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in physical therapy from Long Island University in New York, and a doctorate in physiology from the University of Minnesota. He later worked at California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., through a postdoctoral fellowship.

Greenes garners top honors in biomedical informatics

jkullman — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 14:25:24 -0600

Robert Greenes, chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics, has been selected to receive one of the highest honors in the field of biomedical informatics.

He will be presented the Morris F. Collen Award by the American College of Medical Informatics during the American Medical Informatics Association’s annual symposium in November in Washington, D.C. The award recognizes lifetime achievement and significant contributions to biomedical informatics.

The Department of Biomedical Informatics is in the School of Computing and Informatics, a part of ASU’s Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering.

Greenes will be the second member of the department to earn the Collen Award. It was given in 2006 to Ted Shortliffe, a professor in the biomedical informatics program and dean of University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix in Partnership with Arizona State University.

Greenes came to lead the new department at ASU in 2007, after almost four decades at Harvard University.

He was a professor of radiology at Harvard Medical School and Distinguished Chair in Biomedical Informatics at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where he also has been a professor of health policy and management at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Greenes has an medical degree as well as a doctorate in applied mathematics and computer science, both from Harvard. He is certified in diagnostic radiology and did his residency in the field at Massachusetts General Hospital.

He also has been a radiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

He is a fellow of the American College of Medical Informatics as well as its past president, a fellow of the American College of Radiology and a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. He serves on the editorial boards of several medical information and management journals.

“It’s a honor to have someone of Bob Greenes’ high stature at the helm of our biomedical informatics department,” says Sethuraman Panchanathan, director of the School of Computing and Informatics. “He richly deserves this recognition that essentially puts him in the informatics hall of fame.”

$4 mil investment to advance ASU's K-12 programs

ltidwel — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:09:17 -0600

Gary Tooker, former Motorola CEO, experienced firsthand the worldwide competition American businesses face in science and engineering. Now retired, Tooker and his wife, Diane, want to encourage and inspire youth to discover the unlimited possibilities in science, technology, engineering and math.

To accomplish this, the couple have invested $4 million into Arizona State University to advance the university’s efforts to better educate K-12 students in science and math. The gift will endow five faculty positions within the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering and these professors will work to strengthen youth’s interest in science, technology, engineering and math careers.

“From my experience in the world marketplace, I’ve seen how science – and especially engineering – is actually honored and celebrated in Asian culture,” Tooker said. “By the time American kids get to high school, it’s too late to get them excited about math, science or engineering. Diane and I wanted to do something that combines our interests in education and engineering and might also inspire others to step forward and help support education in grade and middle schools.”

Specifically, the Tookers’ investment will further enhance:

• ASU’s ongoing partnerships with Arizona’s K-12 teachers and educational leaders to improve high school graduation rates and student success in college.

• Summer institutes and workshops for teachers.

• New approaches to teaching and curriculum content.

• Public-private partnerships between the industry and school districts.

Low numbers of college students pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math is a growing national concern. Several institutions, including NASA and the National Science Foundation have developed programs to advance education in these core areas. And, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the most rapid job growth in the coming decade will be in the areas of science, engineering and health care.

Deirdre Meldrum, dean of the Fulton School of Engineering, said the Tooker gift will help transform grade, middle and high school teaching of science, technology, engineering and math in Arizona and throughout the nation. Income from the Tooker endowments will allow the Fulton School to support one faculty chair and four professorships each year.

“The gift will have a huge impact because it enables ASU to recruit and retain top faculty who will dedicate their time and energy to pre-K–12 education,” Meldrum said. “The Tooker chair and professorship holders will be nationally recognized innovators who will impact this national need year after year, and we expect the Tooker investment to pay important dividends for Arizona and the nation for years to come.”

In addition to other duties, the Tooker professors will be part of ASU’s Center for Research on Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology (CRESMET). The center develops and researches the impact of innovative teaching methods for K–16 teachers to keep students interested in these professional areas.

The demand for a highly educated workforce with in-depth knowledge in these disciplines is critical to Arizona, says George W. Hynd, ASU senior vice provost of education and innovation and dean of the Mary Lou Fulton College of Education.

“A strong academic background in math, science and technology is rapidly becoming a necessity for all students who wish to compete successfully for jobs in today’s marketplace,” he said.

Both Gary and Diane Tooker are ASU graduates. She earned a degree in early education; his is in engineering, with further studies in business administration.

Gary Tooker joined Motorola in 1962, rising to chief operating officer in 1988, president in 1990 and vice chairman and CEO in 1993. He was elected chairman of the board in 1996. Tooker retired from Motorola at the end of 1999, remaining a company director until 2001. He has served on the Business Roundtable, the executive committee of the Council on Competitiveness and as a director of the National Alliance of Business. He has also served as a board chairman of the Semiconductor Industry Association, the American Electronics Association and the Pacific Basin Economic Council.

Currently, Tooker is on the board of directors of Avnet, Inc. and the Eaton Corporation. While providing leadership to several civic and professional organizations, he is a volunteer and advisor to the Fulton School of Engineering, which has presented him with its Excellence Award. He has received a Distinguished Alumnus Award and an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from ASU. He is a trustee of the ASU Foundation and on the board of directors of ASU’s Research Park in Tempe.

Diane Tooker has taught in Phoenix and Scottsdale schools and holds a degree in interior design. She has run her own business Designovations since 1982 and has also worked as a realtor. Tooker is active in several civic organizations, including A Stepping Stone Foundation and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale.

She, too, is an active ASU supporter, having helped create and run the university’s Medallion of Merit Scholarship fundraiser and having served as an alumni association director. In 1999 she joined Gary as joint recipients of ASU’s James W. Creasman Award of Excellence.

Westerhoff named chair of engineering department

jkullman — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:46:12 -0600

Professor Paul Westerhoff has been named chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in ASU’s Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering.

He will lead a growing department in which half the faculty members have been hired in the past five years. The undergraduate enrollment has grown from about 350 to almost 600 students in that same time, and the department expects to award 118 undergraduate degrees this year, more than double the number five years ago.

Westerhoff says his goal is to continue increasing the numbers of faculty, largely to “address critical issues related to sustainable civil infrastructure systems.”

Westerhoff came to ASU in 1995 and became a full professor in 2007. His research focus is on water quality and treatment. He has led the department’s environmental and water faculty group for the past six years.

“His demonstrated abilities in leading research and mentoring students will bring even stronger leadership to the engineering school,” says Deirdre Meldrum, dean of the school.

Meldrum cites Westerhoff’s awards for research on the environmental implications of nanotechnology and studies of inorganic and organic contaminants in water.

He has earned some of the leading research awards from the American Society of Civil Engineers and the Water Environment Federation.

More than 65 of his research articles have been published in peer-reviewed science and engineering journals, and he has made more than 200 conference presentations.

Westerhoff earned a bachelor’s degree from Lehigh University, a master’s degree from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and a doctorate from the University of Colorado-Boulder.

National Science Foundation award honors Posner

lccampb — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 18:18:48 -0600

Innovation in research and education in nanotechnology and fluid dynamics at ASU is being recognized through a National Science Foundation (NSF) Career Award to Jonathan Posner, an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering.

The award will provide more than $400,000 over five years to help fund Posner’s research on colloidal crystal films, as well as education and outreach programs in science and engineering related to his research.

The NSF Career Award is among the most prestigious for scientists and engineers early in their careers. It recognizes researchers and educators for their potential to be leaders in their areas of expertise.

Posner joins several other ASU engineering faculty members who have received such awards in recent years.

Colloidal crystal films are made of stacks of nanospheres. Nanospheres are spherical particles with a diameter in nanometers – one-billionth of a meter. The films are stacked in particular cubic patterns that give them unique photonic (light) and fluid properties. A common example of the optical effect of colloidal crystals is the colorful light diffraction from a butterfly’s wings.

These properties could provide improved functioning and performance in a diverse range of applications, Posner says. Examples are integrated optical circuits (similar in principle to electrical integrated circuits, but achieved by combining many miniature versions of optical components); biochemical separations (techniques available for separating and purifying biomolecules); and optofluidic devices (a class of devices that integrate both microscopic optical and fluid systems.).

Colloidal crystal films currently are plagued with unwanted defects that limit their applications. Colloidal crystals are formed from a fluid deposition process. The defects in the films arise in large part because of a lack of fundamental understanding of the physics that govern the way in which the crystals are assembled. Posner’s research addresses these limitations by observing these films in three dimensions and in real time.

“These colloidal crystal films remain in the laboratory instead of in use in real-world applications because we cannot make them without defects,” he says. “Understanding how the films are made will improve of many technologies, from optical computing to medical diagnostics to fuel cells.”

The award funding also will support an educational outreach program aimed primarily at introducing Hispanic and Native American Indian middle school students to various aspects of science and engineering related to Posner’s work. Posner and ASU graduate students who assist him will visit middle school classrooms to give students hands-on demonstrations of fluid phenomena. The demonstrations of visually appealing physical phenomena will be designed to inspire young students to study science, math and engineering, he says.

In addition, middle school teachers will be invited to work in Posner’s lab for a summer and receive financial support from the NSF. The teachers will acquire first-hand experience of working on cutting-edge research.

The classroom demonstrations in fluid dynamics will be packaged and distributed to middle school teachers so that they can provide hands-on experiences for students beyond the five-year period funded through Posner’s NSF award.

Posner’s work also will expand university undergraduate research opportunities for Hispanic and Native American Indian students. These groups have low representation in engineering nationwide. He is working with the Center for Engineering Diversity and Retention in the school of engineering to recruit undergraduate students to conduct research in his lab.

“The NSF CAREER program offers a unique opportunity to integrate research with education and outreach,” he says. “My goal is to inspire a few young people, who otherwise would not have exposure to academic research, to make science and engineering a lifelong pursuit.”

Sidra Omar, sidra.omer@asu.edu
Fulton School of Engineering

Science-engineering fair seeks additional volunteer help

lccampb — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:00:20 -0700

ASU’s American Indian Programs Office is gearing up for one of its biggest youth science events in Arizona – the Arizona Science and Engineering Fair March 18-21 at the Phoenix Convention Center.

The development of students in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) areas is a priority for the region – so much so that Gov. Janet Napolitano has proclaimed March as “Youth Science and Engineering Awareness Month.”

The science fair, a compilation of the Northern Arizona Regional Science and Engineering Fair, Central Arizona Regional Science and Engineering Fair and the Arizona American Indian Science and Engineering Fair, encourages students about the STEM subjects. Several Arizona students who have participated in past science fairs have been nationally recognized.

This year, more than 800 fifth- through twelfth-grade students from nine of the 14 Arizona counties will compete against their peers with science projects centered on categories such as engineering, mathematics, medicine and health, plant sciences, and behavioral and social sciences.

“Many of the projects at the science fair were the top winners at a school or district science fair,” says Phillip Huebner, director of the American Indian Programs and lead organizer.

Students are eligible to win more than 300 awards, according to Huebner, and teachers are eligible for special awards, as well as “Teacher of the Year.”

“We may be holding the largest science fair in the state, but we could not have done it without the cooperation of schools and teachers, as well as a number of other people up to this point,” Huebner says. “Of course, we have a lot of people helping at the event, too.”

But more are still needed, according to Lois Hedlund, event coordinator.

“We need about 100 more volunteers to help with the event over the three days,” she says.

More than 400 volunteers are needed. So far, more than 265 people from industry, academia, K-12 education and even retirees have been recruited to be judges and help direct students to their location, assist with set up and registration, assist in workshops, help with the awards ceremony March 21, and other activities.

Those who are interested in volunteering can contact Huebner at (480) 727-1036, Hedlund at (480) 727-1148 or visit the Web site http://azsef.asu.edu/home.html to register as a volunteer.

Pre-eminent statistician puts knowledge to use at ASU

jkullman — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:23:22 -0700

One of the most prominent statisticians in industrial engineering is teaching this semester at ASU.

J. Stuart Hunter is “among the most influential industrial statisticians of the last 50 years,” says longtime Hunter colleague Douglas Montgomery, an ASU Regents’ Professor in the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering.

Students in Hunter’s graduate-level course, “Analysis of Time-Dependent Data,” are getting an opportunity to benefit from the experience of “a pioneer of industrial experimental design,” Montgomery says.

Hunter retired in 1988 as professor emeritus in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at Princeton University. He has spent many years since as an industry consultant, continuing his work on defining and quantifying such basic industrial engineering concepts as efficiency, quality, reliability and safety.

His ideas have been applied to a wide spectrum of pursuits in manufacturing, product design, and production systems development and improvement.

Hunter “has made fundamental contributions,” to research in those areas, Montgomery says, adding: “People are using his ideas every day to reduce process failure, efficiently allocate resources, and to market and deliver products and services effectively.”

The course he is teaching focuses on how to obtain accurate and useful data in constantly changing areas such as financial markets, environmental monitoring and business information systems.

Species explorers ask: What’s on your planet?

chughes3 — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 03:23:00 -0700

Taxonomy, the science responsible for species exploration and classification, has been largely ignored in recent decades – a disregard that ASU’s new International Institute for Species Exploration is out to change.

“Our vision is to spark a renaissance in taxonomy through a transdisciplinary fusion of ideas and technologies,” says founding director Quentin Wheeler, an entomologist and ASU vice president and dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

“In particular, we are, in concert with partner museums and botanical gardens around the world, committed to transforming taxonomy into what will effectively prove a new field: cybertaxonomy,” he says.

“This fusion of the traditional theories and goals of taxonomy with computer engineering and cyberinfrastructure will create a powerful, distributed, worldwide research platform for descriptive taxonomy,” Wheeler says. “This goes far, far beyond databases or Web sites. One of our first projects is designing a network of remotely operable digital microscopes so that a scientist in Brazil might manipulate, examine and photograph a type specimen in a museum in London, while videoconferencing at the same time with a colleague in the United States.”

To bring attention to cybertaxonomy and to celebrate the founding of the institute a symposium and inaugural Linnaean Legacy Lecture is planned for March 3 on ASU’s Tempe campus. The symposium – “What’s on Your Planet? Species Exploration and Charting Biodiversity” – will be held from 1 to 4:30 p.m. in the Fulton Center, Sixth Floor Boardroom. The inaugural Linnaean Legacy Lecture, co-sponsored by the institute and the Linnean Society of London, will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Life Sciences Building, A-Wing, room 191.

The guest lecturer is Norman I. Platnick, the Peter J. Solomon Family Curator of Spiders at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. His topic is “Coming of Age (at 250!): The Past, Present and Future of the Systematics Workforce.”

The lecture is named for the great Swedish naturalist, Carl von Linne – also known as Carolus Linnaeus – who initiated the modern system of plant and animal names and classifications. The 300th anniversary of his birth was celebrated worldwide in 2007.

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the beginning of animal naming, though today, millions of species remain unknown or unidentifiable, inaccessible to science and society.

“Frankly, the speed at which species are becoming extinct is alarming,” Wheeler says. “Charting the species of the world and their unique attributes are essential parts of understanding the history of life. Reliable taxonomic information is necessary for managing sustainable ecosystems, attaining conservation goals, and detecting introductions of pests, vectors and invasive species.”

To draw attention to and increase public awareness of biodiversity and taxonomy, the International Institute for Species Exploration partnered with Media Alchemy of Seattle to produce a humorous video titled “Planet Bob.” Launched on YouTube last October, the video combines live action, state-of-the-art animation, and the vocal talents of venerable TV host Hugh Downs and others.

The Web site www.PlanetBob.asu.edu and the video “Planet Bob” represent new ways to present this topic, in a creative fusion between academia and popular technology, Wheeler says.

More information about the March 3 symposium and launch events is available at species.asu.edu.

ASU plays key role in powerful supercomputer

cderra — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 16:20:18 -0700

Ranger, the most powerful supercomputing system in the world and one in which Arizona State University researchers played a key role in its development and operation, was dedicated Feb. 22 in a ceremony at the University of Texas-Austin. The $59 million computer project is led by UT-Austin and funded through the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Ranger ushers in the “Petascale Era” in high-performance computing. It is the largest high performance computing resource on NSF’s “TeraGrid,” a nationwide network of academic high performance computing centers that provides scientists and researchers access to large-scale computing power and resources. Ranger will provide more than 500 million processor hours of computing time to the science community, performing the equivalent of more than 200,000 years of computational work over its four-year lifetime.

ASU researchers have been working on innovative application development strategies, data management technologies and training opportunities in the project.

Ranger is designed to help scientists tackle many of the “grand challenges” of science, from mapping the universe to comprehending the myriad cosmic forces and environmental processes that affect the Earth, and to more fully understanding the intricacies of human and plant biology, said Dan Stanzione, director of the High Performance Computing Institute at Arizona State University.

"Much of our role is as trainer and consultant for users of Ranger, helping them to get the best science possible out of the system,” added Stanzione, an assistant professor in the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering. “We also will be evaluating new software technologies that we can incorporate into Ranger to make it an even better supercomputing system.”

The Texas Advanced Computing Center at the University of Texas-Austin is home to Ranger. Others involved in the project include UT’s Institute for Computational and Engineering Sciences, Cornell University, Sun Microsystems and Advanced Micro Devices.

The project’s goal is to deploy and support world-class high-performance systems with tremendous computing capacity to enhance leading U.S. research programs. At 504 teraflops of peak performance, Ranger is up to 50,000 times more powerful than today's PCs, and five times more capable than any open-science computer available to the national science community. One teraflop is equal to 1 trillion floating-point operations per second, a measure of a high-performance computer’s power.

At the computational level, Ranger offers more than six times the performance of the previous largest system for open science research. Ranger and other petascale systems to follow will be used to address many of science’s “grand challenges” including modeling and simulations of global climate change, water resource management, new energy sources, new materials and manufacturing processes, tissue and organ engineering, and drug design.

"Ranger is the first of the new ‘Path to Petascale’ systems that NSF provides to open science,” said Daniel Atkins, director of NSF’s Office of Cyberinfrastructure. “No longer used by a handful of elite researchers in a few research communities on select problems, advanced computing has become essential to the way science and engineering research and education are accomplished.”