Engineering at Illinois in the News October 2009

Excerpts from Illinois in the News, a daily service provided by the University of Illinois News Bureau. This collection of October excerpts focuses on engineering topics and faculty contacted for their expertise by print and broadcast reporters around the world.

SONGBIRDS COMPASS
Science News (Washington, D.C., Oct. 28) -- A new study appearing Thursday in Nature, pinpoints migratory songbirds’ magnetic compass in a specific brain region “This is really fascinating science,” says biophysicist Klaus Schulten who was one of the first to suggest that migrating birds can sense magnetic fields. Also: U.S. News & World Report (from Science News; Washington, D.C., Oct. 28), Wired News (from Science News; Washington, D.C., Ney York City, Oct. 28).

GRANT FUNDS RSEARCH FOR SAFER POWER GRID
Smartmeters.com (Oct. 29) -- The Information Trust Institute at the U of I has received a grant worth $18.8 million to be used for a five-year research project that will determine the best way to secure the smart grid. The grant was provided by the U.S. Departments of Energy and Homeland Security. Also: Wired News (Oct. 28), The May Report (Oct. 30).

YOUNG INVESTIGATOR GRANT
PhysOrg (Douglas, Isle of Man, Oct. 27) -- Eric Pop, an assistant professor of computer and electrical engineering, is one of 38 scientists and engineers who will receive a 2010 Young Investigators Research Program grant from the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Also: AZoNano (Sydney, Australia, Oct. 27).

COMPUTATIONAL MATERIALS SCIENCE
AZom (Sydney, Australia, Oct. 28) -- “Today, as is reflected in many journal publications, computational materials science is a key, and often equal, partner in characterization of materials, often more than just to support experimental observation,” says Duane Johnson, a professor of materials science and engineering at Illinois.

MOVING DNA
Science Daily (Chevy Chase, Md., Oct. 21) -- Researchers led by U of I physics professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator Taekjip Ha report that a single-stranded DNA-binding protein (SSB), once thought to be a static player among the many molecules that interact with DNA, actually moves back and forth along single-stranded DNA, gradually allowing other proteins to repair, recombine or replicate the strands. Also: e! Science News (Quebec City, Oct. 21), Innovations Report (Bad Homburg, Germany, Oct. 22), In Sciences (Basel, Switzerland, Oct. 21), PhysOrg.com (Douglas, Isle of Man, Oct. 21), R&D Magazine (Rockaway, N.J., Oct. 22), RedOrbit (Dallas, Oct. 21), Science Centric (Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 22), Scientist Live (London, Oct. 22), United Press International (Oct. 22), Atlanta Journal-Constitution (from HealthDay News, Oct. 22), Austin American-Statesman (from HealthDay News; Texas, Oct. 22), The Money Times (from UPI; Mumbai, India, Oct. 22), Times of the Internet (from UPI; Cleveland, Oct. 22), U.S. News & World Report (from UPl, Oct. 22).

‘SMART GRID’
Engineer Live (Surry Hills, Australia, Oct. 23) -- The U of I is a member of the Illinois Smart Grid Collaboration, an initiative to speed the adoption of the smart grid and make Illinois a hub for the effective innovation, validation, deployment and evaluation of Smart Grid technology.

COMPUTING ALUMNI
InfoWorld (from Network World; San Francisco, Oct. 22) -- Harlan Anderson, co-founder of Digital Equipment Corp., writes about his first interactions with computers as a student at the U. of I. in his autobiography: “Learn, Earn and Return: My Life as a Computer Pioneer.” Also: CIO magazine (from Network World; Framingham, Mass., Oct. 22).

MOSAIC
The Guardian (London, Oct. 23) -- Mosaic, the first popular browser, generally credited with spreading the casual use of the Web around the world, was created by U of I students Marc Andreessen and Eric Bina.

ENGINEERING EDUCATION
Herald-Whig (Quincy, Ill., Oct. 22) -- About 40% of engineering students at the University of Illinois eventually drop out because they are unprepared.

PHYSICS
Reuters (Oct. 22) -- U of I physics professor Nadya Mason has received the 2009 Denice Denton Emerging Leader Award. Sponsored by Microsoft, the award recognizes women who demonstrate technical leadership and whose work in technology has had a significant social impact or brings about positive change.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER
Kansas City InfoZine (Missouri, Oct. 22) -- U of I scientists collaborated with University of Texas geologists in developing a computer simulation showing how diverting sediment-rich water from the Mississippi River below New Orleans could generate land in the river’s delta in the next century. Also: 7th Space Interactive (Amsterdam, Oct. 25).

WATER QUALITY
The Pantagraph (from The Associated Press; Bloomington, Ill., Oct. 22) -- "The University of Illinois is among dozens of schools across the country that are pegged to receive federal money to study how to improve the quality of water that drains into U.S. rivers, lakes, streams and oceans." Of the $11 million that "the Department of Agriculture says it's setting aside...for universities around the country for that purpose," the University of Illinois will receive $660,000." The program's aim is to "fund projects that boost awareness and change behavior about water management."  Also: Associated Press (0ct. 23), ASEE FirstBell (Oct. 23).

SOLAR HOUSE
Washington City Paper (District of Columbia, Oct. 20) -- According to Tim Moran, an architecture graduate student at the U. of I. who was involved with the U. of I.’s entry in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon, the U of I’s house will stay close to campus.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER
National Science Foundation News (Washington, D.C., Oct. 20) -- U of I scientists collaborated with University of Texas geologists in developing a computer simulation showing how diverting sediment-rich water from the Mississippi River below New Orleans could generate land in the river’s delta in the next century.

COAXING STEM CELLS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
Scientist Live (London, Oct. 19) -- Applying a small mechanical force to embryonic stem cells could be a new way of coaxing them into a specific direction of differentiation, researchers at the U of I report. Applications for force-directed cell differentiation include therapeutic cloning and regenerative medicine. “Our results suggest that small forces may indeed play critical roles in inducing strong biological responses in embryonic stem cells, and in shaping embryos during their early development,” said Ning Wang, a professor of mechanical science and engineering at Illinois. Also: e! Science News (Quebec City, Oct. 18), Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (New Rochelle, N.Y., Oct. 18), Medical News Today (Bexhill-on-Sea, England, Oct. 19), The Scientist (Philadelphia, Oct. 18), PhysOrg (Douglas, Isle of Man, Oct. 18), Science Centric (Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 19), Science Daily (Chevy Chase, Md., Oct. 19), News-Medical (Sydney, Australia, Oct. 20), Insciences (Basel Switzerland, Oct. 19), Scicasts (Sausalito, Calif., Oct. 20), Health Jockey (Maharashtra, India, Oct. 27) .

CIRCUITS
Reuters (Oct. 19) -- Ilesanmi Adesida, the dean of the U of I College of Engineering and Willett Professor of Engineering, will collaborate in a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency-funded contract to create complex, high dynamic range circuits for future defense and aerospace applications. Also: Electronics Engineering Herald (Bangalore, India, Oct. 20).

LIGHTING
Greentech Media (Cambridge, Mass., Oct. 19) -- Founded by two U. of I. professors, Eden Park Illumination has been showing prototype plasma bulbs for the last year and a half.

SOLAR DECATHLON
CNET News (San Francisco, Oct. 16) -- A team from the U of I placed second in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon--the top  U.S. team in this year's competition. Also: CBC News (Canada, Oct. 16), CNN (Oct. 16), CNN (Oct. 20), Huffington Post (Oct. 16), KARE-Channel 11 (NBC; Minneapolis, Oct. 16), National Public Radio (Oct. 16), Popular Mechanics (Oct. 16), Reuters (Oct. 16), Scientific American (Oct. 16), Star-Tribune (Minneapolis, Oct. 16), The Arizona Republic (Phoenix, Oct. 18), The Kansas City Star (Missouri, Oct. 16), The Ledger-Enquirer (from the Chicago Tribune; Columbus, Ga., Oct. 20), The Washington Post (Oct. 16), USA Today (Oct. 16), WLS-Channel 7 (ABC; Chicago, Oct. 16), Building Online (Dana Point, Calif., Oct. 21), The Hartford Courant (Connecticut, Oct. 22), EE Times (Manhasset, N.Y., Oct. 28). Editor’s note: Dozens of news media outlets carried stories about the solar decathlon, which ended Oct. 16.

Earlier story:  The Washington Post (Oct. 10) -- The U of I’s entry in the Solar Decathlon, a competition in which 20 teams of college and university students from the United States and Canada are challenged with designing, building and operating the “most attractive, effective and energy efficient” solar homes, is one that could be put into production quickly by modular-home builders and hearkens back to a traditional architectural style. The solar homes are now on view at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Also: CNET (San Francisco, Oct. 10), Reuters (Oct. 10), Los Angeles Times (Oct. 13), Contra Costa Times (from the LA Times; Walnut Creek, Calif., Oct. 13), Sarasota Herald-Tribune (from the LA Times; Florida, Oct. 13), R&D Magazine (Rockaway, N.J., Oct. 13), Oakland Tribune (from the LA Times; California, Oct. 13), Popular Mechanics (Oct. 13), Chicago Tribune (from the LA Times, Oct. 14), EcoHome (from Remodeling magazine; Washington, D.C., Oct. 14), USA Today (Oct 15).

COMPUTING
HPC Wire (San Diego, Oct. 15) -- A new round of researchers from a broad range of scientific disciplines recently began working closely with the U. of I.’s National Center for Supercomputing Applications, preparing their scientific codes for the Blue Waters supercomputer, which is expected to be the most powerful computer in the world for open scientific research when it comes online at NCSA in 2011. Also: HPC Wire (San Diego, Oct. 19).

ABOUT EARTHQUAKES
WCIA-TV/Illinois Homepage.net (Oct. 9) -- Scott Olson, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering and the Mid-America Earthquake Center, spoke about recent earthquake activity, especially the recent quakes in the Pacific Islands.

PLATO WAS FIRST INTERACTIVE KIOSK
Investor’s Business Daily (New York City, Oct. 8) -- The first self-service, interactive kiosk was deployed at the U of I in 1977. The public kiosk had a plasma touch screen and used the school’s PLATO computer network to let users find maps, directories, bus schedules and more.

COLLABORATIVE AGREEMENT
Financial Mirror (Nicosia, Cyprus, Oct. 8) -- The U of I and the Cyprus Institute have signed a research and educational collaboration agreement for the development of the Computation-based Science and Technology Research Center of the Cyprus Institute. “The Cyprus Institute is an important cornerstone of Illinois’ global foot print, addressing the issue of high performance computing, visualization and societal impact; we value greatly the strengths that the Cyprus Institute offers,” said Ravi K. Iyer, vice-chancellor for research at Illinois.

BIRD MIGRATION
Midwest AgNet (Quincy, Ill., Oct. 7) -- U of I biophysicist Klaus Schulten and colleagues report that a toxic molecule may play a pivotal role in bird migration.

COMPUTER SCIENCE EDUCATION
Inside Higher Ed (Oct. 6) -- Computer scientists from the U of I, the Illinois Institute of Technology, Loyola University Chicago and the University of Illinois at Chicago have created Illinois Counts, an effort to improve computer science education beginning in kindergarten and continuing through doctoral programs.

BACTERIAL RESEARCH
United Press International (Oct. 4) -- U of I physics professors Yann Chemla and Ido Golding have come up with a new way to watch bacteria as they swim, which is expected to eventually help trap E. coli bacteria and modify the microbes’ environment without hindering the way they move. Also: AZoNano (Sydney, Australia, Oct. 5), First Science (London, Oct. 4), India Business (from Asian News International, Oct. 5), Nanotechwire (Philadelphia, Oct. 4), New Kerala (from Indo-Asian News Service; Ernakulam, India, Oct. 5), RedOrbit (Dallas, Oct. 5), Science Centric (Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 5), Science Codex (San Jose, Calif., Oct. 4), Science Daily (Chevy Chase, Md., Oct. 4), Scientist Live (London, Oct. 5), MedIndia (Chennai, India, Oct. 8), St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Oct. 30).

SOLAR DECATHLON
Smart Planet (CBS Interactive, Oct. 2) -- U of I’s entry in the Solar Decathlon, a competition in which 20 teams of college and university students from the United States and Canada are challenged with designing, building and operating the “most attractive, effective and energy efficient” solar homes, is called the Gable House.

FLEXIBLE ELECTRONICS
Nanowerk News (Honolulu, Oct. 1) -- A research group led by John Rogers, a U of I professor of materials science and engineering, is creating materials and processes that will allow high-performance electronics that are flexible and stretchable.

BIOFUELS
Farm Industry News (Minneapolis, Oct. 1) -- BP is investing $500 million in The Energy Biosciences Institute that includes the U of I, the University of California at Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

COMPUTING
Genome Web (New York City, October) John Stone, a senior research programmer with the U of I’s Theoretical and Computational Biophysics Group, says, ultimately, what the personal supercomputing hoopla should really point to is the fact that for the first time ever, there are commodity devices that are massively parallel and have the same aggregate floating point performance that just a few years ago would have required a room full of typical PCs or server class machines.

_______________________

PLEASE NOTE: Some web links are short-lived by design of the publisher. In most cases, articles are archived on the publisher's website and can be retrieved electronically. Some articles may be archived on sites that are fee-based, and some may have re-distribution restrictions.

Contact: Rick Kubetz, Engineering Communications Office, 217/244-7716, editor.