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November 13, 2003 Vol. 14, No. 19
The "8 1/2 x 11 News" is published each week by the University Advancement Division. News of campus interest should be sent to one of the following editors:
Ed Delaney, 412-268-1609
(ed47@andrew.cmu.edu) 2001 Editions are available online. 2002 Editions are available online. Previous editions are available online.
FOUR INDUCTED INTO ROBOT HALL OF FAME The university has inducted four robots into its newly established Robot Hall of Fame representing scientific breakthroughs and the realm of science fiction. The robots honored include NASA's Mars Pathfinder Microrover Flight Experiment (MFEX), better known as "Sojourner;" Unimate, the first industrial robot; R2-D2, the droid from the Star Wars movie trilogy; and the evil HAL-9000 computer, featured in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey," created by science fiction writer and futurist Sir Arthur C. Clarke and director Stanley Kubrick. —The Hall of Fame, established earlier this year, honors noteworthy robots, both real and fictional, along with their creators in recognition of the increasing benefits robots are bringing to society. "Our goal is to create a permanent, interactive exhibition involving robots that will educate and entertain a wide variety of audiences," said James H. Morris, dean of Carnegie Mellon's School of Computer Science who conceived the Hall of Fame concept. Morris put together a panel of 13 experts, drawn from organizations around the world, to choose the robots to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Further information: www.robothalloffame.org RED TEAM TO COMPETE IN $1 MILLION DESERT RACE FOR ROBOTS Carnegie Mellon's Red Team, directed by Fredkin Research Professor William L. "Red" Whittaker, will compete in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Grand Challenge, an off-road race for autonomous robots from Barstow, Calif., to Las Vegas, on March 13, 2004. The winning team will earn a cash prize of $1 million. —Whittaker, a pioneer developer of mobile robots for hazardous environments, is collaborating with about 25 students in his Mobile Robot Development Class, colleagues and a host of corporate sponsors to build an autonomous vehicle that will travel 250 tortuous miles through the Mojave Desert. Teams will learn the exact route of the race only two hours before race time. Once the race begins, no human intervention is allowed. —The robots must sense, plan and make the strategic decisions necessary to drive the course in a 10-hour time limit. The team whose robot finishes first in the allotted time will receive the $1 million prize. If there is no winner, the race will be held again in future years. Further information: redteamracing.org NEW DORM HONORED FOR HEALTHINESS AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY "New House," Carnegie Mellon's new $12.5 million residence hall, has earned recognition by the U.S. Green Building Council as the first "green" dormitory, making it the nation's healthiest and most energy-efficient residence hall. The university received a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, a coalition of building industry leaders working to promote environmentally safe places to live and work. Further information: www.cmu.edu/PR/releases03/031111_green2.html PITTSBURGH RANKED SECOND AMONG MID-SIZE CITIES FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS The 2003 College Destination Index, produced by the Massachusetts consulting firm Collegia, Inc., has ranked Pittsburgh second among mid-size cities for students seeking higher education. The index evaluates large, mid-size and small cities on economic variables, student population and lifestyle attributes, such as nightlife and cultural offerings. Boston ranked first in the large city category. Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, N.C., was tops in the mid-size category, and Boulder, Colo., was first in the small city division. PERSONAL MENTION —Jay McClelland, co-director of the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition and the Walter Van Dyke Bingham Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience, has been awarded the 2003-04 William James Fellow Award from the American Psychological Society (APS). The award honors APS members for a lifetime of significant intellectual contributions to the basic science of psychology. —Amy Wendholt, who is pursuing a master's degree in public policy and management at the Heinz School, has developed a database that provides city officials with the information they need to debate whether to layoff some city fire fighters to cut expenses and reduce the city's financial deficit. According to her study, at least eight of the city's 36 stations could be cut without affecting the quality of service. —Chuck Bartel, director of Network Services and project director for Wireless Andrew, was named chairman of the Evolving Technologies Committee for EDUCAUSE at their recent national conference in Anaheim, Calif. —Gloriana St. Clair, dean of University Libraries, recently spoke about the Million Book Digital Library Project at the Online Computer Library Center in Dublin, Ohio. On Oct. 31, she spoke at the Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education about the new Middle States standards for information literacy and how they impact the academic library. Information: www.oclc.org/research/announcements/2003-10-24.htm —Cristina H. Amon, the Raymond J. Lane Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering and director of the Institute for Complex Engineered Systems, has won the Hispanic Engineer of the Year Award in Education. The award was presented by the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Corp., which documents Hispanic excellence nationwide in science, engineering and technology. —Carol Hamilton, assistant professor of English, had two poems published in the 50th anniversary edition of The Paris Review, the most acclaimed literary magazine in the United States. Hamilton's work has appeared in two previous editions of the magazine. Her first book of poetry, "Blindsight," is forthcoming from the Carnegie Mellon University Press. To read one of her poems, go to www.parisreview.com/tpr166/hamilton.html CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS —Nov. 14 - Jan. 3: Golan Levin, who joins the School of Art faculty in spring 2004, is exhibiting in "Beyond Pages" at the Wood Street Galleries. The exhibit presents installations inviting user participation. —Monday, Nov. 17: University Lecture Series. "Why Is It Hard To Learn? Insights From Models Of How Learning Occurs In The Brain." Professor Jay McClelland, founding co-director of Carnegie Mellon's Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition. 4:30 p.m., Adamson Wing, Baker Hall 136A. Free. —Wednesday, Nov. 19: Annual Pittsburgh Federal Career Day. 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Rangos Hall. University Center (UC). The event promotes public service and federal government careers for undergraduate and graduate students. Students from up to 20 western Pennsylvania colleges and universities have been invited. The hosts this year are the Heinz School, the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and Career Services at the University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne University and Carlow College. —Thursday, Nov. 20: Open Mind Lecture Series. "An Egyptian's Journey from Anti-Semitism and Ethnocentrism to Understanding and Support for Israel." Nonie Darwish, Mid East Education Team advisory board member. 4:30 p.m., Adamson Wing, Baker Hall 136A. —Thursday, Nov. 20: The Cuarteto Latinoamericano performs with School of Music faculty Toby Appel and Sergey Schepkin. 7:30 p.m., Kresge Recital Hall. Tickets: $10 general admission, $8 for students and seniors, free for Carnegie Mellon students. The concert will air live on WQED-FM, 89.3. —Thursday, Nov. 20: School of Computer Science Distinguished Lecture. "Games and Networks." Christos H. Papadimitriou, Professor of Computer Science. University of California at Berkeley. 4 p.m., Wean Hall 7500. (Broadcast live via "End System Multicast," http://esm.cs.cmu.edu/ and on CMTv). —Monday, Nov. 24: Heinz School open house for the Master of Public Management (MPM) and the Master of Science in Information Technology Management (MSIT) programs. 11 a.m. - 1 p.m., McKenna Room, UC. Because these part-time programs offer evening courses all year long, you can begin the program in January, May or August. For more information or to RSVP, contact Amy George at 8-4720 or ageorge@andrew.cmu.edu. Visit the MPM Web site at www.heinz.cmu.edu/mpm and the MSIT Web site at www.msit.cmu.edu
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