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May 20, 2004 Vol. 14, No. 43
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. 2003 Editions are available online. Previous editions are available online.
STUDENT DEVELOPS UNIQUE ORIGAMI-FOLDING ROBOT Devin Balkcom, a doctoral student in robotics, has developed one of the world's first origami-folding robots as the subject of his doctoral thesis. Origami, the ancient Japanese art of paper sculpture, looks deceptively simple at first glance. A five-year-old can learn to fold origami, but the movements it requires are quite complex. Balkcom's thesis project uses kinematics, the study of mechanisms, to determine how folding motions are made and how paper can be treated as both a flexible and a rigid material. Because robots are often used for industrial and manufacturing purposes, they are engineered to work with rigid materials. Paper, therefore, presents a significant problem because it is flexible. Videos of the origami robot folding a paper airplane and a hat are available at www.cs.cmu.edu/~devin. Further information: www.cmu.edu/PR/releases04/040513_origamibot.html ENGINEERING STUDENTS DESIGN RACE CAR FOR COLLEGIATE COMPETITION Carnegie Mellon engineering and design students have designed a new Formula I-style race car to compete in this week's (May 18 - 23) 26th Annual Society of Automotive Engineers Race in the Silver Dome in Pontiac, Mich. The student team is led by design student Chris D'Eramo and recent mechanical engineering graduate Dan Fry. The race is designed to test the design and engineering prowess of the vehicle. The competition includes 140 race cars from universities and colleges around the world. FACULTY RETIREMENTS ANNOUNCED The following members of the faculty have retired: Guy Berry, University Professor of Chemistry, Robert Kraemer, professor of physics, Robert Stewart, professor of chemistry, Arthur Westerberg, the Swearingen University Professor of Chemical Engineering, Robert White, University Professor and director of the Data Storage Systems Center, Paul Wynblatt, professor of materials science and engineering, and Hugh Young, professor of physics. —The professors were recognized during last Sunday's commencement. NEWS BRIEFS —You can now view or print the 2004 Faculty/Staff Directory Addendum from the Human Resources Web site, http://hr.web.cmu.edu/forms/PhDirUpdate.pdf The addendum includes the Qatar campus and changes for university professors, emeriti faculty, university offices and individuals who contacted Human Resources with corrections immediately after distribution of the print directory. —Registration has begun for the Summer '04 semester of Learning & Development and Computer Education programs. To view course descriptions and register, go to www.cmu.edu/learning-programs/ and follow the blue Learning & Development box. For questions regarding Learning & Development programs, send email to ldhelp@andrew.cmu.edu. For questions regarding Computer Education programs send email to computer-education@andrew.cmu.edu. —The Undergraduate Admission Office will be moving, effective June 1. The reception area will be located in the Alumni Lounge, 1st floor, University Center (UC), and admission counselors will be located in the Career Center, lower level, UC. Support staff will remain in Highlander, Resnik Hall. —The new session of Weight Watchers begins June 15. The specials for June are $10 off the regular price of $144 for new or current members plus a free Quik Trak Diary. The price for Lifetime Members over goal is still $132. To continue the program, Weight Watchers must have 15 paid members prior to the first day of the new session. Bring your payment to the last meeting of the current session, June 8, in the Dowd Room, UC. —This year's Department of Psychology Carnegie Symposium on Cognition focuses on the theme of how people think with data. The symposium will be held June 4 - 6 on campus. Admission is free. Everyone is welcome to attend. Space is limited, however, and pre-registration is necessary. When registering, include your name, address, email address, and which days of the symposium you plan to attend. Registrations and other questions should be directed to Rochelle Sherman at 412-268-3151 or rochelle@andrew.cmu.edu. Further information: official.cmu-news, May 19. PERSONAL MENTION —John Harvey, director of athletics and physical education for the past 15 years, has announced his retirement, effective May 21. During his tenure, the university's varsity sports have flourished on the national level as well as in the University Athletic Association and East Coast Athletic Conference. One of his accomplishments is the overall expansion of the women's athletic program, specifically the establishment of a varsity soccer team for women. —Bruce Armitage an associate professor of chemistry, has received the Mellon College of Science (MCS) Julius Ashkin Award for Excellence in Teaching. Daniel Hennessy, a graduate student in physics, has received the MCS Hugh D. Young Graduate Teaching Award. —Randall Feenstra, professor of physics, has received a two-year, $2.2 million extension on a Defense University Research Initiative on Nanotechnology grant. The grant supports research on the production, characterization and use of porous semiconductors for applications including catalysis, biotechnology and epitaxy (the growth of one crystal layer atop another so that both layers are structurally aligned). Epitaxial growth studies are critical in designing the next generation of optical devices and high-speed electronics. —The Mellon College of Science has announced its 2004 staff award winners. The categories and winners are: $1,000 Merit Award for Outstanding Service, Robert Dalmasse, lab technician, Department of Chemistry; $200 Rookie Award, Raymond Nardozzi, procurement agent with the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center; $250 Outstanding Achievement Award, Stella Andreoletti, student programs coordinator, Department of Mathematical Sciences, and Andrew Potratz, senior systems/software engineer, Department of Chemistry; $400 Special Award: Kathleen Bossick, library associate II at the Mellon Institute library. The Special Award honors a non-MCS staff member or team for special service to the college. —Amanda Bougades has received a Fulbright Grant to attend the Brussels School of International Studies where she will earn a master's degree in International Conflict Analysis. She currently works in the Office of International Education and attends the Heinz School for a master's degree in public policy and management. —Morton Gurtin, professor of mathematical sciences, has been awarded the Timoshenko Medal of the Applied Mechanics Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for his "seminal contributions over the past four decades to nonlinear continuum mechanics and thermodynamics." —Computer Science Professor Steven Rudich has been selected as the next Polya Lecturer of the Mathematical Association of America for a two-year term beginning this fall. —Patricia Li, a master's degree student in the School of Music, won the piano competition at the Pittsburgh Concert Society 2004 Major Auditions. She was awarded $1,000. Li, a Fulbright Scholar from Argentina, is also a recipient of a full scholarship at The Sunflower Music Festival of Topeka, Kansas this summer. —Students Siu Ping Lau, business administration, Diana Monique Henderson, electrical and computer engineering, and Nicole Velez, information systems, have won the Carnegie Mellon Women's Association Award for their academic excellence and contributions to the university community. Velez also won the Judith A. Resnik Award as the outstanding female in the sciences or engineering, and the Joseph F. Mulach Jr. and Louisa A. Mulach Scholarship from The Pittsburgh Foundation. Christine H.T. Wang, a doctoral student in biological sciences, also received the Mulach Scholarship. CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS —May 22 - 26: The School of Computer Science hosts the 20th Mathematical Foundations of Programming Semantics (MFPS) meeting on campus. This year's MFPS meeting is being held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Association for Symbolic Logic (ASL), Wednesday, May 19, through Sunday morning, May 23. Information about the ASL meeting is available at www.aladdin.cs.cmu.edu/asl —Monday, May 24: Staff Picnic hosted by President Jared Cohon and Provost Mark Kamlet. 11:30 a.m. - 2 p.m. Wiegand Gym and Rangos Ballroom. |
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