 | ||||
|
|
October 6, 2005 Vol. 16, No. 14
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. 2004 Editions are available online. Previous editions are available online.
ALUMNUS NAMED RECIPIENT OF NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS John Hall, who received his bachelor of science (1956) and doctorate (1961) in physics from Carnegie Mellon, is one of three recipients of this year's Nobel Prize in Physics for "contributions to the development of laser-based precision spectroscopy, including the optical frequency comb technique." Hall will share the $1.3 million prize with German collaborator Theoder Hänsch of the Ludwig-Maximillians-Universität in Munich, Germany, and Roy Glauber of Harvard University. —Hall, currently a senior scientist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colo., together with Hänsch developed laser-based precision spectroscopy, also called the optical frequency comb technique, which provides an extremely precise way to measure the frequency of light emitted from molecules and atoms. As a graduate student, Hall worked on a problem in electronic paramagnetic resonance--the study of how unpaired or "loose" electrons alter their behavior in the presence of a magnetic field. Studies in this field have radically advanced imaging and nanotechnology. —Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/cmnews/extra/051004_hall.html. RED TEAM'S ROBOTIC RACERS TO RUN IN GRAND CHALLENGE SATURDAY The Red Team's two robotic HUMMERS, Sandstorm and H1ghlander, have qualified for the finals in DARPA's $2-million Grand Challenge, a 150-mile race through the Mojave Desert this Saturday, Oct. 8. The race gets under way near Primm, Nev., at 6:30 a.m. PDT. H1ghlander has earned the pole position and Sandstorm will start third, 10 minutes later. Specifics of the course won't be known until the morning of the race, but it's expected to be a 150-mile run through hostile desert terrain, including mountains, gullies, dry lakebeds and man-made obstacles, in less than 10 hours. Both robots made the cut from a field of 43 to 22 contenders after showcasing their navigational skills during a weeklong series of semifinals at the California Motor Speedway Sept. 28 to Oct. 5. —A live webcast of the Saturday, Oct. 8, Grand Challenge will be shown on campus in Breed Hall in Margaret Morrison Carnegie Hall. The webcast will begin at 9 a.m. and end at 6:30 p.m. Breakfast will be served from 9 to 11 a.m. and lunch from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. —Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/cmnews/extra/050927_redteam.html MRSEC RECEIVES $6.5 MILLION TO CONTINUE MATERIALS SCIENCE RESEARCH Carnegie Mellon's Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) will receive $6.5 million over the next six years from the National Science Foundation to continue creating new, super-efficient materials for many industry sectors. "Our goal is to create new paradigms for interdisciplinary work that apply the principles of basic science and engineering to understanding the behavior, development and application of various materials," said Gregory S. Rohrer, head of MRSEC and the Materials Science & Engineering Department. —Since 1996, MRSEC researchers have been working to understand the intricate nature of nanoscale grain boundaries in materials. Most metallic and ceramic materials used in aircraft, automobiles and computers are made up of many microscopic crystals held together by grain boundaries. These materials are called polycrystals. —Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/PR/releases05/050930_msr.html HISTORY DEPARTMENT TO LAUNCH AFRICAN-AMERICAN ORAL HISTORY PROJECT The Center for Africanamerican Urban Studies and the Economy (CAUSE) in the Department of History will launch a three-year oral history project, beginning in 2006, on African Americans in Pittsburgh since World War II. This project will collect and preserve the memories of the first and second post-World War II generations of African Americans through recordings of their oral recollections as they entered the work force, started families, built communities and waged struggles against inequality. In collaboration with archivists at Hunt Library, the recordings will be available electronically and in manuscript format, not only for scholars but also for the entire Pittsburgh community. "The post-World War II years are replete with unanswered questions about the nature of black migration, work, culture and political change from the vantage point of ordinary people and everyday life," said History Professor Joe Trotter, director of CAUSE. "As the principal urban symbol of the nation's industrial history, Pittsburgh offers an unusual opportunity to capture the racial and class dimensions of an era that is rapidly fading from historical memory." —Further information: http://www.hss.cmu.edu/cause. NEWS BRIEFS —October is recognized as GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender) Pride Month on college campuses. This year, Carnegie Mellon's Pride Month Committee has put together a series of events ranging from discussions to a resource fair and a keynote speaker. The events are posted on official.cmu-news, Oct. 3. —The Undergraduate Research Office supports students conducting independent research and creative projects in every field at the university. The deadline for Spring 2006 SURG proposals is 5 p.m., Oct. 19. For more information, visit http://www.cmu.edu/uro. —Carnegie Mellon's 2005 Campus Security Report is available at http://www.cmu.edu/police/2005csr.htm. For a printed copy of the report, contact University Police at (412) 268-6232, or campuspd@andrew.cmu.edu. —Human Resources is preparing the 2006 Faculty/Staff Directory. The directory includes a listing of Notary Publics who work at the university. If you would like to be listed as a Notary Public, send your contact information to Mariela Rodriguez-Bohannon at marielar@andrew.cmu.edu before Oct. 21, 2005. PERSONAL MENTION —David Wettergreen, associate professor at the Robotics Institute, has been awarded the Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Award for his work on technology for robotic exploration. The award ceremony took place Sept. 29 in New York City. Wettergreen, who is currently at work in the Atacama Desert in Chile, accepted the award in absentia. Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/PR/releases05/050930_wettergreen.html. —Brad Malin, a Ph.D. student in the Data Privacy Lab, is a finalist in the American Medical Informatics Association's student paper competition. His paper is entitled "A Secure Protocol to Distribute Unlinkable Health Data." —Entertainment Technology Center Co-Director Don Marinelli was the keynote speaker at the recent International Association for the Leisure and Entertainment Industry Fun Expo in Las Vegas. On Oct. 23, he will receive a medallion of honor from the Italian Historical Society of America at its banquet at the Pittsburgh Hilton & Towers. —Lorrie Faith Cranor, associate research professor of computer science and engineering and public policy, is co-editor with Simson Garfinkel of a new book, "Security and Usability," which provides a window into the future of computer security. The first book to describe this emerging and critically important field, it includes 34 essays from leading security, usability and human-computer interaction researchers around the world. CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS —Sunday, Oct. 9: "Blue Bayou," a concert organized by Pittsburgh rhythm & blues singer Billy Price, (aka SEI Manager of Communications William Pollak), will be held at 3 p.m. at Hartwood Acres in Allison Park. Donations to the Salvation Army, which will be collected at the free concert, will benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina as well as those still suffering from the effects of flooding during Hurricane Ivan in the Pittsburgh area last year. Further information: official.cmu-news, Sept. 30. —Tuesday, Oct. 11: Procrastination and stress don't have to be a fact of life. You can beat them! Find out how at a workshop offered by Academic Development: The Learning Zone! 7 p.m. Place: TBA. To register, call the AD office at 412-268-6878 or email: academic-development@andrew. Confirmation emails will be sent with location information. —Saturday, Oct. 15: "Revisiting Post-Industrial Homestead." Photographer Charlee Brodsky and Poet Jim Daniels at Homestead's Pump House.1:30 p.m. The two Carnegie Mellon faculty members will comment on 21st century Homestead in a series of photographs and poems that they showed this past summer at the Westmoreland Museum of American Art. The Pump House—where townspeople and workers repulsed the Pinkertons in 1892—is on Waterfront Drive just east of Lowe's and the Pemickey Rail Bridge. The program is free and open to the public. For more information, contact demarest@andrew.cmu.edu. —Saturday, Oct. 15: Heinz School Information session for the Master of Public Management (MPM) and Master of Science in Information Technology (MSIT) programs. 10 a.m., Hamburg Hall 2503. Snacks will be provided, so please RSVP. Learn more about the MPM and MSIT programs at http://www.heinz.cmu.edu/mpm and http://www.msit.cmu.edu. RSVP to Bridget Jakub at 8-2164 or jakub@andrew.cmu.edu. |
||
|
Other Carnegie Mellon News || Carnegie Mellon Home |
||||