December 7, 2006
Vol. 17, No. 21

In this issue:

• Engineering Students Donate More Than $2,000 Worth of Toys
• Nominations Sought For Barbara Lazarus Award
• University Researchers Uncover Online Auction Fraud
• News Briefs
• Personal Mention
• Calendar Highlights

Engineering Students Donate More Than $2,000 Worth of Toys

Carnegie Mellon engineering students culminated their participation in the U.S. Marine Corps' "Toys for Tots" campaign by delivering more than $2,000 worth of toys via horse and sleigh to U.S. Marine Corps personnel on Dec. 4 in front of the University Center.

"We're extremely excited about being able to contribute to the annual Marine Corps 'Toys for Tots' holiday drive to collect gifts for needy children," said Joshua Bordin, a freshman engineering major and head of the toy drive. "Toys for Tots" was established in 1947 by the U.S. Marine Corps to help less-fortunate children.

Meanwhile, University Police in conjunction with the Carnegie Mellon Campus Police Association are still collecting new and unopened toys for their "Toys for Tots" program. Toys are being accepted at the police station at 300 S. Craig St. in the main lobby. The station is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please enter from Filmore St. Donations will be accepted until 5 p.m., Friday, Dec. 15.

Nominations Sought For Barbara Lazarus Award

Nominations are being accepted through Dec. 20 for the Barbara Lazarus Award. The nominee can be an individual or group who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership and made substantial contributions to improving the culture and climate in the Carnegie Mellon community. "The Barbara Lazarus Award for Culture and Climate is to be bestowed on those who have had a transformational impact on culture and climate issues with an emphasis on graduate students and junior faculty," said President Jared L. Cohon. Nominations should include a brief letter of recommendation (not more than two pages) summarizing the individual's or group's accomplishments. Nominations should be addressed to the Barbara Lazarus Award Selection Committee or via email to Cheri Hays at chays@andrew.cmu.edu. Information and nomination forms were distributed last week. The award will be given at President Cohon's Martin Luther King Jr. Day State of Diversity address at 12:30 p.m., Jan. 15.

University Researchers Uncover Online Auction Fraud

A team of researchers led by Computer Science Professor Christos Faloutsos is using data mining techniques to identify fraudsters and their otherwise unknown accomplices among online auction users. The new method analyzes publicly available histories of transactions posted by online auction sites such as eBay and identifies suspicious online behaviors and associations among users. Perpetrators of these frauds have distinctive online behaviors that cause them to be purged from an auction site. The software developed by the research team—Network Detection via Propagation of Beliefs, or NetProbe—could prevent future frauds by identifying the perpetrators' accomplices, who lurk on a site indefinitely and enable new generations of fraudsters. In a test analysis of about one million actual transactions between almost 66,000 eBay users, NetProbe correctly detected 10 previously identified perpetrators, as well as more than a dozen probable fraudsters and several dozen apparent accomplices. Other NetProbe team members include research associate Duen Horng "Polo" Chau, junior Samuel Wang and graduate student Shashank Pandit.

Further information: http://cmu.edu/news/archive/2006/december/dec6auctionfraud.shtml

News Briefs

• The Carnegie Mellon Alumni Association is accepting nominations for the 2007 Alumni Awards. Each year the Alumni Association honors alumni, students and faculty who have given outstanding service to the university, and alumni who have achieved exceptional success in their chosen professions. The award categories include Student Service, Faculty Service, Young Alumni, Achievement, Distinguished Achievement, Service and Distinguished Service. Descriptions of each award category, lists of previous award recipients and the nomination form are at http://alumni.cmu.edu/each_other/awards/awards.html. Nomination packets may be submitted via email (celinec@cmu.edu), fax (412-268-7239) or campus mail (Office of Alumni Relations, PPG 6, 14th Floor, Attention: Alumni Awards Committee). Questions may be directed to Céline Carraux at 412-268-7048. Nomination deadline is Dec. 31.
• Tired of looking for that unique holiday gift in a crowded mall? Then visit the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation on the fifth floor of Hunt Library. The beautiful illustrations of flowers and plants for the institute's cards, address books, guest books and journals were created from artworks and book plates by well-known botanical artists and illustrators. Carnegie Mellon faculty, staff and students receive a 25 percent discount at the institute, which accepts cash, check, MasterCard and Visa. For university department orders, the Hunt Institute accepts the Tartan Trust card. Proceeds benefit the institute's scholarly programs and mission of preserving the history of botany. Hours: Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - noon and 1 - 5 p.m.; Sunday, 1 - 4 p.m.; closed Dec. 15.
• From Nov. 23 to Nov. 30, 181 references to Carnegie Mellon appeared in worldwide publications. A large sample of these news items is posted on official.cmu-news, Dec. 4.

Personal Mention

• Steve Shreve, internationally recognized for research in computational finance, has been appointed the Orion Hoch Chair of Mathematical Sciences. "Steve Shreve is the foundation of our university's leadership in the field of computational finance," said Richard D. McCullough, dean of the Mellon College of Science. "He is universally considered a pioneer in this field, both in conducting research and in educating students to assume key positions in industry and academia." Further information:http://cmu.edu/news/archive/2006/december/dec.4hoch_chair.shtml
• Roy Nicolaides, professor and head of the Mathematical Sciences Department, has received the first Alexander M. Knaster Professorship. The professorship was established for the head of the Department of Mathematical Sciences and recognizes departmental leadership in developing and sustaining traditional as well as emerging disciplines within mathematical sciences. Further information: http://cmu.edu/news/archive/2006/december/dec4knasterprofessorship.shtml
• English Professor David Shumway recently presented research on his soon-to-be-completed book about rock stars in a series of talks at the American History Seminar at Cambridge; the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow; the John F. Kennedy Institute for American Studies, Berlin; and the School of Music at the University of Liverpool. His presentations were titled "A New Kind of Star: Rock & Roll and the Politicization of Celebrity," and "Bob Dylan: How Rock & Roll Became Art." Shumway is the director of the Humanities Center.
• Leonard Kisslinger, professor of physics, has been honored with the Henry Highland Garnet Award for Educational Empowerment in recognition of his work with the Carnegie Mellon-Milliones/Reizenstein Physics Concepts Program. The program, led since 1998 by Kisslinger, provides a unique opportunity for inner-city children to become involved in science and to practice how scientific research is conducted. The participants also form solid relationships with college student role models and build self-confidence.
• Michael Kasick, a senior in electrical and computer engineering (ECE), has been selected as a finalist in the Computing Research Association's Outstanding Undergraduate Award competition for his work on fingerpointing research under the guidance of Priya Narasimhan, assistant professor of ECE and the Institute for Software Research International. The results of his CIT honors project were published last month at the USENIX Workshop on Real Large Distributed Systems.
• Associate Professor of Mathematical Sciences Kavita Ramanan received the 2006 Erlang Prize from the Applied Probability Society, a subdivision of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS). Ramanan received the award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to several areas in applied probability last month at the INFORMS annual meeting in Pittsburgh.

Calendar Highlights

• Friday, Dec. 8: Mechanical Engineering seminar. "A Decision-Based Design Approach for Integrating Enterprise Product Planning and Engineering Product Development." Wei Chen, associate professor, Mechanical Engineering Department, Northwestern University. 10:30 a.m., Scaife Hall 125.
• Friday, Dec. 8: The College of Fine Arts and the School of Music's annual Holiday Concert. Noon, Rangos Ballroom, UC. The Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic, Concert Choir and Repertory Chorus will perform under the direction of Robert Page. Free and open to the public. The concert will be broadcast live on WQED-FM.
• Friday, Dec. 8: Seniors in the Information Systems (IS) Program will present their fall semester projects at the IS Project Fair. 3 p.m., Connan Room, University Center. A reception will follow.