May 1, 2008
Vol. 18, No. 39

In this issue:

• First Class at Carnegie Mellon in Qatar To Graduate May 5
• Art Conservation Research Center Receives $3.87M Grant
• National Strategy for Robotics Growth Under Development
• Meeting of the Minds Showcases Student Research May 7
• Low-Carbon Electricity Will Make Plug-in Hybrids More Effective
• News Briefs
• Personal Mention
• Calendar Highlights

First Class at Carnegie Mellon in Qatar To Graduate May 5

The first class to enroll at Carnegie Mellon in Qatar four years ago will receive their degrees during a graduation ceremony in Education City on Monday, May 5. Thirty-five business administration and computer science students from Qatar, Egypt, Syria, Canada, Jordan, India, Lebanon, the U.K. and the U.S. will receive their diplomas. The keynote speaker will be Ray Lane, managing partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and a member of Carnegie Mellon's Board of Trustees. The student speaker is Nora Al Subai, who will receive her bachelor's degree in computer science.

For more: http://www.qatar.cmu.edu/graduation/

Art Conservation Research Center Receives $3.87M Grant

The Art Conservation Research Center (ACRC) at the Mellon College of Science has received $3.87 million from its primary sponsor, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, to support scientific research and to fund pre-doctoral as well as postdoctoral fellowships to promote the field within the academic community and train the next generation of conservation scientists. One of the oldest research centers at Carnegie Mellon, having been founded as part of the Mellon Institute in 1950, the center focuses on scientific research that enables better care for cultural property, by discovering the origins of aging problems and developing practical, effective, and safe strategies to prevent, slow, or repair deterioration. The ACRC helps museums, libraries and archives improve the ways they care for their collections.

For more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april28_artconservation.shtml

National Strategy for Robotics Growth Under Development

Citing the critical importance of the continued growth of robotics to U.S. competitiveness, Carnegie Mellon and 10 other universities are taking the lead in developing an integrated national strategy for robotics research. The United States is the only nation engaged in advanced robotics research that does not have such a research roadmap. The Computing Community Consortium (CCC), a program of the National Science Foundation, is providing support for developing the roadmap, which will be a unified research agenda for robotics across federal agencies, industry and the universities. In addition to Carnegie Mellon, the effort includes representatives from Georgia Tech, the universities of Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, California-Berkeley, Southern California, Utah and Illinois, as well as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Stanford and MIT.

For more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april24_roboticsroadmap.shtml

Meeting of the Minds Showcases Student Research May 7

More than 400 students will participate in the 13th annual Meeting of the Minds undergraduate research symposium from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday, May 7 in the University Center. Sponsored by the Undergraduate Research Office, the Meeting of the Minds encourages and supports undergraduates to engage in the type of research and innovation that at many institutions is the sole domain of faculty and graduate students. This year's projects include the Assistive Automotive Intelligence Technology, which advises individuals on how they can drive more safely and with better control of a vehicle; anatomical models designed to help doctors more successfully use pediatric ventricular assist devices to treat children with severe heart failure; and HandTalk, a portable glove that recognizes sign language and sends signals to a cell phone that translates the hand gestures into audible speech.

For more: http://www.cmu.edu/uro/

Low-Carbon Electricity Will Make Plug-in Hybrids More Effective

Carnegie Mellon Ph.D. candidates Constantine Samaras and Kyle Meisterling report that while plug-in hybrid electric vehicles help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the benefits could be significantly greater if the vehicles were powered by technology that generates low-carbon electricity. "We are finding that even when the impacts from producing batteries are included, plug-in hybrids still produce slightly less greenhouse gases than hybrids that run only on gasoline. But plug-in hybrids could cut emissions in half if they are charged with electricity from low-carbon sources," said Meisterling, a doctoral student in Engineering and Public Policy.

For more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april25_pluginhybrids.shtml

News Briefs

• Carnegie Mellon's Industrial Designers of America (IDSA) Student Chapter recently elected its officers for 2008-2009. The chairperson is Defne Civelekoglu, vice chair is Josh Finkle and officers-at-large are Austin Bales and Nadeem Haidary.  Wayne Chung, associate professor of design, is the chapter's faculty advisor, and Eric Anderson, associate professor of design, serves at the national level as executive VP and board member.
• Nominations are being accepted for the 2008 Andy Awards, the university-wide recognition program that honors individual staff members and/or teams whose outstanding dedication and performance have had a significant impact on the university. Awards are given in five categories: dedication, innovation, commitment to students, citizenship and culture. The deadline for nominations is July 2. Nomination forms and further information are available at http://www.cmu.edu/andyawards/. The 2008 Andy Award ceremony is scheduled for Sept. 12.
• The men's and women's tennis teams have advanced to the NCAA Division III Championships. The women's team is hosting the five-team Atlantic South Regional bracket, May 2-4, while the men are competing this weekend in the regional bracket hosted by Kenyon College. For more: http://www.cmu.edu/athletics/

Personal Mention

• Heinz School Distinguished Service Professor John Patrick Crecine died on April 28. He was 68. Crecine was a former dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and a former senior vice president for academic affairs at the university. He earned his bachelor's, master's and doctorate in industrial administration from Carnegie Mellon and began his academic career at the University of Michigan, where he was the first director of the Institute of Public Policy Studies, now the Gerald Ford School of Public Policy. He became president of Georgia Tech in 1987. Visitation is from 5 to 8 p.m., today (Thursday, May 1) at John A. Freyvogel Sons Funeral Home, 4900 Centre Ave. at Devonshire Street. The funeral service will be held at 2 p.m., Friday, May 2. Interment is private.
• After 38 years at Carnegie Mellon, Vice President for Enrollment William Elliott will retire from his fulltime duties June 30, but he will continue to work on several special projects for the university. Elliott, who joined Carnegie Mellon as Director of Admission, is noted for initiating new activities to recruit students, such as "Sleeping Bag Weekend," and new programs to build diversity among the student body. Highly regarded among his peers in higher education, Elliott rose through the ranks to become Vice President for Enrollment with responsibility for Student Affairs, Athletics and Campus Services, as well as Admission and Enrollment Services. He has also held many leadership positions on an interim basis and has participated for many years in institutional planning and decision-making. A farewell party is being planned for May 21.
• Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Burcu Akinci has received a prestigious Celebration of Engineering and Technology Innovation (CETI) Award from the FIATEC industry consortium for significant achievements in new and emerging technology research. For more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april29_burcuakinci.shtml
• The May issue of Conde Nast Portfolio names Tuomas Sandholm, professor of computer science, as one of the three most influential academics in business. The magazine's first "Brilliant Issue" showcased 73 people the editors say are changing the way business is done today. See: http://www.portfolio.com/guides/The-Brilliant-Issue

Calendar Highlights

• Friday, May 2: The Adamson Visiting Writer Series presents novelist Russell Banks. Following the talk, the English Department will present its annual Adamson Awards to honor student writing. 8 p.m., Adamson Wing, Baker Hall 136A. For more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april17_russellbanks.shtml
• Friday, May 2: Opening Reception for the BFA Senior Exhibit, which features the work of 34 talented young artists. 6 - 8 p.m., Regina Gouger Miller Gallery. For more: http://millergallery.cfa.cmu.edu/
• Monday, May 5: Strategic Plan Town Hall Meeting with a general focus. 4:30 - 6:30 p.m., Danforth Lounge, University Center. Questions? Contact Michael Murphy at mm1v@andrew.cmu.edu.
• May 7-10: "Gift to America," a play celebrating Maxo Vanka's Millvale murals. The play, scripted by now-retired English Professor Dave Demarest, is directed by Drama Professor Geoffrey Hitch. 8:30 p.m., St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church, Millvale.
• Thursday, May 8: Dermatological Screening. 8:30 - 10:30 a.m., Student Health Services. Call 412-268-2157.
• For more news and events, visit http://my.cmu.edu/site/events/