Entering a dark garage in the early morning, the driver yanks a plug from the cobwebbed wall, turns the key, and smiles as he quietly drives past a store lined three deep with commuters pumping gas. A battery pack in his hybrid car ensures that frequent visits to the gas station are a distant memory. That's the goal behind the plug-in vehicle technology research conducted by Jeremy J. Michalek. For his work, the assistant engineering professor has been awarded the Design Automation Outstanding Young Investigator Award by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
—Camille Downing
