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CMU Food Drive

November 29, 2017

News Briefs

Food Drive Sets Record for Monetary Donations

Carnegie Mellon’s 24th Annual Food Drive, sponsored by Staff Council, set a CMU record by donating $19,316.91 to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Of that total, $13,760 was donated online as CMU easily won the campus challenge with the University of Pittsburgh ($1,685).

The food drive also collected 6,205.5 pounds of non-perishable food items and assembled 807 Snack Bags for Kids. Dining Services won the Cans Across the Cut competition and the Finance Division placed second. The Carnegie Involvement Association (CIA) won the Cans Across the Cut student division.

Staff Council extends a “huge thank you” to everyone who participated.

Attend Town Meeting To Comment on CMU’s Reaccreditation Self-Study

Carnegie Mellon is currently engaged in a self-study process in preparation for its 2018 reaccreditation review by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). In this process, the university must demonstrate that its educational programs and administrative operations meet all MSCHE requirements and standards in the context of CMU’s own institutional mission and goals. More information about MSCHE and CMU’s Self-Study may be found at www.cmu.edu/middlestates.

A draft of CMU’s 2018 Self-Study Report is now available for review on the Middle States website.

The Self-Study Steering Committee welcomes all comments or questions about the report from CMU students, faculty, staff and alumni. To that end, two town meetings are scheduled for open discussion of the report and its recommendations:

Tuesday, Dec. 5
12 - 1 p.m., Danforth Conference Room, Cohon Center

Monday, Dec. 11
4:30 - 5:30 p.m., Danforth Conference Room, Cohon Center

You also may submit comments on the report by emailing Lettia DeNormandie at lettia@andrew.cmu.edu.

PSC Wins Record Five HPCwire Awards

The Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC) received a record five HPCwire Readers’ and Editors’ Choice Awards at the 2017 International Conference for High-Performance Computing (HPC), Networking, Storage and Analysis (SC17) in Denver, Colorado. HPCwire is the leading trade publication in the supercomputing community.

Readers’ Choice Awards:

  • Outstanding Leadership in HPC – Nick Nystrom, Interim Director, PSC. Against a weighty field of HPC leaders in industry, government and academia, Nystrom was recognized for his contributions to advances in high-performance computing, machine learning, big data and computational science.
  • Best Use of HPC in Energy: PSC with Texas A&M uses OpenFOAM on PSC Bridges & Texas Advanced Computing Center's Stampede to better understand coolant and heat transfer in high-temperature-jet reactors. PSC models of liquid helium coolant flow in a next-generation nuclear reactor point the way to more efficient, safer nuclear power.
  • Best Use of AI: CMU School of Computer Science’s “Libratus” AI on PSC's “Bridges.” By beating four of the world’s best human players at heads-up, no-limit Texas hold ’em poker, Libratus set a new benchmark for artificial intelligence in a game that involves incomplete information and deception.

Editors’ Choice Awards:

  • Best Use of High-Performance Data Analytics – PSC’s Bridges for facilitating assembly and analysis of large-scale genomics data. Questions as diverse as primate evolution, optimal genetics for farmed shellfish and the contribution of gut microbes to disease course in diabetes have been illuminated by Bridges’ massive memory capacity.
  • Best Use of HPC in Life Sciences – the University of California San Diego, San Diego Supercomputer Center and Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center identified structural changes activating the gene-splicing technology, CRISPR-Cas9. HPC studies showed the mechanism by which a revolutionary new engineering method makes precise changes in genes.

Innovation in Teamwork Class Offered to Staff

Innovation in Teamwork (76-371/76-771), taught by English Professor Linda Flower, is being offered to staff next semester.

In this course, you will learn how to become more effective as a team member, project leader and group consultant in your work and workplace. Looking at films, case studies, research and your own experience, you will learn how to analyze how teams of all sorts are working, to communicate more effectively across different expectations and values, and to collaboratively innovate new ways of working together. Your final project will let you document your ability to be a knowledgeable team leader and effective collaborator.

The course is being offered from 10:30 to 11:50 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. Information on tuition benefits for staff is available online. Questions about the course? Contact Laura Donaldson at ldonalds@andrew.cmu.edu.

Credit Union Offers New Low Personal Loan Rate

Carnegie Mellon’s Federal Credit Union is celebrating 81 years of service to the university community with a special offer through the holidays. Now through January 31, 2018, the Credit Union is offering personal loans as low as 7.5 percent. Pay off your high rate credit cards or bank loans and save thousands in interest.

For more information and to join the Credit Union, go to http://www.cmufcu.org or call 412-268-2905.

Support the Children’s School Book Fair Dec. 2-9

Do your holiday shopping at the Barnes & Noble at the Waterfront and support the Children's School. The Children's School's book fair will run from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Dec. 2 and will feature children's activities, a story time and a concert. Can't make it that day? Any purchases made online at bn.com/bookfairs Dec. 2-9  will benefit the Children's School if you use the book fair ID #12219739 at checkout.

Questions? Send email to rosenblu@andrew.cmu.edu.

Register Your Child for Gelfand Center’s Saturday Classes

The Leonard Gelfand Center invites you to get a first chance at registering your children for its upcoming Spring Saturday Series Classes. The Saturday Series Classes are for K-9 students, are STEM focused and highlight the research and work of Carnegie Mellon faculty and staff.

Classes are developed to be fun, engaging, rigorous, and hands-on. Registration is first-come, first-served. Spaces fill quickly so don’t delay. Register today!

Seeking Ph.D. Participants for Three Minute Thesis Competition

An 80,000-word thesis would take nine hours to present. Your time limit?  Three minutes!

The Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition challenges CMU doctoral candidates to present a compelling oration on their thesis and its significance in just three minutes, in language appropriate for a general audience. 3MT is not an exercise in trivializing or "dumbing-down" research, but requires students to consolidate their ideas and crystallize their research discoveries.

Any currently enrolled CMU Ph.D. student may sign up to compete. Register online. Registration deadline is Jan. 24. Preliminary heats will be held Feb. 8 – March 21 and the championship round will be held on April 10 during Graduate and Professional Student Appreciation Week.

Heat winners will win their choice of technology (iPads or Apple Watches) or travel/research funds. Championship winners will receive $3,000, $2,000 and $1,000 in research/travel grants and a potential $500 research/travel grant for the winner of the “People’s Choice” and “Alumni’s Choice" awards.

Contact David Scherer, daschere@andrew.cmu.edu, with questions about the 3MT competition.

CMLH Seeking Fellowship Applications

The Center for Machine Learning and Health (CMLH) is seeking applications for fellowships in digital health. Applications are due January 16, 2018.

Each fellowship provides full support for one year for a graduate student at Carnegie Mellon who is pursuing cutting-edge research that advances digital health, broadly defined. Students can write applications about their own research or be inspired by a topic from a set of UPMC challenges.

See https://www.cs.cmu.edu/cmlh-cfp/fellowships for more information. If you have questions, send email to cmlh.fellowship@gmail.com.

Help With Toys for Tots and Winter Clothing

Carnegie Mellon students, faculty, and staff have two opportunities to donate during this season of giving through initiatives being coordinated by the SLICE Office.

Toys for Tots. This year, CMU's Police Department is teaming up with the SLICE Office to support the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program. The program collects new, unwrapped toys and distributes them as Christmas gifts to less fortunate children in the local area. New unwrapped toys can be dropped off at these following locations through Dec. 11.

  • Carnegie Mellon University Police, 300 South Craig Street, Main Lobby
  • Software Engineering Institute, Main Lobby
  • Mellon Institute, 3rd floor Security Desk
  • UTDC Main Lobby
  • Morewood Gardens, Residence Life Office
  • Warner Hall, Enrollment Services
  • Cohon University Center, SLICE Office
  • College of Fine Arts, room 104
  • Pittsburgh Technology Center, Technology Drive, Main Lobby
  • NREC, 40th Street, Main Lobby
  • Hunt Library, 1st Main Lobby
  • Tepper School of Business, 1st Floor Main Lobby
  • Scaife Hall, Room 110
  • FMS Service Response Desk
  • Wean Hall, Room 4212
  • CIC, 2nd Floor CyLab Office

Money can be donated via the cash box in Entropy in the Cohon University Center. Or, shop the Amazon Wish List and toys you purchase will be delivered directly to the SLICE office. For more information, email the SLICE Office.

FORGE Winter Clothing Drive. FORGE (Facilitating Opportunities for Refugee Growth and Empowerment) is collecting new and gently used winter clothing for refugee families in Pittsburgh. They are in need of hats, gloves, scarves, and winter coats of all sizes. The group also is collecting packages of diapers and wipes for families. Donation boxes are located around campus, or purchase an item from their Amazon Wish List and items will be shipped directly to the Student Life Suite. Email FORGE for more information.