Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is initiating a "progressive dialogue" on ways to improve K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in New York state. The initiative, funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will be launched in June.
The speed at which heat moves between two materials touching each other is a potent indicator of how strongly they are bonded to each other, according to a new study by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Additionally, the study shows that this flow of heat from one material to another, in this case one solid and one liquid, can be dramatically altered by "painting" a thin atomic layer between materials.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has announced that Francine Berman, High Performance Computing Endowed Chair at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and director of the San Diego Supercomputer Center, will join Rensselaer as the vice president for research. The appointment is effective August 1.
Professor Nikhil Koratkar of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has demonstrated that incorporating chemically treated carbon nanotubes into an epoxy composite can significantly improve the overall toughness, fatigue resistance, and durability of a composite frame. The discovery could lead to tougher, more durable composite frames for aircraft, watercraft, and automobiles.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have won a $1.6 million DoE grant to develop new methods for manufacturing a key fuel cell component. The multi-year grant aims to create new technology and processes for faster, more cost-effective manufacturing of fuel cell membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs). Comprised of a PEM, catalyst, and electrodes, MEAs are the core of a fuel cell.
Today, a team of Rensselaer students is among several collegiate teams from around the country that will showcase their innovative technologies during the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA) annual March Madness for the Mind exhibition in conjunction with the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. The event will at the recently re-opened National Museum of American History.
A new study answers a key question at the very heart of nanotechnology: Why are nanorods so small? Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered the origins of nanorod diameter, demonstrating that the competition and collaboration among various mechanisms of atomic transport hold the key to nanorod size. The researchers say it is the first study to identify the fundamental reasons why nearly all nanorods have a diameter on the order of 100 nanometers.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a new technique for growing slimmer copper nanorods, a key step for advancing integrated 3-D chip technology. These thinner copper nanorods fuse together at about 300 degrees Celsius. This relatively low annealing temperature could make the nanorods ideal for use in heat-sensitive nanoelectronics, particularly for "gluing" together the stacked components of 3-D computer chips.
Yuehua "Tony" Yu, a doctoral student in Rensselaer' Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, is the first researcher to create binary guanosine gels, or G-gels, with unique, highly tunable properties. The discovery, which could enable a practical, cost-effective, and scalable method for better exploiting the beneficial properties of many nanoparticles, earned Yu the $30,000 Lemelson-Rensselaer Student Prize.
Scientists are searching for ways to increase the stability of proteins. In new research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Rensselaer Senior Constellation Professor George Makhatadze and his colleagues detail a targeted strategy to substantially increase the thermodynamic stability of nearly any protein, while preserving its unique function. Their redesign technique creates proteins that remain stable at temperatures 10 degrees Celsius higher than normal.
A global leader in his field, Garde works to shed new light on the hidden world of atoms and molecules using advanced imaging, molecular modeling, and computer simulation. In the next few months Garde will unveil his latest simulations to the public and his fellow researchers - not at an academic or scientific conference, but on silver screens in darkened IMAX movie theaters across the country.
When a promising cancer drug reached clinical trials in the 1990s, researchers were disappointed by the debilitating side effects that limited the trials. The drug inhibited a family of enzymes known as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Now, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have shown that creating drugs that inactivate a different part of the MMP enzyme could have the capacity to target the tumor without the damaging side effects.
A trio of Rensselaer professors has worked tirelessly over the past three years to bring the new IMAX film, titled Molecules to the MAX, to fruition. Part science experiment and part Hollywood magic, the movie follows the exploits of Oxy, Hydro, Carbón, and other memorable characters as they navigate the secret molecular landscape of everyday items, from a penny to chewing gum.
In these difficult economic times, everyone is seeking a better way to manage their personal finances. And at a time when even the newly elected president can't be separated from his wireless device, two undergraduates from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed an open source solution that combines smart personal financial management with your smartphone.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered a new method for controlling the nature of graphene, bringing academia and industry potentially one step closer to realizing the mass production of graphene-based nanoelectronics. The chemistry of the surface on which graphene is deposited plays a key role in shaping the material's conductive properties.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed and demonstrated a new type of light emitting diode (LED) with significantly improved lighting performance and energy efficiency. The new polarization-matched LED exhibits an 18 percent increase in light output and a 22 percent increase in wall-plug efficiency.
Two children have a seizure. One child never has another seizure. Twenty years later, the other child has a series of seizures and is diagnosed with epilepsy. A study being led by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is looking at what could possibly happen in the development of these two children that would lead to such extreme variations in their neurologic health.
A "revolution" in the way we illuminate our world is imminent, according to a paper published this week by two professors at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Innovations in photonics and solid state lighting will lead to trillions of dollars in cost savings, along with a massive reduction in the amount of energy required to light homes and businesses around the globe, the researchers forecast.
Fads have been a staple of American pop culture for decades, from spandex in the 1980s to skinny jeans today. But while going from fad to flop may seem like the result of fickle consumers, a new study suggests that this is exactly what should be expected for a highly efficient, rationally evolved animal. Findings could help marketers optimize advertising for the human mind.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have created a new process for growing a single multi-walled carbon nanotube that is embedded with cobalt nanostructures. Using this new hybrid material, the team determined that the electrical conductance of MWCNTs is sensitive enough to detect and be affected by trace amounts of magnetic activity. It is believed to be the first instance of demonstrating the detection of magnetic fields of such small magnets using an individual carbon nanotube.
E.T. may have "phoned home" back in 1982, but in the world outside of popular cinema the hunt for extraterrestrial life continues. Today, with a $7.5 million grant from NASA, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute extends the search with the opening of the New York Center for Astrobiology, which will be part of the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI).
For decades the puzzle has prompted much attention, speculation, and conjecture in the scientific community. But now, armed with cutting-edge flow measurement technology, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have tackled the problem and conclusively solved Gray's Paradox.
Amba Preetham Parigi, managing director, Entertainment Network (India) Limited, and managing director & CEO of Times Infotainment Media Limited, is the 2009 William F. Glaser '53 Rensselaer Entrepreneur of the Year. The award will be conferred on Parigi by the Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship in the Lally School of Management & Technology, Rensselaer's business school, at a special ceremony in April 2009. The celebration will take place at Rensselaer's state-of-the-art Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Lighting Research Center (LRC) welcomes Con Edison as the newest member of the LRC Partners Program, which is designed to coordinate the efforts of public and private organizations to advance lighting research, education, and technology.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a measurement technique that will help scientists and companies map nanomaterials as they grow. The discovery could help create superior nanotechnologies and lead to the development of more efficient solar panels and increased magnetic data storage.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered and demonstrated a new method for overcoming two major hurdles facing solar energy. By developing a new antireflective coating that boosts the amount of sunlight captured by solar panels and allows those panels to absorb the entire solar spectrum from nearly any angle, the research team has moved academia and industry closer to realizing high-efficiency, cost-effective solar power.
Researchers at the center will work to develop the next generation of solar technology by studying one of the most powerful energy converting machines in world "“ plants. Researchers will use sophisticated new technologies and techniques to understand the energy converting power of plants to develop new technologies that mimic this extremely efficient natural system.
A new research center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, funded by a five-year, $18.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation, aims to supplant the common light bulb with next-generation lighting devices that are smarter, greener, and ripe for innovation.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute today opens the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC), an unprecedented experimental center dedicated to the integrated pursuit of the performing arts and sciences.
An economist at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute says that a model he developed forecasted the current economic slowdown at least one year before it became apparent to most observers. The model, which was first published in the Journal of Finance in June 1991, has successfully predicted every recession since 1955.
Jonathan Dordick, the Howard P. Isermann '42 Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Rensselaer, has been named the new director of the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS). Dordick, who has been with Rensselaer for a decade, plans to use his expertise in both academic research and entrepreneurship to continue to grow the reputation and research funding for the $80 million research center.
New miniature image-capturing technology powered by water, sound, and surface tension could lead to smarter and lighter cameras in everything from cell phones and automobiles to autonomous robots and miniature spy planes. Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have designed and tested an adaptive liquid lens that captures 250 pictures per second and requires considerably less energy to operate than competing technologies.
The Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has earned the notable distinction of receiving one of only 13 first-ever research grants awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The $250,000 grant will fund research for a project titled "Quantifying the Impact of Daylight and Electric Lighting on Student Alertness, Performance, and Well-being in K-12 Schools."
It's not every day that a research scientist and university professor gets to see his work on the silver screen. But in just a few months, Richard Siegel will get to watch his name scroll down the giant screen of a darkened IMAX theater with a new title that seems light years away from laboratory benches and lecture halls: Executive Producer.
Balancing public and private interests for nighttime lighting has been a difficult undertaking, as too little lighting may increase safety and security issues, while too much lighting may cause problems for the environment and for human well being. Scientists in the Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed the first ever comprehensive method for predicting and measuring various aspects of light pollution.
A new six-year, $1.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will allow researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to investigate how different civil infrastructures within a city or county "“ such as roadways, water and power utilities, hospitals, banks, or law enforcement "“ interact with each other and with the natural environment after a disaster.
The advantage of using two eyes to see the world around us has long been associated solely with our capacity to see in 3-D. Now, a new study from a scientist at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has uncovered a truly eye-opening advantage to binocular vision: our ability to see through things.
Robert Linhardt has spent years stitching together minuscule carbohydrates to build a more pure and safer alternative to the commonly used and controversial blood thinner heparin. At the national conference of the American Chemical Society on August 17, 2008, Linhardt announced that his research team may have accomplished this task by building the first fully synthetic heparin. Their creation is the largest dose of heparin ever created in the lab.
Milliseconds can mean the difference between triumph and defeat in the world of Olympic sports, leading more trainers and athletes to look toward technology as a tool to get an edge on the competition. A fluids mechanics professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., is using flow measurement techniques to help American swimmers sharpen their strokes, shave seconds from their lap times, and race toward a gold medal in Beijing.
An international team of researchers has identified just 200 positions within the curves of the DNA helix that they believe capture much of the genetic diversity in European Americans, a population with one of the most diverse and complex historic origins on Earth. Their findings narrow the search for the elusive ancestral clues known as single nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs, that cause disease and account for the minute variations in the European American population.
A major restructuring of global energy markets is underway, yet the U.S. is at risk of being left behind because the nation lacks a comprehensive global energy security roadmap, warned Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann Jackson in a speech to the Commonwealth Club. The former NRC Chairman outlined the necessary components of a comprehensive U.S. energy plan that also addresses the linked concerns of climate change and sustainability.
New research suggests that if we want to carry out artificial computations, all we have to do is literally look around. Rensselaer professor Mark Changizi has begun to develop a technique to turn our eyes and visual system into a programmable computer. His findings are reported in the latest issue of the journal Perception.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered a new technique for growing single-crystal nanorods and controlling their shape using biomolecules. The research, published in the journal Advanced Materials, could enable the development of smaller, more powerful heat pumps and devices that harvest electricity from heat.
A study by researchers in Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Lighting Research Center (LRC) provides a new framework for studying the effects of circadian disruption on breast cancer, obesity, sleep disorders, and other health problems.
A new study from researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute shows that by adding an invisible layer of the nanomaterials to the bottom of a metal vessel, an order of magnitude less energy is required to bring water to boil. This increase in efficiency could have a big impact on cooling computer chips, improving heat transfer systems, and reducing costs for industrial boiling applications.
Researchers have long known that acid rain can severely decrease the diversity of plant and animal communities in fresh water lakes and ponds. However, little is known about how microscopic bacteria, which form the foundation of freshwater ecosystems, respond to acidification. To address this knowledge gap, researchers have developed one of the most comprehensive databases in existence on the impacts of acid rain at the foundation of the biological community.
Like a wristwatch that needs to be wound daily for accurate time-telling, the human circadian system "” the biological cycles that repeat approximately every 24 hours "” requires daily light exposure to the eye's retina to remain synchronized with the solar day. In a new study published in the June issue of Neuroscience Letters, researchers have demonstrated that when it comes to the circadian system, not all light exposure is created equal.
On June 11, leading authorities on the World Wide Web will gather at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for an old-fashioned debate with a social media twist. The questions for discussion will be shaped and selected by the collective wisdom of Web users from around the world.
While striving for success, the leaders of tomorrow must also pursue internal authenticity and happiness to discover ways of making a difference in the world, David Gergen told the graduating Class of 2008 at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The author, editor, presidential adviser, political analyst, and Harvard professor addressed more than 2,000 graduating students and their families May 17 at Rensselaer's 202nd Commencement on the Harkness Field.
Catching a football. Maneuvering through a room full of people. Jumping out of the way when a golfer yells "fore." Most would agree these seemingly simple actions require us to perceive and quickly respond to a situation. Assistant Professor of Cognitive Science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Mark Changizi argues they require something more"”our ability to foresee the future.
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