Note: Some media outlets require users to log-in. The Gordon Library offers the WPI community free access to a number of newspapers. Visit newspaper database for details.
WPI to research wildfires, from space
Astronauts on the International Space Station will perform experiments for a study led by James Urban, assistant professor in the Department of Fire Protection Engineering. A spacecraft carrying materials for the experiments was launched to the space station in August. Urban studies wildfires and believes the experiments in microgravity will provide insight on non-steady flame behavior and lead to better understanding of how wildfires spread on Earth. The research was featured in Are We There Yet? - The Space Exploration Podcast, Spaceflight Now, Spectrum News 1, Industry Wired, and MassLive.
The Worcester Business Journal reported on research led by Gregory S. Fischer, PhD, associate professor of mechanical engineering and robotics engineering, and Albany Medical College, along with corporate partners, receiving a five-year, $3.5 million award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to continue developing an innovative robotic system to treat brain tumors.
WPI professors Alexander Wyglinski and Randy Paffenroth discuss how WPI is using the International Space Station as a testbed for space communications.
A WPI materials engineering research team led by Yan Wang, William Smith Foundation Dean’s Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, will extend development of its novel process to recycle spent lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries and produce new cathode materials that are increasingly being adopted by automotive battery makers to reduce cost and increase energy density.
TheWorcester Business Journalreported on research by Carissa Perez Olsen, the Leonard P. Kinnicutt Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, on how lipids in our bodies and cell membranes affect aging and long-term health.
In an article and photo on its website, MassBio reported on President Laurie Leshin serving as a panelist at a recent discussion on women's leadership, talent management and engagement along the talent pipeline.
Robert Dempski, associate professor of chemistry & biochemistry, wrote an op-ed on keeping the door open to international scientific collaboration for the Telegram & Gazette.
The Telegram & Gazette spoke with Alex Wyglinski, professor of electrical and computer engineering, about a recent report that was released by the Worcester Regional Research Bureau. According to the report, the city of Worcester might experience major changes to the roadways in a future of autonomous vehicles and ride-sharing. "It’s great to see the city is very cognizant, ... and Worcester is on top of things in terms of the future of transportation,” Wyglinksi said.
According to The Exponent Telegram, Ali Rangwala, professor of fire protection engineering, is collaborating with researchers at West Virginia University on how to enhance underground mine safety training. With funding from the Alpha Foundation, Rangwala and his colleagues will be making developments to the Dust and Gas Explosion Model to help quantify mining fire hazards on WPI's campus.
The Worcester Business Journal reported that WPI received a $895,000 grant from the Department of Education to provide six fellowships to graduate students looking to pursue studies in artificial intelligence. The program, called Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAAN), comes in anticipation of a decrease in artificial intelligence professionals in the field. GAAN will train students in the artificial intelligence field, and connect them with colleagues in academic, industry and government settings.
In an article by Fast Company, Jennifer deWinter, associate professor of rhetoric and director of IMGD, comments on how, during the history and development of video games, companies targeted white, adolescent teenaged boys as their prime consumer group.
WPI alumnus Aaron Birt, co-founder of Kinetic Batteries and Solvus Global, was profiled in an article highlighting companies that are develop processes to help make recycling everything from scrap to batteries more efficient and less environmentally harmful. Birt, a past “Forbes 30 Under 30” honoree, credits Diran Apelian, who received WPI's 2018 Innovator of the Year Award, saying, “Diran and I are both passionate about people, technology, education, and making an impact.
The Telegram & Gazette reported on Diran Apelian, Alcoa-Howmet Professor of Mechanical Engineering, who was nominated for the 2018 Innovator of the Year Award. Apelian is the founder of the Metal Processing Institute at WPI, and is the first faculty member to receive the award, which was launched in 2011 to recognize graduates and friends of the university who have demonstrated exemplary accomplishments as innovators.
In celebration of STEM Week, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito visited WPI yesterday to check out the Girls VEX IQ Robotics Team, led by WPI graduate student Shannon Moffat. The event, which was captured by Worcester News Tonight by Charter Chanel 3 (5:40 mark), showed girls from Worcester public schools what they're able to learn about and create in STEM, and that more women are entering into STEM fields.
WPI students Julia Dunn ’19, Josephine Bowen ’20, graduate student Jimmy Muller, and Professor Chris Brown are featured in the Telegram & Gazette about an athletic shoe designed to reduce knee and ankle injuries.
WPI student Alex Alvarez ’19, graduate student Jimmy Muller, and Professor Chris Brown appear on Boston 25 News touting the benefits of an athletic shoe designed to reduce knee and ankle injuries.
WBUR spoke with Rob Gegear, assistant professor of biology and biotechnology, about his research on the decline of bumblebees. His work explores neonicotinoids - an ingredient in pesticides that can be purchased in hardware stores - and how the chemical might be a key factor in the decreasing numbers of native bees.
MassLive featured research by Robert Gegear, assistant professor of biology and biotechnology, that uncovered a new link between neonicotinoid pesticide exposure and wild bumblebee decline. MassLive also featured Gegear’s work in the editorial, “Bee Crisis Is Nothing to Snicker At.”
Mechanical engineering professor Chris Brown and WPI senior Kyle Mudge ’19 appear on the Charter TV3 segment segment about the WPI student team developing a working prototype of a sports shoe designed to reduce knee and ankle injuries.