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 robot helps power Hollywood movie "Rule Breakers"
If you see the new movie Rule Breakers, look for a robot developed in 2022 by a student and professor from the robotics engineering program. The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported on the student research work that drew movie producers to the program; and ultimately led to WPI's unique contribution to the film about Afghanistan’s first all-female robotics team and its inspiring journey to international competitions.
The website Online Engineering Programs interviewed Edvina Uzunovic, associate director of power systems engineering and assistant teaching professor, for an article that explores the future of power systems engineering, the field's importance, and offers advice to prospective students considering online programs in the field, including WPI's master's in Power Systems Engineering online, master's in Power Systems Management online, and the online graduate certificate in power systems.
Recycling International reported on research published in Nature Reviews Clean Technology by researchers in the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering. The paper explores the need for more efficient recycling processes for lithium-ion batteries, the opportunities presented by a closed-loop recycling strategy, and the challenges to implementing new processes. Authors on the research paper include Yan Wang, the William B. Smith Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, and PhD student Zifei Meng.
Elke Rundensteiner, founding head of WPI's data science and artificial intelligence programs, was quoted in the a Boston Globe article about the local implications of the rise of new, cheaper AI models like DeepSeek.
Erica Brozovsky, assistant teaching professor in the Department of Humanities & Arts, authored a piece for The Mozilla Blog which helps tell the history of internet memes. In the piece, Brozovsky outlines how memes represent shared online experiences and human connection.
For its coverage of a new book detailing a historic New England murder trial, NPR spoke with Kristin Boudreau, professor in the Department of Humanities & Arts. In the NPR story, Boudreau speaks about the parallels between the case outlined in the new book and the story detailed in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Boudreau has written on the subject in an academic paper entitled 'The Scarlet Letter' and the 1833 Murder Trial of the Reverend Ephraim Avery."
For its coverage of the Los Angeles area wildfires, The New York Times interviewed Albert Simeoni, professor and head of the Department of Fire Protection Engineering, about how the wildland fires in Southern California transformed into urban fires, leading to extensive loss of life and destruction of property. The department of fire protection engineering conducts extensive research on wildfires aimed at improving the prevention of and response to fires in the future.
The devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area exemplify the dangers of wind-driven fires in inhabited areas. WPI’s Department of Fire Protection Engineering is leading research designed to understand how fires spread with the goal of contributing to measures that can better protect communities and firefighters. WPI’s research, which involves faculty and ongoing experiments conducted by students in a state-of-the-art wind tunnel on campus, was featured by several media outlets. NBC Boston's report was re-aired on more than a dozen television news stations in cities around the U.S. including Washington, DC, Minneapolis, Dallas, Albuquerque, Spokane, Yakima, WA, Fresno, CA, Albany, NY, Topeka, KS, Greenville, SC, Abilene, TX, and Elmira, NY.
The Los Angeles fires have raised questions about how fires behave. For one: how do some wildfires generate fire whirls, or fire tornadoes? The Department of Fire Protection Engineering conducts research on wildfires that seeks to protect people and property from future fires. James Urban, assistant professor of fire protection engineering, speaks in this Associated Press video about fire whirls, and a recent demonstration of the phenomenon that was conducted in a WPI fire protection engineering laboratory.
“Since lithium-ion batteries are a high energy density fuel, there is a possibility of an explosion hazard,” Ali Rangwala, a professor of fire protection engineering and director of WPI’s first-in-the-nation explosion protection engineering master’s program, provided analysis for a Wall Street Journal article on the risks associated with a fire at one of the world’s largest battery storage facilities. Lithium-ion battery fire and explosion dangers are among the topics being studied by WPI students in the explosion protection engineering program.
The Sustainable Career Mentorship Program allows students of all majors to connect with professionals working in green and sustainable jobs and industries for one-on-one meetings to discuss job search advice, internships, resume assistance and more. The program is a partnership across the university including The Global School, the Technology, Policy, and Sustainability Program, the Office of Sustainability, and the Career Development Center.
Large wildfires like the devastating fires in the Los Angeles area can sometimes develop fire whirls, or fire tornadoes. To help create more understanding about that phenomenon, Assistant Professor James Urban spoke with the Associated Press and helped conduct demonstrations in a WPI Fire Protection Engineering laboratory for an article that explains fire whirls. Urban, other faculty, and students in the Fire Protection Engineering program conduct research on a variety of aspects of wildfires with a goal of improving fire prevention and response.
The Associated Press interviewed James Urban, an assistant professor of fire protection engineering, for an article that explains how firebrands, or flying embers, contribute to the spread of wildfires like those in the Los Angeles area. Urban and faculty and students in the Department of Fire Protection Engineering research wildfire behavior with a goal of better protecting communities from the threat. The article was republished by more than 600 news outlets including the Washington Post, Houston Chronicle, and San Francisco Chronicle.
Albert Simeoni, professor and head of the Department of Fire Protection Engineering, provided analysis to the fact-checking website Full Fact for an article addressing online claims about the devastating Los Angeles wildfires. In the article, Simeoni explains how wildfires can cause uneven damage to objects that are in proximity.
Ali Rangwala, director of WPI's first-in-the-nation Master of Science in Explosion Protection Engineering program and professor in the Department of Fire Protection Engineering, provided expert analysis to Business Insider for an article, republished by Yahoo! News, about a New Year's Day truck explosion in Las Vegas.
Alexander Smith, assistant professor of economics in the Department of Social Science & Policy Studies, was interviewed by WalletHub for an article that explains the driver's license "points" system used by many states to address moving violations and manage license suspensions.
Reeta Rao, professor and department head of biology and biotechnology, talked with MHA Online about online master's degrees in biotechnology with MHA Online.
What are some of the thoughts and behaviors that drive our gift giving decisions? Farnoush Reshadi, assistant professor of marketing in The Business School, does research on gift giving and consumer behavior. In this Yahoo! Finance article, she explains some of her research, including how the wealth of the gift recipient affects how much a gift giver spends, and how people think about an item's price and benefits differently if they're purchasing the item as a gift rather than for themselves.
Many know the story of Scrooge from A Christmas Carol. Authors are also exploring the story of his former business partner Jacob Marley by writing Marley-focused books. Dickens scholar Joel Brattin, a professor in the Department of Humanities & Arts, helps explain the interest in Marley in an article in USA Today.
Faced with increasing competition, long-running food brands embrace various strategies to stay fresh. Purvi Shah, associate professor of marketing, spoke with Food Technology, a magazine from the Institute of Food Technologists, about these strategies, including limited time offers
WPI's online Master of Business Administration program was the biggest climber in a ranking of best online MBA programs. Poets&Quants, an online site that reports on graduate business education, ranked the program offered by The Business School at number 24 in the U.S., an increase of 17 positions in one year.
