RSS
COMSET Graduate Fellowships Awarded to Four Deserving Students
Monday, November 19, 2007Chemistry graduate students Jennifer Grimland, Dahlia Haynes and Mary Alice Salazar, and physics graduate student JD Taylor were all recently awarded COMSET Graduate Fellowships. This one-year fellowship includes a $5,000 stipend supplement and a $2,500 supplies/travel grant. This inaugural fellowship program recognizes the students’ past achievements and contributions to Clemson and confirms each student’s future commitment to COMSET and its vision to be the internationally recognized academic leader in optical materials. The Graduate School would like to congratulate each student on this prestigious honor and thank them for being such a wonderful representative of Clemson University. To find out more about the COMSET Graduate Fellowship program, visit http://comset.clemson.edu/article.php?story=funding_opps or contact Dr. Dennis Smith at dwsmith@clemson.edu. For more information about Clemson’s graduate programs in chemistry and physics, please visit the following websites, respectively: www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Chemistry/index.php and www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Physics/index.php.
Magazine Ranks Clemson Architecture Program in Top 10
Monday, November 19, 2007Architect magazine rates Clemson University's graduate program in architecture among the best in the nation for 2008. The November issue of Architect ranks Clemson in a three-way tie with Rice University and the University of Texas at Austin for 10th in the nation. The top two positions are held by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A four-page feature in the magazine also includes a profile of Clemson President Jim Barker, an architect, former dean of architecture at Clemson and an alumnus of the undergraduate program. The story also is on the magazine's website. Lee Hall is home to Clemson's architecture school. In a brief description of Clemson’s graduate program, the magazine cited its fluid campus concept as one reason Clemson is set apart from many others. Clemson architecture students are strongly encouraged to spend at least one semester in one of its centers in Charleston; Genoa, Italy; or Barcelona, Spain. Some spend a semester in each, enabling them not only to see great architecture, but to live and feel the culture that supports it. According to Ted Cavanagh, chairman of the Clemson University School of Architecture, the fluid campus is unique among architecture schools. While many programs send students on trips to Europe, Clemson owns a building in Genoa and faculty stay there the entire year. The centers in Charleston and Barcelona are staffed in rented space, although plans are under way to establish a permanent site in Charleston’s historic district. The magazine rankings were compiled from 130 architecture firms, 46 architecture deans and 740 architecture students who responded to a national survey. 'We are gratified to see Clemson returning to national recognition,' Cavanagh said. 'All the hard work of alumni, faculty and students is paying off. Looking to the future, this should help us attract more top students and faculty to the school.' Cavanagh said he believes the fluid campus and the School of Architecture's unusual alignment with other disciplines in the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities enables the program to develop students ready to contribute to a multifaceted world. 'We teach our students about locality and the unique aspects of places, so they're able to operate in different local environments, which is important in today's global architecture profession,' Cavanagh said. Architect magazine ranked Columbia University and Cornell in a tie for third, Washington University in St. Louis in a tie with Virginia Tech for fifth, University of Cincinnati at seventh, and the University of Michigan and the University of California at Berkeley in a tie for eighth. Runners-up are Princeton, Yale, the University of Virginia, Kansas State and Syracuse University. For more information about Clemson's programs in architecture, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Arch.
Clemson researcher makes biofuel from rotten peaches
Monday, November 19, 2007
What's brewing in Caye Drapcho's bioreactor may well be a fuel of the future. Drapcho, a biosystems engineer at Clemson University, is investigating a bacterium that produces hydrogen. The microbe is called Thermotoga neapolitana. And it has a taste for peaches, especially rotten ones. Caye Drapcho works in her laboratory at Clemson University.Watch the related video'Working with the South Carolina Peach Council, we have found that peaches not suited for consumer sale can be converted to a biofuel by this bacteria,' said Drapcho. An extremophile, the microbe thrives in conditions that would kill most life forms. It flourishes at temperatures slightly less than the boiling point of water and in mineral-rich, deep-ocean heat-vents near volcanoes. In the laboratory scientists have discovered that T. neapolitana is very industrious. 'This microbe produces gas byproducts that can contain as much as 80 percent hydrogen, though typically it produces hydrogen in the 25 percent to 30 percent range, which is still impressive,' said Drapcho. The South Carolina Peach Council is funding research by Drapcho and graduate assistant Abhiney Jain. There are more than 200 million pounds of peaches harvested annually in South Carolina – the nation's No. 2 peach producer behind California – and approximately 20 million pounds of peach are discarded yearly, according to the Peach Council. Peach waste has substantial organic value with a high percentage of sugars that can be converted to hydrogen gas by bacteria. Caye Drapcho is working with a bacterium that can produce hydrogen from rotten peaches.The research can help provide the means to make the earth's most abundant gas into an abundant fuel. Hydrogen has the potential to help replace oil, while nearly zeroing out carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles. Hydrogen-powered fuel cells create electricity, leaving water as the only byproduct. 'We have a long way to go before today's research becomes tomorrow's fuels. But we are moving forward toward a sustainable future,' said Drapcho. For more information about a degree in biosystems engineering, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Biosyst/.
St. John wins InnoVision Award
Friday, November 16, 2007
Caron St. John, associate dean of the College of Business and Behavioral Science at Clemson University, has received the Dr. Charles Townes Individual Achievement Award for outstanding leadership, innovation and technological excellence in the Upstate community. St. John is the founder and director of the Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership at Clemson and director of the MBA program. The Dr. Charles Townes Individual Achievement Award honors an individual who exhibits a commitment to the advancement of technology and the Upstate community through technology-oriented contributions. Such contributions may be business, civic and/or educational in nature and must benefit the Upstate. InnoVision is the premier awards program focused exclusively on celebrating achievements in innovation and technological excellence in the South Carolina Upstate region. The following 10 counties are in the South Carolina Upstate region: Abbeville, Anderson, Cherokee, Greenville, Greenwood, Laurens, Oconee, Pickens, Spartanburg and Union. For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in the College of Business and Behavioral Science, visit http://business.clemson.edu/.
Clemson Best Place to Work in Academia, survey says
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Clemson University has been named the Best Place to Work in Academia among academic institutions and No. 3 overall in The Scientist magazine's annual survey of its readers. As the leading academic institution, Clemson joined Massachusetts General Hospital (medical) and the National Cancer Institute-Frederick (governmental) in the top three slots. More than 2,000 qualified responses were tallied from the readership of The Scientist, with a total of 83 institutions represented. Survey respondents were asked to assess their working environments by indicating their level of agreement with 39 statements in eight different categories. The Scientist targets active researchers in the life sciences. Subscribers include 80 percent PhDs/MDs with 40 percent employed in academia and 35 percent in industry. 'We are very pleased that Clemson is recognized again by this very selective, professionally critical group of readers. It is especially gratifying to note the other institutions represented in the survey. We invite life science researchers--and indeed researchers in all disciplines--to visit Clemson and find out firsthand what we have to offer,' said Chris Przirembel, Clemson's vice president for research and economic development. Details are available in The Scientist's November issue, including detailed survey results and rankings of the top 40 U. S. institutions and the top 15 international institutions. The survey was also released online at www.the-scientist.com. This is the second time Clemson has ranked in the top three institutions. In 2005, the University was ranked first overall.
Office of Nuclear Energy awards grant to Clemson program
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Clemson University's Nuclear Environmental Engineering and Science (NEES) program received a grant for new equipment. The award will upgrade research equipment with a Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) University Readiness grant of $98,584 from the Department of Energy at the Office of Nuclear Energy. Clemson's program focuses on environmental aspects of nuclear technologies. It is a graduate program that includes radioactive waste processing, environmental health physics, environmental radiochemistry, environmental remediation radiation detection and measurement and environmental risk assessment. 'This equipment will be used to support GNEP-related research aimed at understanding the chemical behavior of radionuclides within the advanced nuclear fuel cycle and the natural environment. It will also educate students of the various facets of environmental radiochemistry and the processing of nuclear fuel,' said Brian Powell, incoming assistant professor of environmental engineering and earth science at Clemson University. The GNEP Readiness money will be used to purchase three items: a liquid scintillation counter, an automated tritrator and materials and supplies for potentiometric titrations. The GNEP University Readiness awards aim to upgrade laboratories, improve reactor facilities, purchase state-of-the-art equipment, provide increased faculty support and further enhance nuclear-related curricula at the nation’s universities. GNEP is part of a President Bush’s Advanced Energy Initiative to close the nuclear fuel cycle by reducing proliferation risks, reducing waste and further increasing energy security around the world. NEES is a graduate student-only academic program established in the 1980s within the department of environmental engineering and earth sciences at Clemson. It is a combination of classroom and laboratory instruction and research. Environmental health physics or environmental radiochemistry are the two tracks an NEES student can follow. For more information about a degree in environmental engineering and science, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/EnviroEng/.
National Research Council Announces 2008 Research Associateship Programs
Tuesday, November 13, 2007The National Research Council of the National Academies has announced the 2008 Postdoctoral and Senior Research Associateship Programs. The Research Associate Awards are open to doctoral-level scientists and engineers (US and Foreign Nationals). Full-time Associateships will be awarded on a competitive basis in 2008 for research in fields of chemistry, earth and atmospheric sciences, engineering, applied sciences and computer science, life and medical sciences, mathematics, space and planetary sciences, and physics. Awards are available for Postdoctoral Associates (within 5 years of the doctorate) and Senior Associates (normally 5 years or more beyond the doctorate). Postdoctoral awards are made for one or two years, renewable for a maximum of three years; senior applicants may receive awards for shorter periods. Annual stipends for recent PhD recipients for the 2008 program year range from $41,000 to $70,000 depending upon the sponsoring laboratory, and are appropriately higher for senior award recipients. Financial support is provided for allowable relocation expenses and for limited professional travel during the duration of the award. The host laboratory provides facilities, support services, necessary equipment, and travel necessary for the conduct of the approved research program. Contact with the research adviser/mentor at the proposed sponsoring laboratory, including discussion of the proposed project, is necessary prior to submitting a formal application to the NRC. Application deadlines are February 1, May 1, August 1 and November 1 for reviews in mid-March, mid-June, mid-September and mid-January respectively. Initial awards will be announced immediately following each review with the notification of alternate candidates at a later time. For detailed program information, including instructions on how to apply, visit www.national-academies.org/rap.
Clemson University Professor Named DuPont Young Professor
Tuesday, November 06, 2007Yanru Yang, assistant professor in the department of environmental engineering and science at Clemson University, was named a DuPont Young Professor by the DuPont Fellows Forum. Yang is now a member of the 40th class of DuPont Young Professors. The award was created 40 years ago, and more than 500 young professors have received the recognition. In total, more than $42 million in grants have been awarded to these professors around the world. Yang will receive a grant of $25,000 per year for three years and is invited to meet with members of the DuPont Fellows Forum to present her work in a seminar. She may use the grant money to obtain matching funds through the National Science Foundation or other organizations. Yang received her doctorate in environmental engineering from Tsinghua University (China) in 1996. She is focused on environmental biotechnology with a particular interest in microorganisms relevant to the degradation of hazardous substances and treatment of water and waste. The DuPont Young Professors program was designed to provide unrestricted startup assistance to promising young professors. A member of the DuPont technical staff, who agrees to serve as the contact between DuPont and the faculty member, nominates each faculty member. The decision for making the awards resides with the DuPont Fellows Forum, which includes the top scientist at DuPont. For more infomation about Clemson's graduate programs in environmental engineering and science, please visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/EnviroEng/index.php.
Foulger Group Featured in Leading Journal
Tuesday, November 06, 2007The cover of the November 5, 2007 issue of Advanced Materials features work done by Clemson professor Stephen H. Foulger and the Foulger Group. The cover article highlights the group's work on the preparation of hydrogel-encapsulated crystalline colloidal arrays capable of undergoing 'click' transformations on the particle surface. Dr. Bruce Rafert, dean of the Graduate School, said 'creating the ideal research environment includes creating international visibility and reputation; getting the cover feature on the world's premiere materials journal is about as good as it gets.' For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in materials science and engineering, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/MSE/index.php. To see the Foulger's Group website, go to http://foulger.clemson.edu/. To learn more about the latest Foulger Group article in Advanced Materials, go to http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/abstract/116331199/ABSTRACT.
Breast cancer research and inkjet-tissue printing get NSF boost
Monday, November 05, 2007
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded $2 million to the Center for Biological Interfaces of Engineering (CBIOE) at Clemson University for the development of engineered tissues that will be used to study the causes, progression and treatment of breast cancer. Breast cancer cells migrate and intertwine with stem cells. Clemson researchers will study the formation of patterns/migration.The tissue engineering technology, which was pioneered at Clemson, is based on inkjet printing and will allow the creation of identical tissue samples that can be used to build cause and effect models. 'We will expose these identical tissue models to different environmental conditions to better understand what causes and then stimulates the development of breast cancer. Our research team includes breast cancer surgeons, engineers and scientists – the breadth of expertise is tremendous and absolutely crucial for this very complex problem,' said CBIOE director Karen Burg, who will lead the multi-disciplinary research team. Other collaborating investigators include Steve Ellis and Susan Duckett in animal and veterinary sciences, Thomas Boland in bioengineering, Amy Moran in biological sciences, Jason McNeill in chemistry and Rick Groff and Timothy Burg in electrical and computer engineering. The initiative will benefit from input from CBIOE partnering institutions Carolinas Medical Center, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. The CBIOE, located in Rhodes Engineering Research Building at Clemson University, is a state-approved research and training center. Its mission is to promote the development of clinically relevant biomaterials technology and products for disease treatment and the transfer of this technology for patient care. The NSF grant was among seven awarded to institutions to advance basic knowledge and control in the area of cellular and biomolecular engineering through the newly established NSF Emerging Frontiers in Research Innovation Office (EFRI). Other institutions receiving EFRI awards are John Hopkins University, University of Maryland, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford University, University of Virginia and University of Wisconsin. For more information about Clemson's graduate program in animal and veterinary science, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/VetSci.
For more information about Clemson's graduate program in bioengineering, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Bioeng.
For more information about Clemson's graduate program in biological sciences, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/BioSci.
For more information about Clemson's gradaute program in chemsitry, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Chemistry.
For more information about Clemson's graduate program in computer engineering, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/CompEng.
For more information about Clemson's graduate program in electrical engineering, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/ElecEng. CONTACT: Karen Burg, (864) 656-6462 kburg@clemson.edu
WRITER: Susan Polowczuk, (864) 656-2063 spolowc@clemson.edu
Clemson breaks ground for Harris A. Smith Building for packaging science and graphics
Friday, November 02, 2007
Clemson University broke ground Friday, Nov. 2, for a new 28,000-square-foot building to house components of the packaging science and graphic communications departments in what will be the future home of the Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics. The building will be named for a major Clemson donor: Harris A. Smith of Atlanta, former chairman, president and chief executive officer of Smith Container Corp. Smith sold his family-owned rigid packaging company, headquartered in Atlanta, to a global packaging company a few years ago. He decided to invest in higher education to support the packaging industry his family helped define. 'Calendar year 2007 marks the Smith family’s 100th year of involvement in the packaging industry. From selling barrels, kegs and drums beginning in 1907 to today’s groundbreaking and investments in academia; a century later we continue to have an impact on the packaging industry,' said Smith, thanking Clemson leaders for honoring him. 'Mr. Smith's generosity provides a world-class base for the Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics,' said Chip Tonkin, institute director. 'The building will serve as the headquarters for a unique institute that strategically combines the practical strengths and industry ties of the Packaging Science and Graphic Communications programs with the new technology and approaches found in other departments across campus. We are very grateful to Mr. Smith and to Sonoco for allowing us the opportunity to serve the packaging and graphics industries and society.' Smith has made gifts and pledges totaling $3.5 million to Clemson. Sonoco Products Co. (NYSE symbol: SON) of Hartsville, S.C., has contributed $2.5 million for the academic building that will house the Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics and related programs. The three-level building will include studios, labs and offices that will serve up to 500 students every year. 'Packaging is a $200-billion-plus business in the United States, and Clemson knows this business well,' said Clemson Provost Doris Helms. 'We are one of a handful of institutions that focus on it, and we are perhaps the only one that approaches it from many different directions, ranging from advanced materials to marketing and digital printing. The Sonoco Institute in the Harris A. Smith Building will be at the forefront of envisioning, defining and developing how the products that shape our lives will be perceived, protected, marketed, consumed and recycled.' The institute will make contributions at three levels: as an academic stimulator, an industry resource for training and research and a driving force to bring new technologies and innovations to the packaging and graphics markets. The focus of these activities will be in areas that are both of significant interest to the packaging and graphics industries and are in fields that the university has a lot to offer: * Environmental sustainability, * printed electronics, * consumer experience, * materials development, * packaging development and workflow and * digital printing exploration. 'This focus sets Clemson apart from other schools, providing a revenue stream from intellectual property, funding for faculty research and assistantships and, most importantly, exposing students to experiences that will make them much more valuable in the workforce,' Tonkin said. * Clemson has a record of success in packaging design and graphic communications. Each year the combined programs deliver: * 100-plus highly sought-after graduates to industry, * 200 students into well-paid industry internships, * research and testing services to 50 companies andtraining sessions and symposia to employees of 200 companies. 'Our students, the state, the nation and our industry partners can expect real, tangible benefits from our programs and affiliation with the institute,' Tonkin said. For more information about Clemson's graduate program in packaging science, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/PkgSci. For more information about Clemson's graduate program in graphic communications, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/GraphComm. 
NIH recognizes Clemson nanotechnology for molecule tracking
Wednesday, October 31, 2007The National Institutes of Health has awarded two Clemson chemistry faculty members nearly $1 million to detect, track and image the interior of cells. Jason McNeill and Ken Christensen will receive the $960,000 grant to develop polymer dot nanoparticles for tracking single molecules in live cells. The development of techniques for following individual molecules within cells is important because scientists could use this technology to determine the body’s defenses against invading viruses and bacteria or how proteins operate within the cell. The technology also could help doctors pinpoint the exact location of cancer cells in order to better focus treatment and minimize damage to healthy tissue. Other possible targets of investigation include plaques and fibrils in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease and mad cow disease. For the last decade, scientists around the globe have worked to develop and refine highly fluorescent nanoparticles that light up when bathed with laser light, enabling scientists to pinpoint the location of an individual molecule inside a living cell or tissue. Recently, Clemson chemists developed novel, highly fluorescent nanoparticles called 'polymer dots' that can be attached to individual proteins, DNA or invading microbes. According to chemist Jason McNeill, the polymer dot particles are hundreds or thousands of times brighter than conventional fluorescent dyes. 'We were initially interested in developing polymer semiconductor nanoparticles for making inexpensive, highly efficient solar cells and light-emitting displays. When we aimed a laser at the particles in a microscope, we were surprised to see individual particles light up very brightly,' said McNeill. 'When I heard about these extremely bright particles, my group was very interested in working with Dr. McNeill to push this technology into live cell imaging,' said Christensen. 'Biology is often driven by new discoveries in chemistry and physics and these polymer dots will definitely impact our studies of cellular biology.' The two chemists credit the highly collaborative, multidisciplinary environment at Clemson as a key factor in this new frontier in nanotechnology. Details of the nanoparticle technology were recently presented at the 2007 national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston and have been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Langmuir and in the Journal of Physical Chemistry. For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in chemistry, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Chemistry/.
Duke Endowment Fellowship Accepting Applications
Wednesday, October 31, 2007The Duke Endowment Fellowship program is currently accepting applications. The fellowship is a two-year, full-time position created to give an insider’s look at the world of philanthropy to students in the early stages of careers in the non-profit sector. Fellows rotate through each of the endowment's four program areas, where they are involved in all stages of grantmaking including participating in site visits to nonprofits that are seeking funding, creating grant proposals, and presenting funding recommendations to the endowment’s board of trustees. The fellows also participate in a variety of special projects and personalized professional development opportunities. Interested applicants will have demonstrated an interest in the nonprofit sector and exhibited leadership potentials in their civic and/or professional life. All applicants must be residents of North Carolina or South Carolina, natives of North Carolina or South Carolina, or recent graduates of a college or university located in North Carolina or South Carolina. Typically, applicants have recently completed either an undergraduate or graduate degree. For more information about the program, visit http://www.dukeendowment.org/about/TDEFellowship or contact Elizabeth Ireland (eireland@tde.org , 794-696-2116).
Entomology PhD Student Receives Gold Medal in Research Paper Competition
Tuesday, October 30, 2007Mark Nelder, PhD Student, Entomology, has been awarded the gold medal for graduate student research papers in the W. Curtis Worthington Jr. Research Paper Competition sponsored by the Waring Library Society of South Carolina. The Waring Library Society is dedicated to the history of the health sciences. Papers submitted for this award must represent an original, comprehensive effort in research and documentation of some aspect of the history of the health sciences. Mark's paper on elephantiasis, 'Bancroftian filariasis in Charleston, South Carolina: the medical history of a forgotten and abhorred disease,' won the gold medal in the graduate category. Wuchereria bancrofti (Cobbold) (Nematoda: Filariidae) is one of the mosquito-transmitted parasites which cause lymphatic filariasis, in particular, Bancroftian filariasis. Filariases are tropical diseases of the lymphatic system which, if left untreated, can result in elephantiasis or the thickening of the skin and underlying tissues. Worldwide, filariases have permanently disabled 40 million people and W. bancrofti-infected individuals number more than 120 million (WHO 2001). The paper follows the development and subsequent disappearance of this disease in the Charleston, SC area. Most aspects of W. bancrofti in Charleston, such as the timing of appearance, mode of introduction, and prevalence of infection, remain speculative and contribute to its diminution in Charleston history. The study of filariasis in Charleston has produced a valuable model of the conditions needed for the invasion and establishment of an exotic, arthropod-borne disease, a useful tool for preventing future incursions in South Carolina and throughout the rest of the world. Though the suffering caused by filariasis is virtually forgotten, so are the determined doctors that heroically attempted to treat and understand the disease. Charleston doctors and their work on filariasis, especially Peter de Saussure, JJ Edwards, and Juan Guiteras, deserve a prominent place in the history of American tropical medicine. For more information on Mark Nelder see his web page at: http://entweb.clemson.edu/biomia/mpn.html For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in entomology, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Entomology/index.php.
NSF award connects Engineering Research Center with small business
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a Phase IIR grant for $200,000 to Clemson University's Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films, an NSF Research Center, to partner with Tetramer Technologies, LLC, a Clemson University spin-off company. The grant will help Tetramer, an NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC), further develop encapsulation polymers for quantum-dot technology. Quantum dots are nanoscale crystalline structures that absorb and re-emit light. In the last five years, commercialization of quantum dots has exploded with their use as biological sensors. New uses for this technology, such as white light-emitting dots, show promise in providing lower cost sources of light when coupled with light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Graham Harrison, Jianyong 'Jack' Jin, Earl Wagener , Doug Hirt, Dennis Smith, Phil Brown , Jeff DiMaio. Through the partnership with Tetramer, Clemson's Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films (CAEFF) undergraduate and graduate research students will be exposed to entrepreneurial training. 'Our students will explore cutting-edge science while developing business acumen,' said Doug Hirt, director of CAEFF. 'This is a unique opportunity to give our students a first-hand look at how small businesses operate from both research and commercialization standpoints.' 'This new grant will help advance Tetramer’s nanocrystal-encapsulation technology and accelerate its adoption into commercial applications,' said Tetramer technology manager Jeff DiMaio. 'This collaboration has the potential to impact the solid-state lighting, solar-energy harvesting, and polymer-optical fibers markets, as well as benefit national security through development of radiation-detection technology.' The NSF grant is intended to stimulate the transfer of innovative, leading-edge research performed at university ERCs to small businesses, which then move research results into the marketplace. This collaboration has CAEFF acting as a catalyst to provide the research that Tetramer, a small business, needs to further make it successful and competitive. Tetramer, in turn, serves as a catalyst to get university research fast-tracked to commercialization. The project is based partially on patented Clemson optical fluoropolymer technology licensed by Tetramer and originally developed in Clemson’s COMSET (Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies) laboratories for optical applications. CAEFF has conducted research at the cutting edge of computational materials design since 1998. With major support from NSF, the center has advanced the state of the art in modeling polymer processes beyond any existing model in the world. CAEFF supports South Carolina’s growing knowledge-based economy by promoting a transformation from trial-and-error development to computer-based design of fibers and films. Tetramer Technologies was formed in 2001 as a faculty-driven start-up company commercializing high-value research activities pursued at Clemson University. In addition to quantum-dot encapsulation, the company specializes in automotive fuel-cell membranes, gas-separation membranes for enhanced shale and tar sands oil recovery in North America, optical waveguides, piezopolymers and renewable resource materials. Tetramer currently employs 11 researchers; two of those on this project are Clemson Ph.D. graduates. For more information about a degree in Materials Science and Engineering at Clemson University, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/MSE/.
Clemson professor recognized by American Ceramic Society
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Denis A. Brosnan, a professor of material science and engineering at Clemson University, received the John Jeppson Award and medal from American Ceramic Society (ACerS). The John Jeppson Award recognizes distinguished scientific, technical or engineering achievements in ceramics. Denis Brosnan Brosnan is director of the National Brick Research Center, ACerS Fellow and member of the Structural Clay Products and Refractory Ceramics Division of ACerS. Brosnan received degrees in ceramic engineering from Iowa State University and Clemson University. He holds 11 U.S. patents including one that dramatically changed the field of restorative dental materials. He is currently researching manufacturing and environmental concerns in clay bricks and restoration of historic masonry buildings. 'Dr. Brosnan deserves the award because of his lifelong contributions to the ceramic industry; particularly his leadership at the National Brick Research Center, which not only is internationally respected for its support of the industry but also because it sets the bar for industry/university relationships,' said John Ballato, director of Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies. For more information about Clemson University's degree in materials science and engineering, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/MSE.
Clemson professor elected vice president of National Reading Conference
Tuesday, October 16, 2007Clemson University professor David Reinking has been elected as the National Reading Conference vice president. The position automatically leads to presidency of the conference in two years. Reinking is the Eugene T. Moore Professor of Teacher Education. He just completed a six-year tenure as co-editor of the influential Reading Research Quarterly, and he is a former editor of the Journal of Literacy Research. 'The year of president-elect means I'm in charge of the annual conference. The year as president includes among other things, presiding over the executive board and board of directors and giving the presidential address at the annual meeting,' said Reinking. Clemson also is the academic home of professor Linda Gambrell, the incoming president of the International Reading Association, which has more than 100,000 members worldwide.
Clemson awarded $2 million to study radiation-induced bone loss
Tuesday, October 16, 2007The Department of Bioengineering at Clemson University has received $2 million in grants to study radiation-induced bone loss. Both the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and a branch of NASA, the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI), are primary contributors of funds to the study as a result of its two-dimensional application. The mechanical testing of mouse bones allows for the examination of changes in bone strength after irradiation, modeling both clinical and space exposure. The study addresses bone loss that occurs as the result of radiation therapy for cancer treatment and from solar and cosmic radiation during space exploration. NIH is contributing nearly $400,000 in grant money for Clemson researchers to develop an animal model that will enable them to study bone loss caused by radiation therapy. The research could result in the kind of knowledge necessary to develop bone-loss therapies to aid a large and increasing community of cancer survivors. Concurrently, NASA and NSBRI are funding a $1.6 million grant to support research that will examine the effect of space radiation on bone loss for astronauts. The two dimensions of the bone-loss study are similar in that both involve testing mouse and rat bones after exposure to radiation, but the two studies vary in the type and amount of radiation. Clinical doses of radiation treatment for pelvic cancers come largely from high-dose X-rays compared to lower doses of proton and heavy ion radiation to which astronauts will be exposed in future spaceflight missions. Solar particle events can expose astronauts to damaging levels of proton radiation.Ted Bateman, professor and director of the Osteoporosis Biomechanics Laboratory (www.batemanlab.com), is conducting the research to understand the molecular and cellular basis for bone loss caused by radiation. The knowledge that his lab develops will assist in the development of countermeasures applicable to both cancer treatment and spaceflight. 'These grants are a tremendous endorsement of our bone-loss research,' said Bateman. 'This is an untreated problem in cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy and also a problem we will see as space travel expands to the moon and Mars. Currently, astronauts on the International Space Station lose bone mass at five times the rate that women lose bone mass following menopause. Past studies confirm that patients who are undergoing radiation treatment for cancer experience more fractures, and hip fractures are particularly damaging to long-term health. We hope to provide data that contributes to prevention of these fractures, and ultimately to improve quality of life for cancer survivors.' A recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reported a 60 to 200 percent increase in hip-fracture rates following radiation treatment for pelvic cancers in women. Breaking a hip often causes a large decline in quality of life and leads to death in approximately 20 percent of people with fractures. Procter and Gamble Pharmaceuticals also is supporting the clinical application of this research to examine prevention of fractures. In the space application of the research, rapid bone loss occurs as a result of the weightless environment and may be made worse by the radiation astronauts will experience on extended missions to the moon and Mars. Related grant support includes a fellowship from NASA's Kennedy Space Center for graduate student Eric Bandstra to study space radiation and bone loss. Senior graduate student Jeff Willey has received a post-doctoral fellowship from NSBRI to support his continued research with radiation-induced bone loss at Clemson and Wake Forest universities. Collaborators on the NIH grant include Wake Forest University Medical Center. The NIH project is Grant Number R21AR054889 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. Collaborators on the NSBRI grant include NASA's Johnson Space Center and Loma Linda University Medical Center. For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in bioengineering, please visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Bioeng.
Architecture students create designs for carbon-neutral campus
Tuesday, October 16, 2007An idea to turn Clemson University's Memorial Stadium into a giant solar-power generator was one of three winners of the first McMahan Awards for Sustainability. The Carbon Neutral Clemson project challenged about 300 architecture students to spend their first five days back in class working on proposals to meet the goal of a carbon-neutral campus. English architect Graham Farmer from the University of Nottingham and Canadian architect Richard Kroeker of Halifax served as judges. At the conclusion of the project, the judges presented some of the best proposals back to the students and named three winners: 'Bringing Life Into Death Valley,' 'Maximizing Landscapes' and 'The Harvest.' The student teams won $250 each for the effort, but the real value of the project was found in the exercise itself and in the quality of the proposals. 'Many of these proposals are such good ideas you should see if you can get them built,' Farmer said. 'The best of the entries show clear, simple ideas supported by an understanding of the technical aspects needed to make them work.' 'Bringing Life Into Death Valley' by Nic Fonner, Will Wingfield, Tim Hoskins and Meg Chandler, calls for fitting 'Solar Tree' photovoltaic cells onto the foldable backs of stadium seats. When the stadium is unoccupied the seats would be folded down to absorb solar energy and produce electricity. 'The Harvest' by Nathan Missel, Mandy Mobley, Clint Riddle and Alisha White would make the most of campus trees after they die. Their proposal calls for cutting the dead trees into slats that would be woven, like a basket, into a rooftop gallery on Lee Hall. The structure would support vegetation that would protect the building from ultraviolet rays. 'Maximizing Landscapes' by Paul Kennedy, Ashley Ortmann, Shawn McKeever and Thomas Weir, explored ways to minimize consumption and maximize landscapes to create an overall more sustainable campus. 'What a great way to begin the term,' said Ted Cavanagh, chairman of the School of Architecture. 'It brings every student in the school together to respond to a common challenge. The bar has been set high. It shows that the whole school has made a commitment to treat sustainability as the main focus of building.' A Carbon Neutral Clemson challenged students to create designs where absorption of carbon is equal to or greater than emission. The McMahan Awards for Sustainability are supported by Clemson University's McMahan Fund for Excellence. For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in architecture, please visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Arch.
Clemson MBA program finds place among nation's best in Princeton Review Guide
Tuesday, October 09, 2007The MBA program at Clemson University appears among the best in the country in Princeton Review's 'Best 290 Business Schools.' The University's MBA program has a two-page profile in the guide, which outlines academics, admissions, financial aid, campus life and career information. Included in the profile is a story by Princeton Review editors that reads: 'Native South Carolinians will have a hard time beating the ratio of value to quality that they’ll find at Clemson University...Palmetto State residents can earn a highly regarded business degree for a small fraction of what their peers elsewhere in the country spend.' Clemson's MBA students say they receive strong preparation in marketing, communication skills and quantitative skills. They praise the reputation the professors and school have throughout the Southeast. 'We know our MBA students receive a quality education and have a positive graduate experience at Clemson,' said Caron St. John, director of the MBA program and interim associate dean of the College of Business and Behavioral Science. 'It is reassuring to see our reputation grow and receive national praise.' Claude Lilly, dean of the college, said great work is being done in the college. 'Educators, students and businesses now realize that the college has an outstanding program that produces students with the ability to think critically,' he said. 'The faculty, staff and students in the college all have a commitment to excellence that is moving the college forward.' Over the course of a three-year survey cycle, Princeton Review collected the opinions of students at the best Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-accredited MBA programs and gathered statistical information on many more in order to give readers the widest possible base of information for selecting the right business school for them. The 'Best 290 Business Schools' is on newstands now. For more information about the MBA program at Clemson University, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/MBA.
Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics Approved by Clemson Trustees
Monday, October 08, 2007Clemson University plans to break ground soon for a new 28,000-square-foot building that will house the packaging science and graphic communications departments and be named for one of the school's major donors: Harris A. Smith, former chairman, president and chief executive officer of Smith Container Corp. The announcement came at Friday's meeting of the board of trustees. Smith recently sold the 97-year-old, family-owned rigid packaging company, headquartered in Atlanta, to a global packaging company. He decided to invest in higher education to support the packaging industry his family helped define. The new building is one of seven facility projects the trustees discussed and approved. Clemson Vice President for Research and Economic Development Chris Przirembel reported that external funding of university research for 2006-07 totaled $141.4 million, the highest in the school’s history. 'This total reflects outstanding achievement by faculty and staff across the University,' he said. 'This is not just a number; it's a commitment to excellence and to the involvement of our outstanding researchers in solving the world's problems.' For images of the planned Sonoco Institute, please visit: www.clemson.edu/newsroom/image_galleries/2007/october/October_releases.php5 For information about Clemson's graduate programs in graphic communications and packaging science, please visit: www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/GraphComm and www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/PkgSci respectively.
Smith has made gifts and pledges totaling $3.5 million to Clemson and Sonoco has contributed $2.5 million for the academic building, which will house the Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics and related programs. The three-level building will include studios, labs and offices that will serve up to 500 students every year.
Clemson research tops $141 million
Friday, October 05, 2007Clemson University today announced external funding of university research projects for 2006-07 totaled $141.4 million, once again the highest in the university's history and moving closer to the goal of $150 million by 2008. 'This total of $141,366,747 reflects outstanding achievement by faculty and staff across the university,' Clemson Vice President for Research and Economic Development Chris Przirembel said. 'We are in excellent position to reach our goal in the coming year. Goals exist not just as benchmarks but for the quality they represent. Thus, the goal of $150 million is not just a number; it's a commitment to excellence and to the involvement of our outstanding researchers in solving the world's problems.' The College of Engineering and Science leads the university in sponsored research, but Przirembel said there is an increase in research activity - and thus in external funding for research - across all five colleges and other funded areas. Clemson is focusing its research efforts in eight critical emphasis areas that match the university's strengths and South Carolina's economic activity. According to Przirembel, external funding in 2007 reflected the University's decision to focus on these strengths and foster research collaboration across the campus. 'It is evident from the funding these areas received that the various funding agencies understand and appreciate Clemson's strengths in these strategic areas. Only nine percent of the total external funding was not allocated to one of these emphasis areas,' he said. 'The majority of funding was allocated to five emphasis areas - Advanced Materials, Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences, Sustainable Environment, Information and Communication Technology, and Automotive and Transportation Technology. Family and Community Living, General Education, and Leadership and Entrepreneurship received less funding, but these areas are of great importance to the University's mission, and we expect to see them grow as well. 'As a land-grant university, Clemson has always considered each of its missions of teaching, research and public service to be essential to the university's success and to the success of its graduates. As we see funded research grow, we can be assured that the research activity that Clemson faculty, staff and students perform is making a difference in the lives of many people,' Przirembel said. For example: * In the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities, Dennis Bausman, faculty member in the department of construction science and management, is leading YouthBuild Upstate, a program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and local partners that enables at-risk youth to complete their high school education while learning construction skills and, at the same time, engages them in community service projects such as Habitat for Humanity and other programs to benefit their community. * In the College of Engineering and Science, bioengineering professor Xuejun Wen is using a grant from the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to discover ways to repair spinal cord nerves and ease the disability and pain experienced by 200,000 Americans. * In the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences, genetics and biochemistry faculty member William Marcotte is investigating how to produce synthetic spider silk that could be used to repair the human body, supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health. The team project involves researchers in various Clemson departments - genetics, biochemistry, bioengineering and materials science. Marcotte's part is to investigate how to insert a spider's silk-making genes into plants. He considers tobacco a good candidate for carrying the spider genes, which may be good news for growers who could benefit from a new use for their crops.
Linda Gallicchio joins the Rutland Institute for Ethics
Thursday, October 04, 2007Linda Maue Gallicchio has joined the Robert J. Rutland Institute for Ethics at Clemson University in the newly created role of associate director for business outreach. Gallicchio’s focus is to build relationships and collaborations with businesses, the professions, civic organizations and government. Linda Gallicchio The Rutland Institute strives to be both a resource and provider of ethics-based services on campus and in the business and professional communities. 'I am indeed thrilled to have this opportunity to work in the Rutland Institute and make inroads in business/community outreach to share the excellent resources and services of the institute. I know from years of professional experience how essential good decision- making tools and processes are for optimal success in organizations. I welcome the chance to further advance the national prominence and reputation of the institute,' Gallicchio said. Gallicchio received her MBA form the State University of New York at Buffalo. She has more than 22 years of experience in managerial and executive roles across a variety of industries and at another land-grant university. 'We are very pleased that Linda has joined us,' Rutland Institute Director Dan Wueste said. 'All of us who were involved in the search were greatly impressed with her experience, vitality and sincere commitment to the project of nurturing an ethical environment. I'm confident that the people she’ll be working with in the business community and elsewhere will feel the same way.' For more information about the Rutland Institute, please visit www.clemson.edu/ethics.
Clemson physicist addresses international forum on thermoelectric energy
Thursday, October 04, 2007Energy lost from hot engines could save billions of dollars if it could be captured and converted into electricity via thermoelectric devices, Clemson University physicist Terry Tritt told scientists gathered in Dallas for the world-renowned NanoTX '07 conference. Tritt delivered an address at the Alan MacDairmid Memorial Nano Energy Summit on challenges in alternative energy, specifically thermoelectricity used to generate electrical energy from waste heat. 'Thermoelectric generators are currently used in NASA's deep-space probes to convert the heat of radioactive elements to electrical energy, powering these systems for over 30 years,' Tritt said. 'Thermoelectric energy conversion is a solid-state technology that is environmentally friendly. One of the more promising 'down-to-earth' applications lies in waste-heat recovery in cars.' Tritt said more than 60 percent of the energy that goes into an automotive combustion cycle is lost, primarily to waste heat through the exhaust or radiator system. 'Even at the current efficiencies of thermoelectric devices, 7 to 8 percent, more than 1.5 billion gallons of diesel could be saved each year in the US if thermoelectric generators were used on the exhaust of heavy trucks. That translates into billions of dollars saved,' Tritt said. Clemson research focuses on developing higher-efficiency thermoelectric materials that could increase savings significantly. Research on the electrical and thermal properties of new materials could reduce the world’s reliance on fossil fuels and has shown promise with two classes of materials: low-dimensional systems for enhanced electrical properties and increased phonon scattering that leads to inherently low thermal conductivity. Tritt heads up the Department of Energy's Center of Excellence in Thermoelectric Materials Research at Clemson, one of the leading laboratories for thermoelectric materials in the world. The national center focuses on the next generation of thermoelectric materials for power conversion and refrigeration. Researchers in physics, materials science and chemistry screen promising new classes of materials in order to achieve higher-performance thermoelectric materials. DOE recently renewed the program with more than $1 million a year in research funding for the next three years. NanoTX, presented by Semiconductor Industry Association, highlights advances in nanoscience and explains how nanotechnology is being used today and how it will impact a broad range of industries tomorrow, including electronics, energy, aerospace, defense, biomedicine, robotics, chemicals and more. Part of the conference included a Nobel Laureates reception in honor of the discovery of the buckeyball which opened up nanotechnology to the world. For more information on Clemson's graduate programs in physics, visit: http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Physics.
Ronn Stewart receives ULI Kenneth M. Good Fellowship
Wednesday, September 26, 2007Ronn Stewart, a second year Master's of Real Estate Development student, was one of eight recipients of the Urban Land Institute Kenneth M. Good Graduate Student Fellowship. He is the first Clemson MRED student to win this fellowship. The ULI Kenneth M. Good Graduate Student Fellowship is funded from an endowment by the Good Texas Foundation and administered through the ULI Foundation. The Urban Land Institute is a nonprofit education and research institute supported by its member. Its mission is to provide leadership in the responsible use of land and in creating and sustaining thriving communities worldwide. Stewart joins a very select group of individuals across the nation in receiving such a prestigious award. He will receive a $5,000 scholarship along with a free one year student membership to the Urban Land Institute and free registration at ULI’s fall meeting. Only one student per program is selected by each university to be an applicant. Candidates were nominated based on their academic history and current standing, related work experience, career plans and goals and financial need. For more information about the real estate development graduate program at Clemson University, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/MRED.
Clemson Teaching Program Granted Noyce Scholarships
Friday, September 21, 2007The National Science Foundation Robert Noyce Scholarship program has awarded the Clemson University Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program in middle grades education almost $500,000 over the next four years to produce science and math teachers for South Carolina. Forty Noyce Scholars will receive $10,000 each to help them with expenses related to gaining their master’s degrees and teaching credentials. These recipients will then each teach for two years at a high-need middle school in either Greenville or Anderson County School District 5, the two school districts that partnered with Clemson on this grant. To be eligible for a Noyce Scholarship, recipients must be accepted into the Clemson MAT program and must enter the program with an undergraduate or graduate STEMs major. STEMs stands for 'science, technology, engineering, and math.' Science majors include biology and the related life sciences, chemistry, physics, geology, meteorology, and astronomy. Technology includes computer science, and mathematics includes statistics. All areas of engineering are eligible for consideration. Nursing and health science majors may receive consideration if a transcript evaluation determines eligibility. Noyce Scholars will be part of the Clemson MAT program, a one year to 16-month 36-hour master’s program based at the Greenville University Center. The program is primarily for career changers who decide to go into education as a second career. The MAT prepares teachers for initial certification in math, science, language arts, and social studies for grades 5-8. The MAT has a 100% initial hire rate for all graduates who have successfully completed all program requirements. Individuals interested in being considered for admission to the MAT and/or a Clemson Noyce Scholarship should contact MAT program coordinator Dr. Lienne Medford at 864-250-8891 Lienne@clemson.edu or fellow MAT faculty member and Noyce Grant coordinator Dr. Elaine Wiegert at 864-250-8893 ewieger@clemson.edu.
Institute for Study of Capitalism Launches Speaker Series with Gordon S. Wood
Wednesday, September 19, 2007The Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism will begin its John William Pope Lecture Series on October 3, 2007. World-renowned historian Gordon S. Wood will present 'Why America Wants to Promote Democracy Around the World.' The event will be held from 4:30 – 6:00 p.m. in the Self Auditorium of the Strom Thurmond Institute on the Clemson University campus. Gordon Wood is the Alva O. Way University Professor at Brown University. Wood's, 'The Radicalism of the American Revolution' was the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for History winner. Author of numerous articles, Wood is a frequent contributor to The New Republic. His book, 'The Creation of the American Republic, 1776–1787' was a Bancroft Prize winner. Wood received a bachelor’s degree from Tufts University and a doctoral degree from Harvard University. He has taught at Harvard University, Cambridge University, William and Mary and the University Michigan. The Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism was founded in 2006 with a generous grant from the BB&T Charitable Foundation. The Institute is dedicated to exploring the moral, legal, constitutional, political and economic foundations of capitalism with a particular interest in fostering a serious examination of a free society. The Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism is housed in the College of Business and Behavioral Science.
Former MFA Graduate Student to Appear on The Martha Stewart Show
Wednesday, September 12, 2007Julie Barlow Dunbar, a 1998 MFA graduate in visual arts, will appear on the September 24 airing of The Martha Stewart Show to demonstrate her particular sewing technique and promote her sewing-products company, girlpopcorn. While at Clemson, Julie specialized her MFA degree in sculpture, and although the work she did in graduate school did not focus around sewing, she did sew when creating some of her sculptures. She commented, 'I have always found sewing to be a form of instant gratification and a way to make cool gifts for my family and friends. Through experimentation, I came up with a way to do free-hand machine embroidery (that's what I call it). The programmable machines were way out of my price range, and I wanted to do my own designs. After great response to the gifts I figured I would try and make a company.' She was asked to appear on The Martha Stewart Show upon entering her work into a juried craft show. 'It was at the craft show that I was immediately approached by a producer of the show who asked if my process is something I could teach and if I would want to do it on the show. I think this will have a major impact on my little company; my website is being updated right now to be able to handle orders. The timing of the show couldn't be better as my daughter is starting preschool allowing me to have actual time to devote to work,' said Julie. In response to word of Julie’s upcoming appearance, Dr. David Detrich, Julie’s thesis advisor, said, 'I am very excited, of course, but not surprised as Julie was one of our better graduates from the MFA program - ambitious and highly engaged in her profession.' When reflecting back on her time at Clemson, Julie noted, 'Ah Clemson, I loved grad school. The environment was absolutely perfect for me. I woke up, went to the studio, went home, went to bed. That was the life. I really liked that all the MFA disciplines were involved in each others' work. At larger schools, it’s a bit more segregated. And nothing beats a good Disco Inferno. It is a foundry pour complete with DJ, disco ball (made by me), and refreshments. Everyone is invited to see what the foundry is all about. Dave did everything he could to get us to see outside the studio and to get everyone else to see in.' For more information about Julie's company, visit http://girlpopcorn.com, and be sure to tune in to WLOS (channel 13 in the GSA area) at 10:00 EST on September 24. To find out more about Clemson's graduate program in visual arts, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/VisArts.
Clemson business dean plans broader international initiative
Wednesday, September 12, 2007Claude Lilly, dean of the College of Business and Behavioral Science at Clemson University, is moving forward with a plan to internationalize the educational and networking opportunities for the college. In the coming months, a new director for international programs will be in place to lead all of the college’s international programs, which range from study-abroad opportunities to international research. The initiative will replace the Center for International Trade (CIT), which in its seven years of operation conducted more than 70 international strategy studies for more than 50 organizations and led a number of organizational development initiatives. William 'Bill' Ward, the founding center director, will resume his full-time position as professor of applied economics and statistics in the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences. 'In his first meeting with me, Bill expressed his desire to spend his final years at Clemson engaged in scholarship rather than administration, reinforcing my inclination to begin this transition now rather than later,' Lilly said. Expressing his appreciation for what Ward has accomplished, Lilly said, 'Bill is to be commended for what he has done to enhance the role of internationalization at Clemson University. He has had a major impact. He certainly deserves the right to focus on his passion, which is research.' Ward chaired the provost's task force that developed the university-wide Office of International Affairs, and the CIT created the International Business Honors Program as a pilot for fully integrating study abroad into the college's undergraduate programs. The CIT also developed the graduation survey that provided the college with its first systematic source of information on employment and compensation of graduates and on their plans for further education. At the request of the Clemson University Board of Trustees, the survey was broadened in the second year to include graduates from all colleges and in the third year responsibility was transferred to the University’s Michelin Career Center where the survey remains a valuable part of the university’s management information system. The CIT was instrumental in raising the Clemson University profile in Greenville. The Center organized five Clemson University/Bank of America Global Forum dinners, helped the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce arrange its 2007 visit to Ireland and created the Quarterly Discussion Group luncheon series that brought cutting-edge issues and top experts before the Upstate's business and policy leadership. For information about Clemson's graduate programs in the College of Business and Behavioral Science, visit http://business.clemson.edu/.
McCubbin named senior associate dean in business college
Tuesday, September 11, 2007James McCubbin is the new senior associate dean for the College of Business and Behavioral Science at Clemson University. McCubbin served last year as interim associate dean following his tenure as department chairman for the psychology department. He joined the psychology department in 1997 after serving on the faculties of Duke University and the University of Kentucky. 'I am honored to serve Dean (Claude) Lilly and the faculty and staff of this college. I believe that our pioneering partnership between business and behavioral sciences creates a new model for training leaders in industry, higher education, and public and professional service.' McCubbin conducts research on the effects of stress on worker performance and health. He has received more than $3.5 million in research grants from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health. He has served on grant-review panels for the National Science Foundation and the Centers for Disease Control, and served as chairman of the Behavioral Medicine Study Section at NIH. He also designs systems to reduce occupational stress and optimize worker performance in difficult work environments. In addition to his duties as senior associate dean, McCubbin also teaches graduate and undergraduate psychology courses. For information about Clemson's graduate programs in the College of Business and Behavioral Science, visit, http://business.clemson.edu/.
Clifton 'Chip' Egan appointed interim dean of Architecture, Arts and Humanities.
Friday, September 07, 2007Clifton S.M. 'Chip' Egan has been named interim dean for Clemson University’s College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities. He will serve a two-year term while the university conducts a national search for a permanent dean. Egan built his academic reputation through the performing arts, but his long association with Clemson University includes numerous leadership positions and cross-disciplinary projects. Hired in 1976 as an assistant professor in the English department’s theater program, Egan chaired the department of performing arts for nine years. He also served as interim chairman for the department of communication studies and the English department. Egan retired in 2004 and spent two years on the road pursuing a career in free-lance theater. The adventure took Egan around the country, but Clemson lured him back last fall to serve a year as interim chairman for the English department. Egan said he hopes to use his term to position the college for a successful search for a permanent dean. 'The College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities is at the very core of Clemson's dramatic rise in quality and stature,' he said. 'Our college generates many of the most creative initiatives on the campus and establishes much of Clemson's intellectual climate. I am honored to serve as interim dean.' University President James F. Barker said, 'Chip Egan is an outstanding teacher and leader at Clemson. His skills in collaboration will serve the College and its professions well.' Egan takes over the job held for the last six years by Janice Schach, who resigned in August to return to a full-time faculty position. For information about Clemson's graduate programs in the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities, visit, http://www.clemson.edu/caah/gradprograms.htm
Rafert Appointed to ASA
Thursday, September 06, 2007Dr. Bruce Rafert, vice provost and dean of the Clemson University Graduate School and professor of physics and astronomy, was recently appointed by Lt. Governor Andre Bauer as the South Carolina delegate to the Aerospace States Association (ASA). The ASA is a states-based advocacy group that promotes US aerospace competitiveness. Rafert was one of the organizers of the ASA and has previously served its national secretary and as the Michigan delegate. Most delegates are lieutenant governors of their home states. For more information about the association, visit www.aerostates.org. According to Rafert, 'the State of South Carolina has a number of interesting opportunities to push research and economic development in this rapidly expanding sphere of activity, and has already received national attention for the role we are playing in the final assembly of the new Boeing 787.' The final major assembly for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner was delivered to the final assembly plant at Everett, Washington on May 16, 2007. The first 787 rolled-out on July 8, 2007. See www.talkingproud.us/ScienceDreamliner.html for more information.
Fluor Corp. commits $2 million for Clemson endowed supply chain chair
Tuesday, September 04, 2007Fluor Corp. has made a $2 million matching commitment to Clemson University to create the Fluor Endowed Chair of Supply Chain and Logistics in Clemson University's industrial engineering department. The $2 million award matches $2 million from the South Carolina Centers of Excellence program for a $4 million total endowment. The challenge of the supply chain in business and industry is to find the most efficient, economical way to move goods or people to market. Supply chain and logistics affect all aspects of business, from the flow of raw materials and scheduling production to manufacturing and distributing finished goods. In today’s global business environment, an effective supply chain can mean the difference between a profitable and non-profitable business. Fluor Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alan Boeckmann announced the gift at a noon luncheon with Clemson President James F. Barker at the Fluor office in Greenville. 'This partnership is a prime example of industry, government and academia coming together for the betterment of the broader community,' Barker said. 'Our partnership with Fluor Corporation and the state match for the endowment reinforce and strengthen our established supply chain programs at Clemson. The quality of research to come will increase significantly and include models for business and industry everywhere.' 'As the globe continues to shrink and economies become more integrated, procurement, supply chain and logistics skills have become the lifeblood of the engineering and construction industry's ability to execute projects at home and abroad,' Boeckmann said. 'By supporting this endowed chair at Clemson we are ensuring that the next generation of engineers and procurement specialists are equipped with the knowledge to excel in our industry.' Establishing the chair at Clemson provides for a world-renowned leader in supply chain research to champion activities in education, research and industry outreach at the Research Center for Economic Excellence in Supply Chain Logistics. The endowment also will support students and associated educational programs. Clemson has established expertise with two existing supply chain and logistics programs. The National Science Foundation-sponsored CELDi (Center for Engineering Logistics and Distribution) is a research site that brings industry and academia together to improve supply chain logistics. CISCOL (Clemson Institute for Supply Chain Optimization and Logistics) brings together an interdisciplinary group of faculty from four different colleges at Clemson University and provides tangible products and services that support economic development in South Carolina. Fluor Corp. (NYSE: FLR) provides services on a global basis in the fields of engineering, procurement, construction, operations, maintenance and project management. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Fluor is a FORTUNE 500 company with revenues of $14.1 billion in 2006. For more information visit www.fluor.com. The Centers of Economic Excellence program was created by the South Carolina Legislature to enhance economic development and attract top academic researchers to the state's three major research universities: Clemson, the Univerity of South Carolina and the Medical University of South Carolina. The center's board is appointed by the state legislative leaders and Gov. Mark Sanford. Revenue for projects approved by the board comes from South Carolina Education Lottery funds. For more information visit www.endowedchairs.org. For information about Clemson's graduate programs in industrial engineering, visit http://www.ces.clemson.edu/ie/academics/graduate/graduate.htm.
Environmental Health Physics Program Sixth Accredited in Nation
Thursday, August 30, 2007The environmental health physics (EHP) focus area, an option in Clemson's environmental engineering and science MS degree has recently been accredited under the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) Applied Science Accreditation Commission (ASAC). The EHP program is only the sixth health physics program in the US to be accredited by ABET-and the only environmental health physics program. 'Earning ABET ASAC accreditation has increased the prestige of the Clemson degree for incoming students in addition to the program's alumni. Employers looking for health physics grads have indicated that they plan to target recruiting efforts at accredited programs,' said Dr. Tim DeVol, EHP program coordinator. The origin of the EHP focus area dates back to 1980, and it is fully integrated with other focus areas within the graduate-only department. It is designed to address broad environmental issues associated with anthropogenic and natural radioactivity. The objective of the curriculum is to provide students with knowledge and training needed to protect human health and the environment from ionizing radiation. Integral to this focus area is assessing risk associated with the radiation. Research areas include low-level radiation detection, radiochemistry, analytical techniques to quantify stable elements utilizing radiation, environmental monitoring, radionuclide transport, radioactive waste management and risk assessment. For more information about Clemson's environmental health physics program, contact Tim DeVol at devol@clemson.edu.
Clemson scientists find bacterial genes in insect DNA
Thursday, August 30, 2007A faculty scientist and an international graduate student ambassador from Clemson University are part of a high-profile national team of scientists who discovered that genes from a bacterium can infect an animal and become part of the host's genetic material. Clemson genetics and biochemistry researcher Jeff Tomkins and graduate student Monica Munoz-Torres are part of the national research team. Their research on insects and tiny worms, called nematodes, focuses on lateral gene transfer in which foreign genes are transferred into the DNA of a host. Their discovery is reported in the Aug. 30 edition of Science Express, which provides electronic publication of selected research papers that have recently been accepted for publication in the journal Science. The scientists discovered chains of genes from the bacterium Wolbachia pipientis in insects and nematodes. While there still are many research questions about Wolbachia to be answered, Tomkins speculates that the microbe's ability to potentially alter traits and reproduction of its hosts may one day help control plant and animal pests and encourage beneficial ones. 'Lateral gene transfer is a phenomenon that occurs in nature in which foreign genes, usually from a microbe, are transferred into the DNA of a plant, animal or another microbe,' Tomkins said. 'The occurrence of this happening in animals is considered to be very rare. 'We confirmed the unique occurrence of lateral gene transfer in four insect and four nematode species. Potential Wolbachia to host transfers were also detected computationally in three additional sequenced insect genomes,' said Munoz-Torres. 'Wolbachia lives in the reproductive tract of the host to which the genes have been transferred,' Tomkins said. 'Interestingly, many of the genes that have been transferred are completely functional in the DNA of their new host. It is postulated that this may be a newly discovered method of how higher-level organisms can develop new traits by receiving new genes from various microbial species.' Wolbachia infects as many as 20 percent of all insect species, but research so far has found that the bacteria are temperature-sensitive and will not live in warm-blooded animals. By treating infected insects with antibiotics to remove Wolbachia from its host, researchers also learned that once the DNA is transferred, it becomes a permanent part of the host's genome. For more information on Clemson's graduate programs in Entomology, visit http://entweb.clemson.edu/studentp/degrees/index.htm.
For more information on Clemson's graduate programs in genetics and biochemistry, visit www.clemson.edu/genbiochem/gradprograms.html.
King named psychology department chairman
Thursday, August 30, 2007Bruce King has been named chairman of the department of psychology at Clemson University. King comes to Clemson from the University of New Orleans, where he spent 30 years on brain research and neurosciences. He said a number of factors led to his decision to work at Clemson. “Well, first there was Hurricane Katrina. That storm really impacted enrollment and employment at the University of New Orleans,” King said. “And then there’s Clemson itself. I wanted the opportunity to be a part of a top-notch university that is on the move.” King earned psychology degrees from UCLA and his Ph.D. in biopsychology from the University of Chicago. He is a fellow with the Association for Psychological Science, the American Psychological Association and the International Behavioral Neuroscience Society. His excellence in teaching has earned him the Seraphia D. Leyda University Teaching Fellowship at New Orleans, an honorary membership in the Golden Key National Honor Society and numerous nominations as favorite professor at the University of New Orleans. For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in psychology, visit www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/AppPsych, www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/HFPsych, www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/IOPsych.
Political science professor Hu to join think tank in Taiwan
Monday, August 27, 2007Clemson political science professor Xiaobo Hu will travel to Taiwan in September to join scholars at the Foundation on International and Cross-Strait Studies, a think tank studying foreign-policy issues concerning the United States and China. Since 2000 the relationship between mainland China and Taiwan and that between the United States and Taiwan have gotten more complicated because the Democratic Progress Party won the presidential election in Taiwan. The DPP is in favor of Taiwan's independence from China. “The upcoming presidential election in Taiwan will be held in March 2008, and the real competition has been between the DPP and the KMT, which is the Nationalist Party,” Hu said. “This will be a very important election for either of the parties.” Since the United States supports Taiwan and also wants to maintain a good relationship with mainland China, changes in Taiwan's policy toward the mainland will affect the U.S. policy in East Asia, according to Hu. “Taiwan has been a major issue in the U.S.-China relations,” Hu said. “China regards Taiwan as part of China and seeks reunification with it. The KMT moved the capital of the Republic of China (ROC) from the mainland to Taiwan in 1949 in a civil war against the Communists, therefore beginning the separation between mainland China and Taiwan island. The United States has supported the KMT and ROC in Taiwan since the Cold War and pressured Beijing to renounce military means in its reunification efforts.” Hu has observed Taiwan's elections, both presidential and local, with different delegations on a few occasions, including the 2000 presidential election when the KMT lost for the first time since 1949. He has published articles on Taiwan's electoral culture and Washington-Beijing-Taipei relations, in addition to two co-edited volumes on U.S.-China relations. Hu has been at Clemson since 1999 and conducted research as a National Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and as a Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center. He has covered China and Taiwan for Encyclopedia Britannica yearly review since 2002. For more information about Clemson's graduate program in political science, visit http://business.clemson.edu/polisci/index.htm.
PSA New Generation Graduate Fellowships Available to Support Doctoral Students
Monday, August 27, 2007
Sixty new recruitment fellowships will be awarded in November to doctoral students engaged in research in a wide variety of scientific disciplines as well as family and community living and leadership/entrepreneurship. Individual faculty, departments, centers and institutes are encouraged to request funding through this program. For more information, see www.grad.clemson.edu/fellowships/psanggf.php.
Memory, research of slain graduate student lives on
Thursday, August 23, 2007Clemson University's bioengineering department has started a fund in memory of slain graduate student Michael Zebuhr that will be used to enhance students' biomedical research projects. Mike Zebuhr in the lab at Clemson. Zebuhr was fatally shot March 18, 2006, during a robbery in Minneapolis, where he was visiting family on spring break. He was a PhD student in Clemson's department of bioengineering conducting research on orthopaedic biomechanics. 'Everybody was so shocked by what happened to Mike; it was so senseless,' said Lisa Benson, assistant professor in the department of engineering and science education and Zebuhr’s adviser. 'People were so preoccupied with how he died. I want students to remember who he was and how he lived his life, especially students who never had a chance to meet him.' The goal is to raise $10,000 for the fund, which will be given as grants to undergraduate or graduate students in bioengineering to help with their independent research projects. 'The fund will help students finish the type of work that Mike never got to complete,' said Benson. At the time of his death, Zebuhr was researching sensors that would be placed on the legs of patients recovering from injury or surgery to give feedback on how they walk. The sensors could help a patient track progress in rehabilitation. The sensors also could be used as an educational tool to teach students the mechanics of how the human body moves. Benson said Zebuhr's research continues, as Tripp Mostertz, another graduate student in the program, picked it up after his death. Donations to the fund are tax deductible. Checks can be mailed to the Michael A. Zebuhr Memorial Fund, c/o Clemson University Foundation, PO Box 1889, Clemson, SC 29633. Checks should be made out to the Clemson University Foundation.
USDA renews appointment of Clemson professor to advisory panel
Thursday, August 23, 2007US Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns renewed the appointment of Patricia A. Layton, chairwoman of Clemson’s forestry and natural resources department, to the Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture (AC21). The AC21 was established in February 2003 to provide information and advice to the secretary of agriculture on topics related to the use of biotechnology in agriculture. The committee is charged with examining the long-term impact of biotechnology on the U.S. food and agriculture system and USDA. Members provide guidance to USDA on pressing individual issues, identified by the office of the secretary, related to the application of biotechnology in agriculture. Layton has notable experience in forestry, beginning with her work in tree breeding and improvement. She led the forest policy efforts at Scott Paper Co. and served on several national policy and research committees. Layton helped to develop new forestry and marketing initiatives, including the development of the American Forest & Paper Association’s Sustainable Forestry Initiative Program. She was an international expert on the U.S. delegation that helped to create the international environmental management system standards. More information on the AC21, including consensus reports developed by the committee, can be found at www.usda.gov/wps.
Stewart Speaks to WSJ on Serial Entrepreneurs
Wednesday, August 22, 2007Wayne Stewart, professor of management, recently spoke with the Wall Street Journal about his study of common traits among serial entrepreneurs. Stewart defines serial entrepreneurs as individuals who had owned and operated three or more businesses. According to a study by Stewart and his colleagues, these individuals showed a higher inclination for innovation, risk-taking and achievement. They also displayed less fear of failure and were more capable of rebounding from failed ventures. Read the WSJ article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118712720309797680-email.html Listen to the WSJ Podcast: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118712720309797680-email.html
Clemson Scientists Shed Light on Molecules in Living Cells
Wednesday, August 22, 2007Clemson University chemists have developed a method to dramatically improve the longevity of fluorescent nanoparticles that may someday help researchers track the motion of a single molecule as it travels through a living cell. The chemists are exploiting a process called 'resonance energy transfer,' which occurs when fluorescent dye molecules are added to the nanoparticles. Their findings were reported at the 234th annual national American Chemical Society meeting in Boston.
The key to developing single-molecule tracking technology may be the development of better fluorescent nanoparticles. Fluorescent nanoparticles are thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair and are similar in size to protein molecules, to which they can be attached. When illuminated by a laser beam inside a light microscope equipped with a sensitive digital camera, the nanoparticle attached to a protein will light up, allowing scientists to get a precise fix on the position of the protein and monitor its motion inside a cell.
Until now, nanoparticles have been too dim to detect inside cells, but Clemson chemists have developed a novel type of nanoparticles containing materials called conjugated polymers that light up and stay lit long enough for scientists to string together thousands of images, as in a movie.
Conjugated polymers share many properties with semiconductors like silicon but have the flexibility of plastic. While initial efforts at preparing nanoparticles out of conjugated polymers resulted in particles that were very bright, their brightness quickly faded under the bright glare of a laser beam.
'When a conjugated polymer is in a high energy state, it is vulnerable to attack by oxygen,' says principal investigator and chemist Jason McNeill. 'The dye efficiently removes the energy from the molecule and re-emits the energy as light, which greatly improves the brightness and longevity of the nanoparticles.'
McNeill says other possible targets of investigation include the formation of plaques and fibrils in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease and mad cow disease. Graduate students Changfeng Wu, Craig Szymanski, Jennifer Grimland and Yueli Zheng contributed to the study, which the National Science Foundation funded.
Clemson University chemists presented 40 papers on a wide range of subjects at the society meeting. Other topics include detection and quantification of uranium in groundwater, conversion of lipid feedstocks such as poultry fat to biodiesel and a new mechanism for antioxidants that fight DNA damage.
The Clemson University department of chemistry (http://chemistry.clemson.edu) offers undergraduate and graduate programs. With a tenure/tenure-track faculty of 24, research activities include projects in the traditional sub-disciplines of analytical, inorganic, organic and physical chemistry as well as in a broad range of interdisciplinary and nontraditional areas: polymer and materials chemistry, solid-state chemistry, bioanalytical chemistry, bio-organic and medicinal chemistry, computational chemistry, chemical physics, chemical education and other areas. For more information go to www.clemson.edu.
Holcombes boost gifts to $6 million for electrical and computer engineering
Wednesday, August 22, 2007Milton W. and Betty Holcombe have added $1 million to their support for electrical and computer engineering at Clemson University. That boosts to $6 million their total giving for the Milton W. Holcombe Electrical and Computer Engineering Department (ECE) (www.ece.clemson.edu), the only named department in the College of Engineering and Science. This latest gift establishes the Milton W. and Betty M. Holcombe Fund for Excellence to provide for programs such as undergraduate research for seniors and improved graduate education, visiting lecturers nad faculty and student enrichment.
An airborne communications systems pioneer, Milt Holcombe is originally from Central and now lives in Dallas with his wife, Betty, who grew up in Clemson. His career included development of the airborne command post systems for the Air Force to keep the president in touch with key officials during an international crisis.
He co-founded Electrospace Systems Inc., a multimillion-dollar telecommunications and navigation systems firm, later sold to the Chrysler Corp. Because of the Holcombes’ investment over the last 20 years, Clemson has gained national prominence in the field of electronic communications, and electrical and computer engineering students have gained opportunities that will help them shape the future of communications.
'The generosity of the Holcombes will help us take the department of electrical and computer engineering to an even higher level,' said newly appointed ECE department chairman Darren Dawson. 'We plan to establish several new programs to ensure that we maintain our best and brightest students and faculty.'
'This is truly an endorsement of the electrical and computer engineering department,' said engineering and science Dean Esin Gulari. 'This is the fuel that will get the word out about the high-quality research and propel the department’s excellent reputation even further.'
In addition to longtime support of Clemson through annual giving and volunteer service, the Holcombes created the Milton W. and Betty Holcombe Chair in Electrical and Computer Engineering in 1987 with a $1 million cash gift. Their support attracted to Clemson Michael Pursley, a world-class communications research scientist, who holds the chair.
Clemson Student Rings Opening Bell on NYSE
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
On August 21 Clemson economics alumni Kurt Rotthoff rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, signaling the start of trading. Rotthoff earned his Ph.D. in Applied Economics in May of this year, writing his dissertation under the supervision of Economics Professor Michael Maloney. This month he begins an appointment as Assistant Professor of Finance at Seton Hall University. While at Clemson, Rotthoff worked as a graduate instructor for the John E. Walker Department of Economics, and as a volunteer coach for the Clemson swim team. Earlier this summer, he served on the teaching staff of the American Institute on Political and Economic Systems, at Charles University in Prague. The bell-ringing ceremony stems from Rotthoff’s participation in the NYSE Euronext Teachers Workshop Program, a five day program which provides educators with an enriched understanding of capital markets and institutions, in order to strengthen the teaching of courses on financial markets. For more information about Clemson's graduate program in economics, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Econ/
Clemson Chemists Find New Ways Antioxidants Fight Disease
Monday, August 20, 2007A team of Clemson University chemists has found a new mechanism for antioxidant activity: the antioxidants bind to naturally present iron and copper in the body to prevent formation of reactive oxygen compounds that damage DNA. The scientists presented the results of their research at the 234th annual American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston Aug. 19-24.
Cancer, cardiovascular diseases, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s often are linked to DNA damage that occurs when metal ions in the body such as iron and copper produce reactive oxygen compounds that damage human cells. Studies have shown antioxidants that neutralize this activity and that occur naturally in fruits, vegetables, green tea, garlic and onions can be effective at preventing DNA damage.
“Our studies have shown that antioxidants even at low concentrations found in these foods bind to iron and copper and prevent DNA damage,” said lead investigator and chemist Julia Brumaghim. “This goes a long way in understanding how antioxidant supplements might help treat or even prevent these debilitating illnesses.”
The group is now testing its findings in bacterial cells and will test human cells next. Clemson graduate students on the project include Erin E. Battin, Nathan R. Perron and Ria R. Ramoutar. Research is funded through a grant from the American Heart Association.
Clemson University chemists are presenting 40 papers at the society meeting on a wide range of subjects. Other topics include detection and quantification of uranium in groundwater, conversion of lipid feedstocks such as poultry fat to biodiesel and fluorescent nanoparticles that may someday help scientists track a single molecule.
For more information about Clemson's graduate programs in chemistry, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Chemistry/
Getty Foundation Grant Will Develop Clemson Heritage Preservation Plan
Monday, August 20, 2007
Clemson University was awarded a $160,000 Campus Heritage grant from the Getty Foundation to develop a heritage preservation plan for the campus. The grant will support a project to maintain Clemson's historic architectural, landscape and spatial assets, and to educate and train the people of Clemson University in the best ways to protect and maintain them. Goals of the project include developing a comprehensive inventory of campus historic resources, The Class of '39 Bell Monument is in the Carillon Garden.producing a National Register eligibility assessment, and creating a campus stewardship strategy that involves the campus and community. John Milner Associates of Charlottesville, Va., has been hired to develop the preservation master plan. 'One of the primary goals of this project is to provide a variety of education options to students interested in historic preservation and related fields such as architecture, landscape architecture, history, geography, archaeology and engineering,' says Cari Goetcheus, an assistant professor of landscape architecture at Clemson. Goetcheus shares project supervisor duties with Dan Nadenicek, chairman of Clemson’s department of landscape architecture. 'Students will have the opportunity to participate in hands-on research, field work, research projects and independent studies allowing them to learn about preservation planning, techniques, approaches and interpretation,' Goetcheus said. Since 2002, through its Campus Heritage Initiative, the Getty Foundation has awarded grants to 86 colleges and universities for preservation planning, as well as funding surveys of hundreds of small liberal arts colleges. These grants have played a catalytic role in helping institutions of higher education understand the significance of the historic resources on their campuses and plan for their long-term preservation. The current round of grants represents the final year of the initiative. 'American colleges and universities are frequently unique repositories of some of the country’s finest historic architecture and designed landscapes,' says Deborah Marrow, director of the Getty Foundation. 'While other buildings may have had a variety of owners and uses over the years, campus buildings have for the most part remained under the same stewardship, which presents wonderful opportunities for preservation and education.' For more information about Clemson's graduate program in landscape architecture, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/LandArch/. For more information about the graduate program in historic preservation, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/HistPres/. For more information about the graduate program in architecture, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Arch/.
Professional Development Opportunity for Earth Systems Science Students
Monday, August 20, 2007The NSF- and NASA-funded initiative, Minorities Striving and Pursuing Higher Degrees of Success in Earth System Science Professional Development program (MS PHD'S PDP) is selecting its fifth cohort. This MS PHD’S PDP provides professional development experiences to facilitate the advancement of underrepresented undergraduate and graduate minority students committed to achieving outstanding Earth system science careers. To date, 78 students, enrolled in various academic institutions across the US, have participated in MS PHD’S activities. Shortly, the process of selecting 25 additional students to become members of the 2007-2008 MS PHD'S PDP participant cohort will begin. The successful MS PHD'S PDP applicants will engage in a series of science exposure, professional development and virtual community building activities that include participation in two professional society meetings, web-based discussions and workshops and a capstone event hosted by renowned professional organizations in the field. Participants also receive fellowship funds to complement their professional development. Phase I: December 8-14, 2007 (Location: San Francisco, CA) Phase II: Spring-Fall, 2008 (Location: Specific to each organization) During phase II, students attend discipline-specific professional meetings and conferences aligned with their interests. These meetings are hosted by MS PHD’S PDP organizational partners: AGU, American Meteorological Society, American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, National Association of Black Geologist and Geophysicists, Joint Oceanographic Institutions, Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, Ocean Carbon and Biogeochemistry program, the Oceanography Society and the On the Cutting Edge Professional Development for Geoscience Faculty program. Phase III: Spring, 2009 (Location: Washington, DC area) This final, capstone event includes visits to several federal agencies including NSF, NASA, EPA and NOAA and is hosted by the National Academies. MS PHD’S participants extend actual (face-to-face) Phase I, II and III experience through virtual interaction. The MS PHD’S PDP uses a list-serve, an online community forum and webcam discourse to sustain mentorship and a sense of community.
This professional development program will take part in three phases:
This portion will occur in conjunction with the 2007 Fall American Geophysical Union meeting. Professional organizations represented will be the AGU, California Academy of Science and Aquarium of the Bay.
If you would like to apply for the MS PHD’S PDP 2007-2008 cohort, mentor and student participant applications are available at www.msphds.usf.edu. All qualified and interested individuals should submit their completed forms by September 10, 2007.
Clemson Ranked 27th in Nation by US News
Monday, August 20, 2007Clemson University continues its climb among the nation's best public, doctoral-granting institutions by placing 27th in the annual ranking by U.S.News & World Report. This is the university's highest ranking to date. Last year, Clemson was ranked 30th among the 164 institutions in the category. 'I'm very excited about the number 27, but I'm more encouraged by what's behind that number. We're seeing improvement in areas that directly impact faculty and students - smaller classes, lower student-to-faculty ratios and continued strong retention and graduation rates,' Barker said. 'We've always said that if we do the right things, if we make good decisions, if we're strategic about resource allocation and if we constantly focus on academic quality, the rankings would take care of themselves. Today, I'm happy to report that our plan is working.' U.S.News & World Report rankings are based on statistical measures, such as student SAT scores, graduation rates and faculty salaries, as well as a subjective measure of academic reputation. The list of public doctoral-granting institutions ranks universities across the country that offer a wide range of undergraduate majors as well as master and doctoral degrees. The rankings appear in the magazine's Aug. 27 issue and are available online at http://www.usnews.com/colleges.
University President James F. Barker said the goal to become a top 20 institution has never been about impressing magazine readers.
American Chemical Society Recognizes Clemson Professor
Monday, August 20, 2007The American Chemical Society (ACS) will present Clemson University associate professor of chemistry Dev Arya the Horace S. Isbell Award for outstanding contributions to the field of carbohydrate chemistry at its 234th annual meeting in Boston Aug. 19-24. The award recognizes carbohydrate scientists under the age of 41 who have demonstrated excellence in the field and who show promise of making high-quality contributions to carbohydrate chemistry and biochemistry. Arya’s research involves the chemistry and biochemistry of amino sugars and new pathways for molecular recognition of nucleic acids. His work opens up genetic targets for the development of new antibiotics that will be greatly needed in this century. Arya joined Clemson in 1999. He earned a Ph.D. from Northeastern University, Boston, and completed a post-doctorate degree at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Clemson University chemists are presenting 40 papers at the ACS meeting. Topics include detection and quantification of uranium in groundwater, conversion of lipid feedstocks such as poultry fat to bio-diesel and fluorescent nanoparticles that may someday help scientists track molecules. The Clemson University department of chemistry offers undergraduate and graduate programs. With a tenure/tenure-track faculty of 24, research activities include projects in the traditional sub-disciplines of analytical, inorganic, organic and physical chemistry as well as in a broad range of interdisciplinary and nontraditional areas: polymer and materials chemistry, solid-state chemistry, bioanalytical chemistry, bio-organic and medicinal chemistry, computational chemistry, chemical physics, chemical education and other areas. For more information go to http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Chemistry/.
Clemson Gains Direct Access to National LambdaRail, Internet2 and Other Research Networks
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Clemson University has closed the cyber gap in South Carolina by joining the national high-speed research community through direct fiber connections between Clemson, Greenville, Atlanta and Charlotte, providing direct access to the National LambdaRail, Internet2 and other national and international research networks. The network, known as C-Light, was developed using private donations and gifted fiber with no burden to the taxpayers of South Carolina. This cooperative effort now provides Clemson researchers and faculty with leading-edge capabilities using direct fiber connectivity to high-capacity networks and resources that will enable research, academic and economic advancements and opportunities that were previously out of reach for Clemson and the Upstate. C-Light specifically provides faculty with the infrastructure they need to collaborate with colleagues and access resources nationally and internationally and ensures the capability to apply for major research grants from funding agencies like the National Science Foundation. 'Clemson’s capacity for data transmission has increased from the equivalent of a footpath in the forest to a 16-lane superhighway,' said Jim Bottum, chief information officer at Clemson. 'In the past, Clemson was limited to 'commodity' connectivity which prohibited us from participating in national initiatives like the TeraGrid and the National LambdaRail. In essence, we lacked the 'toll' to get onto the national research superhighway; so, for Clemson to advance toward its goals, C-Light had to happen.' The fiber network that now connects Clemson, Greenville and Charlotte to the Atlanta regional hub also includes Clemson’s new campus in Greenville, the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research or CU-ICAR. James Leylek, director of the Clemson University Center for Computational Mobility Systems, said that in the past he was forced to ship data from CU-ICAR to research partners by regular 'snail mail' because of network limitations. 'The world of high-performance computing offers unlimited opportunities for researchers needing to get data and information quickly,' said Leylek. 'C-Light is a tremendous boost to productivity.' Because C-Light is a strategic alliance between Clemson University and Charter Business, the benefits of high-speed connectivity are not limited to the university. Industry and businesses that need this kind of connectivity will be attracted to Upstate South Carolina because through research collaborations with Clemson they will be able to gain access to the network, bringing significant economic growth potential to the Upstate. C-Light also will provide an important building block for the South Carolina Light Rail, for which the state legislature recently appropriated one-time funding to acquire fiber to connect the three South Carolina research universities. Clemson also is building a Network Operations Center (NOC) as part of an $8 million campus network upgrade that could be utilized as a foundational piece of the South Carolina Light Rail. One of the most innovative features of C-Light is the fact that Clemson connected to the national infrastructure without burdening the state budget. The fiber and equipment were donated and the entire venture is a cooperative effort between Clemson and Charter Business.
Chemistry Student Awarded Research Incentive
Wednesday, August 08, 2007Dahlia Haynes, a fifth-year doctoral student in chemistry, was recently selected for the first-annual Department of Chemistry Graduate Student Research Incentive award which includes a citation and a $1,000 award to use to further her research. This research incentive award aims to recognize the 'most successful and productive student researchers in the chemistry department.' Under the direction of her advisor, Dr. Dennis Smith, Dahliah is researching the development of novel renewable resource materials for commodity applications. She said, 'A lot of my work has coincided with the Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films’s (CAEFF) strategic plan. My project area allows me to fabricate a variety of fiber and film renewable based materials that complement the CAEFF’s goal. I also have worked, hands-on, with a variety of CAEFF's outreach programs in addition to serving as a past student leadership council president for the center.' Her latest project focal points will allow for much more integration with the Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies (COMSET) as well. Dahliah has found a lot of growing potential between what she is focusing on now and COMSET's plan; this will likely result in her working more closely on related COMSET projects. For more information about Clemson University’s graduate programs in chemistry, please visit http://chemistry.clemson.edu/graduate/index.htm
Wen Awarded $1.6 Million for Spinal Cord Research
Monday, August 06, 2007Assistant Professor Xuejun Wen will use a $1.6-million grant to pursue an innovative way to ease the disability and pain experienced by 200,000 Americans. Each year, 11,000 Americans suffer spinal cord injuries or other central nervous system (CNS) disabilities that can be permanent and paralyzing. Current treatments fall short of sparking a robust regenerative process that leads to a decent degree of functional recovery. Wen wants to change that situation. He will use his five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) for research in tissue engineering aimed at spinal cord regeneration. “We’ve observed the promise of tissue regenerating itself,” said Wen. “This has potential for use in repairing acute and chronic damage, such as in spinal cord injuries or in diseases such as Parkinson’s.” Wen proposes to awaken the ability of spinal cord nerve bundles to regenerate through a controlled environment created by an implantable bridging device. By mimicking the spinal cord, using biomaterials and scaffolds along with therapeutic agents loaded in nanostructured biomaterials, scar formation at the lesion site will be inhibited and nerve bundle growth will be promoted. Wen is a faculty member in the Clemson bioengineering department and works in Charleston in the Clemson University-Medical University of South Carolina (CU-MUSC) bioengineering program. Previously, he has looked at ways to manipulate the microenvironment of the brain to improve the long-term life of transplanted healthy, human dopamine-producing neurons to treat Parkinson’s disease. His past research has led to international recognition and funding from such organizations as the Michael J. Fox Foundation. For information about the graduate bioengineering program, visit morehttp://www.ces.clemson.edu/bio/
Curry Foundation Grant Allows CU Physics Students to Study Deep Space
Monday, August 06, 2007Clemson University astrophysics students will continue their first-hand look into deep space with a Curry Foundation grant for $100,000 that allows for extended time on the Kitt Peak National Observatory’s four-meter Mayall telescope in Arizona. The amount is the second installment that provides for approximately one-third the $290,000 cost for 33 nights on the telescope during the second year of a three-year agreement made through the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), which is funded through the National Science Foundation (NSF). It also allows Clemson to trade its Mayall four-meter time for access to other telescopes in the U.S. system around the world. “Charles Curry and his generosity have opened many Clemson student and faculty eyes to the mysteries of deep space,” said associate professor Jeremy King, who along with other faculty have taken students on regular trips to Kitt Peak. “These collections of telescopes are among the best in the world and offer a chance in a lifetime observing opportunity for our aspiring Clemson student astronomers. It also gives them an edge in a competitive job market.” A group of Clemson students and faculty travel to Kitt Peak July 18-25 to study the formation of stars and the chemical evolution of the very early universe, among other things. They’ve also used their time to study gamma-ray bursts, supernovae and planet formation in deep space, where distances are measured in light years. Through the Seneca-based Curry Foundation, more than $300,000 has been donated to the astrophysics program at Clemson since 2001. In addition, Charles Curry has endowed three fellowships for outstanding graduate student researchers in astrophysics over the past three years. The Clemson University physics and astronomy department is an undergraduate, graduate and post-doctorate program with 26 faculty members. For more information about the graduate program in physics and astronomy, see http://physicsnt.clemson.edu.
Clemson, Dale Earnhardt Inc. Form Innovation Partnership
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) Tuesday became Clemson University’s first Motorsports Innovation Partner, providing the company preferred access to faculty, students, facilities and equipment related to motorsports and automotive research. DEI Chief Executive Officer Teresa Earnhardt and Clemson University President James F. Barker signed a memorandum of understanding to create the formal research and higher education partnership. Initially, the unique partnership will be driven by proprietary motorsports engineering research projects involving Clemson University faculty, researchers and graduate students, along with the funding of student scholarships and internship opportunities. The Dale Earnhardt Foundation will fund an annual undergraduate scholarship honoring the memory of Dale Earnhardt Sr. for students interested in motorsports and automotive engineering. Clemson officials have selected William Howard Bostic III of Sissonville, West Virginia, as the first recipient of the Dale Earnhardt Motorsports Scholarship. Bostic is a rising senior majoring in mechanical engineering. (See related story.) The Dale Earnhardt Foundation will provide $13,000 annually for a total minimum pledge of $39,000 to establish a three-year undergraduate scholarship for a student in the College of Engineering and Science. In addition, students selected to receive the scholarship will be eligible for internships with DEI. Teresa Earnhardt said the relationship with Clemson is in keeping with the missions of both DEI and the Dale Earnhardt Foundation to foster education and to assure that the company and the motorsports industry will benefit from highly motivated, technically competent leaders and employees in the future. 'The work to create the relationship that formally begins today started more than a year and a half ago,' said Earnhardt. 'That investment in time and effort has produced a partnership with unlimited potential. 'In Clemson’s International Center for Automotive Research, we have the resources of a world-class institution with the capability and commitment to help us develop technical innovations that will continue the winning tradition of Dale Earnhardt Inc.' She said, 'I have no doubt that the work of Clemson University and Dale Earnhardt Inc. will produce remarkable results and years from now will be considered the model for how a racing organization and a research university can collaborate for the sake of progress. 'The partnership also provides a great match for the mission of The Dale Earnhardt Foundation. The Dale Earnhardt Motorsports Scholarship will support the education of deserving students and it will be these motivated, talented individuals who will continue the legend.' Clemson is recognized as a leader in motorsports and automotive engineering education. Its undergraduate program in mechanical engineering offers students real-world experiences through a competitive curriculum augmented by a cooperative education and internship program. Students also can compete in two automotive design projects: SAE Mini-Baja and Formula SAE through the Society of Automotive Engineers. The Carroll A. Campbell Jr. Graduate Engineering Center at the CU-ICAR campus in Greenville, S.C., offers the nation’s only master’s and doctoral graduate degree programs in automotive engineering and unique research and testing resources. Barker emphasized the value to the university and its students in partnering with one of the motorsports industry’s leading organizations. 'This partnership with DEI supports the avcademic focus of Clemson University to be a leader in automotive and motorsports education,' he said. 'This is also a great opportunity for Clemson to learn from a key leader in the motorsports industry. It is critical that we foster relationships with the companies that will employ the engineers of the future. Our students and faculty will gain immeasurable benefits from association with this world-class motorsports organization. 'We welcome Dale Earnhardt Inc. to the Clemson family and expect this to be just the beginning of a long and mutually beneficial relationship,' Barker added.
Department of Defense Awards Clemson $1.6 Million for Biochip Research
Monday, July 30, 2007The Department of Defense has awarded $1.6 million to the Center for Bioelectronics, Biosensors and Biochips (C3B) at Clemson University for the development of an implantable biochip that could relay vital health information if a soldier is wounded in battle or a civilian is hurt in an accident. The biochip, about the size of a grain of rice, Implantable biochip, about the size of a grain of rice.could measure and relay such information as lactate and glucose levels in the event of a major hemorrhage, whether on the battlefield, at home or on the highway. Anthony Guiseppi-Elie, C3B director and Dow Chemical Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and professor of bioengineering says first responders to the trauma scene could inject the biochip into the wounded victim and gather data almost immediately. The device has other long-term potential applications, such as monitoring astronauts’ vital signs during long-duration space flights and reading blood-sugar levels for diabetics. 'We now lose a large percentage of patients to bleeding, and getting vital information such as how much oxygen is in the tissue back to ER physicians and medical personnel can often mean the difference between life and death,' said Guiseppi-Elie. 'Our goal is to improve the quality and expediency of care for fallen soldiers and civilian trauma victims.' The biochip also may be injected as a precaution to future traumas, he adds. Clemson scientists have formulated a gel that mimics human tissue and reduces the chances of the body rejecting the biochip, which has been a problem in the past. The researcher predicts the biochip is five years away from human trials. The award is funded by the Department of Defense through the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program and is a joint study with the department of molecular pathology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Telesensors Inc. in Knoxville, Tenn. The Center for Bioelectronics, Biosensors and Biochips ( http://www.clemson.edu/c3b/ ), located in the Clemson University Advanced Materials Center, operates cooperatively with industry in molecular bioanalytics and biometrology research. The center focuses on the development of platform technologies that are of mutual interest to the industrial consortium members and faculty while providing education and training for science-, technology-, engineering- and mathematics-oriented high school students, science teachers, undergraduates, graduate students and post-doctoral trainees. To learn more about Clemson’s graduate program in bioengineering, visit http://www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Bioeng/ .
COMSET Graduate Fellows Program
Friday, July 27, 2007
The Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies (COMSET) and the Graduate School announces the COMSET Graduate Fellows Program. COMSET expects to provide up to $50,000 this year in stipend supplements to attract and retain nation-best graduate students to come to Clemson and work with COMSET affiliated faculty. The supplements will be valued up to $10,000 per year above an existing stipend. Students must be pursuing the PhD and continuation will be reviewed annually. COMSET Graduate Fellowships must be associated with a GA and assistantship differential from some other source, and may be combined with other fellowships. Proposals will be considered from ANY and ALL Clemson faculty with the intent to assist Clemson in attaining its Top-20 goal by supporting COMSET in its vision to be the internationally recognized academic leader in optical materials. Students supported through this program will be called COMSET Graduate Fellows and will be expected to participate in selected educational and out-reach activities, including Clemson’s Optical Society of America (OSA) student chapter. Proposal Format, Content, and Related Details: 1 A one-page proposal that provides a brief description of the research to be conducted, the advisor(s), and academic department(s). 2 Value and source of the base stipend and assistantship differential. The base stipend must be at least $15,000 to qualify for this program. Preference will be given to applications in which the assistantship differential is provided by an external funding source. 3 Resume of the student along with a statement of their professional goals. 4 Amount of supplement and period of support being proposed ($10,000 maximum each year; re-assessed annually). Submission and Selection Details: All proposals should be submitted electronically to Prof. Dennis Smith, COMSET Associate Director, by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, September 28, 2007; email: dwsmith@clemson.edu Any questions should be forwarded to Dr. Smith as well. Selection will be based on the following priorities: 1 Graduate students whose dissertation is inter-disciplinary. Co-advisement across departments is encouraged. 2 Overarching scientific merit and qualifications of the student. 3 Faculty’s past or present participation in COMSET as exemplified by sponsored programs through COMSET, affiliations on publications, and involvement in out-reach activities. COMSET Research Infrastructure Fund The Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies (COMSET) announces an internal request for proposals to purchase equipment. For the present fiscal year, COMSET has budgeted approximately $300,000 for this infrastructural investment program. Proposals will be considered from ANY and ALL Clemson faculty and staff with the intent to assist Clemson in attaining its Top-20 goal by supporting COMSET in its vision to be the internationally recognized academic leader in optical materials. Proposal Format and Content: Submit a two-page proposal that addresses the following: 1 Description of the instrumentation and justification of the need. 2 List of the faculty (and departments) that would benefit from the proposed instrumentation. 3 Brief description, including funding level and award duration, of any existing sponsored programs that would benefit from this equipment. 4 Brief description of how this equipment will assist the PI in securing future funding through COMSET if this equipment proposal is awarded. 5 Description of similar equipment/facilities on campus and, if so, why is this request justified. 6 Detailed budget for total equipment costs plus a current price quote. 7 Cost share is required. Amount of the cost-share should be described and signed documentation provided from the source. This documentation does not count against the page limit. 8 Expected location of proposed instrumentation and plan for maintenance and up-keep; i.e., if COMSET invests in equipment, how does the PI ensure the equipment operates properly and is available for others to use. Submission and Other Details: 1 All proposals should be submitted electronically to Prof. Steve Foulger, COMSET Associate Director, by 4:30PM on Friday, September 28, 2007; email: foulger@clemson.edu 2 Proposal Processing Forms are not required. 3 Funds must be expended by June 1, 2008. Selection will be based on the following priorities: 1 Instrumentation that supports multiple faculty and departments. 2 Does this proposed instrumentation measurably increase COMSET competitiveness and support the training of students? 3 Does the equipment replace obsolete but essential equipment? 4 Faculty’s past or present participation in COMSET as exemplified by sponsored programs through COMSET, affiliations on publications, and involvement in out-reach activities.
NSF Fellowship Application Seminars Now Offered for Credit
Wednesday, July 25, 2007The Graduate School's seminar series on writing competitive fellowship applications is now being offered for one credit hour. Of the fifteen students who participated in the seminar series last year, three were awarded fellowships -- an impressive success rate (the overall national rate of acceptances to applications is 1:10; when the large number of awards that go to students at the top 2 or 3 universities in the nation is factored in, the rate for the rest of the nation approximately 1:50). The seminar series will consist of three sessions during which student will learn everything they need to know to write competitive fellowship applications. The seminars are three distinct sessions, not the same presentation offered three times. The seminars will cover the basics (eligibility, NSF's Fastlane system, deadlines, etc.) and most importantly, students will learn what is expected in the three essays (personal, prior experiences, proposed research). Students will have the opportunity to write their essays and receive one-on-one comments and editing assistance. The seminar will give students a structured timeframe in which to complete your applications. It will also help you develop essential grant proposal writing skills. The series is being offered twice: once during the day (from 9:00 a.m. until noon on August 29, September 19 and October 10 in the Student Senate Chambers) and once during the evening (from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. on the same dates in 132 Fluor Daniel). The series will be conducted by Valorie Troesch, Assistant Dean of the Graduate School. Troesch has extensive experience working with graduate students who have submitted successful NSF GRF applications. Seminar speakers will include faculty who have served as GRF reviewers and Clemson graduate students who have been awarded the NSF GRF. To be eligible to apply for the NSF GRF, graduate students must not have completed more than 12 months of full-time graduate study. This means that first year graduate students are eligible. In addition, a student can complete 2 academic semesters of graduate study and summer school and still be eligible during the second year of graduate school. Nearly all fields of study are eligible: Life Sciences, Psychology, Mathematical Sciences, Social Sciences, Chemistry, Physics & Astronomy, Engineering, Computer and Information Science & Engineering, and Geosciences. If you have questions, please direct them to Valorie Troesch at vtroesc@clemson.edu.
Dawson to Head ECE Department
Wednesday, July 25, 2007Darren M. Dawson, McQueen Quattlebaum Professor in the Holcombe Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has been named department chair, effective Aug. 15. A member of Clemson’s College of Engineering and Science faculty since 1990, he presently leads the robotics and mechatronics laboratory. Dawson received a B.S. in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1984. He then worked for Westinghouse as a control engineer. He returned to the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering in 1990. “Darren Dawson brings a unique skill set to the department. His industrial experience, combined with his outstanding research contributions, gives him a unique perspective,” said Esin Gulari, dean of the College of Engineering and Science. Research interests include nonlinear control techniques for mechatronic systems, such as electric machinery, robotic manipulator systems, overhead cranes, magnetic bearings, vision-based systems, mobile platforms (underwater vehicles, surface ships, satellites, aircraft, etc.) and mechanical friction. Dawson has authored or co-authored one graduate textbook, five research monographs, four book chapters and more than 165 journal papers. He has directed 29 Ph.D. dissertations and 51 master's theses. Dawson has received a number of national and university awards for his work, including the Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award (1994), the National Science Foundation Young Investigator Award (1994), the McQueen-Quattlebaum Faculty Achievement Award (1994), the Georgia Institute of Technology Council of Outstanding Young Engineering Alumni Award (1995), the Sigma Xi Excellence in Research Award (1995), the Clemson University Alumni Award for Outstanding Achievement in Research (1997), the Centennial Professorship (2000), and the Murray Stokely Award for Excellence in Teaching (2003). In the spring of 2007, Dawson was an inaugural co-recipient of the college’s Collaboration Award, which recognizes a team of two or more faculty that has demonstrated exemplary and synergistic collaboration in research or teaching and has made notable contributions to the college. He was recognized for his efforts in the area of nanomaterials and mechatronic-based nanomanufacturing.
PRTM Grad Named Presidential Management Fellow
Tuesday, July 24, 2007Lisa Machnik, who earned her Ph.D. in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management this spring from Clemson, has been appointed a Fellow in the Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Program and will begin her 2-year service as a Fellow with the U.S. Forest Service in August. Machnik was nominated by Clemson University for this appointment and completed a competitive application and assessment process. The purpose of the PMF Program is to attract to the Federal service outstanding men and women from a variety of academic disciplines and career paths who have a clear interest in, and commitment to, excellence in the leadership and management of public policies and programs. Fellows can serve in a number of federal agencies. They receive a minimum 2-year appointment and are hired in at the appropriate grade for the position in which the Fellow will serve. The PMF Program is open to graduate students from all academic disciplines who expect to complete an advanced degree (master's, law, or doctoral-level degree) from a qualifying college or university during the current academic year. Interested students must be nominated by their schools and their nominations must demonstrate their breadth and quality of accomplishments, their capacity for leadership, and a commitment to excellence in the leadership and management of public policies and programs. Clemson encourages its graduate students to seek fellowship opportunities such as the PMF Program. Students who receive their graduate degrees between September 1, 2007 through August 31, 2008, may apply for the next PMF Program competition to be held in September through October 2007 for the PMF Class of 2008. Individual help and incentives are also available from the Graduate School; for more information, email Assistant Dean Valorie Troesch.
Doctoral Students in Psych Awarded Prestigious National Fellowships
Tuesday, July 24, 2007Two doctoral students in the human factors psychology program and one in the industrial/organizational psychology program have been awarded prestigious national fellowships. Kristin Moore (human factors psychology) was awarded the Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Mathematics, And Research for Transformation (SMART) Defense Scholarship administered by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). SMART scholarships are awarded to students who have demonstrated ability and special aptitude for training and education in science, technology, engineering & mathematics (STEM). The scholarship includes a yearly stipend of $38,000, full tuition and related education fees, health insurance, a book allowance of $1,000, paid summer internships and career opportunities after graduation. Jenna Scisco (human factors psychology) is the recipient of the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship. The NDSEG Fellowship is sponsored and funded by the Department of Defense. Scisco's application was selected by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research from more than 3,400 applications that were received. The NDSEG Fellowship covers tuition and required fees for three years and provides a yearly stipend of approximately $31,000. Laurie Wasko (industrial-organziational psychology) was awrded the first Joyce and Thayer Fellowship in I-O psychology. The Joyce and Thayer Fellowship is designed to provide financial support to a single outstanding doctoral student in I-O psychology who is specializing in training and development and/or selection and placement. The fellowship provides an annual award of $10,000 (from start of academic year through the following summer). In addition, Laurie's selection was recognized during the plenary session at the SIOP annual conference in New York City.
Leadership Clemson to Host Area Businesses in Spelling Bee
Monday, July 23, 2007The First Annual Clemson Area Spelling Bee will be held July 24 at 7 p.m. in the Tillman Hall Auditorium on the Clemson University campus. Proceeds from the bee will benefit Helping Hands of Clemson, a nonprofit emergency shelter for abused and neglected children. Door prizes from area businesses will be given away throughout the evening. The event is hosted by the Leadership Clemson Class of 2007 in partnership with The Daily Messenger/Journal and the College of Business and Behavioral Science at Clemson University. A number of Clemson University faculty, staff and students have signed on to support the event. Prior to the spelling bee, the Clemson Area Chamber of Commerce's Business After Hours will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Tillman Hall Lobby. During this networking event, the Leadership Clemson Class of 2007 will be hosting a silent auction with proceeds going to Helping Hands, and members of Clemson Corps will be offering tours of the historic Military Heritage Plaza surrounding Tillman Hall. Tickets are $5 for adults and $2 for students (with I.D.). The public can purchase tickets at Allen's Creations (400 College Ave. in Clemson) or by calling Meredith McTigue at (864) 656-3747. Tickets will also be available at the door. For more information on the First Annual Clemson Area Spelling Bee, contact Amanda Brock via email at brock4@clemson.edu or by phone at (864) 656-5970. About Leadership Clemson Clemson University participants in the Leadership Clemson Class of 2007 include Dana Anderson (Alumni Relations), Amanda Brock (College of Business and Behavioral Science), Meredith McTigue (College of Business and Behavioral Science), Lisa Powers (Student Affairs) and Geary Robinson (Parking Services).
Leadership Clemson is a leadership development program open to Clemson area citizens. The program encourages individual involvement in leadership roles within the community. Whether you are an existing leader, an emerging leader, or even a newcomer to the city, this program will provide you with a bird's-eye view of what our community is facing. You will also better understand how our community works, be provided with the tools necessary to continue to find ways to enhance our community, and build your leadership skills.
History Division of NASA Seeks Graduate Interns
Monday, July 23, 2007The NASA History Division is seeking graduate students for fall 2007 internships. The History Division maintains archival materials to answer research questions from NASA personnel, journalists, scholars, students at all levels, and others from around the world. The Division also edits and publishes several books and monographs each year and maintains a large number of Web sites on NASA history. Students of all majors are welcome to apply. While detailed prior knowledge of the aeronautics and space fields is not necessary, a keen interest and some basic familiarity with these topics are needed. Strong research, writing, and editing skills are essential. Experience with computers, especially HTML formatting, is a plus. Intern projects are flexible. Typical projects include handling a wide variety of information requests, editing historical manuscripts, doing research and writing biographical sketches, updating and creating Web pages, and identifying and captioning photos. The deadline for fall applications is Aug. 15, 2007. For more information, visit: http://history.nasa.gov/interncall.htm If you have any questions about the program, please contact Ted Bateman, bateman@clemson.edu, who has volunteered to talk with interested individuals from Clemson.
Doctoral Candidate Awarded NSF Grant
Wednesday, July 11, 2007Doctoral candidate Gabe Rivera has been awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation to support a symposium that he is organizing for the annual meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology in San Antonio, Texas on January 2-6, 2008. The symposium, originally proposed by Mr. Rivera and his advisor, Dr. Rick Blob (Biological Sciences), was chosen by the society from a number of submitted symposia topics. This symposium entitled 'Going with the Flow: Ecomorphological Variation across Aquatic Flow Regimes' will feature 11 invited speakers in the field of functional morphology. Papers from this symposium will be published in the journal Integrative and Comparative Biology.
Translational Bioengineering Research Center planned in Greenville
Friday, July 06, 2007Clemson's board of trustees today reaffirmed the creation of a bioengineering
facility to develop medical technology that will help people live longer and
more comfortably. The Translational Bioengineering Research Center will be located in a
building under construction at the Greenville Hospital System's Patewood Campus.
As many as 50 Clemson scientists and engineers will work with GHS doctors,
nurses and business researchers at the center to develop new medical
technology. Clemson, the Greenville Hospital System and the Orthopedic Research
Foundation of the Carolinas, representing the Steadman-Hawkins Clinic of the
Carolinas, are the core partners in the center. Several corporate partners have
initially invested more than $5 million in the project. They are Smith and
Nephew, a United Kingdom company; Ziehm Imaging, a German-based company; Agfa
Healthcare of Greenville; and Virturad of Phoenix, Ariz. The University will lease space for 15 years at the center to develop
orthopedic and cardiovascular devices, enhance methods of rehabilitation and
performance and analyze trauma data. The center also will house incubator space
for spin-off companies. The trustees approved an agreement for Clemson to pay the maintenance costs
for the center, which it will get from research grants and contracts. The
University has requested $3.5 million from the Research University
Infrastructure Act to upfit the facility. The request has been approved by the
Joint Bond Review Committee but still requires final approval by the Budget and
Control Board. For information about Clemson's graduate program in Bioengineering, visit www.ces.clemson.edu/bio/grad/grad-degrees.html
or contact Dr. Robert Latour at 864-656-5552 or latourr@clemson.edu.
Earn a Master's Degree with Peace Corps Service
Friday, July 06, 2007
The Graduate School is pleased to announce that our students can now take
part in the Peace Corps Master's International (PCMI) program. The PCMI program
is a cooperative effort between Clemson University and the Peace Corps in which
PCMI students complete approximately one year of intensive on-campus study in
one of three major programs, then serve for 27 months in the Peace Corps in an
assignment related to the student's academic program. The Master's International Program provides a tremendous opportunity for
Americans to serve while gaining graduate-level credit,' said Peace Corps
Director Ron Tschetter. 'We are pleased to begin our partnership with Clemson
University, a university with a proud tradition of volunteerism.' The program's intended audience is comprised of recent college graduates who
have a strong desire to pursue an international career but would like additional
academic training before going abroad and students who have graduated from
college, have been in the workforce some time and now wish to obtain a master's
degree and work overseas. Students pursuing advanced degrees in agricultural education, agriculture and
applied economics, and forestry resources are eligible to participate in this
program and have access to many benefits, including the following: 'Our Master's International Program is a cornerstone graduate program that
will enhance our connections, presence and reputation in the international
arena,' said William Molnar, Clemson's program director. 'The Master's
International program gives internationally minded students the academic and
practical experience to meet the global challenges of today and tomorrow.' 'Service to others has long been part of our culture at Clemson and we see
this partnership with the Peace Corps as a doorway to opportunities for our
students and for the people they serve,' Clemson President James F. Barker said.
'As this world grows smaller, it seems our role in it grows larger.' See Peace Corps Master's
International Programs for more detail and how to apply.
LaBerge elected to head Society for Biomaterials
Monday, July 02, 2007
Clemson bioengineering professor and department chairwoman Martine LaBerge
has been elected president of the leading professional society in the
biomaterials/bioengineering field, the Society for Biomaterials (SFB), which
comprises more than 1,000 members from academics, industry, government and
clinics. As SFB president, LaBerge supervises and controls the business and affairs of
the corporation and chairs the meetings committee and the board of
directors. “It is a great honor to lead the SFB. Clemson University has played a pivotal
role in the establishment of the society. I am proud to carry the torch that my
predecessors have passed to me,” she said. LaBerge joined the Clemson faculty in 1990 and has served as head of
bioengineering since 2004. Her research expertise is focused on the evaluation
and characterization of natural and artificial surfaces used in the design of
implants for orthopedic and vascular applications. Her laboratory addresses
fundamental lubrication and wear problems encountered with artificial models.
Current research projects include the investigation of the wear performance of
total knee joint replacements, total knee joint design, dynamic contact
mechanics and surface design for lubrication improvement. A fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering,
she also is a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the
American Society for Engineering Education, the Biomedical Engineering Society
and the Orthopedic Research Society. The Clemson University President’s
Commission on the Status of Women presented her with its 2001 Outstanding Woman
Faculty award, recognizing her as an exceptional teacher, mentor and role model
for all students, especially potential women engineers. She holds a bachelor's degree in biological sciences/physiology from the
University of Montreal and bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical
engineering/biomedical engineering from the University of Montreal/Ecole
Polytechnique of Montreal. She received her PhD in biomedical engineering from
the University of Montreal and completed post-doctorate work in civil and
mechanical engineering at the University of Waterloo. For more information about Clemson University’s bioengineering graduate
program, visit www.ces.clemson.edu/bio/grad/grad-degrees.html
or contact Dr. Robert Latour at latourr@clemson.edu.
Creager to Head Chemistry Department
Monday, July 02, 2007
After a nationwide search, Clemson’s College of Engineering and Science found
its new chemistry department chairman in the ranks of current faculty. Stephen
Creager, professor of analytical chemistry, has been named to the post. His
appointment is effective Aug. 15. Creager has been a member of the Clemson faculty since 1995, and served as
Associate Dean of the Graduate School from 2005 to 2007. He earned a bachelor's
degree (1982) in chemistry from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Ph.D.
(1987) in analytical chemistry from the University of North Carolina. He was a
National Institutes of Health postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas,
1987-89, and taught at Indiana University for six years before coming to
Clemson. His research interests focus on electrochemical science and technology.
Current work involves studies of new materials for electrochemical energy
storage devices such as rechargeable lithium ion batteries and
proton-exchange-membrane hydrogen fuel cells. This research is particularly
relevant to the national focus on developing new ways of using energy,
especially for transportation. He also studies how charges move on the
nanoscale, which is applicable to the emerging field of molecular electronics
where individual molecules serve as active elements in devices such as logic
circuits, memory cells and chemical sensors. Creager is vice chairman of the Electrochemistry Gordon Research Conference
for 2008, and is chairman-elect for the conference in 2009. He is also a board
member for the Society for Electroanalytical Chemistry. He received the 2003 College of Engineering and Science Award for Faculty
Excellence in the Sciences. The award recognizes the science faculty member who
demonstrated the highest level of research achievement during the preceding
year. In 2004, he was one of a three-person team to receive the Crystal Flame
Innovation Award, presented at FuelCellSouth 2004, recognizing a large body of
Clemson work related to fluorinated materials for fuel cells. “We are very fortunate that professor Creager is leading the chemistry
department,” College of Engineering and Science Dean Esin Gulari said. “He
understands that furthering research and developing technologies such as
photonics, advanced materials engineering, biotechnology, nutraceuticals and
nanotechnology hinge upon the advancement of the discipline of chemistry.” “It’s an exciting time to be in a leadership position in chemistry,” Creager
said. “Chemistry is a fundamental science that serves as a foundation to
bioengineering, materials science, physics, nanotechnology and a host of other
disciplines. We have tremendous opportunity for collaboration, which I think is
the future for technical and scientific education.” For more information about Clemson University’s chemistry graduate program,
visit http://chemistry.clemson.edu/graduate
or contact Dr. Steve Stuart at ss@clemson.edu.
Clemson Co-founds Automotive Research Alliance
Sunday, July 01, 2007Clemson University and six of the Southeast's other most prominent universities, along with the National Transportation Research Center Inc. (NTRCI), the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Wednesday launched the Automotive Research Alliance (ARA). Ritchey said ARA will benefit the automotive industry by: 'Southeastern states rely on the automotive industry, both OEMs and suppliers, for so many of their manufacturing jobs today,' said Dr. Dana C. Christensen, Associate Director for Energy and Engineering Sciences at ORNL. Clemson is a leading innovator in the automotive research. In addition to offering graduate degrees in automotive engineering, Clemson is home to the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research (CU-ICAR) and to several endowed chairs in the field, made possible by the South Carolina's legislature's Research Centers of Economic Excellence Endowed Chairs initiative. For more information about graduate programs in automotive engineering, see www.ces.clemson.edu/me/automotive. For more information about CU-ICAR, visit www.clemson.edu/autoresearch.
The ARA will provide a broad range of research resources to automotive manufacturers and suppliers, including technology and manufacturing solutions as well as academic and training programs.
'We want to position the alliance as a preferred source of industry-specific expertise, research, intellectual property and academic programs for the U.S. automotive industry,' said Ben Ritchey, acting president of NTRCI, which will serve as the umbrella organization for the ARA.
The co-founding Southeastern universities are Auburn, Clemson, Mississippi State, Alabama at Tuscaloosa, Alabama at Birmingham, Kentucky and Tennessee. All of the schools are leading research institutes and all are located in states with major automotive manufacturing and supply facilities.
NTRCI, a not-for-profit research corporation affiliated with the National Transportation Research Center in East Tennessee, will function as that clearinghouse, Ritchey said.
Grad Student Named Diversity Leader
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Darris Means, a graduate student in the counselor education or student
affairs program, was selected to receive the Diversity Leadership Award from the
Richard Riley Institute at the third annual Update Diversity Leadership Awards
Dinner on Tuesday, May 8, 2007. Means' research to date has focused on racial
and social segregation and he is interested in empowering young people who face
The Upstate Diversity Leadership Awards Dinner was presented by the Riley
Institute at Furman University and was hosted by the Spartanburg, Greenville,
and Anderson chambers of commerce. Local leaders in promoting diversity were
recognized at the dinner in six different categories ranging from individual
high school student through business leaders. Means won his award as
'Outstanding College Student.' To learn more about these awards, visit the Rile
Institute's website at www.furman.edu/riley/. To learn more about the counselor education graduate program and other
graduate programs in Clemson's Eugene T. Moore School of education visit http://www.hehd.clemson.edu/schoolofed/graduate.htm
Clemson and Sun Microsystems Boost Computational Research for Transportation Industry
Sunday, July 01, 2007Clemson University is helping the United States transportation sector shift to a higher gear with the opening of its Computational Center for Mobility Systems (CU-CCMS), a technology anchor of the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research (CU-ICAR) campus in Greenville, SC. Powered by a high-performance computing (HPC) system from Sun Microsystems, CU-CCMS will be a comprehensive, world-class computational center that encompasses a wide range of disciplines under one roof. CU-CCMS executive director, Dr. James H. Leylek, an internationally recognized expert in computational modeling and advanced methods development, said the center will offer one-stop shopping for clients in mobility industries that include automotive manufacturers and their suppliers, the aerospace industry, motorsports teams, heavy trucks, shipbuilders, aviation and gas turbine companies. 'This center will reduce both the time and money that it takes to get an aerodynamically sound vehicle or an optimized engine into the marketplace,' Leylek said. 'Manufacturers can simulate multiple design options simultaneously by running computations overnight and build the final product only once, instead of the more traditional build-and-test cycles, which drive up cost and time.' The ultimate goal of CU-CCMS is to help its clients reduce the overall design-cycle-time of their products. The Sun Microsystems HPC at the heart of CU-CCMS is designed to help the center's technical staff handle all phases of multiple, large-scale simulations simultaneously. The system comprises grid computing, servers, storage, archive sub-systems and a dedicated high-speed InfiniBand fabric from Voltaire. In addition to its impressive throughput of more than 11 teraflops, this powerful engineering problem-solving system is well-balanced in both CPU usage and RAM, making it especially well-suited for dealing with computations encountered in vehicle aerodynamics and structural analysis programs. Leylek says computations that traditionally required many weeks of around-the-clock processor time can now be completed in just a matter of hours using Sun's complete range of servers; software, including the Solaris 10 Operating System; services; and systems. He adds the center will provide a complete resolution center for just about any problem that can be computed, predicted and simulated in the transportation industry. CU-CCMS will enable engineers to conduct a large number of 'what if'-type computational simulations that will result in ideas getting into products, and products making it to the marketplace, ahead of competition and at a reduced cost. The CU-CCMS start-up is funded through a $17 million alliance between 'We are delighted to support Clemson in the opening of a world-class automotive research facility in CU-CCMS technical staff will be located at temporary headquarters within the CU-ICAR is a new model for economic development in The Carroll A. Campbell Jr. Graduate Engineering Center (CGEC), scheduled to open later this year, is the academic component of CU-ICAR, with the nation's only master's and doctoral degree programs in automotive engineering. CU-ICAR is located in the Interstate 85 corridor, midway between
Graduate School Certified as TOEFL Test Administration Site
Monday, June 25, 2007The Graduate School at Clemson University announced today that it has reached an agreement with Educational Testing Services (ETS) to offer the internet-based version of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) at Clemson University. "Becoming an approved ETS certified test administration site is an important step in internationalizing Clemson's campus," said Bruce Rafert, dean of the Graduate School. The Graduate School is leading the way toward a truly international campus with initiatives like this one and others such as the International Ambassadors Program (www.grad.clemson.edu/ambassadors_intro.php). "We're looking forward to the opportunity this certification affords us to compete globally for the best students - both graduate and undergraduate," said Rafert. Graduate applications at Clemson have increased by 49 percent in the past two years. ETS administers more than 50 million tests each year, including the TOEFL, in more than 180 countries. More than 6,000 institutions and agencies in 110 countries rely on TOEFL scores to select students with the English skills needed to succeed in their educational programs. The test will be offered on the Clemson campus. For more information about ETS or the TOEFL iBT, please contact Tristam Aldridge at 864-656-2561 or saldrid@clemson.edu.
NASA fellowship goes to Clemson Physics Student.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Bethany Johns, second-year doctoral student in physics, was
honored by recently being selected for a 2007 NASA Graduate Student Researcher
Program (GRSP) fellowship. Bethany's research covers the mystery of the positron
annihilation emission from the galactic bulge with a focus on supernovae as the
cause for the emission. In response to her award, Bethany stated, 'I was completed
shocked. The award is very prestigious, and I had already received the South
Carolina Space Grant; I wasn't expecting to be accepted. The money the
fellowship provides will allow me to focus on my research. In addition,
the fellowship requires an internship with the NASA center I applied to, Goddard
Space Flight Center, which adds another dimension of opportunity to my
research.' For more information about the NASA Graduate Student Researcher
Program, visit http://fellowships.hq.nasa.gov/gsrp/nav.
To find out more about Clemson's graduate program in physics,
visit http://physicsnt.clemson.edu/?main=p_grad&sub=programs
or contact Dr. Mark Leising at lmark@clemson.edu.
The GSRP awards fellowships for graduate
study leading to advanced degrees in the science, mathematics and engineering
fields specifically related to NASA research and development. This 12-month
award includes a $30,000 grant to Clemson-renewable for up to three years-and a
required internship at the NASA Center affiliated with the NASA-sponsored
research.
Guiseppi-Elie Named Guest Editor of NanoBiotechnology
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Anthony Guiseppi-Elie, Dow Chemical Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular
Engineering, has been named guest editor for NanoBiotechnology, a journal
dedicated to science and engineering at the intersection of nanotechnology,
molecular biology and biomedical sciences. For more information about Clemson's graduate program in biochemistry and
molecular biology, visit: www.clemson.edu/genbiochem/gradprograms.html
Guiseppi-Elie will serve as
guest editor for the special issue titled 'Frontiers in BioCompatibility.' This
special issue will explore the emerging roles of bioactive, responsive,
biologically inspired materials by design, biomimicry and nano-topography in
addressing long-term implant biocompatibility.
'Biocompatibility has been
a grand challenge problem for several decades,' said Guiseppi-Elie. 'Recent
attention reflects a shift in thinking regarding strategies to mitigate the
inflammatory response. This is reflected in a movement away from bio-benign
materials to bioactive designs. This special issue of NanoBiotechnolgy seeks to
document the current state of the science and engineering regarding
biocompatibility.'
Guiseppi-Elie is a founding member of the editorial
board of NanoBiotechnology. He also serves on the editorial advisory boards of
the Journal of Bioactive and Compatible Polymers, which is dedicated to
fundamentals of science and engineering materials used in biology and medicine,
and Your World, a journal of biotechnology developed for high school
students.
Along with teaching bioengineering, he serves as director of
the Clemson University Center for Bioelectronics, Biosensors and Biochips.
Leaving No Families Outside during Child Abuse Prevention Month
Monday, April 16, 2007April was Child Abuse Prevention Month and Strong Communities, an initiative of IFNL, wanted all families to be included so that no family was left outside. 'Leaving No Families Outside' was the Strong Communities theme for April, 2007. The goal of Strong Communities is to encourage all segments of the community to embrace families with young children to form a community that is so strong, it won't allow any young families to remain outside. As neighbors come together in activities that allow them to get to know one another's children, families are supported and children are safer. The Strong Communities website lists activities for families to get to know one another, launch of a book about a small town, Fountain Inn, authored by residents celebrating Fountain Inn as a strong community and information on Blue Ribbon Sabbath. Original article located at: http://virtual.clemson.edu/groups/ifnl/archive/headlines.html
Article Based on Graduate's Thesis Becomes Required Reading
Wednesday, February 07, 2007MAPC graduates’ theses and projects often yield important ideas that can benefit the profession. Kathy (Pringle) Jeep, 2005 MAPC graduate, took steps to get her ideas out to the profession by publishing an article based on her thesis. The article, co-authored with her committee chair, Dr. Sean Williams, appeared in the August 2005 issue of Technical Communication, the peer-reviewed journal of the Society of Technical Communication. Titled “The Future is the Past: Has Technical Communication Arrived as a Profession?”, Kathy and Sean’s article has now been listed as required reading for MA students in technical writing at the University of Central Florida. This honor is recognition that the article contains important information for the profession. STC members can access the article through the publications section of the STC website at www.stc.org.
National Science Foundation Names Clemson As Research Site
Friday, October 20, 2006The National Science Foundation has selected Clemson University as a research site for the Center for Engineering Logistics and Distribution (CELDi), an Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC). The selection has the potential to affect the flow of raw materials, scheduling production and distributing finished goods for everything from Homeland Security and disaster preparedness to automobile production and distribution.
As a CELDi university, Clemson receives at least $1 million over a three-year period through industry projects and matching contributions. Last year, the total value of the research shared among members was $2 million. Clemson industrial engineering professor Bill Ferrell, director of the research site, said this is attractive to corporations, such as Lockheed Martin, that have partnered with Clemson. Lockheed Martin’s Supply Chain Programs director Tom Goudreau agreed.
“Having Clemson University selected as a CELDi research site is a great opportunity for the logistics community as a whole to benefit from the tremendous services they offer. Clemson is helping to shape the future of logistics, and any model where industry and academia can partner ultimately results in strategic benefits for all involved,” said Goudreau.
“This is a tremendous vote of confidence in Clemson by the National Science Foundation as well as a valued industry partner, Lockheed Martin,” said Clemson President Jim Barker.
The research site is a component of a broader plan that includes an endowed chair in supply chain optimization and logistics. The Research Centers for Economic Excellence program, created by the South Carolina legislature, has approved $2 million for the chair at Clemson, and efforts are under way to secure matching funds.
As a research site, Clemson joins eight universities nationwide in developing integrated solutions to logistics and supply chain problems. The work will enhance the United States’ competitive edge in the world by producing and delivering products into the marketplace more quickly and efficiently. For example, in 1990, IBM reportedly reduced its U.S. spare parts inventory investment half a billion dollars by addressing stocking levels that use an integrated logistics approach.
Ferrell said Clemson will bring unique expertise in modeling and analysis to the group.
“This is an elite group of universities and industries that think beyond the traditional approaches to logistics. CELDi is a good fit for Clemson because none of the universities has sufficient resources to address all logistics problems, but we can each have world-class expertise in certain areas that when put together is impressive,” he said.
“Just like automobile companies and their suppliers have the opportunity to work with Clemson on vehicle design issues through CU-ICAR, their supply chain logistics and planning issues can now come through CELDi.
“We’re also currently seeking partners in the Homeland Security and disaster preparedness arena to address logistics that are so important to national and personal security.”
CELDi is based on sharing research among members so industry partners can work with Fortune 500 companies in manufacturing, maintenance, distribution, transportation and information technology.
Industrial engineering research at Clemson is rooted in industry needs.
“Our programs apply rigorous principles to real problems to assist industrial partners in remaining competitive. This research is vital for economic development,” said Anand Gramopadhye, industrial engineering department chairman. “For instance, we worked on a solution for one client that was faced with many possible strategies for moving products from production facilities to retail outlets, but had no quantitative way to determine the combination that was best for them in terms of customer service and cost.”
Clemson’s vice president for research and economic development, Chris Przirembel, said scholarly research within the context of real applications is invaluable.
“Our industrial engineering department has been solving real world problems for some time. With this partnership, we now have the opportunity to increase our research capacity while partnering with major universities and corporations to help solve global logistical issues,” he said. “This is an extremely effective integration of resources from academia and industry.”
Other universities participating include the University of Arkansas, University of Oklahoma, University of Louisville, University of Nebraska, Oklahoma State University, Lehigh University, University of Florida and Texas Tech University.
One other NSF Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) exists in South Carolina –– the Center for Fuel Cells at University of South Carolina in Columbia.
Testing, Research Equipment Puts Clemson Automotive Engineering Graduate Program In A Class By Itself
Wednesday, September 27, 2006Major automotive testing and research equipment, valued at nearly $10 million, for the automotive engineering graduate program in Clemson University's International Center for Automotive Research (CU-ICAR) gives students and faculty access to a unique world-class laboratory. Several companies that are worldwide leaders in their respective specialties made in-kind gifts totaling $2.3 million to make the equipment purchase possible.
The equipment includes an MTS seven-post shaker unit with a Weiss climate chamber, an FEV engine dynamometer, a RENK Test Systems chassis dynamometer and a state-of-the-art coordinate measuring machine from Carl Zeiss IMT Corporation and J&H Machine Tool. Tom Kurfess, the BMW Chair in Manufacturing at Clemson and director of the Carroll A. Campbell Graduate Engineering Center, which will house the automotive engineering program when the building is complete next year, said these tools make a testing and diagnostic platform like no other. 'I don't know of another university in the country - maybe in the world - that has this combination of equipment under one roof,' he said. 'Clemson students and faculty are fortunate indeed. We are very excited.' The equipment manufacturers are the newest supporters of the automotive industry to join the CU-ICAR team that includes BMW, Michelin, Timken and SAE. MTS Systems Corporation, headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minn., has more than four decades of ground vehicle testing expertise, providing full-vehicle, system and component-level testing solutions for a broad spectrum of vehicle development applications. Additional information on the company is available at www.mts.com. Germany-based Weiss is a major producer of standard testing chambers and systems for environmental simulation worldwide. The product range comprises temperature and climate testing systems as well as test systems for simulated exposure to weather, temperature shock, corrosion and for long-time testing in various test chamber volumes. For more information, visit the company's web site at www.wut.com. FEV is an independent engine and powertrain systems research, design and development company with facilities worldwide. FEV's Test Systems group from Auburn Hills, Mich., which specializes in the design and fabrication of engine test facilities and equipment, will provide an advanced, containerized engine test cell for use in gasoline and diesel engine research and development. Additional information is available at www.fev.com. RENK Test Systems, with headquarters in Augsburg, Germany, along with their U.S. operation, RENK LABECO Test Systems Corporation in Mooresville, Ind., design and build turnkey test systems for research/development, production and quality assurance. Their activities focus on automotive, railway and aerospace industries. The company's web site is www.renk.biz. Headquartered in Oberkochen, Germany, Carl Zeiss Industrial Measuring Technology (IMT) is a member of the Carl Zeiss Group. It is the global leader in CNC coordinate measuring machines and complete, multi-dimensional metrology solutions for a wide variety of industrial sectors. Carl Zeiss is a globally leading international group of companies in the optical and opto-electronic industries. The company offers a spectrum of leading-edge solutions and products for semiconductor and optoelectronic technology, life sciences and health care, eye care and industrial applications. More information is available at www.zeiss.com/imt. J&H Machine Tools, Inc., based in Charlotte, N.C., is a machine tool distributor providing the manufacturing community with high-quality machine tools for metal removal and precision inspection. The company's web site is www.jhtools.com. CU-ICAR equipment consultant George Trask, who coordinated the purchase, praised the companies for their generosity and for what their involvement means to CU-ICAR. 'These names are recognized throughout the automotive industry for their quality and commitment to excellence,' he said. 'Their combined support of CU-ICAR will be of great benefit to our students, and it also serves as a message to other potential industry partners that this program has the support of industry leaders.' Unique funding support Just as the equipment is unique, so is the funding process that made it possible. South Carolina legislation provides state funds to match private dollars for higher education research infrastructure. In this case, the equipment manufacturers donated a portion of the cost, which Clemson was able to utilize as matching funds. 'This innovative legislation - the South Carolina Research Infrastructure Bond Act - leverages and enhances private support for higher education,' Kurfess said. 'Through the generosity of the manufacturers and the vision of the South Carolina legislation, we are able to provide our research teams with about $9.6 million worth of equipment for approximately $5 million. That is true investment in education. 'We have been very gratified by the response of the automotive industry to CU-ICAR, and we anticipate that as we tell the story of this outstanding public-private partnership that focuses on both education and economic development, there will be other companies who will want to join the CU-ICAR team. They will be most welcome,' Kurfess added. Similar legislation, the South Carolina Research Centers of Economic Excellence endowed chairs program, also provides state education lottery funds to match private funding to attract top-flight faculty. The CU-ICAR graduate program has four such chairs, including Kurfess. The Campbell Graduate Engineering Center is the focal point for academic research and technology transfer in support of the automotive industry and offers M.S. and Ph.D. programs in automotive engineering with emphasis in systems integration. Facilities for full-scale vehicle and component testing are integral to the program. Clemson University Vice President for Research and Economic Development Chris Przirembel noted that the potential for the presence of the engine test cell equipment in the CGEC has already contributed to the Timken Company announcing a relocation of its power train group to the CU-ICAR campus, bringing high-paying new jobs to the Upstate. This equipment and these facilities will also bring automotive suppliers and motor sports companies to the CU-ICAR campus for testing and research purposes. 'This unique laboratory is very impressive,' Przirembel said. 'Students conversant with this technology will be invaluable to the industry.'
