Category Archives: Universities

Discussing Medical Study Results

Brazilian berry destroys cancer cells in lab, UF study shows:

“Acai berries are already considered one of the richest fruit sources of antioxidants,” Talcott said. “This study was an important step toward learning what people may gain from using beverages, dietary supplements or other products made with the berries.” He cautioned that the study, funded by UF sources, was not intended to show whether compounds found in acai berries could prevent leukemia in people.

“This was only a cell-culture model and we don’t want to give anyone false hope,” Talcott said. “We are encouraged by the findings, however. Compounds that show good activity against cancer cells in a model system are most likely to have beneficial effects in our bodies.”

Other fruits, including grapes, guavas and mangoes, contain antioxidants shown to kill cancer cells in similar studies, he said. Experts are uncertain how much effect antioxidants have on cancer cells in the human body, because factors such as nutrient absorption, metabolism and the influence of other biochemical processes may influence the antioxidants’ chemical activity.

The title the University of Florida gives the press release is misleading I think (even though true). But at least the text provides reasonable caution. We really need to make sure press releases (especially from Universities) don’t focus on hype. Universities need to be held their missions of education which includes helping the public understand science not confusing the public. Dr. Talcott’s page on the AÃ§ai berry. Universities are obviously more and more focusing on revenue instead of education – I am sure they will claim to support education… but they need to show that is true.

Computer Science PhD Overview

A nice overview by Mor Harchol-Balter at Carnegie Mellon University on Applying to Ph.D. Programs in Computer Science:

A Ph.D. is a long, in depth research exploration of one topic. By long we’re typically talking about 6 years. By in depth we mean that at the end of the Ph.D. you will be the world expert or close to it in your particular area.
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In contrast, a Ph.D. program typically requires typically less than 10 courses during the entire 6
years (at CMU there are 5 required “core” courses, and 3 required “electives”). The emphasis in the
Ph.D. is not on classes, but rather on research.
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If you choose to be a professor at a research university, your life will consist of the following
tasks: (i) doing research on anything you like, (ii) working with graduate students, (iii) teaching
classes, (iv) applying for grants, (v) flying around to work with other researchers and to give talks
on your research, (vi) doing service for your department and school (like giving this talk). Note that
I say “your life” rather than your job, because for new faculty, your life becomes your job. It’s a
fantastic job/life for me because I love these activities, so I’m happy to work hard at all of them, but
it’s not right for everyone.

The document also offers a list of fellowships including: the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and NDSEG Graduate Fellowship (disclosure: I work for ASEE administering part of the process for these, and other, fellowships – this blog is my own and not associated with ASEE).

Kids in the Lab: Getting High-Schoolers Hooked on Science

Kids in the lab: Getting high-schoolers hooked on science

Ballard is a senior at Madison West High School who is still shy of his 18th birthday. His work with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Eukaryotic Structural Genomics is part of the Youth Apprenticeship Program, an innovative project that gives exceptional high-school students an opportunity to get exposure and experience in their desired careers.

Created in 1991, the program is run by Wisconsin’s Department of Workforce Development, with collaboration from universities, schools and businesses. Statewide, more than 10,000 students have participated in 22 different program areas.
…
Lan says nearly all of her apprentices have gone on to study science as college students, a reward that compensates the time mentors invest working with the young students.

“the [students] don’t really know how science works,” she says. “I think I’m trying to show them, ‘Yes, you can have a career; yes, you can have a family; and yes, you can have fun,'” she says. “Yes, you can do it!”

I attended West High School and enjoyed some science classes. We did unfortunately have one class, biology, where (due to budget cuts, I believe) they let some teachers go, and due to seniority rules for determining what teachers to layoff, we ended up with a teacher that had taught 2nd grade for like 15 years and really didn’t know much about biology. Otherwise the classes were pretty good.

And for Biology we luckily had a smart kid that could answer the other students questions. Though I remember my senior year design of experiments project didn’t go so well: I couldn’t get much to grow at all. So I was not able to actually determine which factors had what influence 🙁

Preparing Computer Science Students for Jobs

in, Preparing Students for Jobs, Michael Mitzenmacher, a computer science professor at Harvard asks past students to comment on how well school prepared them for work.

In a recent “discussion” on another blog, I repeatedly heard the refrain that we ivory-tower pie-in-the-sky university computer science professor types just aren’t preparing students suitably for “real-world” employment. Personally, I think that’s just BS. However, I realize I may have a fairly biased viewpoint. I teach at Harvard, and, if I may say so, our students are generally quite good and do well in the job market. Having spent some time in industry, and, if I may so so, being perhaps more interested than the average theorist about practical issues, I attempt to add “real-world” aspects to my classes, like programming assignments in my undergraduate theory course.
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Please tell me, in your experience, did your education prepare you for your life after in the real world.

via: John Dupuis

UbuntuScience

UbuntuScience is a great source of information on hundreds of freeware and open source science software for the unbuntu operating system (linux), including:

KStars – A virtual planetarium
Coot – Superb tool for crystallographers
R – for statistical computing and graphics
LaTeX – text mark up system used by scientists in several fields (e.g., physics, mathematics) to write papers
BOINC – A software platform for distributed computing using volunteered computer resources. Projects include: Climateprediction.net, Einstein@Home, LHC@home, Predictor@home and SETI@home.

$500,000 for Innovation in Engineering Education

The 2008 Bernard M. Gordon Prize, recognizing innovation in engineering and technology education goes to Lawrence Carlson and Jacquelyn Sullivan, University of Colorado at Boulder. CU-Boulder Faculty To Receive $500,000 Prize For Innovation In Engineering Education

The $500,000 award honors them as founders of the Integrated Teaching and Learning Program at CU-Boulder, which infuses hands-on learning throughout K-16 engineering education to motivate and prepare tomorrow’s engineering leaders.
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The laboratory is essential to the ITL Program’s undergraduate curriculum in which engineering students from all departments, beginning in their first year, can take design courses in which small teams develop products to solve real problems. Leadership qualities emerge as teams call upon each member’s strengths to create and manage an engineering project from start to finish, and all teams showcase their creations in the semi-annual Design Expo. The first-year design course has contributed to significantly higher retention for all students across the engineering college.

A second element of the program’s curriculum is the extensive development and implementation of K-12 engineering education. About 1,700 students in grades three through 12 experience the excitement of hands-on engineering in weekly classes taught by engineering graduate students — helping them realize that engineering is about making a difference in the world. The classes are a partnership between the ITL Program and six neighborhood public schools in Lafayette as well as the Denver School of Science and Technology.

Robot Fly

Tinker, Tailor, Robot, Fly

Designing an automated fly implied having the ability to make lightweight, miniature working parts, a process that Wood says took up the bulk of his doctoral study, because of the lack of any previous research on which to draw. “For years, the thrust of our work was ‘How do we do this?'” says Wood. “There was no existing fabrication paradigm, given the scale we were operating on, the speed we wanted to operate with, and things like cost, turnaround, and robustness.” His research group developed and fabricated a laser carving system that could meticulously cut, shape, and bend sheets of carbon fiber and polymer – both strong but lightweight materials – into the necessary microparts.

And how to power those wings to beat 120 times per second? To keep this 60-milligram robot (the weight of a few grains of rice) with a 3-centimeter wingspan to a minimal size and weight, Wood says, you can’t simply use a shrunken version of the heavy DC (direct current) motors used in most robots. So he and his team settled on a simple actuator: in this case, a layered composite that bends when electricity is applied, thereby powering a micro-scale gearbox hooked up to the wings. Wood says the actuator works even better than its biological inspiration. The power density – a measure of power output as a function of mass – of a fly’s wing muscles is around 80 watts per kilogram; Wood’s wing design produces more than 400 watts per kilogram.

The first takeoff occurred late one evening last March, as Wood worked alone in his office, his colleagues gone for the evening. As the fly rose, Wood jumped up in celebration, quickly verified that his camera had captured the flight, and let out a sigh of relief.

Africa Turning to China and India for Engineering and Science Education

‘Browning’ the technology of Africa by G. Pascal Zachary

The sudden influx of Chinese and Indian technologies represents the “browning” of African technology, which has long been the domain of “white” Americans and Europeans who want to apply their saving hand to African problems.

“It is a tectonic shift to the East with shattering implications,” says Calestous Juma, a Kenyan professor at Harvard University who advises the African Union on technology policy. One big change is in education. There are roughly 2,000 African students in China, most of whom are pursuing engineering and science courses. According to Juma, that number is expected to double over the next two years, making China “Africa’s leading destination for science and engineering education.”

China’s technology inroads are usually less dramatic, but no less telling. In African medicine, Chinese herbs and pharmaceuticals are quietly gaining share. For example, the Chinese-made anti-malarial drug artesunate has become part of the standard treatment within just a few years. Likewise, Chinese mastery over ultra-small, cheap “micro-hydro” dams, which can generate tiny amounts of electricity from mere trickles of water, appeals to power-short, river-rich Africans. Tens of thousands of micro-hydro systems operate in China, and nearly none in Africa.

Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy

The Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy is designed to use robotics to excite children about science and technology and to help create a more technologically literate society. This seems like quite a nice idea to me.

When students design and build robots they study math, science, engineering, and physics. Robotics Education is the “Premier Integrator” in education today. Students are immersed in geometry, trigonometry, electronics, programming, computer control and mechanics while using industry standard software and hardware. They learn to compromise when working in teams. They learn the importance of time management and resource allocation. They are introduced to the concept of systems and systems analysis.
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Currently there are over 80 companies in the Southwestern Pennsylvania region that design, sell, or service robots. Carnegie Mellon University, the governing body of the NREC, has a world-renowned reputation for robotics. NASA, one of the funders of the consortium, has an unparalleled commitment to education. Pittsburgh and The National Robotics Engineering Consortium have all the components necessary to become the world leader in Robotics Education.

Why is it important? Most of the technologies that we depend on daily were developed in the last ten years. The only constant is change, and change is exponential in the digitally driven world in which we find ourselves. If you believe as we do that it is the scientists and technologists that will have the greatest impact on the quality of your life in the future, then you will find the following statistics alarming.

Great Physics Webcast Lectures

One great example of MIT’s Open Course Ware initiative is Physics I: Classical Mechanics. This course features lecture notes, problem sets with solutions, exams with solutions, links to related resources, and a complete set of videotaped lectures. The 35 video lectures by Professor Lewin, were recorded on the MIT campus during the Fall of 1999. These are some great lectures by a entertainer and educator. Some lecture topics: Newton’s Laws, Momentum – Conservation of Momentum – Center of Mass, Doppler Effect – Binary Stars – Neutron Stars and Black Holes, The Wonderful Quantum World – Breakdown of Classical Mechanics. What a wonderful web it is.