LSU'S Biweekly Newsletter for Faculty & Staff
June 25, 2004 |
VOL. 20, NO. 21 |
A new $9 million research grant from the National Science Foundation will fund the establishment of the Center for BioModular Microsystems, or CBM2, at LSU.
The center represents a collaboration between researchers at LSU, LSU’s Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices, the LSU Health Science Center in New Orleans, Tulane Health Science Center and Xavier University in New Orleans.
This new “Research Infrastructure Improvement Award” is a competitively awarded grant provided through the NSF’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, or EPSCoR. It was officially awarded to the Louisiana Board of Regents and the Louisiana EPSCoR program. With $3 million from the Louisiana Board of Regents Support Fund and $1.5 million from the participating institutions, the grant will total $13.5 million over the next three years.
The new Center for BioModular Microsystems will be located in LSU’s recently acquired 45,000-square-foot lab and office complex on GSRI Road, formerly owned by Albemarle chemical company. It will bring together an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional research team with expertise in microsystems engineering, materials, chemistry and biological systems and provide state-of-the-art equipment and facilities.
Steven A. Soper, the William L. and Patricia Senn Jr. Professor of Chemistry at LSU, will serve as director of the center. A large number of researchers from LSU will be involved in the project, including faculty from CAMD and the departments of biological sciences, mechanical engineering and chemistry. External partners in the project include researchers from Cornell Medical College, Sloan Kettering Memorial Cancer Research Center and Baylor College of Medicine.
According to Soper, the center will have three primary missions: basic research, service to the community and country through micro- or nano-fabrication and development, and educational outreach. Soper said the focus will be on building new equipment and tools for medicine, forensics and homeland security applications.
“The ultimate goal is to build a national ‘center of excellence’ in micro-/nano-fabrication for biology and medical purposes,” said Soper.
“The launching of CBM2 further solidifies LSU as a national leader in micro- and nano- fabrication for medical applications and strengthens our national thrust in bioscience,” said Kevin Smith, Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies.
Michael Khonsari, director of Louisiana EPSCoR, said that “the center’s pioneering research and development on the design and fabrication of functional, high-performance biological tools and devices will put Louisiana on the map as a major player at the national level.”
Soper said that the center will hire around 31 new employees, primarily administrative and support personnel. Undergraduates, graduate students, research associates and post-doctoral researchers will all be involved in the project and CAMD will be instrumental in providing equipment. Jost Goettert, director of microfabrication at CAMD, is one of the primary researchers involved in the new center.
“CAMD can be very helpful in making the center successful because we have developed the technology necessary to make the devices that the new center is focused on,” said Josef Hormes, director of CAMD.
The center will provide laboratory space for researchers and students from the various institutions involved, as well as lab space for visiting scientists to conduct work and evaluate the technologies. In addition, there will be a major outreach component, primarily to middle schools throughout the state, which aims to “educate a diverse community of students, teachers and the public in the science and application of cutting-edge biological modular microsystems.”
“This center draws upon the significant amount of investment by the state and the university in micro- and nano-fabrication,” said Soper. “It brings a diverse group of people under one roof to draw major national funding and respect.”
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| Joel Tohline |
William L. Jenkins, president of the LSU System and interim chancellor of LSU, has announced that alumni professor Joel Tohline will serve as the chair of the chancellor search committee.
“I am so pleased that Professor Tohline has agreed to take on this very important task, and we will now begin meetings to discuss the search process,” Jenkins said.
Jenkins said Heidrick & Struggles will serve as the executive search firm to help the university find qualified candidates for the position. The firm, which is based in Chicago, has previously assisted LSU in finding former Chancellor Mark Emmert and Provost Risa Palm. Heidrick & Struggles will recommend candidates to the search committee for further review.
Jenkins said that the search committee will be composed of university constituents who he will appoint soon. The person the committee appoints will succeed Emmert, who announced his departure in March for the position of president at the University of Washington. Jenkins will serve as interim chancellor until a new chancellor is chosen.
Tohline, a native of Crowley, La., earned a bachelor of science in physics from Centenary College in Shreveport in 1974. In 1978, he received a Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of California at Santa Cruz.
He came to LSU in 1982 as a faculty member in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, earned tenure in 1986 and was promoted to full professor in 1990. In 2002, Tohline was awarded the San Diego LSU Alumni Association Chapter Alumni Professorship.
Among his many other accomplishments at the university during his tenure, Tohline served as interim director of LSU’s Center for Applied Information Technology and Learning, or LSU CAPITAL, which is now known as the Center for Computation & Technology, from 2001 to 2003. It was under his leadership that LSU acquired “SuperMike,” one of the world’s fastest supercomputers.
LSU’s Office of University Relations will be getting a new look in the near future as its Web site receives an overhaul, complete with a reorganized and updated design.
The impetus behind the design is to make the site more user-friendly, allowing users to find specific information more readily.
Some of the new features included in the site are an A-Z site index, the Media Center, video segments, an “E-Tools” page, the in-house newsletter “In Relation To ...,” a list of the areas each member of Media Relations covers and a “how-to” on using media relations.
The site will also act as a hub for the Web sites used to market the University, such as “Did You Know?,” “Highlights,” “Experts/Speakers” and the Flagship Agenda site.
Like the above sites, the online Media Center is another useful tool for those both on and off campus.
The Center will include an index of press releases, contact information for the Media Relations team, a list of possible stories and tips for the media and a rundown of the top headlines around LSU.
The new site is just one of the several redesigns done by University Relations and the Office of Computing Services.
In all, five entities have benefitted from their work, including the Office of Residential Life, the Office of Academic Affairs, the Office of Research and Graduate Studies, the Center for Computation and Technology and the LSU Community-University Partnership.
The Center for Computation and Technology, or CCT, at LSU recently signed a memorandum of understanding with San Jose-based router manufacturer, Cisco Systems. The two entities intend to develop business and technology research opportunities, specifically those dealing with connecting supercomputing resources across international grids.
The company’s interest stems from LSU’s 1024 processor supercomputer, SuperMike.
The memorandum provides LSU access to Cisco’s research programs, such as the Cisco University Research Program and the Cisco Applied Research and Development Program. These international, award-granting programs offer potential research collaborations between the CCT and Cisco regarding such issues as the implementation of the Louisiana statewide network.
Cisco and CCT researchers are currently seeking out additional research topics of interest to both parties.
“This memorandum will foster collabroation between LSU and Cisco and should enable research that neither organization could undertake on its own,” said Brian Ropers-Huilman, manager of High Performance Computing for CCT. “The memorandum serves the needs of both organizations, allowing for the open exchange of ideas and development.”
In return, Cisco’s representatives have agreed to brief CCT on its current research and offerings related to computer science. CCT’s feedback will affect Cisco’s product design, as well as evaluate the potential for long-term research relevant to the support of grid networking.
The memorandum of understanding between Cisco and LSU holds economic development potential for the state of Louisiana.
“Engaging in a partnership with a major, high technology Fortune 500 company that is bringing their capabilities to our state creates the opportunity for several hundred jobs in the future,” said Charlie McMahon, director of LSU’s Office of Telecommunications.
The research projects currently using the computing power of SuperMike also help Louisiana’s economy. SuperMike has helped researchers model various science and engineering problems at unbelievable speeds.
For instance, CCT Director Ed Seidel’s research involves solving Einstein’s equations as well as astrophysics research on black hole collisions. Another project deals with coastal erosion and storm damage. SuperMike helps meterologists statewide predict hurricanes more quickly and efficiently.
The local petrochemical industry will also benefit from CCT’s research on complex molecules. Additional uses for SuperMike include computing projects for medicine and the arts.
LSU’s Center for Computational Technology is funded by the Louisiana legislature’s I.T. Initiative. The center was founded in 2001 to advance education, research and economic development in Louisiana through the use of information technology.
LSU Assistant Professor David Young and Professors Phil Adams and Roy Goodrich have found a way to synthesize a layer of superconductor directly onto tiny carbon fibers that are five times smaller than a human hair, and the results could lead to advances in space travel and transport.
Young and his colleagues in the Department of Physics and Astronomy have attracted attention and funding from the Army Space and Missile Defense Command’s Education and Employment for Technology Excellence in Aviation, Missiles and Space, or EETEAMS. Through this program, which provides research grants to colleges and universities, the LSU physicists will receive almost $200,000 during the next 12 months.
According to Young, their research attracted the program’s attention because the wires can be wound into a coil to create a large magnetic field.
“If we can make a new magnet that does the same job as a conventional one, they are very interested,” he said. “In space travel, magnets could be used to confine plasma for power generation. Magnets can also be used to expel plasma as a means of propulsion, so the theory is that they could be used to ‘drive’ spacecrafts.”
He explained that the magnets made out of the tiny wire are mostly carbon, and thus very lightweight and easy to get into orbit, while heavier items – such as normal high-power magnets – are much more expensive to send into space.
Young said that the superconductivity of the wires might offer other financial benefits as well.
“Because it is a superconducter, there is no loss of electricity,” he said. “Therefore, once a current is flowing in a magnet, it doesn’t cost you anything to keep it there.”
A superconductor, Young explained, is a material that, when cooled below some characteristic temperature, can transport an electric current without any loss of energy. In other words, he says, it has no electrical resistance.
Young said that he and his colleagues have succeeded in synthesizing a layer of superconductor on a wire made of a magnesium carbon nickel compound. However, this wire does not function at an ideal temperature for deep space applications. The next step, he said, is to synthesize a wire using a magnesium boron compound that will function at the appropriate temperatures.
Should they succeed, Young said that there will likely be more funding to follow and they will then attempt to build a prototype magnet. Such a prototype would not only be of interest to the Army, he said, but possibly NASA and other agencies involved in space research and exploration.
The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine conferred six graduate degrees at its Diploma Distribution Ceremony for the Graduate Academic Studies Program.
Associate Dean for Research and Advanced Studies Thomas R. Klei presided over the ceremony. Kevin M. Smith, vice chancellor for Research and Graduate Studies and dean of the Graduate School, conferred the degrees. Dr. Michael G. Groves, dean of the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, introduced the graduates:
Max Nielsen Banwell, D.V.M., Lincoln, Neb., received his master of science degree from the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences. His thesis was titled “In Vitro Evaluation of the Securos Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair System and Fluorocarbon Leader Line for Use as Lateral Fabella-Tibial Sutures.” Banwell’s major advisor was Dr. Giselle Hosgood, professor of veterinary surgery.
David Manuel Bolt, Dr. Med. Vet., Ittigan, Canton of Bern, Switzerland, received his master of science degree from the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences. His thesis was titled “The Effects of Non-focused Extracorporeal Shock Waves on Neuronal Morphology, Function and Analgesia in Horses.” Bolt’s major advisor was Dr. Daniel J. Burba, professor of veterinary surgery.
Heather C. Harbottle, B.S., Mentor, Ohio, received her doctor of philosophy degree from the Department of Pathobiological Sciences. Her dissertation was titled “Investigations into DNA Vaccination against Channel Catfish Virus.” Her major advisor was Dr. Ronald Thune, head of the Department of Pathobiological Sciences and professor of aquatic animal health.
Lacey Renn McNally, M.S., Memphis, Tenn., received her doctor of philosophy degree from the Department of Pathobiological Sciences. Her dissertation was titled “Chromosomal Localization of a Proinsulin Transgene Inserted with a Transposon-based Vector into Japanese Quail, Coturnix coturnix.” Her major advisor was Dr. Richard Cooper, professor of veterinary microbiology and parasitology and professor of veterinary science.
Kimberly Anne Orr, D.V.M., Lubbock, Texas, received her doctor of philosophy degree from the Department of Pathobiological Sciences. Her dissertation was entitled “Estimation of the Effect of Misclassification on Diagnostic Test Performance in Two Persistent Bovine Viral Infections.” Her major advisor was Dr. Kathy O’ Reilly, associate professor of veterinary immunology.
Gemechu Gerba Wirtu, D.V.M., M.S., Geshie, Metekel, Ethiopia, received his doctor of philosophy degree from the Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences. His dissertation was titled “Developing Embryo Technologies for the Eland Antelope (Taurotragus oryx).” His major advisor was Dr. Charles Short, professor of veterinary pharmacology.