Announcements

The Biomedical Engineering Department would like to congratulate Christopher Rivet on his achievement as a finalist for the Lemelson-MIT award! Christopher's project, titled "A Hydrogel and Electrospun Fiber Composite Material," is one of the three finalists for the 2012 prize. The award will be presented March 7. Additional information regarding the Lemelson-MIT award can be found here: http://www.eng.rpi.edu/lemelson

It is a great pleasure to share the news that Ryan Gilbert has received an NSF Career Award for the project entitled: "CAREER: Study of Astrocyte Migration and Reactivity Using Novel Biomaterial Platforms". The award, totaling $496,366 over a period of five years, is funded by the Division of Materials Research/ Biomaterials Program. The grant will support the Gilbert laboratory's pursuit of developing novel biomaterial strategies for treatment of spinal cord injury.

Materials and Systems Biology Research in Biotechnology and Biomedicine An REU program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, offers undergraduate students from other universities the opportunity to participate in ongoing research with faculty members during a 10-week period in the summer. For those students considering a career in research, an undergraduate research experience is a great place to start.

Biomedical engineering students from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will travel to South Africa next month on a mission to identify the unique needs of remote, under-resourced medical clinics.

The 2011 Annual Weinbaum Lecture will be held December 9, at 2 pm in Academy Hall. Dr. Susan Margulies will present a talk titled, "Biomechanics - A Force for Good." For additional details, please click the title of this article. Cells within the body are exposed to forces and deformations during routine daily activities. These loading conditions may be necessary for normal growth and development, but when cells are deformed beyond a safe limit or injury threshold, function and structure may be altered temporarily or even permanently.

At the 2011 Honors Convocation, 13 biomedical engineering students were honored with the Founders' Award for Excellence. '2011 Honors Convocation Ceremony' photo includes 5 of the 13 Founders Award winners and faculty attending the ceremony. The Founders Award for Excellence was established in 1994 to honor students who embody qualities of creativity, discovery, leadership, and the values of pride and responsibility at Rensselaer. The award consists of a special certificate, recognition by faculty, staff, and peers at the Honors Convocation ceremony, and a cash prize.

A Biomedical Engineering Initiative in Undergraduate Education In keeping with Rensselaer’s tradition of excellence in education and School of Engineering’s emerging focus on Human Health and livability, we are launching a number of initiatives to foster enterprising research and innovative undergraduate education in biomedical engineering. One such initiative is our new Undergraduate Seminar Series in Global Health emphasizing the importance of research in creating and passing on new knowledge to students.

An IPRPI Workshop on Diffuse Optical Imaging, being organized by Drs.