The Graduate School is pleased to announce the following programs have new theses and dissertations available in the J.R. Van Pelt and Opie Library:
See below for a detailed listing of the new documents available.
The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) invites you to join us in this exciting dialogue entitled: Why Teach? The Importance of K-12 Engineering Education. The event will take place on Monday, January 24, 2011 at 6pm in Fisher 133. Dr. Charles Margraves from the Mechanical Engineering department will provide insight into the importance of staying connected to our youth through teaching, and Dr. Shari Stockero from the Mathematical Sciences department will discuss the NOYCE program. Refreshments provided. For more information contact KL Jordan (kari@mtu.edu).
Supporting research in science and technology is an important part of NASA’s overall mission. NASA solicits this research through the release of various research announcements in a wide range of science and technology disciplines. Please bookmark and visit often http://nspires.nasaprs.com/external to search for NASA research opportunities that may fit with your graduate research focus.
Current Opening: NASA Space Technology Research Fellowships (NSTRF)
This Fall 2011 Fellowship opportunity is open to US citizens and permanent residents who are pursuing Master’s or Doctoral degrees in relevant space technology disciplines in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Selected fellows will perform research on their respective campus and at NASA Centers and US Research and Development laboratories.
The maximum amount of an NSTRF award is $60,000 per year for a Master’s candidate and $66,000 per year for a Doctoral candidate – this includes a faculty advisor allowance of $9,000.
If interested, please contact Jodi Lehman (jglehman@mtu.edu).
His thesis, “Objective Metric for Assessing the Perceived Annoyance of Impulsive Sounds” developed a new method to objectively quantify the overall sound quality of electro-mechanical devices. This method could improve the design process for these devices by replacing current subjective sound evaluation methods, which are typically expensive, time-consuming, and difficult to quantify.
The four won the best paper in the nanotechnology division, one of 18 categories, and the prestigious Paul A. Siple Award for the overall outstanding technical paper presented at the conference.
The lead author on the paper is Tech alumnus Mark Griep, who earned a PhD in mechanical engineering in 2008. Griep now works at the Army Research Laboratory at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland. The paper was based on research he did at Tech for his PhD and during summer research for the Army.
Griep’s advisor, Professor Craig Friedrich, who holds the Robbins Chair in Sustainable Design and Manufacturing, is a coauthor of the paper. Friedrich is also associate chair and director of graduate studies in the Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics.
Other coauthors include Shashi Karna, a senior scientist at the Army Research Laboratory and a member of the ME-EM External Advisory Board; and alumnus Eric Winder, who earned a PhD in biological sciences in 2010 and is now a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest Laboratory near Seattle. Winder was advised by Friedrich and retired professor John Adler.
The paper, which was singled out among more than 800 abstracts submitted, is titled “Nanoscale Bioelectronics for Real-Time Target Sensing.” It describes the integration of biological materials with electronics to create a sensor that could be up to three times more optically sensitive than current technology. Such systems are envisioned for sensors small enough to be carried by a small projectile fired by a soldier or dropped from an unmanned aerial vehicle to determine the possible presence of chemical or biological materials. Because protein can activate individual transistors, a small electronic chip containing thousands of transistors could sense multiple toxins. A real-time, electronics-based biosensor will have a wide array of military and civilian applications, potentially leading to extremely sensitive, small, low-power, stand-alone, sensing arrays.
One potential application: They may also be useful for bio-solar cells.
These award-winning papers were selected for originality of subject matter, relevance to the scientific discipline and the Army, potential impact on current and future soldiers, soundness of scientific methodology, and clarity of the presentation. The Siple Award recognizes the accomplishments of Army scientists and engineers. It is named after Paul A. Siple, a scientist, intellectual and scientific attaché. The ASC conference attracted more than 1,500 representatives of government, academia and industry from the US and 25 countries.
For more information about the conference, visit: http://armyscienceconference.com/.
Published in Tech Today.
The mission of the NRC Research Associateship Programs (RAP) is to promote excellence in scientific and technological research conducted by the U. S. government through the administration of programs offering graduate, postdoctoral, and senior level research opportunities at sponsoring federal laboratories and affiliated institutions.
In these programs, prospective applicants select a research project or projects from among the large group of opportunities listed on this website. Prior to completing an application, prospective applicants should contact the proposed Research Adviser to assure that funding will be available if their application is recommended by NRC panels. Once mutual interest is established between a prospective applicant and a Research Adviser, an application is submitted through the NRC WebRap system. Reviews are conducted four times each year and review results are available approximately 6-8 weeks following the application deadline.
There are four review cycles annually. Deadlines for 2011 are:
February 1
May 1
August 1
November 1
Click here for more information: http://sites.nationalacademies.org/pga/rap/
The Directorate for Engineering (ENG) and National Science Foundation (NSF) are again offering Graduate Research Diversity Supplements (GRDS). Requests for funding of a GRDS should be made by the Principal Investigator of a currently active ENG research award.
GRDS candidates must be United States citizens, nationals, or permanent residents of the United States. Eligible graduate students must be newly enrolled in, or planning to pursue a PhD in an engineering discipline.
Visit the COS Funding Opportunities site for more information.
The Expeditions Council consists of representatives from National Geographic editorial divisions (magazines, television, books, and so on) who review and vote on grant applications and an advisory board of external consultants.
The Expeditions Council is editorially driven; projects must have the potential to yield compelling stories and images. Applications are also judged on the qualifications of applicants and their teams and on the merit and uniqueness of the project.
Major fields of study the Expeditions Council funds:
– Adventure
– Culture
– Mountains/Volcanoes
– Natural History and Conservation
– Underwater Exploration
In addition to financial support, the Expeditions Council offers its grantees the opportunity to work effectively with the National Geographic’s many divisions. Grantees are therefore able to share the results of their expeditions with National Geographic’s global audience.
Eligibility
International applicants are encouraged. However, submissions must be made in English if they are to receive timely consideration by the Expeditions Council.
Applicants are expected to have qualifications and experience pertinent to the expedition or project they propose, and advanced academic degrees are not required. Those planning work in countries other than their own should consider including at least one local collaborator as part of their expedition team.
Grant Amounts
Grants generally range from U.S. $5,000 to $35,000 and are to be used for direct field expenses: transportation, supplies, subsistence, and permit costs as well as other related fees (e.g., interpreters, guides, and porters).
The Expeditions Council does not provide fees for photography, videography, and writing. Such fees are negotiated separately with editorial units.
In order to generate the best story, coverage of the expedition may be assigned to National Geographic photographers, writers, and film crews.
Grant Requirements
Grant recipients must provide a full accounting of their expenditures on completion of the project. They are also required to submit a report summarizing their findings within two months of returning from the field.
National Geographic requires that grant recipients give right of first refusal for coverage to National Geographic magazine, National Geographic Television & Film, and all other publication and broadcast media of the National Geographic Society and its subsidiaries. This right specifically includes books, all other National Geographic Society magazines, lectures, exhibits, our Web site and other electronic media, as well as publicity about the project.
Grant Restrictions
National Geographic Society grants may not be used for indirect costs, overhead, and other expenses not directly related to the project. Fringe benefits are also excluded, as are salaries. Funds may not be used for travel to scientific/professional meetings or conferences, legal actions, land acquisition, endowments, construction of permanent field stations, or publishing research results. Grant recipients are expected to provide the National Geographic Society with rights of first refusal for popular publication of their findings.
Obtaining a Grant
Applying for a grant from the Expeditions Council is a two-step process.
Step 1: Pre-Application
Before receiving an application form, each team leader must submit a pre-application form online. There are a few things you should know before doing so:
Within eight weeks, the team leader will receive a decision. If the pre-application is approved, the council will send the team leader an email with a link to the full application online.
Step 2: Application
After receiving an application, the team leader must complete and submit their application online. There are a few things he or she should know before doing so:
Expeditions Council
National Geographic Society
1145 17th Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
U.S.A.
The National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) awards this fellowship to a graduate from an ABET-accredited engineering program entering a graduate program in engineering. To be eligible for the fellowship, a candidate must be a senior in an undergraduate engineering program that is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The candidate must also have taken and passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam and must have been accepted into a graduate engineering degree program at a school with an EAC-ABET-accredited graduate or undergraduate program. U.S. citizenship is required.
Application deadline: March 1st
Award amount: $10,000
For more information visit: http://www.nspe.org/Students/Scholarships/steinman.html
The Biotechnology Research Center has announced the recipients of its 2010 Fall Travel Grants: