College of Sciences and Arts Newsblog

The Human Interface Design Enterprise was showing off their driver simulator. It was one of a couple of major projects the group has taken on, according to Margo Woller-Carter, a PhD student in applied cognitive science and human factors. The Human Interface Design Enterprise is advised by Bob Pastel, associate professor in computer science.

Elsewhere, Harriet King discussed her master’s thesis in computer science, which focuses on two categories of daily computer users: those who know just enough (JE) to get their work done and those who are much more proficient and comfortable in their work (intrinsic). It was the focus of her poster presentation at the library. King is advised by Charles Wallace, interim chair of CS, and she received additional guidance from Karla Kitalong from humanities and Bob Pastel from CS.

Read more at Tech Today, by Dennis Walikainen.

Winning first prize and $1,000 was MyPaar (My Love), a dating website for India, created by physics PhD student Abhi Kantamneni.

At the Fourth Annual Bob Mark Elevator Pitch Competition at Michigan Technological University, more than 20 teams made their best pitches promoting ideas for new businesses, and the judges had some hard choices to make. The contest emulates an elevator ride with a potential investor, and this year featured sound effects, dramatic lighting and entertainment.

Read more at Michigan Tech News, by Dennis Walikainen.

The Eighth Annual Northern Lights Film Festival will be held November 1-3 at the McArdle Theatre on the Michigan Technological University campus. This year’s festival brings recent award-winning independent films and filmmakers to the campus and surrounding community.

The Northern Lights Film Festival is sponsored by the departments of Humanities and Visual and Performing Arts, Cin/Optic Communication and Media Enterprise Team and PANK.

Nearly 490 public colleges and universities, including Michigan Tech, have signed a “Commitment to the Future,” pledging to increase the number of baccalaureate degrees by 3.8 million by 2025. That is a 60 percent increase over the number of bachelor’s degrees granted now.

The commitment, released at a national news conference on Oct. 2, includes pledges to reduce the time it takes to earn a degree, enhance academic quality and contain the cost per student of a college education. The initiative is led by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU).

Read more at Tech Today, by Jennifer Donovan.

Michigan Tech has been identified by the Mathematical Association of America’s National Science Foundation project, “Characteristics of Successful Programs in College Calculus,” as having one of the best calculus programs in the country.

During the initial phase, the researchers evaluated more than 200 college-level calculus programs in the US. In the second phase, which begins this fall, teams will visit the eight top programs, including Michigan Tech’s, to learn about what makes them successful.

More information about the project is available at
“Characteristics of Successful Programs in College Calculus” .