Amanda Sproles
Roane State Community College students from the area received recognition for their achievements in the 2013-14 academic year.
Clinton: Adam Jennings, Excellence in Networking; Jeremy Bozeman, Outstanding GIS Student Award; Kevin Stevenson, Academic Achievement Award; Timothy Smith, June Bilbrey Excellence in Nursing Award [Read more…]
The Joint Institute for Computational Sciences at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is pictured above. (Photo courtesy of ORNL)
KNOXVILLE—For some, getting on the Internet can be a blast.
Now, thanks to the Bandwidth for Leadership in Advancing Science and Technology project—known as BLAST—it can also be faster for computer users at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.
A lot faster.
“This is quite an accomplishment, for both UT and for the researchers who use the network,” said Victor Hazlewood, chief operating officer at the Joint Institute for Computational Sciences and the National Science Foundation’s principal investigator on BLAST. “This really positions UT well to continue to be at the forefront of innovation.”
The upgrade, completed May 25, is a combined effort between JICS and UT’s Office of Information Technology and makes it possible for UT users to make use of Internet speeds up to 100 gigabits per second. JICS is an institute of UT and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. [Read more…]
Marilyn Brown
The 17th Annual Dick Smyser Community Lecture Series opens on Thursday, June 26, featuring Professor Marilyn Brown, director of the Climate and Energy Policy Lab in the School of Public Policy at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
The title of her June 26 lecture is “Technologies and Policies for a Sustainable Energy Future.” It’s sponsored by Friends of ORNL. The event is free of charge and will be held at the American Museum of Science and Energy at 300 S. Tulane Ave. in Oak Ridge.
Before moving to Georgia Tech in 2006, Brown managed the Efficiency, Renewables, and Electric Grid Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. She is also a board member of the Tennessee Valley Authority. [Read more…]
Submitted
KNOXVILLE—Responding to President Barack Obama’s call to empower America’s students and entrepreneurs to invent the future, the College of Engineering at the University of Tennessee is Knoxville is participating in today’s National Day of Making, held in conjunction with the first White House Maker Faire.
Referred to as the “maker movement,” there has been a surge of innovation in recent years as laser tools, 3-D printers, and software previously unavailable outside of laboratory settings have found their way into the hands of average citizens, who are leading the next wave of breakthroughs.
Geared toward inspiring what the White House calls a “renaissance in American manufacturing,” the fair is designed to highlight those Americans who have found new ways to embrace changing technology and techniques shaping modern economies, workforces, and education, with the Day of Making serving to kick off the effort. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge Associated Universities has awarded five William G. Pollard Scholarships of $2,500 each for undergraduate studies in the 2014-2015 academic year. The recipients of this year’s scholarships are Cody Cheatwood, Rachael Dreistadt, Bailey Kitts, Savannah Moua, and Sarah Tucker.
Each year, ORAU awards these scholarships to employees’ children who display exceptional achievements in their high school or undergraduate studies. Applicants must submit official transcripts from all high schools and colleges attended, three references (at least two of which must be from teachers), and a 500-word essay describing the student’s professional and personal interests.
Below are additional details on each of this year’s winners: [Read more…]
Nerve agent sarin bound to bioscavenger enzyme. (Image courtesy University of Tennessee)
KNOXVILLE—Researchers at the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory are a step closer to creating a prophylactic drug that would neutralize the deadly effects of the chemical weapons used in Syria and elsewhere.
Jeremy Smith, UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair and an expert in computational biology, is part of the team that is trying to engineer enzymes—called bioscavengers—so they work more efficiently against chemical weapons. The work is a joint effort between scientists at UT, ORNL, and a French national laboratory in Grenoble. Their study was published recently in the Journal of Physical Chemistry.
Nerve agents, such as sarin, are among the most highly toxic chemical weapons. The study focuses on engineering enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of nerve agents as a prophylactic approach to diminishing their toxic effects. [Read more…]
KNOXVILLE—The Center for Transportation Research will give area high school students a behind-the-scenes look at public transit in Knoxville and Atlanta when it hosts its first Transit Camp July 29-31 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.
Open to high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors, the camp is designed to spark interest in STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math—and to showcase focus areas, such as public transit, that might not readily come to mind when engineering and technology are discussed.
“The goal of this camp is to expose area students to the types of transit careers available, as well as becoming more aware of the reach of transit,” according to Tammy Enix from CTR.
Through the camp, the center—part of the College of Engineering at UT—will help students learn about how modern transportation systems rely on everything from designers and graphic artists to planners and maintenance officials. [Read more…]
KNOXVILLE—Nuclear engineering students at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville were recently awarded a number of scholarships, with Oak Ridge’s Mikah Rust among them.
Rust, who was named the Junior/Senior Undergraduate Scholarship winner, joins three other students from the College of Engineering’s Department of Nuclear Engineering who were recognized:
Roane State Community College will launch a two-year program in surgical technology this fall.
The associate of applied science in surgical technology is co-sponsored by Roane State and Walters State Community College through the Smoky Mountain Health Sciences Consortium. The program will be offered at the Sevier County campus of Walters State and the Oak Ridge campus of Roane State. Streaming video technology will be used to offer courses to students at both colleges.
Labs will be held in the Goff Health Sciences and Technology Building at Roane State’s Oak Ridge campus. The new 64,000-square-foot, $13.8 million building will host its first classes this fall. Students will complete clinical requirements at area hospitals.
Surgical technologists prepare operating rooms, arrange equipment, and assist doctors during surgeries. According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment of surgical technologists is projected to grow 30 percent through 2022. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Associated Universities Building MC-100 is pictured above.
Oak Ridge Associated Universities has awarded competitive research grants totaling $175,000 to 35 junior faculty from ORAU member institutions. The annual grants are made through the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards program that provides funds to enrich the research and professional growth of young faculty.
The recipients, each of whom is in the first two years of a tenure track position, will receive $5,000 from ORAU for the 2014-2015 academic year to enhance their research during the early stages of their career. Additionally, each recipient’s institution will match the ORAU award with an additional $5,000, making the total grant worth $10,000 for each winner. Winners may use the grants to purchase equipment, continue research or travel to professional meetings and conferences.
Since the program’s inception in 1991, ORAU has awarded more than 555 grants totaling more than $2.775 million. Including the matching funds from member institutions, ORAU has facilitated grants worth more than $5.55 million.
“Providing funding to faculty members early in their careers expands their opportunities to build collaborations while refining their interests.” said Arlene Garrison, ORAU vice president. “ORAU is pleased that we were able to increase the number of grants this year to an exceptional group of young faculty members.” [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Associated Universities Building MC-100 is pictured above.
Study, research or professional development opportunities available for appointments ranging from one month to four years
Oak Ridge Associated Universities has partnered with the Australian government to seek U.S. and Canadian applicants for Australia’s Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships, an internationally competitive, merit-based scholarship program that provides up to $272,500 Australian dollars ($254,500) for study, research, or professional development opportunities between Australia and the world.
Applicants may apply through June 30, 2014, for the following opportunities: [Read more…]
Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Thom Mason (seated, at left) and former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen sign certificates for the Bredesen Center’s first two graduates, Vincent Kandagor and Scott Curran (standing, from left) while center Director Lee Riedinger (at right) watches. (Submitted photo)
KNOXVILLE—Two students were the first to earn a new doctoral degree this month from the Energy Science and Engineering program founded by former Gov. Phil Bredesen in partnership with the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The General Assembly approved the program in a special session on education in January 2010. The first class enrolled in the Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education in fall 2011, and it is now one of UT’s fastest-growing graduate programs.
Scott Curran and Vincent Kandagor earned their doctorates in energy science and engineering at UT’s graduate hooding on Thursday, May 8.
“We’re awfully proud of Scott and Vincent,” said Bredesen Center Director Lee Riedinger. “They both transferred into our program once we’d started and were able to really shine, to really do some positive things.” [Read more…]
