Faculty News
Awards & Honors:
GW’s Office of the Vice President of Research (OVPR) has selected Dr. Lijie “Grace” Zhang (MAE) to receive the 2018 Early Career Researcher Award. She will be honored, along with winners of the other 2018 OVPR Faculty Research Awards, at the 8th Annual Faculty Honors Ceremony, which will be held Wednesday, April 25 at 4:00 pm in the Jack Morton Auditorium.
Research:
Dr. Howie Huang (ECE) has received a $150,000 research grant from Raytheon. This grant will continue to support his research on developing machine learning algorithms and high-performance computing systems for the applications in cognitive radio and signal processing.
Media Mentions:
Dr. Lance Hoffman (CS) was quoted in the March 16 Bloomberg article, “Russian Hack Penetrated U.S. Aviation as Part of Breaches.”
TRT World (Turkish Radio & Television Corporation) interviewed Dr. Kim Roddis (CEE) on March 16. Dr. Roddis addressed the topic of the pedestrian bridge collapse at Florida International University.
Publications:
Dr. David Broniatowski (EMSE) has published the following paper in Systems Engineering's 20th anniversary special issue: D. A. Broniatowski. “Building the tower without climbing it: Progress in engineering systems,” Systems Engineering, March 2018. doi:10.1002/sys.21426
Dr. Ken Chong (MAE) has published the following journal paper: Q. Geng, S. Zhu, and K. P. Chong. “Issues in design of one-dimensional metamaterials for seismic protection,” Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, Vol. 107, April 2018, pp. 264-278.
Dr. Ashraf Imam (MAE) has co-authored a paper with his colleague, Francis H. “Sam” Froes: F. H. Froes and A. Imam. “Titanium: A Historic and Current Perspective—Part I,” Advanced Materials & Processes, February/March 2018 issue. This paper is being published in two parts; the second part will be published in April 2018.
Dr. Michael Keidar (MAE) and his graduate student Eda Gjika and undergraduate student Megan Kirschner have published the following paper: E. Gjika, S. Pal-Ghosh, A. Tang, M. Kirschner, G. Tadvalkar, J. Canady, M. A. Stepp, and M. Keidar. “Adaptation of Operational Parameters of Cold Atmospheric Plasma for in Vitro Treatment of Cancer Cells,” Applied Materials & Interfaces. doi: 10.1021/acsami.7b18653.
Conferences & Presentations:
Dr. Lorena Barba (MAE) is a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Study Committee on “Best Practices for a Future Open Code Policy for NASA Space Science.” She participated in the third meeting of the study committee, held February 26–28 in the National Academy of Science Beckman Center, Santa Ana, CA.
Dr. Kausik Sarkar (MAE) attended the annual March meeting of the American Physical Society, held March 5-9 in Los Angeles, CA. At the meeting, he co-organized the Focus Session “FO3: Microinertia Effects in Particulate Flows” with Dr. Antony Beris of the University of Delaware. Dr. Sarkar and his doctoral student Abhilash Reddy Malipeddi presented following talks: “FO3.00005: Shear-induced gradient diffusivity of emulsions at finite inertia,” and “FO3.00006: Effects of micro-inertia on average normal stress differences of a concentrated emulsion.”
Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillet addresses the symposium.
On March 8-9, SEAS hosted the symposium “Enabling Advanced Reactors for the Market,” which brought together academic researchers, national laboratory scientists, developers, energy producers, industrial users, the government, and other organizations to assess the success of advanced reactors with the assurance of sustainable and secure energy. The symposium highlighted the evolution of the energy market and future industrial energy needs, potential applications of new nuclear energy technologies, and public policies and how they can be shaped to support the success of advanced reactors to meet future energy needs. Dr. Ekundayo Shittu (EMSE) gave a keynote address titled “Energy Investments under Regulatory and Learning Uncertainties.” Among the notable attendees at the symposium were Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillet; Under Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes; the principal deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Nuclear Energy, Edward McGinnis; the president and CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute, Maria Korsnick; the chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Kristine Svinicki; and several national laboratory directors. Dean David Dolling provided the welcome address and Dr. Tom Mazzuchi (EMSE) provided support on multiple fronts. The EMSE department, the dean’s office, and the SEAS Computing Facility were of invaluable assistance to the success of the symposium. The symposium was coordinated by SEAS, the Department of Energy's Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) Initiative, the Nuclear Energy Institute, and the Electric Power Research Institute.
Dr. Guru Prasadh Venkataramani (ECE) and Dr. Milos Doroslovacki (ECE), along with ECE Ph.D. student Fan Yao, presented their work at the 24th IEEE International Symposium on High Performance Computer Architecture (HPCA), held February 24-28 in Vienna, Austria. Their paper—“Are Coherence Protocol States Vulnerable to Information Leakage?”—presents novel insights on how cache coherence protocols could be vulnerable to timing channels, along with ways to mitigate them. These timing channel attacks have received recent widespread attention through meltdown/spectre. HPCA is a premier forum for computer architecture researchers and attracts widespread participation from the semiconductor industry. Dr. Venkataramani also served as a session chair for papers that discussed power optimization.
Dr. Tim Wood (CS) was invited to give talks at Brown University in Providence, RI, and BBN Technologies in Cambridge, MA, on March 9 and 12. He presented his research group’s work to build more efficient and flexible, software-based network infrastructures.
Dr. Mona Zaghloul (ECE) was invited to give a talk at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory on the occasion of National Women’s History Month. The title of her talk, which will be delivered on March 27, is “Women in Engineering: Global and Personal Perspective.”
Other News:
Dr. Joe Cascio (EMSE) recently served as a judge for the Department of Defense Secretary of Defense Environmental Awards, which honor individuals, teams, and installations for their continued commitment to protecting irreplaceable resources and ensuring the availability of land, water, and airspace necessary to sustain military readiness. The awards recognize efforts to ensure mission accomplishment and the protection of human health in the areas of environmental planning, waste management, and compliance with environmental laws and regulations.
Dr. Howie Huang (ECE) has been selected to join the editorial board of IEEE Transactions on Cloud Computing. He began his duties as an associate editor on March 1.
Mr. Patrick Kelly (adjunct faculty, CS) has been selected as the permanent director of critical infrastructure policy at the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Student News
The IEEE Power and Energy Society (PES) has selected two ECE graduate students, Ali Alawad and Mohamed Abushama, to attend the IEEE PES Transmission & Distribution (T&D) Conference & Exposition and to present their posters in the conference poster session. Ali and Mohamed also will receive housing support for the conference. The conference will be held April 16-19 in Denver, CO. The IEEE PES T&D Conference & Exposition is one of the most important and largest conferences organized by IEEE, with more than 10-15,000 attendees from industry and academia. Ali and Mohamed were nominated for the conference by Dr. Payman Dehghanian (ECE).
The National Academy of Inventors has selected BME postdoctoral researcher Aleks Klimas to participate in the 2018 Student Innovation Showcase at its Seventh Annual NAI Conference, to be held here in Washington, D.C. Dr. Klimas is one of the only six finalists for this honor. The OptoDyCE project, developed by Aleks under the guidance of Dr. Emilia Entcheva (BME), will be exhibited and presented on April 6 at the conference.
Other News
Ms. Carolynn Lodge has joined the SEAS Development Team as the new assistant director of donor relations. In this role, Carolynn will be integral to coordinating events, liaising with the SEAS National Advisory Council, and overseeing data projects that help SEAS thoughtfully engage the SEAS alumni community. Carolynn began working at GW in 2016 as an administrative associate with the Planned Giving Department; her role subsequently expanded to include working with the Family Philanthropy and Advancement services teams. Prior to joining GW, Carolynn was at Johns Hopkins University working for eight years in a variety of roles, including as both a budget assistant and administrative secretary for the Department of Epidemiology, and as an administrative coordinator in the Whiting School of Engineering’s dean’s office. In her spare time, Carolynn enjoys teaching first-year English composition courses at Towson University, Howard Community College, and Baltimore Community College. Carolynn holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bowie State University in English and modern languages, with a concentration in African-American literature, and a Master of Arts degree in professional writing from Towson University.
SEAS Computing Facility
Software Carpentry Workshops
SEAS Computing Facility, in partnership with the GW Libraries and Academic Innovation, is offering the fourth, and final, two-day software carpentry workshop this academic year. The workshop will run April 11-12 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm in Gelman 201 (STEMworks).
Who is this for?
The workshop is intended for graduate students, postdocs, and faculty who want to become more productive with lab skills for scientific computing. The workshop is free to any GW-affiliated participant.
What is it?
The workshop provides two days of hands-on learning to:
- automate repetitive tasks (Unix shell)
- track and share your code and writing (git and GitHub)
- use programming language that is especially powerful for statistical analysis (Python)
Program
Short tutorials alternate with hands-on practical exercises in the workshops. Participants are encouraged both to help one another and to try applying what they have learned to their own research problems during and between sessions. Participants must bring a laptop with a Mac, Linux, or Windows operating system; they also should have admin privileges on the computer. The computer needs to be a “real” laptop—not a Chromebook, tablet, etc.
Register
Introduction to Linux Workshop:
This semester's Linux workshops will be held on Fridays from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm in Tompkins Hall 411. They will be hosted by SEAS Computing Facility Systems Engineers Marco Suarez, Hadi Mohammadi, and Jason Hurlburt. Please email [email protected] with any questions or comments about the workshops.
Register
Tutoring:
MATLAB and Solidworks tutoring will be offered throughout the spring semester in Tompkins 401 on the following days:
- Wednesdays: 12:00 – 5:00 pm
- Thursdays: 12:00 – 3:30 pm
- Fridays: 5:00 – 6:00 pm
To schedule a tutoring appointment, please email [email protected]. The MATLAB and Solidworks workshops and tutoring will be hosted by SEAS graduate student Makan Payandehazad.
SEAS Events
GW COMPASS Path to Academic Careers Workshop: “Teaching and Research Statements”
Speakers: Dr. Arzhang Angoshtari (CEE) and Dr. Saniya LeBlanc (MAE)
Tuesday, March 20
4:00 – 6:00 pm
SEH, B1220
Faculty will cover topics such as: the different types of available academic positions for PhDs, how to write a teaching and research statement and cover letter, the process of faculty interviews/“dos and don’ts”, negotiating salaries, and more. Please come with any additional questions for Q&A! Masters students are also welcome.
Register
ECE Faculty Candidate Seminar: “Science and Applications of Wafer-Scale Aligned Carbon Nanotubes”
Speaker: Dr. Weilu Gao, Rice University
Wednesday, March 21
10:45 – 11:45 am
Marvin Center, 308
ECE Faculty Candidate Seminar: “Tailoring Resistive Switches for Applications in Artificial Intelligence and Beyond”
Speaker: Dr. Gina Adam, Romanian National Institute for Research and Development in Microtechnologies
Thursday, March 22
10:45 – 11:45 am
Marvin Center, 404
MAE Seminar: “Jet Formation and Control in Laser Induced Forward Transfer Printing of Liquid Inks”
Speaker: Dr. Craig Arnold, Princeton University
Thursday, March 22
2:00 - 3:00 pm
SEH, B1220
3rd Annual GW Women in Engineering Event: “Navigating Your Career Professional Development”
Tuesday, March 27
6:00 – 9:00 pm
Marvin Center, Grand Ballroom
This event brings together female engineering students and SEAS alumnae to discuss navigating one’s career successfully. Hear from our key note speaker Christyl Johnson, Ph.D ’12, deputy center director for technology and research investments at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center; engage in round table discussions; share lessons learned; and network with fellow classmates, alumnae, and SEAS faculty. This event is open to both undergraduate and graduate female SEAS students.
Registration for students
Registration and information for all other participants
BME David Wang Distinguished Lecture: “Biologically Inspired Engineering: From Mechanotherapeutics to Human Organs-on-Chips”
Speaker: Dr. Donald Ingber, Founding Director, Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University
Wednesday, April 4
4:00 – 5:00 pm
SEH, Lehman Auditorium
MAE Seminar: “Plasmonic Nanostructures for SERS Biosensing and Optoelectronic Devices”
Speaker: Dr. Qiuming Yu, University of Washington
Thursday, April 12
2:00 - 3:00 pm
SEH, Lehman Auditorium
Entrepreneurship News & Events
GW Design Thinking Club Workshops: “Designing Your Life Workshop Series”
Thursdays: March 22, March 29, April 5, and April 12
5:30 – 7:00 pm
GW Innovation Center, Tompkins M06
RSVP
Learn how design thinking can help you create a more meaningful and fulfilling life in four consecutive workshops. These workshops are open to all GW students who desire a more creative approach to their lives.
George Hacks: Medical Hackathon
Saturday & Sunday, March 24-25
Registration open now
George Hacks is a new student-led, 24-hour innovation competition at GW that is open to students from for all majors and is breaking from traditional hackathons meant for computer science majors. Pitches will address needs for patients battling cancer, medical and social innovation solutions for the aging community, and more! 100 participants will participate in teams of four that will compete for prizes! Please email [email protected] to receive registration information, to apply to be part of the student organization next year, or to volunteer for our inaugural event in March. For additional information, visit the georgehacks.org website. This event is sponsored by SEAS and GW's Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
2018 GW New Venture Competition Finals
Thursday, April 19
5:30 - 9:00 pm
MPA Building, Jack Morton Auditorium
The top nine GW student entrepreneurial teams will take the stage at one of the largest competitions in the nation to vie for more than $300,000 in funding and support. What big idea will come from GW next? Attend the 10th anniversary finals on April 19 to see who will take the top prize!
Workshop: “Ownership, Governance and Incorporation: Getting Your Innovation Legal”
Monday, April 23
5:30 - 7:00 pm
GW Innovation Center, Tompkins M06
Are you looking to get your business incorporated but unsure of the process or the legal documentation you need to help protect your interests? Do you know what it means to be a business owner or how to govern your business properly and ethically? We can help you answer all of these questions. Join us for an insightful workshop featuring guest speakers from the legal industry. Don’t miss out!
Mentor Appreciation Event: “The World’s Best Mentors: GW Mentor Appreciation Celebration”
Thursday, April 26
5:30 - 7:00 pm
GW Innovation Center, Tompkins M06
Thank you to all of the GW mentors and judges who have helped the Office of Innovation & Entrepreneurship throughout the 2017-2018 school year! Students, faculty, staff, mentors, and alumni are welcome to join us for this fun, casual happy hour celebration at the GW Innovation Center as a “thank you” for a fun and eventful year. Network and mingle with us before the school year ends and finals begin!
Technology Commercialization course: GW’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, in collaboration with the GW School of Business, will offer Seminar in Technology Commercialization (ISTM 6239) during GW’s 2018 Summer I session. The course will run May 21 - June 25, meeting on Monday evenings from 6:10 – 9:00 pm. This is a hands-on experience, applying the Lean Startup Approach to tech commercialization. Students may bring their own technology to the class or work on a technology from the GW Technology Commercialization Office. Students also will be eligible for AccelerateGW NSF I-Corps Grants of up to $3,000 to cover expenses for doing customer discovery interviews!
GW Events
Dinner with Alumni Program: Dinner with Dr. Randy Graves, D.Sc. ’78
Wednesday, March 21
Register for an opportunity to have dinner with a SEAS alum! Dr. Graves worked for NASA for 26 years, has been CEO or chairman of the board of several startup companies, and has been a member of the National Advisory Council at SEAS for 20 years. This dinner is open to juniors, seniors, and masters students.
Register
Grant Management Boot Camp
Thursday, March 22
12:30 – 3:30 pm
Marvin Center, 310
Read more and register online
Post-Award Management Training Series: “Effectively Document, Submit, Review and Approve Expenditures”
Tuesday, March 27
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Marvin Center, 310
Read more and register online
GW Libraries Coffee & Discussion
Monday, April 16
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Gelman Library Lounge, B05
Public digital trace data, such as social media data, provide the opportunity to study the spread of rumors, the use of disinformation, and the role of social bots. GW faculty and researchers are invited to informally share your interest and/or work in this area, as well as discuss opportunities to collaborate with colleagues. This event is primarily for faculty and fellows; however, faculty may invite students, as appropriate. No RSVP is required. Coffee, soda, and cookies will be provided. Feel free to bring a lunch.
Post-Award Management Training Series: “Post-Award Financial Monitoring and Management”
Tuesday, April 17
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Marvin Center, 310
Read more and register online
Pre-Award Integrated Systems Workshop
Friday, April 20
10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Hall of Government, 103 (Tech Lab)
Read more and register online
This hands-on, interactive workshop covers PIVOT, InfoReady, and Cayuse 424.
Post-Award Management Training Series: “Keys to a Successful Award Closeout”
Tuesday, May 22
9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Marvin Center, 308
Read more and register online