Jan. 10, 2019                                                                                              Vol. 22, No. 1
In This Issue

Engineering News
 
 
A proposal to avert NYC's dreaded L-Train shutdown - developed by a team including Lance Collins, the Joseph Silbert Dean of Engineering, and Tom O'Rourke, professor (CEE) - was reported on by most NYC media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal. 
 
Crystals, Shells, and Bones-in Our Bodies

Cornell Research features work from Lara Estroff, associate professor (MSE), including research into biomineralization in the human body. 
 
Iwijn De Vlaminck, assistant professor (BME), has developed an improved method for droplet microfluidic RNA sequencing, according to the Cornell Chronicle.
Awards and honors 
 
Rob Shepherd, associate professor (MAE), Amit Lal, the Robert M. Scharf 1977 Professor (ECE), and Hadas Kress-Gazit, associate professor (MAE), received a $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation for the project "An End-To-End Framework For Soft Robot Design And Control Based On High-Performance Electrohydraulic Transducers." 
 
Jayadev Acharya, assistant professor (ECE), received a $552,000 National Science Foundation Early Career Development Award for the project "Statistical Inference Under Information Constraints: Efficient Algorithms and Fundamental Limits."
 
G. Edward Suh (ECE) has been promoted to the rank of full professor.
 
Charles Eugene Seyler (ECE) has been elected to emeritus status. 
 
The following faculty were presented with Research Excellence Awards from Cornell Engineering during an award ceremony on Dec. 4 in Willard Straight Hall. The annual awards recognize the importance of leadership in innovative research.
 
Ludmilla Aristilde, associate professor (BEE)
Ankur Singh, assistant professor (MAE) 
Chris Schaffer, associate professor (BME) 
Fengqi You, Roxanne E. and Michael J. Zak Professor (CBE) 
David Muller, Samuel B. Eckert Professor (AEP) 
Patrick Michael Reed, professor (CEE) 
Natalie M. Mahowald, Irving Porter Church Professor (EAS) 
Animal Health Hackathon, Jan. 25-27    

Limited spots are still available for the Animal Health Hackathon being hosted in Collegetown, Jan. 25-27, by Entrepreneurship at Cornell and the College of Veterinary Medicine.

The hackathon, which aims to create solutions to needs in veterinary health care, brings together students from across degrees, majors and schools at Cornell, as well as other universities. A panel of judges will select winners and award $8,000 in prizes.

For more information or to register, visit the hackathon website. 
Winter 2019 facilities update
 
Cornell Engineering currently has several facilities projects that have been recently completed, are ongoing in construction or are in the design and planning stages.   

Recently Completed:
 
Rhodes Hall 1st Floor "Block" Renovation
Engineering Advising, Engineering Learning Initiatives, Engineering Leadership Program, McCormick Teaching Excellence Institute, Kessler Program, and the Associate Dean for Student Services and the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs have moved to the block space on the first floor of Rhodes. The Engineering Registrar's Office is schedule to move Jan. 14-16. The block space also includes a CIS graduate student space. Note that Diversity Programs in Engineering will remain in Olin. 
 
In Construction:
  
Phillips Hall 2nd and 3rd Floor Renovation
This project will renovate space for Electrical and Computer Engineering on the 2nd and 3rd floors of Phillips Hall for office, labs and an additional maker space. The design of the project is completed. Construction has started. Abatement is completed and demolition is ongoing. It is expected to be completed July 2019.
 
 
Upson Hall Rooms 354 and 358 Laboratory Fit Out
A new faculty member, Zhiting Tian, has joined MAE. Rooms 354 and 358 in the newly renovated Upson Hall are being outfitted for her research lab space. Construction has started and is expected to be completed in February 2019.
 
In Design/Planning:
 
Olin Hall Phase 1 Renovation
With the college administrative functions moving out of Olin, CBE will be able to grow their laboratory space to accommodate recent faculty hires. There will be three new laboratories created on the second and third floors in the north wing. The computation labs and faculty offices currently in the north wing on those floors will be moving down to the first floor area vacated by the COE administration offices. This project is currently out to bid. It is expected to start construction in February 2019 and be completed in September 2019.
 
Thurston Hall 3rd and 4th Floor VAV and Controls Replacement
The purpose of the project is to replace variable air valves and controls on the 3rd and 4th floors of Thurston Hall, conserve energy, improve performance and address deferred maintenance. This project is out to bid. Construction is planned to start in January 2019 and to be completed in June 2019.
 
Upson Hall 472 Laboratory Fit Out
A new faculty member, Atieh Moridi has accepted a position in MAE. Room 472 in the newly renovated Upson Hall will be fit out for her research lab space. The design is underway and will be completed in January 2019. Construction is planned to start in February 2019 and be completed in May 2019.
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