Mark Deimund, a senior in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering, has been nominated for the Marshall Scholarship, one of the two most prestigious and highly coveted academic scholarships available to United States students.

Deimund ’10 is from Oklahoma City. The president of Texas A&M’s American Institute of Chemical Engineers chapter, his recent research on biomass processing has garnered him a patent, and his current research involves systems biology in liver cells. He is also an avid strength trainer and enjoys classical literature. If selected as a Marshall Scholar, Deimund said he will study advanced chemical engineering at Cambridge University. He said he will also apply for the Winston Churchill Foundation Scholarship and the Gates-Cambridge Scholarship.

Deimund was recently named a 2009 recipient of the Craig C. Brown Outstanding Senior Award from the Dwight Look College of Engineering.

The Marshall Scholarship is tenable for two years of study at any university in the United Kingdom. Students must be graduating seniors or recent graduates and be nominated by the university. Hundreds of students from across the United States apply each year; only 40 of the approximately 1,100 who applied for the Marshall Scholarship in 2008 were selected as scholars.

Nominees will hear of their selection as finalists in the next one to two weeks. Finalists will then participate in regional or district interviews in Houston in November. The announcement of scholars will be announced shortly thereafter.

Texas A&M University has produced four Marshall Scholars, the most recent being Faye Hays in 2007. In the 2009 competition, biochemistry major Matthew Hickey was a finalist for the Marshall.

The Marshall Scholarships began in 1953 as a gesture of thanks from the British Government for the US assistance in rebuilding Europe after World War II. Former Marshall Scholars include Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and New York Times Foreign Affairs columnist Thomas Friedman. According to the Marshall Scholarship Foundation, as future leaders, Marshall Scholars are “expected to strengthen the enduring relationship between the British and American peoples, their governments and their institutions. Marshall Scholars are talented, independent and wide-ranging, and their time as Scholars enhances their intellectual and personal growth. Their direct engagement with Britain through its best academic programmes contributes to their ultimate personal success.”

Because of the fierce competition for these scholarships, the preliminary process to be selected as an official university nominee is quite rigorous. Currently enrolled students and recent graduates should apply for selection in April, with the official deadline for the scholarships being in early October. To be awarded the university’s nomination, a student must show strong scholarly potential, demonstrated through their academic record and letters of recommendation from faculty, leadership ability, demonstrated through their involvement in student and civic organizations, and excellent speaking and analytical skills, as demonstrated in a series of interviews.

Once approved, prospective nominees can expect to spend months developing their applications as they work closely under the advice and guidance of faculty and academic advisors. The official announcement of university endorsement is made only after the nominees submit their finalized application to the scholarship foundations.

For more information, contact Kyle Mox, national scholarships coordinator in the Honors Programs office, at (979)845-1957 or kemox@tamu.edu.

http://dmc-news.tamu.edu/templates/?a=8146&z=15

Popularity: unranked [?]

Dr. Ivan Damnjanovic

Dr. Ivan Damnjanovic, assistant professor of construction engineering and management in the Zachry Department of Civil Engineering, has been appointed to an ad hoc committee by The National Academies’ Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences.

The project, Predicting Outcomes from Investments in the Maintenance and Repair of Federal Facilities, has a committee of experts who will develop methods, strategies, and procedures to predict outcomes anticipated from investments in federal facilities’ maintenance and repair. The project will begin Dec. 1 and run for 18 months.

Damnjanovic received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 2006 and joined the Texas A&M University faculty in August 2006.

The Zachry Department of Civil Engineering at Texas A&M was named in 2005 in honor of the generous and longstanding support of the Zachry Foundation of San Antonio, Texas. The department is one of the largest civil engineering programs in the world and consistently ranks among the top departments in the United States. The undergraduate and graduated programs is ranked eighth and the graduate program eighth among public institutions in the most recent U.S. News & World Report rankings.

Written by Cassidy Thomas

Popularity: unranked [?]

Dr. Deanna M. Kennedy, a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Texas A&M University, will give a talk Monday (Nov. 9) at 3 p.m. in Room 203 of the Zachry Engineering Center.

Kennedy’s talk, “Toward Optimal Team Processes: How Interventions Can Create Process Gains,” is part of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering’s seminar series, sponsored by Parsons.

Abstract
The increasing implementation of teams in organizations has motivated research regarding team processes and performance. This study focuses on how mental model convergence, a cognitive process, unfolds to impact team performance. Based on the interplay between cognitive and communicative processes, team communication patterns evoking the underlying mental model convergence process of baseline, intervention, and optimal teams are examined. The baseline team data, collected in a laboratory setting, inform a simulation model of communication from which intervention team data are generated. The performance of these intervention teams is assessed on a neural network performance model. Teams with optimal communication patterns are discovered using genetic algorithm procedures for combinatorial problems with multiple objectives. Results indicate that by shifting the timing of communication patterns using interventions, the mental model convergence process emulates those of optimal teams and process gains are created.

Biography
Dr. Deanna M. Kennedy is a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Texas A&M University. She received her Ph.D. in management science at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She holds an M.B.A. from Golden Gate University at San Francisco and a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from the University of California, Davis. In 2007, she received the Isenberg Award from U-Mass for academic merit and commitment to the integration of science, engineering and management.

Submitted by Katherine Edwards, kedwards@tamu.edu

Popularity: unranked [?]

Dr. Arul Jayaraman

Understanding how certain pathogenic bacteria strains such as E. coli cause infection in people begins with unraveling the complex “talk” between the trillions of cells living in the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract, says Arul Jayaraman, a Texas A&M University researcher who has developed an artificial system that mimics the unique bacteria-laden environment of the human GI tract.

The system is detailed this month in Lab on a Chip, a scientific journal published by the Royal Society of Chemistry, the largest organization in Europe for advancing the chemical sciences.

It represents a significant step in understanding bacterial interactions in the GI tract because it accurately simulates conditions within that area by enabling human epithelial cells to grow in balance with the naturally occurring bacteria (termed “commensal”) that reside in the GI tract.

Traditionally, growing both types of these cells simultaneously in a laboratory environment has been difficult because bacteria reproduce at a much faster rate than epithelial cells and tend to monopolize the nutrients needed by the epithelial cells, says Jayaraman, assistant professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University.

“If you try to achieve this in a cell-culture dish what happens is that you have a very nutrient-rich environment that bacteria basically thrive in, dividing rapidly,” Jayaraman says. “You can start with the same number of cells, relatively in proportion, but the bacteria will keep dividing, taking up all of the nutrients. Epithelial cells then do not get what they need. They are typically more finicky than bacterial cells. The numbers then kick in, and it is an exponential process where you will soon have millions of bacteria outnumbering epithelial cells, which will soon die.”

That doesn’t happen in Jayaraman’s model, which grows the epithelial and commensal cell colonies separately before allowing them to interact as they would in the gut. Once the two types of cells are interacting in the right balance, Jayaraman can recreate the sequence of events in a GI tract infection by introducing a foreign pathogen — in this case, enterohemorrhagic E. coli — to the cells within his model.

Previous studies have just added pathogenic bacteria into colonies of endothelial cells, but this approach does not replicate the cellular interactions and chemical signals present in the human GI tract, says Jayaraman, who holds the Ray Nesbitt Professorship at Texas A&M.

“If you really want to understand how the commensal bacteria that are in the GI tract either prevent or enhance infection, you need to have a way in which you can actually recreate the system with both components present – the commensal cells and the epithelial cells,” Jayaraman says. “To our knowledge, this is the first report describing co-culture of bacteria and epithelial cells and its application to investigate pathogen colonization and infection.”

Commensal bacteria, he explains, produce a wide range of bacterial signals, and the concentration of these signals in the GI tract is extremely high.

These signals, he adds, are given off during normal metabolic processes of the cells. While there is no evidence to suggest that they were created specifically for defensive purposes, some of these signals have evolved to act as a line of defense. Others may actually enhance a pathogen’s infectious potential, he says. For the invading pathogen, it’s a matter of “talking” to the right cells and avoiding the “wrong” ones.

It’s a game of “push and pull” that is further complicated by the fact that the strength of these signal levels varies, Jayaraman says. For example, a person may be under a lot of stress, which can cause stress hormones to be high and might in turn diminish the signals that aid in defense against a pathogen. Other times, a gastric disease might kill some of these cells that are emitting a protective signal, lowering the overall strength of the signal and making a person more susceptible to serious infection, Jayaraman notes.

So far, Jayaraman’s model has yielded some interesting findings, shedding light on the constant array of signals being emitted within the GI tract and their effects on invading pathogens. One of those findings reveals how indole, a chemical produced by commensal cells within the GI tract, acts a signal to foreign pathogens.

“Indole already has been shown as an important signal for communication between bacteria,” Jayaraman says. “We are looking at how pathogens might also be affected by indole, and we are seeing that they are indeed affected.”

Specifically, if a pathogen passes through bacteria that produce indole, the pathogen will become less infectious, Jayaraman explains. Conversely, if it passes through bacteria where there is no indole, the pathogen retains it same degree of virulence.

“In a sense, the pathogen is looking for weak points in a ‘wall’ of defense,” Jayaraman says. “We believe this can be applied to several other signals. There might be signals that increase a pathogen’s infectiousness. Does it choose a location in the wall where it can pass through without decreasing its infectious potential, or does it look for a place where its infectiousness is enhanced?”

Contact: Arul Jayaraman, (979) 845-3306, arulj@tamu.edu

Written by Ryan A. Garcia, (979) 845-9237, ryan.garcia99@tamu.edu

Popularity: unranked [?]

Dr. Ana Egatz-Gomez, a TEES research assistant professor in biomedical engineering at Texas A&M University, will present a lecture Wednesday (Nov. 11) at 3:30 p.m. in Room 203 of the Zachry Engineering Center on campus.

Her talk, “Digital Magnetofluidics and Molecular Separations in a Drop,” is part of the Department of Biomedical Engineering’s seminar series.

Abstract
Digital magnetofluidics consists of a novel drop manipulation microfluidic technique. It relies on magnetic fields to control the movement of drops in air, on silicon nanowire (Si NW) superhydrophobic surfaces, using magnetizable micro‐ or nano‐ particles. Key operations such as movement, coalescence, and splitting of aqueous and biological fluid drops, as well as electrochemical measurement of dopamine and glucose have been demonstrated. It is possible to create pH gradients in a drop for protein electrophoresis and isoelectric focusing. Fractions with different pI ranges can be obtained through drop splitting. Digital magnetofluidics‐based protein separations can be performed with extreme ease and simplicity, working with proteins in either native or denaturized state, in a few minutes and using low voltage, and also holds promise as a method for removing albumin from serum samples for blood analyses. This is a technology with great potential as a means for rapid preparation and analysis of microliter‐sized biological fluid samples.

Submitted by Nicole Priolo, npriolo@bme.tamu.edu

Popularity: unranked [?]

Dr. Brian Marcus, professor in the Department of Mathematics at the University of British Columbia, will give a seminar Wednesday (Nov. 11) at 4:10 p.m. in Room 124 of the H.R. Bright Building on campus.

Dr. Brian Marcus

Marcus’s talk, “Computing the Entropy of Two-dimensional Shifts of Finite Type,” is part of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering Distinguished Lecturer Series.

An open reception will immediately follow Marcus’ presentation.

Abstract
A one-dimensional shift of finite type (SFT) is the set of infinite sequences that do not contain, as a sub-word, any finite word in a given finite list. The simplest example is the golden mean shift, which is defined as the set of all infinite binary sequences which do not contain the word “11″ (i.e.., 1’s are isolated). SFT’s are ubiquitous as models of dynamical systems and also as constraints imposed on sequences to improve the performance of data recording systems. Perhaps the most fundamental quantity associated to an SFT is its entropy (called “topological entropy” in dynamical systems and “capacity” in information theory); entropy is defined as the asymptotic growth rate of the number of allowed finite words in the system. The entropy is easily computable as the log of the largest eigenvalue of a nonnegative integer matrix. For instance, the entropy of the golden mean shift is the log of the golden mean.

A two-dimensional SFT is defined as the set of tilings of the integer lattice that do not contain as a sub-array any finite array in a given finite list. Two-dimensional SFT’s are much less understood than their one-dimensional counterparts. In particular, there is no known closed-form expression for the entropy, which is defined as the asymptotic growth rate of the number of allowed arrays in the system. Even for the simple case of the two-dimensional golden mean shift (also known as the hard square model), which is defined as the set of all binary tilings that do not contain two adjacent 1’s, horizontally or vertically, there is no known explicit formula.

In this talk, we present recent results in joint work with Erez Louidor and Ronnie Pavlov. These include improved numerical approximations to entropy of specific SFT’s and their cousins (sofic shifts), numerical approximation schemes which are provably exponentially accurate for a class of SFT’s including the two-dimensional golden mean shift, and a few new exact computations of entropy.

Biography
Dr. Brian Marcus received his B.A. from Pomona College and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, both in mathematics. His main research interests are in symbolic dynamics and information theory. He has been on the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the research staff of the IBM Almaden Research Center. He has held visiting and adjunct positions at several universities, including UC-Berkeley and Stanford University. He has been professor of mathematics at the University of British Columbia since 2002, serving as head of the mathematics department from 2002 to 2007. He is an IEEE Fellow, was co-recipient of the IEEE Leonard G. Abraham Prize Paper Award, co-author of An Introduction to Symbolic Dynamics and Coding (Cambridge University Press), has published extensively in mathematics and engineering journals, and holds 12 U.S. patents.

Faculty Contact: Dr. Anxiao (Andrew) Jiang, ajiang@cse.tamu.edu

Submitted by Tony Okonski, tonyo@cse.tamu.edu

Popularity: unranked [?]

M. Sam Mannan, director of Texas A&M University’s Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center, will deliver a keynote address at the 38th Annual Iowa Governor’s Safety and Health Conference in Cedar Rapids.

Mannan, who also holds the title of regents professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M, is scheduled to present “Making the right Decision: What we Learn From History” at 1 p.m. Wednesday ( Nov. 4) at the Cedar Rapids Marriott Hotel.

This year’s conference theme is “Safety at Risk: Choice and Influence.”

Mannan, a professional engineer and certified safety professional, is an internationally recognized expert on process safety and risk assessment. He is a fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers, International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration and National Fire Protection Association. In addition to his many professional honors and achievements, Mannan has served as a consultant to numerous entities in both the academic and private sectors, including the Columbia Accident Investigation Board.

In addition to Mannan’s address, the conference also will feature keynote presentations from John S. Bresland, chairman and chief executive officer of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, and John Henshaw, former assistant secretary of labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Written by Ryan Garcia, ryan.garcia99@tamu.edu

Popularity: unranked [?]

A probe developed by members of the Department of Aerospace Engineering’s Aero-Fluids Group, in collaboration with Aeroprobe Corp., was installed in the tip of NASA’s ARES I-X test rocket.

In photos available at http://friendfeed.com/spaceastro/1b5b5a02/ares-i-x-cord-is-loose-from-5-hole-probe-launch-now, the left top picture shows the probe at the tip of the rocket.

NASA’s Ares I-X test rocket lifted off Oct. 28, at 11:30 a.m. EDT from Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a two-minute–powered flight. The flight test lasted about six minutes from its launch from the newly modified Launch Complex 39B until splashdown of the rocket’s booster stage nearly 150 miles downrange.

Courtesy of http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/flighttests/aresIx/index.html

Popularity: unranked [?]

Texas A&M University will host the 34th Annual IBM-sponsored Association for Computing Machinery International Collegiate Programming (ICP) contest Nov. 6 and 7.

The competition, which is considered the world’s most prestigious computer programming competition, will pit teams from eight universities against each other as they vie for the regional championship and a chance to advance to the World finals that will be held in February 2010 in Harbin, China.

The best and the brightest information technology students from around the globe will compete for awards, scholarships, prizes and bragging rights to the “world’s smartest trophy.”

During the competition, teams of three students will be challenged to use their programming skills and rely on their mental endurance to solve complex, real-world problems under a grueling deadline.

Tackling these problems is equivalent to completing a semester’s worth of computer programming in one afternoon. The team that solves the most problems correctly in the least amount of time will win a coveted spot in the world finals.

In addition to Texas A&M, other schools competing in the regional include: Baylor University; Rice University; Southwestern University; Texas State University; The University of Texas at Austin; Trinity University; and the University of Houston.

Last year, Texas A&M had three teams compete in the competition, with one of the teams finishing third overall in the south regional, which included 68 teams competing at four sites.

The ICP was started at Texas A&M in 1970 and has grown to include teams in approximately 90 countries on six continents.

Written by Tim Schnettler, tschnettler@tamu.edu

Popularity: unranked [?]

From left: Rodrigo Garza Urquiza, Rachel Oyler, David Gent, Alexandra Iacob, Colin Bailie, Mark Deimund.

The Dwight Look College of Engineering at Texas A&M University honored five students with its Craig C. Brown Outstanding Senior Engineer Award during a banquet at Miramont Country Club in Bryan.

Seniors Colin Bailie, Mark Deimund, Alexandra (Sandra) Iacob, Rachel Oyler and Rodrigo Garza Urquiza received the annual award due to their academic achievement, character and leadership abilities.

Dr. G. Kemble Bennett, vice chancellor and dean of engineering, presented the awards to the students.

Colin Bailie is a mechanical engineering major from Plano. He is described as a disciplined, dedicated and well-spoken student, both inside the classroom and out.

He is a member of several on-campus groups, and has held leadership roles with the Singing Cadets and the a capella singing group Apotheosis. He has given back to the community through Habitat for Humanity, Replant and Relay for Life.

Bailie is involved with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Nuclear Society. He has been inducted into the Pi Tau Sigma and Tau Beta Pi honor societies.

During summer 2008 Bailie was a test intern for Enfora in Dallas where he helped move the company toward automation. This past summer he was one of 15 research interns at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, and will submit a journal article based on his findings. Currently he conducts research with a Texas A&M professor to build a shock tube for better understanding of multiphase shock accelerated flow physics. Bailie will graduate in May 2010.

Mark Deimund is a chemical engineering major from Oklahoma City, Okla. Cited by one professor as among his top 10 undergraduates in the last quarter-century. Deimund is a member of four honor societies: Tau Beta Pi, Omega Chi Epsilon, Phi Kappa Phi and Phi Eta Sigma. His current term as president caps three years of leadership roles in the Texas A&M chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

He has been a Chem-E Car team leader since 2007, guiding his group to multiple wins at regional and national competitions. He has worked summers for Celanese Chemicals as an R&D intern in Texas and a process engineering intern in Virginia. His volunteer work has included Texas A&M Big Event, Habitat for Humanity and Super Summer Southern Baptist Youth Leadership Camp.

Deimund has assisted with Texas A&M research on a biomass processing technique that is being patented and published. He visited 15 states during travels this past summer and still managed to earn his Business Management Certificate for Engineers. He will graduate in May 2010.

Alexandra (Sandra) Iacob is a biomedical engineering major from Bucharest, Romania. A University Research Scholar, Iacob is a three-year leader in the Society of Women Engineers, currently serving as internal vice president. She also has served as president of the Romanian Club.

During summer 2009 Iacob participated in Texas A&M’s Undergraduate Summer Research Grant program, after concluding two years as an undergraduate research assistant in the chemical engineering department. She interned at the Pittsburgh Tissue Engineering Institute at Brooke Army Medical Center and spent one semester as a student researcher with the Michael E. DeBakey Institute at Texas A&M. She gives back to the community as a hospital volunteer helping in the pre-op room.

Fluent in four languages and knowledgeable of two more, Iacob is recognized for her compassion, leadership and dedication to making the world better for others. She will graduate in December 2009 with the distinction of having completed the Engineering Scholars Program.

Rachel Oyler is an electrical engineering major from Sundown, Texas. She is a member of the Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu and Phi Eta Sigma honor societies, and the Society of Women Engineers.

Oyler has been a leader in her sorority, Gamma Phi Beta, earning two of its highest awards for exemplifying the core values of love and learning. Since 2005 she has continued to volunteer at a local camp for handicapped, disabled and terminally ill children. Her summers at Texas A&M have been well spent, including a summer internship with The Boeing Company’s International Space Station electrical power system group, Study Abroad in Italy and a summer internship with the IT Design Systems group at Texas Instruments.

She is repeatedly described as exceptionally intelligent and an outstanding leader and role model with a superb work ethic and enviable time management skills—a person who exemplifies the honor and tradition of Texas A&M. Oyler will graduate in December 2009.

Rodrigo Garza Urquiza is a mechanical engineering major from Corregidora, Queretaro, Mexico. He is president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers student section. ASME and Tau Beta Pi national engineering honor society nominated him for the Leadership Exchange Program in Qatar, where he spent spring break 2009.

He has enjoyed three internships: systems engineering for Compressor Controls Corporation; mechanical research, Chicago Bridge and Iron; and sand control technology, Halliburton. He currently serves as a research assistant in the Texas A&M Turbomachinery Laboratory. Professors have described him as a very rare student and the best all-around undergraduate in mechanical engineering at Texas A&M, crediting him with the talent and drive to succeed in any professional situation.

He said prides himself on staying active outside of the classroom as well as with extracurricular activities such as the Texas A&M Golf Club, tennis intramurals, triathlon training and giving back to the community through Big Event and Aggie Replant. He will graduate in May 2010.

Each of the seniors received an engraved medallion and a $5,000 educational grant. Their names appear on a plaque in the Zachry Engineering Center.

The Engineering Faculty Senior Award was renamed the Craig C. Brown Outstanding Senior Engineer Award in 1996 in recognition of Brown’s endowment for the award. He received the award as a Class of 1975 civil engineering senior. Currently, Brown is chief operating officer, owner and president of Bray International Inc. as well as chairman and president of the Craig and Galen Brown Foundation.

David W. Gent, Class of ’75, senior vice president of Bray International, represented Brown, who was sick with the flu. Gent also received the award as a senior electrical engineering major.

Popularity: unranked [?]