Game-based Tech Detects and Intervenes for Stress and Anxiety Mon, January 30, 2023 Meeting kids and others where they are, Purdue University’s Wenzhuo Wu (CAFOE 2022) is engineering game-based interventions to help users identify stress- and anxiety-related events in real time and receive a personalized intervention of deep breathing techniques and relaxation. Read More
Freestanding Membranes of Smart Materials Thu, January 26, 2023 Bharat Jalan (USFOE 2022) at the University of Minnesota has engineered a new method for making smart materials that can change in response to stimuli like light, magnetic fields, or electric fields for better devices such as sensors, smart textiles, and flexible electronics. Read More
And Now, Artificial...Smelling? Mon, January 23, 2023 Google's Alex Wiltschko (USFOE 2020) has engineered a type of AI known as a graph neural network to predict what a compound will smell like to a person—rose, medicinal, earthy, and so on—based on the chemical features of odor molecules. Read More
Cloaking Objects That Trick Light and Sound Thu, January 19, 2023 FOE alum Andrea Alù at City University of New York has engineered a cloak that reduces radio waves, making them hard to detect by radar. Metamaterial cloaks for small objects and longer wavelengths, such as those of sound, could change radar, wireless communications, and sensor technologies. Read More
Printing Degradable Polymers Using Salt Mon, January 09, 2023 Emily Pentzer (USFOE 2020) at Texas A&M University is engineering a 3D-printed polymer process which she hopes will lead to creating packaging materials like boxes and tape that can degrade quickly rather than sitting in a landfill for years to come. Read More
Discovery of Obscure Heat Transfer Behaviors Thu, January 05, 2023 UCLA's Yongjie Hu (USFOE 2019) has discovered a new physics principle that may lead to novel materials for smart energy systems with built-in "pressure windows" with systems that only switch on within a certain pressure range before shutting off automatically after reaching a maximum pressure point. Read More
Bias and Vulnerability in Remote Proctoring Software Thu, December 15, 2022 NAE member Edward Felten (USFOE 2007) at Princeton University conducted a study on remote proctoring software used by educators and licensing boards and found bias towards minorities as well as issues surrounding cybersecurity, data privacy, and artificial intelligence. Read More
Pipes Two Million Times Smaller Than an Ant Mon, December 12, 2022 Rebecca Schulman (USFOE 2020) at Johns Hopkins University is engineering nanotubes that self-assemble, self-repair, and can connect themselves to different biostructures, a significant step that one day might deliver specialized drugs, proteins, and molecules to targeted cells in the human body. Read More
A New Kind of Shape-Memory Material Thu, December 08, 2022 NAE member and FOE alum Christopher Schuh has engineered a new category of shape-memory materials made of ceramic rather than of metal, which could open up a new range of applications, especially for high-temperature settings, such as actuators inside a jet engine or a deep borehole. Read More
Human-Centered Biomedical Design Mon, December 05, 2022 Leila Ladani (EU-US FOE 2017) at Arizona State University is engineering the design and manufacturing of biomedical devices and implants while cultivating a human-centered mindset in her lab. Read More
Remote Tracking of Parkinson's Disease Thu, December 01, 2022 NAE member Dina Katabi (USFOE 2014) at MIT has engineered a small device that can wirelessly monitor disease progression in patients' homes, improving equity and access for those who cannot easily go to medical facilities. Read More
Nanomolding New Topological Materials Mon, November 28, 2022 Cornell's Judy Cha is engineering nanomolding of topological nanowires that could speed the discovery of new materials for applications such as quantum computing, microelectronics and clean-energy catalysts. Read More
Encrypted Skin-Sensing Technology Mon, November 21, 2022 Sam Emaminejad (USFOE 2018) at the University of California, Los Angeles has engineered a secure, noninvasive, one-touch technology that gives detailed information about an individual's blood composition, such as metabolites, hormones, nutrients, pharmaceuticals, and blood oxygen. Read More
An Energy-Efficient Neuromorphic Chip Thu, November 17, 2022 At the University of California, San Diego, Gert Cauwenberghs (USFOE 2000) is engineering a chip that runs computations directly in memory, with applications ranging from smart watches, to VR headsets, smart earbuds, smart sensors in factories and rovers for space exploration. Read More
Brainlike Computers Mon, November 14, 2022 Jean Anne Incorvia (EU-US FOE 2021) at the University of Texas at Austin has engineered new biocompatible transistors that mimic brain synapses, an advancement that could help scientists rebuild neural pathways or create brain implants. Read More
Corporate Support for Academic Diversity in Robotics Thu, November 10, 2022 Derek Paley (USFOE 2016) of the Maryland Robotics Center and Microsoft have announced a new strategic partnership focused on enhancing diversity and innovation in robotics and autonomy, helping to meet the growing demand for talent in engineering. Read More
Damage from UV Rays Mon, November 07, 2022 FOE alum Maurizio Porfiri at New York University is engineering a process that sheds light on a photochromic nylon webbing that could lead to new ways to estimate ultraviolet damage to materials, affecting their integrity and reducing their mechanical strength. Read More
Tracking Mental States Through the Skin Thu, November 03, 2022 Rose Faghih (USFOE 2019) at New York University is engineering wearable technology to measure key brain mechanisms indicating emotional status such as internal stresses, pain, exhaustion, or a particularly packed schedule. Read More
Stickers for Continuous Ultrasound Imaging Mon, October 31, 2022 MIT's Xuanhe Zhao (USFOE 2013) is engineering new stamp-sized ultrasound adhesives that can see inside the body to produce clear images of heart, lungs, and other internal organs during various activities, including sitting, standing, jogging, and biking. Read More
Gender Bias in Faculty Hiring Thu, October 27, 2022 At the University of California, San Diego, engineers Pamela Cosman (USFOE 1997) and Stephanie Fraley (USFOE 2022) studied rubrics as a hiring tool, which they still recommend even though their use does not eliminate all bias. Read More