Engineering faculty and staff awarded top honors during annual university awards ceremony
Fifteen College of Engineering faculty and staff received the highest Iowa State University honors at the annual awards ceremony on Friday, Sept. 14.
Author: Breehan Gerleman
Faculty and staff recognized for excellence at 2018 Convocation
At the 2018 Convocation on Sept. 13, James L. and Katherine S. Melsa Dean of Engineering Sarah Rajala recognized engineering faculty and staff for excellence in teaching, research, extension and student experience.
Boosting diversity in engineering with evidence-based strategies
College of Engineering faculty are developing evidence-based strategies to ensure diversity and inclusion in engineering education – all with an aim of boosting diversity in STEM fields. Here are four of our research projects studying teaching methods and student experience.
Stronger, cheaper, greener foundations for offshore renewable energy generation
Cassandra Rutherford, assistant professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering, is studying how to improve foundation design of tidal current turbines – with an aim of helping offshore renewable energy generation go mainstream. Her project examining suction caissons as an economical and green option for tidal turbines is supported by an NSF CAREER award.
Trishelle Copeland-Johnson launched materials engineering research career in national lab internships
Materials science and engineering Ph.D. student Trishelle Copeland-Johnson launched her research career with internships at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory, located right here on the Iowa State campus, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Now, Copeland-Johnson works at Brookhaven Lab to improve materials used to prevent potential disasters at nuclear reactors.
Researchers use crowdsourcing to speed up data analysis in corn plants
An interdisciplinary research team at Iowa State University, including professor of mechanical engineering Baskar Ganapathysubramanian, turned to crowdsourcing to help them design a machine-learning algorithm that could speed up the process of breeding new crop varieties with desirable traits. The recently published research focuses on identifying tassels in images of corn plants, but the work could have implications for other crops as well.
Cyclone Engineers lend expertise to data-driven irrigation research
Cyclone Engineers are part of a $5 million, five-year U.S. Department of Agriculture project to develop new data-driven irrigation systems that the encourage use of alternatives to fresh water while protecting crop health.
ABE’s Weyer elected to leadership of ASABE international preprofessional organization
Sara Weyer, junior in agricultural engineering, (second from right) has been elected secretary of the ASABE International Preprofessional Community, the undergraduate division of the professional organization for agricultural and biosystems engineers.
ABE faculty and staff recognized in national ASABE awards
Iowa State University agricultural and biosystems engineering faculty and students received numerous national awards at the 2018 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) International Meeting in Detroit.
Mickelson and Maier elected Fellows of the ASABE
Steve Mickelson, chair of agricultural and biosystems engineering and Charles R. and Jane F. Olsen Professor, and Dirk Maier, professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering, have been elected Fellows of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.
TEM image by MSE’s Xialoi Tan on MRS Bulletin cover
Xiaoli Tan, professor of materials science and engineering, produced the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image of a lead-free peirzoceramics on the cover of the August 2018 issue of MRS Bulletin.
ABE’s Banadda awarded Vatican research award
Noble Banadda, affiliate professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering, has been awarded the 2018 Pius XI Medal by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences at the Vatican. The award recognizes Banadda, who is also chair of the Department of Agricultural and Biogystems Engineering at Markerere University in Uganda, for his outstanding scientific research.
ABE’s Kaleita on team examining perennial grass as an option for flood-prone land
Amy Kaleita, professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering, is part of a team that received a grant to study how well the perennial grass miscanthus performs in low-lying areas of agricultural fields that are prone to flooding. The research has the potential to identify more efficient uses of such land while also providing environmental benefits.
Cyclone Engineers win bioscience research seed grants in new Iowa State, Iowa joint program
Cyclone Engineers will partner with University of Iowa faculty on bioscience research projects funded by a new program designed to foster collaboration between Iowa State and Iowa researchers. Projects are in the areas of antimicrobial research, vaccines and immunotherapy, brain science and medical devices.
Iowa State College of Engineering receives national ASEE Engineering Excellence for Veterans Award
The Iowa State College of Engineering has received a 2018 American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Engineering Excellence for Veterans Award. The award recognizes the College of Engineering “as a leader in helping bridge the gap between military and civilian worlds” and commends Iowa State for supporting Veterans as they transition to their engineering education.
