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FROM THE DESK OF... Faculty Highlights
| Maria Auad, assistant professor in polymer and fiber engineering, received a 3M non-tenured faculty grant, an award recognizing outstanding new faculty for the quality and pertinence of their research. The award is intended to help them achieve tenure, remain in their teaching position and conduct research. The unrestricted grant of up to $15,000 per year may be renewed until tenure is achieved for up to three years. |
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| Mark Barnett, professor in civil engineering, was appointed by the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to serve as one of nine administrative judges in hearings on nuclear waste repositories in Yucca Mountain, Nev. A member of the NRC panel, he was chosen for the case based on his previous expertise with radioactive waste. |
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| David Beale, professor in mechanical engineering, has been appointed by Auburn’s Office of the Vice President for Research to serve a three-year term as the campus coordinator for the Alabama Space Grant Consortium. Beale will be responsible for the NASA mission on campus and will report to the program’s director, John Gregory at the University of Alabama-Huntsville. |
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| Roy Broughton, professor emeritus in polymer and fiber engineering, is part of a team of researchers who have developed a hormone-containing polymer implant that can induce the harvest of catfish eggs. The patent-pending process and extruded implant is expected to allow production of higher-quality, less-expensive timed release implants which promote ovulation in catfish. Other Auburn researchers involved in the project include Rex Dunham, Fatma Kilinc-Balci and Amina Zuberi. |
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| Mark Byrne, Mary and John Sanders Associate Professor in chemical engineering, was chosen to participate in the 2009 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Held in September, the symposium brought together a select group of 88 outstanding engineers from industry, academia and government to discuss pioneering technical work and leading research in various engineering fields and industry sectors. |
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| Prabhakar Clement, Arthur H. Feagin professor in civil engineering, was invited by the National Research Council to investigate evidence of adverse health effects of contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune. Clement and 12 other scientists and engineers were part of the committee; Clement was one of three researchers chosen to present the committee’s findings at a press
conference in June. |
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| Harry Cullinan, professor in chemical engineering, has been awarded more than $2 million over the next three years by the National Science Foundation to provide the pulp and paper sector with a globally competitive, technologically advanced workforce through recruiting, retaining and placing students; developing and implementing standards, certificates, curriculum and professional development; and disseminating products to other colleges. Cullinan is a co-principal investigator on the project. |
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| Jerry Davis, assistant professor in industrial and systems engineering, was appointed to the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) editorial review board. As a member of the board, Davis will work to ensure that the society’s main journal, Professional Safety, continues to meet the needs of ASSE members and provide a high level of service. Davis’ term will expire in June 2012. |
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| Kevin Gue, associate professor in industrial and systems engineering, received the Technical Innovation in Industrial Engineering Award during the Institute of Industrial Engineering (IIE) annual conference in Miami. He was selected along with colleague Russell Meller from the University of Arkansas in recognition of their research related to innovative warehouse aisle designs. |
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| Hulya Kirkici, associate professor in electrical and computer engineering, has been elected president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation Society. Her term began January 2009 and will expire in 2011. |
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| Gopal Krishnagopalan, professor in chemical engineering, was awarded the Research and Development Technical Award and the William H. Aiken Prize by the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI). Krishnagopalan was chosen for the awards by the Research Management Committee of TAPPI and received them during the PaperCon conference in St. Louis, Mo. |
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| Victor Nelson, professor in electrical and computer engineering, has been chosen by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Educational Activities Board (EAB) and Accreditation Policy Council to become a member of the Committee on Engineering Accreditation Activities (CEAA) board. The CEAA sets the Accreditation Board for Engineering Technology (ABET) program criteria for electrical and computer engineering programs and provides guidance for the evaluation of those programs. |
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| P.K. Raju, Thomas Walter Professor in mechanical engineering, was recently selected as a fellow of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). Raju, the director of the Laboratory for Innovative Technology and Engineering Education (LITEE) and the Auburn Engineering Technical Assistance Program (AETAP), received the designation for his outstanding contributions to education. |
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| Anton Schindler, Gottlieb Associate Professor in civil engineering, was recently named director of the Highway Research Center (HRC). The HRC focuses on research that helps to improve the safety, longevity, sustainability, user friendliness and return on tax dollars invested in the nation’s highway infrastructure. HRC researchers are civil engineering faculty with expertise in traffic analysis and control, traffic safety, foundation design, bridge engineering, hydraulics and hydrology, pavement design, construction materials, management systems and environmental issues. |
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| Alice Smith, chair of industrial and systems engineering, has been elected to serve the Council of Industrial Engineering Academic Department Heads (CIEADH) as secretary and chair-elect for 2009-2010. The CIEADH is an organization whose members work with accredited industrial engineering-related programs. The council’s purpose is to discuss industrial engineering education, curriculum, accreditation, student activities, research and faculty development, as well as make recommendations to the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE). |
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| Jeff Smith, professor in industrial and systems engineering, was recently selected for the editorial board of Simulation: Transactions of the Society for Modeling and Simulation International. As an associate editor, Smith is responsible for collecting reviews for submissions, and providing a recommendation to the EIC based on these reviews. His term will last for two years, but he may be invited to continue in this position for one or more additional terms. |
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| Hareesh Tippur, professor in mechanical engineering, and Maria Auad, assistant professor in polymer and fiber engineering, have received a three-year grant for more than $450,000 from the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). The funding will be used to conduct research on transparent armor materials that withstand extreme mechanical stress and toxic chemical environments found with weapons of mass destruction. |
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| Levent Yilmaz, associate professor in computer science and software engineering, recently published a book, Agent-Directed Simulation and Systems Engineering, part of the Wiley Series in Systems Engineering and Management. In the spring, it will be used as textbook at Auburn, as well as Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University and the Virginia Modeling, Analysis and Simulation Center. |
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| Ralph Zee, professor and associate dean for research, was recently elected to serve on American Society of Engineering Education’s (ASEE) Engineering Research Council Board of Directors. Zee is one of two Auburn University faculty members serving on the board; John Mason, Auburn’s associate provost and vice president for research, has served as chair of the council since 2008. Zee’s term on the board will expire in 2012. |
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