Applied mathematics instructor Mary Nelson leads CU engineering students in a pre-exam oral assessment to improve their learning of calculus. Due to the overwhelming success of the technique, Nelson won a $450,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to introduce the assessments into other engineering classes at CU-Boulder, as well as math classes at CU-Colorado Springs and a local high school.

Breakthrough Made in Optical Nanoscopy
A collaborative effort between researchers from the University of Colorado and Stanford University has demonstrated a breakthrough in optical nanoscopy, the science of imaging and sensing of nanoscale objects.

The research, led by professors Rafael Piestun of electrical and computer engineering at CU-Boulder and William E. Moerner of chemistry at Stanford, also involved doctoral students Sri Rama Prasanna Pavani of CU and Michael Thompson at Stanford.

The interdisciplinary work has demonstrated for the first time a method for three-dimensional optical imaging of objects smaller than 20 nanometers over a wide spatial range, hence defeating the so-called fundamental optical diffraction limit by one order of magnitude. The findings were published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The new findings, which provide a powerful tool for the super resolution of single molecules, have implications for characterizing defects in materials, the characterization of nano-structures, and the three-dimensional, biophysical, and biomedical imaging of tagged molecules inside and outside of cells.

DANDE Takes First at Nanosat Competition

CU-Boulder students bested 10 other schools to bring home first place in the AFOSR’s national championship for nanosatellite design, earning a coveted opportunity to launch their winning satellite within the next two years.

"I cannot tell you how impressed I was with the professionalism and quality of work completed by our students," Associate Professor Scott Palo of aerospace engineering sciences said of the team’s performance at the Jan. 19-20 Flight Competition Review in Albuquerque, N.M. Other top-ranked schools participating in the competition included UT Austin, Texas A&M, and Penn State.

CU’s winning satellite, called the Drag and Atmospheric Neutral Density Explorer or DANDE, is an 18-inch spherical satellite designed to measure variations in the upper atmosphere that create drag on orbiting satellites. It was designed and built over the last two years by an interdisciplinary team advised by Palo and Jeffrey Forbes of aerospace engineering sciences, and Chris Koehler of the Colorado Space Grant Consortium.

Center for Space Entrepreneurship Launched
CU-Boulder is partnering with SpaceDev Inc. to create the Center for Space Entrepreneurship, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating new entrepreneurial space companies, commercializing aerospace technologies created within these companies, and developing the aerospace workforce to support them.

More than $1 million has been provided to support the launch of the center, also known as eSpace. Its primary funding is provided by a grant from the Metro Denver Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) initiative, with additional funding provided by the Colorado Office of Economic Development, CU-Boulder, SpaceDev, and the Air Force Research Laboratory.

"By providing access to the academic resources of the university, grants to promising space entrepreneurs, and access to both the manufacturing infrastructure of SpaceDev and a network of experienced aerospace entrepreneurs, we expect to create a fertile environment for ensuring the best possible chance of success for startup space companies," said Scott Tibbitts, executive director.

Aerospace engineering sciences chair Jeff Forbes said the  availability of design project courses at the graduate level with opportunities to receive support for a new business venture may be unequaled by any other aerospace department in the nation.  “We intend to provide an unprecedented support structure for aerospace innovation and technology development at CU-Boulder," he said.

Honors & Awards
Congratulations to the following individuals on their outstanding achievements:

Faculty
Kristi Anseth of chemical and biological engineering was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for “pioneering the rational design of biomaterials for tissue engineering, drug delivery, and biosensing applications.” She was among 65 new members announced by the academy Feb. 6.

Stephanie Bryant of chemical and biological engineering has received a National Science Foundation CAREER Award.

Clayton Lewis of computer science has been elected a member of the Association for Computing Machinery’s CHI Academy, an honorary group of individuals who have made substantial contributions to the field of computer-human interaction.

The following faculty received proof of concept grants from the CU Technology Transfer Office and the CU-Boulder Energy Initiative:
Conrad Stoldt of mechanical engineering, for improved nano-scale materials for solar photovoltaics
Chen Li of mechanical engineering, for micro-scale heat management for more efficient solar cells
Will Medlin of chemical and biological engineering, for efficient production of fuels and chemicals from renewable biomass feedstocks
Jason Bara, Dean Camper, Christopher Gabriel, Rich Noble and Doug Gin of chemical and biological engineering (through the newly formed company Ion Engineering), for a more efficient and effective approach to the capture of CO2 and other contaminants in natural gas processing and coal-fired power plant emissions

Students
John Giacomoni, a doctoral student in computer science, along with faculty member Manish Vachharajani of electrical and computer engineering have developed some high-rate software processing technology that is being commercialized by LineRate Systems.

The CU-Boulder chapter of Eta Kappa Nu, the electrical and computer engineering honor society, was one of 18 outstanding chapters honored for the 2008-08 academic year based on their hours of service, recruitment and retention rates, and faculty involvement.

Staff
Linda Rose of mechanical engineering and Wayne Gardner of electrical and computer engineering received the Employee Recognition Award.

The following staff passed milestones in their service to CU:
Janet Bensko, ITLL, 10 years
Terry Mayes, Dean’s Office, 10 years

New Faculty & Staff
Welcome to the following new faculty and staff:
Vickie Scheuermann, program assistant, BOLD Center
Kendra Kilbride, academic coordinator, Colorado Space Grant Consortium

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