Give My Regards To…
These Cornellians in the News
President Emeritus Frank Rhodes, named to the board of trustees of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia.
MIT structural engineer John Ochsendorf '96 and theatrical lighting designer Jennifer Tipton '58, winners of $500,000 MacArthur "genius" grants.
Law professors John Blume and Sheri Lynn Johnson, honored with the New York City Bar Association's Thurgood Marshall Award for Capital Representation for their pro bono work with death row inmates.
Scott Blanchard, physiology professor at the Medical college, winner of an $800,000 National Science Foundation Career Award for his work in cell biology.
Government professor Peter Katzenstein, elected president of the American Political Science Association.
Neurobiology professor Timothy DeVoogd, named a Jefferson Science Fellow by the U.S. State Department. He will spend a year in Latin America promoting science and technology education and entrepreneurship.
Entomology professor David Soderlund, given the International Award for Research in Agrochemicals by the American Chemical Society.
Human resources professor Brad Bell, recipient of the Academy of Management's first Early Career Achievement Award.
R&D
More information on campus research is available at www.news.cornell.edu
Guests are at risk for data theft in many U.S. hotels, says a study from the Hotel school. In surveying 146 Internet networks, researchers found that most were vulnerable to hackers.
In a first, Cornell bioacoustics researchers have recorded calls from the endangered fin, humpback, and North Atlantic right whales in waters surrounding New York City. Using acoustic monitoring, scientists can now track a whale's path. Besides potentially shaping New York State policy, the data show how whales travel in busy waters.
Plants from the Amazon rainforest can be used in sustainable high performance materials such as construction beams, say Cornell fiber science professors Anil Netravali and Juan Hinestroza. At a conference in Brazil, Hinestroza spoke about ways to increase the functionality of natural fibers, while Netravali discussed his research on biodegradable composites made from plants.
Judson Reid '97, MPS '04, of the Cornell Vegetable Program and Mennonite farmer Howard Hoover are improving high tunnel technology, a technique Hoover invented. High tunnels are similar to greenhouses but cost less, are more easily ventilated, and don't require as many pesticides. The concept has proven sustainable and profitable for Old Order communities.
Pipes, thimbles, and pottery were some of the artifacts found this summer by archaeology students at Cornell's Shoals Marine Lab. Researchers also discovered fish bones, dating from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries, which will help them understand how the American fishing industry has affected local species.
Cornell scientists have created the world's thinnest balloon, just one atom thick. The research, led by physics professor Paul McEuen and former graduate student J. Scott Bunch, PhD '08, could lead to many practical uses, such as more efficient filters and sensors.
Engineering professor Abraham Stroock '95 and grad student Tobias Wheeler, PhD '08, have created the world's first synthetic tree. It simulates transpiration, the process by which trees pull water into their branches, and could lead to better ways to draw water out of the ground.
The common blood pressure drugs losartan and atenolol are less effective in women than men in reducing left-ventricular hypertrophy. The research by Weill Cornell cardiologist Peter Okin, MD '80, could help explain why elderly women are at greater risk for heart disease.
An international research team that includes computational biology professor Carlos Bustamante has used DNA to identify the birthplace of a group of Europeans within a few hundred kilometers. The findings could be used for forensics, identifying disease-causing genes, and studying human history.