eMotive: Out of Gas

RISD design students and engineering majors from Brown University combined their problem-solving resources in fall 2008 to tackle a growing global problem: the need for affordable, flexible transportation powered by renewable fuel sources. An outgrowth of the eMotive project – an ongoing collaboration between Industrial Design faculty Khipra Nichols BID ’78 and Michael Lye ’96 ID and Brown Engineering faculty Chris Bull – the Out of Gas! studio focused on the needs of urban commuters, using Providence as a test case.

Lye and Bull team-taught the studio, which brought together roughly 12 students from RISD and 12 from Brown to explore “where and how industrial design and engineering intersect” in the context of a real-world problem, Bull explains. In addition to reaping the benefits of complementary expertise, the students took full advantage of both institutions’ specialized facilities: the metal, wood and model shops at RISD, and the Prince Engineering Lab at Brown, which offers access to CNC and rapid prototyping technology.

More information:

http://www.brown.edu/Courses/Engineering/index.html

http://vehiclebrisd.blogspot.com/

http://www.whycoda.com/

http://www.risd.edu/student_projects_gas.htm?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=eviews011509

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Canadian Press article featuring nanoscience

Tiny particles lead medicine from science fiction to nanorobots fighting cancer
Jan 7, 2009

Article Excerpt:
Thomas Webster, an associate professor of engineering at Brown University in Providence, R.I., says that to peer at the intricacies of various tissues, such as bone or skin, through a super-powered microscope is to enter the nano world at a glance.

"What we're finding out is that nanomaterials make up our tissues," says Webster, editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Nanomedicine, who points as an example to enzymes and proteins that power the functions that give us life.

"So we are walking nano things. We are assembled from nanomaterials."

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Webster Named as Co-director

Webster Named as Co-director of New Indo-U.S. Center for Biomaterials for Health Care

The Indian government just announced that Profs. Thomas J. Webster (Associate Professor, Division of Engineering and Department of Orthopedics, Brown University) and Bikramjit Basu (Associate Professor, Department of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, India Institute of Technology at Kanpur) will co-direct a new research center developing better biomaterials for health care. The center involves researchers from 8 universities and industries from the U.S. and India. Prof. Webster will direct all U.S. activities. The focus area for the Center will be in the following areas: (a) Metals and ceramic based orthopedic implant materials, with particular emphasis on Nanobiomaterials; (b) Fundamental investigation on cell-material interaction; (c) Polymer based soft tissue/scaffold materials for tissue engineering application; (d) Biomechanical characterization of implants and (e) A feasibility study on industrial scale production of metallic, ceramic and polymeric based implants/scaffolds. The Center will be funded by the Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum.

In other news: Tom Webster's research into cartilage regeneration was a feature by Ivanhoe Broadcast News. The segment was carried by local television stations nationwide, including the ABC affiliate in Denver. Here is a link to the segment:

http://search.ivanhoe.com/channels/p_channelstory.cfm?storyid=20237&channelid=CHAN-100001

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NanoVis, Inc earns 2nd in Venture Idol

NanoVis, Inc., a Brown start-up company, Gets 2nd Place in Venture Idol Competition

NanoVis, Inc., a Brown start-up company was awarded 2nd place in the Venture Idol
Competition held in Indianapolis, IN on Oct. 22nd, 2008. The award recognizes new companies that possess the most promising emerging technologies. Over 80 companies participated in the competition where company representatives describe company objectives in a style much like the “American Idol” competition. NanoVis, Inc. was formed based on technology created by Prof. Thomas J. Webster (Associate Professor, Division of Engineering and Orthopedics) to increase tissue growth through the use of nanotechnology. See for more information: http://www.ventureclub.org/ventureidol/

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AIChE Prize Winners

This year, in celebration of AIChE's centennial, the AIChE Annual Meeting featured special sessions that highlight chemical engineering innovations over the past 100 years, as well as a look into the future.
Six of our Chemical and Biochemical Engineering students attending the Fall National Meeting of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers in Philadelphia presented their work in a student poster session: Karen Dannemiller, Shin Bowers, Andrea Jones, Daniel Vinson, Brian Lee, Ruben Spitz.

Of these six, three won prizes. Brown almost "swept" the "Environment I" category:

First Place to Daniel Vinson

Third Place to Ruben Spitz

In the "Environment II" category:

Second Place to Karen Dannemiller

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IGEM Jamboree

The 2008 Brown iGEM Teams worked on two projects--one a toxin detection & electrical reporting system using E. Coli bacteria and the second a genetic limiter circuit to control gene regulation in Yeast.

The team reports that this past month "both Brown teams were incredibly successful and we feel we made a great showing at the iGEM Jamboree at MIT. Brown Team 1 was honored to receive the award for Best Environment Project and to receive a Bronze Medal and Brown Two took home a Silver Medal! The medal requirements were even more stringent than last year, and they made it a point to say that this year's Bronze would have been a Gold medal last year! Thanks to everyone for supporting us and helping us work through our setbacks!"
More information can be found on their wiki:
Brown iGEM [International Genetically Engineered Machines] Team
http://www.brownigem.com/team.html

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Nanosatellite Launch Vehicle Conference

In the over 25 years since small, low cost space began its transition from curiosity to the integral element of world-wide civil and military space it is today, transportation to orbit has remained a critical constraint. Despite worldwide government and private investment exceeding $500M, there exists no dedicated micro / nano satellite launcher compatible with the low cost, rapid development schedule and reliability of their small satellite payloads.

On November 7, 2008, Brown University, in conjunction with NASA Ames Research Center, and NASA Rhode Island Space Grant will host a one day conference and workshop bringing together the government, commercial and academic teams planning these new vehicles, with some of their potential suppliers, end users and sponsors.

We had about 45 people attending, including students from Brown, USC, Stanford, University of Michigan. RI Space Grant provided student travel. We had speakers from several small entrepreneurial launch companies, NASA Ames Research Center, US Army Redstone Arsenal, Cornell, Brown Stanford and the Naval Postgraduate School.

Visit our website for more information on the event and our goals: http://www.engin.brown.edu/NLV/

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