Photo taken while conducting the first diving tests of the newly developed Nereid Under-Ice underwater robotic vehicle this July.
Dear ME Friends, Alumni, and Students:
It is my pleasure to welcome you to the first digital version of MechE Force, and to share with you some of our recent activities and accomplishments. Click here to read the full online version of the fall 2014 MechE Force Newsletter.
Students: Our incoming freshman class is both the largest we ever have seen (80 students and counting) and the most highly qualified in terms of their SAT scores, GPAs, and experiences. Our current undergraduate and graduate students have been recognized both on campus and in the business world for their accomplishments – including an undergraduate student team being the only student team to be selected as one of 10 finalists in the $10 million Qualcomm Tricorder X-Prize Competition.
Faculty: In 2014 our faculty’s research took them literally to the ends of the earth: In May, Professor Rajat Mittal traveled South to Palmer Station at 64.77° S, 64.05°W in Antarctica to study the biology and fluid dynamics of pteropods (free-swimming pelagic marine gastropods) in the Great Southern Ocean. In July, my post-doctoral student Christopher McFarland, collaborators, and I traveled on an icebreaker to 83° N 6° W in the Arctic Ocean (200 km northeast of Greenland) to conduct the first diving tests of the newly developed Nereid Under-Ice, underwater robotic vehicle designed for deployment under the moving Arctic icepack. And, of course, our faculty continue to be honored with numerous research and teaching awards.
Alumni: Our alumni are everywhere! Allison Tse ’13, MSE ’14 is using her expertise at Savioke Inc., a California start-up that provides robots to the services industry. David Stein ’97, PhD ’01 is CEO, Point of Care Business Unit at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics where he oversees more than 1,000 employees worldwide. David recently returned to campus to speak to our engineering management masters students. In 2013, Stephanie Fraley Ph.D ’11 was awarded a $500,000 Burroughs Wellcome Fund award for microfluidics research and in 2014, was appointed Assistant Professor in the Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego.
Moving In: In October 2014 we dedicated Malone Hall, the spectacular new home to the Hopkins Extreme Materials Institute, directed by Professor K.T. Ramesh. The opening of the facility is the largest expansion of WSE’s research space since the Hackerman Hall opened in 2007.
On the Move: I was thrilled to be appointed ME Department Chair in 2013, after six years of Professor Kevin Hemker’s exceptional leadership. In January 2014, Ed Schlesinger was appointed Benjamin T. Rome Dean of the Whiting School of Engineering, following nine years of outstanding leadership by Nick Jones, who is now Executive Vice President and Provost at Penn State University. Ed joins us from Carnegie Mellon University, where he was the Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
I encourage you to visit our redesigned website and our Facebook page for news and updates about our department. There, you can learn about upcoming events, view photos, and interact with Mechanical Engineering students, alumni, and friends.
My hope is that this all-digital newsletter provides you with a quick peek at all of the exciting developments within the Mechanical Engineering Department. Notice something that’s missing, want to update us on your news, or simply want to provide commentary or feedback? Please feel free to email me at mech_eng@jhu.edu or call me at 410-516-6782. I look forward to hearing from you and hope you’re doing well.
Best Regards,
Louis L. Whitcomb
Professor and Chair
Department of Mechanical Engineering