October, 2019
Vanderbilt team wins $1M in DARPA spectrum challenge finale
Oct. 29, 2019— In a final five-minute flurry, MarmotE watched its lead slip. At the buzzer, the team placed second and won $1 million in the DARPA Spectrum Collaboration Challenge. The team of four current and former Vanderbilt researchers have worked together since 2016 to create an AI-radio system that can manage the wireless spectrum, finding unused...
Biophotonics device for parathyroid ID wins R&D 100 Award
Oct. 28, 2019—An optical imaging technology developed by Orrin H. Ingram Professor of Biomedical Engineering Anita Mahadevan-Jansen and her group, in partnership with a medical device company, has won a 2019 R&D 100 Award. The R&D 100 Awards honor 100 top innovations of the prior year, as selected by a panel of expert judges, and is in...
Art-themed, 36-hour hackathon will draw hundreds of students to Vanderbilt Nov. 1-3
Oct. 24, 2019—In a twist that turns hacking into art, VandyHacks VI will engage more than 550 students from Vanderbilt and Southern and Midwest schools in its hackathon—a 36-hour invention marathon—beginning Friday evening on Nov. 1 and ending Sunday, Nov. 3. Hacking in this context brings together creative thinkers, programmers, designers, builders and more for an intense...
Alert system for failing nuclear plant pipes uses thin films and sound vibrations
Oct. 24, 2019—A failing pipe can be tough to spot. It may cause a puddle, produce another sign of damage, or simply burst before detection. A flooded kitchen or laundry room is messy and inconvenient, but the stakes are much, much higher in nuclear power plants – which on average contain many miles of pipeline. As concern...
Vanderbilt team ready for live DARPA spectrum challenge championship in L.A.; Winner will get $2 million
Oct. 17, 2019—Top prize in round one in 2017, second place in round two in 2018, and a prediction to cinch one of the top three spots in the live championship round of the DARPA Spectrum Collaboration Challenge, Vanderbilt’s MarmotE team will be ready to match radios and wits with nine other finalists. Learn More MarmotE With...
Smart City project gives Nashville data-based planning tools
Oct. 17, 2019—Vanderbilt researchers have discovered a vortex—and this one has nothing to do with icy, polar weather. Working with the Nashville Fire Department and Davidson County Information Technology Services, a team of Vanderbilt computer scientists and engineers analyzed more than three years of NFD incident data. The team looked at location, time and type of incidents...
Mary Ellen Ternes to lead the American College of Environmental Lawyers in 2020
Oct. 15, 2019—An American Institute of Chemical Engineers Fellow, one of only two attorney AIChE Fellows, is the president-elect of the American College of Environmental Lawyers, an organization dedicated to the development of environmental law at state and federal levels. Mary Ellen Ternes, BE’84, was elected at the organization’s annual meeting on Oct. 11, 2019. She will...
Pre-term birth risks evaluated under new light
Oct. 12, 2019—Anita Mahadevan-Jansen and her team are working to help more babies arrive safely. A small optical device the team designed has the potential to predict risks of preterm labor that could result in preterm births. Each year, 15 million babies worldwide are born prematurely, arriving at least three weeks before their due dates. Globally, prematurity...