July, 2020
Streamlined diagnostic approach to COVID-19 can avoid potential testing logjam
Jul. 30, 2020—Following years of work developing diagnostics for infectious diseases including malaria, tuberculosis, dengue, chikungunya and zika, Nicholas Adams and Mindy Leelawong, both research assistant professors in the biomedical engineering laboratory headed by Rick Haselton, have developed a streamlined diagnostic approach for COVID-19 that renders RNA extraction – a bottleneck in the diagnostic process – unnecessary....
Vanderbilt rocketeers win seventh NASA launch national title
Jul. 24, 2020—The Vanderbilt University rocket team has won an unprecedented seventh NASA Student Launch national title. NASA officials today announced the Artemis Generation winners of its 2020 launch competition. By NASA’s comprehensive grading, the Vanderbilt team edged teams from second and third place winners, University of North Carolina-Charlotte and the University of Alabama-Huntsville, and 43 other...
Vanderbilt, TDOT awarded grant from U.S. Department of Transportation to enhance I-24 Smart Corridor development with Artificial Intelligence
Jul. 22, 2020—By Marissa Shapiro Without question, Nashville’s exhilarating growth has provided immense benefits to the region. The flip side of all that expansion is that traffic has increased by a whopping 60 percent since 2005 along the area of I-24 that connects Nashville with Murfreesboro, the fastest growing city in Tennessee. Today, Nashville is the 19th...
4D printed thermite could make welding in space and combat zones easier, safer
Jul. 20, 2020—A recent mechanical engineering doctoral graduate has created a material for welding in extreme conditions that could minimize equipment needed and operator hazards. The material—a safe, stable, thermite paste—can serve as a portable, programmable heat source for use in space, under water and in combat zones. The paste is 3D-printed and deposited in patterns called...
Vanderbilt engineer selected for NAE’s ‘Engineering for Pandemics’ panel at annual meeting
Jul. 17, 2020—Plenary speakers and technical forum panelists will offer their perspectives on health scourges and the role of engineering in preparing for and handling global pandemics at the 2020 National Academy of Engineering Annual Meeting in the fall. The meeting’s topic, “Engineering for Pandemics: Preparedness, Response and Recovery,” will be addressed in two plenary lectures and a forum, which will...
Eight engineering students on spring 2020 SEC Academic Honor Roll
Jul. 16, 2020—Eight engineering student-athletes have been named to the 2020 Spring SEC Academic Honor Roll. Commissioner Greg Sankey and the league office announced the SEC honor roll July 10. A total of 73 Vanderbilt student-athletes made the list. The engineering students are: Abbey Carlson–W Golf–Mechanical Engineering (BE’20) Brianne Gross–Lacrosse–Engineering Science/Communication Studies (rising junior) Megan MacGillis–Lacrosse–Engineering Science...
BME junior selected for inaugural NIH program to pursue biomedical graduate degree
Jul. 15, 2020—Lucy Britto is one of six Vanderbilt undergraduates selected as a MARC scholar in the inaugural 2020 cohort of an innovative National Institutes of Health program. The NIH recently launched the Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC) Awards program to build more diverse talent pools within undergraduate students. Vanderbilt is among a select number of...
Vanderbilt bioengineer’s trailblazing cancer research receives $1M W. M. Keck Foundation grant
Jul. 14, 2020—A bold engineering approach by a Vanderbilt University researcher to sort breast cancer cells based on their behavior first has produced compelling data that show less migratory cells create more metastases, contradicting the prevailing hypothesis on how cancer spreads. Expanding this ambitious research by Cynthia Reinhart-King, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Engineering, to other highly metastatic...