7 Questions Category
RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT: Nuclear fusion and the future of clean energy
May. 25, 2023—History was made in December when scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility successfully produced a nuclear fusion reaction resulting in a net energy gain. And a Washington-based start-up backed by hundreds of millions of dollars of venture capital announced a few months later that it expects to have a fusion power plant built...
Research Spotlight: The rise of ChatGPT and the age of artificial intelligence
Feb. 21, 2023—When one of his Ph.D. students first suggested that Jules White, associate professor of computer science, check out ChatGPT—the artificial intelligence platform that can do everything from write original poetry to generate sophisticated computer code in seconds—White was dismissive at first. But once he investigated further, White knew that this technology would shape the future,...
7 Questions with Erika Wagner, BE’00, Senior Director of Emerging Space Markets for Blue Origin
Feb. 16, 2023—To watch video footage from one of Blue Origin’s crewed space launches—six have taken place so far, carrying passengers ranging from Alan Shepard’s daughter, Laura Shepard Churchley, to a member of the YouTube sensation Dude Perfect—is like seeing science fiction unfold in real-time. One of the people responsible for getting those passengers, and other payload...
7 Questions with Corey Thomas: President, CEO, Director of Rapid7
Feb. 14, 2023—Infinite possibilities drew Corey Thomas, BE ’98, to technology. Infinite curiosity fueled his interest, obsession even, with organizational behavior and the business side of technology. Rapid7, a cybersecurity tech firm based in Boston, has benefited from the combination of the two since 2008, when the founders hired Corey as SVP of marketing and sales. He...
7 Questions with Philippe Fauchet
Dec. 1, 2022—Philippe Fauchet, the Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of Engineering and professor of electrical engineering, will step down as dean, effective June 30, 2023, and will rejoin the school’s faculty in 2024 after a sabbatical. Under his leadership, the School of Engineering has grown in a number of areas, including the size of its faculty,...
7 Questions with Bob Higgins, President and CEO of Barge Design Solutions
Aug. 22, 2022—As a child, Bob Higgins, BE’97, says he constantly asked his father the question: Why? While an intern with Barge Design Solutions, Higgins thought about the possibility of one day leading the design firm and pondered: Why not? Today, he is the president and CEO of Barge going on 13 years. He is also a member of...
