News

Databricks Spark plans: Big data Q&A

07/01/14 Information Week — Ian Stoica, computer science professor and CEO of Databricks, talks about his company's bold vision to make Databricks and its Apache Spark core, developed in UC Berkeley's AMPLab in 2009, into big data's epicenter of analysis.

UC now able to invest in homegrown technology

06/27/14 Daily Californian — Thanks to a change in policy, the University of California is now able to invest directly in companies that use and market technology developed at UC facilities, or to accept equity from such companies or from campus-run “incubators” - such as UC Berkeley's SkyDeck, which supports fledgling companies with resources and expertise.

Holistic development engineering on the upswing

06/24/14 SciDev.net — The open access Journal of Development Engineering is due to launch in 2015, a move that could encourage more researchers to enter this nascent and holistic field, where UC Berkeley's Blum Center for Developing Economies plays a leading role.

RadWatch project brings near real-time radiation data to the public

06/19/14 — A team of Berkeley nuclear engineering scientists has launched a project called RadWatch to provide the public online access to a wealth of information - including near real-time readings - on environmental radiation levels. The researchers say the effort is meant to demystify radiation, an often misunderstood subject.

Engineering for all

06/18/14 National Science Foundation — In an article on how the "maker movement" shines a spotlight on DIY design and manufacturing, mechanical engineering professor Paul Wright talks about how more affordable tools, like 3-D printers and design software, are helping young inventors move rapidly from prototype to product.

Rejuvenating innovation

06/17/14 — Conventional wisdom has it that entrepreneurs are born that way. At Berkeley, however, we thrive on proving conventional wisdom wrong. Our talented industry faculty and our hard-working staff have demonstrated that indeed, entrepreneurship can be learned, and that Berkeley can teach it.

The graduate

06/17/14 — Saddiq Nuru, a recent graduate from the Fung Institute's Master of Engineering program, reflects on his education, experience and ambitions. Nuru was chosen to deliver the graduate student address at this year's College of Engineering commencement ceremony.

Breana Kastreba batting in a Cal softball game

Power hitter

06/17/14 — On the surface, the late Orlando Tafoya (B.S'53 ME) and Cal varsity softball player Breana Kostreba may not appear to have much in common. But the two were connected through the Orlando Tafoya Memorial Scholarship, awarded to engineering students interested in athletics.

On the road

06/17/14 — While working in their garage at the Richmond Field Station, the machine shop in Cory Hall, or the Hackerspace, CalSol - the UC Berkeley Solar Vehicle Team - has completely redesigned their competition vehicle. They will have the opportunity to test their new design in an upcoming endurance race that will take them across eight states, from Texas to Minnesota.

The games genes play: Algorithm helps explain sex in evolution

06/16/14 — What do you get when you mix theorists in computer science with evolutionary biologists? You get an algorithm to explain sex, say researchers at UC Berkeley's Simons Institute for the Theory of Computing.

Big to tiny robots on risky ground: You go first

06/13/14 Phys.org — Researchers at Berkeley Engineering's Biomimetic Millisystems Lab and ETH Zurich have suggested an approach for protecting expensive components in big robots when on difficult terrain: Send in little, inexpensively made robots ahead of them as scouts.

Water researcher David Sedlak wins 2014 Clarke Prize

06/13/14 National Water Research Institute — The National Water Research Institute has named David Sedlak, Berkeley professor of civil and environmental engineering, as the 21st recipient of its Athalie Richardson Irvine Clarke Prize for his pioneering research on advancing the way water resources and urban water infrastructure are managed.

EPA hits nuclear power with kryptonite

06/13/14 Forbes — A commentary questioning whether the EPA's new proposed emissions rule for nuclear power plants is politically motivated quotes a forum post by nuclear engineering professor Per Peterson, who wrote that "There exists no plausible public health or environmental reason to regulate [Krypton-85] emissions, since they do not and can never have any significant public health or environmental impact."

Amplifying California’s collective intelligence

06/11/14 San Francisco Chronicle — In an op-ed article, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and IEOR professor Ken Goldberg write about the California Report Card, a mobile-friendly web-based platform from the CITRIS Data and Democracy Initiative that streamlines and organizes public input for the benefit of policymakers and elected officials.

World Cup may score points for exoskeleton development

06/10/14 University of California — When soccer's World Cup kicks off June 12, mechanical engineering professor Homayoon Kazerooni and his research assistants won't be watching the players. They'll be staring at the paraplegic teenager in a brain-controlled robotic suit kicking a soccer ball.

Slides of young and old blood, showing the effect of adding oxytocin

‘Trust hormone’ oxytocin helps old muscle work like new

06/10/14 — Berkeley researchers, led by Irina Conboy of bioengineering, have discovered that oxytocin – a hormone associated with maternal nurturing, social attachments, childbirth and sex – is indispensable for healthy muscle maintenance and repair. It is the latest target for development into a potential treatment for age-related muscle wasting.

Bioengineer Jay Keasling wins renewable energy prize

06/09/14 Joint BioEnergy Institute — Jay Keasling, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and bioengineering and CEO of JBEI, has won the 2014 Renewable Energy Prize portion of the prestigious Eni Awards for his achievements in “the microbial production of hydrocarbon fuels.”

Named lecture series honors pioneer Ruzena Bajcsy

06/06/14 Technische Universität Darmstadt — The new Ruzena Bajcsy Lectures on Communications at TU Darmstadt honors one of the first women researchers in electrical engineering and computer sciences and a role model for women scientists and engineers worldwide. The lecture series invites leading women researchers to Darmstadt. Bajcsy's work in EECS focuses on tele-immersive environments, image processing and robotics.

So, where are my robot servants?

05/29/14 IEEE Spectrum — Four years after Berkeley engineers' video of a towel-folding robot went viral, IEEE Spectrum ponders what it will take to develop robots that can become true helpers and companions in people's homes. Berkeley roboticist Ken Goldberg says he doubts that ever-smarter machines will replace human contact, “but people aren't always available.”

New laser sensing technology for self-driving cars, smartphones and 3-D video games

05/29/14 Science Codex — A new twist on 3-D imaging technology, being developed at Berkeley Engineering, could one day enable your self-driving car to spot a child in the street half a block away, let you answer your Smartphone from across the room with a wave of your hand, or play "virtual tennis" on your driveway. EECS Ph.D. candidate Behnam Behroozpour will present the team's work at the CLEO: 2014 conference in San Jose in June.