News

Texas Instruments gives $2.2 million to re-energize introductory electronics courses at UC Berkeley

05/10/12 Texas Instruments — Texas Instruments Incorporated has announced a $2.2 million gift to support engineering education at UC Berkeley. The university will use the gift to transform its traditional introductory Electronic Design Laboratory into a dynamic learning environment for undergraduate students. "This is a unique opportunity to introduce a new generation of engineering students to the fun of building things that matter," said Professor Costas Spanos. "We will do this by infusing the 'maker' ethic early into the learning cycle, and by creating a place that brings together state-of-the-art instructional labs, a student meeting place and student-run space for hardware hacking."

Berkeley Engineering alum Ilesanmi Adesida chosen as University of Illinois provost

05/09/12 Illinois News-Gazette — The University of Illinois has chosen a noted nanotechnology scholar as its next provost. Ilesanmi "Ade" Adesida, dean of the UI's College of Engineering, is expected to assume the post on August 16. Born in Nigeria, Adesida has made the UI campus his home for 25 years. He earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering from UC Berkeley.

Morgan Stanley’s Grimes is where money and tech meet

05/08/12 The New York Times — Berkeley Engineering alum Michael Grimes (B.S.'87 EECS), the head of Morgan Stanley's Menlo Park office, has become Silicon Valley's banker of choice for initial public offerings, and his firm is the lead underwriter of Facebook's IPO. "He was known as the whip-smart Cal Berkeley engineer who really understood technology," said Mary Meeker, who worked with Mr. Grimes at Morgan Stanley. "He's very creative and goes to meetings with the mind-set that the team needs to earn and re-earn the client's confidence at every turn."

Teaching engineers to be business leaders

05/07/12 Poets & Quants — A year ago, UC Berkeley's College of Engineering launched a leadership program for Silicon Valley engineers who wanted a deep dive in business and management but didn't want to commit to an MBA program. The Engineering Leadership Professional program has attracted engineers from Facebook, Cisco, Yahoo, Applied Materials and Network Appliances, among others. The program has been a big success, drawing 45 participants last year and 48 this year. "This is a hidden gem of a program," says Ikhlaq Sidhu, the curriculum designer and academic director of the program.

Berkeley Engineering’s Ashok Gadgil honored for bridging innovation and humanitarianism to help millions globally

05/02/12 Business Wire — Dr. Ashok Gadgil is the recipient of the 2012 $100,000 Lemelson-MIT Award for Global Innovation in recognition of his steady pursuit to blend research, invention, and humanitarianism for broad social impact. Gadgil is a chair professor of Safe Water and Sanitation at UC Berkeley, and director of the Environmental Energy Technologies Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Farewell

05/02/12 — Obituaries for Berkeley Engineering faculty and alumni

African project aims to innovate in educational robotics

05/01/12 IEEE Spectrum — Roboticists in Africa and in the United States have launched an initiative to enhance robotics education, research, and industry in Africa. The African Robotics Network (AFRON) wants to mobilize a community of institutions and individuals working on robotics-related areas, strengthening communication and collaboration among them. One of the co-founders of AFRON is Ken Goldberg, an IEEE Fellow and professor of robotics at UC Berkeley. Goldberg was born in Nigeria, where his parents were teachers.

Simons Institute for the Theory of Computing

05/01/12 The New York Times — The Simons Foundation, which specializes in science and math research, has chosen UC Berkeley as host for an ambitious new center for computer science. The foundation's $60 million grant to establish the Simons Institute for the Theory of Computing underscores the growing influence of computer science on the physical and social sciences.

UC Berkeley wins $60 million for computer center

05/01/12 San Francisco Chronicle — UC Berkeley has won a $60 million grant to establish a worldwide center for theoretical computer science to explore high-level mathematical algorithms that could help a variety of scientific fields, including health care, climate modeling and economics. The award from the Simons Foundation of New York will be used to start the Simons Institute for the Theory of Computing, which is expected start operations in July.

Dean’s word: We’ve changed

05/01/12 — When was your last visit to Berkeley Engineering? If it’s been awhile, you are in for some surprises. Start your virtual tour at North Gate and walk east. What you may remember as the Naval Architecture Building is now renovated—faithful to its historic designation —and expanded as Blum Hall, home to the Blum Center for […]

Diagram of how Berkeley0Darfur stove improves lives

It starts with a stove

05/01/12 — The Berkeley-Darfur Stoves project addresses the needs of families displaced by violence in western Sudan.

Big theory comes to campus

05/01/12 — The Simons Institute for the Theory of Computing will be coming to Calvin Hall; funded by a $60 million Simons Foundation grant, the institute will create a hub for theoretical computer science.

Science on a shoestring

05/01/12 — Lina Nilsson, a post-doctoral researcher in bioengineering, addresses the needs of the world's underfunded scientists.

Understanding energy by degrees

05/01/12 — A new undergraduate major in energy engineering launching fall 2012 will bring together a number of energy-related courses offered by the college, covering ethics, policy and economics.

New tenants at Richmond Field Station

05/01/12 — In January 2012, the Berkeley Lab named the Richmond Field Station as its top choice for a second campus; pending regulatory reviews, LBNL aims to open new research space by 2016.

Washington calling

05/01/12 — The White House has tapped two of Berkeley Engineering's own for leadership on critical presidential initiatives.

Q+A on excellence and diversity

05/01/12 — Berkeley Engineer sat down with Oscar Dubon, associate dean for equity and inclusion, and Executive Associate Dean Fiona Doyle to learn more about the college's efforts to attract a diverse range of highly qualified students.

Told in tears

05/01/12 — Bioengineering professor Amy Herr and graduate student Kelly Karns developed a microfluidic assay to test human tears for eye disease-specific proteins.

Powerboost

05/01/12 — Artificial photosynthesis, in which solar energy is converted directly into fuel, may just have gotten an important boost.

Slow going

05/01/12 — In California, single drivers of hybrid vehicles could drive in carpool lanes until 2011, but after the state put the brakes on the program, transportation engineer Michael Cassidy and graduate student Kitae Jang found that hybrids in standard lanes slowed traffic on Bay Area freeways.