News

No Fukushima radiation found in West Coast kelp

05/07/14 Berkeley Lab — Scientists working together on Kelp Watch 2014, including nuclear engineering professor Kai Vetter, announced Wednesday that the West Coast shoreline shows no signs of ocean-borne radiation from Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster, following their analysis of the first collection of kelp samples along the western U.S. coastline.

Health care apps offer patients an active role

05/02/14 New York Times — The CellScope Oto, based on a device born in professor Dan Fletcher's bioengineering lab in 2009, is one of two tools featured in a New York Times article on a new breed of apps and devices that increasingly put medical tools in the hands of consumers.

Engineering social justice

05/02/14 — In a new course, "Engineering, the Environment and Society," Khalid Kadir is challenging his students to build more just and equitable systems by rethinking the role engineers play in social issues.

Water 4.0

05/02/14 — An excerpt from civil and environmental engineering professor David Sedlak's new book, Water 4.0: The Past, Present and Future of the World's Most Vital Resource, which calls for major changes in urban water systems.

The last firewall

05/01/14 — Implantable medical devices, brain-machine interfaces and wearable technology all present intensifying privacy and security challenges. Better to build security into such devices rather than trying to layer it over them later.

Dean’s word: Made-to-order engineering education

05/01/14 — Paul Jacobs, whose lead gift helped launch the Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, joined student speakers Eric Mica, Kate Rakelly and Lavanya Jawaharlal for the April 12 groundbreaking celebration for Jacobs Hall, to open Fall 2015. (Photo by Noah Berger)“I’m not an engineer because I like following procedures. I’m an engineer because of those moments […]

True colors

05/01/14 — Berkeley bioengineers found inspiration in turkey skin for a new type of biosensor that changes color when exposed to chemical vapors.

Reprogrammed

05/01/14 — A team of Berkeley scientists, led by bioengineering professor Song Li has shown that physical cues can replace certain chemicals when nudging mature cells back into a pluripotent stage.

About a bone

05/01/14 — Researchers led by Robert Ritchie, professor of materials science and engineering, have learned that the natural bone aging process can be hastened by a deficiency in vitamin D.

Out for a spin

05/01/14 — New work by Berkeley researchers could transform modern electronics by making nanomagnetic switches a viable replacement for the conventional transistors found in all computers.

By Jupiter

05/01/14 — Recent work from Philip Marcus, professor of mechanical engineering, in collaboration with Pedram Hassanzadeh (Ph.D'13 ME), may explain the longevity of Jupiter's Great Red Spot.

Q+A on L.A. seismic study

05/01/14 — Jack Moehle, professor of civil engineering, talked to Berkeley Engineer about his recently completed seismic study of unreinforced concrete buildings in Los Angeles, and its impact.

Art imitates academia

05/01/14 — EECS professors Jose Carmena and Michel Maharbiz served as technical consultants to Transcendence film director Wally Pfister and answered questions about the film at a campus screening.

Devices: Optimal distillation

05/01/14 — Students in the hands-on Interactive Device Design course researched the distillery business to design an elegant solution to an age-old challenge.

Analysis of shadows in moon landing photo

Moonshadow

05/01/14 — Computer science professor James O'Brien, who began tinkering with code while in elementary school, has helped design a technique for detecting altered photographs.

Comments

05/01/14 — Comments from our readers.

Bot on a budget

05/01/14 — Lavanya Jawaharlal, with her sister Melissa, co-founded STEM Center USA and developed the affordable Pi-Bot robot kit to increase access to science, technology, engineering and math fields.

Cal human-powered vehicle crossing the finish line

Cal Human-Powered Vehicle team mends, but does not brake

05/01/14 California magazine — Things were looking bleak for the Berkeley Engineering Human-Powered Vehicle team last weekend, and the timing couldn't have been worse. Just a day before the big ASME regional race, their state-of-the-art vehicle, nicknamed Reuben, crashed and broke in two on the first practice run. Then came a bigger surprise.

crystal orientations of 2D semiconductor membranes

Research on the literal edge of 2D semiconductors

05/01/14 Berkeley Lab — Researchers at Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley, led by Professor Xiang Zhang of mechanical engineering, have recorded the first observations of a strong nonlinear optical resonance along the edges of single layers of molybdenum disulfide. The existence of these edge states is key to the use of molybdenum disulfide in nanoelectronics, as well as a catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction in fuel cells, desulfurization and other chemical reactions.

Alumni notes

05/01/14 — News and photos of Berkeley Engineering alumni from decades past.