Author: Diana Lutz

Physics has a reputation for being the toughest of the high school science courses. But visual models of motion, acceleration, waves, projectiles and other principles help students of all ages build an understanding of physical science concepts. For Jack Wiegers, biology instructor, and Patrick Gibbons, Ph.D., professor of physics, these ideas are a key part of science for students from kindergarten through grade 12. The pair instructs four Science Outreach graduate courses in physical science designed for K-8 teachers. They’ve also worked with high school teachers in short workshops and in year-long professional learning communities.

Joseph A. O’Sullivan, Ph.D., the Samuel C. Sachs Professor of Electrical Engineering, has been appointed dean of the University of Missouri-St. Louis/Washington University Joint Undergraduate Engineering Program, according to Salvatore P. Sutera, Ph.D., interim dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science.

The earthquake that hit the lower Midwest on April 18 this year was a hearty 5.2 on the Richter scale and got the attention of the St. Louis region. What if a quake larger than that would hit the region? How would we respond? To address these concerns, the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Structural Engineering is presenting a series of seminars and workshops on the topic of reducing the damage that would occur when a strong earthquake strikes the area again.

What should the Midwest do before and after a major earthquake?The earthquake that hit the lower Midwest on April 18 of this year was a hearty 5.2 on the Richter scale and got the attention of the St. Louis region. What if a larger quake — occurring either in the New Madrid Fault or Wabash Valley Fault — were to hit the region? How would we respond? To address these concerns, the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Structural Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis is presenting a series of seminars and workshops on the topic of reducing the damage that could occur if a strong earthquake strikes the area again.

Image courtesy U.S. ArmyWUSTL’s Patrick Crowley is proposing a novel network for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to manage information better simultaneously in real-time.Patrick Crowley, a WUSTL computer architect, intends to design a new kind of network for the Department of Defense (DoD) to facilitate real-time information in the field so that every foot soldier, commander, tank and transport vehicle is networked. Crowley will use the WUSTL programmable network platform that can scale real-time information sharing over several orders of magnitude, from a handful of interconnected platforms to thousands and tens of thousands. He hopes to facilitate better information sharing in the military.

Image courtesy of NASAA WUSTL researcher and his collaborator have drawn the first detailed picture of the way a superfluid influences the behavior of a superconductor. This could shed light on the behavior of neutron stars, above.Scientists have studied superconductors and superfluids for decades. Now, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have drawn the first detailed picture of the way a superfluid influences the behavior of a superconductor. In addition to describing previously unknown superconductor behavior, these calculations could change scientists’ understanding of the motion of neutron stars.

WUSTL computer scientists who work on robots say the machines still need the human touch.War casualties are typically kept behind tightly closed doors, but one company keeps the mangled pieces of its first casualty on display. This is no ordinary soldier, though — it is Packbot from iRobot Corporation. Robots in the military are no longer the stuff of science fiction, and WUSTL’s Doug Few and Bill Smart are on the cutting edge of this new wave of technology. Few and Smart report that the military goal is to have approximately 30% of the Army comprised of robotic forces by approximately 2020.

David Kilper/WUSTL PhotoA group of about 45 sundial enthusiasts will tour 15 St. Louis area sundials.While we are bombarded daily with gloomy stories about Earth going to a hot place in a handbasket, a group of roughly 45 enthusiasts from around the country are meeting in St. Louis, August 7-10, to celebrate the beauty of the Earth moving around the sun.

Photo by David KilperDan Giammar, Ph.D., associate professor of energy, environmental and chemical engineering, and Nevin Peeples, a senior at St. Louis University High School, look at reactors used to study lead concentrations in drinking water. Giammar is mentoring Peeples, one of 83 high-school students participating in this year’s Students and Teachers as Research Scientists (STARS) program.

Each year, the Department of Biology awards a prize in memory of Marion Smith Spector, a 1938 WUSTL graduate. This year, the Spector Prize was shared by two recipients, Jason Metcalf and Aashish Manglik.