Science & Technology

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.

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.

Ultra-miniature bialy-shaped particles — called nanobialys because they resemble tiny versions of the flat, onion-topped rolls popular in New York City — could soon be carrying medicinal compounds through patients’ bloodstreams to tumors or atherosclerotic plaques. The nanobialys are an important addition to the stock of diagnostic and disease-fighting nanoparticles developed by researchers at the School of Medicine.

It’s easy being green: Idling computers and bottled water, when used wisely, can make minimal impacts on the Earth.Want to begin to be more environmentally friendly in 2009 but can’t afford a hybrid car? Don’t worry — there are plenty of ways to lessen your impact on the environment that don’t come with such a daunting price tag, says Matt Malten, assistant vice chancellor for campus sustainability at Washington University in St. Louis. And they likely will even save you some money without cramping your carbon-creating lifestyle — much.

LowryThe President’s call to end a decades-old ban on offshore oil and gas drilling highlighted key differences in the big-oil platforms of presumptive Republican and Democratic presidential nominees Obama and McCain, suggests William Lowry, a WUSTL expert on the politics of environmental and energy issues.

WooleyAn interdisciplinary team of researchers at Washington University in St. Louis, led by Karen L. Wooley, Ph.D., James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor in Arts & Sciences, is a step closer to delivering cancer-killing drugs to pediatric brain tumors, similar to the tumor that Senator Ted Kennedy is suffering from. Such tumors are often difficult to completely remove surgically; frequently, cancerous cells remain following surgery and the tumor returns. Chemotherapy, while effective at treating tumors, often harms healthy cells as well, leading to severe side effects especially in young children that are still developing their brain functions. In an effort to solve this problem, the Wooley lab has developed polymeric nanoparticles that can entrap doxorubicin, a drug commonly used in chemotherapy, and slowly release the drug over an extended time period.