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DEAN'S LETTER

When UCLA’s engineering students return to their studies this fall, they will find that we have added some impressive depth to our faculty.

Thanks to aggressive recruitment efforts, we have added six accomplished researchers and teachers to our faculty, talented men and women who bring a wide range of research and teaching experience in a number of fields, including cryptography, materials synthesis, tissue engineering and electronic polymers.

In the last two years, we have recruited 20 exceptional scholars to our faculty, in every one of our seven departments, all of whom have opened the door to fresh collaborations and interdisciplinary research breakthroughs.

The newest members of our faculty are: Timothy Deming, bioengineering department; Emilio Frazzoli, mechanical and aerospace engineering department; Eric M.V. Hoek, civil and environmental engineering department; Qibing Pei, materials science and engineering department; Amit Sahai, computer science department; and Tatiana Segura, chemical engineering department.

Our newest recruits are an accomplished and diverse group. You can find out more about our new faculty members in this issue of the E-Bulletin.

I am very pleased and excited about these developments. Our faculty perform cutting-edge research that will drive tomorrow’s economy, and they train our students to become tomorrow’s scientific and industrial leaders. It is essential that we continue to attract and retain the finest faculty.

To fulfill this mission, the School has an ambitious plan to raise $100 million, half of which will fund endowed fellowships and scholarships for graduate and undergraduate students, as well as faculty chairs. A dean’s cabinet made up of faculty, distinguished alumni and friends of the School has been created to assist us in our efforts. Henry Samueli, a member of our faculty after whom our School is named, chairs the cabinet. UCLA has also begun a concerted effort to raise $250 million over five years to recruit and retain the very best faculty and students.

All of these efforts are essential to maintaining our ability to contribute to this state’s and the country’s scientific, economic and societal success. I look forward to sharing updates on these plans in the future.

Sincerely,

Vijay K. Dhir
Dean

ON THE WEB

The School of Engineering web site is about to adopt a whole new look, with new content and added features that will make it even easier to find what you want about our School’s services, accomplishments and goals. Keep your eyes on http://www.engineer.ucla.edu to see the changes, coming soon!

FEATURE STORIES

UCLA Researchers Control a Single Electron’s Spin
Quantum computing, which holds the promise of nearly unlimited processing power, secure communications and the ability to decode encrypted conversations by terrorists and others, is a significant step closer to becoming a reality with new research published by a team of UCLA scientists in the journal Nature. Electrical engineering professor Eli Yablonovitch and physics professor Hong Wen Jiang succeeded in flipping a single electron spin upside down in an ordinary commercial transistor chip, and detected that the current changes when the electron flips.
http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/news/stories_2004/quantum.html

UCLA Engineering Students Travel to Thailand to Build Health Clinic
In the remote hill tribe settlement of Samli, Thailand, the nearest doctor is miles away, and villagers travel up to a week to reach a hospital. But this August, the village of Samli will officially open its own health clinic, thanks to the efforts of six UCLA engineering students, all members of a new organization called Engineers Without Borders. For the students, the project turned out to be a learning experience in more ways than one.
http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/news/stories_2004/ewb.html

Pre-seed Investment Fund Helps Jump-start Faculty Entrepreneurs
Described as a “launching pad” for product development research, the Lab2Market Investment Fund provides support for researchers whose work shows the potential of yielding a marketable product. The fund is the first of its kind for the University of California. Electrical engineering professor and department chair Yahya Rahmat-Samii, the fund's second recipient, is using the fund to support further development of his software for antenna design.
http://www.research.ucla.edu/whatsbruin/2004/7/lab2market/

H. J. Orchard, UCLA Electrical Engineering Professor, Dies at 82
H. J. Orchard, a professor emeritus of electrical engineering and authority on filter design and network theory, died June 23 at his home in Santa Monica of respiratory failure. He was 82. Orchard, who enjoyed a 21-year career on the UCLA faculty, is remembered as “a great researcher, a rare and extraordinary teacher.”
http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/news/stories_2004/orchard.html

Six Exceptional Scholars Join Engineering School’s Faculty
Industry veterans, accomplished researchers, even a former officer in the Italian Navy – the School’s newest faculty recruits are a diverse and impressive group of scholars and teachers. They represent a diverse range of expertise, and are an important addition to the School’s already impressive roster.
Learn more about the School’s new faculty members at http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/news/stories_2004/faculty2004.html.

Two UCLA Professors to Speak at NAE’s Frontiers of Engineering Symposium
Mechanical and aerospace engineering professor Greg Carman has been chosen to speak at the National Academy of Engineering's (NAE) 10th annual Frontiers of Engineering symposium. The three-day event in September brings together engineers ages 30 to 45 who are performing cutting-edge engineering research and technical work in a variety of disciplines. A total of 86 participants from industry, academia, and government were nominated by fellow engineers or organizations and chosen from a field of over 170 applicants. Carman is one of only 14 people chosen to speak, as is Bjorn Stevens, a professor from UCLA’s department of atmospheric and oceanic sciences.
Learn more about Carman’s research at http://aml.seas.ucla.edu/home.htm and read the NAE press release at http://www.nae.edu/nae/naehome.nsf/weblinks/CGOZ-633JQB?OpenDocument.

Academy of Prosthodontics Elects UCLA Professor Ben Wu as Associate Fellow
Bioengineering professor Ben Wu was named an associate fellow of the Academy of Prosthodontics, the oldest and most prestigious professional organization in the specialty field of prosthetic dentistry. Founded in 1918, the organization maintains a small membership, with only 71 Active Fellows and 11 Associate Fellows. Wu also holds appointments in the School’s material science and engineering department as well as in the School of Dentistry. Learn more about Wu’s research at http://www.bioeng.ucla.edu/Facultyresearch/wu.html.

MEDIA WATCH: UCLA ENGINEERING IN THE NEWS

UCLA Engineers Vibrate Abandoned Building in “Shake Test”
An earthquake test by UCLA civil engineering professor John Wallace, which involved the forcible shaking of an abandoned Sherman Oaks office building, was featured July 28 by KNBC-Channel 4, KMEX-Channel 34 and KVEA-Channel 52. Large devices called eccentric mass shakers, planted on the building’s roof, sent powerful vibrations throughout the building while Wallace and his crew observed the effects from a mobile field lab stationed nearby. Check out pictures from the shake tests. http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/stories/2004/shake.htm

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Read more UCLA Engineering news at http://www.engineer.ucla.edu

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