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E-BULLETIN
UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science
November 14, 2007
DEAN'S
LETTER
Earlier this month, we announced a significant
new initiative here at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering
and Applied Science.
The school has established the Institute for Technology
Advancement (ITA) – dedicated to the effective transition
of high-impact innovative research from UCLA to product development
and commercialization. Start-up funding for the new institute
comes from a major gift from Susan and Henry Samueli '75, MS '76,
PhD '80.
ITA is a truly groundbreaking development and
we are all very excited about what this means to the school and
its mission. Our faculty will have better opportunities to see
their innovations make a direct impact on society. Our students
will benefit by participating in institute projects. The institute
will open next month in an off-campus space provided by Abraxis
BioScience, Inc. and its CEO Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong.
At the start of this month, the White House announced
that two young members of our faculty – Eddie Kohler, assistant
professor of computer science, and Yi Tang, assistant professor
of chemical and biomolecular engineering – received Presidential
Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). This
is the nation’s most prestigious award for young researchers,
and we are very proud that their creativity and research promise
were recognized with national honors.
Also this month, we held our annual awards dinner
at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, with almost 400 alumni, faculty,
students, staff and friends of school in attendance. This year’s
winners are wonderful examples of the remarkable people that make
up UCLA Engineering.
Two of this year’s alumni honorees are members
of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). John L. Junkins
MS ’67, PhD ’69, a distinguished professor of aerospace
engineering at Texas A&M University, received the Alumnus
Achievement in Academia Award. Josephine Cheng ’75, MS ‘77,
a vice president at IBM who leads the China Development Lab, received
the Professional Alumna Achievement Award.
Distinguished Young Alumni Awards were given to
Dr. Tzung “John” Hsiai PhD ’01 who is an associate
professor of biomedical engineering and cardiovascular medicine
at USC, and to Sharon Vuong ’01, who is an engineering group
leader for Southern California in Motorola’s government
and public safety sector.
Electrical engineering professor Asad Abidi, also
a member of NAE, received the Lockheed Martin Excellence in Teaching
Award. The Northrop Grumman Excellence in Teaching Awards were
given to Jennifer Jay, assistant professor of civil and environmental
engineering, and to Daniel Kamei, assistant professor of bioengineering.
Our Edward K. Rice Student Award winners were
Ricky Tseng PhD ’07, Amarjeet Singh MS ’07 and Andre
Encarnacao ’07.
On a somber note, Dean Emeritus Russell O’Neill,
PhD '56 has passed away after serving the school for more than
60 years. On November 20, the school will hold a celebration of
Dean O’Neill’s life at the UCLA Faculty Center. Many
of you knew Dean O’Neill and how much he meant to UCLA Engineering.
I encourage you to come to the event to share your memories of
him.
Finally, on December 12, UCLA Engineering will
hold its annual holiday party at the UCLA Faculty Center and I
would like welcome our alumni and friends to this program.
Sincerely,
Vijay K. Dhir
Dean
FEATURE
STORIES
UCLA Engineering establishes Off-Campus Institute for Technology
Advancement
The UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied
Science announced the establishment of the Institute for Technology
Advancement (ITA) –a new off-campus technology development
center dedicated to the effective transition of high-impact innovative
research from UCLA to product development and commercialization.
To Read More, Click
Here.
In Memoriam: Russell O’Neill,
Dean Emeritus of UCLA Engineering
Russell R. O’Neill Ph.D. '56, professor
and dean emeritus of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering
and Applied Science, died at his Sherman Oaks home on October
11. He was 91. O'Neill joined the UCLA Engineering faculty in
1946. He was appointed dean of the school in 1974 and served until
1983. To Read More, Click
Here.
Two UCLA Engineering Faculty receive PECASE awards
Two young faculty members of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of
Engineering and Applied Science – Eddie Kohler,
assistant professor of computer science, and Yi Tang,
assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering –
have received Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists
and Engineers (PECASE). The award is considered the country’s
highest honor for engineers and scientists who are in the early
part of their careers. To Read More, Click
Here.
OTHER NEWS
Demetri Terzopoulos, Chancellor's
Professor of Computer Science, received the inaugural IEEE Computer
Vision Significant Researcher Award for "his pioneering and
sustained research on deformable models and their applications".
This prize was introduced as the definitive mid-career achievement
award in the computer vision field. The award will be given every
two years at the International Conference on Computer Vision.
Tony Chan, the assistant director for Mathematical
and Physical Sciences at the National Science Foundation, was
elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement
of Science. Chan, the former dean of physical sciences at UCLA,
holds joint appointments at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering
and Applied Science in the Bioengineering and Computer Science
departments. Election as a Fellow of AAAS is an honor bestowed
upon members by their peers. Fellows are recognized for meritorious
efforts to advance science or its applications.
MEDIA WATCH:
UCLA ENGINEERING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
New York Times [registration required]
Move
Over Corncobs, These Guys Run on Air
In the push to free the auto industry from its dependence on oil,
all kinds of alternatives are being tried. Consider now the refreshing
concept of cars that run on air. The idea sounds simple: compress
air and release it to operate a piston engine. But the execution
is difficult, and in one form or another it has occupied engineers
since the 19th century. UCLA mechanical and aerospace engineering
professor Tsu-Chin Tsao quoted.
UCLA Today
In
Memoriam: Russell O’Neill
Russell R. O'Neill, professor and dean emeritus of the UCLA Henry
Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, died at his
Sherman Oaks home on Oct. 11. He was 91.
CALENDAR
November 20
Dean
Russell R. O'Neill Memorial Service
2 p.m.
UCLA Faculty Center
December 12
UCLA Engineering Holiday Party
2 p.m.
UCLA Faculty Center
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