1995 - 2004

1996

Water Reclamation Membranes

New research at UCLA devoted to refinements in reverse-osmosis technology could help solve problems of irrigation drainage water in the agriculturally rich San Joaquin Valley. (March 1996)

Image Compression Technique Doubles Efficiency

Researchers report the development of a new image data compression technique that is one-and-a-half to three times more efficient than the widely used JPEG standard. Such an advance could speed image communications for applications ranging from the Internet to direct broadcast satellite television. (March 1996)

Accurate El Nino Prediction Tool

UCLA researchers demonstrate a prediction tool with a significant level of accuracy in predicting droughts and floods caused by El Nino up to one or two years in advance. (July 1996)

Ultralight Robotic Aircraft

A crew of Rockwell engineers successfully launched and flew the UCLA-Rockwell Unmanned Air Vehicle during tests at El Mirage Dry Lake in the Mojave Desert. The battery powered, 40-foot-wing-span craft flew perfectly, while jubilant engineers chased the aircraft across the dry lake in a convertible. (November 1996)

1997

Artificial Intelligence Program Solves Rubik’s Cube

Computer science professor Richard Korf has found the first optimal solutions to Rubik’s Cube. The median optimal solution appears to be 18 moves, and it is believed any cube can be solved in no more than 20 moves. (May 1997)

Better Aneurysm Treatments

A team of UCLA computer scientists have developed a computer simulation system that can create highly accurate simulation and images of blood flow and correctly map its dynamics to aid doctors in treating brain aneurysms. (July 1997)

Novel Polymer Membranes

New ceramic supported polymer membranes could have a large impact on a variety of organic-organic separation applications, including refinery processes in the petrochemical industry, solvent recovery from various semiconductor manufacturing operations, purification of contaminated water supplies, and use in the food and beverage industry, such as wine clarification. (September 1997)

1998

Revolutionary Polymer Semiconductor Fabrication

Using a common inkjet printer, materials science and engineering professor Yang Yang’s group is printing polymer coatings directly onto glass substrates. (February 1998)

Hindenburg Disaster Reassessed

UCLA chemical engineering professor discovers that it was not hydrogen but the material used to coat the "skin" of the airship that caused the disastrous fire aboard the famous Hindenburg zeppelin. (May 1998)

1999

Improved Inkjet Printers

Recent graduate Fan-Gang “Kevin” Tseng applied microelectromechanical systems technology to the design of inkjet printers to achieve exceptional resolution, solving a problem that has plagued the printing industry for more than 10 years. (February 1999)

New Antenna Designs

When electrical engineering professor Yahya Rahmat-Samii is looking for new antenna designs, he just puts a few together so they can mate and reproduce. This decidedly unromantic activity, which takes place inside a computer, is an application of genetic algorithms - the Darwinian notion of natural selection and evolution. (September 1999)

Samueli Family Gives $30 Million to UCLA

Dr. Henry Samueli and his wife, Susan, donated $30 million to UCLA School of Engineering to establish endowments for graduate fellowships, teaching awards and term chairs, and for capital construction and other high-priority projects. (December 1999)

2000

School Dedicated

Honoring Dr. Henry Samueli, three time alumnus and electrical engineering faculty member, the School is dedicated as the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. A symposium prior to the dedication explored the evolving role of engineering in our world. (October 2000)

2001

Better Military Decisions

UCLA researchers are developing information technology that could one day help military leaders make rapid, informed decisions in a variety of hostile situations. The program would provide military leaders with fast, easy to understand information to assist them in managing military operations, from elaborate humanitarian missions to large-scale border defense. (June 2001)

Improving Building Safety

The George E. Brown Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) brings together 11 institutions in a cooperative network that will allow them to share data and equipment. The field-testing and monitoring equipment being designed at UCLA’s Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science will provide researchers with real-time information on what happens to structures such as buildings, dams and bridges during simulated earthquakes. (September 2001)

2002

Institute for Cell Mimetic Space Exploration

By mimicking the remarkable self-organizing capabilities of biological systems, researchers in the NASA-sponsored Institute for Cell Mimetic Space Exploration (CMISE) hope to create the next generation of technologies for exploring space. CMISE is one of five University Research, Engineering and Technology Institutes that represent NASA’s grand vision for enabling the promise of 21st century technologies. (February 2002)

Center for Embedded Networked Sensing

Just as UCLA was the first node on the ARPANET, a computer network that was the precursor to the Internet, researchers say the next incarnation of the Internet - a total communications system permeating the physical world - will be developed at the newly established UCLA Center for Embedded Networked Sensing. (April 2002)

Bioengineering Department

The interface between biology and the physical sciences represents fertile ground for new and exciting discoveries in the 21st century. The faculty in the newly formed Bioengineering Department at UCLA have embraced this opportunity to make an impact in this field with a revolutionary curriculum. (September 2002)

Center for Nanoscale Innovation for Defense

The Center for Nanoscience Innovation for Defense is created to facilitate the rapid transition of research innovation in the nanosciences into applications for the defense sector. Research at UCLA will focus on: quantum tele-communication nanodevices, development of a single-electron-spin microscope, photonic crystal nano-optical structures and circuits, and molecular level electronic and mechanical devices. (December 2002)

2003

Vijay K. Dhir Appointed Dean

Vijay K. Dhir, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has been named dean of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. Dhir, who served as the School’s interim dean since February 2002, plans to focus on increasing interdisciplinary research, aggressive faculty recruitment, greater engagement with alumni and creating a higher national profile. (March 2003)

Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics Focus Center

The Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics Focus Center (FENA) will expand semiconductor research at universities. The term “architectonics” is derived from a Greek word meaning “master builder,” which aptly describes the center’s researchers as they build a new generation of nanoscale materials, structures and devices for the electronics industry. (August 2003)

Center for Scalable and Integrated Nano-Manufacturing

The Center for Scalable and Integrated Nanomanufacturing (SINAM) will combine fundamental science and technology in nanomanufacturing, transforming laboratory science into industrial applications in nanoelectronics and biomedicine. SINAM’s integrated research and education platform will have wide and profound impacts on our lives through applications in computing, telecommunication, photonics, biotechnology, health care, and national security. (October 2003)