Archived Research News: Research News

SC Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance


SCHFCA, a nonprofit corporation and the primary facilitator of hydrogen initiatives within South Carolina, is seeking new members-- educational institutions, private businesses and government agencies, and individuals. Click here for a membership form or visit here for more information.

Fuel Cell Challenge
USC, the City of Columbia, the South Carolina Research Authority and EngenuitySC are seeking private sector leaders from the fuel cell market to collaborate on an unprecedented deployment of fuel cell and alternative energy technology into multiple city, university and commercial applications throughout the region. More information/RFP at www.fuelcellchallenge.com. 

HHS secretary appoints Lòpez-De Fede

Dr. Ana Lòpez-De Fede, director of health and family studies at the University of South Carolina Institute for Families in Society, has been appointed by Michael O. Leavitt, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, to the Advisory Council for the Elimination of Tuberculosis for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) .

Lòpez-De Fede's work on the socio-cultural dimensions of health and her commitment to the elimination of tuberculosis were cited in the appointment. Through a partnership with the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, she has been working with the CDC to improve tuberculosis programs for African Americans in South Carolina.

"While many believe that TB has been long eradicated, it remains a societal threat, and South Carolina has the highest number of cases among the Southeastern states," she said.

The advisory council will provide advice and recommendations on the elimination of tuberculosis to the U.S. Secretary and Assistant Secretary for Health and Human Services and the CDC director. It also will make recommendations for policies, strategies, objectives and priorities; address the development and application of new technologies; provide guidance and review on CDC's Tuberculosis Prevention Research portfolio and programs; and review progress on the elimination of the disease.

"The opportunity to serve as member of this council is a privilege and an opportunity to work in an area with the potential to directly affect the health and well-being of our most vulnerable South Carolinians," said Lòpez-De Fede.

NSF awards levee closure research

A $100,000 grant from the National Science Foundation will continue a study by researchers in USC's College of Engineering & Computing of New Orleans' 17th Street canal levee breach-with possible implications for levees worldwide

Dr. Hanif Chaudhry is chairman of USC's department of civil and environmental engineering, and his colleague, Dr. Ahmed Kassem, is a civil-engineering research professor. They initially studied the levee failure with one of 18 grants funded with $400,000 from USC's Office of Research for studies on the societal and environmental implications of Hurricane Katrina
(see http://www.sc.edu/katrinacrisis/ ).

The two researchers say they have found a cost-effective and efficient way to halt flooding caused by breached levees using a concept for closing cofferdams - temporary barriers made of wood, steel or concrete that hold back water.

The actual attempts to close the breached levee failed because the velocity of the water flowing through the breach was too high for the size of the sandbags that were used, Chaudhry said. "It was apparent that the ordinary dumping of sandbags would not work and that a more systematic approach utilizing knowledge and experience gained from the closing of rivers might have been better," said Chaudhry, who has been a consultant on a number of projects for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

In the hydraulics laboratory, the USC researchers constructed a scale model of the canal, the breach and the surrounding area, which included a number of homes. They utilized "similitude relationships" to produce, to scale, the flow velocity, flow rate, and sandbags used in New Orleans to close the 17th Street canal breach. "Even sandbags that weighed 10,000 pounds washed away," he said. "Our laboratory tests show that it would have taken sandbags weighing about 50,000 pounds to stay."

Then, using a concept for closing rivers, the USC researchers added stones between the homes to obstruct the water. The houses also acted as barriers to the water. "By doing this, we were successful in closing the breach with sandbags that weighed about 7,500 pounds," Chaudhry said. "Our next step will be to try closing the breach with sandbags weighing as little as 5,000 pounds or less, but utilizing another concept from river closure. These concepts are cost effective and efficient and have been successfully used for closing large rivers," he said. "They should help to close breached levees in a shorter time, thereby reducing the extent and depth of flooded areas."

The USC work is believed to be the first to look at the hydraulics of the 17th Street canal breach and the closing procedures used in the hours after Hurricane Katrina. The new NSF grant will enable Chaudhry and Kassem to expand their research.

"Having this grant will greatly add to our preliminary findings," Chaudhry said. "The flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina will never be forgotten by those who watched it on television and by those who lived through it. We want to prevent this type of disaster from occurring again."

USC researcher contributes to AHA guidelines

The American Heart Association is calling for schools to lead the way to ensure that all children and youth participate in adequate physical activity during the school day, in "Promoting Physical Activity in Children and Youth: A Leadership Role for Schools," appearing in the current issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

"Children and youth spend a substantial number of their waking hours in school, so it's important that schools provide adequate physical activity," said Dr. Russell R. Pate, chair of the writing group for the AHA recommendations and a professor of exercise science at the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health.

Although schools are under pressure to increase student scores on standardized tests, the dramatic rise in the prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents in the United States suggests that the nation's schools must systematically and effectively promote behaviors that will prevent students from becoming overweight or obese, the paper's authors said. The scientific statement takes a comprehensive look at the state of physical education, from the amount of time students should be active each week to enhancements in the college education of (PE) teachers.

"It's important that kids adopt active lifestyles," Pate said. "The list of negative health outcomes associated with physical inactivity - including heart disease and type 2 diabetes - is growing."

During the past 20 years, obesity rates in U.S. children and youth have increased markedly. Among children ages 6 - 11, 31.2 percent are overweight or at risk for being overweight. Among adolescents ages 12-19, 30.9 percent are overweight or at risk for being overweight.

"A balanced academic program should include PE and should also incorporate strategies to increase physical activity throughout the school day. Physical activity shouldn't stop at PE class."

Fletcher named SOE Director

Congratulations to Dr. Madilyn Fletcher, director of the Baruch Institute for Marine Biology and Coastal Research, on being named director of the university's School of the Environment, which became part of the College of Arts and Sciences July 1. Fletcher will continue to work collaboratively with faculty and staff across the college and throughout the university to strengthen research and teaching activities.

Forthofer named associate dean, institute director

Melinda S. “Lyndie” Forthofer, Ph.D., has been named director of the Institute for Families and Society (IFS), reporting to the vice president for Research and Health Sciences. She will also serve as associate dean for research at the College of Social Work.

IFS enhances the well-being of families through the integration of research, education, technical assistance and consultation. These activities occur at the community, state, national and international levels through collaboration with community groups, social institutions and government.

As IFS director, Forthofer is responsible for fostering university-community partnerships and integrating research, practice, and policy, as well as increasing NIH and other funding.

“Dr. Forthofer was identified during an extensive national search. The expertise, energy, and leadership she brings to USC are key to our plans for the Institute for Families and Society going forward, “said Harris Pastides, USC vice president for research and health sciences.”I am delighted that she will oversee our research and scholarship in this area.”

Formerly an associate professor in the Department of Community and Family Health at the University of South Florida College of Public Health, Forthofer earned her B.A. in Sociology and Gender Studies from Case Western Reserve University in 1992, and her Ph.D in Health Behavior/Health Education and Sociology from the University of Michigan.

At the University of Michigan, she served on the staff of the NIMH-funded National Co-morbidity Study at the Institute for Social Research. At the University of South Florida, she co-founded the CDC-founded Florida Prevention Research Center and served as director of its Research Methods and Evaluation Unit from 1998-2005.

Forthofer’s research interests include social epidemiology, prevention science methodology and community-based health promotion. Her research is aimed at explaining the mechanisms through which social structure and social context influence health outcomes.

Sutton named SRNL's University Relations Director

The Savannah River National Laboratory and the University of South Carolina have announced that USC professor Dr. Michael Sutton is the SRNL's director for University Relations.

In this position, Sutton will assist SRNL in the expansion of collaborations with regional and national universities.

SRNL is the U.S. Department of Energy's applied research and development laboratory located at the Savannah River Site near Aiken. The laboratory provides applied technology solutions in the areas of energy security, national and homeland security and environmental protection and cleanup, often working in collaboration with research universities, other national laboratories and private industry partners. SRNL is operated for DOE by Washington Savannah River Company.

Sutton will continue in his post as Carolina Distinguished Professor in USC's department of mechanical engineering and serving as director of the state Center for Mechanics, Materials and Nondestructive Examination.

Sutton holds a Ph.D. in theoretical and applied mechanics from the University of Illinois, along with an M.S. and B.S. in engineering mechanics and materials from Southern Illinois University. Sutton is a fellow with both the American Society for Mechanical Engineering and the Society for Experimental Mechanics.

Sutton's research interests include coherent and incoherent optics applications, experimental mechanics, digital image processing, computer vision, applications of integral methods and experimental mechanics, boundary value problems, plastic fracture mechanics and finite elements modeling of cracked bodies.

Davis' desalination technology licensed by Dow

Dow Chemical Co. has agreed to commercialize a desalination process developed by Dr. Tom Davis, a research professor of chemical engineering in USC's College of Engineering & Computing

Dow has signed a licensing agreement with ZDD Inc. of Columbia for the exclusive rights to commercialize the patent-pending ZDD (Zero Discharge Desalination) technology.

"This is an example of how the university is working to transfer technology from the lab to industry," said Davis, who joined USC's research faculty in 2001. "Dow has an international reputation as a leader in the water-purification industry. The ZDD technology is a good fit for Dow's business."

ZDD Inc. was founded by USC alumnus Walker Rast, chairman and CEO of the company; his wife, Ruth Rast, president; and Davis, the company's chief technology officer.

Lisa Rooney, director of the USC Intellectual Property Office said this license agreement adds to the growing list of university technologies that are entering the commercial marketplace.

"It is a great example of how university research adds value to products that will benefit society," she said.

Desalination is the process of removing salt from water or a salty solution. The remaining concentrate is largely unusable because of its high salt content. Dumping the concentrate in a lake or stream is not acceptable, so the desalination industry has either pumped it into a deep well or sent it to a detention pond where the water evaporates, leaving behind a mixture of salts with limited commercial use.

Davis' technology is expected to expand the commercial use of this mixture when it comes from raw groundwater because it contains gypsum, which is used by home builders in wallboard.

"Instead of a waste product, it will have commercial use and value," Davis said.

The technology that Davis developed uses a combination of reverse osmosis, an economical way to purify water, and another process that separates calcium and sulfate, two components of gypsum, from water. The process creates two separate streams of salt, one with calcium chloride and the other with sodium sulfate. These streams are mixed to create calcium sulfate (gypsum), which can be harvested for the building industry.

Davis said New Mexico is a potential location for the ZDD technology because of its groundwater has an abundance of gypsum. ZDD Inc.'s research is supported by Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico and the Bureau of Reclamation of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

"This technology will benefit many cities and communities throughout the western United States where groundwater is limited and often tainted," said Rast, who earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from USC in 1959.

Rast, who brings four decades of business experience to ZDD Inc., was chairman and CEO of the Keyes Fibre Co. (the Chinet Co.), which operated in 27 countries. The Rasts, who had retired to Hilton Head Island, are moving to Columbia to work more closely with USC engineering faculty who have projects with commercial potential.

Davis, who recently presented information about his desalination technology at a conference in Anaheim, Calif., and his research team are testing the ZDD process in California, where irrigation water also is high in gypsum.

Davis holds 13 patents for products and technology developed while working for Milliken in Spartanburg, the Southern Research Institute in Birmingham, Ala., and Exxon in New Jersey.

NSF-funded tomato study could beat bugs, diseases

USC Researchers are seeking a discovery that could help scientists develop new tomato varieties with stronger defenses systems to battle the insects, bacteria, fungi and viruses that threaten and destroy crops.

"Tomatoes are frequently attacked by a number of enemies - insects and microbial pathogens alike. But they have a very effective and sophisticated defense system that has evolved over millions of years," said Dr. Johannes Stratmann, whose research team includes USC undergraduate biology students Wayne Miller of Greenville and Suchita Pancholi of Columbia.

"We are trying to understand these defense mechanisms at the molecular level," said Stratmann, whose studies are funded by the National Science Foundation. "Our research could help other scientists develop new crop plants that are effective in battling insects and other stressors. But before we can develop better plants, we have to know how the plant works."

Stratmann likens the workings of the tomato plant's cellular defense system to a radio, where waves are perceived by the antenna and relayed to a transistor that amplifies the signal, producing sound.

"We see a similar situation in a cell," said Stratmann. "When tomato plants are attacked and wounded by plant-eating insects, a small peptide (protein) called systemin is released at the wound site."

At a target cell, the systemin interacts with a receptor, the equivalent of the radio antenna. The systemin signal is then amplified along a so-called "signal transduction pathway." Ultimately, defense genes are activated. These genes encode proteins that block digestive enzymes in the insects' guts. This reduces the growth of the attacking insects, which begin to starve or move on to other plants.

Miller is looking at a protein that functions in the signal transduction pathway of systemin. To characterize the function of this protein, he engineered a harmless plant virus that turns off the gene that encodes the signaling protein. The assumption is that when the gene is turned off, the signal transduction should be interrupted and the defense response halted. This would prove that the protein is essential for the defense response.

"This technique is giving us an understanding of the signal pathways involved in the plant's defense system," said Miller, a senior who wants to continue graduate studies in plant biology. "Our work on signaling genes is proving to be successful."

Pancholi, a South Carolina Honors College senior who hopes for a career in research or medicine, is working on another signaling protein, which is part of the systemin signaling pathway. She is studying how this protein responds to wound signals that are generated by insects at the wound site and travel to distant parts of the plant.

These signals are very fast, with a speed of up to one inch per second. It is thought that the signals prepare the entire plant for an attack by an insect. Pancholi's work with Stratmann will help provide clues for biotechnology on how to alter the signaling pathways in crop plants to make them more resistant to the stresses they encounter.

"This experience is a very important component of my education," she said. "You can't conduct research without knowing the basic concepts of biology."

Pancholi and Miller, recipients of USC's Belser Award that recognizes outstanding students in plant biology, are working with Stratmann as part of USC's Magellan Scholars Program, which enables undergraduate students to conduct research in the labs of the university's top scientists.

Stratmann said it's important for the university to provide research experiences for undergraduates.

"These students are producing valuable results," he said. "They bring a fresh perspective to our research."

Miller, whose work will be part of a paper being submitted for publication in a scientific journal, said, "I've been able to apply what I've learned in the classroom to my research. It has helped me to see the practical applications of what I'm learning."

MILLENNIUM CELL JOINS USC FUEL CELL RESEARCH CENTER

Millennium Cell Inc., a leading developer of hydrogen battery technology, has joined the University of South Carolina's Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Fuel Cells.

The nation's only National Science Foundation-sponsored fuel cell center, IUCRC was established in 2003 to foster the commercialization of fuel-cell technologies.

Like the center's other members, Millennium Cell will partner with USC faculty and students to advance research in hydrogen storage materials, fuel cell development, boron chemistry, and hydrogen battery systems.

"We are pleased to join the USC Fuel Cell Research Center and add our approaches to those of the well-known companies already partnering with USC researchers in the seeking innovative solutions to advance the commercial applications and deployment of hydrogen batteries," Millennium Cell CEO David Ramm said.

Dr. John Van Zee, the director of USC's fuel cell research center and a professor of chemical engineering, said Millennium Cell's decision "to join our center is another important step in our efforts to create a Future FuelsTM research hub in Columbia."

In addition to Millennium Cell, center members include Air Liquide, BASF AG, Boeing, DANA Corporation, ePower Technologies, General Motors Corporation, John Deere, LG Electronics, and Westinghouse Savannah River Co.

Millennium Cell develops hydrogen battery technology to power portable devices military, medical, industrial and consumer electronics.

New Social Work faculty recognized

Congratulations to Drs. Rita Chou and Shawna Lee on their acceptance-- from more than 100 applicants-- to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 2006 Summer Institute on Design and Development of Quantitative Research on Social Work Interventions in Health.

The intensive, five-day program will provide Drs. Chou and Lee-- who both will be Assistant Professors in the College of Social Work this fall-- valuable skills needed for preparing successful NIH proposals for small research projects that can be carried out in a short period of time with limited resources (R03) or the early stage development of a new, exploratory/developmental projects (R21) that help NIH further its goal of improving the quality of health care in this country.

EngenuitySC Announces City of Columbia's Only Wet Lab Research Space for Fuel Cell Innovation
Project Launches Significant Development in Future FuelTM Evolution from Research to Reality

As the driving force behind the development of the “knowledge economy” for Richland and Lexington Counties, EngenuitySC has announced funding for the area’s first wet lab research space for fuel cell innovation. Wet lab space is unique in that it consists of a highly specialized hood and ventilation system essential to fuel cell research, and private companies with similar research needs. Larry Wilson, member of the EngenuitySC Executive Committee, announced the project as he briefed business leaders on the status of the Hydrogen Fuel Cell strategic plan at the Chamber’s recent Intra-Regional Visit. “We are building the world’s first, planned end-to-end fuel cell district in the heart of Columbia. Wet lab research space within Innovista will enable us to attract the best and brightest in the fuel cell world to build their businesses in Columbia.”

With a $400,000 grant secured by EngenuitySC, the state-of-the-art, world-class facilities will serve as an integral tool in recruiting and retaining Future FuelTM oriented companies to the Midlands area. The facilities present the opportunity to generate market start-ups by providing the next step in product development - building upon the University of South Carolina’s established core competencies in these fields of research.

“We would like to acknowledge the support we have received from our entire federal delegation, but in particular we would like to acknowledge the assistance of former Senator Hollings in securing this particular grant and Congressman Clyburn for continuing his work in securing additional funding for future programs,” said Columbia City Mayor Bob Coble. “We could not have achieved this success without their help.”

The wet lab research space will be located in the USC Future FuelsTM Building at the new Horizon Center – a public private partnership situated in the heart of Innovista. The unique location of the lab space within the center will situate research and wet lab research space facilities directly across the street from the fuel cell companies.

Executive Director of EngenuitySC, Neil McLean, notes that, “this project’s public-private partnership, consisting of USC, the City of Columbia and the private sector, provides the leadership to enable infrastructure – giving Columbia the competitive edge in attaining our goal for building a thriving fuel cell cluster in the region.”

About EngenuitySC
EngenuitySC is a non-profit economic development leadership council with a mission to coordinate actions that generate the creation and growth of knowledge based companies in Richland and Lexington Counties. Its primary goals are building ties between the University of South Carolina's research activities and the local business community, developing sources of venture capital for local entrepreneurs, and taking actions to create a business environment that supports entrepreneurial ventures. For more information, please visit www.engenuitysc.com.

About The Greater Columbia Fuel Cell Challenge
USC, the City of Columbia, SCRA and EngenuitySC have organized the Greater Columbia Fuel Cell Challenge to collaborate with private sector leaders from all areas of the fuel cell market for the unprecedented deployment of fuel cell and alternative energy technologies into multiple city, university and public applications in Columbia. With one of the nation’s top fuel cell research programs located at USC and several other alternative fuel cell projects around the state, the region is uniquely positioned to play a leadership role in the development of the next energy economy. For more information, please visit www.fuelcellchallenge.com

USC scientist finds ‘genetically distinct' shark

Biology professor Dr. Joe Quattro, collaborating with Dr. Jim Grady at the University of New Orleans and Dr. Trey Driggers with the National Marine Fisheries Service, has discovered a genetically distinct species of the hammerhead shark. Classified under the genus, sphyrna, the species is the ninth recognized in the hammerhead family and will be called the "cryptic species" until a formal description is pronounced.

Discovered while Quattro was studying coastal fish with biologists from the S.C. Department of Natural Resources, the species appears to be rare and localized to the S.C. coast, making it a high risk for extinction and the state's coastal waters crucial for conservation efforts.

After Quattro noticed that something strange was occurring in the genetic makeup of some hammerhead sharks, he and his colleagues found that the genes in the mitochondrial DNA -- the DNA passed from mother to sons and daughters -- differed significantly among sharks that, by all other measures, were scalloped hammerhead sharks. Moreover, his studies revealed that another independent genetic marker also differed substantially between the two groups of scalloped hammerheads.

"This cryptic shark was genetically distinct," said Quattro, whose research on the cryptic hammerhead sharks was published recently in the journal, Marine Biology.

Quattro and his colleagues also found that the cryptic species was not as abundant as the scalloped hammerhead, which is a familiar and common coastal shark. Although young sharks of the cryptic species were found in Florida and North Carolina, only neonates -- or shark "pups" -- were showing up off the coast of South Carolina, particularly in the area of Bull's Bay near Beaufort and St. Helena's Sound.

Although scientists don't know why the cryptic sharks appear to prefer South Carolina waters, Quattro speculates that something as simple as salinity differences in the waters may be a factor.
"Protecting this prime nursery habitat is vital to the survival of the cryptic species," said Quattro, who plans to head to the Atlantic this summer for a project to tag the cryptic sharks. The tags will enable the researchers to learn where the sharks go after leaving South Carolina's waters.

Decreasing foreign energy dependence

USC will provide research to help America “wean itself” from foreign energy dependence as part of the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA), which has been selected to administer part of a new ten year, $50 million per year, Department of Energy research program to develop new technologies to produce more abundant and affordable domestic energy supplies.

"This program provides a significant new step in our country's attempt to wean itself from conventional fuels and reduce our dependence on foreign energy sources. It will channel more funding toward innovative and environmentally sound production and utilization of cleaner burning alternatives, such as unconventional natural gases," said Dr. Art Cohen, Professor of Geological Sciences, Department of Geological Sciences.

Dr. Robert Thunell, director, Marine Science Program and Carolina Distinguished Professor,Department of Geological Sciences added,“The selection of RPSEA to oversee the Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Consortium will provide exciting research opportunities in the area of energy exploration for faculty and students at the University of South Carolina.”

“Developing cutting edge technologies to bring reliable sources of clean-burning, environmentally friendly, domestic natural gas to American consumers is exactly the kind of investment that the United States should be making today, especially in light of sharply rising energy costs,” said C. Michael Ming, incoming president of RPSEA. “We need to tap America's finest minds in academia and industry to address our domestic energy needs.

RPSEA is a non-profit national consortium with 84 members, including 19 of the nation’s premier research universities, five national laboratories, other major research institutions, large and small energy producers and energy consumers with activities in 21 states. RPSEA was founded in 2002 by five research universities and the Gas Technology Institute, a non-profit research laboratory.

USC Names School of Medicine Interim Dean

Richard Hoppmann, M.D., F.A.C.P., has been named interim dean of the University of South Carolina School of Medicine (SOM). Dr. Hoppmann will begin his new responsibilities June 9, replacing Dr. Larry Faulkner, who is retiring after serving as dean of the SOM since 1995.

Since 2000, Dr. Hoppmann has been associate dean for medical education and academic affairs and since 1990, a professor of medicine (allergy, immunology, and rheumatology) in the Department of Internal Medicine at the SOM.

Dr. Harris Pastides, USC vice president for research and health sciences, said Dr. Hoppmann’s professionalism and drive made him the right choice for the interim deanship. "President Sorensen and I are delighted that he has accepted the interim position, and we look forward to working with him and the Dean Search Committee to attract top candidates for the deanship," he said. “As we welcome Richard to this important position of responsibility and wish him every success, let us also express our sincere gratitude to Dr. Larry Faulkner for his excellent service to the University since 1989.”

USC's SOM, a national leader in primary care medical education, also sponsors research focused primarily on South Carolina health care needs and provides a wide range of clinical care services to South Carolinians. Affiliated hospitals are Palmetto Health; the Greenville Hospital System; Dorn VA Medical Center; the Byrnes Center for Geriatric Medicine, Education, and Research; the William S. Hall Psychiatric Institute; and Moncrief Army Hospital. The school also collaborates closely with state agencies involved in health service delivery.

The SOM’s Centers of Research Excellence, a joint interdisciplinary venture with Palmetto Health, includes research centers focused on cancer, cardiovascular disease and stroke, biomedical ethics, and primary health care. In addition, a Rural Primary Care Education Project in Winnsboro, S.C., serves as a center for research on rural health care delivery, including telemedicine.

Innovative research on geriatric health care and child and community mental health issues is also under way in cooperation with the Byrnes Center for Geriatric Medicine, Education, and Research and the William S. Hall Psychiatric Institute. The SOM’s other areas of research strength include developmental disabilities, infectious diseases and immunology, and reproductive biology and endocrinology.

Dr. Hoppmann earned his M.D. from the Medical University of South Carolina and his bachelor's degree from the University of South Carolina, Columbia. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at east Carolina University School of medicine and a fellowship in rheumatology at Wake Forest University. He is a fellow of the American college of physicians and is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and the subspecialty of rheumatology.

Dr. Hoppmann has been honored with multiple “teacher of the year” awards from students and medical residents, has been listed in Best Doctors in America, and received the SOM’s Dean’s Distinguished Service Award. He also has a national reputation in the field of medical problems of performing artists and served as president of the Performing Arts Medical Association.

Author of numerous journal articles and book chapters, Dr. Hoppmann is actively involved in the South Carolina Medical Association, having recently served as president of its Foundation.

Santee Cooper teams with USC on solar energy technology
By Kathleen Dayton, Staff Writer, Charleston Regional Business Journal
(reprinted with permission)

Santee Cooper is partnering with USC to bring solar energy technology to the school’s Blatt Physical Education Center in Columbia.

The project will involve a 25kW photovoltaic solar array, which will also function as a shade screen to be mounted above an elevated walkway overlooking the intramural playing fields at the Blatt Center. The system will be connected to USC’s electric grid and an educational, interactive kiosk beneath the panels will explain how the system works. Information will also be available on a Web site.

Jeff Morehouse, associate professor of mechanical engineering at USC, said institutions of higher learning should be leaders in the use of technology that will make the world a better place to live. The solar project will demonstrate the benefits of solar power to students, faculty and the community, he said.

USC is part of the state’s Sustainable Universities Initiative, which was created in 1998 to form a membership of schools aiming toward a sustainable future through research, teaching, community service and facilities management.

Lonnie Carter, Santee Cooper’s president and CEO, said working with USC is an opportunity to support the use of innovative technology to help conserve natural resources, reduce dependence on foreign energy sources and engage in environmentally friendly projects. The utility is providing $250,000 to USC through a grant for the project, which should be complete by September.

NSF; DOD research fellowships

Congratulations to seniors Matt Elder, Stacey Ivol. and Jason Owens on their receipt of National Science Foundation research fellowships to support their graduate studies in scientific fields. Each three-year award of $121,500 includes a stipend of $30,000 per year for full-time graduate study, an annual cost-of-education allowance of $10,500 and a $1,000 travel grant.

Elder has also won a 2006 National Defense Science and Engineering graduate fellowship, funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and valued at nearly $95,000. The award covers three years of tuition and fees.

Elder, majoring in computer science and mathematics, has presented papers at scientific meetings and conducted research at USC with Dr. David Sumner and Dr. Daniel Dix in the Industrial Mathematics Institute. He will pursue a doctoral degree in computer science theory at the University of Wisconsin.

Ivol, majoring in computer engineering, has conducted research with USC computer science and engineering professors Drs. James Davis and Manton Matthews. She will pursue a doctoral degree in computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon.

Owens, who will graduate USC with dual degrees in chemical engineering and mathematics, has conducted research in the labs of USC chemical-engineering faculty members Dr. Christopher Williams and Dr. Melissa Moss. He will pursue a doctoral degree in chemical engineering at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities.

Five other USC students received honorable mention in the National Science Foundation competition: Chris Mitchell, a senior majoring in geological sciences; Michelle Casper, a senior majoring in chemical engineering; Philip Crapse, a graduate student in electrical engineering; Richard Parker, a senior majoring in mechanical engineering; and Emily Sekula, a graduate student in geological sciences.

Incubator Director Awarded

Congratulations to Joel Stevenson on his receipt of an Individual Achievement Award from the Columbia Chamber of Commerce. The award is given annually to one person in the Riverbanks Region technology community committed to technological advancement. Stevenson was recognized for his direction of the USC Columbia Technology Incubator, which has helped create 400 jobs at 40 companies since its creation in 1998. He, along with other Chamber award winners, will be honored at a May 18 Palmetto Pillar Awards Banquet.

USC researcher's work featured on BBC News

As the world marks the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster April 26, Dr. Tim Mousseau continues to receive international media attention for his research on the environmental impact of the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear plant, including features on BBC News and the United Kingdom's Telegraph news.  To learn more, visit http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4923220.stm.  Mousseau's research and Chernobyl photos also are featured in National Geographic at http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/04/0426_060426_chernobyl.html 

USC geographer receives 2006 Decade of Behavior Research Award

Dr. Susan Cutter, Carolina Distinguished Professor of Geography, has received a 2006 Decade of Behavior Research Award for her research on hazards and social vulnerability. Established in 2001, the Decade of Behavior is an initiative supported by 70 of the nation and world's most prestigious professional and scientific organizations to recognize high-caliber research that has profoundly impacted policy and society.

Cutter recently conducted research on the Gulf Coast, mapping storm-surge inundation from Hurricane Katrina and assessing the social vulnerability of residents along the coast of Mississippi and Alabama. Director of USC's Hazards Research Lab, one of the nation's top research centers that incorporates GIS (geographical information systems) with hazards analysis and management, Cutter has secured more than $5 million in grant support (including National Science Foundation funding) since joining USC in 1993.

USC unveils new master plan for Columbia's waterfront district

A master plan unveiled Thursday (April 20) would change the face and future of Columbia's waterfront area in conjunction with the development of Innovista, the University of South Carolina's research campus initiative.

The project, which involves the potential development of more than 11 million square feet of residential, commercial and retail space, could also generate more than $1.6 billion in economic activity associated with construction and add more than 8,700 jobs to the local market. It would also generate more than $270 million in additional retail sales and more than $17 million in additional property taxes, according to analyses prepared by Dr. Donald Schunk of USC's Moore School of Business and Washington-based Economic Research Associates.

A community briefing was hosted Thursday at the S.C. State Museum by the Waterfront Steering Team, Guignard Associates and USC. The Waterfront Steering Team is the citizen-leader group charged with the mission of guiding the initiative. The team will be led by Bill Boyd of Haynesworth, Sinkler and Boyd. Members of the Waterfront Steering Team were introduced today at the briefing.

The topic of the briefing was a transformational master plan for more than 500 acres of Columbia's waterfront and innovation districts. The plan, designed by renowned international urban planning firm Sasaki Associates, encompasses an area bounded on the north by Gervais Street and on the south by Catawba Street. From Assembly Street, the area stretches west to the Congaree River.

This master planning process began in September 2005, when Guignard Associates made almost 100 acres of its land holdings on the Congaree River available for inclusion in the planning and development process for Innovista. According to the plan, the land will feature a public waterfront park as its centerpiece, complete with green spaces, an amphitheatre and pedestrian paths that will also connect with the Three Rivers Greenway.

Mixed-use residential and commercial development would overlook the Waterfront Park along a new north-south parkway and expanding east back to the railroad cut adjacent to the existing innovation district. The parkway is designed to give the public easy access to the park and the surrounding waterfront and innovation districts.

Charles Thompson, representing Guignard Associates, remarked that Guignard Associates is extremely proud to be involved with a project of this high quality and magnitude and welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with the university, the City of Columbia and the citizens of the region.

"We have always recognized the enormous potential of this land and its importance in the history and future of this community," said Thompson. "We are making significant portions of our land available for the waterfront park and are genuinely excited about the contribution it will make to the character of this area."

USC President Dr. Andrew Sorensen said the addition of the Guignard Associates waterfront property will significantly advance the potential of the university's vision for Innovista and will serve as a transformational catalyst for the entire area.

"Our initiative to create Innovista and, within it, a vibrant Innovation District where researchers and citizens from all walks of life can interact, have easy access to restaurants, residential living, shopping, the arts and recreation, will now be made whole with the river front as a magnet and an essential component of the mix," Sorensen said. "The inclusion of this treasured resource, the land along the river, as an integral component of this development, will truly distinguish us from virtually all other university research initiatives in the United States."

Sorensen also observed that more than 60 percent of the land included in the master plan is owned by groups or individuals outside Guignard Associates or the university. Sorensen and Guignard Associates requested that a Waterfront Steering Team of citizens act as stewards of the unfolding waterfront master plan.

Speaking on behalf of the steering team, Bill Boyd shared enthusiasm for the initiative and acknowledged the magnitude and potential impact of the project.

"Coupled with the other exciting projects going on in the city and the region, this represents a once in a lifetime opportunity for the citizens of Columbia and the region and the state," said Boyd. "It is important to ensure that all of these projects take place and that everyone participates in this renaissance."

Columbia Mayor Bob Coble expressed his excitement about the collaboration and about the opportunity that this development represents for the Columbia area.

"We have all recognized for quite some time the value and the promise that the river has for our city, as well as the promise that collaboration with the university and the Guignards holds," Coble said. "What we're unfolding today will have a dramatic impact on generations of not only Columbians but also on citizens throughout this region and our state. As others before me have mentioned today, it would be difficult to find this kind of environment anywhere else in the world."

Awards in History/Chemistry and Biochemistry

Congratulations to Dr. Tom Lekan, associate professor of History, on his award of a full fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies. The fellowship is in support of Tom's current project, "Sublime Consumption: German Nature Tourism from Romanticism to Ecotourism, 1850-2000."

Congratulations to Ryan Kinloch, 4th year graduate student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry on her award of a prestigious NIH Fellowship from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences in the amount of $28,090. The award, given on a competitive basis following submission of grades, GRE scores, a research proposal and a statement of the candidate's career goals, will finance the first year of her three-year project entitled "Spectroscopic and Mechanistic Studies of Heme Enzymes." The project began January 9, 2006.

Nano-scale research, full-scale plans
USC scientists are teaming with the Scripps Research Institute to develop new possibilities with bionanoparticles

With an $800,000 grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation, a leading supporter of high-impact medical research, science and engineering, the University of South Carolina is creating an open laboratory in its NanoCenter to develop new technologies in tissue engineering, sensing, drug delivery, vaccine manufacturing, and other biomedical applications.

The W.M. Keck Open Laboratory for Bionanoparticle Technology Discovery and Development is a partnership between USC and the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif. Two faculty members in the USC’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Qian Wang and Cathy Murphy, have teamed with Scripps chemistry professor M.G. Finn to pursue this cutting-edge research.

“We want this lab to provide a platform for collaborators across several disciplines,” Wang said. “Scientists from chemistry and medicine at USC already are working together with bionanoparticles, which is a fairly new research area. Mechanical and chemical engineering, biology, pharmacy, physics, and other disciplines likely will be a part of this research in the future.”
For some time, Wang has been conducting research with the turnip yellow mosaic virus—a common plant virus that’s harmless to humans—focusing on the virus’ shell as a potential vehicle for transporting nano-sized bits of cancer-fighting drugs. That research has yielded promising results, and the plant virus turns out to be an ideal structure for other nanotechnology research.
“The plant viruses used in our laboratories are very stable and uniform in size so you could use them to create a grid for screening, filtering, or detection. You also could conceivably combine the virus with metal particles to create a photonics application: using light instead of electrons to send information,” Murphy said.

Murphy’s research team has developed new techniques for making nano-sized particles of gold and silver. Attaching those metal particles to the plant virus opens the door to creating biomedical agents, hybridized materials, vaccines, and new agents for drug delivery.

“Nanoscience is about making stuff, and we’re finding that the traditional boundaries of materials science, biology, physics, and chemistry are blurring in the nano world,” said Tom Vogt, director of the USC NanoCenter. “That’s why we’re creating an open lab—anyone can use it, and we expect to welcome people from many different disciplines.”

Vogt believes USC was successful in competing for the Keck Foundation funding because of the professional recognition Wang, Murphhy, and Finn have received for their previous research in nanoscience. Another asset for USC is its NSF-funded research group, headed by philosophy professor Davis Baird, which studies the societal and ethical implications of nanotechnology.
“You can’t develop any field of research too far without putting it in a societal context,” Vogt said. “The result could be public rejection and that’s exactly what happened when people voices opposition to genetically modified foods in Europe and protested nuclear energy in the United States.”

The Keck Foundation-sponsored open laboratory could lead to future funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Environmental Protection Agency as the science of making bionanoparticles more fully develops.

Meanwhile, development of the 1,500-square-foot bionanoparticle laboratory has begun in the USC NanoCenter in Sumwalt College. The facility will include separate rooms for ultracentrifuges, incubators, liquid chromatography systems, and other specialized equipment such as a state-of-the-art ICP-OES, DSC, and NIR fluoriphotometers. As part of its matching funding for the Keck grant, USC will support two post-doctoral fellows to manage the lab’s equipment and operations. That support infrastructure is important, Vogt said, because instrumentation is valuable only if an institution has qualified research scientists.

Most importantly, the W.M. Keck Open Laboratory for Bionanoparticle Technology Discovery and Development will provide exciting educational opportunities for high school, undergraduate, and graduate students. Some will be trained to use the lab’s high-tech instruments, and many more will be exposed to the possibilities of bionanoparticle research.

“Dr. Murphy and I ran a high school camp this past summer that trained students how to harvest, analyze, and modify the plant virus, and we will continue this effort in the future,” Wang said. “This helps them to better understand the research related to biotechnology and nanoscience, and, to consider choosing a career in this exciting emerging field.”

Johnson awarded NEH Fellowship

Congratulations to Dr. Paul Johnson, professor of history, on his award of an National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship to support his book project entitled, The First Great American Horse Race: The Northern Horse Eclipse vs. the Southern Horse Henry, 1823. Dr. Johnson is the sixth member of the university's history department to receive a full NEH Fellowship during the past six years. His Fellowship is part of a new NEH "We the People" initiative "to explore significant events and themes in our nation's history, and to share these lessons with all Americans."

DOE awards USC researcher's program

Congratulations to Dr. John M. Shafer, research professor and Earth Sciences and Resources Institute (ESRI-USC) Director, on the Department of Energy’s award of a three-year $1.65 million Environmental Management Science Program (EMSP) grant, effective March 2006.

“This opportunity ranks us among some major research universities in the U.S.--MIT, Cal-Berkeley, Michigan, Princeton, and Stanford-- that have received EMSP grants in the past,” said Shafer.

Shafer is principal investigator on the ESRI-USC led “Integrated Hydrogeophysical and Hydrogeologic Driven Parameter Upscaling for Dual-Domain Transport Modeling” project that will combine USC’s capabilities in environmental geophysics and visualization with expertise from partners in tomography, facies modeling, and advanced transport modeling to improve prediction of contaminant movement in subsurface environments. ESRI-USC’s portion of the funding is $717,468.

Partner institutions are Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Savannah River National Laboratory, and the USC Department of Geological Sciences.

USC geographer awarded highest U.S. Geological Survey honor

Congratulations to Dr. William Graf, Education Foundation University Professor in geography, on his receipt of the John Wesley Powell Award, the highest honor given by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

The first USC professor ever awarded the prestigious honor, Graf was recognized for developing the role of geography in the USGS-- the nation's largest water, earth and biological science and mapping agency.

As chair of the National Research Council committee that provided policy advice to the USGS for geographic science and a two term member of the council's board on earth sciences and resources, he was "successful in challenging the Geography Science Planning Team to break with the traditional boundaries ... and proceed with a bold vision of a new research-oriented discipline at the USGS," according to Patrick Leahy, acting director of the USGS. "His contributions to shaping the future of geographic research in the USGS were immense."

$1 million grant puts USC at heart of bioengineering effort to battle cardiac diseases

A $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation will link researchers at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine and the University of California at San Diego for a bioengineering study aimed at understanding heart disease.

Drs. Tom Borg and Bob Price, researchers in USC's medical school, will work with UCSD professor Dr. Andrew McCulloch on a three-year study to help scientists develop computer models that will show how multiple factors, including drug interactions, affect the heart.

"Most research studies on the heart investigate a single factor, such as whether a particular drug will cause a specific action," said Borg, a Carolina Distinguished Professor. "This grant will enable us to study multiple factors and combine this knowledge into a single computer model."

The model then can be used to predict how multiple factors interact to affect a particular process or disease.

"This is a hot area of biology called complexity," Borg said.

As researchers obtain more information on a specific cell, tissue or organ, computer models show how specific interactions are related to heart disease.

"In this case, we are developing a basic model that will allow us to predict what will happen in a single cell of the heart, called a myocyte, and extend that information to the level of multiple cells (tissue)," he said.

At that point, the researchers will be able to build a model that tells how specific interactions will impact the whole heart.

"For example, certain drugs to treat heart disease affect specific enzymes in a cell," Borg said. "In our research, we will be able to see how the drug would affect the enzyme in the cell, tissue and whole organ."

Part of the study also will focus on how changes in electrical activity affect a person's heartbeat.

Borg said the grant is important to USC's efforts to build a new bioengineering program by combining expertise of faculty in USC's medical school and College of Engineering and Information Technology.

"The recognition of this new program is enhanced by the receipt of grants, as well as the recognition of USC's expertise on a national and international level," Borg said.

The NSF grant follows an award of $17.5 million from the National Institutes of Health in November for bioengineering research at colleges and universities throughout South Carolina. The NIH funding includes monies for Borg and other researchers at USC's medical school and College of Engineering & Computing to study tissue engineering to repair the cardiovascular system.

"These awards underscore the reputation that USC researchers across the university have in the area of cardiovascular research," said Borg. "The NSF grant with Dr. McCulloch is the second that our research team has received and also is evidence of our ability to compete nationally with top universities in the field of bioengineering."

Khan elected IEEE Fellow

Congratulations to Dr. M. Asif Khan, Chair of the Electrical Engineering Department, on his election to Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Fellow, one of IEEE’s most prestigious honors conferred by the IEEE Board of Directors upon a person with an extraordinary record of accomplishments. Dr. Khan was nominated by his peers in recognition of his contributions to the development of III-nitride electronic sensor systems; his nomination then underwent a rigorous evaluation procedure by the 2006 IEEE Fellow Committee.

“III-nitride materials, devices, and electronic/optoelectronic sensors are undergoing intense research and development for numerous commerical and military applications,” Dr. Khan

explained, adding, “I am honored by this recognition as a 2006 IEEE Fellow and pleased to note that our Electrical Engineering Department has been honored twice in two years with my colleague, Dr. Tangali Sudarshan, being selected as a 2005 IEEE Fellow last year.”

Applications ensuing from Dr. Khan’s research include deep ultraviolet light-emitting diodes for air-water purification and bioagents such as anthrax detection; high power microwave amplifiers for next generation military radars, cellular phones, microwave ovens, and low-voltage solid-state white lighting to replace flourescent lamps.

The IEEE is a non-profit, technical professional association of more than 365,000 individual members in over 150 countries, and it advances the theory and application of electrotechnology. A leading authority in technical areas ranging from computer engineering, biomedical technology and telecommunications, to electric power, aerospace and consumer electronics, among others, the IEEE was formed from the 1963 merger of the AIEE (American Institute of Electrical Engineers, formed in 1884) and the IRE (Institute of Radio Engineers, created in 1912). The Institute is well known for developing standards for the electronics and computer industries.

Examine's an award winner

Congratulations to Examine, the magazine of University of South Carolina Health Sciences, on receipt of an Award of Excellence in the 35th annual design competition of the University & College Designers Association. Held in San Diego, the 100-piece (winnowed from 1300 entries) competition [offered] a "microcosm of design... [suggesting] an opportunity for forward-thinking institutions to…create more marketplace differentiation... Simply put: it’s good, thoughtful, well executed, 'I wish I'd done that' design," according to competition judge John Ball.

USC launches undergraduate research program

Joining a nationwide trend, the University of South Carolina has established an undergraduate research program for students who want to enrich their academic experiences at Carolina.

Aptly named the Magellan Scholar Program, the initiative was created to enrich the undergraduate experience through research opportunities in science, engineering, technology, medicine, theater, art and other disciplines and increase students' competitiveness in the job market or when applying to graduate school, said Dr. Harris Patstides, USC vice president for research and health sciences.

The program is part of the university's new Office of Undergraduate Research and Health Sciences.


"The notion of learning how to inquire and then to follow through with an organized approach to finding a solution to that inquiry is really what gives an individual a competitive edge in life," Pastides said. "And by working closely with a USC professor, students will be able to understand and learn from that professor. Being involved in research also gives them an advantage when applying to graduate school or looking for a job after graduation."

The Magellan Scholar program will offer each student who is accepted up to $3,000 for a research project. Students will be selected on the educational and intellectual merit of their proposals, the potential impact of the project and the students' academic record. Students can begin applying immediately for the program.

Plans call for each class to have 100 Magellan scholars, for a total of 400.

Undergraduates are finding their way into research labs on college campuses across the country these days, and Carolina wants to guarantee that its students have the research opportunities that many students want at a research university.

"Undergraduate research is a national trend," Pastides said. "In fact, when universities ask high school students what they would most like, more and more high school students are saying they wanted a mentored undergraduate research experience."

USC students already work in research labs across campus, and the university sponsors a Discovery Day program in the spring that highlights top undergraduate research.

"The Office of Undergraduate Research and Health Sciences will enable us to expand the undergraduate research efforts already under way," Pastides said. "For years, USC students have worked with many of our top scientists. It is vital that we increase these opportunities, particularly as USC moves forward to develop Innovista."

The office also will provide seminars and workshops for students and faculty and sponsor the annual Discovery Day, which is held each spring for undergraduates to present their research and win cash prizes.

For more information about the Magellan scholars, call 803-777-1141, e-mail our@sc.edu, or go to www.sc.edu/our.

$7.5 million USC-Claflin collaboration to focus on HIV/AIDS and cancer in minority population

The University of South Carolina and Claflin University will share a $7.5 million federal grant designed to address minority health issues, specifically HIV/AIDS and cancer, which are more prevalent among minority populations in the state.

The award is from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities, a branch of the National Institutes of Health, which leads the NIH's efforts to eliminate health disparities among racial and ethnic groups. The grant will improve and broaden HIV/AIDS and cancer research at USC, the lead institution, and Claflin.

USC President Andrew Sorensen praised the strengthened research ties between the two universities.

"Last week, USC announced a $17.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to strengthen biomedical research at our state's four-year colleges and universities," he said. "Claflin University is one of the collaborating institutions. This new grant focuses on the research strengths of our universities so that we can develop strong biomedical research programs to improve the health of minorities in South Carolina and throughout the rest of the nation."

Dr. Henry N. Tisdale, president of Claflin University, said the USC-Claflin partnership will offer an environment for stimulating exchange between faculty and allow students to engage in undergraduate research.

"And, more importantly," he said, "the joint effort will lead to narrowing the gap among those affected by HIV/AIDS and cancer in South Carolina."

The partnership includes three main components: community and outreach, education and training, and research. The community and outreach component that will include community leaders and public-health agencies in developing and implementing solutions to health problems identified through the collaboration. The lead community partner is the Minority HIV/AIDS Council of Orangeburg, Bamberg and Calhoun Counties, Inc., an established community-based organization.

The second component of the partnership focuses on training public-health professionals for communities in South Carolina. Students will receive training on both university campuses. The partnership also will provide fellowships and research internships; undergraduate courses in pubic health; a public-health research seminar series; and a post-baccalaureate program in public health at USC's Arnold School of Public Health.

The third component – research – consists of two five-year projects and one two-year pilot project focusing on HIV/AIDS and cancer, specifically human papillomavirus and cervical cancer. Ultimately, the project will result in the establishment of a Molecular Virology Laboratory (MVL) at Claflin, which will supply important resources for all research activities associated with the grant.

$17.3 million NIH grant to strengthen biomedical research at colleges, universities statewide

USC Columbia Technology Incubator graduates two

Congratulations to Advanced Automation Consulting (AAC) Inc. and Digital Systems Support (Digital) Inc. Both companies graduated the USC Columbia Technology Incubator Tuesday, Nov.8, in ceremonies at Midlands Technical College, Northeast campus.  Dr. Barry Russell, president of Midlands Tech and soon-to-be president of the SC State Board of Technical and Comprehensive Education, was keynote speaker

AAC, founded June 2003, was admitted to the Incubator in the fourth quarter of that year. The company, located in Columbia, started with two people and now employees 47 who command an average salary of $ 90,000 and work to improve business performance through the innovative application of technology, project management, management consulting, business process reengineering, custom application development, and supply chain optimization

Digital (formerly E Wizards), was also founded and admitted to the Incubator in 2003. The company, which started in the Incubator’s student program, graduated and moved to the standard incubator program. The original two-person workforce now comprises 18 full-time and ten-part time people. The firm’s average salary is $40,000. Digital provides technological services of Web-based solutions, internet filtration, business technology, and hardware and software solutions

At the 6 pm ceremony, USC President Sorensen introduced Dr. Russell, Dr. Harris Pastides, USC Vice President for Research and Health Sciences, Dr. Sonya Duhe', USC Associate Vice President for Research, and Columbia Mayor Bob Coble. In addition, representatives from both companies made 15-minute presentations on their firms.

Tom Vogt in SURFACE

Dr. Tom Vogt, the USC NanoCenter’s newly-appointed director, is interviewed by Rogier van Bakel about nanotechnology and the art of designing at the almost-invisible level-- one atom at a time-- in the November/December 2005 issue (#56) of SURFACE magazine. By special arrangement with Editor Laetitia Wolff you can read what he said by clicking here.

International award to USC professor

Congratulation to Arthur D. Cohen, professor, Department of Geological Sciences, on being named the 2005 recipient of the Gilbert H. Cady Award, an international honor given annually by the Coal Division of the Geological Society of America.

Cohen received the award in recognition of his outstanding achievements in coal and peat petrology. He has been conducting coal research for nearly 40 years, is internationally known for his studies of modern environments of coal formation, established the only peat sample bank in the world, and has made essential contributions to utilization of peat for remediation of hazardous wastes in the environment.

Author or editor of 10 books, more than 135 refereed papers, and hundreds of reports and abstracts, Cohen has directed nine Ph.D. dissertations and 23 master’s theses and is past chair of the Coal Geology Division, the Peat Classification Committee of ASTM and President of the Society for Organic Petrology. He received both the Distinguished Service Award from the Coal Division and the Standards Development Award from ASTM in 1996.

Nation's largest gathering of Clovis archaeologists, scientists at USC

An unprecedented gathering of archaeologists, geologists and other scientists are meeting at the University of South Carolina through Oct. 29 to discuss man's earliest origins in North America and the latest Clovis research in the Southeastern United States, including Topper, the pre-Clovis site in Allendale County, S.C., excavated by USC archeologist Dr. Albert Goodyear. Ever since Goodyear announced the results last November of radiocarbon dating of charcoal found with stone tools at Topper, his findings have been hotly debated in archaeology circles because they place humans at Topper some 50,000 years before the present.

The conference will feature more than 25 presentations, a keynote address by Smithsonian Institution scientist Dr. Dennis Stanford and exhibitions of Clovis artifacts.

Saturday's events will include a visit to the Topper site on the bank of the Savannah River.

For more information visit the conference web site www.clovisinthesoutheast.net.

Southeastern BIO Investor Forum

Over 400 life sciences company executives, venture capitalists, investment bankers, and other key life sciences industry professionals are expected to explore research, market, and financing trends at the seventh annual Southeastern BIO Investor Forum, November 30-December 2, 2005, at the Charleston Place Hotel, Charleston, SC. In addition, over 30 early and mid to late-stage life sciences companies have been selected to participate as presenters or in the early-stage mentoring sessions and seminars events. For more information, visit www.sebioforum.org/2005/ . 

U.S. Rep. John Spratt visits USC for research update

U.S. Rep. John Spratt lunched with students on USC's Columbia campus Friday, Oct. 21, and received an update on the university research programs, and new Innovista research campus.

On behalf of the Science Coalition, a national alliance of more than 400 organizations, institutions, and individuals, USC President Andrew Sorensen presented Spratt a "Champion of Science" award. Spratt also met with student government leaders and received research updates from Dr. Stanley Fowler, School of Medicine, and Dr. Anthony Reynolds, Department of Mechanical Engineering.

NSF awards USC $1.35 million to study emerging nanotechnology

The University of South Carolina has received a grant of $1.35 million from the National Science Foundation for a study on the growing role of nanotechnology in society.

The grant is the second to Dr. Davis Baird, the study's lead researcher, who received a $1.3 million NSF grant in 2003 to study the ethical and societal implications of nanotechnology.

The new grant will support two specific research studies and an educational outreach initiative.

One study, "Imagine, Imagining and Understanding the Nanoscale," will examine how images tell people about the nanoscale. The other, "Research Culture and Nanostructured Materials," will examine how research on nanoscale materials is changing the practices of scientists and engineers.

The grant also will enable USC to expand its educational outreach program, the S.C. Citizens' School of Nanotechnology, to reach minority populations and launch a program for government leaders and policymakers.

"USC is becoming an international leader in the societal and ethical implications of nanotechnology," said Baird, a professor of philosophy and dean of South Carolina Honors College. "One of the strengths at USC is the interdisciplinary approach that we can give research because of our close relationships between science and the humanities."

Baird's research team includes Dr. Ann Johnson, an assistant professor in USC's departments of history and philosophy; Dr. Otavio Bueno, an associate professor in USC's philosophy department; Dr. David Berube, a professor in USC's English department; and Dr. Susanna Priest, an associate professor in USC's School of Journalism and Mass Communications.

On USC visit, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham presented U.S. Fuel Cell Council Pathfinder Award

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham was presented the U.S. Fuel Cell Council's Pathfinder Award Oct. 12 at the University of South Carolina.

USC President Andrew Sorensen and Robert Rose, founding executive director of the council and the Breakthrough Technologies Institute, presented Graham with the award, which recognizes individuals whose efforts have an important impact on the fuel cell industry.

"Senator Graham is one of the nation's leading advocates for hydrogen and fuel cell research," Sorensen said. "This award, made on USC's campus, underscores the important role that South Carolina and our university will have in the development of new fuel sources."

Graham was a leading supporter of the energy bill passed by Congress in July and signed into law by President Bush in August. The hydrogen provision in the bill was largely based upon the language of Graham and N.D. Sen. Byron Dorgan. The bill establishes a comprehensive national energy policy that encourages domestic energy production and conservation and seeks to make the United States less dependent on foreign oil.

Last year, Graham was instrumental in helping USC secure a $2.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to conduct hydrogen research. USC is home to the National Science Foundation's only Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Fuel Cells.

Graham said he wanted to ensure that South Carolina, with its numerous hydrogen fuel initiatives, have an even bigger role in the hydrogen fuel economy.

"The hydrogen economy is coming, and I want it to come to South Carolina in abundance," he said. "I want South Carolina to be the Detroit of hydrogen fuel.

The U.S. Fuel Cell Council, founded in 1998, is the trade association for the fuel cell industry. To learn more about the U.S. Fuel Cell Council, go to www.usfcc.com.

$6 million USC literacy initiative launched

• Augusta Baker biography
• Literacy initiative fact sheet
• S.C. literacy facts
• S.C. literacy statistics
• S.C. county public library directors

Called "Children, Libraries and Literacy," the effort will tap into USC's research, training and teaching mission and be spearheaded by the university's top-ranked School of Library and Information Science.

"As the state's flagship institution of higher learning, we not only have a vested interest in eradicating illiteracy in our state but also an obligation to the people of our state to give them access to programs and services that encourage a lifelong love of reading and learning," USC President Andrew Sorensen said.

The USC initiative is designed to enhance existing literacy programs, provide literacy research specific to South Carolina and train teachers and daycare workers, parents and others. Initially, it will target children ages birth through third grade and their families.

Specifically, the initiative will do the following: