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Discussion will feature Shirley Ann Jackson, Thomas Friedman, Don Hewitt, and Mae Jemison 

Troy, N.Y. — Sky-rocketing oil prices, rising demand for reliance on renewable resources, and an increase in environmental consciousness have placed a newfound focus on “green” solutions to global energy issues. Following his May 19 graduation from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, student inventor Eben Bayer hopes to alleviate some of those growing issues — by growing.

Troy, N.Y. — No one can say Abigail Eldridge wasted any time during her four years at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.  Along with conducting cutting-edge bioengineering and nanotechnology research, she served in Rensselaer’s student government, played on three varsity sports teams, and loaded up on extra classes. She also managed to sneak in a pair of internships, including one at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. “I like being busy,” Eldridge said with a smile. “If I’m not busy, I don’t feel productive.”

Troy, N.Y. — As an Eagle Scout, it is no surprise that Gregory Ten Eyck would be an innovator with a deep respect for the environment. But he has taken these values to a whole new level, developing inventions that could lead to better fuel cells, reduce the impacts of carbon dioxide, and create the next generation of super-efficient microelectronics. Ten Eyck will receive a Ph.D. in electrical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 201st Commencement on May 19.

TROY, N.Y. — Mae Jemison, founder of two technology companies and the first African American female astronaut to travel to space, will receive an honorary degree at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 201st Commencement on May 19 at 9:30 a.m. on the Harkness Field.

Troy, N.Y. — José González is fluent in the international language of science. Born the son of a medical doctor in Puerto Rico, he has been speaking this language since he was a child. On May 19, González will take the next step in a long journey as he crosses the platform at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 201st Commencement. 

TROY, N.Y. — Three teams of budding student entrepreneurs from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Union College will vie to win the final round of Rensselaer’s $50,000 Tech Valley Collegiate Business Plan competition on May 3. The competition will be held on Rensselaer’s campus in the Center for Industrial Innovation, room 4050, beginning at 6 p.m. The competition is sponsored by Rensselaer’s Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship at the Lally School of Management & Technology.

Troy, N.Y. — More than 300 11th grade girls from the Capital Region and across New England will participate in Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s “Design Your Future Day” (DYFD) on Saturday, April 21. The event is designed to engage students in activities to inform and excite them about career opportunities in engineering, science, architecture, and technology.

Winning idea competition submissions deal with health, energy, and sanitation issues Troy, N.Y. — Three student submissions were recently honored as winners of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s “Change the World Challenge” idea competition for spring 2007. Created in 2005 by Rensselaer alumnus Sean O’Sullivan ’85, the competition is intended to support entrepreneurship education and inspire ideas to improve the human condition by providing a $1,000 cash award for ideas that will make the world a better place. 

Troy, N.Y. — To determine how top schools rated in 11 different business specialties, BusinessWeek turned to the experts: the students. As a companion to the magazine’s 2007 rankings of undergraduate business programs, staffers asked 80,000 business majors at 123 schools to rank their programs on a scale of one to five in different academic categories. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Lally School of Management & Technology came in at number two in the nation in the area of corporate strategy.