News

Troy, N.Y. — Today’s corporate leaders are increasingly aware that growth and success depend on a company’s ability to tap external sources of innovation. Yet many find it difficult to translate that knowledge into action. A new book co-authored by a management professor from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a management professor from Northwestern University presents multiple models that companies can customize to fit their particular circumstances.

Robert Hull

“Alis Aquilae” medal presented at Patroons of Rensselaer event in New York City Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has honored alumni Howard Blitman ’50 and his wife, Maureen, and Edward Zander ’68 and his wife, Mona, with the Alis Aquilae medal in recognition of their outstanding philanthropy to Rensselaer. 

TROY, N.Y. — Two Rensselaer student start-up companies took first and second place at this year’s inaugural Innovation Showcase (I-Show) competition Nov. 9 in Seattle, Wash. Ecovative Design LLC and JDAxis Corporation, both companies that are focused on developing products to improve the environment and people’s lives, won first and second place, receiving $5,000 and $3,000 respectively.

Nov. 14 lecture to discuss new computer memory system modeled after the human neocortex  Troy, N.Y. — Jeff Hawkins, best known as the co-founder of the Palm and Handspring companies and as the architect of computing products such as the PalmPilot and Treo smartphone, will be on the Rensselaer campus Wednesday, Nov. 14 to discuss a new technology platform based on a theory of the human neocortex.

Engineers develop degradable scaffold that releases stem cells in the body  Troy, N.Y. — Engineers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have transformed a polymer found in common brown seaweed into a device that can support the growth and release of stem cells at the site of a bodily injury or at the source of a disease. The findings, which are detailed in the December 2007 edition of Biomaterials, mark an important step in efforts to develop new medical therapies using stem cells.

Former Chairman of the NRC to continue call for a comprehensive energy roadmap Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann Jackson will deliver the keynote address at the Washington Post Company Energy Conference on November 8, 2007, continuing her call for a comprehensive energy roadmap to meet the demand for global energy security. 

Rensselaer researcher will lead $3 million DoE study to improve safety of tomorrow’s reactors Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is leading a $3 million research project that will pair two of the world’s most powerful supercomputers to boost the safety and reliability of next-generation nuclear power reactors.

Troy, N.Y. — Chemical and biological engineering professor Steven Cramer was recently appointed as the William Weightman Walker Professor of Polymer Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The endowed professorship, one of the two oldest such named professorships at Rensselaer, is the highest honor bestowed on a faculty member. 

Troy, N.Y. — Toh-Ming Lu, the R.P. Baker Distinguished Professor of Physics, and Wilfredo Colón, associate professor of chemistry and chemical biology, have been elected as fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute researchers are two of 471 newly elected follows recognized for their distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. Lu is cited for “seminal contributions to the fundamental understanding of thin film morphological evolution.”