News

Research paper to be published May 6 in Science Troy, N.Y. — Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Australian National University have found new evidence that environmental conditions on early Earth, within 200 million years of solar system formation, were characterized by liquid-water oceans and continental crust similar to those of the present day. The researchers developed a new thermometer that made the discovery possible.

Troy, N.Y. — Donna Bedard, research professor of biology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has received a Fulbright Lecturing Grant in Biological Sciences. She will use the grant to travel to Prague, Czech Republic, to teach and conduct research at the Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT).

Troy, N.Y — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute today announced that Samuel Palmisano, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the IBM Corporation, will be awarded an honorary doctorate in humane letters. The degree will be conferred at a special campus event in the fall semester.

Troy, N.Y. — A Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute undergraduate team has been selected to receive the 2005 Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) Award in the Mathematical Contest in Modeling, besting competitors from Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and others.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) has been notified that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is taking legal action against many college students around the country, including several from Rensselaer, for allegedly providing access to copyrighted materials via the Internet. The RIAA has not initiated legal action against Rensselaer.

Troy, N.Y. — Sylvester James Gates Jr., director of the Center for String and Particle Theory at the University of Maryland at College Park, will deliver the 15th annual Garnet Baltimore Lecture at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The lecture, titled “Thoughts for a Third Millennial United States,” will be held on Monday, April 18, at 3 p.m. in the auditorium of the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies.

Troy, N.Y. — The Department of Public Safety at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has launched a new Web site. The redesigned, user-friendly site features easy access to education information, safety prevention programs, and other services provided by the department, including online, real-time Public Safety bulletins and alerts.

Troy, N.Y. — Governor George E. Pataki, Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver today announced that Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has received one of 10 New York State Office of Science, Technology, and Academic Research (NYSTAR) James D. Watson Investigator Program Awards. The Watson Program is designed to recognize and support outstanding scientists and engineers who, early in their careers, show potential for leadership and scientific discovery in the field of biotechnology.

Troy, N.Y. — Omkaram “Om” Nalamasu has been appointed as vice president for research at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Alexander von Humboldt Scholar Joins EMPAC Troy, N.Y. — Kathleen Forde has been appointed as the curator of time-based arts for the Experimental Media Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. EMPAC programs are now under way, and the EMPAC building under construction is scheduled to open in 2007.