News

Troy, N.Y. - Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., have been awarded new federal grant money to develop experimental compounds that may someday extend the period during which a person exposed to anthrax can be treated successfully. Ravi Kane, assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering at Rensselaer, has been awarded a grant of $500,000 from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to develop inhibitors of the anthrax toxin.

Troy, N.Y. - Julie Stenken, associate professor of analytical chemistry at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., has received a four-year, $750,000 grant from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) to develop a new technique that can be used to study the body's reaction to medical implants at the cellular level. Millions of medical devices, including catheters, pacemakers, vascular grafts, and glucose sensors, are regularly implanted into humans.

Troy, N.Y. - The School of Architecture at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will develop the first comprehensive assessment of 18 buildings that make up the historic core of the Troy campus. The project is being funded with a $150,000 Campus Heritage Initiative grant from the Getty Grant Program.

Troy, N.Y. - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Neighborhood Renewal Initiative has acquired $240,000 in federal funding for quality of life improvements for local homeowners. The money - which will be parceled out as 30 grants of $8,000 each - will be used to remedy code violations and structural problems, improve energy conservation, and address life safety concerns for low-income owner-occupied properties.

Troy, N.Y. - Steven Van Dessel, assistant professor of architecture at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, is combining home comfort with energy conservation. His patent-pending system, called the Active Building Envelope (ABE), incorporates solar-cell and thermoelectric technologies to turn the walls of your home into an "intelligent" heating and cooling system.

Troy, N.Y. - Using a technique pioneered by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, terahertz (THz) radiation has been used to uncover small defects in a sample of space shuttle foam. This nondestructive method could help National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) officials examine the insulating foam that is applied to each shuttle's fuel tank prior to launch.

Troy, N.Y. - The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded a grant of $40,000 to support planning for a university library consortium that includes Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, St. Lawrence University, Colgate University, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Vassar College. The consortium, called ConnectNY, allows the institutions to share library holdings, making the collections of all five readily available to students, faculty, and staff.

>Troy, N.Y. - Rensselaer has been awarded $780,000 by the U.S. Department of Education to fund eight fellowships to enhance interdisciplinary graduate study in areas of terascale electronics, and photonic materials and devices.

Troy, N.Y. - Most senior citizens prefer to live independently for as long as possible. The risks of in-home falls and injury, however, prevent many seniors from remaining self-sufficient. Vera Kettnaker, assistant professor of computer science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has received a Faculty Early Career Development Award (CAREER) from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop a video monitoring system that may someday offer seniors a way to receive help automatically.

Troy, N.Y. - Ravi Kane, assistant professor of chemical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, is designing brand-new molecules that may one day fend off an HIV infection. Bolstering the body's molecular defenses is a novel method that may lead to highly effective treatments for HIV, the virus that can lead to AIDS.