“Gene-Environment Interactions in the Personalized Environment and Genes Study (PEGS)"

Alison Motsinger-Reif, Ph.D., Chief, Biostatistics & Computational Biology Branch and Principal Investigator, NIH / NIEHS  

Our special guest speaker, Alison Motsinger-Reif from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, is Chief of and a principal investigator in the Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch. Overall, her group focuses on the development and application of modern statistical approaches for understanding the etiology of common, complex diseases. Read more

This is a great opportunity to: 

• Improve your presentation skills as a speaker
• Communicate science, research, and technology to an audience with diverse backgrounds
• Practice giving your talk for an upcoming conference, thesis defense, or qualifying oral exams
• Enjoy free lunch and hear about a wide range of work happening in the local bioscience community

The paper, published in Science Advances, “Contemporary Ice Sheet Thinning Drives Subglacial Groundwater Exfiltration with Potential Feedbacks on Glacier Flow,” is co-authored by Colin Meyer (Dartmouth), Matthew Siegfried (Colorado School of Mines), and Chloe Gustafson (USGS).

While there are pre-existing methods to understand subglacial flow, these techniques involve time-consuming computations. In contrast, Robel and Sim developed a simple equation, which can predict how fast exfiltration, the discharge of groundwater from aquifers under ice sheets, using satellite measurements of Antarctica from the last two decades.

“In mathematical parlance, you would say we have a closed form solution,” explains Robel, an assistant professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. “Previously, people would run a hydromechanical model, which would have to be applied at every point under Antarctica, and then run forward over a long time period.” Since the researchers’ new theory is a mathematically simple equation, rather than a model, “the entirety of our prediction can be done in a fraction of a second on a laptop,” Robel says.

Robel adds that while there is precedence for developing these kinds of theories for similar kinds of models, this theory is specific in that it is for the particular boundary conditions and other conditions that exist underneath ice sheets. “This is, to our knowledge, the first mathematically simple theory which describes the exfiltration and infiltration underneath ice sheets.”

“It's really nice whenever you can get a very simple model to describe a process — and then be able to predict what might happen, especially using the rich data that we have today. It’s incredible” adds Sim, a research scientist in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. “Seeing the results was pretty surprising.”

One of the main arguments in the paper underscores the potentially large source of subglacial water — possibly up to double the amount previously thought — that could be affecting how quickly glacial ice flows and how quickly the ice melts at its base. Robel and Sim hope that the predictions made possible by this theory can be incorporated into ice sheet models that scientists use to predict future ice sheet change and sea level rise.

A dangerous feedback cycle

Aquifers are underground areas of porous rock or sediment rich in groundwater. “If you take weight off aquifers like there are under large parts of Antarctica, water will start flowing out of the sediment,” Robel explains, referencing a diagram Sim created. While this process, known as exfiltration, has been studied previously, focus has been on the long time scales of interglacial cycles, which cover tens of thousands of years.

There has been less work on modern ice sheets, especially on how quickly exfiltration might be occurring under the thinning parts of the current-day Antarctic ice sheet. However, using recent satellite data and their new theory, the team has been able to predict what exfiltration might look like under those modern ice sheets.

“There's a wide range of possible predictions,” Robel explains. “But within that range of predictions there is the very real possibility that groundwater may be flowing out of the aquifer at a speed that would make it a majority, or close to a majority of the water that is underneath the ice sheet.”

If those parameters are correct, that would mean there's twice as much water coming into the subglacial interface than previous estimates assumed.

Ice sheets act like a blanket, sitting over the warm earth and trapping heat on the bottom, away from Antarctica’s cold atmosphere — and this means that the warmest place in the Antarctic ice sheet is at the bottom of a sheet, not on the surface. As an ice sheet thins, the warmer underground water can exfiltrate more readily, and this heat gradient can accelerate the melting that an ice sheet experiences.

“When the atmosphere warms up, it takes tens of thousands of years for that signal to diffuse through an ice sheet of the size, of the thickness, of the Antarctic ice sheet,” Robel explains. “But this process of exfiltration is a response to the already-ongoing thinning of the ice sheet, and it's an immediate response right now.”

Broad implications

Beyond sea level rise, this additional exfiltration and melt has other implications. Some of the places of richest marine productivity in the world occur off the coast of Antarctica, and being able to better predict exfiltration and melt could help marine biologists better understand where marine productivity is occurring, and how it might change in the future.

Robel also hopes this work will open the doorway to more collaborations with groundwater hydrologists who may be able to apply their expertise to ice sheet dynamics, while Sim underscores the need for more fieldwork.

“Getting the experimentalists and observationalists interested in trying to help us better constrain some of the properties of these water-laden sediments — that would be very helpful,” Sim says. “That's our largest unknown at this point, and it heavily influences the results.”

“It's really interesting how there's a potential to draw heat from deeper in the system,” she adds. “There's quite a lot of water that could be drawing more heat out, and I think that there's a heat budget there that could be interesting to look at.”

Moving forward, collaboration will continue to be key. “I really enjoyed talking to Joyce (Sim) about these problems,” Rober says, “because Joyce is an expert on heat flow and porous flow in the Earth's interior, and those are problems that I had not worked on before. That was kind of a nice aspect of this collaboration. We were able to bridge these two areas that she works on and that I work on.”

DOI: doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adh3693

Funding: This work was supported by startup funds from the Georgia Tech Research Corporation (A.A.R. and S.J.S.) and NASA grant 80NSSC21K0912 (M.R.S.). Alex Robel (A.A.R.) is also the recipient of a National Science Foundation CAREER grant.

When lymphatic vessels fail, typically their ability to pump out the fluid is compromised. Georgia Institute of Technology researchers have developed a new treatment using nanoparticles that can repair lymphatic vessel pumping. Traditionally, researchers in the field have tried to regrow lymphatic vessels, but repairing the pumping action is a unique approach.

“With many patients, the challenge is that the lymphatic vessels that still exist in the patient aren't working. So, it's not that you need to grow new vessels that you can think of as tubes, it’s that you need to get the tubes to work, which for lymphatic vessels means to pump,” said Brandon Dixon, a professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering. “That’s where our approach is really different. It delivers a drug to help lymphatic vessels pump using a nanoparticle that can drain into the diseased vessels themselves.”

The researchers published their findings in “Lymphatic-Draining Nanoparticles Deliver Bay K8644 Payload to Lymphatic Vessels and Enhance Their Pumping Function” in Science Advances in February.

The Benefit of Nanotechnology for Drug Delivery

The drug the researchers used, S-(-)-Bay K8644 or BayK, normally targets L-type calcium channels that enable the skeletal, cardiac, and endocrine muscles to contract. In effect, the application of BayK throughout the body would lead to convulsions and spasms.

Using nanoparticles designed to drain into lymphatic vessels after injection focuses the drug solely into the lymphatic vessels, draining the injection site. As a result, the drug is available within lymphatic vessels at a locally high dose. When lymph is eventually returned into the circulation, it’s diluted in the blood so much that it doesn’t affect other systems in the body, making the drug for lymphedema applications both targeted and safe.

“Lymphatic tissues work like river basins — regionally you have vessels that drain the fluid out of your tissues,” said Susan Thomas, Woodruff Professor and Associate Professor in the Woodruff School and faculty member in the Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience. “This method is like putting nanoparticles in the river to help the river flow better.”

The research is the perfect blend of Dixon’s and Thomas’ respective expertise. Dixon’s lab has been studying how lymphatics function in animal models for years. Thomas engineers nanoparticle drug delivery technologies that deploy in the lymphatic system.

“He develops analysis tools and disease models related to the lymphatic system, and I develop lymphatic-targeting drug delivery technologies,” Thomas said. “Tackling lymphedema as a widely prevalent condition for which there are no efficacious therapies was the perfect opportunity to leverage our strengths to hopefully move the needle on developing new strategies to serve this underserved patient population.”

Testing the Therapy

The Dixon and Thomas lab teams tested the formulation using rodent models. They first mapped the model’s lymph node system by injecting a fluorescent substance to see how it traveled. Then they applied a pressure cuff to measure how the lymphatic system fails to function when compromised. From there, they evaluated how formulating BayK in a lymph-draining nanoparticle influenced the drug’s effects. The delivery system allowed the drug to act within the lymphatic vessel, as demonstrated by increased vessel pumping and restored pumping pressure, and drastically reduced the concentration of BayK in the blood, which is typically associated with unwanted side effects.

The researchers are expanding the formulation to more advanced disease models to move it closer to human application. They will also explore how it can be used to prevent or treat lymphedema in combination with other existing or new therapies now being developed.

CITATION: Sestito, L.F., To, K., Cribb, M., Archer, P.A., Thomas, S.N.§, Dixon, J.B.§, 2023. Lymphatic-draining nanoparticles deliver Bay K8644 payload to lymphatic vessels and enhance their pumping function. Science Advances. 6: eabd7134.

DOI: DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abq0435

Gosden joined Georgia Tech in 2011 and has served in varying roles, including as interim general counsel and vice president for Ethics and Compliance and acting deputy general counsel, roles she held concurrently during 2022. Prior to that, she served as assistant chief counsel and senior attorney in employment and litigation for 10 years. She has practiced law in both private practice and public service roles. Notably, before joining Tech, she served for 12 years at the State of Georgia Attorney General’s Office, where she represented and advised state agencies, including the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

In the new role, Gosden will advise Chaouki Abdallah, EVPR and the overall EVPR office on administrative and institutional matters and develop actions plans on policies and procedures, operational effectiveness, and communications on issues that advance the Institute’s priorities, goals, and outcomes set forth in the Institute strategic plan. She will serve as a key campus collaborator on executive initiatives, promote research-related matters and objectives, serve as a liaison and representative on campus committees, and provide strategic oversight to administrative staff within the Office of the EVPR.  

“Kathleen’s time at Tech and her mix of private and public experience position her well to serve in this new capacity,” said Abdallah. “She has been a great partner, collaborator, and trusted expert to the Georgia Tech research enterprise, and I look forward to working with her in her new role as we continue to safely grow our research and improve our services to our research personnel.”

During her tenure at Georgia Tech, Gosden has counseled on a range of institutional issues, including Free Speech and the First Amendment, Title IX, research administration and security, compliance, and scholarly misconduct. She has also served on various committees and negotiations and provided advising and training on issues related to Human Resources, Athletics, and Faculty Affairs, among others. 

“In my time at Georgia Tech, I have been extremely impressed by the research enterprise, its leadership, and the tremendous growth and innovation,” said Gosden. “I am thrilled to be joining the EVPR’s Office and to be serving in this new role.”    

Gosden holds a Bachelor’s of Arts in English and a Juris Doctor from the University of Georgia.

That kind of dedication to learning was quintessential Baker, as was his commitment to helping lift up those around him, especially junior researchers, said Victoria Razin, a senior research engineer at the Georgia Tech Research Institute. She became a friend and mentee of Baker’s after working with him for a year on voting machine accessibility.

“Paul was an incredibly thoughtful researcher, a kind friend, and an incredible mentor who built up the people around him,” Razin said.

Baker, the senior director for research and strategic innovation at the Center for Advanced Communications Policy, passed away suddenly last week after a brief medical emergency, leaving behind an enormous void for his family, friends, and coworkers, as well as a tremendous legacy.

“Paul was like no one else I have met,” said Regent’s Researcher W. Bradley Fain, CACP’s executive director and Baker’s boss since 2019. “To be able to describe Paul succinctly is impossible.”

From Zoology to Technology Policy

After graduating from college with a degree in zoology, Baker worked as an environmental scientist, in real estate, and as a publisher, in addition to later academic roles at George Mason University and Saint Mary’s College. He joined Georgia Tech in 1999 as a visiting assistant professor, where he taught Research Design for the Policy Sciences, American Government, and more.

Two years later, he joined CACP as associate director for policy research and became director of research four years later. In 2011, he was named associate director of the Center for 21st Century Universities, where he oversaw strategic policy initiatives and managed the Center’s policy-focused sponsored research projects. After three years, he returned full-time to CACP, where he was appointed senior director for research and strategic innovation.

In 2020, he took on a new role when the Center for the Development and Application of Internet of Things Technologies moved from GTRI to CACP. Paul became the organization’s chief operations officer, where he worked to further the Center’s mission to spur technology and policy innovation in the internet of things sphere.

“Paul was a wonderful advisor, helping me work through really complicated issues,” Fain said. “Every conversation was an opportunity for him to share knowledge.”

Kaye Husbands Fealing, dean and Ivan Allen Jr. Chair in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, said Baker was an accomplished researcher who was deeply committed to expanding technology and workforce accessibility for everyone.

“We worked together a few years ago on a project with my research assistant, Andrew Hanus, and Connie McNeely of George Mason University to broaden participation in STEM employment for people with disabilities, and he took the initiative to lead a workshop on how veterans could gain STEM skills. I will miss his keen insight, his passion for his scholarship, and his generosity.”

Regents’ Researcher Emeritus Helena Mitchell, former executive director of CACP, said Baker was the Center’s most published employee whose contributions at Georgia Tech and around the world will continue to be felt.

“He was an excellent researcher, a great networker, a man of passion, integrity, and knowledge,” she said.

She and Baker were close friends for over 20 years, frequently hanging out together before Baker moved to Canada to be with his husband. She said she will miss their wide-ranging discussions over cosmopolitans. 

“He’s like a brother to me,” she said. 

Promoting Equal Access

In each of his roles, Baker approached his work with enormous curiosity, rigor, and a genuine desire to leave the world a better place, said Nathan Moon, director of research at CACP, who worked with Baker for nearly two decades.

“Paul was committed to doing research that would promote equal access for all people,” Moon said.

It shows in his publishing record, where you’ll find papers such as “Wireless Technologies and Accessibility for People with Disabilities: Findings from a Policy Research Instrument,”; “E-Accessibility and Municipal Wifi: Exploring a Model for Inclusivity and Implementation,” and “Digital Tech for Inclusive Aging: Usability, Design and Policy.”

In the last few years, he worked with Moon to develop a new seminar course, Policy Innovation for Inclusive Technologies, as part of a grant to develop a new postdoctoral training program for scholars interested in disability and accessible technology policy.

They taught the course together in the recently concluded Fall semester.

“In addition to being an excellent researcher, Paul was a wonderful educator,” Moon said. “He loved teaching and had high hopes and expectations for students, just as he did for junior researchers.”

But Baker’s personality and approach to other people especially set him apart, Razin said.

He had a way of connecting with people that made them feel special. For instance, Baker was a Quaker who also practiced Buddhism. But he always took time to send holiday greetings in correct Hebrew to Razin, who is Jewish.

“That was so special,” she said.

Moon said Baker’s legacy will continue to motivate him and other research scientists at CACP and across Georgia Tech who were touched by Baker’s intellect, curiosity, and drive.

“I can say confidently that as both a research scientist and person, Paul left the world a better place than he found it. He was a good friend, and he’ll be missed.”

In a new study published in Current Biology, researchers in Georgia Tech’s School of Biological Sciences have engineered one of the world’s first strains of yeast that may be happier with the lights on.

“We were frankly shocked by how simple it was to turn the yeast into phototrophs (organisms that can harness and use energy from light),” says Anthony Burnetti, a research scientist working in Associate Professor William Ratcliff’s laboratory and corresponding author of the study. “All we needed to do was move a single gene, and they grew 2% faster in the light than in the dark. Without any fine-tuning or careful coaxing, it just worked.”

Easily equipping the yeast with such an evolutionarily important trait could mean big things for our understanding of how this trait originated — and how it can be used to study things like biofuel production, evolution, and cellular aging.

Looking for an energy boost

The research was inspired by the group’s past work investigating the evolution of multicellular life. The group published their first report on their Multicellularity Long-Term Evolution Experiment (MuLTEE) in Nature last year, uncovering how their single-celled model organism, “snowflake yeast,” was able to evolve multicellularity over 3,000 generations.

Throughout these evolution experiments, one major limitation for multicellular evolution appeared: energy.

“Oxygen has a hard time diffusing deep into tissues, and you get tissues without the ability to get energy as a result,” says Burnetti. “I was looking for ways to get around this oxygen-based energy limitation.”

One way to give organisms an energy boost without using oxygen is through light. But the ability to turn light into usable energy can be complicated from an evolutionary standpoint. For example, the molecular machinery that allows plants to use light for energy involves a host of genes and proteins that are hard to synthesize and transfer to other organisms — both in the lab and naturally through evolution. 

Luckily, plants are not the only organisms that can convert light to energy.

Keeping it simple

A simpler way for organisms to use light is with rhodopsins: proteins that can convert light into energy without additional cellular machinery.

“Rhodopsins are found all over the tree of life and apparently are acquired by organisms obtaining genes from each other over evolutionary time,” says Autumn Peterson, a biology Ph.D. student working with Ratcliff and lead author of the study.

This type of genetic exchange is called horizontal gene transfer and involves sharing genetic information between organisms that aren’t closely related. Horizontal gene transfer can cause seemingly big evolutionary jumps in a short time, like how bacteria are quickly able to develop resistance to certain antibiotics. This can happen with all kinds of genetic information and is particularly common with rhodopsin proteins.

“In the process of figuring out a way to get rhodopsins into multi-celled yeast,” explains Burnetti, “we found we could learn about horizontal transfer of rhodopsins that has occurred across evolution in the past by transferring it into regular, single-celled yeast where it has never been before.”

To see if they could outfit a single-celled organism with solar-powered rhodopsin, researchers added a rhodopsin gene synthesized from a parasitic fungus to common baker’s yeast. This specific gene is coded for a form of rhodopsin that would be inserted into the cell’s vacuole, a part of the cell that, like mitochondria, can turn chemical gradients made by proteins like rhodopsin into energy. 

Equipped with vacuolar rhodopsin, the yeast grew roughly 2% faster when lit — a huge benefit in terms of evolution.

“Here we have a single gene, and we're just yanking it across contexts into a lineage that's never been a phototroph before, and it just works,” says Burnetti. “This says that it really is that easy for this kind of a system, at least sometimes, to do its job in a new organism.”

This simplicity provides key evolutionary insights and says a lot about “the ease with which rhodopsins have been able to spread across so many lineages and why that may be so,” explains Peterson, who Peterson recently received a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Gilliam Fellowship for her work. Carina Baskett, grant writer for Georgia Tech’s Center for Microbial Dynamics and Infection, also worked on the study.

Because vacuolar function may contribute to cellular aging, the group has also initiated collaborations to study how rhodopsins may be able to reduce aging effects in the yeast. Other researchers are already starting to use similar new, solar-powered yeast to study advancing bioproduction, which could mark big improvements for things like synthesizing biofuels.

Ratcliff and his group, however, are mostly keen to explore how this added benefit could impact the single-celled yeast’s journey to a multicellular organism. 

“We have this beautiful model system of simple multicellularity,” says Burnetti, referring to the long-running Multicellularity Long-Term Evolution Experiment (MuLTEE). “We want to give it phototrophy and see how it changes its evolution.”

Citation: Peterson et al., 2024, Current Biology 34, 1–7.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2023.12.044 

Georgia Tech's Office of Commercialization introduces Quadrant-i, a new unit dedicated to helping faculty, researchers, and students translate their research into startups.

The name is inspired by Pasteur’s quadrant in the Daniel Stokes innovation-impact model and will emphasize the translation of deep scientific research into products. (See more information about Pasteur’s quadrant here.)

Quadrant-i will join the other units in commercialization — the Office of Technology Licensing, VentureLab, and CREATE-X — in making Georgia Tech the premier campus for startups and commercialization.

“As we grow our efforts toward delivering impact through commercialization, creating a unit that is solely focused on helping our faculty, students, and researchers launch startups based on their research is essential,” said Raghupathy “Siva” Sivakumar, vice president of Commercialization and chief commercialization officer.

The functions of Quadrant-i have historically been supported by VentureLab, a national leader in entrepreneurship training and research. The reorganization will also allow VentureLab to amplify its impact in making Georgia Tech a thought leader for entrepreneurship.

Quadrant-i will be a comprehensive resource for the thriving research community on campus, facilitating the journey from innovations to impact. The unit will offer programs, resources, and services tailored to expedite and enhance the commercialization process, including:

• Advocating for policy changes and incentive structures to foster a culture of impact.
• Securing non-dilutive grant funding.
• Navigating conflicts of interest to maintain research integrity.
• Providing mentorship on the business aspects of innovation.
• Interfacing with customers, investors, and mentors.
• Launching startups with essential resources and support.

A search is currently underway for a director, who will report to Sivakumar.

The Office of Commercialization invites faculty, researchers, students, investors, mentors, industry leaders, and innovators to collaborate with Quadrant-i and learn more about its programs and services.

For more information, visit: commercialization.gatech.edu/quadrant-i

News Contact

Lacey Cameron, Marketing Manager

lacey.cameron@gatech.edu

Initially focusing on undergraduate students, the AI Makerspace aims to democratize access to computing resources typically reserved for researchers or technology companies. Students will access the cluster online as part of their coursework, deepening their AI skills through hands-on experience. The Makerspace will also better position students after graduation as they work with AI professionals and help shape the technology’s future applications.

“The launch of the AI Makerspace represents another milestone in Georgia Tech’s legacy of innovation and leadership in education,” said Raheem Beyah, dean of the College and Southern Company Chair. “Thanks to NVIDIA’s advanced technology and expertise, our students at all levels have a path to make significant contributions and lead in the rapidly evolving field of AI.”

Read the full story on the College of Engineering website.

“The actions are similar, but the choices and outcomes are very different because of the dynamic changes they’re making with the other person,” says Brian Magerko, Regents’ Professor in Georgia Tech’s School of Literature, Media, and Communication. “It’s a thing that humans do all the time, and computers don’t do with us at all.”

Welcome to the next frontier of artificial intelligence (AI) — not just generating but collaborating in real-time.

Magerko and his colleagues, Georgia Tech research scientist Milka Trajkova and Kennesaw State University Associate Professor of Dance Andrea Knowlton, are putting a collaborative AI system they’ve developed to the ultimate test: the world’s first collaborative AI dance performance.

Dance Partner

LuminAI is an interactive system that allows participants to engage in collaborative movement improvisation with an AI virtual dance partner projected on a nearby screen or wall. LuminAI analyzes participant movements and improvises responses informed by memories of past interactions with people. In other words, LuminAI learns how to dance by dancing with us.

The National Science Foundation-supported project began about 12 years ago in a lab and became an art installation and public demo. LuminAI has since moved into a different phase as a creative collaborator and education tool in a dance studio.

“We’re looking at the role LuminAI can play in dance education. As far as we’re aware, this is the first implemented version of an AI dancer in a dance studio,” says Trajkova, who was a professional ballet dancer before becoming a research scientist on the project.

To prepare LuminAI to collaborate with dancers, the research team started by studying pairs of improvisational dancers.

“We’re trying to understand how non-verbal, collaborative creativity occurs,” Knowlton says. “We start by trying to understand influencing factors that are perceived as contributing to improvisational success between two artists. Through that understanding, we applied those criteria to an AI system so it can have a similar experience with co-creative success.”

“We’re working on a creative arc,” adds Trajkova. “So instead of the AI agent just generating movements in response to the last thing that happened, we’re working to track and understand the dynamics of creative ideas across time as a continuous flow, rather than isolated instances of reaction.”

Students from Knowlton’s improvisational dance class at Kennesaw State spent two months of their spring semester working routinely with the LuminAI dancer and recording their impressions and experiences. One of the purposes the team discovered is that LuminAI serves as a third view for dancers and allows them to try ideas out with the system before trying it out with a partner.

The classroom experiment will culminate in a public performance on May 3 at Kennesaw State’s Marietta Dance Theater featuring the students performing with the LuminAI dancer. As far as the research team is aware the event is the world’s first collaborative AI dance performance.

While not all the dancers embraced having an AI collaborator, some of those who were skeptical at first left the experience more open to the possibility of collaborating with AI, Knowlton says. Regardless of their feelings toward working with AI, Knowlton says she believes the dancers gained valuable skills in working with specialized technology, especially as dance performances evolve to include more interactive media.

Refined Movement

So, what’s next for LuminAI? The project represents at least two possible paths for its learnings. The first includes continued exploration about how AI systems can be taught to cooperate and collaborate more like humans.

“With the advent of generative AI these past few years, it’s been really clear how great a need there is for this sort of social cognition,” says Magerko. “One of the things we’re going to be getting off the ground is sense-making with large language models. How do you collaborate with an AI system – rather than just making text or images, they’ll be able to make with us.”

The second involves the body movements LuminAI has been cataloging and analyzing over the years. Dance exemplifies highly refined motor skills, often exhibiting a level of detail surpassing that found in various athletic disciplines or physical therapy. While the tools designed to capture these intricate movements—through cameras and AI—are still nascent, the potential for harnessing this granular data is significant, Trajkova says.

That exploration begins on May 30 with a two-day summit being held at Georgia Tech to discuss its application for transforming performance athletics, with interdisciplinary participants in dance, computer vision, biomechanics, psychology, and human-computer interaction from Georgia Tech, Emory, KSU, Harvard, Royal Ballet in London, and Australian Ballet.

“It’s about understanding AI's role in augmenting training, promoting wellness as well as diving deep in decoding the artistry of human movements. How can we extract insights about the quality of athlete’s movements so we can help develop and enhance their own unique nuances?” Trajkova says.

What to expect

We will gather BEHIND the Campus Recreation Center on Tech Parkway. Here, we will perform a few quick drills then hit the city or campus streets for a 45-minute ride of three to four gentle miles. Once rolling, we’ll

• Take it slow, stay together, and practice our skills in a safe and supportive manner
• Experience Atlanta’s existing bicycle facilities, like two-directional protected and/or single-directional bike lanes and sharrows, and
• Learn to ride safely on streets without bike lanes by exercising our legal right to “take the lane.”

How to prepare

Please bring a helmet and a bicycle in good repair that fits you. We strongly recommend that you also bring:

• Water and sunscreen
• Sneakers or other appropriate closed-toed shoes
• Comfortable, appropriate clothing for being outside and active
• A friend or three!

Please arrive promptly so all participants can benefit from the full time allotted for this instructional experience. In case of rain, this class will be rescheduled.

These free classes are provided with the support of the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety.

Sign up today!

That’s miniaturization science for you. It’s the study of how materials and systems behave at microscopic scales, and it’s transforming biomedical engineering. And though it has led to breakthroughs in diagnostics and treatments, “teaching students about the subject is really challenging,” said David Myers, assistant professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory. 

“It’s because the behavior of fluids and materials at such small scales defies intuition, and you can’t really observe what’s going on,” added Myers, who understands the instructional challenge well — he teaches a graduate level course focused on translational microsystems, which is heavily integrated with his lab’s research. 

Recognizing the limitations of traditional coursework, Myers and his collaborators have developed a different approach. In Myers’ class, students build and test and observe the workings of microfluidic devices, a hallmark of miniaturization science — microfluidics is the manipulation of tiny volumes of fluids in miniaturized devices. 

Their new approach has made all the difference, even earning Myers a CIOS Award for teaching excellence. But Myers is quick to emphasize that this was a team effort. He and his lab developed a hands-on activity to help students learn device construction (and the underlying technical concepts). 

Then he reached out to Todd Fernandez, senior lecturer and Coulter BME’s director of learning innovation. Together they optimized the activity to maximize students’ learning. That has evolved into an ongoing partnership between technical and educational research faculty in the department, resulting in an article in the journal Lab on a Chip. 

"In other microfluidics courses, you walk through the step-by-step process of fabrication, but actually seeing the device come together in front of you provides such valuable insight into the underlying concepts and manufacturing techniques,” explained Priscilla Delgado, a fifth-year graduate student in Myers’ lab and lead author of the published study. “That hands-on experience is crucial for truly understanding this technology."

Bridging Critical Gaps

Myers’ course bridges several critical gaps, including the high cost of advanced learning activities. It also addresses student misconceptions. 

“The primary objective isn’t just the successful construction of devices, but a deeper conceptual understanding of miniaturization science and design principles,” said Myers, whose approach emphasizes conceptual change. 

Students often come into the course with misunderstandings about microscale phenomena, “assuming that fluid flow at this scale behaves the same way as in larger systems,” Myers said. 

Delgado added, “but it’s wild how fluid behavior changes at the microscale. If you mix two colored liquids in a regular cup, you get a third color. But in microfluidics, the laminar flow and reliance on diffusion can keep those streams separate — it really challenges your intuition about mixing.”

The class allows students to build and test microfluidic kits — mixers, valves, and bubble generators, using inexpensive, widely available materials. This activity is structured to help students encounter misunderstandings and work through them. Rather than simply presenting correct information, instructors guide students through a learning cycle in which they identify errors, reflect on their mistakes, and refine their understanding. 

“You can see their brains just sizzle,” said Myers. “Then you kind of add a little bit of structure. You ask, ‘Are you sure you have all the layers there that you’re thinking about?’ And then they’ll go back, count, and realize—oh, there’s this missing middle layer.”

The layer-by-layer assembly technique uses laser-cut adhesive films to construct microfluidic devices. Because the devices are assembled from transparent layers, students can see how their designs function and they can troubleshoot any errors. 

“One of the best things about these sticker-based microfluidic devices is how easy they are to prototype,” said Delgado. “I can literally have a new design laser-cut and assembled within an hour, rather than waiting months using traditional methods. The accessibility and speed of iteration is a game-changer."

Expanding the Possibilities

Beyond its accessibility, the sticker-based microfluidic approach also expands the possibilities for innovation. 

“The really cool thing is, this is a sticker,” Myers said. “You can place it on your skin. You can place it on the table. You can place it on the wall, if you really felt like it. And when you integrate it with high-end instrumentation like advanced sensors, suddenly you have a resource that traditional microfluidics can’t easily replicate.”

This kind of flexibility enables students to explore microfluidics in new ways. The study involved 57 students, some of whom took their designs beyond the classroom. 

“I cannot say enough how much I love how accessible it is and the portability of it,” Delgado said. “You can do this anywhere. You could do this at home. We’ve done it at science fairs for high school students to really challenge the way they think about mixing.”

The impact of the work has also influenced the direction Delgado wants to take in her career. She’s found herself drawn deeper into the field, inspired by microfluidic design. 

“The first time I laid eyes on that microfluidic device I had just built, I was captivated,” she said. “I remember thinking, ‘This is so cool; I have to dive deeper into this field.’ That’s when I knew a PhD was in my future, even though I had initially planned otherwise.”

This approach to teaching miniaturization science not only enhances learning but also democratizes access to innovation, according to Myers.

“The really cool thing that I love about this activity is that you’re sharing knowledge and power with the people using the technology,” he said. “Instead of them receiving technology from some high-resource institution, they’re able to look at the problems and start addressing them themselves.”

Miniaturization science plays a crucial role in developing point-of-care medical devices and other low-cost diagnostic tools, particularly in resource-limited settings. Equipping students around the world with the ability to create microfluidic systems could help empower future researchers and engineers.

Fernandez believes this hands-on approach represents a shift in how miniaturization science will be taught. 

“By focusing on student-driven exploration and conceptual understanding rather than rote device assembly, educators can better prepare the next generation of engineers and scientists to navigate and contribute to the ever-expanding world of microsystems,” he said. “ And what’s really cool is, you let them play, and they learn more. They discover things that we didn’t even have time to teach them.”

They are Margaret E. Kosal, an associate professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, and Juan D. Rogers, professor and associate chair in the School of Public Policy.

Rogers was selected for his contribution to “the development of new models and tools for impact assessment of R&D programs.” Kosal was chosen for her work helping develop “testable frameworks to explore the relationships between science, technology, and security and to explain their impacts on geopolitics,” according to the AAAS.

Founded in 1848, AAAS says it is the world’s largest general scientific society. It seeks to advance science through programs that include science policy as well as education and public engagement.

“This year’s class of fellows are the embodiment of scientific excellence and service to our communities,” said Sudip S. Parikh, the organization’s chief executive officer and executive publisher of Science journals. “At a time when the future of the scientific enterprise in the U.S. and around the world is uncertain, their work demonstrates the value of sustained investment in science and engineering.”

Kosal’s work focuses on explaining the intersection of emerging science and technology and security, especially in the areas of reducing threats from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the relationship of emerging science and technology and geopolitics.

“My research is driven by scholarly, theoretically grounded discourse and discovery; by a commitment to bridging the academic/scholarly-policy gap; and by a dedication to advancing and championing research by students and young scholars that bridges the physical, life and social sciences, and engineering,” Kosal said.

"I'm honored and humbled to be selected as a fellow and look forward to further work bridging across disciplines," Kosal said.

Rogers’ work addresses the design, implementation, and evaluation of public policies that focus on science and technology, especially the uses of science and technology to address special social or economic needs. He has developed models for the evaluation of research and development processes and a framework for public expenditure reviews, including public policy functional analysis, evaluation of the impacts of R&D policies and scientific research, and technology transfer and diffusion policies for science and technology.

“I feel honored and humbled to be recognized for my research work by AAAS,” he said. “It is very rewarding to see that others find value in my contributions and, at the same time, feel responsible for communicating the importance of the research enterprise in today's world.”

Rogers and Kosal join five other Georgia Tech faculty in being selected for the honor this year. AAAS also chose Krista S. Walton and Chaouki T. Abdallah in the College of Engineering, Wilbur Lam and Anant Madabhushi in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, and Daniel I. Goldman in the College of Sciences.

In all 32 other Georgia Tech faculty members are active AAAS fellows, according to the organization’s website. This includes four in the Ivan Allen College: Diana Hicks, Kaye Husbands Fealing, retired Associate Professor Cheryl Leggon, and Aaron Levine, all in the School of Public Policy.

For more information on the other Georgia Tech recipients, see the campuswide announcement. For more information on the AAAS and this year’s class of fellows, visit the AAAS website.

The measles outbreak that began in west Texas in late January 2025 continues to grow, with 400 confirmed cases in Texas and more than 50 in New Mexico and Oklahoma as of March 28.

Public health experts believe the numbers are much higher, however, and some worry about a bigger resurgence of the disease in the U.S. In the past two weeks, health officials have identified potential measles exposures in association with planes, trains and automobiles, including at Washington Dulles International Airport and on an Amtrak train from New York City to Washington, D.C. – as well as at health care facilities where the infected people sought medical attention.

Measles infections can be extremely serious. So far in 2025, 14% of the people who got measles had to be hospitalized. Last year, that number was 40%. Measles can damage the lungs and immune system, and also inflict permanent brain damage. Three in 1,000 people who get the disease die. But because measles vaccination programs in the U.S. over the past 60 years have been highly successful, few Americans under 50 have experienced measles directly, making it easy to think of the infection as a mere childhood rash with fever.

As a biologist who studies how viruses infect and kill cells and tissues, I believe it is important for people to understand how dangerous a measles infection can be.

Underappreciated Acute Effects

Measles is one of the most contagious diseases on the planet. One person who has it will infect nine out of 10 people nearby if those people are unvaccinated. A two-dose regimen of the vaccine, however, is 97% effective at preventing measles.

When the measles virus infects a person, it binds to specific proteins on the surface of cells. It then inserts its genome and replicates, destroying the cells in the process. This first happens in the upper respiratory tract and the lungs, where the virus can damage the person’s ability to breathe well. In both places, the virus also infects immune cells that carry it to the lymph nodes, and from there, throughout the body.

What generally lands people with measles in the hospital is the disease’s effects on the lungs. As the virus destroys lung cells, patients can develop viral pneumonia, which is characterized by severe coughing and difficulty breathing. Measles pneumonia afflicts about 1 in 20 children who get measles and is the most common cause of death from measles in young children.

The virus can directly invade the nervous system and also damage it by causing inflammation. Measles can cause acute brain damage in two different ways: a direct infection of the brain that occurs in roughly 1 in 1,000 people, or inflammation of the brain two to 30 days after infection that occurs with the same frequency. Children who survive these events can have permanent brain damage and impairments such as blindness and hearing loss.

Yearslong Consequences of Infection

An especially alarming but still poorly understood effect of measles infection is that it can reduce the immune system’s ability to recognize pathogens it has previously encountered. Researchers had long suspected that children who get the measles vaccine also tend to have better immunity to other diseases, but they were not sure why. A study published in 2019 found that having a measles infection destroyed between 11% and 75% of their antibodies, leaving them vulnerable to many of the infections to which they previously had immunity. This effect, called immune amnesia, lasts until people are reinfected or revaccinated against each disease their immune system forgot.

Occasionally, the virus can lie undetected in the brain of a person who recovered from measles and reactivate typically seven to 10 years later. This condition, called subacute sclerosing panencephalitis, is a progressive dementia that is almost always fatal. It occurs in about 1 in 25,000 people who get measles but is about five times more common in babies infected with measles before age 1.

Researchers long thought that such infections were caused by a special strain of measles, but more recent research suggests that the measles virus can acquire mutations that enable it to infect the brain during the course of the original infection.

There is still much to learn about the measles virus. For example, researchers are exploring antibody therapies to treat severe measles. However, even if such treatments work, the best way to prevent the serious effects of measles is to avoid infection by getting vaccinated.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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College membership honors those, “who have made outstanding contributions to engineering and medicine research, practice, or education,” and “to the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of medical and biological engineering or developing/implementing innovative approaches to bioengineering education.”

The distinction is among the highest professional distinctions given to medical and biological engineers, comprised of the top two percent of engineers in these fields.

He was nominated and inducted for outstanding contributions to computational neuroengineering, psychiatric neuromodulation, and international leadership in accessible biomedical education.

Rozell's research interests are in computational neuroengineering, an intersection of neuroscience, data science, neurotechnology and computational modeling that advances the understanding of brain function and the design of effective interventions.

His research has a particular focus on advancing our understanding and novel brain stimulation therapies for psychiatric disorders such as treatment resistant depression.

Recently, he was part of a team that identified a unique pattern in brain activity that reflects the recovery process in patients with treatment-resistant depression. This pattern, known as a biomarker, represented a significant advance in treatment for the most severe and untreatable forms of depression.

His work also includes research that takes a creative approach to advancing the understanding of the societal impacts of emerging technologies such as neurotechnology and AI.

Rozell especially takes pride in being a first-generation scholar who is committed to accessibility in scientific communities. In pursuit of this goal, he co-founded and serves on the Board of Directors of Neuromatch, Inc., a global nonprofit increasing access to scientific knowledge.

His scholarly efforts have resulted in many published works in top publications, such as Nature, and a number of awards, including the NSF CAREER Award.

Before joining the ECE faculty in 2008 as an assistant professor, Rozell received a B.S.E. degree in computer engineering and a B.F.A. degree in music in 2000 from the University of Michigan. He then received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering in 2002 and 2007 from Rice University and was a postdoctoral scholar at the Redwood Center for Theoretical Neuroscience at the University of California, Berkeley.

To be more precise, it’s a liquid cooling system developed at Georgia Tech for electronics aimed at solving a long-standing problem: overheating.

Developed by Daniel Lorenzini, a 2019 Tech graduate who earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, the cooling system uses microfluidic channels — tiny, intricate pathways for liquids — that are embedded within the chip packaging.

He worked with VentureLab, a Tech program in the Office of Commercialization, to spin his research into a startup company, EMCOOL, headquartered in Norcross.

“Our solution directly addresses the heat at the source of the silicon chip and therefore makes it faster,” Lorenzini said. “Our design has our system sitting directly on the silicon chips that generate the most heat. Using the fluids in the micro-pin fins, it carries the heat that’s produced away from the chip.”

That cooling solution is directly integrated into the electronic components, making it significantly more efficient than conventional cooling methods, because it enhances the heat dissipation process.

The result is a much lower risk of overheating and reduced power consumption, he said.

Lorenzini, who researched and refined the technology in the lab of Yogendra Joshi at the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, was awarded a patent for the technology in September 2024.

Now, EMCOOL, which has five empoloyees, is actively pursuing venture capital funding to scale its technology and address the escalating thermal management challenges posed by AI processors in modern data centers.

The system uses a cooling block with tiny, pin-like fins on one side and a special thermal interface material on the other. There's also a junction attached to the block, with ports for the fluid to flow in and out. The cooling fluid moves through the micro-pin fins and helps to carry away the heat.

Since the ports are designed to match the shape of the fins, it ensures that the fluid flows efficiently and the heat is dissipated as effectively as possible at chip-scale. 

As electronic devices — from high-performance personal computers to data centers used for artificial intelligence processing — become more powerful, they generate more heat. This excess heat can damage components or cause the device to underperform.

Traditional cooling methods, which include fans or heat sinks, often struggle to keep pace with the increasing demands of the newer model electronics. Lorenzini’s microfluidic system addresses the challenge of overheating with his patented, more effective, compact, and integrated cooling solution.

With the guidance of Jonathan Goldman, director of Quadrant-i in Tech’s Office of Commercialization, Lorenzini secured grant funding through the National Science Foundation and the Georgia Research Alliance to further the research and build design prototypes.

“We immediately had the sense there was commercial potential here,” Goldman said. “Thermal management, or getting rid of heat, is a ubiquitous problem in the computer industry, so when we saw what Daniel was doing, we immediately began to engage with him to understand what the commercial potential was.”

Indeed, the initial focus for the technology was the $159 billion global electronic gaming market. Gamers need a lot of computing power, which generates a lot of heat, causing lag.

But beyond gaming systems, the company, which manufactures custom cooling blocks and kits at its Norcross facility, is eyeing more sectors, which also suffer from overheating, Goldman said.

The technology addresses similar overheating electronics challenges in high-performance computing, telecommunications, and energy systems.

“This work propels us forward in pushing the boundaries of what traditional cooling technologies can achieve because by harnessing the power of microfluidics, EMCOOL's systems offer a compact and energy-efficient way to manage heat,” Goldman said. “This has the potential to revolutionize industries reliant on high-performance computing, where heat management is a constant challenge.”

Taking place on April 23, Energy Day was cohosted by Georgia Tech’s Institute for Matter and Systems (IMS), Strategic Energy Institute (SEI), the Georgia Tech Advanced Battery Center, and the Energy Policy and Innovation Center.

“The ideas coming out of Georgia Tech and other research universities can drive greater partnerships with our local and state officials. Whether you live in Georgia or elsewhere, we are changing how energy is viewed and consumed,” said Tim Lieuwen, Georgia Tech executive vice president for Research.

Energy Day 2025 is the latest evolution in a series of events that began as in 2023 Battery Day. As local and national energy research needs have evolved, the event has grown to highlight Georgia Tech, and the state of Georgia, as a go-to location for modern energy companies.

“At Georgia Tech, we approach energy holistically, leveraging innovative R&D, economic policy, community-building and strategic partnerships,” said Christine Conwell, SEI's interim executive director. “We are thrilled to convene this event for the third year. The keynote and sessions highlight our comprehensive strategy, showcasing cutting-edge advancements and collaborative efforts driving the next big energy innovations." 

The day was divided into two parts: a morning session that included a keynote speaker and two panels, and an afternoon session with separate tracks addressing three different energy research areas. Speakers shared research being conducted at Georgia Tech, as well as updates from industry leaders, to create an open dialogue about current energy needs.

“We believe we can solve problems and build the economy when you bring various disciplines together and work from matter — the fundamental scientists and devices all the way out to final systems at large — economic systems, societal systems,” said Eric Vogel, executive director for IMS. “Not only did we share the latest research, but we discussed and debated how we can continue to transform the energy economy.”

Discussions ranged from adapting to rapid changes in battery storage to advancing photo-voltaic manufacturing in the U.S. to the environmental impacts and sustainable practices of e-fuels and renewable energy.

The day ended with a robust poster session that attracted more than 25 student posters presentations. Three were awarded best posters.

First place: Austin Shoemaker
Second Place: Roahan Zhang
Third Place: Connor Davel

Related Links:
Advancing Clean Energy: Georgia Tech Hosts Energy Materials Day
Georgia Tech Battery Day Reveals Opportunities in Energy Storage Research

Every time you use your phone, open your computer or listen to your favorite music on AirPods, you are relying on critical minerals.

These materials are the tiny building blocks powering modern life. From lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite in batteries to gallium in telecommunication systems that enable constant connectivity, critical minerals act as the essential vitamins of modern technology: small in volume but vital to function.

Yet the U.S. depends heavily on imports for most critical materials. In 2024 the U.S. imported 80% of rare earth elements it used, 100% of gallium and natural graphite, and 48% to 76% of lithium, nickel and cobalt, to name a few.

Rising global demand, high import dependency and growing geopolitical tensions have made critical mineral supply an increasing national security concern − and one of the most urgent supply chain challenges of our time.

That raises a question: Could the U.S. mine and process more critical minerals at home?

As a geochemist who leads Georgia Tech’s Center for Critical Mineral Solutions and an engineer focused on energy innovation, we have been exploring the options and barriers for U.S. critical mineral production.

What’s Stopping Critical Minerals From Being Produced Domestically?

Let’s take a look at rare earth elements.

These elements are essential to modern technology, electric vehicles, energy systems and military applications. For example, neodymium is critical for making the strong magnets used in computer hard discs, lasers and wind turbines. Gadolinium is vital for MRI machines, while samarium and cerium play key roles in nuclear reactors and energy systems such as solar and wind power.

Despite their name, rare earth elements are actually not rare. Their concentrations in the Earth’s crust are comparable to more commonly mined metals such as zinc and copper.

However, rare earth elements do not often occur in easily accessible, economically viable mineral forms or high-grade deposits. As a result, identifying resources with sufficiently high concentration and large volume is crucial for enabling their economic production.

The U.S. currently has only two domestic rare earth mining locations: Georgia and California.

In southeast Georgia, rare earths are being produced as a byproduct of heavy mineral sand mining, but the produced rare earth concentrates are shipped out of state and then abroad for refining into the materials used in renewable energy technologies and permanent magnets.

The other location is in Mountain Pass, California, where hard rock mining extracts a rare earth carbonate mineral called bastnaesite. Yet again, much of the material is sent abroad for refining. As a result, the entire supply chain − from mining to final use in products − stretches across continents.

Meeting the U.S. demand for rare earth elements and other critical minerals from operations within the United States will require more than just opening new mines. It will require developing and scaling up new technologies, as well as building processing operations.

Historically, processing has largely taken place overseas because of the environmental impacts, energy demand and regulatory constraints.

The Potential, But Long Road, to New Mines

Investment in exploration activity for critical minerals is rapidly increasing across the U.S.

In 2017 the U.S. Geological Survey launched the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative − known as Earth MRI − to identify potential sources of critical minerals within the country.

Some areas that appear promising for rare earth elements have lots of chemical weathering, in which rocks containing rare earth elements are broken down by reacting with water and air. Exploration is underway at several of these sites, including in locations in Wyoming and Montana.

Identifying a resource, however, is not the same as producing it.

Traditional mining can take a decade or two from exploration to production and up to 29 years in the U.S., the second-longest timeline in the world. Although this timeline could be changing under the current administration, companies might still face major uncertainties related to permitting, infrastructure development and, in some places, community opposition. Managing environmental impacts, such as air and water pollution and high water consumption and energy use, can further increase cost and extend project timelines.

Given that the exploration projects mentioned above are still in early stage, the U.S. needs additional, parallel efforts that can bring resources to the market at an accelerated pace.

Mining the Materials We Have Already Mined

One of the fastest ways to increase U.S. rare earth production may not require digging new holes in the ground − but rather returning to old ones.

The Atlantic coast region stands out on the Earth MRI map as a particularly promising area. What’s even better is that this region has already established extensive mining activities and mature infrastructure, which allows for much faster speed to market.

Georgia has mineral sand deposits that are rich in titanium, zirconium, and rare earth elements. Titanium and zirconium − both used in aerospace, energy and medical applications − are already mined in Florida and Georgia. In southeast Georgia, rare earth elements found with these heavy mineral sands are already being recovered as rare earth concentrates.

Kaolin, a white clay used in paper, paint and porcelain, has been mined in Georgia for over a century, and it can also contain rare earth elements. Georgia generates more than 8 million tons of kaolin annually, making it the leading U.S. producer and a large exporter. This also comes with millions of tons of mining and processing residues, or what’s known as tailings.

Recent research studies suggest that there is significant potential for extracting rare earth elements in the tailings.

The tailings are already mined and sitting on the surface. There is no need to drill or blast. That means existing infrastructure, faster timelines and lower costs and than new mining operations.

Technological innovations, such as bioleaching, ligand-based extraction and separation and electrochemical separation, are now making mining these legacy wastes possible. New processing facilities could be built near existing kaolin or heavy mineral sand operations or former mine sites, bringing materials to market in a few years rather than decades.

The Future of Waste Mining

This approach is part of a broader strategy known as “waste mining,” “urban mining” or “mining the anthropogenic cycle.”

It involves the recovery of critical minerals from existing waste streams such as mine tailings, coal ash and industrial byproducts. It is also part of building a circular economy, where materials are reused and recycled rather than discarded.

The U.S. has the potential to catalyze new domestic supply chains for materials essential to national security and technology. Waste mining and recycling are critical pieces to ensure the long-term sustainability of these supply chains.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

More than half a century after the United States won the race to the moon, the White House is setting its sights on a new frontier: Mars. In a move reminiscent of the Apollo era, the administration has proposed landing Americans on the red planet by the end of 2026 — a bold initiative that has reignited national ambition and drawn comparisons to the space race of the 20th century. 

Salimah LaForce of the Center for Advanced Communications Policy (CACP), John Rempel from the Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation, and Deaf Link, Inc. have assembled a nationwide panel of about 10,000 people with disabilities to learn more about whether they received the test, in what format, and their location, among other things, to better understand access challenges. 

It’s part of a larger survey initiative by the Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center, a federally funded research and development center operated by the RAND Corporation, to understand how well Americans receive the alerts. The center tapped LaForce and CACP for the work due to their extensive work studying technology challenges among people with disabilities. 

“Disability shouldn’t be a barrier to accessing potentially lifesaving emergency information,” said LaForce. “This survey will help us better understand how cell phone users receive the alerts and about any challenges they may have faced, including those posed by the type of cell phone they own.” 

WEA Alerts Save Lives, but Challenges Remain 

Wireless Emergency Alert messages are geographically targeted alerts similar to texts sent to cell phones to warn users of threats such as hazardous weather. Cities, state emergency management agencies, and other authorized alerting agencies send the messages. 

The Oct. 4 test is similar to routine tests that some state and local jurisdictions conduct, except that, in this case, users will not be able to opt out. Tests will also be delivered to televisions and radios via a different technology that’s not part of LaForce’s survey. This will be the first national test since 2021 and only the second since the WEA system went live in 2012. 

LaForce and CACP have been tracking issues with WEA alerts for years, noting technological gaps that prevent some users from receiving the full alerts and numerous challenges that can make receiving them difficult for the 42.5 million people living with disabilities in the U.S. For instance, those with hearing disabilities might miss audible signals such as the WEA tone, while individuals with visual disabilities could struggle with text-based notifications if text-to-speech isn’t enabled on their phone. The technology used in some older models and some subsidized phones may also limit the effectiveness of these alerts for economically disadvantaged individuals with disabilities, according to LaForce. 

Novel Survey to Use American Sign Language 

The survey is meant to find out how many cellphone users received test messages, what language it was in, and other information, such as race and ethnicity, language, and disability, that could help determine whether those factors affect the ability of cell phone users to receive timely emergency alerts. 

As part of the project, LaForce helped pioneer what she said may be one of the first survey instruments undertaken using American Sign Language.  

“Using ASL in the survey will allow people who primarily use sign language to communicate to respond to the survey comfortably and naturally,” she said. 

This initiative addresses a significant gap in existing survey methods, which often rely on written or spoken language and may marginalize those who primarily communicate through ASL. 

It’s just another part of CACP’s work to influence tech policy in ways that improve the human condition, LaForce said. 

“Technology works best when it works for everyone, and that’s a big part of what drives us forward at CACP,” LaForce said. 

CACP, affiliated with the School of Public Policy and the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, has been evaluating communications technology and policy since 2004. The Center has shared its expertise through policy briefs, reports, submitted congressional testimony, and more. 

The Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center researches and analyzes projects to prevent terrorism, safeguard cyberspace, and strengthen national preparedness and resilience, among other topics. 

The work is supported by a $109,000 grant from FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Project Management Office.

“Georgia Tech has successfully navigated these situations in the past, and we are modeling scenarios on how the shutdown may affect cash flow and campus operations over time,” said Kim Toatley, vice president for Finance and Planning and chief financial officer. “While we are hopeful that an agreement will be reached soon, we are working to adapt our financial planning and activities to this fluid situation.”

U.S. government programs represent more than $100 million per month in federal funding for research activities at Georgia Tech. If the shutdown continues beyond a few weeks, mitigation strategies will need to be implemented to preserve cash and maintain campus operations. Some strategies include conserving available reserves; requiring Cabinet-level approval for certain purchases, hiring, and non-essential travel; and slowing down select research. 

Activities related to ongoing grants and contracts will continue, but additional support and administrative assistance from sponsors may be limited. New grant applications will be on hold, and no new awards will likely be issued. Georgia Tech will continue to submit invoices and make cash requests as systems allow, but payment from sponsors will be delayed. Additional actions will be considered as circumstances warrant, and the Institute will remain committed to limiting the effect on students, faculty, and staff. Researchers can consult Georgia Tech guidance here: osp.gatech.edu/federal-government-shutdown-guidance.

The working group is closely monitoring this situation and will continue to provide information in the coming days.     

“Despite advances in digital health, continuous monitoring of the heart’s mechanical function has remained difficult outside clinical settings,” said Omer Inan, researcher and entrepreneur at Georgia Tech. “Patients and physicians have long needed a tool that provides deeper, real-time insights into heart performance without invasive procedures. We decided to tackle that problem head-on with a wearable device.”

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ATLANTA — March 24, 2025 — Georgia Tech has officially launched Tech AI, a bold new initiative designed to accelerate the real-world impact of artificial intelligence across industry and government. The announcement marks the start of Tech AI Fest, the Southeast’s leading AI event, bringing together leading academics, industry experts, government figures, and students for three days of immersive discussion, creative partnerships, and transformative ideas. 

The award will support the design of nature-based solutions including living shorelines and marsh restoration in flood-prone areas of Camden County, Georgia, adjacent to Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Cumberland Island National Seashore, and the city of St. Marys. 

“Restoring wetlands in Camden County is not just an environmental priority — it’s a resilience strategy for the entire region,” says principal investigator (PI) Joel Kostka, Tom and Marie Patton Distinguished Professor, associate chair for Research in the School of Biological Sciences, and faculty director of Georgia Tech for Georgia’s Tomorrow. “Each acre of restored marshland protects coastal communities from natural hazards like storms and flooding, provides essential marine habitat, and has the potential to aid the Navy and the Army Corps of Engineers in developing management alternatives for dredged materials. When our wetlands flourish, our whole coastline does.”

In addition to Kostka, co-PI’s include University of Georgia (UGA) Skidaway Institute of Oceanography Director Clark Alexander, UGA Associate Professor Matt Bilskie and Professor Brian Bledsoe, The Nature Conservancy Coastal Climate Adaptation Director Ashby Worley, and Georgia Tech alumnus Nolan Williams of Robinson Design Engineers, a firm dedicated to the engineering of natural infrastructure in the Southeast that is owned and operated by Georgia Tech alumnus Joshua Robinson.

A coastal collaboration

The new project, known as a “pipeline project” by NFWF,  builds on multiple resilience plans and years of previous research conducted by the established team. “This is a testament to the value of the long-term collaborations and partnerships that enable coastal resilience work,” Kostka says. “We’re working closely with local communities and a range of city, state, and federal stakeholders to ensure these solutions align with local priorities and protect what matters most.”

It’s not the first time that the team has brought this type of collaboration to the coastline. Since 2019, Kostka has worked alongside the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, the South Carolina Aquarium, and Robinson Design Engineers in a $2.6 million effort to restore degraded salt marshes in historic Charleston, also funded by NFWF. Now in the implementation phase, much of the marsh restoration in Charleston involves planting salt-tolerant grasses, restoring oyster reefs, and excavating new tidal creeks — work that is being spearheaded by local volunteers.

“Coastal resilience isn’t something one group can tackle alone,” Kostka adds. “That shared, community-driven vision is what makes these projects possible.”

While this statement might cause anxiety for some, for one Georgia Tech research team, working with humanlike robots couldn’t be more exciting.

Bipedal — or two-legged — autonomous robots can be quite agile. This makes them useful for performing tasks on uneven terrain, such as carrying equipment through outdoor environments or performing maintenance on an ocean-going ship. However, unstable or unpredictable conditions also increase the possibility of a robot wipeout. 

The researchers, led by Ye Zhao, director of the Georgia Tech Laboratory for Intelligent Decision and Autonomous Robots (LIDAR), and Zhaoyuan Gu, a robotics Ph.D. student, wanted to develop a real-time planning and control framework that guarantees a robot's safety and recovery when traversing difficult terrain. The autonomous nature of this framework means the robots can make their own decisions without direct assistance from a human. For example, if an unexpected obstacle appears in its path, a robot equipped with this new framework could catch itself instead of falling.

Until now, there’s been a significant lack of research into how a robot recovers when its direction shifts — for example, a robot losing balance when a truck makes a quick turn. The team aims to fix this research gap. 

Putting the Project Pieces Together

In an IEEE Transactions on Robotics paper, the researchers describe a first-of-its-kind strategy that gives robots a clear set of rules for reacting when something changes in its path. These rules help the robot make quicker decisions and take more confident steps. When the robot senses that its current plan might not keep it stable, it uses these rules to adjust its next few steps, so it can continue moving safely. In earlier experiments, which lacked this framework, two-legged robots struggled to identify a solution for stability and were prone to falling.

The researchers implemented the new framework with Cassie, a two-legged robot. Inside Tech’s 3,000-square-foot Human Augmentation Core Facility, the Cassie robot confidently walks on a Computer-Aided Rehabilitation Environment (CAREN) — a treadmill system that can be programmed to move in any direction at different times. When the team realized CAREN is limited in how much force it can inflict, they added a BumpEm system, which creates a stronger jerk to further stress-test Cassie’s gait.

The Results

Through these experiments, the researchers found that their new programming framework outperforms state-of-the-art methods with more certainty, faster decision-making, higher collision avoidance, and the ability to reliably walk on moving platforms and varying types of terrain.

Zhao said, “The results we got through this project are very impressive. They’re the most comprehensive and extensive hardware results we’ve published so far.”

Though significant, the real-world results weren’t perfect. The robot doesn’t perform as well when moving downhill, which requires it to take riskier steps and walk less efficiently. However, the only time Cassie completely failed to recover its gait was during a difficult scenario involving a very wide step and a cross-legged maneuver. Recovery simply wasn’t feasible given the spatial limits of the narrow treadmill.

Next Steps for Walking Robots

Overall, the researchers’ framework increases by 81% Cassie’s ability to recover from instability. The team noted that bipedal stability in robotics needs further research. If these walking robots are to be fully integrated into our society, they must be reliable.

“This paper may serve as a foundation for continued work on walking robots,” said Zhao. “Our work may inspire further research that can imitate or learn from the framework we’ve created.”

Other ways of walking recovery are yet to be tested. For example, humans often hop to counteract instability or uneven footing; mirroring this with two-legged robots could be the next step in the team’s research.

They would like to eventually enable the use of autonomous two-legged robots in marine environments, where ship maintenance and operations require risky, strenuous labor. Ideally, these robots could reliably, safely, and efficiently perform these kinds of tasks.

The project will be tested at sea through the Office of Naval Research in Arlington, Virginia.

“Humanoid robots are coming to your homes, coming to the factories, coming to logistics. They're going to show up on the street. It’s exciting,” said Gu.

Robotics engineers should consider not only a robot’s mechanical design, but also its algorithms, intelligence, and brain. Being able to safely and regularly interact with these robots requires this foundational work.

— By Chloe Morris

“Robust-Locomotion-By-Logic: Perturbation-Resilient Bipedal Locomotion via Signal Temporal Logic Guided Model Predictive Control.” https://doi.org/10.1109/TRO.2025.3582820

Funding for this research is provided by the Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Program and the National Science Foundation CAREER Program.

Researchers on this project include LIDAR Director Ye Zhao, Ph.D. student Zhaoyuan Gu, and master’s students Yuntian Zhao, Yipu Chen, and Rongming Guo. Other contributors from the Physiology of Wearable Robotics Lab include Gregory Sawicki, director, and Jennifer Leestma (Ph.D. ROBO, 2024). 

This research is also supported by the Agile Locomotion and Manipulation team, part of Georgia Tech’s Vertically Integrated Projects program.

But as carbon removal grows, so does a core problem: The carbon removal industry is largely unregulated, particularly for more novel technologies without long-standing norms around reporting and verification. In today’s “voluntary carbon market,” a private company can claim it removed a certain amount of carbon, list that amount for sale, and allow another company to buy it to offset its emissions — with little independent oversight or transparency.

A new Nature NPJ Climate Action article argues that this system isn’t enough to meet global climate goals, and could even end up causing harm. In the paper, Chris Reinhard, Georgia Power Chair and associate professor in Georgia Tech’s School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, and Noah Planavsky of the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture call for a fundamental shift: Carbon removal should be quantifiable, economically viable, and pursued in ways that create benefits for local communities — and greater transparency in carbon removal practice is necessary.

“We argue that it’s important to understand and quantify carbon removal practices that can benefit local communities, like better crop yields, and that this understanding is really only possible if these practices are pursued transparently,” Reinhard said. “The data used to quantify carbon removal and how much it costs need to be transparent — the surest route toward learning what works and building public trust in carbon removal as a solution.”

Transparency Trouble

Reinhard and Planavsky bring a unique technical and policy perspective to the issue. As geochemists, they study how Earth’s chemical composition and geological processes control the carbon cycle. Reinhard also co-founded a carbon removal startup he has since divested from. That insider experience and academic background helped them see the disconnect between what’s technologically possible and what market logic culturally or commercially incentivizes.

Today’s carbon removal startups often guard their methods and data as proprietary intellectual property. Without regulatory requirements or pressure from corporate carbon buyers, these startups have little reason to disclose carbon accounting practices, cost structures, or actual long-term impacts. The researchers argue that policy guidance and advocacy are needed to shift the industry toward meaningful openness.

“Our expertise is most firmly grounded in the technical dimensions of these carbon removal processes,” Reinhard said, “but we saw an opportunity here to push for better policy and start this dialogue about what transparency really means, in part to foster more public debate about what carbon removal ought to be doing for society.”

Community Beyond Carbon

The authors also stress that carbon removal should deliver benefits beyond atmospheric cleanup that communities can see and advocate for. For example, liming, or adding limestone to soil, can remove carbon while also improving crop yields and reducing erosion. Coastal ecosystem restoration can sequester carbon while strengthening shorelines and supporting fisheries. Georgia Tech’s own direct air capture work builds community engagement into the process to ensure that carbon removal is equitable. 

Reinhard and Planavsky say the next best step for the carbon removal industry is to identify which removal pathways offer the clearest benefits, what they cost, and where transparency gaps are most damaging. This foundation will help create policies that make carbon removal reliable, verifiable, and community-centered. 

Without oversight, they argue, carbon removal risks remaining a niche, market-defined practice — when the climate challenge demands a trusted, scalable, and democratically governed solution.

CITATION: Reinhard, C.T., Planavsky, N.J. The importance of radical transparency for responsible carbon dioxide removal. npj Clim. Action 5, 7 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44168-025-00324-4

But as carbon removal grows, so does a core problem: The carbon removal industry is largely unregulated, particularly for more novel technologies without long-standing norms around reporting and verification. In today’s “voluntary carbon market,” a private company can claim it removed a certain amount of carbon, list that amount for sale, and allow another company to buy it to offset its emissions — with little independent oversight or transparency.

A new Nature NPJ Climate Action article argues that this system isn’t enough to meet global climate goals, and could even end up causing harm. In the paper, Chris Reinhard, Georgia Power Chair and associate professor in Georgia Tech’s School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, and Noah Planavsky of the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture call for a fundamental shift: Carbon removal should be quantifiable, economically viable, and pursued in ways that create benefits for local communities — and greater transparency in carbon removal practice is necessary.

“We argue that it’s important to understand and quantify carbon removal practices that can benefit local communities, like better crop yields, and that this understanding is really only possible if these practices are pursued transparently,” Reinhard said. “The data used to quantify carbon removal and how much it costs need to be transparent — the surest route toward learning what works and building public trust in carbon removal as a solution.”

Transparency Trouble

Reinhard and Planavsky bring a unique technical and policy perspective to the issue. As geochemists, they study how Earth’s chemical composition and geological processes control the carbon cycle. Reinhard also co-founded a carbon removal startup he has since divested from. That insider experience and academic background helped them see the disconnect between what’s technologically possible and what market logic culturally or commercially incentivizes.

Today’s carbon removal startups often guard their methods and data as proprietary intellectual property. Without regulatory requirements or pressure from corporate carbon buyers, these startups have little reason to disclose carbon accounting practices, cost structures, or actual long-term impacts. The researchers argue that policy guidance and advocacy are needed to shift the industry toward meaningful openness.

“Our expertise is most firmly grounded in the technical dimensions of these carbon removal processes,” Reinhard said, “but we saw an opportunity here to push for better policy and start this dialogue about what transparency really means, in part to foster more public debate about what carbon removal ought to be doing for society.”

Community Beyond Carbon

The authors also stress that carbon removal should deliver benefits beyond atmospheric cleanup that communities can see and advocate for. For example, liming, or adding limestone to soil, can remove carbon while also improving crop yields and reducing erosion. Coastal ecosystem restoration can sequester carbon while strengthening shorelines and supporting fisheries. Georgia Tech’s own direct air capture work builds community engagement into the process to ensure that carbon removal is equitable. 

Reinhard and Planavsky say the next best step for the carbon removal industry is to identify which removal pathways offer the clearest benefits, what they cost, and where transparency gaps are most damaging. This foundation will help create policies that make carbon removal reliable, verifiable, and community-centered. 

Without oversight, they argue, carbon removal risks remaining a niche, market-defined practice — when the climate challenge demands a trusted, scalable, and democratically governed solution.

CITATION: Reinhard, C.T., Planavsky, N.J. The importance of radical transparency for responsible carbon dioxide removal. npj Clim. Action 5, 7 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44168-025-00324-4