Engineering FYI, Part II, December 2009

In continued efforts to “reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by burning fossil fuels,” researchers at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have “genetically modified a cyanobacterium to consume carbon dioxide.”

UCLA’s Engineering School was renamed in 1999 when Henry Samueli, CA E ’75, made a very generous donation.

This current research could be used to “potentially capture greenhouse gas and directly recycle (it) into liquid fuel.”
Read full article from R&D Magainze

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Today, The Washington Post highlighted a partnership between Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey and Teledyne Webb Research that resulted in the first robot to cross the Atlantic ocean.

It took 221 days for the RU-27, or “Scarlet Knight,” to cross the ocean. It was retrieved last week off the coast of Spain. Professors and students worked together on the aquatic glider that has important ramifications for future ocean research. Read press release

The ability to cross oceans, collect data, and relay it will significantly improve the capabilities of future oceanic-related climate research. Read article

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Researchers from MIT, Germany, and Boston University have collaborated to develop “a new microscopic system for moving tiny objects inside a microchip.”

The possibilities of this new research include the idea of “virtual microfluids” that would be controlled by software, not hardware. The tiny “ant-like” filaments “could also provide insights into how cells and other objects are transported around within the body.” Read article

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