Outside the Classroom: Leaders of Innovation

The May 2010 cover story of Inventors Digest, details the ongoing need for more women in science.

The article details the professional struggles of the current president of the Association of Women in Science.

It also highlights several leading women in their respective fields of science. Livia Racz, MA B ’89, is profiled for her current role as “a leader of advanced hardware development at the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory.” Read the full article

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The Chicago Tribune and Purdue University are highlighting the efforts of a group of Purdue engineering students.

The students are planning to travel to Cameroon, Africa, this month “to set up a basic manufacturing facility in a northern village near a forest” to build a truck that offers affordable and sustainable alternative transportation.

The trucks, or BUV (Basic Utility Vehicle), “are built of pine, but the design can easily be adapted to African hardwoods like mahogany.” Read the news story from Purdue University or the article from the Chicago Tribune.

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Duke University and the Board of Trustees at Khalifa University of Science, Research and Technology (KUSTAR) are announcing the appointment of Tod Laursen, Ph.D. (OR A ’86), as the new president of KUSTAR.

He is currently an Advisor to the North Carolina Gamma Chapter of Tau Beta Pi. Dr. Laursen will assume his position beginning in August 2010. KUSTAR is located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Dr. Laursen calls the opportunity to lead KUSTAR ” a profound honor and the opportunity of a lifetime.” Read the news release from Duke University

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