Achievements

Leslie Scopes Anderson

Biological Sciences

Graduate student Leslie Anderson recorded a first-ever sighting of a rare Red-bellied Woodpecker in the state of Nevada. It is also the second western-most sighting in the US of the bird, bested only by one in Idaho in 2003. Leslie noticed the woodpecker in June near the historic Bressman cabin at Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge and documented it with high-quality photographs. The first-sighting was later confirmed by local bird expert Ken Burton and the Nevada Bird Records Committee. An article about the find will appear in the April-May issue of Western Birds.

Environmental Resources Engineering Students

Environmental Resources Engineering

Two teams of Environmental Resources Engineering students recently took high honors in the Consortium for Mathematics and its Applications Mathematical Modeling Contest Jan. 31 to Feb. 4. Both teams worked on the same problem, which required building a mathematical model for an effective, cost-efficient water strategy to meet the United States' projected water needs in 2025. In particular, the model was required to address water storage and movement, desalinization and conservation.

The first team--consisting of Lianna Winkler-Prins, James Courtney and Ryan P. Dunne--earned an honorable mention ranking. The second team--consisting of Kevin Kipp, Britlandt Abney and Andrew Preiksa--was awarded a meritorious ranking. Each team prepared a detailed report that included one of three possible modeling problems.

Lonny Grafman

Environmental Resources Engineering

The manuscript "Medical device compendium for the developing world: a new approach in project and service-based learning for engineering graduate students" by Kathleen Sienko and Amir Sabet Sarvestani of University of Michigan and Lonny Grafman of HSU was published in the Global Journal of Engineering Education.

The manuscript documents the work establishing the Global Health Medical Devices Compendium, a new open-source platform for presenting available medical devices designed for, or implemented in, the developing world at http://www.appropedia.org/Portal:Medical_Devices.

Forestry students

Forestry, Fire & Rangeland Management

The Department of Forestry and Wildland Resources presented 22 of its students with nearly $28,000 in scholarships at its 15th annual Spring Awards banquet in April. Three graduating seniors were recognized at the ceremony: Zachary Carter, Academic Excellence Award; Noah Coonen, Professional Promise Award, and Celina Weeg, Most Outstanding Student Award in Rangeland Resources and Wildland Soils. Department Chair Kenneth (K.O.) Fulgham reported that faculty have gained more than $1.37 million in grant research awards in the past 18 months. He recognized retiring Professor John Stuart for his 30 years of service to the department. For the third year running, Stuart was voted “Outstanding Professor of the Year” by the department’s students.

Rachael Olliff

Biological Sciences

Biology graduate student Rachael Olliff recently received a 2013 conservation grant from the Sequoia Park Zoo of Eureka. Olliff will use the grant to monitor the relationship between the native but seldom-studied dune silver bee and flowering plants on the North Spit of Humboldt Bay and publish informational pamphlets.

Christine Cass

Biological Sciences

Oceanography faculty member Christine Cass recently received a 2013-14 California Sea Grant Focus Award. Cass will spend 18 months studying seasonal changes in the fat and protein content of zooplankton in northern California and southern Oregon. California Sea Grant is funded by the National Sea Grant College Program, which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Isral Konopa and Britany MacFarlane

Environmental Resources Engineering

Isral Konopa, Environmental Resources Engineering undergraduate student, and Britany MacFarlane, Environmental Resources Engineering graduate student, have each received a 2013/14 scholarship from the California branch of the American Council of Engineering Companies.

ACEC invited scholarship applications from full-time students enrolled in California colleges and universities with an ABET-approved engineering program. From all the pplicants, only 5 undergraduate students and 3 graduate students were chosen to receive scholarships.

Peter Lehman

Environmental Resources Engineering

The Schatz Energy Research Center conference room has been named after SERC founding director Peter Lehman. A professor of environmental resources engineering, Lehman served as SERC's director from 1989 to 2012 and as faculty advisor to the Campus Center for Appropriate Technology from 1979 to 2000. The newly-dedicated room will also include a portrait of Lehman.

John M. Mola, Rachael L. Olliff, Christopher M. Steenbock

Biological Sciences

Biology graduate students John Mola and Rachael Olliff and Botany/Biology-Ecology undergraduate student Christopher Steenbock received the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship on March 29th.

Amy Sprowles

Biological Sciences

Biological sciences professor Amy Sprowles recently won an elevator pitch contest summarizing her research on stem cells. The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine's Elevator Pitch Challenge asked scientific researchers to explain what they do, why it’s important and why the public should care in 30 seconds or less. Sprowles and her students are studying how cancer genes may turn on stem cell like properties in normal adult cells. Their research is supported by CIRM's Bridges to Stem Cell Research Awards program. You can see the speeches on YouTube at #SciencePitch.