News Archive
Wednesday, January 9 2008
News
Magnetic alloy
Ames Laboratory beefs up magnets for electric-drive cars
One of the problems associated with electric cars is that as the drive motors heat up, the magnets inside the motors lose some of their magnetic strength, resulting in a loss of power. Ames Lab's Iver Anderson and his team have developed a new magnetic alloy that maintains its strength at high operating temperatures approaching 400 degrees F.
Record 70 LEGO-building teams study energy, compete for Iowa Championship
Up to 700 young students will compete in the seventh annual FIRST LEGO League Iowa Championship from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19, in Howe Hall of Iowa State University's College of Engineering. The event is free and open to the public. It's loud and fun, too.
New Ames Lab director on the job
Alex King began his duties as director of the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory on Jan. 1. King will lead a staff of more than 400 employees, including more than 240 scientists and engineers.
2008 could be the year of presidential history say ISU experts
Three Iowa State faculty experts say 2008 may be historically significant as the year that the country breaks down racial, gender or religious barriers in electing its president.
Iowa State engineers on The History Channel
The History Channel's "Monsterquest" series will feature an Iowa State engineering team on Wednesday, Jan. 9, at 9 p.m. Central. Cameras follow aerospace engineering students Hirofumi Igarashi, Jack Lin and Adam Roland as they test models of "flying rods" in an Iowa State wind tunnel. Hui Hu, an assistant professor of aerospace engineering, led the students' work in the lab. Tom Shih, professor and chair of aerospace engineering, was also interviewed for the show.
Iowa State University researchers collaborate in identification of new influenza subtype not previously found in pigs
Iowa State University researchers have helped identify and characterize a subtype of influenza in swine that hadn't been found in the species. The subtype, H2N3, is frequently found in birds. The finding was recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.
Fraudsters beware: Iowa State engineer is developing cyber technology to find you
Yong Guan, Iowa State's Litton Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has filed a patent on a technology that protects Internet advertisers from "click fraud" -- falsely driving up hits to ads on Web pages. The extra clicks drive up costs for pay-per-click advertising. Guan is also developing other technologies to improve computer security.
ISU psychologists explore public policy and effects of media violence on children
Three ISU psychologists have authored a new study that reviews the literature on children's exposure to media violence and assesses the lack of effective public policy response to curb the risks. They also recommend more effective public policy strategies in the future.
VISIONS magazine features the faces of Campaign Iowa State
The winter 2008 issue of VISIONS magazine features Campaign Iowa State: With Pride and Purpose, the university's $800 million fund-raising campaign.
Harmonic celebration
Celebrate ISU's 150th with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stephens Auditorium Jan. 20.
In the news
Iowans should lead renaissance in math and science
Des Moines Register
Iowa State President Gregory Geoffroy urges local school districts to adopt the new Iowa Model Core Curriculum for Iowa's K-12 schools with its strong emphasis on literacy, math and science. He also urges support for the Regents Math and Science Education Collaborative initiative, designed to increase the number of math and science teachers in Iowa schools.
Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of 2007
Wired
2. Chimpanzees Make Spears for Hunting. Following a troop of the primates in a Senegalese savanna, Jill Pruetz of Iowa State University and Paco Bertolani of Cambridge observed them breaking the branches off of trees, picking leaves from the sides, and sharpening the tips to deadly points.
Economists Say Movie Violence Might Temper the Real Thing
The New York Times
Craig Anderson, an Iowa State psychologist, disputes the results of a paper presented by two researchers over the weekend to the annual meeting of the American Economic Association concluding that violent films prevent violent crime by attracting would-be assailants and keeping them cloistered in darkened, alcohol-free environs.
Iowa Offers Lessons
The Associated Press
"I think this was a tough state for Hillary Clinton," said Dianne Bystrom, director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for the Study of Women in Politics at Iowa State University. "On any indicator, we're really not a great state for women."
