Photo Spotlights

Brett Levac, a second-year electrical engineering student from the University of Minnesota, conducts an experiment during the Workshop on Dynamics of Excitable Systems this week. The workshop introduced students to using biology, math and engineering disciplines, especially electrophysiology, for understanding the heart’s functions. Through lectures and collaborations, 17 students from RIT and other universities learned how mathematical models and computer simulations can advance research in medical cyber-physical systems and lead to future cardiac therapies. Elizabeth Cherry, associate professor in the RIT School of Mathematical Sciences and director of the mathematical modeling Ph.D. program, led the outreach effort associated with her National Science Foundation grant, Cyber Physical Systems: Frontier, Collaborative Research: Compositional, Approximate and Quantitative Reasoning for Medical Cyber-Physical Systems.

Sovantharith Seng, a computing and information sciences Ph.D. student from Cambodia, is beginning research into the social engineering attack known as phishing. He is conducting a study with a simulated Facebook interface to understand and detect phishing with social media companies.

Students were inducted into Delta Phi Alpha (National German Honor Society) with a ceremony, a short cultural segment of poetry and then a reception. From left, Associate Professor Emeritus Wilma Wierenga (honorary member); Emmalynn Todd, an Imaging Arts and Sciences major from Oakton, Va.; Matthias Hausman, an Engineering major from Jenkinstown, Pa.; Christie Agbalessi, an Engineering Exploration major from Abidjian, Ivory Coast; and Jeanette Forbes, a Computing Science and Game Design and Development major from Ashburn, Va.

Seniors Jessica Glaz, right, and Amanda Olsen, left, lead the undefeated RIT women’s basketball team (7-0) into action tonight at perennial power No. 9 University of Rochester (9-1) at the UR Louis Alexander Palestra this evening at 5 p.m. RIT has out-scored its opponents by an average of 30 points per game in its first seven games this season. The Tigers are home this weekend, taking on William Smith College Friday and Rensselaer Saturday.

Marisa Cohen, a first-year biomedical engineering major from Newton, Mass., practices her violin in one of several music rooms in the College of Liberal Arts. Cohen is a member of the RIT Orchestra and also takes private violin lessons at RIT.

The final and 10th volume of Positive/Negative magazine was released this week. Graphic design and photography students and faculty from the College of Imaging Arts and Sciences collaborated on the magazine. It has gathered numerous honors over the years.

From left, judges from Global Gum & Candy Louis Fenech, Kristi Halogen and Amy Gosselin watch video presentations of packaging proposals. Students in the packaging science program in CAST and in industrial design and graphic design programs in CIAS have worked through the semester on re-designs of packaging projects. Several of the designs have the potential to be used by the teams’ corporate partner Mondelez International.

The RIT West African Percussion Ensemble performed its fall concert in the SAU Fireside Lounge. The group presented examples of music from the West African cultures of Ghana, Guinea, the Congo and Senegal, among others.

A 2009 alumnus has given RIT $50 million, the largest donation ever made to the university and one of the largest ever in the region. The unprecedented gift comes from Austin McChord, founder and CEO of Datto, a Connecticut-based data protection company.

Kelly Kennedy, assistant director in The Center for Women & Gender, comments during the Gray Matter talk on Dec. 8. RIT students, faculty and staff gathered for a Gray Matter conversation in the MOSAIC Center. Gray Matter is a discussion series designed to promote critical exploration of provocative topics related to higher education and the RIT campus community. The topic was “Sex and Title IX: Where does experimentation meet consent?”.

Two-year-old train enthusiast Logan Weis inspects some German model trains at the 12th annual RIT Tiger Tracks Train Show and Sale Dec. 9 and 10 in the Gordon Field House. Joshua Weis ’09 (mechanical engineering technology), center, visited Bob Bond’s setup at ETE European Train Enthusiasts, a North American organization focused on European Railroading education. The event is Rochester’s largest train show and the primary fundraiser for the RIT Model Railroad Club.

Dakota Marshall, a third-year mechanical engineering technology student, describes the design process for NOMAD VI, a prototype electric arm that could be used for acquiring meteorite samples, to RIT President David Munson. He was one of the students and faculty from CAST who were part of the inaugural Applied Critical Thinking and Learning Showcase Dec. 7. On display were student design projects and faculty curricula highlighting how applied critical thinking is being integrated into coursework from packaging science, manufacturing and mechanical engineering technology and hospitality.