Research News

Essay by Maureen Ferran, associate professor in the Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences, published by The Conversation.

Registration is open for Mechanics’ Institutes Worldwide 2021, a free virtual conference on Oct. 15 honoring the 200th anniversary of the founding of the first Mechanics Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland. RIT's Corinna Schlombs and Liz Call will virtually join experts from around the world as they share knowledge on the start of the Mechanics’ Institute movement in the 19th century and what the movement represents today.

Researchers at RIT are part of a new study that could help unlock the potential of superfluids—essentially frictionless special substances capable of unstopped motion once initiated.

To help address a lack of diversity, as well as gaps in AI curricula, RIT was awarded a grant of nearly $2 million by the NSF to create a new research traineeship program for graduate students

Entrepreneurship expert Johan Klarin comes to Venture Creations from Columbia University, where he served as manager of the NYSERDA-funded Entrepreneur-in-Residence program, assisting clean-tech startups in New York state. Prior to that, he was managing director of Viaduct Inc., a consulting company focused on Western New York startups.

Christopher Kanan, an associate professor in the Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science, received an NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award and grant for his five-year project to expand the capabilities of artificial intelligence systems using new brain-inspired methods.

Dr. Russell W. Bessette and his wife, Melissa, joined RIT officials and other dignitaries to announce a donation of two patents and the creation of the Dr. Russell and Melissa Bessette Award for Doctoral Student Excellence, a $3.05 million bequest from which funding will be awarded annually as part of recruitment or at any point during a doctoral student’s enrollment at RIT.

Scientific American references Flip Phillips, professor in the School of Film and Animation, and his work studying how sculptors create the effects of multiple materials, and how viewers can mentally separate the layers.

What if computing materials were sourced in conflict areas? Or manufactured in facilities that emit higher than average toxic emissions? Researchers today are examining the development of computing systems from a different perspective, one more in line with sustainability rather than just power, performance and speed.

Guiping Hu recently began her new role as the sustainability department head at Golisano Institute for Sustainability. Hu arrived on campus from Iowa State University, where she served on the faculty of the Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering department.

WXXI’s “Connections” program features Barbara Lohse, director, Wegmans School of Health and Nutrition.

RIT Press turns 20 this year, and the future is bright for the scholarly book publisher at RIT. Expanded partnerships and community-related projects give RIT Press new momentum as it enters its third decade.