Millennium Café

Poor understanding of heat transfer across solid-liquid interfaces bottlenecks the development of nanocomposite materials for applications in thermal interface materials, energy generation, catalysis, and thermotherapeutics. Thermal engineers have identified the main parameters governing interfacial heat transfer; however, the interplay among these parameters is rather complex. This talk calls for anybody interested in the topic to develop a proper understanding of interfaces before addressing the problem of heat transfer across interfaces.

Punishment, or the threat of punishment, is a critical component for the establishment and maintenance of social system governed by norms. We would like to create robots that obey social norms. Do we then need a means for punishing our robots and, if so, how do punish a robot? This talk examines these and related questions.

Alan Wagner | Rock Ethics Institute | Aerospace Engineering

Supramolecular chemistry is a strategy to engineer materials through directional noncovalent interactions (e.g., hydrogen bonds, host-guest interactions, metal coordination). Despite the dynamic and reversible nature of supramolecular interactions, their full integration into synthetic materials design platforms is sluggish. Nature, however, fabricates some of the most beautiful 1D, 2D, and 3D self-assembled architectures using a combined array of complex synthetic techniques and exploitation of noncovalent chemistry. So the question arises… why can’t we do the same to control molecular architecture?

Elizabeth Elacqua

Every year the world produces more trash and demands more energy. While the integrated biorefinery could produce renewable fuels from waste, its economic viability hinges on the ability to upgrade the unstable bio-oils currently produced, and to develop high-value byproducts. In a new approach to the integrated biorefinery, we incorporate inorganic compounds into cellulosic feedstocks to engineer solid products such as nanomaterials via biotemplating, heterogeneous adsorbents, and tunable carbon electrode materials, while simultaneously upgrading biofuels. This reduces the need for downstream upgrading and improves the economic viability of sustainable biomass to renewable fuel conversions.

Jillian Goldfarb | Energy and Mineral Engineering

Large birds (such as hawks, vultures, and eagles) as well as human sailplane pilots routinely exploit vertical air motion (lift) to remain aloft for several hours and fly hundreds of miles without flapping wings or the use of engines. We are developing algorithms inspired by both human- and bird-soaring to improve the flight of drones: we teach to soar. This talk will discuss what we have learned about robotic and bird flight, covering planning and flight control of robotic aircraft as well as our observations of bird flight.

Jack Langelaan | Aerospace Engineering

The emergence of antibiotic resistance driven in part by the overuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics represents a growing health crisis worldwide.  This challenge is exacerbated by reduced financial incentives and regulatory challenges in the drug development pipeline.   We are developing a precision antimicrobial initiative enabled by recent advancements in life science, material science, and data science to stay ahead on the drug resistance treadmill. 

Pak Kin Wong | Biomedical Engineering | Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering