CSET News Spring 2013 Vol: 6 No. 2 JSU Students Win National Biomedical Honors ` Computer Engineering Professor Named National Institute Fellow JSU Professor Named “Chemist of the Year” National Association Elects JSU Technology Professor President of Student Division JSU Professor Named National Academy of Inventors Charter Fellow JSU Professor Named National Academy Of Inventors Charter Fellow National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine), 11 inductees of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, three recipients of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, four recipients of the National Medal of Science, and 29 American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows, among other awards and distinctions. C S E T 2 N E W S Biology professor Dr. Ernest B. Izevbigie has been named a charter fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). Election to NAI Fellow status is a high professional distinction accorded to academic inventors who have demonstrated a highly prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development, and the welfare of society. The 98 innovators elected to NAI Fellow status represent 54 universities and non-profit research institutes. Together, they hold more than 3,200 U.S. patents. Included in the charter class are eight Nobel Laureates, two fellows of the Royal Society, 12 presidents of research universities and non-profit research institutes, 50 members of national academies (National Academy of Sciences, The NAI Charter Fellows will be recognized in a full-page advertisement in The Chronicle of Higher Education on Jan. 18, in the Jan. 2013 issue of Inventors Digest, and in a future issue of Technology and Innovation – Proceedings of the National Academy of Inventors. Academic inventors and innovators elected to the rank of NAI Charter Fellow were nominated by their peers for outstanding contributions to innovation in areas such as patents and licensing, innovative Izevbigie, a NAI charter member, discovery and technology, significant has earned two patents, including impact on society, and support and one for a formula he created from enhancement of innovation. a Nigerian herbal shrub called Veronica amygdalina, or bitter The NAI Fellows Selection leaf. Izevbigie’s research led to the Committee is comprised of 14 formation of the JSU-initiated Members from the national company EdoBotanics, which academies, recipients of national sells dietary supplements to boost medals, a National Inventors Hall of the immune system and help with Fame inductee, and senior officials the side effects of chemotherapy from the U.S. Patent and Trademark and radiation. The government Office, the American Association of Nigeria gave the company its for the Advancement of Science, approval to manufacture and sell the the Association of University dietary capsules in the country. Technology Managers, the United Inventors Association and The NAI Charter Fellows will be University Research Leadership. inducted as fellows by the U.S. Commissioner for Patents, Margaret A. Focarino, from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, during the 2nd Annual Conference of the National Academy of Inventors on Feb. 22 in Tampa, Fla., at the Embassy Suites Hotel in the University of South Florida Research Park. Fellows will be presented with a trophy and a rosette pin. JSU Graduate Students Study Abroad And Throughout U.S. The Jackson State University College of Science, Engineering and Technology (CSET) Louis Stokes Mississippi Alliance for Minority Participation (LSMAMP) Bridge to the Doctorate students are putting Global Education through Analytical Reasoning (GEAR) into Action. They are representing Jackson State University around the globe and competing nationally and internationally with research presentations at other well known institutions including the University of Cambridge in England, NASA, the National Institutes of Health, the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB), the Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Oak Ridge National Laboratory and more. These students traveled to India and Poland for three weeks to conduct research in C specialized areas of science and technology at the PESIT Indian Institute of Technology and at the Laboratory of S Environmental Chemometrics at the University of Gdansk Poland before heading out to their second internships. E T 3 Biology major Ravin Byrd presented a paper at the 11th International Symposium on Metal Ions in Biology and Medicine at Cambridge University in England. His research, titled Ascorbic Acid and Arsenic Trioxide Show in Vitro Promise as a Treatment Option for Drug Resistant Lymphoma, was well received by global research scientists at the conference. Byrd is currently at Indiana University Bloomington working with Dr. Travis Jerde and studying the Proliferation of Progenitor Cells in the Inflamed Prostate. Byrd spent the first part of the summer in India. Takia Wheat from the Chemistry Department is currently at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB), through a collaboration between Jackson State University and UCSB. She is working on Photoluminescence and Crystal Structure of Oxynitride Phosphors. Wheat also went to Poland in the first part of the summer to the Laboratory of Environmental Chemometrics at the University of Gdansk. Jameka Grigsby from the Biology Department is in Indianapolis, Ind., on the campus of Indiana University School of Medicine, under the mentorship of Dr. Yuichiro Takagi. Her research involves understanding the mechanism of gene expression to determine the structure of the functional domain of Mediator complex in transcription regulation. She also spent part of her summer in India. Antrice Walker from the Biology Department is completing her summer internship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC). Under the guidance of her mentors at UMMC, Walker is conducting research to determine if correlations exist between the genotype, epidemiology, and phenotypic manifestations of Trichomonas vaginalis (T vaginalis). N E W S Lionel Lovett from the Department of Computer Engineering is currently at Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA, for the summer studying fiber optics circuit card assembly, which aims to develop fast and robust fiber optics (FO) communications circuit card assembly (CCA) that will interface between CCAs producing electrical differential signals and FO CCAs. Lovett also went to Poland at the University of Gdansk the first part of the summer. C S E T Chemistry student Marquita Watkins is conducting research this summer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tenn., where she is working under Dr. Bobby Sumpter and Miguel Fuentes-Cabrera on The Stability of Sugar-Cyanamide Complexes in Relation to Prebiotic Chemistry. She went to Poland at the University of Gdansk in the first part of summer. 4 N E W S Turquoise AlexanderTurquoise Alexander, a CSET LSMAMP Bridge to the Doctorate Biology student who is currently at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) through a collaboration between Jackson State University and UCSB. She is studying bacterial chemotaxis, which is a process where bacteria can direct their movements according to the chemical changes in their environment. She also went to India for a potion of her summer internship. Biology graduate student Haleigh Eubanks is currently at the National Institution of Health at the National Cancer Institute in Frederick, Md., in the Cancer Inflammation Program. She is working on Tumor Immunity and Tolerance Section under the mentorship of Dr. Andy Hurwitz and Dr. Stephanie Watkins. Sakeli Hall, also a student in the Department of Biology, is completing her internship at Indiana University in Bloomington working under the guidance of Dr. Claire Walczak. Her research is focused on the mechanism of spindle assembly in the absence of chromatin. She is at Bloomington under the collaboration between JSU and Indiana University and also traveled to India for part of her summer internship. Chemistry student Marcy Pilate is currently at the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences in the College of Medicine at the Children’s Hospital. She is interning at the University of Arkansas through a collaboration between Jackson State and the University of Arkansas. She also went to Poland for her summer internship at the Laboratory of Environmental Chemometrics at the University of Gdansk. JSU Master’s Graduate Publishes Book With Computer Science Professor Jackson State University computer science master’s graduate Sugam Sharma and JSU professor Dr. Natarajan Meghanathan recently published the book, “Sink Mobility Models for Sensor Energy Conservation: Exploiting Sink Mobility for Energy Conservation of Sensors in Homogeneous Wireless Sensor Network” (LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishers, 2011). The book, which is an extension of Sharma’s master’s thesis, is a comprehensive text illustrating the effectiveness of using mobile sinks to obtain potential energy savings for the sensor nodes in wireless sensor networks. During Sharma’s stay at Jackson State, he worked under the supervision of Dr. A. Yerramilli in the Trent Lott Center for Geospatial Research, where he enriched himself with various technologies – GIS, GPS, data collection and modeling. Sharma did his masters thesis in computer science under the mentorship of Meghanathan during 2006-2008. At JSU, Sharma also worked closely with Dr. Hari Cohly and Dr. R. Isokpehi in the Center for Computational Biology and Dr. Tzusheng Pei in the Department of Computer Science with research outcomes that were published. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in computer science at Iowa State University and is associated with the school’s Smart Home Laboratory. His research interests are spatial databases, GIS and wireless sensor networks. Sharma’s other research work has been published in peer-reviewed conferences and journals. He is editor-in-chief for IJCIB and has worked as a software developer for NAVTEQ, John Deere and the U.S. Department of Energy. In addition to working with graduate students for research, Meghanathan is actively involved in promoting undergraduate research and education at JSU. He is currently the principal investigator of the NSF-sponsored Research Experiences for Undergraduates program in wireless ad hoc networks and sensor networks as well as the Transforming Undergraduate Education in STEM program to incorporate aspects of systems security and software security in senior capstone projects. Through these programs, Meghanathan mentors several undergraduate students engaging them in quality research and scholarly activities. Meghanathan is an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science in the JSU College of Science, Engineering and Technology. His main areas of research are wireless ad hoc networks and sensor networks, systems and software security, graph theory and computational biology. He has published more than 120 peer-reviewed articles in leading international journals and conference proceedings. About 35 of these publications involve undergraduate and graduate students as co-authors. He also serves on the editorial boards of international journals as well as in the organizing and technical program committees of several international conferences. For more information, visit http://www. jsums.edu/cms/nmeghanathan C S E T 5 N E W S Faculty Member & Chemistry Student Honored At State Capitol For Academic Excellence a $2.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to fund a new approach for training chemistry and biology students for research and doctoral programs. C S E T 6 N E W S Dr. Glake Hill Assoc. Professor of Chemistry Jackson State University faculty member, Dr. Glake Hill, and chemistry student, Lisa Marie Wren, were honored Feb. 26, at the state Capitol during the “Higher Education Appreciation Day — Working for Academic Excellence” program. her first internship at Washington University in St. Louis, School of Medicine. She’s been there for the past three years. “As a W.E.B.Du Bois Honor Student, I sought after organizations based on high academic achievement,” Wren Hill has mentored and said. “I also want to help others advised over 21 graduate excel academically and spread the and undergraduate importance of scholarship to those students in the science, around me.” technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. She was inducted into Alpha The majority of those are Lambda Delta Honor Society in underrepresented minority students. 2010, Tri-Beta Biological Honor Of those, 15 have graduated from Society in 2011, and Phi Kappa Phi JSU, and over 80 percent are pursuing in 2012. graduate or professional degrees at institutions that include Howard “I am a proud member of Zeta Medical School and Auburn Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., where I University. A Ph.D. graduate is participate in several community serving as an assistant professor service projects,” Wren said. at Fort Valley State University. A second of Hill’s Ph.D. chemists is Wren is also a tutor for the chemistry pursuing employment in academia. and athletic departments. Hill and Wren will be among a group recognized for making outstanding Wren, a 21-year-old from St. Louis, contributions to promote academic Mo., will graduate in 2013 with excellence. a bachelor’s in chemistry. After graduation, she ultimately plans to The HEADWAE program, pursue a Ph.D. in biochemistry. sponsored by the Mississippi Legislature, was established in 1987. “I’m grateful to receive this The Legislature annually honors recognition. I like to be involved students and faculty members in community service and to do from each participating member what I can to help elevate others institution of the Mississippi academically,” Wren said. Association of Colleges and Universities. Wren, who was recruited to play soccer, received a full academic Hill is an associate professor of scholarship to JSU. The summer chemistry, and the recent recipient of after her freshman year, she began Lisa Marie Wren JSU Students Win Honors at National Biomedical Research Conference C S E T 7 N E W S Jackson State University congratulates three winners at the 2012 Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) held in San Jose, Calif., in the poster competition. JSU students Roslyn Ratcliff (left), Dominique Cooper and Ashley Lowery won in the poster competition at the 2012 Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students. The 2012 ABRCMS conference offered a comprehensive program of scientific sessions, professional development workshops, student oral and poster presentations and exhibits. There were 12 disciplines in the biomedical and behavioral sciences, including mathematics, and more than 1,600 poster and oral presentations. The winners are participants in the Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC) U*STAR Program at Jackson State University. The MARC U*STAR Program provides research training, fellowship support, enriched curriculum and comprehensive academic and career advising to underrepresented minorities. The overall goal of the program is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities who will pursue a Ph.D. degree at outstanding universities across the county and a career in the biomedical sciences. The MARC scholars who won the poster competition include: Dominique Cooper (junior biology major) won $250 in the category of Developmental Biology and Genetics for a poster presentation entitled, “Evaluating Breeding Potentials in the Critically Endangered Jamaican Iguana.” Ashley Lowery (junior psychology major) won $250 in the category of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Public Health for a poster presentation entitled, “The Effects of Alcohol and Anxiety on Attentional Bias to Threat.” Roslyn Ratcliff (senior chemistry major) won $250 in the category of Chemistry and won $50 in the Chemistry Interdisciplinary category for a poster presentation entitled, “The Design of a Bioactive and Biodegradable ROMP Polymers.” Computer Engineering Professor Named National Institute Fellow C S E T JSU Civil Engineering Students Take Part In Habitat For Humanity Project 8 N E W S The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) student chapter members from Jackson State University, Mississippi State University and the University of Mississippi recently joined forces to help with Dr. Shuangzhang Tu, an associate professor at the a Habitat for Humanity project in West Tallahatchie, Department of Computer Engineering at Jackson Miss. Each chapter and school was well represented State University, was recently named as an associate by the members. fellow in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Congratulations go to JSU for winning the “repreAstronautics (AIAA). AIAA is the principal society sent your school” competition at the Ground Zero of aerospace engineers and scientists. This grade is Restaurant in Clarksdale, Miss., with their tribute to awarded to AIAA members who have demonstrated the Sonic Boom of the South marching band. a successful practice in the arts, sciences, or technology of aeronautics. To be selected for the grade of AIAA associate fellow, an individual must be an AIAA senior member with at least 12 years profes- “This is an excellent achievement by the JSU civil ensional experience, and be recommended by a mini- gineering students,” said Dr. Farshad Amini, professor and chair, Department of Civil & Environmental mum of three current associate fellows. Engineering at Jackson State University. JSU Inducts First Cohort Into The Academy for Research and Scholarly Engagement Jackson State University has inducted Cohort I of the Academy for Research and Scholarly Engagement. This first cohort includes the following 40 scholars, who represent all five colleges at JSU and the Division of Undergraduate Studies: Dr. Mohammed Ali-Department of Technology Dr. Ronica Arnold-Branson-School, Community and Rehabilitation Counseling Dr. Pamela Banks-Department of Psychology Dr. Azad Bhuiyan-Department of Epidemiology and Bio-Statistics Dr. Gloria Billingsley-Department of Public Policy and Administration Dr. Dawn Bishop-McLinDepartment of Psychology Dr. David Bramlett-Department of Mathematics Dr. Jessica Buck-Department of Technology Dr. Rico Chapman-Department of History and Philosophy Prof. Rhonda Cooper-Department of Political Science Dr. Padmanava Dash-Department of Biology Dr. Stephanie Davidson-Elementary and Early Childhood Education Dr. Monica Flippin-Wynn-Department of Mass Communications Dr. Regina Fults-McMurtery-School, Community and Rehabilitation Counseling Dr. Serguei Goupalov-Physics, Atmospheric Science and General Science Dr. Theresia Johnson-Ratliff-School of Social Work Dr. Ramzi Kafoury-Department of Biology Dr. Hyunju Kim-Department of Computer Science Dr. Yungkul Kim-Department of Biology Dr. Evornia Kincaid-Elementary and Early Childhood Education Dr. Yu-Chun Kuo-School of Lifelong Learning Dr. Shonda Lawrence-School of Social Work Dr. Xejun Liang-Department of Computer Science Dr. Lennie Little-Center of Teacher Quality/Educational Leadership Dr. Duanjun Lu-Department of Physics, Atmospheric Science and Geosciences Dr. Robert Luckett-Department of History and Philosophy Dr. Anna Marshall-School of Social Work Dr. Vershun McClain-Department of Entrepreneurship Dr. Preselfannie McDaniels-Department of English and Modern Foreign Languages Dr. Michael Moore-Department of Psychology Dr. Benjamin Ngwudike-Department of Educational Leadership Dr. Olga Osby-School of Social Work Dr. Candis Pizzetta-Department of English and Modern Foreign Languages Dr. Sherry Rankin-Division of Undergraduate Studies Dr. J. R. Smith-Department of Management and Marketing Dr. Ingrad Smith-Educational Leadership Dr. Francis Tuluri-Department of Technology Dr. Deirdre Wheaton-School of Lifelong Learning Dr. Patricia Wilkerson-School of Social Work Dr. Carmen Wright-Department of Mathematics The JSU Academy for Research and Scholarly Engagement will consist of an academic-year program that will include a series of workshops, coaching through the entire grant writing process with an individual C S E T 9 N E W S Academy Coach, and scheduled interactions with program officers from funding agencies and foundations. Each faculty participant will be paired with an Academy Coach who is selected from active researchers at JSU. Benefits to participants include: An opportunity to significantly enhance one’s proposal writing skills; Participation in a community of scholars from multiple disciplines across JSU; Opportunities to interact with and obtain coaching from distinguished colleagues who have exC celled in obtaining funding for their Research and Scholarly Agendas; S E Funded opportunities to engage with program officers from federal agencies and foundations to T discuss their Research and Scholarly Agenda and concept for funding; and $5,000, which includes a $3,000 stipend and $2,000 for a trip to their proposed funding agency. 10 “President Carolyn W. Meyers has been a champion of this initiative,” said Dr. Loretta A. Moore, Associate Vice President for Academy for Research and Scholarly Engagement. “She wants to invest in faculty, and this is one of the ways she’s doing it.” N E The purpose of the Academy for Research and Scholarly Engagement is to advance the careers of W promising young researchers and emerging scholars by ensuring that they establish a compelling S research agenda, participate in a community of scholars, and obtain external funding. “The advancement of these scholars is part of the university’s research strategic plan and will benefit the individual scholars and the entire JSU community, including both undergraduate and graduate students,” said Dr. Felix Okojie, Vice President for Research and Federal Relations. “We expect to broaden the community of faculty members who submit proposals and receive funding as principal investigators.” The Division of Research and Federal Relations and the Division of Academic Affairs are sponsors of the program and are working together to ensure scholars at Jackson State receive the appropriate support to broaden the university’s research agenda and enhance the faculty development activities at the institution. “The Academy is a wonderful way to encourage and support faculty creativity,” said Dr. James C. Renick, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. “The support of these interesting ideas has the possibility to transform the university.” For more information, visit the Academy’s website at http://sites.jsums.edu/scholarlyengagementacademy/ or contact Dr. Loretta A. Moore at 601-979-0552 or loretta.a.moore@jsums.edu. Mississippi Section of American Chemical Society Names JSU Professor ‘Chemist of the Year’ American Chemical Society has named Jackson State University associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry Dr. Md. Alamgir Hossain “Chemist of the Year 2012.” This award will be given during the organization’s Awards Banquet on Nov. 29 at Mississippi College. Hossain has been serving as a faculty member at Jackson State University since 2005. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemistry from the University of Dhaka in Bangladesh and a Ph.D. in supramolecular chemistry from Hokkaido University in Japan. Dr. Md. Alamgir Hossain He was a recipient of an Alexander Humboldt Fellowship for his The Mississippi Section of the postdoctoral work in Germany. Hossain’s research includes supramolecular and macromolecular chemistry focusing on non-covalent interactions between synthetic hosts and guest species. His group focuses on the development of new chemical sensors for toxic anions of environmental and biological relevance. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and several book chapters. Hossain’s awards include the prestigious NSF CAREER award from the National Science Foundation in 2011 and the JSU HEADWAE award in 2012. National Association Elects JSU Technology Professor President of Student Division Dr. Jessica L. Buck, associate professor in the Department of Technology in the College of Science, Engineering and Technology, was elected president of the Student Division for the Association of Technology, Management, and Applied Engineering (ATMAE). ATMAE sets national standards for academic program accreditation, personal certification and professional development for educators and industry professionals involved in integrating technology, leadership and design. leaders of the technological and global workforce. The division hosts annual competitions for students in robotics, technology bowl challenges and research. It also awards student chapters throughout the United States for service and leadership endeavors. Buck has been active in the Student Division for several years and served as vice president from 2010-2012. As president she will serve a two-year term from 2012 Overall, the Student Division to 2014. She will be installed into promotes and fosters the office during the annual ATMAE development of undergraduate conference in November. and graduate students to become premiere practitioners and C S E T 11 N E W S • Scholarships/Financial Assistance • Dedicated Faculty • Nurturing Environment • Faculty Mentored Research • Peer Tutoring/Mentoring • Research Apprenticeships/Internships • Modern Facilities School of Engineering Degrees Dr. Richard Alo`, Dean Phone: (601) 979-2153 (601) 979-3473 richard.alo@jsums.edu Dr. Paul B. Tchounwou Assoc. Dean School of Science & Technology Phone: (601) 979-0777 paul.b.tchounwou@jsums.edu College of Science, Engineering and Technology 1400 John R. Lynch St. Jackson, MS 39217 B.S. Civil Engineering • Environmental Track • General Civil Engineering Track B.S. Computer Engineering B.S. Computer Science B.S. Electrical Engineering • Biomedical Engineering • General Electrical Engineering Track • Power Systems B.S. Telecommunications Engineering M.S. Computer Science M.S. Engineering • Civil Engineering • Computer Engineering • Computational Engineering • Electrical Engineering • Environmental Engineering • Geological Engineering • Telecommunications Engineering School of Science & Technology Degrees B.S. Biology • Biomedical Science • Environmental Science • Forensic Science • Marine Biology • Pre-Chemical Engineering • Pre-Health Careers (Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry) B.S. Chemistry • Biomedical Science • Environmental Science • Forensic Science • Pre-Chemical Engineering (School of Science & Technology Degrees -continued) • Pre-Health Careers (Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry) • Teacher Certification B.S. Earth Systems Science B.S. Industrial Technology • Computer Technology • Electronics • Emergency Management • Manufacturing & Design Technology • Technology Management B.S. Mathematics B.S. Meteorology B.S. Physics B.S. Science Education B.S. Technology Education B.S. Ed. Mathematics Education M.S. Biology M.S. Chemistry M.S. Environmental Science M.S. Hazardous Materials Management M.S. Industrial Technology M.S. Mathematics M.S. Technology Education M.S.T. Mathematics & Science Teaching • Biology • Chemistry • Mathematics • Science Ph. D. Chemistry (Analytical, Biochemistry, Inorganic, Organic and Physical Chemistry) Materials Science Ph. D. Environmental Science