The Pioneer Newsletter is brought to you by the students, faculty, and staff of the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University. The newsletter staff and its collaborators strive to bring you the latest news from all aspects of the BME community. To submit articles, opinions, ideas, or events for publication and for more information about the newsletter, please visit: www.bmes.gatech.edu/newsletter
Inside this issue: Thinking About Becoming A “Doctor Doctor”? An Introduction to the M.D./Ph.D. Program
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BME Alumni Spotlight: Anu Parvatiyar from C.R. BARD
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NIH Director’s New Innovator Award Two Georgia Tech Winners
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Student Spotlight: Aileen Li
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Insight Into Graduate Admissions Do You Have What It Takes?
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BMED 1300 Whiteboards & Thermometers
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Faculty Spotlight: Gilda Barabino, Ph.D.
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November/December 2009
Volume IV, Issue 3
New IBB Director Named Robert Guldberg, Ph.D., to Assume Duties
By Don Fernandez
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fter the completion of a nationwide search, Mechanical Engineering Professor Robert Guldberg has been named the new director of The Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB) at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Guldberg, who currently serves as IBB associate director, will assume duties as director on November 1. “We’re thrilled that Bob Guldberg has accepted this appointment,” said Senior Vice Provost for Research and Innovation Mark Allen. “We had an enormous amount of interest and we attracted candidates of the highest caliber. He has thorough grounding in IBB and a great understanding of where it needs to go strategically in the next few years.”
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Professor Robert Guldberg (Photo: GTRC / GIT)
Buzz on Biotechnology Atlanta Students Enjoy a Taste of Bioengineering
And More !
By Andrew Lei & Stacie Leung
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alking into a swarming pool of high school students in the atrium of Georgia Tech's Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering & Bioscience (IBB) building, you could feel the excitement in this year’s Buzz on Biotechnology. Buzz on Biotechnology is an educational outreach program sponsored by the Bioengineering and Biosciences Unified Graduate Students (BBUGS). The morning of Saturday, October 24, high school students took part in fifteen different hands-on activities, toured stem cell and neuroengineering labs and attended presentations on bioengineering and oceanography.
Graduate students from BBUGS set up the prosthetic station during this year’s Buzz on Biotechnology. (Photo: Gopi Patel)
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“That’s So BME!”
By You!
Voices From The Student Body
"Planning group meetings around House and The Office was bad enough, but now Glee?!" - Distraught PBL Resident "I was about to brush my teeth this morning when I realized I had left my toothbrush and a pillow in our PBL room" - Genuine PBL Resident "My friend asked me why I dropped 2210. ‘What goes in must come out,' I told him." - W on Transcript
“IBB Holds Secret Transformers Convention.” Anagram of the Month:
“Walking into research the Monday of Fall Break, I was surprised/amused to find two other undergrads already there.” - BME Lab Rat
A Rearrangement of Letters
Paul Fincannon
Staff Members Editors in Chief Willa Ni Chun Yong Staff Writers Nancy Kim Andrew Lei Stacie Leung Ruobin Ling Graham McAdory Elaina McLean Aswin Natarajan Ayesha Patel Karan Patel Elina Sarmah Rosemary Song Dhruv Vishwakarma Layout Editors Kevin Lam Annie Macedo Webmaster Elysia Hwang
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Faculty Sponsor Wendy Newstetter Editors Nida Dharani Kanav Jain Nikolaus Shrum Photographers Kelli Koenig Gopi Patel Kiersten Peterson Collaborators Don Fernandez Paul Fincannon Sally Gerrish Jennifer Kimble Megan McDevitt Adrianne Proeller Shannon Sullivan David Terraso John Toon Abby Vogel
Painful Cannon
Submit your student voices to: bmed.newsletter@gmail.com!
A Couple of Words From the Editors in Chief
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he Pioneer thanks all the readers for their support this semester. This November/December issue will be the last issue of 2009. In the interim we will be evaluating our performance this semester and we encourage you to join us. As usual, comments or suggestions can be emailed to bmed.newsletter@gmail.com. We also thank the staff, collaborators and advisors for their continued support, enthusiasm, impromptu brainstorming sessions, ideas, and time. With the Coulter Department's innovative curriculum, dedicated professors, and eager students, we have a culture. The Pioneer not only strives to communicate this culture, but also embraces this unique and oftentimes quirky character we know as BME. So thank you for reading and see you next year! Yours sincerely,
Chun Yong and Willa Ni Editors in Chief The Pioneer
Thinking About Being a “Doctor Doctor”? An Introduction to the M.D./Ph.D. Program joint degree with a Ph.D. can be found in almost all professional fields from veterinary medicine to pharmacy. The joint degree creates a professional that we call a physician-scientist. Doing the combined degree means that you do your first two years of medical school; typically those are your basic science classes. Then you start your Ph.D. Depending how successful your research is it will take you 3 to 5 years to complete it. After, you reenter medical school for your last two years; those are your clinical rotation years. As a physician-scientist, you will not meet a patient in the consultation room, walk back to your lab, whip up a concoction that provides an instant cure and send the patient on his way. Instead, it gives you freedom in doing medical research. Also, if you want to go into academic medicine, you will be more marketable with the M.D./Ph.D. Does That Mean Paying For Extra School? Two tracks of funding exist for an M.D./Ph.D. program. One is doing a Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) that receives governmental funding. MSTP winners get their M.D. and Ph.D. paid for and receive a stipend for living expenses. The alternative is funding from the school offering the degree. These programs may pay for either one or both degrees. What If You Decide Midway That A Ph.D. Is Not For You? Depending on the contract a school has with you, you may need to pay back the school for everything. This is another reason to make sure a joint degree is for you before signing on the dotted line. What Is The Downside Of Doing An M.D./Ph.D.? For students who only want to do a little bit of research, a joint Master of Science degree is a better fit. You have to love research to do the M.D./Ph.D.! As one of my friends once said, “It’s hard to be stuck in a lab working on your research when all of your friends you entered med school with are doing their rotations and getting ready for residency.”
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Is It Hard To Get Accepted? Schools will scrutinize your application. They want to make sure you have chal-
lenged yourself academically. Translated into numbers, this parallels a GPA of 3.8 or higher and MCAT scores of 12 to 13 in each section. Extensive research is another criterion. I recommend any pre-M.D./Ph.D students do the Research Option, present at conferences, and get published. My competitive M.D./Ph.D candidates also have strong letters of evaluation from professors and research supervisors. These students have clear educational goals and have communicated them to people around them; therefore, the evaluators can incorporate that into the letter. How Do I Apply? First, investigate the potential schools. Some schools will not have the Ph.D. program you are looking for. Also, talk to research supervisors, graduate students, and people informed about your research interest. If you do find a professor at a university doing research that you would like to participate in, send that professor an e-mail stating your interest and your potential application to the M.D./Ph.D. program. Starting the spring of the calendar year before you want to start medical school (i.e. spring of 2011 for the fall 2012 entry class), attend all the application workshops offered by the Office of Pre-Health Advising. In addition to essays on the actual application, you will need strong letters of recommendation, and even a writing sample from class. After that step, every school handles the M.D./Ph.D portion differently. Most M.D./Ph.D. programs have two day interviews. If you are accepted to only the M.D. or the Ph.D. program, ask if you can reapply to the joint program after pursuing that single degree program for a period of time. What is My Next Step? Start researching about the M.D./Ph.D. program! Visit the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) website at www.aamc.org or schedule an appointment with me to talk about your M.D./ Ph.D. goals (www.advising.gatech.edu). Several events are also coming up that will teach you about the program. More information is found on the right.
By Jennifer Kimble
M.D./Ph.D Events Morehouse Medical School M.D./Ph.D. Admissions Directors would like to welcome you to an event at Morehouse College’s Leadership Center (830 Westview Dr., Atlanta, GA 30314) on November 16 at 6:00 PM to help you learn more about the program. Translational Research Symposium On January 15, 2010, the M.D./ Ph.D. Programs of Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston’s Medical School and M. D. Anderson Cancer Center will host a special Translational Research Symposium and an M.D./Ph.D Career Development Workshop the next day. Information about these programs can be found at http:// gsbs.uth.tmc.edu/symposium.htm The Symposium illustrates stateof-the-art basic science research that is conducted and rapidly translated to improve clinical and public health outcomes. The Workshop has been specifically designed for current and prospective M.D./Ph.D students. Both the Symposium and Workshop are open and there is no charge to attend, but visiting students must register to attend the Workshop by December 31, 2009. Some travel funds are also available for prospective M.D./Ph.D students to attend the symposium and workshop. The deadline to submit an application for the travel award is November 15, 2009, and instructions can be found at the aforementioned website.
Jennifer Kimble is the pre-health advisor at the Georgia Institute of Technology. jennifer.kimble@carnegie.gatech.edu
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...Dunwoody High senior Jasma Ine explained that "One thing I learned from today is how much... an engineering background correlates with chemistry and biology." Students also enjoyed the "Frozen Fun" demonstration, which involved liquid nitrogen, dry ice, flash freezing objects and smashing those objects. "Understanding how air from a blown up balloon can compress into what is as thin as a sheet of paper… was very cool," says Caroline, a Dunwoody High freshman. Though many students attended the event to receive bonus points, Josh Buchsbaun and Ricky Liou of Chamblee High
commented that they “surprisingly found this to be very fun and filled with… a lot more hands on learning than [they] thought [it would]." Another junior form Chamblee High, Henry Adams took a lab tour and "was really excited about… the neuroengineering lab." Though this event targeted high school students, graduate students had just as much fun as the participants. Ibana Kennedy, a first year graduate student at the Egg Drop table enjoyed "seeing kids coming and realizing… that this sort of stuff can be really fun." Daniel, a second year graduate student worked on the Motor Illusions demo, which causes participants to lose their ability to touch their nose accurately or sense that they were falling backwards. “My favorite part of Buzz on Biotechnology was definitely interacting with all the kids... It was also really fun and a little challenging to explain what was going on.” At the prosthetics station, second year graduate student Chris found that adults “were actually just as excited or even more so about the prosthetics as the kids were.” High school students, parents, and volunteers gather to watch the results of the egg drop competition. (Photo: Kelli Koenig)
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Students at the Egg Drop station preparing their eggs for free fall. (Photo: Gopi Patel)
Once again, this year's Buzz on Biotechnology has demystified the world of a graduate student and helped high school students take one step closer to becoming a scientist or an engineer in the biotechnology field. Andrew Lei and Stacie Leung are undergraduate students in the Coulter Department.
Recent Coulter Department Publications Congratulations to the Following Accomplishments in the Month of October!
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he Pioneer congratulates the following faculty, post-docs, and graduates for this past month’s research publications. Accounts of Chemical Research “Semiconductor Nanocrystals: Structure, Properties, and Band Gap Engineering.” Smith AM, Nie S
Annals of Biomedical Engineering “Disulfide-crosslinked polyion micelles for delivery of protein therapeutics.” Heffernan MJ, Murthy N
“Selective targeting of nanocarriers to neutrophils and monocytes.” Karathanasis E, Geigerman CM, Parkos CA, Chan L, Bellamkonda RV, Jaye DL
“Systems Analysis of the Role of Bone Morphogenic Protein 4 in Endothelial Inflammation.” Yin W, Jo H, Voit EO
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Biomaterials “Polyketal microparticles for therapeutic delivery to the lung.”
Brain Research “Asymmetric connectivity reduction and its relationship to "HAROLD" in aging brain. “
Fiore VF, Lofton MC, Roser-Page S, Yang SC, Roman J, Murthy N, Barker TH
Li Z, Moore AB, Tyner C, Hu X
“Altered adherent leukocyte profile on biomaterials in Toll-like receptor 4 deficient mice.“ Rogers TH, Babensee JE
Biotechnology Progress “Expression of a recombinant elastin-like protein in pichia pastoris.” Sallach RE, Conticello VP, Chaikof EL. Biotechnology and Bioengineering “Hydrodynamic modulation of embryonic stem cell differentiation by rotary orbital suspension culture. “ Sargent CY, Berguig GY, Kinney MA, Hiatt LA, Carpenedo RL, Berson RE, McDevitt TC.
Human Brain Mapping “Voxelwise and skeleton-based region of interest analysis of fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in young adults.” Li L, Coles CD, Lynch ME, Hu X
Journal of Biomechanical Engineering “A phenomenological model for mechanically mediated growth, remodeling, damage, and plasticity of gel-derived tissue engineered blood vessels. “ Raykin J, Rachev AI, Gleason RL Jr
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BME Alumni Spotlight: Anu Parvatiyar from C.R. BARD
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nterested in entering industry instead of graduate school or medical school? Last winter, Anu Parvatiyar graduated with a major in BME and a minor in Economics and now works for C.R. BARD, a worldwide medical device and supply company. Parvatiyar serves as a Research and Development Project Engineer in which she designs devices such as cardiac access ports, gastric tubes and tracheal tubes. With fellow engineering team managers, Parvatiyar designs new devices that can aid the health of many people at a time. Parvatiyar has always wanted to help people and thought that designing a device that could make a difference in someone’s life could help so many more people at once. She explains that “after falling in love with design through my Senior Design Project and BME 2300 class, I saw that a job in engineering could probably make me happier than becoming an actual doctor.” Parvatiyar also had clinical research experience at the Grady Memorial Hospital during her sophomore year. Her extracurricular activities combined with the BME curriculum prepared Parvati-
By Ayesha Patel yar for work with trained professionals outside the academic world. She also adds that we "have the benefit of having the best advisor ever [Paul Fincannon].” Recently, Parvatiyar attended the Biotechnology Career Fair as a representative of BARD. Parvatiyar states that competition for jobs has increased greatly within the last few years and recruiting for jobs has become even tougher. She received over 500 resumes for just 6 openings spots in the company, which gave Parvatiyar and her team great difficulty in choosing. “Obviously everyone learns as they move onto different things, but we look for someone who works great with others and someone in which we don’t have to ever question their abilities,” explained Parvatiyar. Parvatiyar thoroughly enjoys working with BARD and hopes that she can make a difference in people’s lives through her passion in designing new medical devices. Ayesha Patel is an undergraduate student in the Coulter Department.
After graduating with a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering and a minor in economics, Anu Parvatiyar returns to Georgia Tech during the 5th Annual Biotechnology Career Fair to recruit BMEs for her current company, C.R. Bard, a medical device and supply firm. (Photo: Kiersten Peterson)
Recent Publications (con’t) “Microstructurally motivated constitutive modeling of mouse arteries cultured under altered axial stretch. “ Hansen L, Wan W, Gleason RL.
Journal of Biomechanics “Neural mechanobiology and neuronal vulnerability to traumatic loading.” Laplaca MC, Prado GR.
Journal of Neural Engineering “Bioimpedance modeling to monitor astrocytic response to chronically implanted electrodes.“ McConnell GC, Butera RJ, Bellamkonda RV
“Implanted neural electrodes cause chronic, local inflammation that is correlated with local neurodegeneration.” McConnell GC, Rees HD, Levey AI, Gutekunst CA, Gross RE, Bellamkonda RV
Journal of the Royal Society Interface “Rate-dependent control strategies stabilize limb forces during human locomotion. “ Yen JT, Chang YH.
Want yours here? Submit recent publications to bmed.newsletter@gmail.com!
Research Assistant Needed! The Precision Biosystems Laboratory is looking for an undergraduate research assistant. Principal Investigator: Craig Forest, Ph.D. Graduate Student: Suhasa Kodandaramaiah Topic: Completely Automated Capillary Array Based Instrumentation for Multi Patch-Clamp Recording Hours: Minimum of 10 hours per week Requirements: Please submit a resume and an unofficial transcript to Suhasa via email: suhasabk@gatech.edu
Looking for Undergraduate Assistants? Submit details to bmed.newsletter@gmail.com!
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...“We had an enormous amount of interest and we attracted candidates of the highest caliber. He has thorough grounding in IBB and a great understanding of where it needs to go strategically in the next few years.” Guldberg first joined the faculty ranks at Georgia Tech in 1996, serving both in IBB and the Georgia W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering. He was appointed associate director of IBB in 2004. “It is a great honor to be asked to serve as the next director of the Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience,” said Guldberg. “IBB’s original mission when it was launched in 1995 was to be a vehicle for accelerating Georgia Tech’s move into bio-related research. This was an incredibly successful experiment made possible by the generous support of alumnus Pete Petit and the vision and dedicated efforts of IBB’s founding director Bob Nerem and other leaders on campus.” When first launched in 1995, the mission of IBB was to create an awareness of bioengineering and bioscience on the Georgia Tech campus. With the Institute now fully established, Guldberg said IBB is now “positioned to have an even greater impact by serving as the heart of the broader Georgia Tech bioscience and bioengineering community and an international model for interdisciplinary research and education.” Guldberg succeeds Mechanical Engineering Professor Robert Nerem in the role of director. Nerem has served in this leadership role at IBB since its inception. Nerem will continue contributing to promising research goals, along with fostering Georgia Tech’s evolving relationship with Emory University in the field of bioengineering.
The Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience was first launched in 1995 (Photo: GTRC / GIT)
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Mechanical Engineering Professor Robert Nerem has served as IBB director since its inception. (Photo: GTRC / GIT)
“I believe Bob [Guldberg] has the right set of skills to take the Petit Institute to the next level,” said Nerem. “He certainly will have my full support.” “As for me, I will turn my attention and energies to continuing to build our regenerative medicine research program through our joint Georgia Tech/Emory Center (GTEC). This includes expanding our efforts in stem cell technology. I also hope to help build further bridges between Georgia Tech and Emory University, as I believe Emory will in the future become an even more important partner with Georgia Tech.” Guldberg received his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering, his masters in bioengineering/mechanical engineering and a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan. The rich promise that IBB poses in such areas as regenerative medicine, stem cell research and cancer fighting drugs has Guldberg enthused about the future of the Institute and the research that develops. “Through leadership in addressing the challenges of translational research in addition to new collaborative programs and facilities, IBB will bring scientists and engineers together to work towards creative solutions to important scientific and societal problems,” Guldberg said. “This is a great opportunity and I am tremendously excited to start this new chapter in the life of IBB.” Don Fernandez is a media relations specialist from Georgia Tech’s Communication and Marketing.
Contribute to The Pioneer! Submit student voices, articles, or join the staff!
www.bmes.gatech.edu/newsletter Page 6
NIH Director’s New Innovator Award Two Georgia Tech Faculty Members Receive Prestigious Grant
By Ruobin Ling & Willa Ni
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he National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the US government's primary agency for conducting and supporting medical research, investing over $28 billion yearly into grants for researchers. Recently Melissa Kemp, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Coulter Department, and Christine Payne, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, each received one of these grants, the NIH Director's New Innovator Award. This prestigious grant awards $1.5 million over a five year period to newer researchers who "propose highly innovative projects that have the potential for unusually high impact." Kemp recalls receiving a phone call from Jeremy Berg, the Director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences and thinking that she was about to be turned down for the award. Instead, Berg congratulated her on receiving one of fifty-five 2009 NIH Director's New Innovator Award. Kemp's research focuses on reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as "hydrogen peroxide and superoxide, which were thought to be harmful," but is actually a conduit of information for cells. With a systems biology approach, Kemp will model the effects of ROS on cellular signaling. Kemp will use the award to support her current lab members, hire additional personnel, and purchase new equipment.
Melissa Kemp, Ph.D., (left) and Christine Payne, Ph.D., (right) received the National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator Award. (Photo: GTRC / GIT)
Payne focuses on the intracellular delivery and targeting of nanoparticles. These nanoparticles could then be used in genetic engineering, cell imaging, and drug delivery. Her award will pay for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and additional supplies and equipment. The NIH Director's New Innovator Award is especially unique in its absence of supervision or artificial standards in the
terms of the grant. Kemp explains that grants usually require recipients to be "precise and upfront" about the usage of the money. The flexibility of “this award lets you focus on the science,” remarks Payne.
Ruobin Ling and Willa Ni are undergraduate students in the Coulter Department.
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November & December Events November 3 - BMES: SANUWAVE Inc. Seminar Find out more about SANUWAVE Inc. in this seminar hosted by the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES). 11:00-12:00 PM, Whitaker 1103. November 5 - Russell Monds, Ph.D., Stanford University Join Russell Monds, Ph.D., from Stanford University in his seminar TBA. 11:0012:00 PM, Cherry Emerson 320. November 10 - IBB Breakfast Club Join Eric Gaucher, Ph.D., Associate Professor, School of Biology, and his seminar “Evolutionary and Synthetic Biology.” Continental breakfast will be provided. 8:309:30 AM, IBB 1128. November 12 - BME Young Innovators Seminar Join Edward Botchwey, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Biomedical Engineering and Orthopedic Surgery, University of Virginia in his “Sphingosine 1-Phosphate (S1P) Receptor Selective Activation Regulates Microvascular Remodeling, Osteoimmunology and Bone Repair.” 11:00-12:00 PM, Whitaker 1103. November 12 - BMES: General Meeting There will be a general meeting for all members. 11:00-12:00 PM, Whitaker 1103. November 12 - International Plan Advising Session Learn more about the International Plan. 11:00-12:00 PM, Student Center Commons, Cypress Room. November 12-14 - ORNL Conference on Bioinformatics This year, Georgia Tech continues the tradition of biennial International Conferences in Bioinformatics, bringing together leading, world-renowned researchers in genomics and bioinformatics to present recent advances in the field and to discuss open problems. Held in the Ferst Center. For more information visit: http://www2.isye.gatech.edu/binf2009/ November 13 - Annual Hilton Head Workshop Deadline Abstracts for the 14th Annual Hilton Head Workshop are due. Back-to-back Hilton Head Workshops will be hosted. The first meeting, Heart Valve Biology and Tissue Engineering will be held March 7-10, 2010. The second meeting, Regenerative Medicine: Advancing to Next Generation Therapies will be held March 10-13, 2010. For more information, visit www.hiltonhead.gatech.edu November 16-17 - Frontiers in Macromolecular Simulations The 5th annual symposium is sponsored by the IBB. For more information, visit: www.ibb.gatech.edu/frontiers November 19 - Bioengineering Seminar Join Newell Washburn, Ph.D., from Carnegie Mellon University in his “Design Principles for Cytokine-Regulating Biomaterials.” 11:00-12:00 PM, IBB 1128. November 26-27 - Official School Holiday November 30 - December 4 - Dead Week December 7-11 - Final Exams December 8 - Cimona Hinton, Ph.D., Clark Atlanta U Join Cimona Hinton, Ph.D., from Clark Atlanta University in her seminar. 11:0012:00 PM, Cherry Emerson 320. December 10 - BME Young Innovators Seminar Join Robert Mauck, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Orthopedic Surgery and Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania in his “Engineering on the Straight and Narrow: Musculoskeletal Tissue Engineering with Dynamic Nanofibrous Scaffolds.” 11:00-12:00 PM, Whitaker 1103. January 11 - Classes Begin: Spring Semester 2010
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Study Abroad Sessions Interested in an academic adventure overseas? A study abroad advisor will be available to answer questions and provide information about the program. All sessions are located in the Savant Building, Room 211. General Study Abroad Every Tuesday, November, 11:30-12:30 PM Every Wednesday, November, 4:00-5:00 PM Non-GT Study Abroad Every Tuesday, November to December, 11:30-12:00 PM Every Wednesday, November to December, 11:30-12:30 PM Exchange Program Info Sessions November 3, 3:00-4:00 PM November 19, 3:00-4:00 PM November 23, 9:00-10:00 AM December 1, 2:00-3:00 PM
China Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) Program Applications are now being accepted for the yearlong research program beginning in Spring 2010 and commending in Fall 2010. Academic credit will be given for research at Georgia Tech/Emory University during spring and fall while 11 weeks of pay will be given for research at Peking University during summer. Pick up an application form in the BME Academic Office and turn it in by 5 PM, Friday November 13!
National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowships Planning to go to graduate school? Already a graduate student? Apply for the NSF Graduate Fellowship to help fund your work towards a doctorate. Full proposals are due in November. Contact Dr. Amanda Gab le (amanda.gable@carnegie.ga tech.edu) or visit: www.nsf.gov/grfp.
To submit events and other important dates, please email: bmed.newsletter@gmail.com! *Events subject to change. For more information, please check www.gatech.edu/calendar, www.bme.gatech.edu/ calendar, and www.ibb.gatech.edu/events.
past month, the American Medical Student T hisAssociation co-hosted the AMSA Regional Con-
Tech Biomedical Engineering Society (GT BMES) has T hebeenGeorgia very busy this year providing events for GT BMEs. The fall semester got off to a quick start in early September during the annual Fall Kickoff in which over 100 students joined GT BMES. Students were entered into a raffle as they joined and throughout the afternoon won prizes such as new DVDs, nalgene bottles, draw string backpacks, and other GT BME memorabilia. However, to receive their prizes, the new members had to introduce themselves and answer random questions about themselves as well to lighten the atmosphere. WREK, Georgia Tech's campus radio station, supplied a DJ for the event and provided live music. This was a great opportunity for fellow students to meet other BMEs and gave a chance for the elected officers to introduce themselves while getting great food. The GT Biomedical Engineering Society has been working tirelessly to get new speakers and hold events for its members this year. Already, GT BMES has hosted industry speakers from Edward Life Sciences and SANUWAVE, speakers from the Work Abroad and Co-Operative Program at Georgia Tech, and a seminar by Dr. Todd McDevitt, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, for students on best practices for requesting and receiving letters of recommendation. But that's just the beginning! In addition to the monthly general meetings in which members socialize with BMESers, request speakers, suggest ideas, and get free food, GT BMES is planning much more. On the horizon are industry tours, graduate and faculty research panels, and graduate school, medical school, and industry seminars featuring GT BME alumni. For more information, please contact Rafeed Chaudhury (rafeed@gatech.edu) or visit www.bmes.gatech.edu.
ference (Regions 5, 7, 9) at the Emory School of Medicine. The event was a huge success with over 300 registered members from 12 different states across the nation. In addition, GT AMSA participated in Team Buzz at Medshare International, volunteered at Trinity Soup Kitchen, hosted a field trip to the Bodies Exhibit, and provided information sessions for several medical schools, including Morehouse School of Medicine, the Medical College of Georgia, Mercer School of Medicine, and the Medical University of South Carolina. This month, GT AMSA will be sponsoring Global Health Education Week during November 2-6. This event will take place on Skiles walkway where students from AMSA will focus on various diseases (mental & physical health, sexual health, cold/flu season, skin cancer, heart disease and diabetes) each day of the week. In addition, guest speaker Professor Teresa Snow will give a presentation on American College of Sports Medicine's “Exercise is Medicine� campaign on November 3 at 5:30pm in room 105 of the Instructional Center (food will be provided). Other events for the rest of fall include Medshare volunteering sessions and information sessions for the Pritzker School of Medicine (University of Chicago) and the Emory School of Medicine. To find out how you can join AMSA, please visit: www.amsa.gatech.edu.
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., (IEEE-USA) is launching the organization's third online engineering video competition for undergraduate students on "How Engineers Make a World of Difference." IEEE-USA will present four scholarship awards totaling $5,000 to undergraduates who create the most effective 90-second video clips reinforcing for an 11-to-13-year-old audience how engineers improve the world. Entries must be submitted through YouTube by midnight Eastern Time on January 15, 2010. Winning entries will be announced and shown during Engineers Week, February 14-20, 2010. For more info, visit: http://www.ieeeusa.org/communications/video_competition/
Have a great idea? Submit your Intent to Compete online at: http://inventureprize.gatech.edu/!
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Student Spotlight: Aileen Li By Dhruv Vishwakarma
Teacher, Researcher, and Student
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enior Georgia Tech undergraduate Aileen Li has some very sound advice for all students. From exploring her passion for teaching as a teacher's assistant (TA) to conducting research and interning with Genzyme, Li has taken advantage of many opportunities offered to students. Li's internship with Genzyme, a bioengineering company that treats people with enzymatic deficiencies, was a 6 month project that placed her in Boston, MA. Li's project determined the validity of the processes carried out by the manufacturing department on the industrial scale. Li notes that when working in industry, the ability to quickly and independently understand processes is essential. Thankfully in Li's experience the BME program does "a very good job of training students to learn things very quickly and independently and be able to catch up on critical thinking." Li encourages all engineering students to work in industry by finding an internship or co-op for several reasons. Not only can students explore available career options and interact with people outside your field of expertise, but students are also allowed to learn from mistakes without the harsh consequences that come with having a formal position at the company. Additionally, Li is still in touch with many of her friends from Genzyme. Her research under Manu O Platt, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Coulter Department, focuses on the differentiation
decisions of monocytes, precursor cells, into either macrophages, debris engulfing white blood cells, or osteoclasts, bone matrix disintegrating cells. That Li truly enjoys her work is apparent. Platt remarks that Li "has a drive for research and a passion for new data and ideas. That motivates her to really put in hours in the lab, which for a GT undergrad taking a full course load, is no easy feat." In turn, Li points out that she is "very fortunate to be doing something she enjoys with great people and under a great PI [Platt]." As a CS 1371, Introduction to MATLAB, TA and a BMED 3100, Systems Physiology, grader, Li enjoys standing in front of a class and talking and interacting with the students. She compares learning programming and physiology to learning to ride a bike - “It’s one of those things that necessary, useful, and you should learn it. It’s not difficult once you get the hang of it, like anything. You want to be able to think about what you're doing; you can't just apply formulas." Pertaining to classes, Li advises students to truly learn class material despite a lack of immediate application. She explains that "you might not think that it [coursework] is very important at the moment, but you never know when the material will come in handy." After finishing up her Bachelor's degree, Li plans on attending graduate school. Her attitude towards learning, exploration and
The Genzyme Center in Cambridge, MA. (Photo: www.genzymecenter.com)
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Aileen Li, a senior undergraduate student in the Coulter Department, at the Biomedical Engineering Society Annual Fall Scientific Meeting at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo: Lazarina Gyoneva)
experience is exemplary and her advice for students is sound and useful - "Work hard, try to understand the material, try to truly learn, and what you get is what you get." Dhruv Vishwakarma is an undergraduate student in the Coulter Department.
Insight Into Graduate Admissions Process Do You Have What it Takes?
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s leaves shed their summer hues, cooler weather approaches and graduate school paperwork looms overhead. Given the January deadlines for many applications, undergraduates interested in graduate school usually spend the fall of their senior year preparing the necessary material. In addition to their basic application, students must also submit a personal statement, three letters of recommendation, a transcript, and GRE/Test scores. In the Coulter Department, Shannon Sullivan, the graduate academic advisor, receives the paperwork and looks through the applications with other faculty members. As Gilda Barabino, Ph.D., Associate Chair for Graduate Studies, explains, the BME graduate program is not only looking for "top students from around the country, but also the students who are best fit for our program." In that capacity, Sullivan says that undergraduate research is essential to competitive application. Undergraduate research will show that a student has "aptitude and interest in research, which is fitting since graduate school focuses heavily
By Karan Patel and Willa Ni on research," remarks Barabino. Overall, a student is evaluated as a whole. "No one is expected to be flawless in every category," so Barabino says that reference letters, test scores, leadership positions, and GPAs are all taken into consideration. Also, Barabino points out that "students who do best in graduate applications are able to communicate that they have a plan for their academic and professional career. Not that you have it all figured out, but you at least have a direction in mind." Given the huge commitment that graduate school requires, the review team wants to know that an applicant is ready to embark on this journey. Once they are in graduate school, the average student takes between five to six years to complete the degree. Aspiring graduate students should expect the first one and a half to two years of graduate school to be mainly coursework with only a small amount of time spent in a laboratory. However, after this period of time, they will be spending almost all of their
time exclusively in the lab. Fortunately, not all time is spent on academics. Many graduates are involved in the Bioengineering and Biosciences Unified Graduate Students (BBUGS), a social and professional organization made up of graduate students in biotechnology-related departments in Georgia Tech and Emory. BBUGS hosts academic and professional development seminars, volunteer activities, and several other social events such as tailgates. Many graduate students are also involved in more casual activities such as intramural sports. Indeed, Sullivan says, the graduate student body is as varied as the undergraduate population. With students maneuvering between classes and social activities, Sullivan says that students sometimes come to her for help in finding balance and managing expectations. In this respect, she says that graduate school is a unique place where students are students, but that it is also akin to holding a full-time job. Karan Patel and Willa Ni are undergraduate students in the Coulter Department.
Biomedical Engineering 1300 Introduction to Whiteboards, Group Dynamics and Thermometers
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ach semester, students in BMED 1300 (Problems of Biomedical Engineering I) tackle three problems in teams of eight with a faculty facilitator. This semester, the second of those three problems asks the teams to "identify a factor that would affect the accuracy, repeatability, or reproducibility of either a tympanic or temporal thermometer." One group chose to analyze the effects of condensation on tympanic thermometer accuracy based off of a published study involving thermometer accuracy. According to group members, leadership was an absolute necessity. Sophomore Cate Donaldson explained, “For this problem, leadership was especially influential towards getting everyone on the same page to achieve the goal of the experiment.” The experiments were conducted during the week of October 19 utilizing various thermometer brands such as the Braun Infrared Tympanic Thermometer which boasts professional usage in hospitals and doctor clinics.
Wendy Newstetter, Ph.D, Director of Learning Science Research and 1300 professor describes how she chooses these highly complex problems. “Over time, we thought of 1300 as a methods course. The first two problems have to do with minimizing error under a screening method and an experiment.” The second and third problems are companions in the sense that each problem involves hypothesis testing, one with human subjects such as the recent thermometer experiment, and one with mathematical modeling. Newstetter explains that “the third problem used to be ethics-related, however we [the Coulter Department] changed it to make it more relevant to future courses such as Conservation Principles in BMED 2210, and Biostatistics in BMED 2400.” On the faculty side of the class, Newstetter reveals that when she goes abroad to discuss problem-based learning, her audience is astounded that the BME faculty enjoys teaching 1300. “Believe it or not” she remarked, “faculty do not usually like to lecture. Our faculty enjoys teaching
By Graham McAdory 1300 because in a sense it is similar to their research lab. One of the things we hope happens is that the students empower themselves to be biomedical engineers”.
Wendy Newstetter, Ph.D., Director of Learning Science Research and professor of BMED 1300 (Problems in Biomedical Engineering I) introduces young BMEs to the problem-based learning system. (Photo: GTRC / GIT) Graham McAdory is an undergraduate student in the Coulter Department.
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Faculty Spotlight: Gilda Barabino, Ph.D. Paving the Road to Cross-Campus Collaborations
By Willa Ni
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ithin the Georgia Tech BME bubble, adjectives such as interdisciplinary and collaborative apply to endeavors at all levels. Stepping outside of this bubble in her roles as Vice Provost for Academic Diversity, two-term Treasurer of BMES, and principal investigator on faculty development grants, Gilda Barabino, Ph.D., the associate chair for graduate studies and professor in the Coulter Department, applies these very same traits to a very different set of problems. This past fall, Barabino spearheaded Georgia Tech's first annual Diversity Symposium, which among other goals wanted to draw attention to the connection between the diversification of faculty and student diversity and achievement. Faculty, administrators, and students heard from a panel of experts and then participated in a working lunch. Sitting in groups, participants talked about how to best infuse diversity at Georgia Tech. This flow of conversation in itself impacts the progression of diversity at Georgia Tech. As Barabino explains," We are all in our own disciplines and we don't cross boundaries enough. So if we break down barriers and connect people across departments, across institutions, across whatever population an individual is a member of… we learn about shared interests and shared goals. And when we work together towards those goals, we’re more likely to achieve them and provide better solutions to complex problems." In fact, student participants in the first annual Diversity Symposium aim to hold a similar venue for discussion geared more towards students. In her research with cartilage tissue engineering, Barabino applies a similar concept of combining diverse areas of expertise. Drawing from her background in fluid mechanics and bioreactors, which provide a platform to
Gilda Barabino, Ph.D., is a professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering. (Photo: GTRC / GIT)
scale up the cultivation of cells and tissues, Barabino seeks a way to "engineer cartilage that mimics that found in the body." Fluid mechanical forces stimulate cell growth and influence the tissue properties. Currently, Barabino's laboratory has developed cartilage that resembles native cartilage in looks, but not mechanical strength. Ongoing studies are directed towards a better understanding of the hydrodynamic parameters required to impart mechanical strength. Besides tissue engineering, Barabino's laboratory also studies the abnormal blood flow and blood cell interactions with the vessel wall in sickle cell disease. Given her range of involvement from the bench to the board, one wonders how Barabino found her way to such a variety of positions. With a smile, Barabino says that "it is all related." For example, her experience in the classroom and laboratory mentoring students and her work funded by the National Science Foundation to increase the participation of underrepresented minorities and women in the academy is applicable in doing work as the associated chair of graduate studies and to her work as the Vice Provost of Academic Diversity.
Vice Provost for Academic Diversity and BME Professor Gilda Barabino talks with an attendee at the Women’s Resource Center’s 10th anniversary celebration. (Photo: GTRC / GIT)
Willa Ni is an undergraduate student in the Coulter Department.
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