Technician
Researchers develop new data storage device made of soft materials which function in wet environments.
january
24 2012
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Soft memory developments may change electronics’ future
tuesday
Newsroom provides good PR for University University public relations effort provides wide audience with interesting information.
Stephen Behan Staff Writer
Sarah Dashow
Researchers have developed a data storage device capable of functioning well in wet environments. The device is made of biocompatible gels, liquid metal and other soft materials and has the potential to usher in a new generation of biocompatible electronics. “What we’ve done is make a memory device completely out of soft material,” Michael Dickey, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, said. Dickey is the co-author of the paper describing the research. Because the device is made of waterbased gels, such as hydrogel, similar to Jell-O in appearance and physical properties, the device is able to operate and thrive in wet environments. “In the hydrogel, in many cases they are more than 90 percent water. tyler andrews/Technician In fact, some of them are 99 percent water. So you’re really talking about Graduate student in chemical and biomedical engineering Hyung-Jun Koo demonstrates how to use an oscilloscope something that’s like a sponge, full of to measure high current and voltage information from the soft memory device on Thursday, Jan. 19. Koo sees this as water, and for that reason, it’s highly hopeful technology in mimicking the way the human brain stores information. biocompatible,” Dickey said. “It was a breakthrough with regard Unlike traditional electronics, the tions well in wet environments, it soft memory can operate while com- holds potential for the interfacing of to the materials we used,” Velev said. “The principle of the device can be biological and electrical systems. pletely submerged in water. “In many cases you want to interface used in making progress in biomedi“[The memory device] is survivable an electrical circuit cal areas.” in environments that The device is a memristor, known to live tissue,” Orwould traditionally lin Velev, INVISTA as a short for memory resister. The be harsh for elecprofessor of chemi- memory is created by recording the tronics,” said Dickcal and biomolecu- state of resistance. By changing from ey. “One time our lar engineering, said. a conductive state to a resistive state, students brought a “Maybe you want to the device can be represented by the prototype to a meetinterface with neural 1s and 0s in binary. ing, and they liter“You can think about it in terms tissue…this [device] ally brought it in a should be able to of 1s and 0s, where the 1 might be a bucket of water. You bridge the connec- conductive state, and the 0 might be would never imagine Orlin Velev, INVISTA professor tion between pres- a resistive state,” Dickey said. putting your conWhile most electronics use electrons ent day solid state ventional hard drive to create those 1s and 0s, this device in a bucket of water. That wasn’t really devices and biological soft matter.” According to Velev, the device is uses ions. our motivation, per se, but it gets you “The device uses ions instead of electhinking about potential applications capable of performing an electronic Michael Pratt/Technician for building electronics out of uncon- function but operating on materials trons, more similar to the way the hu- Hyung-Jun Koo, a graduate student in chemical and biomedical similar to the ones found in nature ventional material.” Because the device is soft and func- or in life. Memory continued page 3 engineering, holds a "memristor."
“It was a breakthrough with regard to the materials we used.”
Staff Writer
On the front page of the University website, there is a source of news called the Newsroom. While Student Media, which includes Technician, WKNC, Agromeck and Wolf TV, is written and created mainly for students by students, the Newsroom is the University’s way of reaching a wider audience. The Newsroom, as it is today, went live in August 2007. However, there has been news on the website’s front page in various forms since the 1990s. It is run by News Services and considered part of the University’s public relations. “Any university will have a public relations and media relations unit to it to show how good or how transformative what happens at the place is to a large audience, and so its separate from whatever student media does,” Mick Kulikowski, interim director and national media coordinator, said. “My job is to help the university reach audiences both inside and outside of NC State, so that we can more effectively share our story,” Tracey Peake, public communication specialist, said. Even the title, the Newsroom, suggests that it exists to be a starting point for other audiences and media outlets to get information on the University. “The newsroom covers a wide variety of subjects, for a wide variety of audiences. A lot of what we cover pertains to research done by our faculty and students,” Matt Shipman, public communication specialist, said.
room continued page 3
University gets prepared for 125th anniversary celebration As N.C. State’s 125th birthday approaches, planning committees are getting closer to solidifying a year of celebratory events. Jessie Halpern Staff Writer
Photo courtesy of katherine hoke
YouTube comedian connects with fans on campus YouTube star David So made sure to connect with all his fans during an Asia Nite event. Young Lee Staff Writer
David So, a California-based comedian, has what he would call “multiple chins of anger” that he proudly shows off on any of his comedic rants posted on his YouTube channel. However, on Jan. 20, attendees of the Asian Student Association’s Asia Nite were able to
finally get a chance to interact with David So beyond “liking” his videos and leaving comments in the comment box. The Asian Student Association held their annual cultural show last Friday. In addition to performances from student dance groups, singers, and actors, the Association brought David So to headline for the show. However, as many attendees can confirm, David So did more than just headline the event; through his openness and personal interactions with fans, So inspired audience members like few
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other events can. “Every time I do a college show I try to leave a message,” So said. However, according to Cindy Lam, a sophomore in arts application and Vice President of ASA, So was not inspiring just because of what he said that night, but also because of his life story and interactions with everyone who came that night. So’s comedy set took a much deeper turn during the second half of his stand-up routine. “It’s amazing that all of [us] are
With N.C. State’s 125th anniversary coming up, a planning committee is creating fun ways to celebrate on campus. March 5 will begin the official celebration for the anniversary. Although students will be off campus for some events, the planning committees hope that the anniversary will unify the campus. Planning for the University’s 125th year has been going on since May of 2011, with several subcommittees to ensure all areas of the celebration are conducted smoothly. While the University only celebrates the significant anniversary years,
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Founders’ Day is an annual tradition but one students will not be on campus to participate in. Chandler Thompson, student body president and member of the 125th anniversary marketing committee, says that she isn’t concerned. “A few years ago, students had input regarding when spring break should be. We moved break to the first week of March, which means that students won’t be on campus for State’s official birthday on March 5,” Thompson said. “There will definitely be an event for students the week after, though. We aren’t going to leave the student body out of the celebration.” As we approach March, the anniversary planning committees are still working on finalizing event dates and details. One thing they are sure of, however, is that the use of a special 125th Year logo will be implemented across all colleges and student orga-
125th continued page 3
Biofilter device could reduce harmful farm pollution.
Agricultural engineers have designed a filter that uses compost to clean farm waste and produce energy. See page 6.
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