09-28-10
John O. Dabiri, Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Bioengineering, has been named a MacArthur Fellow. This unrestricted fellowship —also known as the "genius" grant— is awarded each year to individuals who show "exceptional creativity in their work and the prospect for still more in the future." Congratulations Professor Dabiri! [Caltech Press Release] [MacArthur Foundation]
Tags: honors GALCIT John Dabiri
09-03-10
Aerospace engineer and executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company Joanne Maguire is the 2010 recipient of the prestigious International von Kármán Wings Award for her sustained and visionary accomplishments in aerospace. The von Kármán Wings Award acknowledges outstanding contributions by international innovators, leaders, and pioneers in aerospace and is presented by the Aerospace Historical Society, which is part of the Graduate Aerospace Laboratories at Caltech (GALCIT). [Caltech Press Release]
08-30-10
Professor Guruswami Ravichandran and Justin L. Brown, graduate student in Mechanical Engineering, have been chosen to receive the Best Paper Award at the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) 2010 Conference. The title of the paper is "High Pressure Hugoniot Measurements Using Converging Shocks".
07-29-10
Morteza Gharib, Hans W. Liepmann Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Bio-Inspired Engineering, is the new Vice Provost with a special focus on research. Professor Gharib has made contributions to a wide array of research topics ranging from the fundamental analysis of biological flows, to the development of bio-inspired medical devices, to advanced flow visualization techniques. One of his more unusual studies was his work with a SURF student several years ago where they raised a 30000-pound obelisk into place using a single kite and speculated that the ancient Egyptians may have moved the massive stones from which the pyramids were built and raised obelisks by flying them into place! His breadth, technical strength, and enthusiasm will serve him and Caltech well as he takes on the role of Vice Provost. [Caltech Today Article]
07-12-10
Joseph E. Shepherd, C. L. "Kelly" Johnson Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, and colleagues' paper "Gaseous Detonation in Piping Systems Partially Filled with Liquid" (pdf) has been selected to receive the ASME Pressure Vessels and Piping Division's outstanding technical paper award.
Tags: honors GALCIT MCE Joseph Shepherd
06-25-10
Beverley McKeon, Assistant Professor of Aeronautics, and her team test the 2010 World Cup Jubalani soccer ball in the Lucas Adaptive Wall Wind Tunnel. Their results may explain the seemingly unpredictable nature of the ball. [Caltech Press Release and Video]
06-14-10
Paul E. Dimotakis, John K. Northrop Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Applied Physics; and Chief Technologist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, was the 2010 commencement speaker for UC Santa Cruz. In the speech Professor Dimotakis advised the graduates that "the best engineering almost always pushes the limits of science and our understanding of nature." [Full text of speech]
Tags: APhMS GALCIT Paul Dimotakis
06-02-10
Ares J. Rosakis, Division Chair; Theodore von Kármán Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, is the recipient of the 2010 Brown Engineering Alumni Medal (BEAM). The medal is awarded to distinguished Brown alumni who have established exceptional records of accomplishment in their careers. Professor Rosakis received the medal at a ceremony held in the Brown Alumnae Hall accompanied by his former teacher Rodney J. Clifton, Dean of Brown University School of Engineering, L. Ben Freund, Rosakis' PhD advisor and former Chair of Brown University Division of Engineering, as well as Rosakis' classmate Wei Yang, President of Zhejiang University in China [in photo standing from left to right]. At the same ceremony it was announced that the Division of Engineering at Brown University has been elevated to the School of Engineering at Brown.
Tags: honors GALCIT MCE Ares Rosakis
05-18-10
Avatar Director James Cameron met with Caltech faculty and students on May 4, 2010 to discuss a variety of topics including space structure systems, interdisciplinary materials and device research, and cognitive neuroscience. All present were impressed by Mr. Cameron's level of interest and engagement. Ares Rosakis, Division Chair and Theodore von Karman Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, said "if Mr. Cameron was not such an accomplished director I bet he would have made a wonderful engineer."
Tags: research highlights GALCIT MCE Ares Rosakis James Cameron
05-17-10
John O. Dabiri, Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Bioengineering, has purchased two acres of land north of Los Angeles, where he is establishing the Caltech Field Laboratory for Optimized Wind Energy (FLOWE). The goal is "to extract significantly more wind energy from a given parcel of land than is currently possible... [by taking] advantage of constructive aerodynamic interference between closely spaced vertical-axis wind turbines." says Dabiri whose inspiration for this project came from observation of schooling fish. [Caltech Press Release]
