Printing to the Sky...School of Art graduate student William Cravis displayed his 65-foot-tall project, called "Printing to the Sky," around the flagpole on the Cut for 24 hours on April 17 to recognize Earth Week (April 17-21). He received permission from the university - and help from a lift and lift-operator - to surround the flagpole from top to bottom with copy-paper boxes that he collected from computer clusters and printing centers on campus for a year. Through the sculpture, Cravis aimed to expose Americans' penchant for over-consumption and promote conservation. In the end, he stacked between 300 and 400 boxes. At 10,000 sheets of paper in each box, the sculpture represented nearly four million sheets of paper that had been used just for printing in the computer clusters. Cravis contacted The Guinness Book of World Records in an attempt to gain credit for the tallest stack of boxes. We'll keep you posted!

New Undergraduate Research Journal Lands on Campus... Thought, Carnegie Mellon's new undergraduate research journal, debuted as an insert in the May 1 edition of The Tartan, the university's student-run newspaper. The journal, which works with the Undergraduate Research Office, is supported by the university and managed entirely by students. Thought is published by a team of students from various disciplines who solicit and edit submissions and create the visual materials for the journal. Students also manage marketing and finances. Thought, which will feature the top three to seven submissions each semester, also includes articles geared toward student researchers. The debut issue highlighted research on international relations, the coffee regime, complexity and the mind, how touch can be visual, and replacing flash memory. Future issues may be theme-based, or may be a collection of topics from various fields. Thought is available for download from The Tartan's Web site, thetartan.org. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060511_thought.html

H&SS, MCS Deans Reappointed... John Lehoczky and Richard D. McCullough have been reappointed to second five-year terms as deans of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Mellon College of Science, respectively.

A committee of H&SS faculty appointed to review Lehoczky's performance recommended his reappointment and described him as an excellent administrator who is well-liked and respected by department heads, faculty and staff. Lehoczky, the Thomas Lord Professor of Statistics and Mathematical Sciences, has led H&SS since 2000. During his tenure, he has overseen the launch of the college's ambitious Humanities Initiative, a collaborative effort of Carnegie Mellon's humanities departments to produce alumni who have the skills to solve real-world problems, the flexibility to adapt to changing technology and markets, and a respect for intellectual and cultural diversity. Lehoczky has also been a strong advocate for developing Carnegie Mellon's international programs. For more on Lehoczky, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060519_lehoczky.html.

McCullough, a professor of chemistry, was lauded by faculty for his visionary, strategic leadership of MCS during his first term. A committee of senior MCS faculty approved the reappointment and praised McCullough for his grasp of the science in the college, his skill as a spokesperson, his support of department initiatives and his rapport with alumni and friends. McCullough became dean in 2001 after leaving his post as head of the Chemistry Department, a position he held from 1998 to 2001. As dean, he has helped to build upon Carnegie Mellon's strengths in biotechnology and has guided the university's strategic planning in biotechnology as a member of the Biotechnology Implementation Committee. For more on McCullough, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060504_mcs.html.

Study Shows That Lower Income, Education Lead to Greater Stress Levels... A new study by Sheldon Cohen, the Robert E. Doherty Professor of Psychology, shows that people with low incomes are more likely to be under stress than their wealthier peers. Researchers measured the income and years of education for 95 men and 98 women, and then tested their urine and saliva for stress hormones. Cohen and his co-authors found that the lower the income and education levels, the higher the levels of three stress hormones: epinephrine, norepinephrine and cortisol. The paper, recently published in Psychosomatic Medicine (the journal of the American Psychosomatic Society), was co-authored by William J. Doyle, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh; and Andrew Baum, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. For more, go to www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060522_stress.html.

Carnegie Mellon Hosts Botball Challenge in Qatar... Carnegie Mellon Qatar concluded a successful seven-week robotics programming course with the Second International Botball Challenge on May 27. Omar Bin Khattab Scientific School won the challenge with the highest overall score. Al Khor International School took second place, and third place went to Amna Bint Wahhab Independent S.S.G. Six schools took part in this year's challenge to showcase their autonomous robots, which were created with the help of Carnegie Mellon Qatar. Teams from each school designed, developed, programmed and documented their robots. The teams competed on a playing field the size of a ping-pong table in a high energy tournament. Botball is a U.S.-based organization that introduces robotics to high schools. Student teams are equipped with a Lego Mindstorm robot, along with instructions on how to program it to move autonomously through a course. Carnegie Mellon Qatar arranged an intensive two-day robotics workshop seven weeks prior to the competition that gave teams the necessary background and expertise to build and program robots. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060601_botball.html.

Hikers Stay on Track With Trailposts.com... The STUDIO for Creative Inquiry's MapHub team has launched Trailposts.com, a Web site where long-distance hikers on the Appalachian Trail can share their comments, location and journals with other hikers, family and friends. The Web site was created using technology developed by the MapHub.org project that links a geographic or cultural community through a shared online map and database. Trailposts allows hikers who spend months on the Appalachian Trail to keep track of water supplies, clean shelters and where they can find their friends or other hikers. As the project develops, the creators plan on using Trailposts for state park and river trails. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060427_trailposts.html.

Carson Named Head of School of Art... The College of Fine Arts has appointed John Carson the Regina Gouger Miller Department Head of the School of Art. Carson succeeds Susanne Slavick, who will take a year sabbatical and return to the school's faculty. Carson joins Carnegie Mellon from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London, where he was a principal lecturer in fine art and course director for the bachelor of fine arts program. "I believe in the power and necessity of art. I enjoy making art happen, whether it is my work or the work of others," Carson said. "I enjoy sharing ideas and being able to pass on the benefit of my experience to others, and enabling and encouraging learning through experience. I believe that the School of Art at Carnegie Mellon offers a supportive yet intellectually challenging environment for innovative, inspiring and important work." For more, visit www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060502_carson.html.

School of Music Offers Online Listening Course... "Repertoire & Listening for Musicians," a four-semester required course created by School of Music faculty member Paul Johnston, is the first course in the School of Music to be taught entirely online. This class exposes music students - and the occasional non-major - to many of the best practitioners of their art. Students listen to the weekly music selections from any location with an Internet connection. They then respond to questions Johnston posts on the Web. Each week, students are expected to listen critically to two or three hours of streamed audio, respond to Johnston's discussion starters, and continue conversation with their classmates through the discussion board on the Web. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060504_listening.html.

LifeBoat Project Documents Life on the Ohio River... Carolyn Lambert, a fellow in the STUDIO for Creative Inquiry, will navigate the Ohio River this summer in an ecologically retrofitted pontoon boat to create an audio documentary featuring people who live in towns and cities along the river's edge. Lambert will take the Ohio River LifeBoat Project down the 981 miles of the Ohio River and meet with residents of 60 river towns, who are invited to join round-table discussions about the significance of the river in their lives. The project is supported by the Ford Motor Company, the National Wildlife Federation, the Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research, the Sprout Fund, Ingram Barge Company, the Port of Pittsburgh Commission, the mayor of Braddock, individual donations and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts through a grant to the STUDIO for Creative Inquiry. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060601_lifeboat.html.

Carnegie Mellon Strengthens Undergrad Research Through HHMI Grant... Carnegie Mellon has been awarded $1.5 million and the University of Pittsburgh has been awarded $2.1 million from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) to strengthen their undergraduate research and outreach programs in biological sciences. Both grants are for the duration of four years. The grants underscore the region's strength in biological sciences training. Elizabeth Jones, head of biological sciences and principal investigator of the Carnegie Mellon grant, said the award will allow the department to continue its commitment to interdisciplinary research and education. The funding will enable several new, advanced interdisciplinary lecture and laboratory courses to attract students from fields including mathematics, statistics, engineering, and computer science. The HHMI funding will also strengthen the Summer Research Institute for rising sophomores and offer a variety of introductory biology courses tailored to the growing, heterogeneous population of science, social science and engineering students. In addition, the Carnegie Mellon program will expand outreach activities and organize interdisciplinary faculty research symposiums. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060605_hhmi.html.

Gamenomics Makes Learning Fun and Games... A group of ETC students has designed "Gamenomics," a fun, educational, multiplayer management simulation game that helps college students learn basic concepts like those found in an introductory economics course. Gamenomics allows a professor to guide the students in understanding the economic principles involved as they buy factories, produce goods and compete with each other in a realistic market economy simulation. Players have to make difficult business decisions, such as which markets to enter, at what prices to buy and sell, and how many units to produce - all while dealing with cash-flow problems, supply-chain bottlenecks and competition from other players. David Lamont, associate professor of business strategy in the Tepper School, plans to use the game in his graduate microeconomics class this fall. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060525_etc.html.

Tepper School Establishes Entrepreneurial Fellowship Program... Beginning this summer, 12 MBA students who have shown an entrepreneurial edge will gain invaluable knowledge of business ventures through a new hands-on mentorship program. As the first James R. Swartz Entrepreneurial Fellows, these students will combine Tepper's leading curriculum in entrepreneurship with an exclusive, mentorship-driven internship over the summer and a leadership-focused experiential program throughout their second year of MBA studies. The new fellows program is the result of a generous gift from venture capitalist and Tepper School grad James R. Swartz, co-founder of the global venture capital firm Accel Partners. In addition to a robust curriculum, fellows will participate in a paid summer internship at an entrepreneurial company that will include intensive mentoring by Tepper faculty, the company's CEO or other designated executive, and a Tepper graduate who is a successful entrepreneur or part of the venture capital industry. For more, visit www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060522_swartz.html.

Students Spend Spring Break in St. Petersburg...Undergraduate advisor Naum Kats, a member of the History and Modern Languages departments, led a group of Carnegie Mellon students on a 10-day spring break trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, that included a stop in Prague. Most of the 11 students who traveled with Kats completed his fall freshmen seminar course, "Introduction to Russian Culture and Civilization," which explored the development of Russian culture, art and music from the early 1800s through the 20th century. The students' itinerary included tours of The Peter and Paul Fortress; the Hermitage, Russian and Kunstkamera museums; and the Usupov Palace. The H&SS Dean's Office, the Modern Languages and History departments, and the Division of Student Affairs funded the trip. For more, visit www.cmu.edu/cmnews/extra/060328_stpetersburg.html.

Carnegie Mellon Establishes Nation's First Machine Learning Department... The School of Computer Science has created the nation's first Machine Learning Department. The new designation for what was formerly known as the Center for Automated Learning and Discovery (CALD) reflects the importance of machine learning in such growing areas as data mining and sensor networks, as well as the university's commitment to continue its pioneering efforts in the field. Tom M. Mitchell, the Fredkin Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Learning, heads the department. Mitchell founded CALD in 1997 with Stephen E. Fienberg, the Maurice Falk University Professor of Statistics and Social Science. The new department is the first to offer a Ph.D. in machine learning. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060330_machine.html.

Faculty Members Present Software Engineering Seminar in Kazakhstan... Gil Taran and Mel Rosso-Llopart, faculty members in the Institute for Software Engineering International's Master of Software Engineering program, spent 10 days in Kazakhstan during spring break, presenting software engineering seminars to local professionals. The visit was arranged by Kanat Abirov (CS'04), one of the lead developers in the IT department of KazCommerce Bank, the largest private bank in Kazakhstan. Taran said the seminars help bridge gaps in the understanding of the latest software engineering principles. The seminars on best practices, processes and techniques in requirements management, planning and tracking marked the first presented in Kazakhstan by faculty of a top U.S. school. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060405_kazakh.html.

Architecture Course Encourages Cross-Disciplinary, Real-World Experiences... The School of Architecture has created "Passport," an interdisciplinary course that encourages students to attend events on campus and in the city of Pittsburgh. The course, implemented last fall, provides students with the opportunity to attend lectures, workshops, exhibits, films, readings and performances sponsored by Carnegie Mellon or other institutions that stimulate a relationship between a student's academic pursuits and real-world experience. Students select the type and schedule of events they attend from a list of more than 100 regional happenings. They keep a journal of their "Passport" experience and attend small discussion sessions. During its first semester, "Passport" attracted 50 students from seven disciplines and departments. For more, visit www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060330_passport.html.


CEE Celebrates Centennial... The university celebrated 100 years of excellence in civil and environmental engineering on April 28 with a daylong series of events and activities. The day began with the Advanced Infrastructure Systems Symposium in the Singleton Room of Roberts Hall of Engineering. A reception was held in the Tung Au lab in Porter Hall, and members of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department concluded the festivities with a trip to PNC Park for a Pirates game. The day also honored the centennial of Porter Hall, which was rededicated in a ceremony on Frew Street that featured the unveiling of an artistic rendering created by local artist James Sulkowski. For more, see www.ce.cmu.edu/Centennial/centennial.html.

Watch the CEE centennial video

INI, CyLab Partner With Alta Associates To Create Initiatives for Female Students... The Information Networking Institute (INI) and Carnegie Mellon CyLab announced a new partnership with Alta Associates' Executive Women's Forum (EWF) on Information Security, Risk Management and Privacy that will advance partnerships between EWF participants and women in the INI. It will also create three full-tuition scholarships to be awarded over the next three years to a female student enrolling in the Master of Science in Information Security Technology and Management (MSISTM) program. The scholarship recipient will also be named an EWF fellow and will be mentored by a female EWF participant. Alta Associates will also collaborate with Women@INI, a new organization for women graduate students, to create a mentoring program. For more, see www.cmu.edu/PR/releases06/060420_cylab.html.