Matt Shipman

Jan 6, 2011

Juan Williams To Speak At NC State MLK Commemoration

Political analyst and author Juan Williams will be the keynote speaker at North Carolina State University’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Campus Commemoration on Wednesday, Jan. 12. Williams’ presentation, titled “American Leadership: Stories of Inspiration and Power Behind Proven Leaders,” will take place Jan. 12 at 11:30 a.m. in Stewart Theatre, located in the… 

Dec 22, 2010

From Fossils To New Tech: Research Highlights From 2010

From prehistoric penguins, which help us understand the mysteries of evolution, to “artificial leaves” that could change the face of solar energy, 2010 was a fascinating year of research at North Carolina State University. As we prepare for 2011, we thought we’d take a look back at some of the interesting research stories to come… 

Dec 21, 2010

Trivial Pursuits: The Abstract’s 2010 Quiz

The Abstract staff will be taking off for a couple of weeks to prepare for 2011. In an attempt to amuse and entertain ourselves you, we’ve pulled together a quick quiz on some of the research we’ve written about in 2010. See how you do! Answers are below the photo, and include links to the… 

Dec 20, 2010

Dispatches From The North Pole: Santa’s Bag Of Toys

Editor’s Note: This is the last in a series of occasional dispatches from Dr. Larry Silverberg, a researcher at NC State who is leading a visiting scholars program at Santa’s Workshop-North Pole Labs (NPL). Dr. Silverberg is an expert in unified field theory and is accompanied by four other mechanical and aerospace engineers: Drs. Mohammad Zikry… 

Dec 15, 2010

Study Improves Understanding of Method for Creating Multi-Metal Nanoparticles

A new study from researchers at North Carolina State University sheds light on how a technique that is commonly used for making single-metal nanoparticles can be extended to create nanoparticles consisting of two metals – and that have tunable properties. The study also provides insight into the optical properties of some of these nanoparticles. 

Dec 13, 2010

Dispatches From The North Pole: How Santa Gets Around

Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of occasional dispatches from Dr. Larry Silverberg, a researcher at NC State who is leading a visiting scholars program at Santa’s Workshop-North Pole Labs (NPL). Dr. Silverberg is an expert in unified field theory and is accompanied by four other mechanical and aerospace engineers: Drs. Mohammad Zikry… 

Dec 8, 2010

Milk, Bread, Researchers: Stocking Up On Disaster Experts

September 11. The Gulf oil spill. Earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. The 2004 tsunami. Given the stakes involved, you would think that research into hazards and disasters (H&D) would be teeming with hordes of young scholars, trying to improve our understanding of how people prepare for (and respond to) catastrophic events. And you’d be wrong.… 

Dec 6, 2010

Dispatches From The North Pole: The Science of Santa’s Sleigh

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a series of occasional dispatches from Dr. Larry Silverberg, a researcher at NC State who is leading a visiting scholars program at Santa’s Workshop-North Pole Labs (NPL). Dr. Silverberg is an expert in unified field theory and is accompanied by four other mechanical and aerospace engineers: Drs. Mohammad Zikry… 

Dec 3, 2010

NASA’s Arsenic Thingy: What It Is, Why It Matters

In case you missed it, NASA announced Dec. 2 that researchers have discovered the first organism that can survive and reproduce using arsenic – an extremely toxic element. First things first: it is NOT extraterrestrial and they did NOT find it. They sort of created it. That said, it’s still incredibly cool. In short, a… 

Dec 1, 2010

Why You Would Put A Radar In Your Shoe

When I was a kid, I thought it was pretty cool that Maxwell Smart had a phone in his shoe. That’s old hat these days, but researchers have now developed more advanced podiatric technology: the shoe radar. And, yes, there’s a practical reason for it. Why would you put a radar in your shoe? To… 

Dec 1, 2010

GPS Not Working? A Shoe Radar May Help You Find Your Way

The prevalence of global positioning system (GPS) devices in everything from cars to cell phones has almost made getting lost a thing of the past. But what do you do when your GPS isn’t working? Researchers from North Carolina State University and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) have developed a shoe-embedded radar system that may help… 

Nov 30, 2010

Dispatches From The North Pole: The Science of Santa’s List

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of occasional dispatches from Dr. Larry Silverberg, a researcher at NC State who is leading a visiting scholars program at Santa’s Workshop-North Pole Labs (NPL). Dr. Silverberg is an expert in unified field theory and is accompanied by four other mechanical and aerospace engineers: Drs. Mohammad Zikry… 

Nov 29, 2010

Food Fables: Learning Food Safety From Unhappy Endings

Stories have long been used to teach people about the consequences of their actions – just ask Aesop. A new study finds that storytelling is also a critical component when it comes to teaching kitchen workers the importance of food-safety practices – and hopefully saving lives. But the researchers behind this study are telling stories… 

Nov 29, 2010

NC State and IBM Researchers Discover New Way to Patch Holes in The ‘Cloud’

Researchers from North Carolina State University and IBM have invented a way to update computer systems packaged in virtual machines in a computer “cloud” – even when those programs are offline. 

Nov 19, 2010

Hey, Dit Dots! A Coastal N.C. Vocabulary Quiz

It has been said that England and the U.S. are two nations divided by a common language. But you don’t have to travel overseas to find English words and phrases that are virtually impossible to decipher to outsiders. The coastal region of North Carolina is home to a host of terms that make little sense…