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May 4, 2010

Bugging Out: NC State Researchers Help Track Wayward Pests Through Mapping

Tracking invasive pests around the world sounds like it would make for an interesting show on the Discovery Channel. However, the work that goes into tracking these species is less “Deadliest Catch” and more “Dirty Jobs.” Researchers at North Carolina State University partnered with scientists and analysts from around the globe to determine recommendations to…

May 4, 2010

Survey: Hiding Risks Can Hurt Public Support For Nanotechnology

A new national survey on public attitudes toward medical applications and physical enhancements that rely on nanotechnology shows that support for the technology increases when the public is informed of the technology’s risks as well as its benefits – at least among those people who have heard of nanotechnology. The survey, which was conducted by…

May 3, 2010

Disease Caused By Insect Bites Can Be Transmitted To Children At Birth, NC State Researcher Finds

A North Carolina State University researcher has discovered that bacteria transmitted by fleas–and potentially ticks–can be passed to human babies by the mother, causing chronic infections and raising the possibility of bacterially induced birth defects. Dr. Ed Breitschwerdt, professor of internal medicine in the Department of Clinical Sciences, is among the world’s leading experts on…

May 3, 2010

“My Kid Wouldn’t Do That” – Study Shows Parents’ Difficulty With Teen Sexuality

It can be difficult for parents of teenagers to come to terms with the fact their kids may have sex, particularly given widespread concerns about the consequences of teen sexual activity. In fact, a new study from North Carolina State University shows that many parents think that their children aren’t interested in sex – but…

May 2, 2010

NC State’s Beichner Honored With UNC System Teaching Award

Dr. Robert J. Beichner, Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor of Physics at North Carolina State University and founding director of the STEM Education Initiative, has been honored with an Award for Excellence in Teaching from the University of North Carolina (UNC) Board of Governors.

Apr 30, 2010

Biofuels, Hold The Sugar

Imagine if we could make biofuels anywhere, without having to worry about biofuel crops competing with food crops. Well, the feds are now funding research that would make that possible. Modern biofuels are largely made from sugar. Basically, plants (like corn) take energy from the sun to convert carbon dioxide into organic compounds (like sugar)…

Apr 30, 2010

NC State Wins ARPA-E Grant To Study Extremophile Production Of Biofuels

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) has awarded a grant for more than $2.7 million to North Carolina State University to support research into the creation of biofuels using microbial organisms, called extremophiles, that live in high-temperature environments.

Apr 28, 2010

NC State Residence Hall Selected to Compete in National Building Competition

North Carolina State University’s Tucker Residence Hall has been selected to participate in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) first national “Working off the Waste” competition among commercial buildings to save energy and fight climate change.

Apr 28, 2010

NC State Researchers to Evaluate Technology Use in K-12 Classrooms

School districts across the state are investing millions of dollars into instructional technology for K-12 schools in hopes of better preparing students to work and live in the 21st century. But are the technology and media programs helping students succeed? Researchers at North Carolina State University are evaluating the success of the North Carolina Department…

Apr 28, 2010

Connecting The Nanodots

Picture a really big library. Imagine that it contains 2.5 million books, and that each of those books is 400 pages long. Now imagine that you could fit ALL of those books onto a computer chip the size of your thumbnail. Researchers just figured out how to do exactly that. The trick is to use…

Apr 28, 2010

Nanodots Breakthrough May Lead To ‘A Library On One Chip’

A researcher at North Carolina State University has developed a computer chip that can store an unprecedented amount of data – enough to hold an entire library’s worth of information on a single chip. The new chip stems from a breakthrough in the use of nanodots, or nanoscale magnets, and represents a significant advance in…

Apr 27, 2010

Trudy Mackay Elected to National Academy of Sciences

Dr. Trudy F.C. Mackay of Raleigh, William Neal Reynolds and Distinguished University Professor of Genetics and Entomology at North Carolina State University, has been elected into the National Academy of Sciences, one of the world’s most important scientific societies. Mackay becomes the ninth current NC State faculty member to be elected into the august scientific society.…

Apr 27, 2010

Hey! You! Get Off Of My Cloud Computing!

Cloud computing is a buzzword among tech cognoscenti these days. Its proponents say that it can give people and institutions access to greater computer power than they could otherwise afford by running their programs in a collection of computers and servers located, well, somewhere else. But there are risks too – not least of which…

Apr 27, 2010

New Research Offers Security For Virtualization, Cloud Computing

Virtualization and cloud computing allow computer users access to powerful computers and software applications hosted by remote groups of servers, but security concerns related to data privacy are limiting public confidence – and slowing adoption of the new technology. Now researchers from North Carolina State University have developed new techniques and software that may be…

Apr 27, 2010

Lee Fowler to Step Down as NC State Director of Athletics

North Carolina State Director of Athletics Lee Fowler will step down effective June 30, Chancellor Randy Woodson announced today. Woodson will name an interim director prior to Fowler’s departure and a national search will begin immediately for his replacement, he said.