Emily Arntsen - News @ Northeastern

Northeastern graduate Anvesh Gurijala in his lab

It’s strong enough to protect airplanes from lightning strikes, light enough to create performance skis

Boston Materials, a company started by a Northeastern professor and two graduates, manufactures a new type of carbon fiber that is light, tough, and as smooth as velvet. The added bonus? The company uses 100 percent reclaimed materials, an impressive statistic especially in an industry that creates so much waste.

by Emily Arntsen June 10, 2021

This virtual nurse can tell you a prayer and where to get a coronavirus vaccine

Clara, an animated virtual nurse developed by Northeastern computer science professor Timothy Bickmore, is programmed to provide information about the COVID-19 vaccine to Black Bostonians who may be distrustful of the vaccine.

by Emily Arntsen May 13, 2021

She wants to make more efficient batteries without exploiting cobalt miners

Sydney Morris, a fourth-year chemical engineering major at Northeastern, studies how to make batteries last longer, perform better, and cause less harm to the environment, as well as the people who mine the materials needed to make them.

by Emily Arntsen - contributor May 10, 2021

We know how to make AI work. How can we make it work fairly?

“The most common approach to fairness right now is to take an existing model and check whether it’s fair,” says David Liu, a doctoral student at Northeastern who recently received a National Science Foundation grant to research the problems of fairness and and the inability to reproduce an experiment in artificial intelligence. “Instead of checking after the fact, what we really want to do is bake fairness into the design process itself.”

by Emily Arntsen - contributor April 26, 2021

How can we protect our privacy in the era of facial recognition?

Woody Hartzog, professor of law and computer science, received one of this year’s Excellence in Research and Creativity Award for his outstanding contributions to the field of privacy law.

by Emily Arntsen April 22, 2021

He studies how proteins change in reaction to drugs

John R. Engen, the James L. Waters chair in analytical chemistry and distinguished professor of chemistry and chemical biology, received one of this year’s Excellence in Research and Creativity Award for his outstanding contributions to the field of mass spectrometry.

by Emily Arntsen April 21, 2021

A bottle of spring water inspired this Fulbright scholar to study advanced farming in Iceland

En route to Reykjavik eight years ago, Tyler Gogal, a mechanical engineering student, received a bottle of pure Icelandic spring water. He still has that bottle today—a symbol of his future academic career in water resource engineering at the University of Iceland thanks to the Fulbright Open Study/Research Award.

by Emily Arntsen - contributor and April 14, 2021

Portrait of Kerry Eller, Connor Holmes, and Abigale Purvis.

3 ways to create socially conscious academic careers

Kerry Eller, Abigale Purvis, and Connor Holmes receive the Harold D. Hodgkinson Award, one of Northeastern’s highest awards for academics and experiential performance, for their dedication to improving health systems and creating socially responsible businesses.

by Emily Arntsen April 9, 2021

Left, Missy McElligott, associate teaching professor and director of undergraduate studies for biology, was recently honored with the University Excellence in Teaching Award. Right, Laney Strange, associate teaching professor in Khoury College, was recently honored with the University Excellence in Teaching Award. Photos by Ruby Wallau/Northeastern University

They inspire women to code and teach lifelong learning skills

Laney Strange, associate teaching professor of computer science, and Missy McElligott, associate teaching professor of biology, were nominated by their students to receive the Excellence in Teaching Award for their outstanding dedication to diversity and comprehensive learning.

by Emily Arntsen - contributor April 8, 2021

Illustration by Alison Booth/Northeastern University

Vaccinated? It might be safe to see friends, but don’t throw out that mask.

On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published safety recommendations for vaccinated individuals. Northeastern’s Brandon Dionne, assistant clinical professor in the School of Pharmacy, and Neil Maniar, professor of the practice and director of the Master of Public Health program, explain the main takeaways from the guidelines.

by Emily Arntsen - contributor March 12, 2021

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