environmental engineering

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

He wants to introduce you to the bacteria in your tap water

Deciphering the type and amount of bacteria in filtered water is extremely expensive and complex. To simplify that process, Northeastern professor Ameet Pinto’s lab is developing a low-cost microscope and easy-to-follow procedures that will help regulate how water quality is monitored.

• by Emily Arntsen   September 27, 2019

Want to find out what lizards have to say about climate change? First you have to catch them.

Northeastern student Madeline DuBois is catching lizards on co-op in Panama to study how the reptiles are adapting to climate change. “With some practice you know what shape to look for and you can see their heads peeking out of a branch,” she says.

• by Debora Almeida   November 5, 2018

Building for collapse: Professor designs more resilient steel structures

Buildings all over the world have succumbed to earthquakes because they were designed never to collapse at all. As a result, these structures are not resilient to unforeseen events, said professor Jerome Hajjar, who delivered the 54th annual Robert D. Klein Lecture on Monday.

• by Allie Nicodemo   March 20, 2018

Northeastern senior wins award as national engineering Co-op Student of the Year

Kelly O’Connell, E’16, came to college with interests in environmental issues and climate change. Today she credits Northeastern’s co-op program, backed by rigorous engineering courses, with guiding her toward her career goals.

• by Thea Singer   February 4, 2016

3Qs: For Big Dig, light at the end of the tunnel?

Boston’s Big Dig — the most costly highway project in United States history — has been plagued with problems since ground was broken in 1991. Last week, inspectors discovered a sinkhole beneath the surface of the I-90 connector tunnel, possibly caused by a ground-freezing process used during construction. We asked Thomas Sheahan, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northeastern University, to explain why the ground-freezing process was used and whether it caused the sinkhole to form.

• by Kara Shemin   August 17, 2011