ChE Professor Captures Top University Honor
(April 23, 2009) Demetre Economou, John and Rebecca Moores Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, was named the 31st recipient of the Esther Farfel Award. The highest honor given by the University of Houston, it is a symbol of overall career excellence. An internationally known researcher, Economou is a leader in atomic layer etching and has developed a promising nanofabrication technique expected to give researchers the ability to mass-produce nanotech devices. As an educator, he has gone above and beyond to help his students succeed during his 23-year career at UH.

Longtime ECE Professor Presented Inaugural University Honor
(April 23, 2009) Stuart Long, professor of electrical and computer engineering and university-wide associate dean for undergraduate research and The Honors College, has received the inaugural University of Houston Teaching Excellence: Career Award. Long has served the Cullen College of Engineering for more than 35 years as an educator, administrator and researcher. Over the last decade, he has been an investigator on more than 11 external grants totaling more than $6 million to promote the STEM fields to high school students as well as advance undergraduate research.

Civil Professor Receives UH Teaching Excellence Award
(April 23, 2009) K.H. Wang, professor of civil and environmental engineering, received a University of Houston Teaching Excellence Award at the 31st Annual University of Houston Faculty Awards Ceremony. For nearly two decades, Wang has devoted countless hours to daily preparation for his courses and juggled large class loads with volunteer work and administrative duties, such as directing the civil engineering graduate program, where he is responsible for all admissions and advising.

UH Robotics Teams Make History at Regional Competition
(April 23, 2009) UH Cullen College of Engineering robotics teams took first and third place at the 2009 IEEE Region 5 Technical, Professional and Student Conference robotics competition, marking the first time UH has grabbed two spots in the top three. Members from each team have toiled the last six months conceptualizing, designing, building and programming their robots for the annual competition.

UH Team Excels in Regional Circuit Design Competition
(April 22, 2009) A duo from the University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering relied on problem solving skills and classroom instruction to secure the first place title at a regional circuit design competition last weekend. John Hemmick and Osaid Shamsi, both seniors in the college’s department of electrical and computer engineering, were pitted against 10 teams in the nonstop, seven-hour competition challenging them to design and build a solar-powered battery charger at the 2009 IEEE Region 5 Technical, Professional and Student Conference.

Team Aims to Protect Public Water Supply
(April 21, 2009) As municipalities across the United States reduce their dependence on groundwater sources to mitigate environmental impacts like subsidence and flooding, there is a growing need for better purification processes to keep contaminants found in surface water sources out of the public tap. Shankar Chellam, professor of environmental engineering, is studying how contaminants are removed by membrane filters, how they clog filter pores and how the water flow is subsequently affected. He and his research team are developing pretreatment methods to improve membrane performance.

College Unveils New Undergraduate Lab Space
(April 14, 2009) The University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering has opened a laboratory devoted to enhancing undergraduate education through hands-on instruction in bioanalytics. The Biomedical Engineering Bioanalytics Undergraduate Laboratory, which officially opened in the fall, allows students to learn biophysical laws governing cell behavior to better understand how RNA, DNA and protein are regulated.

Multi-Million Dollar NSF Grant to Fund Science Enrichment Program
(April 7, 2009) UH engineering researchers have received a nearly $3 million grant to support Innovations in Nanotechnology and NanoSciences, a program intended to address a lack of proficiency in the sciences among middle and high school students. UH graduate students will work with area science teachers to help them discover new, innovative ways of articulating complex topics to their students.