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2021 News

1. Prof. Barbara Shinn-Cunningham is part of an interdisciplinary team that won the 2021 . This year the prize was shared by two teams of researchers. Shinn-Cunningham’s team used technology to find new ways to help hearing-impaired persons focus attention on individual speakers in a noisy environment, such as a cocktail party. 
2. Prof. Keith Cook has been awarded a $1.45M grant from the . The overarching goal of this project is to develop a pulmonary assist system (PAS) to support military veterans and other patients with long-term, incurable lung disease for a period of months to years. This award funds the comparison of the performance of a proposed PAS pump, the Cardiodyme CDX, to the function of established, commercial pumps to ensure that the pump can provide appropriate blood flow rates with low levels of blood damage, clot formation, and activation of the immune system.
3. The National Institute of Health’s BRAIN Initiative has awarded Prof. Bin He a three-year, ~$2 million grant to investigate the neuroscience mechanisms of novel transcranial focused ultrasound neuromodulation at cellular and neural circuit levels. He’s research aims to gain a better understanding of the effects of stimulation technology in order to non-invasively manipulate and control neural circuits. The grant will characterize neural and inter-neural interactions using the noninvasive stimulation technology, which could benefit patients suffering from various brain disorders. Dr. Kai Yu, research scientist at He’s Lab, is a co-investigator.
4. Prof. Charlie Ren is among the 25 US awardees of prize in the Catalyst Phase of the . This competition rewards bold, new, potentially transformative ideas to improve the physical, mental, or social well-being of people as they age, in a measurable and equitable way. Prof. Ren’s research intends to reveal the common extracellular mechanisms of aging across different organs.
5. Prof. Chris Bettinger was quoted on  about his biomaterials research. “It's really cool to see simple materials; we already know about their toxicity burden,” says Chris Bettinger, a biomedical engineer at Carnegie Mellon. “I think simplicity is often underappreciated.”
6. Prof. Byron Yu was quoted on Axios about his brain-computer interface (BCI) research. "Our understanding of what happens in the brain as one learns is super limited right now,” says Yu. But BCI “gives us an amazing window into how this happens.” This work was also featured by  and .
7. BME/MechE Prof. Carmel Majidi was quoted on  about a novel conductive hydrogel. The work was also featured on . “With its high electrical conductivity and high compliance or ‘squishiness,’ this new composite can have many applications in bioelectronics and beyond,” says Majidi. “Examples include a sticker for the brain that has sensors for signal processing, a wearable energy generation device to power electronics, and stretchable displays.”
8. Congratulations to former BME minor and X-COR Therapeutics co-founder Brian Chang (Class of 2013) for receiving the ! Selected from 2,445 applicants, the 2021 Class of  is made up of 30 outstanding immigrants and children of immigrants who are pursuing graduate school here in the United States. Check out . 
9. Congratulations to Alyssa Brown, BME/MechE graduating senior for receiving the Carnegie Mellon Women’s Association (CMWA) Scholarship this year. The CMWA Awards began in 1964 to "honor an outstanding girl at the university." The tradition continues today and each year, the Carnegie Mellon Women’s Association Scholarship Fund awards scholarships to selected graduating senior students, with a preference for students who demonstrate a commitment to the advancement of women in their academic pursuits. Alyssa’s extraordinary qualities and work ethic, commitment to Ò»±¾µÀÎÞÂë and dedication to excellence in the world of medical device research helped her get this scholarship.    
10. ChemE/BME (Class of 2010) alumna Young Hye Song, who is currently a BME Assistant Professor at the University of Arkansas, has received a $429,000 grant from the  for research in tissue engineering. The goal of the project is to understand mechanisms of fibrotic scar formation after a spinal cord injury to identify novel therapeutic targets. See further .
11. BME/MechE Prof. Jessica Zhang was named editor-in-chief of , an international journal for simulation-based engineering. As the new editor-in-chief, Zhang will emphasize and promote novel cutting-edge research and algorithm-based software development.
12. Congratulations to BME PhD students, Kalliope Roberts (advised by Prof. Keith Cook) on taking the 1st place in the podium presentation competition with her presentation In Vivo Development and Testing of an Ambulatory Destination Therapy Low Coagulation ECMO System and Mackenzie Maurer Ditty (advised by Prof. Siyang Zheng) on the 2nd place in the poster competition with her poster “Micro” Devices Solving the World’s “Macro” Health Challenges:  A Look at How Nanomaterials Can Help to Detect the World’s Most Critical Nanoscale Biologicals during the  (NEBEC) that took place on March 23-25, 2021.
13. A team led by Profs. Charlie Ren and Amir Barati Farimani received the Department of Defense CDMRP-Discovery Award. They will develop a ciliated human airway organoid model and associated computer vision algorithm to assess respiratory cilia beating defects in a high-throughput, non-invasive manner.
14. Congratulations to BME/MechE student Jackie Godinez for winning the George Washington Prize for 2021 at the  (ESWP) Virtual Awards Presentation! Jackie is the President of the  (SHPE) Student Chapter at Ò»±¾µÀÎÞÂë, March 2019-present. In recognition of her excellent leadership, the SHPE Chapter won the “Blue Chip Award” from SHPE Region 4 and the “Region Chapter of the Year Award”.
15. BME alumna (PhD, 2012) Portia Singh is featured on Philips career podcast “The Spark” which covers employee stories globally. Portia is a senior scientist at Philips and develops technology to help improve remote care and teaching fitness classes in her spare time. Click  to listen to Portia’s insights.
16. Congratulations to BME PhD student Daniel Suma on being named a Presidential Fellow at Ò»±¾µÀÎÞÂë. The Presidential Fellowship Program provides important financial support to recruit and retain outstanding graduate students, whose work here will ensure that Carnegie Mellon maintains its position as an international leader in graduate education and research. Daniel’s PhD research involves developing noninvasive brain-computer interface.
17. Congratulations to BME PhD student Chechen Mou for receiving a Neil and Jo Bushnell Fellowship in Engineering in the amount of $5,000 to be applied to her tuition. This fellowship was created through the generosity of Neil and Jo Bushnell and was established to provide merit fellowships to graduate students pursuing doctoral degrees in nanotechnology or electronic materials in the College of Engineering. The award reflects outstanding accomplishments to date and student’s potential for continued success.
18. Congratulations to BME PhD student Deepshikha Acharya for receiving a Ronald F. and Janice A. Zollo Fellowship in the amount of $2,500 to be applied to her tuition. This fellowship was created through the generosity of Ronald F. and Janice A. Zollo and was established to help support the graduate studies of highly deserving College of Engineering graduate students whose research is related to neuroscience or neuroengineering. The award reflects outstanding work and accomplishments in Biomedical Engineering.
19. BME/MSE alumna Michelle Wolf is featured in the  for her creation of an edible, sustainable alternative to shrimp. Michelle Wolf cofounded New Wave Foods in 2015 to promote healthy and sustainable eating. The company produces a plant-based shrimp alternative made from seaweed, and is in the final stages of a $15 million Series A funding round. Tyson Ventures announced an investment in the company in September 2019. New Wave's shrimp will launch in restaurants and food service locations in 2021.