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Spring 2015 No. 12 A Magazine from the College of Science

Inside: Proteomics Lab AccreditationSTEM Accelerator OutreachTraining Military Doctors

Spring 2015 • Periodic Elements • 1© iStockphoto.com

Many biology majors graduate college without

any hands-on experience in researchor laboratory work and don’t knowwhat kinds of work are available tothem, even here on campus,” saysGeraldine Grant, a professor in the Department of Biology.To helpstudents gain that practical knowl-edge and experience outside theclassroom, the College of Science instituted the Biology UndergraduateResearch Semester three years ago.The program, under the direction of Biology Department Chair LarryRockwood and supervised by Grantand fellow biology professor ArndtLaemmerzahl, teaches students howto perform research, critique others’work, and present their findings.“Every project is designed to walkstudents through the full researchprocess,” explains Grant. The research semester offersstudents projects in a range of disci-plines, from molecular biology to infectious diseases and neuroscienceto the environment, using labs atthe Fairfax Campus and the Scienceand Technology Campus in PrinceWilliam County. “Professors develop projects specifically for undergraduatesto which interested students can

apply,” says Grant. Each student presents his or her findings at theend of the semester. “We ask studentsto make a poster documenting theirexperiences, but quite a few ofthem have even written papers forpublication in scientific journals,”adds Grant. Participating in this programcan translate into amazing job opportunities after college, as mostinstitutions and laboratories ask that applicants have some researchexperience. “In 2013, Zuzanna Abdala landed a job as an aquaticecologist technician right out of college.That job corresponded directly with the research she didduring her research semester,” saysGrant. Grant and her colleagues arecurrently working on expanding theprogram to more students. “We’vebeen pushing this program in everyway we can—e-mails, posters, andannouncements at the start of classes.Every student we’ve spoken toabout the semester responded withsheer excitement,” says Grant. Withthis captivating and innovative program, Mason is sure to land atthe forefront of STEM education.

Biology Research Semester Offers Students a Competitive Edge

“

On the Cover

InsidePeriodic ElementsBiology Research Semester 1

Proteomics Lab Accreditation 2

Center for Energy Science and Policy 4

COS Alumna Returns 5

Training the Next Generation of Military Doctors 6

The Science of Monsoon Forecasting 9

Dolphins in Dhaka 10

STEM Spark Ignites Early 12

New Initiatives in Multidisciplinary Research 13

Q&A: Center for Collision Safety and Analysis 14

NanoNotes 16

STEM Accelerator Outreach 18

Dean’s Message 21

page 14

Office of the DeanCollege of Science703-993-3622

[email protected]

AdministrationPeggy Agouris, Dean

Evans Mandes, Senior Associate Dean

Kevin Curtin, Associate Dean, Academic Affairs

Donna Fox, Associate Dean,Student Affairs andSpecial Programs

Martha Wescoat-Andes, Associate Dean, Administration

Ali Andalibi,Associate Dean, Research

Editor:Sharon Ritchey

Home Row Editorialwww.homerowed.com

Layout Designer:Beth Moorcones, EWM Design

www.ewmdesign.com

A publication of the George Mason University

College of Sciencecos.gmu.edu

COS cares about the environment – please recycle

page 2

The College of Science extends STEM education to a varietyof audiences through K-12 student learning experiences, internship programs, science teacher training, advanced career preparation, and community outreach.

See related stories on pages 1, 6, 12, and 18.

Spring 2015 • Periodic Elements • 32 • Periodic Elements • Spring 2015

The Center for Applied Proteomicsand Molecular Medicine’s (CAPMM)

CAP-accredited Clinical ProteomicsLaboratory is a medical technologymarvel mirroring the research andtesting performed inside. Lance Liotta,CAPMM codirector, along with codirector Emanuel “Chip” Petricoin,speaks seriously about the essentialphysical constraints of the new lab withits grounded plugs, sealed floors, tem-perature monitoring, and controlledaccess flow of inventory. But thesephysical elements are only a smallsample of the 1,200 items that wererequired to meet the accreditation criteria that included testing the entire lab staff for color blindness. The center conducts research focused on proteomics, the study ofproteins. Its researchers invent newtechnologies with the goal of improvingthe diagnosis and personalized treatmentof patients with cancer, Alzheimer’sdisease, diabetes, schizophrenia, infectious and neurological diseases,and other conditions.

A Meticulous Journey However, the journey from a cutting-edge university research lab to a College of American Pathologists (CAP)-accredited, cutting-edge university research lab has been years in themaking—literally making, by workingwith IT, physical plant, and safetyteams, documenting, training, andmonitoring every step of the process. CAP accreditation is a continuousprocedure with regular internal andexternal on-site inspections. Yet, despitethe effort, it offers tremendous benefitsto the university, researchers, and,most of all, the public. Research con-ducted in a CAP-accredited lab means

that findings can betranslated to public benefit two to threeyears faster than the typical university research study. CAP accreditation will attractrecognition from fundingsources such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) andpharmaceutical andbiotechnology industries.Liotta explains that when it comes to medical testing and results, “all we care about is the truth. Tests performed in this lab get us closer to the truth.” The College of American Patholo-gists states that the accreditation program is “equal to or more stringentthan the government’s own inspection

program.” The project was led byCAPMM scientist Virginia Espina, with colleagues Sally Rucker andAlessandra Luchini. Espina, who is the laboratory director of the ClinicalProteomics Laboratory and recentlycompleted her doctorate in biosciences,has a background as a medical techni-cian, lab director, and a blood bank

coordinator. She explains thatthey started the project in2006 when they began thework for CAP-CLIA certifica-tion.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration states, “theClinical Laboratory Improve-ment Amendments (CLIA)regulate laboratory testingand require clinical laboratoriesto be certificated by theirstate and the Center forMedicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) before theycan accept human samples fordiagnostic testing.” Once theexacting CLIA certificationwas awarded, CAPMM decided to move to full CAP accreditation.

Espina admits that thework needed to apply for theaccreditation was demanding.

“It involved retraining researchers to have a new mindset.” She explainsthat biologists (and other researchers)allow for mistakes in testing and mayuse chemicals and agents that are oldor expired or from different lots toperform tests where they are confidentof the result. However, you can’t dothat in a CAP lab. First and foremost,CAP labs need to be consistent in producing both tests and results. “Creativity may be good for research,”says Espina, “but it has to be methodi-cal, too.” Liotta explains it well at the consumer/patient level. “If your doctor sends you to a lab for bloodwork,” he says, “you will be sent to aCAP-accredited facility, such as Questor LabCorp, where you can expectthat your blood samples will be

handled in a specific way and that theresults will be accurate and consistent.Your results are important to yourhealth and could be important forpublic health.”

Testing the TestsOne of the most important benefits of CAP accreditation is in developingtests. Creating a new test for a disease,such as Lyme disease, which the centeris working on, requires precision. If aresearcher has an idea for a new testor a change to a test, it can now bedeveloped with the CAP methodology.If the test were developed outside of a CAP lab, it would still need to bereviewed and tested at a CAP lab. Thisretesting costs years of valuable timeand resources and delays potentiallylife-saving products and medical tests.

The accreditation is also huge for professional development andteaching. Researchers often do nothave the opportunity to work in aCAP lab. Espina provides ongoingCEU training and proficiency testing.The lab will also attract top talent and give students exposure to newclinical procedures. Espina, Petricoin, and Liotta areexcited about the accreditation andhow they can shorten the time ittakes to bring life-saving therapies to the public. “Our lab is the first CAPlab in the country to be dedicatedsolely to proteomics research,” Petricoin says. “We are extremely fortunate to have this great resourceto help us move groundbreaking discoveries and innovative therapiesfrom the lab directly to patient care.”

An Accreditation Featherin Mason’s CAP

A test for Lyme disease, caused by the bacteriumBorrelia burgdorferi, is being developed in the Clinical Proteomics Laboratory.

Virginia Espina

Emanuel Petricoin (left) and Lance Liotta (center) discuss CAPMM discoveries and technologies with U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (right) during his recent tour of CAPMM facilities.

Photo: Creative Services


© iStockphoto.com

Spring 2015 • Periodic Elements • 5

Faculty members like Kathy Pegion,PhD Climate Dynamics ’07,

are leaders in their fields, making important contributions to researchand conducting groundbreaking experiments. After a positive experi-ence with the “supportive and collab-orative” climate dynamics program inthe College of Science (COS), Pegionis thrilled to be part of the faculty.“I’m happy to pay it forward to thenext generation of students.” Pegion earned bachelor of sciencedegrees in meteorology and computerscience and a master of science degreein meteorology from Florida StateUniversity. She completed her doctor-ate in climate dynamics at Mason with a dissertation on “The Impact of Air-Sea Coupling on Tropical Intraseasonal Variability: Simulationand Predictability.” Pegion’s focus was on under-standing the Madden Julian Oscillation(MJO) phenomenon, the largest element of the intraseasonal variabilityin the tropical atmosphere. “The chal-lenge was to try to understand whatwe can and can’t predict,” she says. “I used a climate model to investigatehow the ocean and atmosphere together and separately contribute to MJO predictability.”

Pegion joined the Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and EarthSciences (AOES) faculty as an assistantprofessor in fall 2014. She says, “I hopestudents will benefit as much as I didfrom such a great environment.” Shealso notes the department’s growth in size from nine students when shestarted to twenty-four. Prior to her return to COS, Pegionworked as a research scientist at theCooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), ajoint institute of the National Oceanicand Atmospheric Administration andthe University of Colorado. Pegion’s goal is to better provideuseful, reliable predictions. Workingwith the North American Multi-ModelEnsemble project, a collaboration between national laboratories anduniversities, Pegion strives to improveseasonal climate prediction. As a student, Pegion was impressed by the faculty’s open-doorpolicy. She enjoyed the approachableenvironment and is excited to perpetuate that by giving back as a teacher herself.

COS Alumna Returns to Pay it Forward

”“Working with the North American Multi-Model

Ensemble project, a collaboration between national laboratories and universities, Pegionstrives to improve seasonal climate prediction.

© iStockphoto.com

the

COS Plugs into Cross-Disciplinary Energy Science and Policy

Energy represents power, and thenew Center for Energy Science

and Policy (CESP) is led by two power-house policy and research professionals.A collaborative effort between theCollege of Science (COS) and theSchool of Policy, Government, and International Affairs (SPGIA), the centeris codirected by retired U.S. AmbassadorRichard Kauzlarich, who also teachesin SPGIA, and Wendin Smith, presidentof Octant Associates, who specializesin environmental and national security. The center’s genesis was in COSin 2010 when Allison Macfarlane, then a professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy,before her selection as chair of theNuclear Regulatory Commission, envisioned a cross-disciplinary energycenter that would bridge the gap between policy and science to provideresearch and solutions for energy security.The idea for the center remained dormant until 2014, whenthe School of Public Policy (SPP) expanded its mission and becameSPGIA. The school’s new mission mergedwith the academic interests of Kau-zlarich, who had created and wasthen teaching a successful course onthe geopolitics of energy security inSPP. His thirty-two-year career as a foreign service officer culminated withhis assignments as U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan—a major energy- producing country—and Bosnia

and Herzegovina. He also served asNational Intelligence Officer for Europeon the National Intelligence Counciland was responsible for analyzing European energy security issues. His interests and background in inter-national affairs and energy issuesmeshed with Smith’s. Smith’s background includes research and consulting work on nonproliferation and cooperativethreat reduction programs for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Defense(DOD), as well as for several of theNational Nuclear Security Administra-tion’s initiatives. She believes one ofher most useful skills “is the ability to translate technical scientific issuesto policy makers who often lack thetime to delve deeply into the materialor lack the scientific background.” Together they have defined a mission for CESP that combines thecross-disciplinary academic and tech-nical expertise of the entire universityfrom the scientific research and sophisticated computer modelingdone in COS to domestic and international public policy studiesthat support the real-world needs of the business community, as well asthose of energy security and growthin Virginia. Kauzlarich says, “Mason alreadyhas high-caliber people working onscience and energy policy. This centercan pull those human resources

together.” He has seen an interest forthis from the students in his classesand students from other programs.Smith echoes this excitement, sayingthat she has the ability to share whatshe knows and “mentor the youngergeneration about energy science.”Both agree that energy science andenergy policy issues will continue to grow in both domestic and interna-tional importance.They are particularlyrelevant to the energy future of thecommonwealth in terms of renewableor zero-emission energy and thepromise of offshore hydrocarbon development in the Atlantic. The center is now reaching out to large consulting firms in the region,offering its expertise to train executivesand provide specialized research. It is also engaging potential federal cus-tomers, such as the Defense AdvancedResearch Projects Agency (DARPA) andDOD. “The Navy has lots of interestin energy efficiency,” says Kauzlarich. Furthermore, the center is strivingto become recognized as a vibrant partof a public research university. “Thenuclear energy intersection is strongin Virginia.There are also ongoing debates about uranium mining andoffshore oil drilling,” says Smith. “Wewant to become a voice of scienceand policy to provide solutions to thestate and to businesses working herein the energy field.”

© iStockphoto.com

Photo: Courtesy of Kathy Pegion4 • Periodic Elements • Spring 2015


We see connections in all the sciences,” says Kenneth

Johnson, an E-6 technical sergeant inthe Air Force talking about his firstpre-med boot camp semester in thenew Enlisted to Medical DegreePreparatory Program (EMDP2) in the College of Science (COS). Mason has partnered with theUniformed Services University of theHealth Sciences (USU) in Bethesda,Maryland—the nation’s only federalhealth sciences university—to create EMDP2 at Mason’s Science and Technology Campus in PrinceWilliam Campus. This innovative, five-year, $8 millionprogram aims to prepare military personnel to become doctors andhealth care workers in support of the U.S. military.This comes at a timewhen the nation’s growing doctorshortage extends to the military’sneed for doctors and health careworkers to have specialized trainingin combat injuries, trauma, tropicaldiseases, and mental health issues. “The military needs doctors in combat, and Mason has a uniqueposition in the community with a reputation of training students for a medical pathway,” explains DonnaFox, COS associate dean for studentaffairs and special programs. She isthe director of EMDP2, as well as aninstructor in the program. She ex-plains that the idea for this programstarted several years ago, and a requestfor proposal was issued by the federalgovernment with a strict requirementthat any selected program needed to bewithin fifty miles of the USU campus. Georgetown University is alreadyMason’s partner in the GeorgeSquaredprogram, which offers an advancedbiomedical sciences graduate certificateto prepare students for entry to medicalschool, research careers, or other

health professions. Fox is quick topoint out that GeorgeSquared is notrelated to this new program, but Mason’sreputation, coupled with its strongfaculty, cutting-edge research, state-of-the-art labs, and location, were a definite plus during the selectionprocess. “It’s a feather in our cap to havebeen selected for this program,” saysFox. “The selection committee wasimpressed with our technical abilitiesand felt we could deliver well whatwe proposed.” The first ten students enrolled inEMDP2 have been nothing short ofimpressive, according to Fox.They ask more insightful questions, worktogether effectively, and support eachother.The students are also older,most with families, and have a maturityand sense of service that the typicalundergraduate student entering amedical program has yet to develop. “The military selected the students,and the available slots were evenly divided among the branches,” shesays. “Each student needed to meettough criteria of having a degree, although not necessarily in the sciences,a 3.2 grade point average, exceptionalmilitary service, and most of the students have some sort of medicaltraining, whether as an emergencymedical technician, a paramedic, or working in a hospital.” What also sets these students apartis that they have all been deployed.Jesus (Jesse) Villarreal, for example, is an E-7 sergeant first class in theArmy; a cavalry man who has a combined deployment time of forty-five months. His enthusiasm and commitment for the program typifiesthese students’ work ethic. “I always had a calling to be adoctor,” says Villarreal. “But my path inlife didn’t take me there. I joined the

Army and I’ve been serving for thirteenyears. I told my wife that I wanted tosomehow be involved in medicineand began looking for training oppor-tunities in the Army. Nothing wasavailable to me, and I was makingplans to look for something else, giving up on my dream, when thisprogram came along. It feels as if itwere designed perfectly for me.” Johnson echoes this sentiment.He was working as a medical lab technician in a hospital and wantedto do more with his interest in medicine.The chance to become a doctor and stay in the Air Forcethrough EMDP2 was a perfect fit. The first hurdle these studentsfaced was the application process.Both Villarreal and Johnson describehow the opportunity “popped up”without much notice.They scrambledto get their applications ready. Whenthey were accepted, they quicklymoved their families to Virginia tostart the program. Fox says that on-campus graduate housing is availableto the students, but because they allhave families, this first group workedto find off-campus solutions. Villarreal

“

Training the Next Generationof Military Doctors

Kenneth Johnson

“The military needs doctors in combat,and Mason has a unique position in the community with a reputation of training students for a medical pathway,” explains Donna Fox,

COS associate dean for student affairsand special programs.

continued on page 8

© iStockphoto.com

Photo: Courtesy of Kenneth Johnson

Each year between May and September, drenching monsoon

rains pour down on hundreds of millions of Indians and transform landfrom arid to arable. Monsoon rains arevital, yet a fluctuation of just ten per-cent in the amount of rain can meandeadly floods or drought and famine.In 2013, after especially disastrousmonsoon flooding, India’s Ministry ofEarth Sciences awarded a three-year,$1.2 million project to the Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Studies(COLA) in the College of Science.This project works to improve mon-soon prediction so that everyone,from India’s national government to villages and farmers, will have life-saving, crop-saving time to prepare. According to James Kinter,COLA’s director and a professor in theDepartment of Atmospheric, Oceanic,and Earth Sciences, “In India, rain-fedagriculture is the norm for a few hundred million people.The earliermonsoon events can be predicted, the more time village farmers have to deploy the right kinds of seeds orequipment, or store rainwater in theirirrigation system.” A number of factorscontributed to India’s choice of COLAfor the project, including its decades-

long commitment to improved seasonal prediction in India and its specific experience in modelingand predicting the Indian monsoon. The COLA team is focusing on theaccurate mathematical representationof initial data on ocean, land, and atmospheric factors that affect mon-soons,and the many complex interactionsbetween them. Soil moisture, oceansurface temperatures, and ocean iceare just a few of the variables that determine how heavy, how long, how warm, and exactly where an upcoming Indian monsoon will be.In particular, the team is building onthe U.S. National Centers for Environ-mental Prediction’s Climate ForecastSystem version 2 (CFSv2) climate model.

Now halfway through the project period, the COLA team already has“adapted the model to several super-computer platforms and, by producing‘retrospective forecasts’ for the pastthirty years, identified and correctedseveral errors in the CFSv2,” Kinter says. Additionally, the team’s use ofCFSv2 in research mode has improvedmonsoon formation forecast accuracytied to El Niño events. A persistent deviation in ocean temperatures ofjust 0.3% from the mean constitutesan El Niño weather pattern (colder)or La Niña weather pattern (warmer).Both anomalies perturb the tropicalatmosphere and determine airflow, either in a downward, rain-suppressingdirection for El Niño or the oppositefor La Niña. “We’re finding that the CFSv2

model does a great job of connectingany ‘winter’ El Niño or La Niña eventthat occurs with a subsequent June/July monsoon,” Kinter says. “That givesmonths of lead time to prepare forflood or drought.” The team looks forward to COLA research ultimatelyproviding six to nine months’ advanceword on date of onset and also on the duration, regional distribution,and intensity of the next monsoon to come.


and Johnson agree that the support from the military and from Mason has made the transition seamless. An important element of this program is that the students are in adedicated cohort.They take the sameundergraduate classes as all pre-med

students, but they are taught inseparate sections with a groupof professors selected by Fox.The students report that thequality of the professors andtutors is exceptional. EMDP2 is a multiyear journey for these students.Thefirst year consists of undergrad-uate science courses, then a summer session covering organic chemistry, a year ofgraduate-level courses, followedby officer training school, andfinally medical school. Johnsonexplains they can apply to anymedical school in the country,but most of them would like to attend USU. USU comes with military benefits, includingthe opportunity to train for aspecialty anywhere in the worldthat has a U.S. medical facility.That isa huge perk to a student who hopesto deploy to a specific location, suchas Hawaii or Germany. When asked about the condensedschedule and the experience of goingback to college after so many years,Johnson says, “It’s difficult, but unliketaking science classes one at a time,everything being taught together allows us to understand how it is all

related. We understand more and at a deeper level.” There are ten students for thispilot year with about twenty-fivemore expected as the program movesforward. When the program is fullyenrolled, there will be a total of fifty students: twenty-five in undergraduate

studies and twenty-five in the graduateprogram. Fox has been teaching at Masonfor twenty-two years and says she seesa real difference in these students.“These students make me proudevery day,” she says. “They come to us with life experiences we can’teven imagine.They are wise beyondtheir years, and they have an unfalter-ing commitment to excel and to serve others.”

8 • Periodic Elements • Spring 2015

Physician ShortageStudy

Arecent study from the Associ-ation of American Medical

Colleges (AAMC) warns of a short-age of up to 90,000 physicians in the United States by 2025. Theshortage of primary care physiciansis estimated to be between 12,000and 31,000, while a shortfall ofbetween 28,000 and 63,000 non-primary care physicians is projected,with most occurring in surgery specialties. Darrell Kirch, M.D., presidentand chief executive officer ofAAMC, says the shortage is real,significant, and especially seriousfor the type of medical care thatwill be required for the nation’sgrowing and aging population. Hesuggests a multipronged approachto the solution, citing the need for more innovative and efficientmodels of health care delivery and increased federal support for graduate medical education. A minimum of 3,000 new doctorsa year is necessary to meet healthcare demands in 2025. “In the College of Science, wefeel a responsibility to help solvethe problems and issues that affectour nation and society,” says DeanPeggy Agouris. “Preparing studentsfor medical school through programssuch as the Enlisted to MedicalDegree Preparatory Program withthe Uniformed Services Universityand GeorgeSquared with George-town University is a contributionwe are making to help meet thechallenging health care needs of the coming decades.”

In India, even two weeks’ deviation from an expected monsoon onset can ruin afarmer. COLA’s improved models now can pinpoint when monsoon rains will begin.

Advancing the Science of Monsoon Forecasting

Improved Onset Date Prediction

Jesus (Jesse) Villarreal

Military Doctors, from page 7

Photo: Courtesy of Jesse Villarreal

Graphic: Courtesy of COLA

© iStockphoto.com

”“What also sets these students apart is that they have all been

deployed. Jesse Villarreal, for example, is an E-7 sergeant first class in the Army; a cavalry man who has a combined deployment time of forty-five months. His enthusiasm and

commitment for the program typifies these students’ work ethic. ”

“By making progress on monsoons, we’re hitting one of the three hardest nuts in weather forecasting.

Cracking that nut will be huge for science and for the world’sone billion people who live in monsoon regions,”

says COLA’s James Kinter. The South Asia monsoon affectsnearly 25% of the global population as it sweeps across

South and Southeast Asian countries. Other monsoon systems affect the Sahel in Africa and the U.S. Southwest.


This sobering fact haunts JenniferLewis, a marine biologist now

pursuing a doctoral degree in the Environmental Science and PublicPolicy program in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy(ESP). Admitting that she is differentfrom the majority of students in herprogram because she already has a doctoral degree in biology fromFlorida International University, Lewissays she was attracted to the Masonprogram because it suits the needs of students who are either interestedin research or already working in environmental policy.

She is also the founder of thenonprofit Tropical Dolphin ResearchFoundation, dedicated to the conser-vation of wild tropical dolphins. Shesays she first became interested indolphins in high school and beganstudying them as an undergraduatestudent at San Diego State University.“Dolphins interest me because theyare a top-of-the-food-chain predatorand easy to monitor. When you seespecies like these in decline, it pointsto deeper problems throughout thefood web.”

Passionate about her research,Lewis explains there are only threeknown remaining species of river dolphins. “Many Americans don’t even know river dolphins exist asthere are none in the United States.”Their appearance contributes to thelack of attention. River dolphins don’tlook like typical SeaWorld stars.Theyhave long mouths and razor-sharpteeth. Unlike the other two species of river dolphins, the Ganges Riverdolphin has nonfunctioning pinprickeyes. “They’ve adapted so they don’tneed to see to survive in their murkyenvironment.”

Lewis recentlytraveled to India,Nepal, and Bangladeshto make a documen-tary film about theGanges River dolphin.The film—Who willSave the River Dolphin?—captures the appalling everyday experiences of youngstudent conservation-ists in the region asthey struggle to survivein these poverty-stricken places andtheir determination to

save a species at risk. Economic andpolitical conditions in Nepal andBangladesh prevent effective conserva-tion efforts, Lewis explains. Country-wide strikes, coupled with deadlyviolence, frequently grip these countries. Noting how inspired she was by the dedication of the students, agroup she met through her founda-tion, Lewis says, “It made me thinkabout the nature of conservation. The challenges these students faceare intertwined with those of the dolphins. Human rights issues are also issues of conservation.”

Lewis works through her founda-tion to mentor students, as well. Collaborating with Shambu Paudelfrom Nepal, she helped him developresearch methods, analyze data, andprepare a manuscript for publication.As a result, Paudel and Lewis are coauthors of his paper.

As part of her doctoral program,Lewis is also studying filmmaking and storytelling. She points out thatThomas Lovejoy and Lee Talbot, two ofthe foremost researchers and voicesin the field of conservation, have aunique affiliation with ESP.As a scientist,she also wants to be a voice for theconservation issues she cares aboutand sees filmmaking as a way to accomplish this goal. Mason is in a fantastic location,Lewis says. It offers proximity to ahotbed of documentary filmmakingwith the Discovery Channel and National Geographic, as well as theheadquarters for conservation organi-zations like the World Wildlife Fundand the Smithsonian. She sees her future here in the Washington, D.C.,community and involved with Mason.For her, the chance to learn how to affect public policy, tell compellingand important conservation stories,and teach biology—all in a locationwhere grassroots efforts begin—is extremely fulfilling.


Dolphins in Dhaka

Pollution had destroyedmost of its habitat, anddamming projects along theriver caused the final blow by separating the animals’dwindling population to thepoint the animals could nolonger breed.

In 2005, the Yangtze River dolphin was declared extinct.

Jennifer Lewis conducts interviews inNepal for her documentary about theGanges River dolphin.

A team surveys for dolphins in Sundarbans, Bangladesh.

Port Dhaka, Bangladesh

All photos for this article: Courtesy of Jennifer Lewis


New Initiatives in Multidisciplinary Research


Multidisciplinary research is ahot topic in higher education

circles, and for good reason. “In orderto solve issues for society, you have toopen your mind to new perspectives,get out of your comfort zone, and findanswers in different places and withdifferent disciplines,” says Peggy Agouris,dean of the College of Science (COS).She’s passionate about the subjectand has seen firsthand in her role asdean how linking different groups andpeople creates a cross-disciplinarywave of new ideas and solutions. COS is a natural place to explore howdisparate groups can achieve newbreakthroughs. Just consider how abiologist can work with a geoinforma-tion specialist or a forensic scientistwith an animal conservationist.

Connecting the DeansWhen S. David Wu became Mason’snew provost last July, he took on thetask of implementing the university’sstrategic plan to develop research ofconsequence.Agouris has been workingclosely with him to support his visionfor new university-wide activities thatspearhead, foster, and promote multi-disciplinary research. She is drawingfrom her experience connecting traditionally disparate departmentsand encouraging new avenues of research in COS. Agouris explains that her approachis based on three key elements.Thefirst is to raise awareness acrossMason for the need to build multi-disciplinary teams, the benefits thatcome from new collaborations, and at the most basic level, find a way tointroduce people and groups to shareresearch. The second part is to look for internal and external funding sourcesto support teams and projects. Whilethere are many exciting ideas, with-out funding they will never develop.

The third piece involves incentives.It’s not always easy to convince researchers to share ideas, resources,and funding. However, when this barrier is crossed, it is shown thatmultidisciplinary teams are more creative and productive, produce better papers, and find new avenuesfor funding. Additionally, this will alllead to a stronger reputation for Mason;something that benefits everyone.

April SymposiumWith the three elements defined, thenext step was to develop a deliverymechanism. On April 27, there will be a university-wide multidisciplinaryresearch symposium—the first of itskind at Mason. Agouris says, “Weneeded a theme that represented oneof Mason’s signature areas, that wasuniversal and could pull together aswide a range of projects and peopleas possible.We chose to start withhealth. It has implications into policy,pathology, data, engineering, humani-ties, even history, to name just few.” Faculty, students, staff, and alumnihave been invited to participate inthis inaugural symposium. Interestedparticipants have been asked to puttogether a poster with a unique twist.A traditional poster presentation high-lights research findings. In addition to the “this is what I have done” focus, researchers are tasked to documentwhat they need to finish or enhancetheir research and why. It could be a particular, unexpected way to lookat a problem, or a diverse team.Theneed is as individual as the project.

Presenters will also have the opportu-nity to participate in a two-minutepitch session where they will connectwith other people.The idea is toleave with new ideas and having metpeople from other scientific areas and academic units.The symposium willalso include program officers frommajor funding agencies like the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the

Defense Threat Reduction Agency, and others.These are the types of organizations that are eager to seeand support innovative projects. After the symposium, the realwork begins.The provost has just announced a call for multidisciplinaryresearch proposals to be supportedby up to $50,000 in seed funding to develop new research teams, proto-types, proof-of-concept approaches,and ultimately lead to innovative projects that can attract substantialexternal funding. “This is a long-term campaign,”says Agouris. “We hope next year towork with other signature themes,such as big data and climate change.”This effort, and Mason’s increasing expectations for multidisciplinaryachievements, has also increased interaction among the deans, a groupAgouris describes as an interactive academic think tank where ideas anddiscussions are open and free-flowing.“We share a camaraderie that isunique to Mason, a spirit to get things done,” concludes Agouris.

Arecent study suggests that students who are exposed to

experiences in science, technology,engineering, and mathematics (STEM)early in life may go on to pursue educational and career goals in STEM. Appearing in CBE-Life SciencesEducation, a publication of the Ameri-can Society for Cell Biology, the studywas based on responses supplied by high school and undergraduatestudents enrolled in the Aspiring Scientists Summer Internship Program(ASSIP) offered through the Collegeof Science. Sixty-five percent of thestudents surveyed said a family expe-rience or childhood activity fueledtheir ongoing interest in STEM, andmore than ninety percent said a hands-on laboratory experience convincedthem to prepare for a STEM career.

Amy Adams, ASSIP director, suggests that these findings couldshape public policy and encouragecommunity-centered activities designedto foster a keen interest in science atan early age. “I am inspired by the ASSIPstudents’ recollections of what initiallygot them interested in science,” she says.Researchers recommend nature walks,science gifts, and experimentation asbasic activities to promote a child’sinterest in STEM.

Established in 2007, ASSIP is ahighly competitive program for highschool and undergraduate students togain hands-on experience and workwith Mason researchers across campuslaboratories. Participants use cutting-edge technologies to solve hypothesis-driven questions and often have their work presented at scientific conferences or published in scientificjournals.

”“In order to solve issues for society,

you have to open your mind to new perspectives, get out of your comfort zone, and find answers in different places and with different disciplines.

STEM Spark Ignites at an Early Age




ASSIP students (pictured above and below) gain valuable hands-on experience during their summer assignments.


PE: Delphi Automotive modified anAudi Q5 to make it driverless and is attempting the first cross-country tripfrom California to New York. What doyou think is the future for driverless cars?Kan: Google and other major playersin this space are looking to the government to regulate vehicle-to-vehicle communications and standards.If you send the wrong information tothe car, or different cars are not ableto communicate, there will be crashes.There are also legal issues to consider.If a driverless car causes an accident,who is at fault? We also need to lookat mapping issues. Designers can’tpossibly know every community, and changes happen fast. Work willcontinue, but it will take a while.

PE: What is CCSA testing at the moment?Kan: Each year, we have about twenty-five different tasks to support the first

part of a multimillion dollar grant wehave from the National Highway TrafficSafety Administration. Through ourmodeling and simulation work, we areexamining small overlap impact, theeffect of large trucks on the freewayhitting small cars, and different typesof roadside hardwares, such as safetybarriers.

PE: Any new projects?Kan: Yes, we just received a two-yearaward from the American ChemistryCouncil to analyze composite materials.These materials are lighter and strongerthan traditional metals used by both aerospace and the automotiveindustry. However, they are complex in how they are constructed. There are no standard material models thatcan be used at the moment. We need

to understand how they perform incrashes so that they can be designedfor important components in vehiclesand ultimately to protect lives.

Editor’s Note: Last spring, we introducedone of the newest research centers inthe College of Science, the Center forCollision Safety and Analysis (CCSA),and learned about their plans for a $16 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation and,among other things, deconstructing a Volkswagen. Now that Cing-Dao(Steve) Kan, CCSA director, and histeam have settled into their new facility,we decided to check in to see what’snew. We caught up with Kan who hadjust returned from meeting with theToyota tech team in California.

PE: What were you working on withToyota?Kan: We talk with a lot of different carand parts manufacturers throughoutthe year. We don’t have a specific project with Toyota at the moment. Ican tell you that as a company, Toyotais concerned about the quality of engineers in the automotive industry.They are looking to research centerslike CCSA to provide specific trainingand develop engineers who may notbe aware of the opportunities in this industry.

PE: How is the work you are doing different from engineering as we traditionally think of it?Kan: CCSA definitely is a multidiscipli-nary place. The tools we are using employ a lot of modeling and simulationwork, big data analysis, computationalscience, and material science modeling.Traditional engineering isn’t enoughanymore. The models we used for car crashes twenty years ago are nolonger sufficient to predict what willhappen today. The data we have todayabout crashes far exceeds what we

once had. Add in real-time weatherand traffic conditions, and the datagrows exponentially.

This need for multidisciplinary supportis one of the reasons Mason is a goodfit for the center. A growing part of ourdata analysis also includes the socialsciences. We need to understand how people think about driving and

respond to all of the new technologybuilt into cars. For example, Lexus, Infinity, and BMW all have lane keepingand blind spot warning alerts. Thistechnology is new and there are nogovernment regulations or monitoringfor it. We need to understand howpeople react and whether it improvestheir driving or if it’s an added distrac-tion that may cause more accidents.

We also need to work with experts onpublic policy and urban development.Washington, D.C., is one of the mostheavily congested areas in the country.But what happens when you look at a different city? What happenswhen a city plans a significant growthexpansion? Can urban planners,armed with transportation data fromcongested areas make more livablecommunities?

PE: What do you think about map applications such as Waze that willroute drivers, potentially hundreds of them, through neighborhoods toavoid congestion?Kan: That’s another example of where

we need to look at the data. We are all data driven these days and rely increasingly on GPS for real-time information. This goes back to urbanplanning. Cities and towns now haveto look at making improvements to roads and intersections that they didn’t anticipate as traffic lanes. Ourdata can help provide some solutions.

Proceed with Science

CCSA’s Steve Kan and Dhafer Marzougui, research director

CCSA research assistant Shai Cohen




© iStockphoto.com

”“Traditional engineering isn’t enough anymore.

The models we used for car crashes twenty years ago are no longer sufficient to predict what will happen today.

The data we have today about crashes far exceeds what we once had.


NanoNotesElements of Distinction about the College of Science,its Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni

Department of Geography and Geoinformation Science. The GeospatialIntelligence Graduate Certificate Program and the master of sciencedegree program in Geoinformaticsand Geospatial Intelligence have beenreaccredited by the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF) for five years. USGIF accreditation ensures that these programs matchthe necessary knowledge and skillsrequired of students in the professionalworkforce.

Lance Liotta, Center forApplied Proteomics andMolecular Medicine, received a 2015 Outstanding FacultyAward from the StateCouncil of Higher Education for Virginia(SCHEV). The award, thehighest honor for faculty

in Virginia’s public and private collegesand universities, recognizes accom-plishments in teaching, research,scholarship and public service. Liotta,along with Paul D’Andrea, Mason’sRobinson Professor of Theater andEnglish Literature, were among twelvefaculty members honored by SCHEVthis year.

Emanuel Petricoin III, Center for Applied Proteomics and MolecularMedicine, was named 2015 Innovatorof the Year by the Fairfax CountyChamber of Commerce. In its inauguralyear, the chamber’s Greater WashingtonInnovation Awards program celebratesthe thought leadership, innovation,and creativity of individuals and organizations in select industries in theWashington, D.C., metropolitan area.

Jagadish Shukla, Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Earth Sciences and the Institute of GlobalEnvironment and Society, has been

appointed to the Governor’s ClimateChange and Resiliency Update Commission by Virginia Gov. TerryMcAuliffe.

Claudette Davis, Department of Biology, was one of six applicants selected from colleges and universitiesnationwide to participate in the2014–2015 Biology Scholars Program Transitions Residency. The program,managed by the American Society for Microbiology and funded, in part,by the National Science Foundation, is a national leadership initiative to improve undergraduate biology education based on evidence of student learning.

Larry Rockwood,Department of Biology, receivedthe 2014 David J. King TeachingAward, the highestteaching honorpresented byMason. The awardis presented annu-ally to a professor

who has made significant, long-termcontributions to the overall educationalexcellence of the university.

Abul Hussam, Department of Chemistryand Biochemistry, was honored withthe University of Pittsburgh’s 225thAnniversary Medallion, awarded to an alumni whose achievements havebrought honor to the university andcontributed to its progress.

Alonso Aguirre, Department of Environmental Science and Policy,was the recipient of the Warner Collegeof Natural Resources Honor AlumniAward, presented by the ColoradoState University Alumni Association.

Thomas Lovejoy,Department of Environmental Science and Policy, received theWoodrow WilsonAward for PublicService for his outstanding commitment to public service relatingto environmental issues, biodiversity,and climate change. Lovejoy is theeleventh recipient and first scientist to be honored and joins Hillary Clinton,Condoleezza Rice, William H. Gates,Sr., and other distinguished awardees.

Serda Ozbenian, MS EnvironmentalScience and Policy ’13 and a doctoralstudent in the Environmental Scienceand Public Policy program in the Department of Environmental Scienceand Policy, received a grant from theFulbright U.S. Student Program to explore wildlife conservation issues in Armenia, focusing on human-wildlife conflict with threatened largecarnivore species. She will work withthe American University of Armenia’sAcopian Center for the Environment to conduct the first noninvasive population surveys of the gray wolf and the brown bear.

Ryan Clark Richards, a doctoral student in the Environmental Scienceand Public Policy program in the Department of Environmental Scienceand Policy and a Smithsonian-MasonResearch Fellow, received a grantfrom the Fulbright U.S. Student Programto conduct research in Brazil on theimpact of policies that promote forestrestoration and conservation to improvewater quality in the Cantareira WaterSupply System.

Lance Liotta

Larry Rockwood

Thomas Lovejoy

Harold Geller,School of Physics,Astronomy, andComputational Sciences, continuesas a Solar SystemAmbassador forNASA’s Jet Propul-sion Laboratory, a position he hasheld since 2012. His role in this out-reach program is to share informationand excitement with the public aboutthe laboratory’s space explorationmissions and recent discoveries.

Austin Bradley, Ryan Pfeile, and Wesley Toler, School of Physics, Astronomy, and Computational Sciences, won a silver medal in the fifth annual University PhysicsCompetition held last November. Undergraduate students from 131 universities around the worldcompeted in the forty-eight-hour online contest sponsored by the American Physical Society and theAmerican Astronomical Society. TheMason team performed a theoreticalanalysis of an assigned problem—“Where could a planet have a stableorbit in a system with two stars?”—and presented their findings in a formal paper.

The College of Science Dean’s Awardsare given annually to celebrate thesuccess of the college through therecognition of excellence, achievement,and service. The 2014 awards and recipients are:

Early Career ExcellenceAarthi Narayanan, National Center forBiodefense and Infectious Diseases.Narayanan’s in-depth knowledge of infectious diseases and scientificmethods make her a highly productiveresearch scientist. She has developedimpressive collaborative relationships

College of ScienceWelcomes Key AdministratorsTed Wynn, Director of Development,joins the College of Science withfifteen years of fundraising and development experience. Comingto Mason is a bit like coming home—Wynn is a Newport News, Virginia,native, with an undergraduate degree from the College of Williamand Mary and a juris doctor degreefrom the University of BaltimoreSchool of Law. He says that thegreater Washington, D.C., area is among the nation’s top threephilanthropic markets. He plans to implement a comprehensive advancement strategy to engagecompanies, foundations, alumni,and friends while working withunits across Mason to publicize the college’s accomplishments and create career opportunities for its students. He says, “Mason is one of themost remarkable stories in Americanhigher education. In less than fiftyyears, the university has emergedas a national research institution.”Wynn has a strong interest in sciencethat comes from his experienceraising private support for biomedicalresearch. Prior to Mason, Wynnwas a director of development for the University of New MexicoSchool of Medicine and a directorof development for the KeckSchool of Medicine of the Universityof Southern California. Wynn hasset himself a busy schedule. “Forthe first time in my fifteen-year career, I feel I have the green light and support to implement aprogram that I am confident willyield positive results over time.”

continued on page 21

with the private sector, federal govern-ment agencies, and laboratories. Inaddition to teaching and publishing,her research explores the developmentof diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines for the Ebola virus and otherinfectious diseases.

Impact AwardChi Yang, School of Physics, Astronomy,and Computational Sciences (SPACS).Under Chi’s leadership as acting director of SPACS, faculty membersand programs received numerousawards and honors, and her work as adedicated mentor was highly regarded.She also continued her research incomputational marine hydrodynamics,which has brought her worldwide acclaim.

Distinctive ServiceChris Aguilar, Department of Mathe-matical Sciences. Aguilar is recognizedas a strategic thinker and is credited forbringing many departmental initiativesto fruition, increasing operational efficiency, and being an innovativeproblem solver. His ideas, opinions, andjudgment are sought and respectedby his colleagues throughout the college.

Faculty, staff, students, and alumni are encouraged to send theirNanoNotes to [email protected].

Harold Geller

STEM Accelerator OutreachCaptures Statewide Award

Spring 2015 • Periodic Elements • 1918 • Periodic Elements • Spring 2015 Photo: Creative Services

Seshaiyer is a professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences,where he has a second office. He specializes in applied mathematics or,as he explains, understanding problemsand finding solutions using math. In 2013, he accepted the position as director of the STEM Acceleratorprogram.The program began in 2011with a mission to increase the numberof STEM majors, improve student retention rates, reduce graduationtimes, and assist with job placementupon graduation. To increase the number of studentscoming to Mason, Seshaiyer explains,it’s necessary to reach them beforethey are even considering college.That leads to creating programs thatstart in elementary school and reachboth students and teachers.The resultsare innovative professional develop-ment programs for teachers, sciencefairs for students, and pairing under-graduates with students and teachersin mentoring relationships.

Important LessonsA STEM boot camp in COS for enteringfreshmen is an intense week wherestudents are crammed with college-level science and engineering material.Seshaiyer says they come and “choosetheir pain.” It’s impossible for the students to learn a semester’s worthof chemistry, cell biology, calculus, orphysics in a few days and ultimatelyteach the students to learn to reboundafter they fail the tests. It may seemcounterintuitive to have this happen,but that’s the point, he explains. “Thestudents need to learn to fail. It’s okay.The more important lessons of theprogram are the ones where the students learn how to ask questions,structure their study time, work togetheron projects, and begin the school yearwith more realistic expectations.” The program is still new, but Seshaiyerreports that already they are seeingthat students who have completed

the program are doing better thantheir peers. Statistically, the collegeknows that students who falter intheir freshman STEM classes oftenleave their programs and gravitate to other degrees. This program is one of the mosteffective in the state, and the Acceler-ator’s team, methods, and ideas haveachieved international attention. Seshaiyer is working with the Organi-zation of American States and teach-ing a class in Suriname. He recentlytraveled to South Korea with sixMason students, one of who was adual-enrolled high school studentfrom the Virginia Governor’s School @ Innovation Park, where Seshaiyer is a program liaison and professor to the school’s juniors and seniors.

Award-Winning TeamThe STEM Accelerator’s far-reachingefforts are managed by a dedicatedstaff of faculty: Claudette Davis, MaryEwell, Kelly Knight, Mary Nelson, Julia Nord, Katherine Pettigrew, and Reid Schwebach. In January, the Accelerator was honored with a“2015 Programs that Work” award fromthe Virginia Mathematics and ScienceCoalition. The award “recognizes effective student and teacher educa-tional programs, and the coalition reviews exemplary programs forwhich there is evidence of a positiveimpact on student or teacher learning.” This award acknowledges the excitement Seshaiyer and the entirefaculty share for STEM and the powerit holds for the next generation of scientists. If you can solve a problemwith math as your tool, imagine thesocietal challenges that could besolved by students armed with a complete arsenal of STEM resources.

Padmanabhan Seshaiyer’s STEM Accelerator office in the College of Science (COS) is a jumble of books and resources piled on his desk

representing projects and people who come through his door every day.Theneed for more professionals trained in STEM careers—science, technology,engineering, and math—is the nation’s latest education clarion call. Seshaiyer’soffice is typical for any busy, high-energy COS professor until you look a little closer. Floor to ceiling white boards come together where two cornersof the room meet and are covered with lists, diagrams, and timelines detailinga Girl Scout event, a middle school STEM day visit, a STEM symposium at anearby high school, and a K-8 science and engineering fair to be held oncampus in May.

Participants in a summer camp for Females of Color Underrepresented in STEM (FOCUS) offered through the STEM Accelerator


“”

This award acknowledges the excitement Seshaiyer and the entire faculty share for STEM and the power it holds for the next

generation of scientists.


To the geosocial analysis researchersin the Department of Geography

and Geoinformation Science (GGS),the half-billion tweets that go out intothe cyber world daily, together withvast numbers of YouTube, Flickr, andother social media postings, are farmore than nonstop random blips ofcommunication.They are a huge sourceof data that, when carefully analyzed,can produce valuable insights intohuman behavior and activities.

How do people react to a majorevent? How, when, and where do they get their information about it?How do cyber communities form andbehave? What drives people to get information from one source ratherthan another? How do people’s feel-ings about a place define it? How dothese feelings change and influence a place’s evolving form? The GGSgeosocial analysis team developsnovel approaches to analyze social

media content and respond to questions like these. Necessarily, theirs is a multidisci-plinary team, with GGS professorsArie Croitoru, Dieter Pfoser, and Anthony Stefanidis (all affiliated withthe Center for Geospatial Intelligence)collaborating with GGS computer

engineer Jacek Radzikowski and computational social scientist AndrewCrooks from the Krasnow Institutefor Advanced Study. Building on theirdiverse scientific backgrounds, the researchers develop new tools forharvesting and analyzing social mediadata and for communicating theirfindings. By studying the spatial andtemporal patterns of informationpropagation, the group tries to definethe mechanisms behind what itsmembers refer to as the “geosocialwaves” of interaction and communica-tion in social media. “When somethinghappens, people pick up on it, andthen other people pick up on that. In this manner, waves of informationpropagate across a crowd,” saysCrooks. In its three years together, thegroup has applied its geosocial analysisapproach to a variety of major events.These include natural disasters suchas earthquakes and hurricanes togeopolitical events such as the unfold-ing situation in Syria. Ultimately, theirtools and findings may become vital,actionable resources for political research, urban planning, media research, marketing, emergency response planning, and other fields.Public health research may be amongthe first areas to benefit through in-sight on how societies react to diseaseoutbreaks such as flu and Ebola. “This is a new way to gauge society that was not possible before,”say Croitoru. Instead of basing find-ings on samples of a few hundredpeople, we can now study millions ofpeople, connecting their cyberspaceactivities to the physical space inwhich they act.The emerging possi-bilities to advance our understandingof how the world around us is organ-ized and continuously reorganized as a system of connections across social, physical, and cyber spaces are endless.

From Social Media Data to Social Knowledge

© iStockphoto.com

”“Our geosocial analysis research

is revealing patterns that arenot spatial or social or cyber, but an aggregation across

these dimensions.

— Anthony Stefanidis

Anthony StefanidisPhoto: Creative Services

Dean’s Message

Peggy AgourisDean, College of Science

Spring is finally making its way across our campuses, and our students are taking their studies outside to share the sunshine and warmth

with other students. This natural interaction evokes the spirit of learning at Mason and in the College of Science. As a community of science, we can’t exist in isolation. In the same way that our students are sharing the season with each other, we mustalso interact with other parts of society. This issue of Periodic Elements highlights some of the conversationsand connections that the college engages in throughout the year. You’llread about activities that introduce young students to science, how we provide teachers with new methods and best practices for teaching science, and why we explore problems in search of solutions that benefitour global neighbors. I know you’ll be both excited and impressed to learn about the differentprograms and people who are associated with the college and our manyconnections that promote STEM education to a wide variety of audiences. I invite you to find your own warm patch of sun or a place with a nice viewand spend some time with these stories. I hope the connections we aremaking will inspire you to connect with us, too.


Read past issues ofPeriodic Elements at cos.gmu.edu

/GeorgeMasonCOS

@GMU_COS

Mason Science

/MasonCOS

/Mason_COS

Connect with COS!

Ali Andalibi, Associate Dean for Research, is one of the newest members of the College of Scienceleadership team, having stepped intohis role in February. Mason is a good fit for Andalibi,whose background is in genetics. He earned his doctorate from the University of California, Los Angeles(UCLA) and has worked in academia,as well as in government and thebiotechnology industry. He has heldleadership positions at the NationalCancer Institute and the National Science Foundation, and was the vice president for research at the LosAngeles Biomedical Research Instituteat Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Prior tojoining Mason, Alibi was the assistantvice president for research developmentand technology commercialization atthe University of Connecticut. Andalibiwill be focusing on enhancing the college’s research activities and expanding its culture of innovationand entrepreneurship. “I’m excited to contribute to Mason’sfuture by supporting faculty and ex-panding research and entrepreneurialactivities and programs,” Andalibisays. “Mason should be seen as aplace of research excellence withworldwide recognition.”

New Key Administrators, from page 17

Biology students examine flowers onthe Fairfax campus.


Join us for the College of Science ConvocationWednesday, May 13, 2015, 2 p.m.

at the Patriot Center


Following many years of planning, support, and perseveranceamong university, community, and government leaders, the

long-awaited and much-anticipated Potomac Science Centeropens next year near Belmont Bay in eastern PrinceWilliam County.

The three-story, 50,000-square-foot waterfront facility reinforces Mason’s commitment to environmental conservation and sustainability through the use of sustainable building materials and unique features such as rainwater harvesting, stormwater management,and sustainable functions for energy, lighting, and operations.

The building stands on property that was generouslydonated by long-time builder and developer PrestonCaruthers. He has used his resources and his out-standing record of public service to provide educa-tional opportunities and a better quality of life for citizens throughout Northern Virginia and thecommonwealth. Caruthers first envisioned developingthe Belmont Bay area nearly fifty years ago and isstill leaving his mark on the area today.

The Potomac Environmental Research and Education Center(PEREC) will be among the first programs at Potomac ScienceCenter. Founded on nearly three decades of research on the Potomac River Watershed, PEREC scientists monitor andpromote the health of the Potomac River and its surrounding waters and ecosystems in Northern Virginia. Along with graduatestudents and volunteers, they also partner with schools andcommunity organizations to advance environmental education,conservation, and stewardship

Geoinformation scientists based at the Potomac Science Centerwill engage in the discovery and development of industry-relatedtools and products. Incubator space is planned to support newcompanies founded on the results of these activities, which mayproduce a positive impact on regional economic development.The secure environment surrounding the center will also supportcollaborative projects with the National Geospatial-IntelligenceAgency.

Taking Science to the Community

As part of its partnership with the community, the Potomac Science

Center will nurture interest and participation in science through displays, hands-on projects,

workshops, and other activities for arearesidents, students, and educators.

Photo: Courtesy of R. Christian Jones

Construction of the Potomac Science Center is underway.

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