Honors & Awards

PhD student wins national award for fluids research in stroke therapy

Alexander James Servantez — Fri, 17 Jan 2025 20:43:07 +0000

PhD student wins national award for fluids research in stroke therapy Alexander Jame… Fri, 01/17/2025 - 13:43

Alexander Servantez

Nick Rovito, a first-year PhD student in the Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering, was living on top of the world.

After submitting a technical publication to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Fluids Engineering Division, he was named one of five finalists for the Young Engineer Paper Competition and was invited to present his research at the International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition (IMECE) conference in Portland, Oregon.

Nick Rovito, first-year PhD student and winner of the American Society of Mechanical Engineer's Young Engineer Paper Competition.

Rovito’s award-winning research article is titled “In Silico Analysis of Flow-Mediated Drug Transport For Thrombolytic Therapy in Acute Ischemic Stroke.” The piece featured a multi-physics model coupling fluid dynamics, drug transport and reactions that emulates the clot-dissolving process in stroke treatment.

Simply being recognized amongst the other finalists at such a prestigious gathering was already the honor of a lifetime, he said. With over 1,600 research leaders across nearly 20 technical tracks, the IMECE conference features one of the largest and most diverse conference communities that ASME has to offer. It’s often touted as the largest mechanical engineering conference in the country.

But when presentations had concluded and the judges were done deliberating, Rovito wasn’t just a finalist. He was the winner.

As a graduate research assistant in the FLOWLab, led by Assistant Professor Debanjan Mukherjee at the ��«��Ƶ, Rovito conducts computational fluid dynamics research analyzing the mechanisms of thrombolysis in the blood vessels of the brain. This primary mode of stroke therapy involves administering medication to help restore blood flow by dissolving blood clots that may be causing a stroke.

“The FLOWLab is very multidisciplinary,” Rovito said. “We study stroke and medicine by analyzing fluid motion and transport through the cardiovascular system. Recognizing this allows us to apply principles of mechanical engineering to an otherwise medically focused field.”

His work aims to answer two questions: why do stroke treatments fail, and how can we increase their efficacy in the future?

“When you have a stroke, there’s an artery in your brain that is being blocked by a blood clot. Tissue plasminogen activator is the only drug approved by the FDA to treat this, but nearly 50 percent of patients don’t actually see the clot fully dissolve,” Rovito said. “A stroke left untreated could spell permanent disability or death, so we want to study the fluid mechanics within the vascular structure and see exactly how that drug is being delivered to the blood clot.”

Thrombolysis is known to present other dangerous issues, as well. Tissue plasminogen activator is categorized as an anticoagulant or a blood thinner. The drug’s job is to interfere with the clotting process and prevent blood clots from forming or growing.

However, the drug is not capable of targeting specific blood clots. It will dissolve any blood clot, including those that are not causing the stroke. Rovito says this can lead to severe bleeding if the drug goes elsewhere in the brain, or if it is overused.

Assistant Professor Debanjan Mukherjee (left) and Nick Rovito (right). Rovito is a graduate research assistant in the FLOWLab, led by Mukherjee.

“Around twenty percent of the patients who receive this drug experience major bleeding whether the stroke treatment is successful or not,” he said. “Understanding drug delivery from a flow physics standpoint helps us understand what the drug is doing when it’s administered so we can potentially mitigate those issues in the future.”

“I felt confident about my work,” Rovito said. “But I was just happy to be there. Everybody’s work was phenomenal. Any of the finalists could have won. So when the results came out, I was thrilled.”

Mukherjee, a co-author of the publication, had no doubt that Rovito’s work had what it took to win.

“Drug delivery investigation is at the core of our research group, and a lot of the strides we’ve made in modeling and simulation tools have been because of Nick’s efforts,” said Mukherjee, also a faculty member in biomedical engineering (BME) at CU ��«��Ƶ. “This is a very complicated problem, and his research is novel. The fact that he was able to win this award three semesters into his PhD pursuit speaks to his great ability to accomplish these technical tasks.”

Rovito hopes to continue improving this model and solving problems related to the clinical challenges of today. Their next steps in this project related to stroke therapy will be in collaboration with the neurology team at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, a frequent collaborator with the FLOWLab.

Beyond his research, Rovito also hopes to translate his technical skills into a long-term teaching career.

“One of my passions is teaching and scientific communication,” he said. “CU ��«��Ƶ is a great place for me to continue my technical work and develop as an educator.”

First-year PhD student Nick Rovito has been named the winner of the Young Engineer Paper Competition at this year's International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition (IMECE) held by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. His novel research aims to answer two questions: why do stroke treatments fail, and how can we increase their efficacy in the future?

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PhD student Nick Rovito (middle right) accepting the Young Engineer Paper Competition Award during the International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition (IMECE) conference in Portland, Oregon.

Celebrating the 80th birthday of former ME professor Roop L. Mahajan

Alexander James Servantez — Wed, 08 Jan 2025 23:07:26 +0000

Celebrating the 80th birthday of former ME professor Roop L. Mahajan Alexander Jame… Wed, 01/08/2025 - 16:07

The mechanical engineering community is celebrating the 80th birthday of former CU ��«��Ƶ Professor Roop. L Mahajan. With over 60 years of service in the engineering profession, Mahajan's remarkable career embodies research excellence and educational impact. He served as a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at CU ��«��Ƶ for 15 years from 1991-2006. He also served as the Interim Dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science from 2001-2002.

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Graduating student Aria Mundy receives the CEAS 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Award

Alexander James Servantez — Tue, 17 Dec 2024 21:53:39 +0000

Graduating student Aria Mundy receives the CEAS 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Award Alexander Jame… Tue, 12/17/2024 - 14:53

Alexander Servantez

Aria Mundy, a dual-major mechanical engineering and applied mathematics student graduating this fall, has been selected to receive the CU ��«��Ƶ College of Engineering and Applied Science 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Award.

The award is given to an undergraduate student who maximized their educational experience in a holistic way, with accomplishments across several areas.

Mundy is the fourth ME student to win the award since 1994.

A home-grown love for engineering

Aria Mundy, recipient of the CEAS 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Award.

Born and raised in the ��«��Ƶ area, Mundy always dreamed of studying engineering at the ��«��Ƶ. She loved math, she loved science and with encouragement from her early educators, she learned the importance of women in engineering.

“I was one of just a few girls in my physics class during high school,” Mundy said. “One of my teachers encouraged me to pursue a career in STEM and inspired me to explore engineering.”

Mundy started her undergraduate journey in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences at CU ��«��Ƶ. But after her freshman year, she decided to explore different areas of study in the college, eventually settling on the Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering.

“The awesome part about ME is how versatile it is,” she said. “I’ve held some different internships across different industries. It’s been awesome to jump around and get exposure to many exciting areas.”

Success in-and-out of the classroom

During her time at CU ��«��Ƶ, Mundy demonstrated a talent for academic success. She was awarded a scholarship by the BOLD Center and was a part of the CU ��«��Ƶ Esteemed Scholars Program and CU Engineering Honors program. In her sophomore year, she was accepted into the Kiewit Design-Build Scholars Program.

Aria Mundy crossing the finish line at the USA Cycling Collegiate National Championships.

Mundy also exhibited success outside of the classroom. She has been a part of the CU Cycling and Triathlon Teams all throughout her college career, holding leadership positions on both teams. In the 2024 USA Cycling Collegiate National Championships, Mundy brought four national championships back to ��«��Ƶ, taking first in the Women’s Club Team Time Trial, Road Race, Criterium, and Omnium events.

Success has found Mundy as a member of the CU ��«��Ƶ Wind Team, as well. In 2023 and 2024, the squad took home two top-3 finishes in the Collegiate Wind Competition.

“Being a part of the different scholarship programs helped expand my opportunities and community,” Mundy said. “As for athletics, being a part of sports has always been my escape whenever I feel overwhelmed in class.

“It’s been amazing to find some success at races. But at the end of the day, it’s really just about being a part of such a great community and finding balance alongside academics.”

Creating an inclusive culture

Mundy attributes her success in multiple arenas to the support of peers and mentors who took her under their wings.

Aria Mundy guiding middle school students through a science experiment.

“When I was a freshman, stepping into sports felt intimidating at times. Cycling has few women and engineering has long been male-dominated,” she said. “But I’ll never forget the women who went out of their way to make me feel included. As I grew older, I felt the responsibility to create that same sense of belonging for others, too.”

In many ways, Mundy was on the front lines fighting for diversity and gender parity in engineering. As a member of CU ��«��Ƶ’s Society of Women Engineers (SWE), she helped organize local workshops encouraging young women to explore STEM career opportunities.

She also participated in the Project-Based Learning in Rural Schools Soil Quality Inquiry Program (SQIQ). This experience took her to Paonia, Colorado where she partnered with Paonia K-8 to guide young students through soil-quality experiments, fostering their curiosity about science and research.

“CU ��«��Ƶ is a very welcoming place for women and underrepresented students,” Mundy said. "I strive to share my excitement and enthusiasm for engineering and community, showing others that they have a support system and can succeed in this environment.”

Making a broader impact

A strong love for engineering and outreach opened the door for Mundy to make an impact beyond the CU ��«��Ƶ campus, too.

Aria Mundy during her time at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

In summer 2022, Mundy traveled to Rwanda as a member of the CU Engineers Without Borders (EWB). She worked with her peers to design and implement a rainwater catchment system. She said it was “a true embodiment of what it means to be an engineer.”

“This project was a powerful reminder of how engineering can bring people together to create solutions that make a lasting difference,” Mundy said.

She also completed internships at companies in various engineering industries such as Tendeg, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, NIST, Specialized Bicycle Components and LASP. Mundy’s award nominator says she has contributed to new ideas and technologies at each company.

“My philosophy has been to try as many different things as possible,” Mundy said. “I’m truly grateful to receive this award, and for CU ��«��Ƶ’s support in providing so many avenues for me to learn and grow.

“If I had more time, I would love to keep exploring new things. I’m sad my journey is coming to a close, but I’m excited for what comes next.”

The Outstanding Undergraduate Award will be presented to Mundy at the College of Engineering and Applied Science Graduation Ceremony on Dec. 19. Mundy is considering pursuing a master’s in mechanical engineering while exploring full-time opportunities.

Aria Mundy, a dual-major mechanical engineering and applied mathematics student graduating this fall has been selected to receive the CU ��«��Ƶ College of Engineering and Applied Science 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Award. Mundy has displayed a vast level of achievement during her time on campus in areas such as academics, outreach, professional development and inclusion.

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Aria Mundy during her time in Rwanda as a member of the CU Engineers Without Borders (EWB).

Jayaram and team win IROS Best Paper Award on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics

Anonymous — Tue, 31 Oct 2023 15:04:48 +0000

Jayaram and team win IROS Best Paper Award on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 10/31/2023 - 09:04

Assistant Professor Kaushik Jayaram’s Animal Inspired Movement and Robotics Laboratory recently won the IROS Best Paper Award on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics, rising above around 3,000 other academic papers that were submitted to the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems. Along with Jayaram as the PI of the lab, PhD student Heiko Kabutz was the lead researcher of the paper, and PhD students Alex Hedrick and Parker McDonnell were coauthors, as well.

Their paper titled mCLARI: a shape-morphing insect-scale robot capable of omnidirectional terrain-adaptive locomotion in laterally confined spaces, improves upon their previous miniature shape-morphing robot to demonstrate the ability to passively change its shape to squeeze through narrow gaps in multiple directions. This is a new capability for legged robots, let alone insect-scale systems, that enables significantly enhanced maneuverability in cluttered environments, and has the potential to aid first responders after major disasters.

Kabutz and Jayaram’s latest version is scaled down 60% in length and 38% in mass, while maintaining 80% of the actuation power. The robot weighs less than a gram but can support over three times its body weight as an additional payload. It is also over three times as fast as its predecessor reaching running speeds of 60 millimeters per second, or three of its body lengths per second.

Check out their video of mCLARI here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbMi6ezXf-Y.

With the latest breakthrough that Jayaram and Kabutz have now achieved with their research, they are able to scale down (or up), their design without sacrificing design integrity bringing such robots closer in size to real-world application needs.

“Since these robots can deform, you can still have slightly larger sizes,” Jayaram said. “If you have a slightly larger size, you can carry more weight, you can have more sensors, you'll have a longer lifetime and be more stable. But when you need to be, you can squish through and go through those specific gaps.”

Kabutz, who leads the design of the mClari, has surgeon-like hands that allow him to build and fold the tiny legs of the robot. Kabutz grew up fascinated by robots and competed in robotic competitions in high school.

“Initially, I was interested in building bigger robots,” said Kabutz, “but when I came to Jayaram’s lab, he really got me interested in building bioinspired robots at the insect scale.”

Jayaram’s research team studies concepts from biology and applies them to the design of real-world engineered systems. In his lab, you can find robots modeled after the body morphologies of various arthropods including cockroaches and spiders.

“We are fundamentally interested in understanding why animals are the way they are and move the way they do,” said Jayaram, “and how we can build bioinspired robots that can address social needs, like search and rescue, environmental monitoring, or even use them during surgery.”

Assistant Professor Kaushik Jayaram’s Animal Inspired Movement and Robotics Laboratory recently won the IROS Best Paper Award on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics.

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The flow of nature inspires 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator Nathalie Vriend

Anonymous — Tue, 03 Oct 2023 20:30:22 +0000

The flow of nature inspires 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator Nathalie Vriend Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 10/03/2023 - 14:30

Michael Lock Swingen

When Associate Professor Nathalie Vriend was named a 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, a highly prestigious award in the experimental physics community, the foundation invited her to attend their annual conference. But she had to decline – she was in the middle of hiking the 567-mile Colorado Trail with her family.

She’ll be there next year, though. The funding provides five years of support for her research, which is itself inspired by her love of nature.

The Moore Foundation’s Experimental Physics Investigators Initiative supports experimental physicists to tackle their most creative research ideas. Vriend will receive $1.25 million from the foundation to further her innovative research in granular flows in the natural environment.

In her laboratory experiments, Vriend uses a technique called photoelasticity that analyzes how patterns of light within particles change according to the magnitude and direction of forces exerted upon them. The changing patterns of light can give Vriend a picture of the stress distribution between particles in situations like rockslides or cereals flowing out of a grain silo.

“We can measure how these tiny particles flow,” Vriend said, “and understand their acceleration and velocity and create models of their movement.”

With the funding from the Moore Foundation, Vriend plans to take her research to another level. So far, Vriend has focused on dry granular flows, like sand or snow, but now she wants to introduce fluid between the particles. In addition to the solid contact forces already exerted onto the particles, this would add hydrodynamic stresses as well.

“If you think about fluids like water, they behave in a certain way. We call it Newtonian. If you stress it harder, then it will resist harder, and it's very linear,” Vriend said. “But if you insert particles, it changes the fluids in a nonlinear way. And it makes it very difficult to model.”

The scientific community is completely in the dark about how particles function within particle-fluid states of matter, which are called “suspensions,” like mudslides or lava flows. Vriend’s research presents a unique opportunity to characterize suspensions by quantitatively measuring and modeling their interactions.

Ultimately, Vriend’s work has the potential to advance the analysis, modeling, and predicting of natural hazards like landslides, avalanches or ice formations.

“I love to work from nature,” said Vriend, who considers herself chiefly a mechanical engineer but versed in geophysics as well. At Cambridge University, Vriend spent nine years in the applied math department, where she worked on fluid dynamics before moving to the earth science department for three years.

For someone like Vriend who enjoys nature, Colorado is good place to be.

Since relocating to CU ��«��Ƶ last year, Vriend has been named a 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, a highly prestigious award in the experimental physics community.

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Department Chair Peter Hamlington selected for Excellence in Leadership Program

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 19:12:16 +0000

Department Chair Peter Hamlington selected for Excellence in Leadership Program Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 08/28/2023 - 13:12

The Excellence in Leadership Program provides opportunities for faculty and staff from across the CU system to become more effective leaders. These individuals will play a crucial role in meeting the challenges and advancing the future of our university.

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MacCurdy and collaborators advance research in genetic and evolutionary computation

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 14:05:00 +0000

MacCurdy and collaborators advance research in genetic and evolutionary computation Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 08/28/2023 - 08:05

Michael Lock Swingen

Assistant Professor Robert MacCurdy and his collaborators have won the ACM SIGEVO Impact Award for their outstanding contributions in the field of genetic and evolutionary computation.

The award recognizes up to three papers a year that were published in the GECCO Conference 10 years earlier and have amassed a high level of citations and deemed to be seminal. Their paper, titled “Unshackling evolution: Evolving soft robots with multiple materials and a powerful generative encoding,” was the only paper to receive the award in 2023.

MacCurdy coauthored the paper along with Nick Cheney, Jeff Clune and Hod Lipson, the latter being the head of the Creative Machines Lab, where MacCurdy and his collaborators met and did the work.

The paper was inspired by the Evolved Virtual Creatures created by Karl Sims; in his research, Sims demonstrated that computational evolution can produce morphologies that resemble natural organisms, but the potential for increasingly complex and natural morphologies hit a ceiling. It was hypothesized that the limitation in morphological types was due to the rigidity of the materials used in the design space and the direct encoding.

Addressing these problems in their paper, MacCurdy and his collaborators demonstrated how computational evolution can be pushed further through the creation of soft robots and the use of generative, evolutionary-based encoding that wielded the power of multi-objective optimization.

“When you’re trying to solve a design problem, it’s smart to show some humility because you don’t ever fully know the true nature of the problem,” said MacCurdy, “so it’s appealing to use a multi-objective design framework that gives you a whole population of very different solutions to that set of design objectives.”

Using their novel approach, MacCurdy and his collaborators were able to create a set of virtual robots whose locomotion resembled animals found in the natural world but also creatures whose gait was wildly idiosyncratic and unique.

“Some robots galloped like a horse. Others had the running gait of a dog or rolled along like a walrus,” MacCurdy said. “I think these designs were able to capture people’s imagination, while also motivating the use of generative algorithms and multi-objective optimization to solve challenging design problems, and that’s why the paper continues to garner citations and serve as an inspiration for others.”

A video of the work has garnered hundreds of thousands of views. Watch it here:

[video:youtu.be/z9ptOeByLA4?si=cNA1CG5olCEsncze]

The impact of the paper has received recognition at several conferences, while the SIGEVO Impact Award cements its importance in the robotics community. The real-life applications of the paper have furthered the study of evolutionary biology and the design of soft robots that can move in the real world.

Assistant Professor Robert MacCurdy and his collaborators have won the ACM SIGEVO Impact Award for their outstanding contributions in the field of genetic and evolutionary computation.

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Vriend named a 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

Anonymous — Wed, 23 Aug 2023 14:58:03 +0000

Vriend named a 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 08/23/2023 - 08:58

Associate Professor Nathalie Vriend of the Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering has been named a 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

The Moore Foundation’s Experimental Physics Investigators Initiative supports experimental physicists who may lack flexible research funding to tackle their most creative research ideas. Vriend will receive $1.25 million from the foundation over five years to further her innovative research in granular flows in the natural environment.

Vriend’s research addresses a major gap in the understanding of the precise role of
the discrete particle phase in dense suspensions – particle-fluid mixtures where the particles are separated by less than a particle diameter.

Even though liquid-solid processes are ubiquitous and can be measured and modelled on a system scale, the scientific community is completely in the dark on the details and the implications of the particle phase. Vriend’s methodology presents a unique opportunity to characterize dense suspensions by quantitatively measuring and visualizing network interactions due to solid contact forces with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution.

To accomplish this, Vriend will create dense particle-fluid mixtures using bespoke macroscopic photoelastic particles mixed in with fluids of different viscosities, densities and temperatures.

Photoelastic particles visually show solid contact forces (both normal and shear). The team will combine this information with Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV), directly resolving forces on particles and the fluid motion.

Vriend’s work on understanding the role that the particle-phase plays in suspensions has the potential to advance the analysis, modelling, predicting and forward-projecting of environment suspensions in natural hazards (e.g., landslides, avalanches), such as solid crystal mush mixed in with viscous magma deep in our Earth, ice crystals initiating in cold polar water reservoirs or sticky clay particles avalanching down the salty sea bottom in a turbidity current.

The Moore Foundation’s Experimental Physics Investigators Initiative supports experimental physicists who may lack flexible research funding to tackle their most creative research ideas.

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Teamwork leads CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team to victory at Formula SAE

Anonymous — Mon, 24 Jul 2023 15:53:04 +0000

Teamwork leads CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team to victory at Formula SAE Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 07/24/2023 - 09:53

Michael Lock Swingen

The CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team recently competed in the Formula SAE student design competition, rising above 101 other university teams from across the world to come in 20^th overall.

Put on by the Society of Automotive Engineers, the FSAE competition challenges students to design, build and race a car, all while adhering to a strict set of rules and guidelines that encourages them to create unique and innovative designs within those constraints.

Few expected that the CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team, which includes more than 80 members who range from first-year to PhD students, would distinguish themselves this year, since the team was revived just three years ago after a long hiatus.

“Although we’re a new team, we are doing things the right way,” said Project Manager Joshua Hansen, “and trying to the push our university’s name in the right direction in what is a great worldwide competition.”

The four-day competition, which took place this year at the Michigan International Speedway, is a whirlwind event.

The competition is divided into two broad categories: dynamic events and static events. Static events involve technical inspections, presentations and design review, while the dynamic events involve skidpad, acceleration, autocross and endurance tests and races.

“You go from driving the car as fast as you possibly can, and then in 20 minutes, you’re in a design presentation, talking to a judge that knows way more than you do and getting grilled on your engineering decision-making,” Hansen laughed.

And the faster you get through one section or test of the competition, the quicker you can prepare for the next. In other words, time is of the essence.

Watch video of CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team's car CB3 in action.

After being one of the first teams to pass the static technical inspection that confirms a car is safe and compliant with the rules and regulations, the CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team fueled up their car and brought it to the tilt test. There, judges strapped down their car onto a moveable platform and tilted it at a 45-degree and then at a 65-degree angle, all while a driver was strapped into the seat.

As the judges checked the car for fuel leaks, the test also assessed the weight distribution and center of gravity of the car, verifying that it would not tip over until a specified angle of tilt is reached by the platform.

After that, the team moved on to noise inspection. According to FSAE rules and regulations, every car must be under 98 decibels at idle and under 110 decibels at two-thirds the car’s maximum speed.

At first inspection, the team failed the test. Every team has multiple attempts to pass a test, but it also means the team is slowed down and lacks time and preparation for other parts of the competition.

As the team wheeled their car over to their business presentation, Hansen had one of his team members take the muffler off the car, run it back to the paddock, repack it with fiberglass to dampen the sound, run it back to the business presentation and reinstall it on the car. After the business presentation, the team then wheeled the car back to the noise inspection and passed.

“It’s inspiring to have a team dynamic where everyone is dedicated to having the car perform at its best,” Hansen said.

With so many moving parts, Hansen said clear communication and teamwork were essential to the design and manufacturing processes of building the race car.

“For example, there can be 50-60 people working on the race car at any given time during the manufacturing process,” Hansen said. “It was important that we stayed organized throughout the entire process.”

The design of the race car was organized into three different sections: chassis, powertrain and aerodynamics. If the chassis is the skeleton, the powertrain is musculature system that includes the engine and any component that converts the engine’s power into movement.

Since the FSAE rules and regulations require all engines be under 710 cubic centimeters, every race car uses a motorcycle engine, with most teams using a one- or four-cylinder engine, depending on each team’s strategy on the power/weight ratio of their vehicle.

“Our car is unique because it uses a two-cylinder engine,” Chief Engineer Kayla Ployhar said. “With a two-cylinder, we can see torque across more of the RPM range of the car, while using less fuel at the same time.”

Their strategy paid off during the dynamic events of the competition. “For the acceleration race, we placed 15^th out of 121 teams,” Ployhar said. “That definitely proved our theory that we struck the right balance between having a light engine while still having a high amount of power.”

The team also placed 7^th in efficiency, 25^th in the endurance competition and 45^th in autocross.

“It blew me away how well the team did this year,” Faculty Adviser Jeff Knutsen said. “It made me proud that it was my school.”

For next year, the team hopes to develop an aerodynamics package for the car, while streamlining their design and manufacturing process as well. They also plan to lease an industrial space in ��«��Ƶ that can house their shop and serve as their place of operations.

“I come from the older days of the team when our goals were just trying to qualify at the competition,” Ployhar. “It’s so exciting to see us go from that to being competitive.”

“You can never build the perfect car,” Hansen said. “But it’s that pursuit of perfection that makes it worthwhile.”

The CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team recently competed in the Formula SAE student design competition, rising above 101 other university teams from across the world to come in 20th overall.

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Mechanical's Vera Sebulsky wins Graduate Administrator Award

Anonymous — Mon, 17 Jul 2023 18:22:46 +0000

Mechanical's Vera Sebulsky wins Graduate Administrator Award Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 07/17/2023 - 12:22

Michael Lock Swingen

The Outstanding Graduate Administrator Award recognizes an administrator who demonstrates unwavering dedication to graduate students and exceptional skills in graduate administration

Can you tell us a bit about what your job entails?

My main job duties are PhD recruitment and admission, co-teaching MCEN 5208 Industry Skills (a required course for all ME professional MS students), grad program administration and overseeing the graduate administration and advising team.

Why do you like working with graduate students?

Many prospective students are a little shy at first, and I enjoy drawing out why they are thinking of going to graduate school and connecting that with what we have to offer. When students end meetings with, “Thank you, that was more helpful than I expected,” I am amused. And glad.

One of my favorite parts of working with MS students who take my class is getting feedback that some of the class activities have built their confidence and made them think in a way they hadn’t before. I enjoy equipping them with knowledge and tools that enable them to see their worth as they prepare to enter the job market.

What motivated you to work in this field?

I’m an English major and never thought I’d work with engineers! But I have discovered that the knowledge and skills I have built over my career complement an engineering environment.

Working in a university in general is meaningful for me for several reasons. Education has the capacity to expand minds and challenge beliefs. My undergraduate and graduate education did that for me and changed my trajectory in a variety of ways. I’m so grateful that I had access to that education. And now I get to do work that opens up access to others who are interested in higher education. That’s kind of cool.

Also, during my emigration journey, a small university on the east coast housed my family in their dorms for several weeks until we were placed in a permanent home. Universities have so much capacity to contribute to their region, and I like being part of an institution that uses its strength to give back to its community. It may be one of the reasons I like to support our graduate student volunteers in their K-12 outreach efforts. Our generous grad students take time to teach and interact with middle and high school students and let them know that they have what it takes to be an engineer. For some of those kids, those experiences could change how they think of themselves and nudge them to move in directions that elevate their lives and the lives of their families. That’s important work.

What do you love most about your job?

The people! It’s energizing to work in an environment where prospective and current students are reaching for something more, where faculty educate curious minds and conduct fascinating research, where donors and alumni pitch in to provide our students with scholarships and support the department in other ways and where staff implement creative solutions to problems and keep it all moving forward.

Another intriguing part of my job is generating revenue for the department via recruitment and other activities. It’s rewarding to know that the work that I do financially supports not just the graduate program, but the entire department.

What do you hope to impart to the next generation of engineers?

That they are a lot more powerful and worth more than they think they are! And that that power comes with responsibility.

What are some things you’ve learned from graduate students while working with them?

So much! To be curious. To be adventurous. To be kind.

Some of the most compelling interactions I’ve had with students are when they come to me to complain about something or to provide feedback. In those cases, the student has given me a gift when they point out something that’s not working in the graduate program. I can then examine the issue and see if I can address it. If I can, then a student who may have initially been frustrated feels heard, and there’s potential to make improvements to the graduate program. And that’s all because a student took the time to speak up. It reminds me to continue being an advocate for them and their experience while they are in our graduate program.

What are some future plans or ambitions you have to change or improve the graduate school experience in mechanical engineering at CU ��«��Ƶ?

I love leading a team. Anna and Megan are our grad program’s student-facing leaders, and they are doing a wonderful job of elevating the graduate student experience in mechanical. They are the ones who provide informed academic advising and compassionate coaching, propose and implement new ways we can improve our graduate program and build out events that bring our students together. I aim to provide the resources and support that they need so that they can excel in the meaningful and high-level work that they do.

What does winning this award mean to you?

It means a lot. When I read the email about this award, I immediately thought of my parents, Vitali and Maria. They risked everything to bring my family to the United States back in 1989. Now, here I am thriving in a job that I truly enjoy and living in a community where I feel safe and comfortable. I feel so unbelievably lucky.

It’s also humbling. I can think of so many other graduate administrators who deserve this award. I am grateful that the College takes steps to recognize graduate staff and hope that they continue to do so in the future!

The Outstanding Graduate Administrator Award recognizes an adminsitrator who demonstrates unwavering dedication to graduate students and exceptional skills in graduate administration.

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Honors & Awards

PhD student wins national award for fluids research in stroke therapy

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Celebrating the 80th birthday of former ME professor Roop L. Mahajan

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Graduating student Aria Mundy receives the CEAS 2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Award

A home-grown love for engineering

Success in-and-out of the classroom

Creating an inclusive culture

Making a broader impact

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Jayaram and team win IROS Best Paper Award on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics

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The flow of nature inspires 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator Nathalie Vriend

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Department Chair Peter Hamlington selected for Excellence in Leadership Program

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MacCurdy and collaborators advance research in genetic and evolutionary computation

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Vriend named a 2023 Experimental Physics Investigator by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

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Teamwork leads CU ��«����Ƶ Racing Team to victory at Formula SAE

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Mechanical's Vera Sebulsky wins Graduate Administrator Award

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Teamwork leads CU ��«��Ƶ Racing Team to victory at Formula SAE