June 12, 2023
The main amplifiers at the OMEGA EP laser at the University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics. (University of Rochester photo / J. Adam Fenster)
Dear Members of the Hajim School Community,
You are invited to participate in a virtual event on Tuesday, June 13 that will explore the future of what is arguably the holy grail of energy production—fusion energy. As part of the Huang Speaker Series in Technology and Innovation, I will moderate a discussion between Radha Bahukutumbi ’01S (MBA), distinguished scientist at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE), and Christopher Deeney, director of LLE. They will discuss recent milestones in the field of fusion energy and LLE’s critical role in current and future developments, the role of the OMEGA and OMEGA-EP lasers at the LLE, and the challenges of creating a power plant.
The Huang Speaker Series in Technology and Innovation supports an annual program focused on engaging and educating our alumni and friends. It is made possible through the generosity and vision of Robert Huang ’70 (MS), ’76M (MA).
The free event takes place from noon to 1 p.m. tomorrow and is open to anyone with an interest in fusion energy. Register on the alumni and advancement website.
EXPERTS CONVERGE ON THE RIVER CAMPUS
Members of the Center for Matter at Atomic Pressures (CMAP) gathered for the center’s second annual meeting on the River Campus in late May. (Credit: Center for Matter at Atomic Pressures / Jake Deats)
Since the close of the spring semester, the Hajim School has hosted several events where leading experts from academia, government labs, and industry converged to discuss the latest research and advancements in some critical fields.
The Center for Matter at Atomic Pressures (CMAP) convened its second annual meeting on the River Campus in late May. Hosted at the University of Rochester and designated as a National Science Foundation (NSF) Physics Frontiers Center, CMAP is a collaboration among faculty, scientists, researchers, and students at MIT, Princeton, the Universities of California at Berkeley and Davis, the University at Buffalo, and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The scholars discussed everything from new progress in planetary and stellar physics to revolutionary states of matter right here on Earth.
Then in early June, the Center for Freeform Optics (CeFO) hosted its Industrial Advisory Board meeting, bringing researchers from companies including Samsung, Meta’s Reality Labs, and Ball Aerospace & TechnologiesC orp. to campus to discuss exciting new optical systems projects. Now in its 10th year, CeFO is a joint industry-government-university cooperative research center led by the University of Rochester and funded primarily through industry and government lab members.
We are honored to serve as a hub where many of the world’s leading scientists come to collaborate and permeate new ideas.
2023 IEEE INSTRUMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT FELLOWSHIP
Congratulations to biomedical engineering PhD candidate Siladitya Khan, who received the prestigious 2023 IEEE Instrumentation and Measurement Fellowship to support his graduate dissertation research with Associate Professor Steve McAleavey, chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering. Siladitya is developing and testing a non-invasive quantitative viscoelastic imaging system with Acoustic Radiation Force (ARF) induced shear wave elastography for mapping mechanical properties of infectious microenvironments.
THE HEALING POWER OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Richard Colón, Hajim School academic counselor, spoke to Spectrum News about how photography helps him preserve his mental health.
As educators, engineers, and scientists, we often turn to the arts to find balance in our lives. One of the Hajim School’s academic counselors, Richard Colón, opened up to Spectrum News recently about how photography helps him maintain his mental health.
In a powerful profile about Richard, he shared how he encourages his students to leverage the mental health resources available to them.
“I always tell them to make sure they make connections to the people that are important to your life so that if they’re going through something, they can confide in them and hopefully utilize them so they don’t go through something that’s traumatic on their own,” Richard says.
Richard’s photography is exhibited every first Friday of the month at his gallery, Behind the Glass, at Mercantile on Main in Rochester. Watch the profile.
CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH
Juneteenth—also known as National Freedom Day—is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. The university will be closed on Monday, June 19 in recognition of the holiday and therefore the next edition of Hajim Highlights will arrive on Tuesday, June 20.
Have a great holiday!
Your dean,
Wendi Heinzelman
