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since 12/15/98 |
| Columns::October 29, 2001 It takes a village Research figures show increase for fiscal year 2001 Research professor receives ‘MERIT’ award from NIH Killer diagnosis Well-connected: Internet access is now in 96 percent of UGA residence hall rooms E-mail distribution list being developed for major UGA news New Peach State Poll surveys Georgians about public policy issues Linguistics professor examines effectiveness of vernacular speech College of Pharmacy names assistant dean for MCG pharmacy programs Newsmakers Heads up Campus News
Gearing up for the future Faculty interested in learning more about an institutional initiative to link engineering and other disciplines to address
Columns: What is the Faculty of Engineering? Threadgill: It’s an innovative approach to foster and synergize interactions among UGA engineers and faculty in other disciplines who have a strong interest in engineering because of its importance to their research, instructional and outreach programs. It also will include individuals from outside the university. Columns: How do faculty become members? Threadgill: We held an open symposium last spring to identify areas for interdisciplinary collaborations involving engineering. More than 100 faculty from nine of UGA’s colleges took part. We have two forums coming up on Oct. 29 and 30 to discuss our purpose and activities and to identify additional faculty who are interested. Then people will apply for formal membership, as full or affiliate members, depending on their desired level of involvement. Columns: Could you give examples of interdisciplinary engineering initiatives identified last spring? Threadgill: About a dozen were discussed. The dean of pharmacy, for example, spoke about pharmaceutical engineering and the fact that very close cooperation between basic researchers and engineers is a fundamental requirement for drug development. There were other examples relating to environmental and ecological fields--for example, the development by engineers of new sensors for marine research and water quality studies in our rivers. Food safety came up as another field of basic research with immediate applied-engineering needs. Nanotechnology, an emerging field involving engineering at the molecular level, brings together physicists, engineers and basic researchers in the life sciences, and a proposal for a nanotechnology center has been developed by a group that formed at last spring’s symposium. There are also opportunities in information engineering--that is, applying advanced computational methods to develop knowledge and information from the mass of data being derived about complex systems, and then using this knowledge to design beneficial systems and processes. Columns: So are you talking about collaboration at the laboratory level? Threadgill: Yes--that’s where engineering has to be engaged. Major research institutions are embracing a convergence of biological research and engineering, not only in bioengineering and biotechnology but in the process of evolving new or refined methods and techniques for basic research in all fields. Columns: How strong are our engineering resources at UGA? Threadgill: We have a well-established program in biological and agricultural engineering, as well as engineers in other programs on campus. In fact, UGA has more than 150 faculty in various fields who have degrees in engineering. Even though we aren’t as well publicized as that other institution in Georgia, our faculty are making innovative engineering contributions. We also have the flexibility to aim our resources, including new hires, in strategic directions that fit the basic and applied research needs of UGA. We can develop associated interdisciplinary curriculum initiatives and outreach programs. In addition to faculty willing to do the necessary work to move in this direction, it is extremely important that we currently have strong support from the central administration--the best we have had in the entire 26 years that I have been involved at UGA. Columns: Do you think any of this is threatening to Georgia Tech? Threadgill: It shouldn’t be. Rivalry is fine on the football field, but not if it disrupts the state’s quest for national prominence as a source for research and new economic potential. Tech is a leading engineering school and we are a leading institution for comprehensive, basic research. We have no intention of duplicating the scale of Tech’s engineering programs, but developing UGA engineering capabilities in strategic directions that are suited to the state’s considerable research investment at Athens just makes sense--it is required to capitalize on the state’s investment in the scientists and scientific infrastructure at UGA. Columns: What is on the agenda in the near future for the Faculty of Engineering? Threadgill: First, we need to keep getting the word out and establish our membership. The meetings on the 29th and 30th will help. We will continue to develop the agenda with the faculty involved. As I mentioned, some faculty have been working on interdisciplinary initiatives since last spring, and they have made excellent progress. We are discussing new courses--for example, undergraduate and graduate courses in engineering for non-engineers--and new graduate programs. We plan to bring state leaders and industry representatives to Athens to discuss ways we could position ourselves to serve other needs on the horizon, and we intend to meet with representatives of federal agencies about research funding directions. So there is a lot on the agenda. Columns: What kind of outcomes do you see three to five years out? Threadgill: Right now we are creating something new to UGA and new to the engineering community. One of our goals is to make use of and expand our engineering capabilities in directions aligned with the university’s basic research strengths in other fields. The university is clearly on the move in terms of extramural research funding--with large increases in awards from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. It is logical to add value to existing strengths with allied programs in engineering, and to provide leadership in developing new strengths at UGA. I hope that three to five years from now it will be abundantly clear that we have chosen the correct strategy. |
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