Message from the Dean - October 2007
Dear Friends of Engineering,
It's been clear for the last several years that UW Engineering is a rising star — and the rest of the world is taking note. Recently the MacArthur Foundation named faculty member Yoky Matsuoka one of this year's Fellows for her work combining neuroscience and robotics.
This prestigious award, often referred to as a “Genius” award, grants Dr. Matsuoka a $500,000 prize that will allow her to follow her most creative and ambitious ideas.
Also this fall, Technology Review magazine, published by MIT, recognized two faculty members and one graduate student as being among the top 35 innovators under the age of 35. A select few universities have had three members on this list in one year.
These awards confirm that we are attracting top-quality faculty and students. And their impact will magnify as these researchers continue to mature, becoming standout leaders in their fields and drawing more outstanding faculty and students to the UW.
In this issue of Washington Engineer you can learn more about the innovative research that earned our recent winners their accolades, as well as new research results. These include:
- A revolutionary plastic body for the recently unveiled Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which had contributions from UW engineers
- A voice-activated joystick, one of the College's many projects creating technology to help people with limited mobility
- Bioengineers developing high-intensity focused ultrasound to heal internal injuries
We're moving on other fronts, too. I'm excited about the CoE leadership and our latest appointments, described below. We have recently recruited a dynamic new chair for Civil & Environmental Engineering who will lead an expansion of that program that focuses on sustainable design. We have also appointed new chairs in Electrical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering, and searches are under way for new chairs in Bioengineering and Technical Communication.
Clearly, the best attract the best, which is why we need many more endowed scholarships, fellowships, and professorships to help draw the best to Seattle. During the last fiscal year, the UW exceeded $1 billion in research funding. A year ago, the College of Engineering's total was $95 million, and we're close to that number for FY07.
What a terrific way to kick off a new academic year. Thank you for taking time to learn more about the College with the October 2007 issue of Washington Engineer.
Sincerely,
Matt O’Donnell
Frank and Julie Jungers Dean of Engineering
