LLC Newsletter

UChicago Argonne, LLC images

View Archives

April 21, 2008

This Month in Research Update:

OVPRNL News

Two new members join Board of Governors for Argonne
 UChicago Argonne, LLC has named Avijit Ghosh, Vice President Tech & Economic Development and Professor of Business Administration, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Joseph Walsh, Vice President for Research and Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University to its Board of Governors for Argonne National Laboratory.

UChicago Argonne, LLC, a University of Chicago company which operates Argonne for the U.S. Department of Energy, selects new board members from faculty, administrators and trustees of the University, as well as from other universities, national and international organizations, and from industry.

Ghosh, Vice President Tech & Economic Development and Professor of Business Administration, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, served as Dean of the College of Business from August 2001 through December 2007. Before joining the University of Illinois, he served as the Vice Dean and Deputy Dean at NYU's Leonard N. Stern School of Business, an institution he joined in 1980. As the Langone Professor of Marketing, he served as director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at Stern from 1991 - 1994. In 1995, he was appointed as Vice Dean of the Stern School with overall responsibility for the full-time and part-time MBA programs as well as executive education. In this role he brought about significant changes in the MBA programs, including curriculum innovations, improved student quality and job placement, and enhanced administrative services. In 1998 Ghosh was appointed to the position of Deputy Dean, a newly created position that shared the overall leadership and responsibility for the school with the Dean.

Since coming to Illinois in 2001, Ghosh spearheaded a number of new initiatives including launching new programs, revising existing programs and starting new research centers. Ghosh also fostered significant changes to the undergraduate program. Under his leadership, the College sharpened its focus on graduate and professional education, which has attracted significant external recognition. In an effort to serve the Chicago corporate community more directly, the college established new programs for working professionals in downtown Chicago. In fall 2003, the College of Business began offering its Executive MBA degree in cooperation with the University of Warsaw in Warsaw, Poland. Ghosh currently oversees a $75 million fundraising campaign to fund the construction of a state-of-the-art instructional facility, double the endowment for named chairs, programmatic initiatives, research support, and student scholarships and fellowships.

Ghosh's research interests are in the areas of marketing and retail strategy and location analysis. He is a well known educator, researcher and consultant in these fields. He is the author of a number of books on retailing and location analysis, and his research has appeared in leading academic journals in marketing and geography. He was the editor of the Journal of Retailing from 1985 to 1991 and has served on the editorial boards of a number of professional journals.

Ghosh received his Bachelor of Science from Calcutta University, a Post-Graduate Degree in Business from Xavier Institute, and a Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Iowa.

Walsh, Vice President for Research and Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, began his career in 1979 at M.I.T. as a research assistant, teaching assistant and graduate resident advisor. From 1984-1988 he worked as a research assistant in the Wellman Laboratories at Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital. In 1988 he became an assistant professor of Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University, then professor in 2000. From 1996-97 Walsh was visiting professor, Institute d`Optique Appliquée, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland. In 2002, he served as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research at Northwestern University and then in 2005 he became Senior Associate Dean of the McCormick School. In 2007, he became the Vice-President for Research.

Walsh's research area is the study of light-tissue interactions. He has a 25-year history of investigating the photophysics and photobiology of laser-based ablation. He is currently investigating tissue birefringence feedback systems, the propagation of polarized light in tissue, optically induced stimulation of the auditory system, and nanostructured surfaces for biosensing applications. Walsh is a co-investigator in an NSF-funded Engineering Research Center that conducts research at the confluence of university engineering teaching and educational theory. He is the principle investigator on two NIH grants: one that has resulted in the development of a surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy glucose sensor; the other that has yielded a polarization based imaging system for identification of pathologic lesions without biopsy.

Walsh's awards and honors include Vice-President and President, American Society for Lasers in Medicine and Surgery; William B. Mark Award, American Society for Lasers in Surgery and Medicine; Advisor of the Year Award, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Northwestern; The Keynote Speaker, 25th Anniversary Meeting of the American Society for Lasers in Medicine and Surgery; Fellow, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering; Teacher of the Year Award, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Northwestern; National Science Foundation Young Investigator Award; and many others.

He has chaired numerous international conferences and his research has been published in a wide variety of refereed journals. He has written review articles, book chapters, conference proceedings, abstracts, book reviews and given many talks. His discoveries have resulted in several patents.

Walsh earned his B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. in Medical Engineering from Harvard Medical School-Massachusetts Institute of Technology Division of Health Sciences and Technology.

For more information about UChicago Argonne, LLC Board of Governors for
Argonne, please click here.

First class to complete Strategic Laboratory Leadership Program

The first class of The University of Chicago Strategic Laboratory Leadership Program (SLLP) will complete the non-degree, executive education leadership program this month.

SLLP was developed by the University of Chicago Office of the Vice President for Research and for National Laboratories as part of the management contracts for both Laboratories. The curriculum, developed and offered by the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business in close partnership with both Laboratories, introduces theories and practical tools to Argonne and Fermilab leadership.

The aim of the SLLP is to build leadership skills, develop strategic thinking, support change and innovation, and foster collaboration across the University and both National Laboratories leading to greater efficiencies, synergies and increased focus on mission critical work.

Following is a list of the fifteen Argonne employees and ten Fermi employees who were selected to participate in the program:

Argonne Participants

Energy Sciences and Engineering:

Computing, Environment and Life Sciences:

Operations and Business Management / Office of the Directorate:

Scientific User Facilities:

Fermilab Participants

Accelerator Division:

Accelerator Physics Center:

Computing Division:

Employee Safety & Health:

Particle Physics Division:

Technical Division:

The SLLP includes three intensive sessions spread out over the course of a year. The final session of the first cohort is scheduled for April 28 and 29, 2008. The second year of the SLLP program will begin in May, 2008.

return to top

Research Highlights

University steps up efforts to increase federal funding for research
 In the wake of FY08 funding cutbacks across the National Laboratory system the University of Chicago has stepped up efforts to advocate for increases in federal funding for basic research funding.

First and foremost, in order to better represent the interests of the University, Argonne and Fermilab to funding agencies and to the executive and legislative branches of the federal government, the University recently appointed A. Scott Sudduth, one of the nation's leading higher education representatives in Washington, D.C., to be its Associate Vice President for Federal Relations. Sudduth, who has led federal relations efforts for the University of California system since 1998, will work primarily in Washington, where he will represent the University's perspective on higher education and research policy to Congress and the Executive Branch. Sudduth will begin June 1. [Click here for full story on Sudduth's appointment.]

University officials also have worked closely with Argonne and Fermilab leadership to communicate to lawmakers the importance of basic science research to the nation's future. In addition, the University has led coalition-building efforts with fellow academic institutions through ties with the Association of American Universities and the Universities Research Association. In February, University President Robert Zimmer and a coalition of nearly a dozen industry and university leaders visited Capitol Hill to advocate funding increases for basic science research, including the National Laboratory System.

Moreover, the University has led efforts to coalesce campus and business community responses to the budget cuts prompting direct appeals and letter writing campaigns aimed at federal legislators. In March, President Zimmer spoke to the Commercial Club of Chicago on the topic of "Science, Federal Funding, and the Chicago region." The Commercial Club is a membership organization comprised of senior business, professional, educational, and cultural leaders who seek to address social and economic issues of importance to the Chicago region.

Through a targeted campaign aimed at leading newspapers, science and government journals, and other influential publications, the University communications office, together with Argonne and Fermilab public affairs and communications teams, have worked closely to ensure that the public is aware of the implications and impacts of research funding decreases on the local and national economy. The University also partnered with Argonne, Fermilab and other organizations to form the Chicago Council of Science and Technology (C2ST), an independent, nonprofit organization committed to promoting science and technology. The kickoff event featured a talk by Laboratory Director, Bob Rosner who spoke on Science in Illinois.

University Research Videos

Thai Family Research Project: How entrepreneurship shapes economies

Robert Townsend, co-director of the Thai Family Research Project, discusses the importance of individual entrepreneurs in shaping local and regional economies and reducing poverty. His findings draw on over 10 years of data collected from nearly 3,000 households throughout Thailand. This research contributed to the creation of The Enterprise Initiative, a new project funded by the John Templeton Foundation which focuses on wealth creation and poverty reduction in developing countries. Click here to view video.

Chicago Assyrian Dictionary: The Final Chapter

Martha Roth, Ph.D., Professor of Assyriology and Dean of Humanities, discusses the final volume of the Chicago Assyrian Dictionary, a comprehensive lexicon of ancient Akkadian dialects 86 years in the making. Roth has served as Editor-in-Charge of the project for the past 11 years. Click here to view video.

return to top

Events

State, federal officials mark completion of Ricketts Laboratory
 On Sunday, April 6, representatives from the University Medical Center, Argonne National Laboratories, the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Health and the State of Illinois celebrated the upcoming completion of the Howard T. Ricketts Regional Biocontainment Laboratory, located at Argonne. The event took place at the Argonne Guest house and attendees were given tours of the facility afterwards.

Keith Moffat, Deputy Provost for Research, Louis Block Professor in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Principal Investigator, Howard T. Ricketts Regional Biocontainment Laboratory, served as master of ceremonies. Olaf Schneewind, M.D., Louis Block Professor and Chair, Department of Microbiology, Committee on Microbiology who led the project, and Michael G. Kurilla, M.D., Director, Office of BioDefense Research Affairs, Associate Director, BioDefense Product Development, also made remarks. The grandson of Howard T. Ricketts, along with his family members, was present and participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Although the ribbon-cutting event and open house occur in April, finishing touches, extensive testing and multiple certifications of the Ricketts Laboratory will not be complete until mid summer. Research involving "select agents" could begin as soon as August.

Employees, community tour Ricketts Laboratory
 On April 16, Argonne staff, investigators from the University, and representatives of the community had the opportunity to tour the Howard T. Ricketts Regional Biocontainment Laboratory. Joe Kanabrocki, Biosafety Officer for the Ricketts Biocontainment Laboratory, The University of Chicago, and Judd Johnson, Associate Director Operations, Facilities, Design & Construction, The University of Chicago, led groups of 10-15 guests on laboratory tours throughout the day.

Guests were escorted through the entrance lobby, lab offices, Biosafety Level 2 (BSL-2) Lab, one Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3 Lab), a service corridor and loading dock, vivarium locker room, holding room, and decon area, and the interstitial floor.

Later in the evening, members of the Community Leaders Roundtable, an organization formed by Argonne and the U.S. Department of Energy site office consisting of local government and community leaders surrounding Argonne, were also given tours of the facility.

For more information on the Ricketts lab, click here. Click here to take a video tour of the Ricketts Laboratory.

Interesting facts about the Howard T. Ricketts Regional Biocontainment Laboratory

Howard Taylor Ricketts (1871 -- 1910)
The University of Chicago's biosafety laboratory at Argonne was named for Howard Taylor Ricketts, a University of Chicago pathologist and renowned "microbe Hunter." Nearly 100 years ago, Ricketts discovered the causative organisms and mode of transmission of Rocky Mountain spotted fever and epidemic typhus. He died from typhus at the age of 39, just days after isolating the microorganism that caused the disease. In 1916, in honor of these discoveries, the scientific community named the group of microbes he discovered after him. The Ricketts name now serves as the root of both a taxonomic family (Rickettsiaceae) and an order (Rickettsiales).

University of Chicago April Highlights

Arthur Holly Compton Lectures: Free lecture series to peer behind exotic claims about universe

A series of 10 free lectures at the University of Chicago will explore how scientists can talk sensibly about the beginning of the universe, or phenomena at exceedingly small scales.

"Seeing and Believing: Detection, Measurement and Inference in Experimental Physics," is the title of this year's Arthur Holly Compton Lectures, sponsored each spring and fall by the University's Enrico Fermi Institute. The 67th series of these public lectures will begin Saturday, April 5, and will be held each Saturday through June 14 (except for May 24, when there will be no lecture). The lectures will be given from 11 a.m. to noon in Room 106 of the Kersten Physics Teaching Center, 5720 S. Ellis Ave. Click here for more information.

Oriental Institute Exhibition, Conferences, Mark Fifth Anniversary of looting of the Iraq National Museum

Scholars at the University of Chicago, who have been leaders in calling attention to the looting of artifacts in Iraq five years ago, are marking the anniversary of that destruction with a special exhibition at the Oriental Institute as well as several public events in Chicago and Washington, D.C.

The exhibition, "Catastrophe! The Destruction and Looting of Iraq's Past," will open Thursday, April 10 and run through Wednesday, Dec. 31. The opening marks the anniversary of the 2003 looting of the Iraq National Museum in Baghdad, and the symposium will be held Saturday, April 12. The Cultural Policy Center will release a book of policy analysis and recommendations on Wednesday, April 9, in Washington, D.C. Click here for more information.

Smart Museum of Art, "Idol Anxiety": Tuesday, April 8 through Wednesday, Nov. 12

From ancient times to the present day, theological traditions have reflected on idolatry and questioned the transcendence, significance and power of objects. The exhibition will navigate a variety of theological and secular perspectives, juxtaposing Mesopotamian cult figures with Classical antiquities and Renaissance paintings, in order to explore the complex relationships between objects of worship, their creators and their audiences. 5550 S. Greenwood Ave.

Click here for full University April Highlights.

return to top

Research in the News

Scientists simulate natural phenomena
 Robert Fisher and Cal Jordan are among a team of scientists at the University who will expend 22 million computational hours during the next year on one of the world's most powerful supercomputers, simulating an event that takes less than five seconds.

Fisher and Jordan require such resources in their field of extreme science. Their work at the University's Center for Astrophysical Thermonuclear Flashes explores how the laws of nature unfold in natural phenomena at unimaginably extreme temperatures and pressures. Argonne National Laboratory's Blue Gene/P supercomputer will serve as one of their primary tools for studying exploding stars. Full story.

President outlines set of strategic initiatives in letter to community
 A set of strategic challenges and opportunities facing the University was addressed in a Friday, March 21 letter from President Zimmer to the University community. He noted that he began this process by posing a set of questions to faculty and staff, deans, students and trustees about what goals the University should meet now and work toward in the coming years. Full story.

Drug developed at the University of Chicago wins approval in Canada
 Methylnaltrexone, a drug developed to relieve one of the major side effects of pain therapy for cancer patients, has received marketing approval from Health Canada, the Canadian Regulatory Agency, for subcutaneous use in the treatment of opioid-induced constipation in patients with advanced illness receiving palliative care. Full story.

Cosmologists probe mystery of dark energy with South Pole Telescope
Something is pulling the universe apart. What is it, and where will it take us from here? Scientists at the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, University of Chicago, seek answers to those questions with the newly-commissioned South Pole Telescope. Full story.

Links to other recent University of Chicago news stories.

return to top

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions for Research Update, please feel free to email them to ResearchUpdate@listhost.uchicago.edu.

View Archives

Home |  About UChicago Argonne, LLC |  Frequently Asked Questions |  Pressroom
Argonne National Laboratory |  Contact Us