May 13, 2021

In 2020, stores sold out of garden seed, coops and rabbit cages. Now, we have an idea how much protein people can grow in their backyards.

The meat shortages in 2020 led many to wonder what to eat for protein when supply chains are disrupted. Some people turned to gathering eggs, raising animals and growing their own food. Joshua Pearce (MSE/ECE) led a group that assessed backyard protein sources. In a new study published in Sustainability, they looked at how a typical household with a typical backyard can raise chickens, rabbits or soybeans to meet its protein needs.

Pearce’s co-authors are interdisciplinary and include Michigan Tech students Theresa Meyer and Alexis Pascaris along with David Denkenberger of the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Read more on mtu.edu/news and follow @mturesearch on Twitter.

More than 600 online attendees are expected for the 64th annual Conference of the International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR), which is being hosted virtually by Michigan Tech next week (May 17-21).

The 2021 conference features scientists, resource managers and policy makers working with the Great Lakes or other large lakes throughout the world. Included are 400 presentations, training workshops, plenary speakers and a run-around-your-lake event. The 33 sessions highlight today’s important issues facing large lakes: invasive species, climate change, microplastics and other toxic pollution, and changing foodwebs.

The conference theme, "Bridging: Knowledges, Seven Generations, Land to Lake," highlights the importance of using multiple ways of knowing and seeing the world to solve the complex problems faced by large lakes.

Michigan Tech students, alumni, faculty and administration have supported this conference in major ways — from co-hosting the conference (Urban, Perlinger, Paterson), to serving on the planning committee (Auer, Chadde, Coleman-Kaiser, Gagnon, Gebhardt, Hoy, Kerfoot, Langston, Matthews, McDonald, Schuchman, Xue), to volunteering as technical hosts, to authoring or co-authoring 30 presentations.

The challenge is to give our virtual visitors a taste and vision of what Michigan Tech and the Upper Peninsula have to offer.

The 2021 Lake Superior Youth Symposium for students and teachers in grades 8-12 will be held virtually Friday (May 14).

This remarkable biennial learning experience is for students and teachers who live within or are passionate about Lake Superior and its watershed. Like so many events, the symposium had to pivot from a four-day, in-person event to a one-day, virtual event.

This year's symposium is hosted by Northern Michigan University. Teachers may register for $50, which allows an unlimited number of students to participate throughout the day, each creating their own schedule. There are five concurrent sessions to choose from each hour. Learn more at the symposium website.

Two Michigan Tech graduate students are presenting: master's student Rose Turner and PhD candidate Jessica Daignault (CEGE).

Turner is presenting twice. Her first session, on the MTU Sustainability House, will describe how MTU students have incorporated solar energy, aquaponics, hydroponics, composting, recycling, smart devices and more into the house to significantly reduce its impact on the Earth. Her second session, titled "Striving for Zero Waste," will offer practical, money-saving steps a person can take to reduce the amount of waste they produce each year.

Daignault's presentation, titled "Sustainable Development," will introduce students to the concept of sustainability and what it means for society, the environment and the economy.

In addition, Houghton Elementary School art teacher Melissa Hronkin will present her session from MTU’s 2021 World Water Day highlighting indigenous water protectors. And Matt Zimmer, science teacher at Dollar Bay-Tamarack City High School, will present on their remotely operated vehicle program, first funded by MTU’s Enterprise Program and the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative. Lake Linden-Hubbell High School and L’Anse High School are also participating.

Started in 1995, the symposium rotates among the states and province in the watershed — Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ontario. Michigan Tech, the MTU Center for Science and Environmental Outreach and the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative partnered to host the symposium in 2001 and 2013.

This is Northern Michigan University’s first time as the symposium host, in partnership with Central Upper Peninsula MiSTEM Region and the Seaborg Mathematics and Science Center.

Each spring semester, the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering honors students from our department with an award ceremony/banquet for all nominees for various awards. Unfortunately, we were unable to recognize our extraordinary students in person this year but would like to give them our hearty congratulations on their commitment to excellence!

Undergraduate Student Awards:
Nicole Bloom Award for Environmental Sustainability — Maddie Barrie
Department Undergraduate Service Award — Kaitlyn Wehner
Departmental Scholar — Theresa Passe
David W. Hand Environmental Process Engineering Award — Amanda Freele, Clinton Ottman and Taylor Poprawski

Graduate Student Awards:
Danielle Ladwig Award for Graduate Excellence — Emily Shaw
Wilbur Haas Graduate Research Award — Xiaodong Zhou

Student Voted Awards:
Faculty of the Year — Kris Mattila and Daisuke Minakata
GTA of the Year — Emily Shaw
Department Citizen Award — Melanie Watkins and Angela Keranen

Read more about the award recipients in the blog post.

The Department of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) has announced its awards for the 2020-2021 academic year.

VPA Awards:
Department Scholar: Illeana Barragan 
All Arts Award — Madi Wentela
Art Award — Emily Wisz
Music Award— Ryan Briggs
Sound Award— Moira Van Loon
Theater Award — Ally Southgate Marian and John Irish
Award for Environmental Art — Michelle Kline
Milt Olsson Scholarship — Chloe Looman
Student of Promise — Isabel Valencia

Don Keranen Jazz Awards:
Most Valuable Player — Matthew Fisher, Trumpet – Jazz Lab Band 
Most Valuable Player — Nicholas Bussey, Trombone – R&D Big Band
Most Improved Player — Izzy Waldie, Percussion – Workshop Big Band

Find out more about this year's award winners in the blog post.

Job Posting for Thursday, May 13, 2021  

Staff and faculty job descriptions are available on the Human Resources website. For more information regarding staff positions, call 906-487-2280 or email mtujobs@mtu.edu.

For more information regarding faculty positions, contact the academic department in which the position is posted. 

Research and Budget Coordinator, Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology. Apply online.

Michigan Technological University is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution/Equal Opportunity Employer that provides equal opportunity for all, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  Accommodations are available. If you require any auxiliary aids, services, or other accommodations to apply for employment or an interview at Michigan Technological University, please notify the Human Resources office at 906-487-2280 or mtujobs@mtu.edu.

Zhanping You (CEGE/MTTI) is the principal investigator (PI) on a project that has received a $50,000 research and development contract from Michigan State University.

The project is titled "Evaluation of MDOT's Methodologies for both Quantifying Pavement Distress and Modeling Pavement Performance for Life-Cost Cycle."

Dongdong Ge and Dongzhao Jin (CEGE/MTTI) are co-PIs on this potential two-year project.

Zhanping You (CEGE/MTTI) is a presenter for the 2021 Virtual Michigan Infrastructure Conference, which concludes today (May 13). 

You's presentation is titled "Using Waste Tires in Roads." 

The U.S. Coast Guard’s large-scale spill response exercise taking place this week at Michigan Tech was covered by WLUC TV6 and ABC 10.

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An MTU Unscripted research blog post on Enterprise team Strategic Education through Naval Systems Experiences (SENSE) was picked up by Michigan Ag Connection.

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Michigan Tech researchers were credited in an article on the relationship between shipwrecks and folk tradition that ran in the Daily Mining Gazette.

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MTU was mentioned in a Forbes story on Handshake's recent $1.5 billion valuation. The job search platform, used by millions of college students from all backgrounds, was founded by a Husky.

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A Power Grid International story on proposed Michigan legislation that could make community solar power broadly feasible cited a Michigan Tech study on the value of solar.

Fill Out the COVID-19 Symptom Monitoring Form Before Coming to Campus

If you are working on campus while the University is at Health Safety Level Three, remember that no one is permitted to come to campus with symptoms consistent with COVID-19.

Employees are required to monitor for symptoms daily before coming to campus using the Daily Symptom Monitoring Form.

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Deadline Extended for Songer Research Awards in Human Health

The deadline for applications for the Songer Research Award in Human Health has been extended until May 28.

Details about the award can be found in the Call for Applications published in Tech Today on Feb. 24.

Any questions may be directed to David Hemmer, dean of the College of Sciences and Arts, at djhemmer@mtu.edu. 

To have your event automatically appear, please submit them to the University Events Calendar.

UP & Moving Aerobic Exercise, Agility, and Balance Workout

Thursday, May 13, 9:30–10:15 a.m.

We are a group of Michigan Tech graduate students who are focused on improving the health of our community. We are contributing to the COVID-19 response by providing health...

Pop-Up Painting Party

Thursday, May 13, 2 p.m.–4 p.m. | MUB Commons

Join us as we channel our inner Bob Ross! Canvases, paints, and brushes are supplied. No creativity skills required!!! Stop by the MUB Commons between 2-4pm on Thursday,...

Youth Huskies Group Tennis Lessons Spring Session 3

Thursday, May 13, 4:30 p.m.–5:30 p.m. | Gates Tennis Center

Youth Huskies Group Tennis Lessons are now being offered all spring. The third session is 6 weeks, April 6 - May 15. Options for participating 1 or 2 days a week. Our youth...

Art in a Panorama

May 13, all day

Year end virtual art show by students in FA 2300 Art + Design, taught by Terri Frew. Student Artists include, Bethany Hellman, Michelle Kline, Danelle Leinonen, Kylie Mogen,...

Music in Sacred Spaces: conScience

May 13, all day

conScience: Michigan Tech Chamber Singers, under the direction of Dr. Jared Anderson, present a series of three recorded mini-concerts in historic sacred spaces in the Copper...

Superior Wind Symphony: Reparations

May 13, all day

The Superior Wind Symphony, under the direction of Dr. Michael Christianson, use the unique setting of the 2020-21 academic year to explore the music of Black composers in a...