These Bacteria Could Nosh Through Freshwater Oil Spills

The Mackinac Bridge crosses the calm waters of the Straits of Mackinac.

Bacteria that can consume oil or fuel have been used to help clean up spills in the ocean, but their use in fresh water has been limited by a lack of research. Steve Techtmann (BioSci) and his students have set out to change that, studying colonies of bacteria in the Straits of Mackinac to determine what conditions they need to thrive.

The results of Techtmann and his students’ study are published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research. But, since both oil and fuel are regularly transported by ship and near lakes and rivers, this discovery has important implications for freshwater contaminant spills across the world. Understanding what happens to oil when it’s released in water can help emergency responders and government react quickly and more effectively.

Read the full story on mtu.edu/news.

Candidate to Interview for Assistant Vice President of Alumni Engagement

The assistant vice president of alumni engagement hiring committee invites the Michigan Tech community to a presentation by Jennifer Lucas at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow (Sept. 30) in the Advanced Technology Development Complex (ATDC) Ford Conference Room.

The presentation will last approximately 30 minutes, followed by a Q&A session.

Fall 2021 Flu Shot Clinics

UP Health System-Portage will offer walk-in flu vaccine clinics on Michigan Tech's campus this fall. Employees, retirees, family members and students are welcome to attend. The flu vaccine can be billed to insurance, so be sure to have a valid copy of your insurance card with you when you arrive.

Flu shots are $40 for those who do not have insurance (payable by cash, check or credit card). All flu shot clinics will practice social distancing and participants are required to wear a face covering. If you don’t feel well, please stay home and plan to attend a future clinic.

Be sure to fill out the 2021 Influenza Vaccination Authorization Form before you arrive.

The dates of the flu clinics are:

  • Tuesday, Oct. 5 — Rozsa Lobby, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. 
  • Tuesday, Oct. 12 — SDC Ice Arena Balcony, 4-6 p.m.
  • Tuesday, Oct. 19 — Rozsa Lobby, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
  • Thursday, Oct. 28 — Rozsa Lobby, 4-6 p.m.

Site Registration Now Open for Make a Difference Day

Michigan Tech Student Leadership and Involvement is just one month away from our largest annual day of service — Make a Difference Day!

Last year, 618 Huskies gave back at 72 unique service sites across the Keweenaw region. We anticipate a similar number of volunteers for this year’s event, which will take place on Oct. 23 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Do you know of an organization, agency or community member who could use the assistance of volunteers? We can help! Request support yourself by completing our site registration form or pass it on to others who would benefit from having some Husky Helpers. Past activities completed by our volunteers include organizing donations, chopping wood, cleaning storage facilities, fall lawn cleanup, trail maintenance and more.

Thank you for your help to make a difference in our community!

Country Singer Erik Koskinen

This Friday (Oct. 1), you're invited celebrate the return of live events at the Rozsa with Erik Koskinen and special guest Steve Jones!

One of the Copper Country's own returning home, Erik Koskinen and his top-shelf band are coming in from the Twin Cities for a one-night-only concert. His sound combines country, rock, bluegrass and folk. He is considered “the best country songwriter in Minnesota” by The Star Tribune of Minneapolis. Listen to Erik Koskinen on Spotify.

The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. in the James A. and Margaret C. Black Performance Hall at the Rozsa Center.

Tickets are on sale for $20 for adults and $10 for youth. Michigan Tech students can attend for free and bring a friend with the Experience Tech Fee. Tickets are available by phone at 906-487-2073, online and in person at the Central Ticketing Office in the Student Development Complex. The Rozsa Box Office will also be open for ticket purchases for two hours prior to the performance.

Face coverings are required for volunteers, staff and audience members at this event. Please visit the Rozsa COVID-19 Policies for the most up-to-date information. 

Sustainability Demonstration House Tour

Join us for a Sustainability Demonstration House tour on Saturday (Oct. 2) from 3-6 p.m.!

The house, located at 21680 Woodland Rd., was built in 1953 for the prominent Gundlach family. In 1992, it was donated to Michigan Tech and officially dedicated as the President’s Residence. In 2016, MTU’s Alternative Energy Enterprise proposed to spend the next five years retrofitting the house into a net-zero energy house. Today, we continue to implement new systems and educate the community on sustainable living!

At the open house, you will have the opportunity to learn about various ways to compost, renewable energy, and beekeeping! You will also have a chance to see the aquaponics and hydroponics systems.

Come see our house projects and learn how to live sustainably!

Husky Autumn Mountain Run Raffle

This year, the Husky Autumn Mountain Run (HAMR) will include a live raffle for a variety of gifts.

Each racer will receive a free ticket, and raffle tickets can also be purchased at Mont Ripley during the HAMR. Local establishments and donors from all across Michigan have provided some awesome raffle items.

All proceeds will be used to support local businesses and aid in the development and training of future Army officers.

The HAMR will be held at 9 a.m. on Saturday (Oct. 2) at Mont Ripley. Visit the Husky Autumn Mountain Run website to sign up and participate.

Spirit Friday Sale

Support the home team and show your Husky pride on Spirit Friday (Oct. 1) at the Campus Store, University Images and online!

All Michigan Tech apparel and souvenirs in school colors (black, gold, grey and white) are 25% off, this Friday only. Go Huskies!

PhD Defense: Sara Potter, HU

Doctoral candidate Sara Potter (HU) will present her Ph.D. defense at 10 a.m. on Thursday (Sept. 30). This will be an online defense. Virtual attendance is invited via Zoom.

Potter's defense is titled "When Darkness Descends: A Narrative Analysis of Maternal Resilience Following Hurricane Maria."

From the abstract:
Within the last 40 years, academic research on disasters has focused on resilience as applied to individual adaptive capacities, community planning and rebuilding, resources, and policy-driven solutions. Further, while there has been an increased awareness of the many gendered dimensions of post-disaster recovery, women’s and mother’s agency in such situations is still largely ignored. A promising interpretive alternative to other models of resilience is Buzzanell’s (2010) Communication Resilience Framework which identifies five communicative processes enacting resilience. Additionally, by turning to feminist critiques of mothering practices and mothering as a cultural and social institution I attended to the contextualizing forces of cultural histories, social expectations, patriarchal legacies, and neoliberal notions of mothering. This “matricentric” feminist theoretical approach offers a critical perspective for rethinking the resilience of mothers in post-disaster scenarios. Thus, this dissertation adopts a maternal focus, arguing that mothers are not merely vulnerable subjects but critical agents of post-disaster recovery for families, communities, and social systems more generally.

VPR Research Series: DEIS in Research Proposals

Join us as we present the next session of the VPR Research Series, titled "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Sense of Belonging (DEIS) in Research Proposals: How the Power of DEIS Promotes Winning Proposal Writing."

This virtual presentation will be led by the offices of the associate vice president for research development and the Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, and the Michigan Tech ADVANCE Initiative.

The session will be held Oct. 12 from noon to 1 p.m. on Zoom.

Increasingly, research sponsors require proposal writers to describe the impact of their research beyond the project team, their laboratories, their universities and their discipline(s). For example, the National Science Foundation (NSF) uses “broader impacts” as one of its two review criteria.

In this session, we’ll explore how leveraging the power of diversity, equity, inclusion and a sense of belonging (DEIS) can promote activities that benefit society, broaden the impact of research and contribute to a winning proposal. We’ll explore institutional resources, partnerships and best practices, and also share examples from researchers about their experiences with DEIS initiatives.

A Q&A session will follow the presentation for attendees to engage with the presenters to dig deeper into specific topics of interest.

Annual Richard E. Honrath Memorial Lecture

The Richard E. Honrath Memorial Lecture is scheduled on Monday (Oct. 4) at 4 p.m.

Glenn Shaw, professor of physics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, will present a virtual seminar via Zoom. 

Shaw’s presentation is titled "Is Climate a Contrivance of Life?" 

Read the abstract at the University Events Calendar, and register in advance for the Zoom seminar. Please register early!

This virtual seminar is sponsored by the Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences Institute (EPSSI) and the Richard E. Honrath Memorial Fund. 

Honrath was a professor in the Departments of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences, and Civil and Environmental Engineering. He was also the founding director of the atmospheric sciences program. The memorial fund was established after he passed away in 2009.

Women Also Know Stuff Presentation

In collaboration with Michigan Technological University, along with Iowa State University and North Dakota State University, Western Michigan University is hosting a virtual presentation and Q&A to enhance awareness of gender bias and continued lack of diversity in STEM fields.

This event will take place Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. Please RSVP in advance.

Women Also Know Stuff (WAKS) works to highlight the expertise of women and push back against implicit gender bias. The organization aims to connect expert women in political science with professional networking opportunities, while also making it easy for those seeking experts, including journalists, to find women experts in any given subfield of political science.

Join Nadia Brown for a virtual presentation and Q&A detailing what WAKS did and is doing to increase gender diversity in political science.

Mathematical Sciences Colloquium

There will be a Mathematical Sciences Weekly Colloquium held from 1-2 p.m. on Friday (Oct. 1) in Fisher Hall, Room 327B.

Zhimin Zhang, professor at Wayne State University, will join us to present.

Zhang's presentation is titled "How can we hear the shape of a drum by computer algorithms?"

ME-EM Graduate Seminar

The next Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics (ME-EM) Graduate Seminar will be held at 4 p.m. tomorrow (Sept. 30) in Fisher Hall, Room 135.

At this session, speaker Christian Peco will present “A Phase-field Approach to Biological Network Modeling.”

Peco is an assistant professor in engineering science and mechanics at Pennsylvania State University and holds appointments with Penn State’s Institute for Computational and Data Sciences.

Husky Innovate Talk

Michigan Tech graduate Jake Soter (EE/CPE ’19, MBA ’20) observed that flag warning systems at beaches weren't updated right away and knew that swimmers weren't getting important information on days with strong rip-currents and high waves. He identified a value proposition and together with his advisor, Andrew Barnard, created a technological solution to address this problem. From there, he launched a new business.

Come hear about Soter's innovation pathway — how he validated his value proposition, what he's learned along the way and what's next for his business.

Join Husky Innovate and Soter for this virtual talk on Oct. 8 from noon to 1 p.m.

Register in advance to receive the Google Calendar invite and Zoom link.

 

In the News

Jeremy Worm's (APSRC/ME-EM) appointment to the Michigan Truck Safety Commission was covered by ABC 10.

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A Michigan Tech news story regarding Steve Techtmann’s (BioSci) research into oil-eating bacteria in fresh water was picked up by Phys.org.

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Michigan Tech researchers who are part of the ReCell team at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory had their work described in a Tech Xplore article on making battery recycling more cost-effective.

New Funding

Fengjing Liu (CFRES/ESC) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $7,990 research and development co-op/joint agreement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, Northern Research Station.

The project is titled "Determining Amounts of Precipitation and Groundwater Inputs to Lakes on the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest."

Reminders

Face Coverings Required in Classrooms, Labs, Library

Michigan Tech remains at Health and Safety Level TwoFace coverings are required in certain locations — classrooms and laboratories during classes and lab courses, and in the library — and may also be required during instructors' office hours. In all other settings, face coverings are encouraged but not required. This applies to all students, employees, and visitors, regardless of vaccination status.

Michigan Tech strongly recommends that all employees and students receive the COVID-19 vaccine and continue with handwashing and hand-sanitizing practices, especially in light of the virulence of the COVID-19 delta variant. Please be aware that if you are exposed to COVID-19, quarantine guidelines vary depending on vaccination status. 

In Level Two, students and employees are not required to monitor their symptoms daily prior to coming to campus. But, individuals should be mindful of their own symptoms. A useful monitoring tool is available from the CDC. 

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On-Demand COVID-19 Testing Available on Campus

Walk-in, on-demand COVID-19 testing is available to Michigan Tech students and employees during the fall 2021 semester.

Testing is located in the Datolite Room at the MUB on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. There is no cost to be tested, and no appointment is needed. 

Read more COVID-19 Testing Information on the MTU Flex website.

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Advocates and Allies Call for Applications

Advocates and Allies invites faculty and staff to apply to become part of the Advocates and Allies Advisory Board (A3B) or Advocates Team. These two units will work in conjunction with the ADVANCE Initiative to plan and implement workshops for the campus and work to institutionalize the Advocates and Allies program at Michigan Tech.

What is Advocates and Allies?
Advocates and Allies is one of three programs that are part of the NSF-funded ADVANCE Initiative dedicated to engaging majority stakeholders in the dissemination of knowledge on gender equity and actively participating in activities to increase allyship on campus.

What is the Advocates and Allies Advisory Board (A3B)?
A3B is a group of women, minorities and gender-diverse individuals who will work with the NSF-funded ADVANCE team to select, guide and advise the Advocates Team. The two groups will then work in tandem to make our campus culture more inclusive by advancing knowledge, allyship and policy/practices.

What is the Advocates Team?
This group of majority stakeholders (men) will work closely with the NSF-funded ADVANCE Initiative and A3B to make our campus culture more inclusive by advancing knowledge, allyship and policy/practices. Advocates will be expected to participate in program development and delivery while executing personal action plans related to equity issues on campus.

Apply online using our interest form. The deadline is Friday (Oct. 1).

If you have any questions, please email us at advance-mtu@mtu.edu.

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Poetry Reading and Conversation

Presenting his debut collection, "HOMES," about nature, modernity, identity, and belonging in the Great Lakes bioregion/borderland, poet Moheb Soliman will be joined by Michigan Tech creative writing faculty M. Bartley Seigel and Stephanie Carpenter (HU) for a poetry reading and conversation in the East Reading Room of the J. R. Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library on Thursday (Sept. 30) from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

This event is funded by the Department of Humanities, the Michigan Tech Writing Center, and the Visiting Professor Program (funded by a grant to the Office of the Provost from the state of Michigan's King-Chavez-Parks Initiative).

Read more about the Department of Humanities’ English and creative writing program.

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Brown Bag Research Seminar Series

The campus community is invited to hear Laura Connolly (COB), assistant professor of economics, present "Labor Mobility and the Affordable Care Act: Heterogeneous Impacts of the Preexisting Conditions Provision," as part of the College of Business' Brown Bag Research Seminar Series.

Connolly's presentation will be held from noon to 1 p.m. today (Sept. 29) in the Academic Office Building (AOB), Room 101.

From the abstract:
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) preexisting conditions provision ensures that insurance companies cannot deny coverage or charger higher premiums to individuals due to a prior health condition. We evaluate the impact of this provision on job mobility in the U.S. to determine whether the provision reduced job lock for individuals with chronic conditions. Our results highlight the heterogeneous impacts of the policy on different subgroups of the population. We find significant improvements in labor mobility among male household heads with prior health conditions, but no significant change in labor mobility among females. Declines in job lock are largest among families with children and household heads with relatively low levels of education. The results are consistent with the policy improving access to healthcare, and both mental and physical wellbeing, which ultimately increased labor market flexibility for some workers.

Today's Campus Events

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

Hyperconnection: A New Series by Tiffany Lange

Tiffany Lange’s newest series “Hyperconnection”, examines overstimulation and anxiousness through abstraction. After a year of increased screen time during quarantine and...

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The Spirit of the Hunt: Ecological Art Exhibit & Public Wolf Discussion

Art Exhibit: August 30-October 15 Monday-Friday from 9:00am to 4:00pm Noblet Atrium, Michigan Tech College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science Opening...

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Stress Less Workshop

Ready to lower anxiety and depression? Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) practices, this 4-week structured workshop will teach you skills to grow mindfulness. ...

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UP & Moving Lunchtime High Noon Activity Break

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...

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UP & Moving Lunchtime Noon-Thirty Activity Break

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...

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Artist Presentation by Ashanté Kindle and Khari Turner

Ashanté Kindle and Khari Turner come to Michigan Tech to discuss their joint exhibit, Copper Planted Seeds, currently on display at Finlandia University until October 5. Their...

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Faculty-Led Study Away Info Session

Do you have spring break or summer plans? Consider participating in a faculty-led study AWAY program next spring and/or summer to earn Michigan Tech credits and travel with...

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Open Rock Climbing

All ages (we can allow all ages to climb as long as we have the proper fitting equipment). No need to sign up, just stop by the Climbing Wall between 6 and 8 pm Monday through...