May 26, 2022

Undergraduate Jacob Chizek’s 3D model of the iconic Mather B Mine in the Upper Peninsula’s Marquette Iron Range is helping an interdisciplinary team of Michigan Tech researchers visualize and measure the energy storage potential in abandoned hard-metal mines across the nation.

Find out how Chizek, a mechanical engineering major and Keweenaw Energy Transition Lab team member, built his 3D solid model of the Negaunee mine — and how the model facilitated a detailed design and analysis of a pumped underground storage hydro (PUSH) system.

Timothy Scarlett (SS) tells the full story on Unscripted, the University's research blog.

Due to a transition period in Payroll Services, off-cycle weeks will be used only for reallocations and leave adjustments. Missed pays or corrections to pays will be processed during the next available pay cycle week.

Additionally, the Payroll Services email, payroll@mtu.edu, will only be used to collect paper timesheets, reallocations, deduction forms or timekeeper designation forms. In order to provide more effective customer service, the Payroll Services main telephone number will be redirected to the Human Resources main line, 906-487-2280. Questions regarding payroll can be directed to 906-487-2280 and will be responded to within one business day.

Tax forms must be sent to Payroll Services via campus mail or hand-delivered to the Lakeshore Center, as email is not secure.

Payroll Services and Human Resources appreciate your patience and understanding.

Summer is almost here! Do you know a college student who is looking for a summer job where they can make an impact? Summer Youth Programs (SYP) is seeking counselors who are excited about helping youth explore their passions for learning!

SYP hosts weeklong residential and commuter programs for students in grades 6-11 here at Michigan Tech. We have several different positions available, both full-time and part-time, some including room and board. SYP is sure to have a position that is the right fit and offers a rewarding experience that builds leadership and interpersonal skills. Applicants do not need to be enrolled at Michigan Tech to apply! Dates of employment are June 12 to Aug. 6.

Please share this opportunity and have interested applicants check out our employment page for position descriptions and an application.

Applications close June 1!

As part of its goal of outreach to the local community and promoting STEM — and chemistry in particular — to young people from low socioeconomic backgrounds, the MTU student chapter of the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) recently organized an outreach event for the high school chemistry class of Baraga Area Schools.

A hands-on explorative activity on paper chromatography was the focus of the outreach event, introducing students to the wide array of applications of chromatography as a separation technique. After introducing students to the concept of chromatography, students were able to see it come alive by separating various colored inks into their constituents. After this introductory activity, students used their chromatography skills to do some forensic analysis on an ink sample and pens from various “suspects” to see who was responsible for defacing a very expensive book from the school library. Finally, the volunteers engaged the students in a discussion to synthesize their observations and draw out the big scientific ideas.

The students were very focused, interactive and excited about the activities. Some of them, when asked to comment on the activity, noted that it was engaging and insightful. One even said, “This is so cool and fun.”

NOBCChE hopes to continue to get out in the local schools and open up the wide world of chemistry to area students. See photos from the outreach event.

Michigan Tech graduate students in chemistry and chemical engineering — Sodiq Waheed, Kobina Ofori, Parya Siacheshm and Monica Nyansa — organized this outreach event with NOBCCHE advisor Jeremy Brown (Chem). The event was funded by the NOBCChE K-12 Initiative.

Several Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC) affiliated faculty, research staff and students represented Michigan Tech last week at the 2022 Joint Aquatic Science Meeting (JASM) in Grand Rapids, Michigan. JASM is the world's largest gathering of aquatic scientists, students, practitioners, resource agency staff and industry representatives.

This year, the GLRC was a Silver Sponsor for the event and had a booth in the exhibit hall. Those who presented include:

Oral Presentations:

• John Lenters (GLRC): "The Great Lakes Evaporation Network: Successes and Challenges of a 14-Year Binational Collaboration"
• Jill Olin (BioSci): "Nutritional consequences of intraspecific diet variation in a marine carnivore"
• Gord Paterson and Dalton Norris (BioSci): "Trophic ecology and Hg bioaccumulation among Lake Superior Lake Trout morphotypes" (IAGLR board administration)
• Megan Berberich (BioSci): "Sediment microbial communities, organic matter, and methane biogeochemistry across multiple reservoirs in the midwestern United States"
• Michelle Kelly (BioSci): "Habitat heterogeneity promotes linked C and N cycling in streams"
• Ara Hakim (CEGE): "Using Ensemble-based Data Assimilation to Improve Hydrodynamic Modeling for Lake Erie Surface Temperature Short-term Forecast"
• Ben Reuss (CEGE): "Modeling Metabolism in a Shallow, Hypereutrophic, Polymictic Lake"
• Amy Marcarelli (BioSci): "Transforming Our Understanding of Nitrogen Fixation Across Aquacapes" (in collaboration with Robinson W. "Wally" Fulweiler, Boston University, and Thad Scott, Baylor University)
• Erin Eberhard (BioSci): "Heterogeneity of Nutrient Limitation and N Cycling Across Wetland-Stream-Lake Interfaces of Lakes Superior and Huron"
• Longhuan Zhu (CEGE): "Coastal Erosion along Lake Michigan under Climate Change"
• Xing Zhou (CEGE): “Incorporation of microcystin production improves Lake Erie cyanobacterial bloom toxin forecasts"

Poster Presentations:

• Trista Vick-Majors (BioSci): "Physicochemical drivers of microbial ecosystems in Antarctic subglacial aquatic environments"
• Maci Quintanilla (BioSci): "Impact of ice-cover on organic carbon biogeochemistry in a temperate freshwater system"
• Vanessa Cubillos Tellez (BioSci): "Under Ice Photosynthetic Primary Production and Dark Carbon Fixation in a Temperate Freshwater System"

Sessions:

• Amy Marcarelli (BioSci) organized the symposium "Integrating perspectives on nitrogen fixation across the aquascape" and an integrative event called "Aquatic N2-Fixation Research Coordination Network."
• Jim Junker (BioSci) was a session chair for "NEON data: leveraging continental scale data to advance freshwater science."

In addition, Michael Gretz (BioSci) attended as an executive committee and board of trustees member representative for the Phycological Society of America administration.

Other Michigan Tech representatives included GLRC Director Tim Havens (CS/GLRC/ICC) and Jamey Anderson (GLRC/MRAF).

Michigan Tech student, staff, and faculty researchers planned, implemented, and attended the NSF-sponsored Build and Broaden Indigenous Agriculture and Food Sovereignty Symposium at Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and Northern Michigan University from May 20-22.

Among the planning team were co-principal investigator (co-PI) Valoree Gagnon (CFRES/GLRC), Erika Vye (GLRC), Emily Shaw (CEGE), Shelby Lane-Clark (CFRES), Elizabeth Brown (SS) and Kate McGowen (CFRES).

The event was led by the Intertribal Agriculture Council (principal investigator Dan Cornelius); Northern Michigan University (co-PI Martin Reinhardt); Ferris State University (co-PI Scott Herron); and the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. The Michigan Tech team is currently writing the Proceedings document, which will be publicly available later this summer at food-sovereignty.com.

The Ecosystem Science Center (ESC) is proud to announce its member seed funding awards for spring 2022. ESC aims to advance our knowledge of the inherent complexity of social-ecological systems and thus provides small grants to members to help develop externally supported research programs to that end.

ESC congratulates the following recipients:

• Rod Chimner (CFRES/ESC), along with U.S. Forest Service Northern Research Station research ecologist Erik Lilleskov (CFRES/ESC) and Laura Bourgeau-Chavez (MTRI/ESC), for the project "Developing a mountain peatland mapping program in the Rocky Mountains.”
  
  
• Molly Cavaleri (CFRES/ESC), along with Andrew Burton and Carsten Külheim (CFRES/ESC), for the project “Acclimation of Quercus rubra root respiration across a Midwest temperature gradient.”

The National Society of Professional Surveyors Foundation has announced the 19 recipients of its 2022 scholarship awards. Three Michigan Technological University students are among them:

Congratulations to Brayden Brincks, Alex Thrasher and Connor Welling!

According to the NSPS Foundation's press release, the scholarships are awarded annually from funds created by various companies, professional organizations and individuals to help assist the financial needs of future geospatial professionals. Each year’s awardees are selected by NSPS Foundation and American Association for Geodetic Surveying scholarship committees based on their academic record, letters of recommendation, financial need and their introductory letter outlining their educational plans, future goals, significant activities and contributions to their school, community and the surveying profession.

Job Postings for Thursday, May 26, 2022

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.

Building Mechanic II (12 months/ 40 hours/ first shift) #22119, Facilities (AFSCME posting May 26 to June 2, 2022 — internal AFSCME applicants are given first consideration if they apply during the internal AFSCME posting dates). Apply online.

Digital Marketing and Content Coordinator #22153, Advancement and Alumni Engagement. Apply online.

Windows System Administrator #22154, Information Technology. Apply online.

Windows System Administrator #22155, Information Technology. Apply online.

Administrative Aide 7 (12 months/ 40 hours/ first shift) #21275RPx3, Financial Services and Operations (UAW posting May 26 to June 2, 2022 — internal UAW applicants are given first consideration if they apply during the internal UAW posting dates). 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 for an interview, at Michigan Technological University, please notify the Human Resources office at 906-487-2280 or mtujobs@mtu.edu.

A story by LouAnn Wurst (SS) explaining insights from an ongoing Alger County archaeology project was published by the Mining Journal.

The story covered what archaeologists from Michigan Tech’s industrial heritage and archaeology program and partners from the Hiawatha National Forest have learned so far about the lives of cordwood choppers who worked in lumber camps near Munising.

Additionally, 98.3 WRUP-FM published a story on an upcoming Marquette Regional History Center presentation on the project.

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The American Ceramic Society listed a new design strategy for creating ultrahigh-performing piezoelectric ceramics, demonstrated by researchers from Penn State and Michigan Tech, among items of interest.

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Ph.D. student Adelina Oronova (Chem) was quoted by WLUC TV6 in a story about the arts benefit being held at the Rozsa Center to raise funds for Ukraine.

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WZMQ 19 News ran a story on the appointment of Michigan Tech alum Ronald Jacobson ’83 (forestry/land surveying) to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s technical mapping advisory council.

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Michigan Tech was mentioned by the Petoskey News-Review in a story about guitarist, producer and composer Cory Wong. The University was one of Wong’s first show venues in Michigan.

No Tech Today on Monday

Tech Today will not publish on Monday (May 30) in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. 

Submissions for the Tuesday (May 31) issue of Tech Today are due by noon tomorrow (May 27).

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

ECE Guest Speaker: Creator of the Open-Source 3D Printer

Thursday, May 26, 10–11 a.m.

Adrian Bowyer The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) invites you to attend a talk with Adrian Bowyer. Bowyer is the creator of the first open-source 3D...

Throwback Thursday: 90's Craft Edition

Thursday, May 26, 1 p.m.–3 p.m. | MUB Commons

Join us for Throwback Thursday: 90's Craft Edition - complete with some of your favorite crafts from the past! Stop by the MUB Commons on Thursday, May 26 between 1:00 and...

Submission and Formatting 101: Master the Dissertation, Thesis, and Report Process

Thursday, May 26, 2:00 p.m.–4:30 p.m. | Administration and Student Services Building, 404

Students who are completing a dissertation, thesis, or report are invited to join the Graduate School to learn about the resources available to them to assist in scheduling...

Men's League Kickoff Party/ABC Scramble

Thursday, May 26, 3 p.m. | Portage Lake Golf Course

Men's League Kickoff Party/ABC Scramble *Some events and times may change

West Michigan Chapter Monthly Gathering

Thursday, May 26, 6 p.m.–7 p.m. | Schmohz Brewery

Michigan Tech cordially invites you to enjoy a casual evening out and network with fellow Michigan Tech alumni and friends. The West Michigan Chapter will host this event at...

Yoopers for Ukraine Presents: Benefit for Ukraine, An Evening of Art and Cinema

Thursday, May 26, 6 p.m. | Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts, Dr. James A. and Margaret C. Black Performance Hall

YOOPERS FOR UKRAINE PRESENTS BENEFIT FOR UKRAINE, AN EVENING OF ART AND CINEMA Hosted by Yoopers for Ukraine, An Evening of Art and Cinema offers the public an engaging art...