March 1, 2023

Friday (March 3) is the last day to register to present at this year's Graduate Research Colloquium (GRC)!

This year’s GRC will be held March 29 and March 30. The GRC offers a very special opportunity for graduate students to showcase their research across the campus community and also to work on their presentation skills for upcoming conferences. Students can give oral presentations, present posters or do both.

Poster presentations will be given March 29 at the Rosza Center Lobby from 5-8 p.m. GSG will be taking care of printing posters this year. The oral presentations will take place March 29 and 30 in the MUB ballroom — each will be 12 minutes long followed by a Q&A session. All the presentations will be scored by judges from a similar field as the presenter. They will provide valuable insight and feedback on how the students can improve their presentations.

Cash prizes are available for the top three oral and poster presentations (first $300, second $200 and third $100).

Registration closes Friday at 11:59 p.m.

The GRC will be capped off with the annual GRC Awards Banquet. All participants and judges are invited to attend. It will be held March 30 following the closing of the GRC.

Register using the GRC Registration Form. For more info, visit our website.

Graduate Student Government (GSG) is still in search of judges for this year's Graduate Research Colloquium (GRC) on March 29 and March 30.

The GRC provides graduate students a great opportunity to develop their oral and/or poster presentation skills in a friendly environment. GSG matches each presenter with a small panel of MTU faculty members to receive constructive feedback on their presentation. If you are willing to judge and help fulfill this vital role at the GRC poster or oral sessions, please submit the GRC 2023 Judge Volunteer Form to let us know your time availability.

Poster presentations will be held March 29 at the Rosza Center Lobby from 5-8 p.m. The oral presentations will take place March 29 from noon to 5 p.m. and March 30 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the MUB.

The GRC event will be capped off with the annual GRC Awards Banquet. All participants and judges are invited to attend. It will be held March 30 following the closing of the GRC.

For more info, please visit our website or email Michael Maurer at gsg-research@mtu.edu.

The Student Development Complex (SDC), Gates Tennis Center and surrounding facilities will observe reduced hours over spring break beginning Friday (March 3) through March 12.

View Michigan Tech Recreation's SDC Spring Break Hours PDF to view the schedule.

The SDC will return to regular business hours March 13.

Editor's note: The opening and closing dates for registration have been updated. The original dates were March 8 and March 29.

You don't have to win, you just have to TRI! Michigan Tech Recreation is hosting an indoor triathlon for MTU students and SDC Access Pass holders (minimum one month)! Unlike a traditional triathlon, which covers fixed distances of swimming, biking and running, indoor triathlons challenge competitors to race the greatest distance with a fixed time frame. Beginners and seasoned athletes are welcome to participate in the 10-minute swim, 15-minute bike and 10-minute run! Transition time is provided between events. Event capacity is limited.

The indoor triathlon will take place April 5 at 7 p.m. Open to MTU students and SDC Access Pass Holders (minimum one month) with a valid MTU student ID or SDC Access Pass. Must be 16 years of age or older to participate.

Registration Details:

• Cost: It's free! (But you must register to participate!)
• Registration opens: Thursday, March 16, at 8 a.m.
• Registration closes: Thursday, March 30 at 11:59 p.m.

For more information, visit the Michigan Tech Rec Indoor Triathlon page.

Registration for spring 2023 Adult Huskies Aquatics Session 3 closes Friday (March 3). Two programs are being offered:

• Adult Huskies Swim Training
  Provides additional attention and competitive guidance to swimmers ages 18 and older who are looking to improve their swimming skills and fitness levels in a group setting. Each session is programmed with a warm-up and variations of a workout for the beginner, intermediate and advanced swimmer. Participants will be provided coaching and guidance to meet their individual swimming goals!
  
  
• Adult Huskies Swim Lessons
  Provides aquatic education for the beginner to intermediate swimmer who is looking to become more comfortable in the water and learn the fundamental four strokes.

Program Dates and Cost:

• Session 3 — March 7 to April 6 (registration closes Friday at 11:59 p.m.; no class March 14 and 16)

Classes meet Tuesday and Thursday from 5-5:50 p.m. at the SDC Pool. Cost is $100. A discount is available for SDC members.

For more information, visit Michigan Tech Recreation's Adult Huskies Aquatics page.

Beatboxer and breath artist Dominic "Shodekeh" Talifero will host a free workshop open to students and the public today (March 1) at 1 p.m. on the Rozsa stage.

Talifero is a groundbreaking beatboxer, vocal percussionist, composer and breath artist who pushes the boundaries of the human voice within and outside the context of hip-hop music and culture. Recently featured by the Kennedy Center in a concert testimonial and master performance, Talifero’s career explores innovative and convergent collaborations with a wide range of traditional artists.

Talifero serves as the beatboxer and vocal percussionist for the globally renowned Alash, one of the world’s leading Tuvan throat singing ensembles, and collaborates with the exquisite Silkroad Ensemble based at Harvard University and founded by legendary cellist Yo Yo Ma. He is the resident beatboxer and cultural ambassador of the local Baltimore chapter of Classical Revolution.

Always innovating, Talifero has become immersed within the realm of hip-hop-inspired science communication. His work includes creating the math- and music-based course Beatbox Algebra in collaboration with the Homewood Arts Center of Johns Hopkins University, serving as the host for World Voice Day presented by the Johns Hopkins Voice Center and serving as a panelist and musician for the Neuroscience of Art, a weeklong conference presented by the Salzburg Global Seminar in Salzburg, Austria.

Learn more.

Join faculty and current students from the Michigan Tech College of Business (COB) on March 22 from 4-5 p.m. in the Academic Office Building, AOB 101, to explore more about graduate program options in business.

Featured programs will include the Master of Science in Accounting, the TechMBA, the Master of Engineering Management and the Master of Science in Applied Natural Resource Economics. A representative from the Graduate School will also be present.

The Chemistry Seminar Series is pleased to present Massimo Olivucci and his seminar, "From photon to neuron: the molecular mechanism of the primary event in vision."

Olivucci will present in person Friday (March 3) at 3 p.m. in Chem Sci 101.

Lance Jones will present as part of the Department of Biological Sciences (BioSci) Seminar Series from 3-4 p.m. tomorrow (March 2). The seminar will be held virtually via Zoom (use passcode 046347).

Jones is a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the Department of Plant Biology. He will present "More than meets the eye: Diversity in the fruit fly genus Amiota Loew (Drosophilidae) and the importance of natural history collections. Land-water interactions and the fate of terrestrial carbon in boreal streams."

From the abstract:
Many gaps remain in our understanding of the diversity, distributions, and taxonomy of the North American biota. Well studied insects like the Drosophilidae (fruit flies) are no exception. Taxonomic investigations over 4 years revealed large species diversity in the obscure drosophilid genus Amiota, which had previously been unknown. Morphologically diverse, feeding on tears and sweat, and requiring dead wood for their life cycle, there is still much to learn about this fascinating group of insects.

Shane Larson from Northwestern University will be presenting at the next Physics Colloquium.

The seminar will be presented in person at 4 p.m. tomorrow (March 2) in Fisher 139.

Larson's presentation is titled "Probing the Stellar Graveyard with Low-Frequency Gravitational Waves."

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

Meenesh Singh will present as part of the Department of Chemical Engineering (ChE) Research Series on Friday (March 3) at 10 a.m. in person in Chem Sci 201 or virtually via Zoom.

Singh will present "Prospects of Electrocatalysis for Sustainable Manufacturing, Greenhouse Gas Mitigation, and Energy Storage."

Read the abstract on the University Events Calendar.

Singh is an assistant professor of chemical engineering at the University of Illinois Chicago.

The next Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics (ME-EM) Graduate Seminar speaker will present at 4 p.m. tomorrow (March 2) in MEEM 112.

Will Cantrell (GS/Physics) will present “Interactions between turbulence and cloud microphysics: Insights from the lab.”

Cantrell is currently one of the principal investigators for the Pi Chamber at MTU, is involved in an effort to design (and perhaps build) a larger convection chamber which will enable observation of the transition between condensational growth of cloud droplets to collision-coalescence, and is a member of a team designing a chamber to study clouds on other planets.

Michigan Tech women's basketball brings a four-game win streak into the GLIAC quarterfinals as they host Wayne State at 5:30 p.m. today (March 1) at SDC Gymnasium.

The Huskies remained undefeated at home (13-0) during the regular season, which they closed Saturday (Feb. 25) with an 80-68 win over Northern Michigan. Fans can stream today's game on FloHoops or Pasty.net, or listen live to Mix 93.5 WKMJ-FM. 

The Huskies have made the postseason all five seasons under head coach Sam Clayton and have not missed the conference tournament since 1989-80.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the Central Ticket Office located in the Student Development Complex, online at BuyHuskiesTickets.com or via phone by calling 906-487-2073. Basketball season ticket holders had until 11:59 p.m. yesterday (Feb. 28) to claim their seats. Michigan Tech students can enter the quarterfinal game as usual with a valid student ID at the door.

After today's game, the top remaining seed in the tournament will earn the right to host the GLIAC semifinals on Saturday (March 4), with the GLIAC championship scheduled for Sunday (March 5).

Huskies Ranked No. 22 Nationally, No. 4 in Midwest
Michigan Tech women's basketball is nationally ranked for the second time this season, checking in at No. 22 yesterday (Feb. 28) in the WBCA NCAA Division II Top 25 poll.

The Huskies were ranked No. 24 nationally on Feb. 7. They are 23-5 overall, and rank No. 4 in the NCAA Midwest Region.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech hockey's Blake Pietila is the CCHA Goaltender of the Week for the seventh time this season, and Kyle Kukkonen is the CCHA Rookie of the Week, earning a weekly award for the third time as a first-year.

Pietila stopped 68-of-71 shots he faced in a CCHA split at No. 12 Minnesota State to wrap up the Huskies’ regular season. Pietila earned his school record and nation-leading ninth shutout of the season Friday (Feb. 24) with 35 saves while extending his school record to 19 career shutouts. He stopped 33 shots Saturday (Feb. 25) in a loss and didn't allow an even-strength tally all weekend.

Kukkonen scored in each game against the Mavericks. He scored the game-winning goal in the third period in Friday's 2-0 shutout and tied Saturday's game with a shorthanded goal with 1:05 left. Kukkonnen has 16 goals this season to lead all CCHA first-years and ranks fourth overall. He has scored five power-play goals and four game-winning goals this season.

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Michigan Tech men's basketball earned the No. 8 seed in the GLIAC tournament and begins the postseason at No. 1 seed Wisconsin-Parkside tonight (March 1) at 8:30 p.m.

The Huskies (8-19, 5-13) qualified for March basketball for the fourth straight season and feature a young, talented squad that has struggled on the road this winter.

Fans can listen to the game on local radio station Mix 93.5 WKMJ-FM and online at Pasty.net or FloHoops.

Read the preview at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Wednesday (March 1)
• Smash vs. Lawrence Tech 7 p.m. NSL Varsity Premier
• Valorant vs. Windsor 9 p.m. NSL Varsity Premier. Watch the Twitch stream.

Thursday (March 2)
• Smash vs. Shawnee State 4 p.m. NSL Varsity Premier

Saturday (March 4)
• Rocket League A vs. The World Noon CCA East Open #3
• League of Legends vs. Pikeville 4 p.m. cLoL (TBD)

Times are subject to change. Check Twitter @MTUEsports  and the Esports schedule for updates.

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Esports News
Read more in the MTU Esports weekly update.

The Daily Mining Gazette covered Michigan Tech administration’s overruling of an Undergraduate Student Government decision not to fund a $3,500 speaker’s fee for former police officer and conservative radio host Brandon Tatum. University General Counsel Sarah Schulte and multiple USG representatives were quoted in the story.

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Sarah Hoy (CFRES) was quoted by Vermont Public in a story evaluating hunting more moose as a method of reducing the spread of winter ticks. In Vermont, the ticks have reduced moose birth rates and lowered the number of calves that survive their first winter.

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Jared Anderson (VPA) and undergraduate student Caity Weirick (psychology) were interviewed in a WLUC TV6 segment about Michigan Tech Music’s choir concert, “Music for a Sacred Space,” held Saturday (Feb. 25) at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Lake Linden, Michigan.

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Stefanie Sidortsova (UMC) was quoted by the Detroit Free Press in a story recapping security and protocols at Michigan colleges after the Feb. 13 shooting at Michigan State.

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The North Coast Citizen and Cannon Beach Gazette in Oregon mentioned Michigan Tech researchers as collaborators in a study that suggests soil moisture is the key determinant of how well soil stores carbon. The story was originally published by Oregon State University.

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The Daily Mining Gazette and WJMN Local 3 covered Michigan Tech hockey’s Blake Pietila and Kyle Kukkonen being named CCHA players of the week.

Applications Open: Climate Leaders Academy

Current undergraduate and graduate students with an interest in climate leadership are invited to apply to be a fellow of the Climate Leaders Academy (CLA), which is launching this summer.

CLA is a two-semester program with the goal of providing formal climate training and professional development to fellows through direct engagement with national and international climate change frameworks, formalized mentoring and collaboration with a diverse set of institutions. CLA is funded through the National Science Foundation and the YEAH network, and supported by MTU, Boston University, Vanderbilt University and Tennessee State University.

CLA-Fellows will be entitled to the following benefits:

• $10,000 stipend ($5,000 per semester)
• Four transferable course credits
• All travel expenses covered (to and from kickoff workshop, climate change conferences, etc.)
• One-on-one mentoring by a CLA faculty member
• Tuition coverage for CLA course

Additional information and the official application can be found at the CLA Application Form. Applications are due March 15 at 11:59 p.m. CDT.

Questions can be directed to Rose Daily at roset@mtu.edu or Leah Dundon at leah.a.dundon@vanderbilt.edu.

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Funding Available: Sustainable and Resilient Communities Faculty Research Fellowships

The Tech Forward Initiative on Sustainability and Resilience is announcing a new round of funding for faculty research fellowships!

The Sustainable and Resilient Communities Faculty Research Fellowship is intended to provide support for faculty to buy out one or more courses for a semester (fall 2023 or later) to focus on external funding proposal development and contributing to the growing research community focused on sustainability and resilience at Michigan Tech.

Please access the fellowship info document or email Chelsea Schelly at cschelly@mtu.edu for more information.

Applications are due March 15. Applications must be submitted via email to Chelsea Schelly at cschelly@mtu.edu. You are encouraged to reach out via email with questions and to discuss your ideas! We anticipate another round due in summer 2023, subject to funding availability.

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Celebrate Open Education Week

Today (March 1) at 3:30 p.m. in the East Reading Room, the Van Pelt and Opie Library will celebrate Open Education (OE) Week with a panel discussion with creators, users and supporters of Open Educational Resources (OER).

The Open Education movement is revolutionizing education by making course materials freely available to all students, resulting in more equitable access to higher education.

The University community and general public are welcome to attend and can look forward to hearing from Tara Bal (CFRES), Michael Meyer (Physics), Michael Maxwell (VPA), Annelise Doll (Library) and Matthew Barron (EF) about OER at Michigan Tech and beyond. Light refreshments will be served.

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Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium Seeking Judges

The Pavlis Honors College is seeking faculty, staff and community members to serve as distinguished judges for the Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium.

Judging entails reviewing the posters and accompanying poster presentations of up to five undergraduate researchers during one or both sessions. The first session will run from 12:30-2 p.m. and the second from 2:30-4 p.m. on March 24 in the Rozsa Center Lobby. We will match faculty with a mixture of posters, some from their home department and others from departments across campus. If you would like to serve as a judge for the symposium, please submit our brief Judge Registration Form.

This year, in addition to the poster sessions from 12:30-4 p.m., the Symposium will also feature a panelist discussion from 11 a.m. to noon and a networking social event from 4-5 p.m. leading up to the announcement of the poster award winners. Our menu for the panelist discussion and the networking social will consist of French-roast coffee, glacè petit fours and Lac La Belle apple cider. The panelist discussion and networking social are optional for judges.

If you have any questions regarding the Undergraduate Research & Scholarship Symposium, please contact Chris Hohnholt at cahohnho@mtu.edu.

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Technical Presentation with CS Faculty Candidate Carlo Angiuli

Department of Computer Science (CS) faculty candidate Carlo Angiuli will give a technical presentation today (March 1) at 1 p.m. on campus in Fisher 132 and virtually via Zoom.

Angiuli's talk is titled "Homotopy and the foundations of formal verification."

Read the abstract on the Computing News Blog.

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McNair Scholars Program Mentor Updates

The McNair Scholars Program is extending the deadline for Faculty/Researcher Mentoring Proposals to next Wednesday (March 8).

If you have any questions or would like to submit a proposal, or if you would like more information, please email mcnair@mtu.edu.

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Interactive AI Art Workshop Presented by Art in Silico

Tim Havens (ICC/GLRC) and Ph.D. student Evan Lucas (electrical engineering) will present a workshop highlighting the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and art.

This is an interactive exploration of AI art models. A brief history of AI art will be presented, followed by an opportunity to play with some different AI art models.

The workshop will be held in Dillman 101 from 5-6:30 p.m. today (March 1).

• What: Interactive AI Art Workshop
• When: Wednesday, March 1, from 5-6:30 p.m. 
• Where: Dillman 101

For more information, visit the Art in Silico webpage.

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

Job Offer Negotiations

Wednesday, March 1, 12:00 p.m.–12:30 p.m. | Administration and Student Services Building, 220 Career Services

When should you negotiate? And how? Learn to negotiate job offers with ethics, strategy, and insight.

Technical Presentation: CS Faculty Candidate Carlo Angiuli

Wednesday, March 1, 1 p.m. | Fisher Hall, 132

Department of Computer Science faculty candidate Carlo Angiuli will give a technical presentation on March 1, 2023, at 1 p.m. in Fisher 132 and via Zoom. Join the Zoom...

Open Education Week Celebration

Wednesday, March 1, 3:30 p.m.–4:30 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, East Reading Room

On Wednesday, March 1st at 3:30 pm in the East Reading Room, the Van Pelt and Opie Library will celebrate Open Education (OE) Week with a panel discussion with creators,...

EV Scholars: Denise Graves, MEDC

Wednesday, March 1, 5:00 p.m.–5:40 p.m.

In the program’s second networking event on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. at 5 p.m. via Zoom, we’ll hear from Denise Graves, university relations director for the Michigan...

Students For Life General Meeting

Wednesday, March 1, 5 p.m.–6 p.m. | Fisher 133

Students For Life General Meeting

San Diego Alumni Social

Wednesday, March 1, 5:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | San Diego, CA

San Diego-based Michigan Tech alumni and friends are invited to join John Daly '79 for a social at the Yard House on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. PST. The venue is...

SAE Aero Design Bi-Weekly Meetings

Wednesday, March 1, 6:00 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | MEEM 703

SAE Aero Design aims to offer valuable experience to Michigan Tech students of all majors interested in an extracurricular engineering & design opportunity. Come join our...

Law Club Weekly Meeting

Wednesday, March 1, 7 p.m.–8 p.m. | Library 103

Our objective is to provide a pre-professional organization for those who are planning to pursue a legal career or those who are interested in the legal field. Meetings will...

Michigan Tech Housing Hangout

Wednesday, March 1, 7:00 p.m.–8:30 p.m.

Not sure which residence hall to choose? Join current students and staff to learn about what makes each of our halls unique, dining options on campus, and more.

(Men's Basketball) Michigan Tech at TBA

March 1, all day

Men's Basketball: Michigan Tech at TBA, GLIAC Quarterfinals

(Women's Basketball) Michigan Tech at TBA

March 1, all day

Women's Basketball: Michigan Tech at TBA, GLIAC Quarterfinals

Adult and Youth Huskies Tennis and Pickleball Lessons (Session 1)

March 1, all day | Michigan Tech Gates Tennis Center

Youth Huskies Tennis Lessons: After school and weekend Youth Huskies Group Tennis Lessons are available this spring! Join in by age group and level for some fun on the tennis...