April 17, 2023

Design Expo, the annual undergraduate student showcase for invention and innovation, runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. tomorrow (April 18) in the Library and MUB. A reception and awards ceremony follows from 2:30-4:30 p.m. in the Rozsa Center.

Firsts for the event include 13 first-year engineering teams, who will join 25 Enterprise and 41 Senior Design teams. Organizers have also curated the exhibits into 15 categories so attendees can choose areas of interest ranging from human health to space technology.

Get more details and see the event schedule at Michigan Tech News.

Please join us for the 2023 Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences (CLS) Undergraduate Research Symposium tomorrow (April 18) at 3:45-5 p.m. in Meese 110. This poster session will feature research conducted by our undergraduates students enrolled in PSY3001 Research Methods.

Some of the highlights of this symposium include research that:

• Examines thinking styles and strategies for different problem-solving tasks.
• Tests whether the anchoring and adjustment heuristic can be influenced by people's knowledge.
• Examines whether pets can make us smarter, or at least help us feel less impacted by academic stress.
• Investigates how students were impacted by the pandemic and MTU's COVID-19 policies and response.
• Studies the bystander response to flashmob behavior on campus.

The full list of presentations/abstracts can be read online.

Michigan Tech is excited to announce the launch of Summer WonderHack 2023, a new capture-the-flag (CTF) cybersecurity competition. The event is hosted by the GenCyber / CyberHusky Team at Michigan Tech, and all K-12 teachers and students are invited to join in this exciting challenge.

Participants can register an account either individually or as a team and start exploring the competition on the Summer WonderHack 2023 website. There are no predefined time limits for the competition, and the winners will be determined by the highest scores obtained before May 15. Top winners will receive special gifts.

The questions for the competition have been carefully designed to suit the skill level of K-12 students.

For questions, please contact Professor of Applied Computing Yu Cai by email at cai@mtu.edu.

Michigan Tech is excited to announce the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day scheduled Saturday (April 22) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.! This is an opportunity to properly dispose of expired and unused prescription drug medication. Michigan Tech Public Safety and Police Services is a registered drop-off/collection site and is located at 206 MacInnes Drive, Houghton, Michigan. As a reminder, this prescription drug medication disposal is for pills only (no liquids please).

Michigan Tech Public Safety and Police Services has a 24/7/355 thru-wall drug disposal box that can be used any day of the year to dispose of your unused medications.

Questions? Contact Whitney Boroski at wmborosk@mtu.edu.

Please join Women in the Academy (WIA) for a breakfast celebration of the end of the spring semester on April 27 from 8:30-10 a.m. in the MUB Alumni Lounge B. There will be continental breakfast and coffee.

There will be no formal program or agenda for this meeting, but there will be discussion tables and lots of opportunities for networking and conversation. Hope to see you there!

Let’s take a quick glimpse at best practices for Michigan Tech faculty to follow when trying to grow a following on social media. These insights are geared toward faculty members using their using personal social media accounts to share research and thought leader content.

Read about the benefits of being a genuine follower, engaging with your followers and sharing thoughtful content on the Michigan Tech Social Media Blog.

Are you ready to get started on your Husky Health Checklist? Join us at noon on Friday (April 21) in the MUB Superior Room (B001) for a Lunch and Learn with Stephanie McKenzie, certified physician assistant (PA-C) from Upper Great Lakes Family Health Center.

Do you know when you have a common cold or worry that it could be something more serious? Do you wonder if you should seek medical care? Join us for a conversation and answers!

RSVP to benefits@mtu.edu — the event will be canceled if there aren't enough RSVPs.

Exhibition of Student Artwork — Monday, April 17, from 6:30-8 p.m. 
Wadsworth Hall Studio G04W
Presented by Michigan Tech Art
A Studio Here Now Event

Please join us for the student art exhibition at Wads Hall. See works from students studying art and nature, color and creativity, and advanced drawing and painting. Learn more.

• Not sure how to get to the Wads Studio?
  Enter the front doors of Wadsworth Hall. Take the stairs or elevator down one level to the basement. The studio is between the WMTU studio and the music practice room down the hallway.

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Charles Mingus and Ethel Smyth for Starters… — Friday, April 21, at 7:30 p.m.
Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
Presented by Michigan Tech Music 
Performed by Superior Wind Symphony and the Campus Concert Band

Join in the season finale conducted by the Superior Wind Symphony, Campus Concert Band and the combined MEGABAND! Learn more.

• Get your tickets online, at 906-487-1906 or at the Rozsa Box Office from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Students, bring your HuskyCard to use your student tickets or tap in for Student Rush.
• Can’t attend in person? The concert will be livestreamed for far-away Michigan Tech Music lovers and alums.

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Old World, New World — Saturday, April 22, at 7:30 p.m.
Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
Presented by Michigan Tech Music
Performed by the Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra

Music director Joel Neves conducts the world premiere of his own composition: “Kalaupapa” for symphony orchestra, ukulele and conch shells, inspired by his Native Hawaiian ohana from the old world. The concert also explores the “new world” experienced by Antonin Dvorak when he first visited America, in his nostalgically beautiful “New World Symphony.” Learn more.

• Get your tickets online, at 906-487-1906 or at the Rozsa Box Office from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Students, bring your HuskyCard to use your student tickets or tap in for Student Rush.
• Can’t attend in person? The concert will be livestreamed for far-away Michigan Tech Music lovers and alums.

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Milt Olsson Tribute — Sunday, April 23, from 1-3 p.m.
Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts Lobby
Hosted by the Department of Visual and Performing Arts

Alumni, faculty, staff and community members are all invited to join the Michigan Tech Department of Visual and Performing Arts in remembering and paying tribute to Milt Olsson and his legacy at Michigan Tech and in the Keweenaw community. The joyful afternoon will include a reception with light refreshments, speakers and music. Learn more.
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Singing is Life — Sunday, April 23, at 7:30 p.m.
Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
Presented by Michigan Tech Music
Performed by Michigan Tech Choirs and Alumni

Join the Michigan Tech choirs and alumni for a concert that celebrates singing at Michigan Tech. The concert will include performances by the Michigan Tech Concert Choir, conScience: Michigan Tech Chamber Singers and selections where the choirs are joined by alumni of the Michigan Tech Choirs. Learn more.

• Get your tickets online, at 906-487-1906 or at the Rozsa Box Office from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Students, bring your HuskyCard to use your student tickets or tap in for Student Rush.
• Can’t attend in person? The concert will be livestreamed for far-away Michigan Tech Music lovers and alums.

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Snowsports Art Exhibit — Ongoing: Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. | Saturday 1-8 p.m. | Ends Saturday, April 29
Rozsa Art Galleries
Presented by Michigan Tech Art

Stop in to see artwork created by VPA faculty and staff. Exhibition artists include Jared Anderson, Anne Beffel, Mary Cyr, Terri Jo Frew, Lisa Gordillo, Kenyon Hansen, Lindsey Heiden, Susie Kilpela, Mike Maxwell, Libby Meyer, Mat Moore, Christopher Plummer and Beth Techtmann. This exhibition is coordinated by Rozsa Art Galleries Director Terri Frew. Learn more.

The inaugural “Art in Silico” juried art show is a wrap! A big thank-you to the planning committee, 5th & Elm, and to all who came out and supported the artists! Overall we raised over $1,200 for MTU student scholarships and the Copper Country Community Arts Center.

Show winners were announced at the event from the jury panel of Terri Frew (VPA), Bonnie Loukus (CCCAC) and Cynthia Cote (CCCAC). 

• Honorable Mention: Master's student Michael Elegah for his piece "Visualization of a Partition Data Function" — "The Riemann zeta function is a central function in complex analysis, and is at the heart of the greatest open problem in number theory, the Riemann Hypothesis that conjectures a beautiful pattern for the roots of the function."
  
  
• Honorable Mention: Master's student Yogendra Kanchapu for his piece "4000AD: A Portrait of Houghton," which "envisions a future version of Houghton, Michigan, with advanced technological advancements and a thriving community."
  
  
• Most Creative: Scott Kuhl (CS/CLS) for "Film Streaks," which involved "2D images created from popular films using a simple algorithm. These images provide a glimpse into the color schemes, take length, camera movements and other aspects of the films."
  
  
• Most Innovative: Ph.D. candidate Evan Lucas for "Emails from Dean Lovecraft" and interactive display. "A language model was trained on the works of H. P. Lovecraft, as well as several years of emails from the MTU Dean of Students. This is an interactive work where users can supply a subject line and the model will generate an email inspired both by real Dean emails and the work of legendary horror author H. P. Lovecraft."
  
  
• Best of Show: Ph.D. candidate Chloe McCarthy for "Computational Sona-Kolam With Rainbow Loops." "This computer-generated design is the first example produced in a computational and theoretical study of traditional African and Indian art in Dr. Robert Schneider’s discrete mathematics research group. In Central Africa there are diagrammatic designs called sona, usually drawn in sand by storytellers, which are composed of geometrically-arranged dots enclosed within winding loops. Produced by a simple algorithm, sona represent visually-gorgeous patterns of high complexity."

View the online gallery for the “Art in Silico” show.

The Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering (CEGE) wants to recognize the following students, faculty and staff. All were presented with their awards at the CEGE Awards Reception held on Thursday (April 13).

Undergraduate Student Awards:

• Departmental Scholar Award: Caleb Novitch
• Undergraduate Departmental Service Award: Jacob Wysko
• Nicole Bloom Award for Environmental Sustainability: Kendra Lachcik

Graduate Student Awards:

• Danielle Ladwig Award for Graduate Excellence: Tyler LeMahieu
• Wilbur Haas Graduate Research Excellence Award: Benjamin Barrios Cerda

Student Voted Awards:

• GTA of the Year: Jacob Novitch
• Civil Engineering Faculty of the Year: Yousef Darestani
• Environmental Engineering Faculty of the Year: Jennifer Becker

Faculty and Staff Awards:

• Department Citizenship Award: Jeffery Hollingsworth
• CEGE Professional Advisory Board Award: Henrique (Kiko) de Melo e Silva

Recognition was also made to the following:

• Rob Fritz on his retirement after 23 years of service to CEGE.
• The outgoing members of the CEGE Professional Advisory Board:
  
  • Dennis Decator
  • Sean Kelley
  • Leslie Nelson
  • Kim Zimmer

The Husky Game Development Enterprise (HGD) will present a virtual showcase of its work on Sunday (April 23) at 7 p.m. Watch a live online stream featuring the games the group developed this year. All are welcome!

Learn more about Husky Games on the Computing News Blog.

Browse dozens of current and past games developed by HGD.

Hongyu An (ECE/ICC) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $198,463 research and development grant from the National Science Foundation.

The project is titled "ERI: Memristor-based Neuromorphic Circuit Design for Closed-Loop Deep Brain Stimulation."

This is a potential two-year project.

WiNR's Annual Plant Sale!

The Women in Natural Resources (WiNR) club will be hosting our annual Plant Sale on Wednesday and Thursday (April 19 and 20)! This event will be held in the atrium of the U. J. Noblet Forestry Building from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Items available for purchase include house plants, succulents, herbs, pots, handmade macrame and more! Our website will be updated one week prior for pre-orders (link in our Instagram bio, @winr_at_mtu).

Hope to see you there!

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Spring Customer Appreciation Sale at Campus Store, University Images

It's time for the sale you look forward to every spring — the Customer Appreciation Sale at the Campus Store and University Images.

Visit us online tomorrow (April 18) at our website or in person Friday (April 21). All Michigan Tech branded apparel and souvenirs will be 25% off, as well as our Upper Peninsula and Michigan apparel and souvenirs.

If you order online and select in-store pickup at checkout, we’ll contact you when your order is ready!

The Campus Store and University Images will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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Atmospheric Sciences Grad Student Presentation

This week's Atmospheric Sciences grad student presenter will be:

• Cece Jin (geology and mining engineering sciences; advised by Xin Xi and Simon Carn)

This will be an in-person event — Jin will give her talk at 4 p.m. today (April 17) in Fisher 101.

Event details, including Jin's presentation title and abstract, are available on the University Events Calendar.

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Songer Research Award Deadline Extended

The deadline for applications to the Songer Research Award for Human Health has been extended until next Monday (April 24) at 4 p.m.

Information on the awards and the application process is available on the Pre-Health Professions Blogs.

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ACSHF Forum: Grad Student Presentations

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences (CLS) will host two speakers at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors forum: Tauseef Ibne Mamun and Erin Matas, both ACSHF graduate students. Their presentations will be from 2-3 p.m. today (April 17) in Meese 109 and via Zoom.

Mamun will present "The Use of Social Forums to Train Users about Shortcomings of Tesla Full Self-driving (FSD)."

Matas will present "Practicum Project: Leadership Program Evaluation Using Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA)."

Full abstracts can be found on our Cognitive and Learning Sciences News blog!

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

Michigan Tech Art Presents: Snowsports Faculty and Staff Art Show

Monday, April 17, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. |

MICHIGAN TECH ART PRESENTS SNOWSPORTS FACULTY AND STAFF ART SHOW WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 2023 THROUGH SATURDAY APRIL 29, 2023 A-SPACE HOURS: M-F 8 A.M.-8 P.M.

ACSHF Forum: Grad Student Presentations

Monday, April 17, 2 p.m.–3 p.m. | Harold Meese Center, 109

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences will host two speakers at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors forum: Tauseef Ibne Mamun and Erin Matas, both...

Fatty Acids, Stable Isotopes and Gut Content: Bio-tracers to Evaluate Spatial Patterns in Contaminants in Fish

Monday, April 17, 3 p.m. | Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC), 202

Environmental Engineering Graduate Seminar Azmat Naseem, PhD Student, Environmental Engineering, Michigan Tech Libia Hazra, PhD Student, Environmental Engineering, Michigan...

Atmospheric Sciences Graduate Student Presentations

Monday, April 17, 4 p.m.–5 p.m. | Fisher Hall, 101

Please join this week's Atmospheric Sciences Graduate Student presenter Cece Jin (Geology and Mining Engineering Sciences) for their in-person presentation Monday, April 17th...

Little Huskies Boys Basketball Spring Camp

Monday, April 17, 4 p.m.–6 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Varsity Wood Gym

Learning skills, working as a team, and having fun: that’s Michigan Tech’s Little Huskies Boys’ Basketball Camp! It’s about the best introduction to basketball you can...

Chair Massages

Monday, April 17, 5 p.m.–8 p.m. | J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library

As part of our Stress-Free Finals Initiative, we are partnering with the PTSA students to offer chair massages. Stop by, relax, and take a break from studying! The PTSA...

Michigan Tech Art Presents: Exhibition of Student Artwork

Monday, April 17, 6:30 p.m.–8:00 p.m. | Wadsworth Hall, Studio G04W

MICHIGAN TECH ART PRESENTS EXHIBITION OF STUDENT ARTWORK STUDIO HERE NOW Please join us for the student art exhibition at Wads Hall. See works from students studying Art...

Husky Plush Making

Monday, April 17, 7 p.m.–9 p.m. | MUB Makerspace

Come make a plush with Craft Club. We will have materials to make a Husky plush.