University of Arkansas notebook

Brain researchers awarded $1M grant

FAYETTEVILLE -- A University of Arkansas, Fayetteville professor and other researchers will receive $1 million from the National Science Foundation to study brain science.

Art Chaovalitwongse, co-director of UA's Institute for Advanced Data Analytics, and researchers at the University of Washington have received the four-year grant as part of a federal effort supporting cross-disciplinary research into how the brain functions.

New funding aids archaeology unit

FAYETTEVILLE -- A federal grant will continue a high-tech archaeology research support program created at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville's Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies and Archaeo-Imaging Laboratory.

The $158,762 National Science Foundation award will support the Spatial Archaeometry Research Collaborations program, founded in 2013, which involves UA, Dartmouth College and the University of Glasgow in Scotland. The program provides technical expertise in 3-D surveying and sensors for use in archaeological research projects.

Grant to aid study of new light chip

FAYETTEVILLE -- A National Science Foundation grant of about $250,000 will help two University of Arkansas, Fayetteville researchers develop a new chip that uses light to help process high-frequency electrical signals.

Samir El-Ghazaly and Shui-Qing "Fisher" Yu, both electrical engineering professors, will work on developing what's called a microwave photonics chip that has potential applications in radar signal processing and cell phone technology.

Group's new award to honor professor

FAYETTEVILLE -- An engineering association has named an award after a longtime University of Arkansas, Fayetteville professor and his wife.

The Lalit and Aruna Verma Award for Excellence in Global Engagement, presented by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, recognizes people who work at promoting those disciplines globally.

Lalit Verma is head of UA's biological and agricultural engineering department.

Spinach research earns $2.45M boost

FAYETTEVILLE -- Boosting spinach resistance to disease is the focus of University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture researchers awarded a $2.45 million grant from the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

The grant funds work by Ainong Shi and James Correll. They lead a multi-state collaboration aimed at protecting what Shi described as a popular crop.

"The U.S. is the second largest producer of spinach and there has been a dramatic increase in spinach production as a result of higher consumption. In order to keep up with demand, growers require continuous development of improved and adapted spinach varieties to overcome diseases and insect pests," Shi said in a statement released by UA.

$2.4M awarded for wastewater work

FAYETTEVILLE -- A $2.4 million National Science Foundation grant will help a team led by a University of Arkansas, Fayetteville professor to chemically convert wastewater into fertilizer.

Lauren Greenlee, an assistant professor of chemical engineering, leads a team of researchers from UA, Colorado School of Mines and Case Western Reserve University.

"Excess nitrogen and phosphorous in wastewater, due primarily to human impact, cause serious environmental problems," Greenlee said in a statement released by UA. "We're engineering a technology that takes these nutrients from the environment and recycles them, turning them into a commercial product that is energy efficient and environmentally less harmful to produce."

Energy Department funds power project

FAYETTEVILLE -- Federal grants totalling $3.2 million will support work by a University of Arkansas, Fayetteville professor on power system components.

Alan Mantooth will receive funding from the U.S. Department of Energy as a lead investigator on one project and as a supporting researcher on another. The projects are focused on power converters, technology that optimizes electrical power for use in various applications.

Skin-wound healing subject of NIH grant

FAYETTEVILLE -- A five-year, $1.7 million National Institutes of Health grant will help a University of Arkansas, Fayetteville researcher study how age affects skin wound healing.

Kyle Quinn, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering, will utilize technology known as multiphoton microscopy that allows for 3-D imaging.

"Our long-term goal is to establish non-invasive optical readouts to identify age-related delays in healing and guide treatment," Quinn said in a statement released by UA.

$349,551 awarded for security study

FAYETTEVILLE -- A University of Arkansas, Fayetteville professor and researchers from the University of Central Florida will study ways to improve the security of computing hardware with help from a $349,551 National Science Foundation grant.

Jia Di and other researchers will work with a company, Radiance Technologies, to test security measures to better help manufacturers assess electronic circuits.

Metro on 09/18/2017

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