Archive for June, 2012

Stanford marine biologist Barbara Block wins Rolex Award for Enterprise

June 13th, 2012

Barbara Block

BARBARA BLOCK, the Charles & Elizabeth Prothro Professor in Marine Sciences at at Stanford’s Hopkins Marine Station, has been awarded a Rolex Award for Enterprise for her plan to monitor large predators off the coast of California. The biennial awards “foster a spirit of enterprise and advance human knowledge and well-being.”

The award comes with a prize equivalent to approximately $104,000.

For more than two decades, Block has led a cadre of scientists from around the world in two large-scale tagging programs in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, monitoring a menagerie of marine animals, including bluefin tunas and white sharks, while serving as an advocate for ocean conservation.

Block and her colleagues have pioneered the use of electronic tags, including implantable archival tags, which are surgically implanted in tunas, and pop-up satellite archival tags, which automatically detach from animals and transmit collected data via satellite.

Building on the tags’ success, Block and collaborators also launched the Tagging of Pacific Predators (TOPP) program, now in its 12th year. The TOPP team deployed more than 4,600 electronic tags on a variety of species in the North Pacific and collected nearly 300,000 days of animal tracking data, revealing previously unknown marine hotspots, migratory highways and details of ocean physics.

One of TOPP’s most remarkable findings was that large predators from areas as diverse as the waters off New Zealand, Indonesia and Alaska congregate in the California Current – a productive, cold oceanic current that flows along North America’s west coast from Canada to Baja. Although they may make journeys of thousands of miles into the Pacific basin, they return to the California Current repeatedly, year after year. Block has labeled the almost pristine environment “a blue Serengeti.”

“It’s bursting with predators,” said Block, “and it’s right in our own backyard.”

With the Rolex Award, Block and the TOPP research team will be able to move forward with plans to protect and monitor these areas by building “predator cafés” – acoustic observatories of predator hotspots.

Rather than using satellite-based tags to follow these animals throughout their entire Pacific journeys, Block now hopes to use longer lasting and less expensive acoustic tags. A network of receivers that communicate with satellite and cell networks, both fixed at hotspots and attached to unmanned Wave Glider vehicles, will allow researchers to track predators this summer and fall in real time from Point Lobos to Tomales Point. She hopes to extend this ocean observing network down the west coast of North America.

Block’s team is also building a website and mobile app that will provide real-time updates on predator movements to the general public, using 12 years of tracking data to tell the animals’ full stories.

“We hope to connect the public to the predators,” said Block.

Ultimately, the goal of the monitoring project will be to increase protection for these rich predator regions. Block and her colleagues suggested designating the hotspot regions of the California Current a UNESCO World Heritage Site in a recent paper in the journal Nature.

“When large predators are being eliminated in other regions of the ocean, it’s important that we do all we can to protect and ensure the future of this remarkable ecosystem off our coast,” Block said. “Thus far, it’s remained stable despite exploitation and climate perturbations. Understanding why could teach us a lot about the ocean portion of this planet.”

— BY MAX MCCLURE

Behind Stanford’s diploma ceremonies

June 12th, 2012

“Behind the pomp and circumstance, underneath the robes and tassels, and beyond the smiles and joyful tears are teams of tireless staff members who weave together thousands of tiny details into a seamless weekend of Commencement festivities,” writes KATE JUNCO, managing communications editor in University Human Resources (UHR), in the spring issue of Stanford Employee Insider.

Of course, the Office of Special Events and Protocol (OSEP) orchestrates Commencement on a macro level. But when it comes to individual schools, departments and programs, there are a number of folks who make sure all the “i’s” are dotted and the “t’s” are crossed as well. According to ELAINE ENOS, executive director of OSEP, 65 diploma ceremonies are planned for this weekend.

“For some schools, the planning and preparation that goes into each Commencement begins a year in advance. For others, it’s a six-month push beginning in January. For all schools, it takes teams of staff, countless meetings, a laser-like focus, a knack for detail, and impeccable coordination to pull off the largest and most significant university production of the year. Stanford’s 121st Commencement Weekend . . . will be no exception,” Junco continues.

The full story, which is on the UHR Newsroom website, spotlights RONI HOLETON, assistant dean for academic affairs in the School of Earth Sciences; LIA CACCIARI, student services specialist for the Program in Human Biology; DARLENE LAZAR, student services officer in the School of Engineering; CHIDEL ONUEGBU, associate director of student affairs in the Law School; COURTNEY PAYNE, director of the Student Life Office in the Graduate School of Business; KATE MCKINNEY, academic services coordinator in the School of Education, and ZERA MURPHY, director of student life in the Medical School.

Ask Stanford Med: Chief of Emergency Medicine take questions on wilderness medicine

June 11th, 2012

This summer, families, nature lovers and thrill seekers will head outdoors. While many may spend hours planning camping trips, researching hiking gear or picking out the perfect sleeping bag, few are likely consider the potential health hazards that can arise on even an ordinary trip.

To help you prepare for those potential mid-adventure emergencies, the School of Medicine’s SCOPE Blog enlisted Stanford Professor Paul Auerbach, MD, to respond to your questions about safety outdoors.

An expert on wilderness medicine, Auerbach is editor of the medical textbook Wilderness Medicine and author of Medicine for the Outdoors and Field Guide to Wilderness Medicine. He was a member of the Stanford medical team that provided assistance to survivors of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, a volunteer physician at the Hospitalito Atitlan in Santiago, Guatemala, and instructor and examiner for the Nepal Ambulance Service in Kathmandu, Nepal. A founder and past president of the Wilderness Medical Society, he was named a Hero of Emergency Medicine in 2008 by the American College of Emergency Physicians.

You can submit your questions to Auerbach until Wednesday, June 13 at 5 p.m. by sending a tweet that includes the hashtag #AskSUMed or by submitting them in the comment section of Lia Steakley’s SCOPE Blog post.

Ivy Nguyen and Michael Tayag named Strauss Scholars

June 8th, 2012

Michael Tayag will work with Filipino caregivers in Santa Clara County.

Stanford juniors IVY NGUYEN and MICHAEL TAYAG have been awarded scholarships from the Donald A. Strauss Foundation to pursue service projects during their senior year.

Tayag, of Vista, Calif., will work with the People’s Association of Workers and Immigrants in San Jose to conduct a paticipatory research project designed to capture the direct experiences of Filipino caregivers who work in residential care facilities for the elderly in Santa Clara County.

Nguyen, who is from Milpitas, Calif., will work on a water sanitation project in Phuoc Binh village in Dong Nai Province, Vietnam. She will spend the summer working with village residents to modify a low-cost ceramic water filter to be adaptable to the different water conditions in the rainy and dry seasons. She will return later in the year to begin establishing a local manufaturing center to mass produce the filters for the greater Mekong Delta.

Ivy Nguyen will conduct a water project in Vietnam.

Tayag is majoring in comparative studies in race and ethnicity; Nguyen is a chemical engineering major.

Established by the family of alumnus DONALD A. STRAUSS, the $10,000 scholarships are given to 10 to 15 California college juniors annually. At Stanford, the scholarships are administered through the Haas Center for Public Service.

Strauss, AB ’37, demonstrated a lifelong commitment to public service and education, serving 10 years on the Newport-Mesa Unified School District board and 12 years on the Newport Beach City Council, including one as mayor. He died in 1995 at the age of 79.

Strauss’ widow, Dorothy M. R. Strauss, established the foundation in January 1997, and since then 220 scholarships have been awarded.

Photos by Joy Leighton, Haas Center for Public Service

‘Mad Dog’ returns

June 7th, 2012

MARK MADSEN, one of the most iconic and inspirational basketball players in Cardinal history, is coming back to the Farm as an assistant coach, JOHNNY DAWKINS, head coach, announced Tuesday.

During his four years as a player at Stanford, Madsen earned All-America honors in each of his final two seasons while helping lead the Cardinal to four NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 1998 Final Four. A nine-year NBA veteran, Madsen spent six seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves following a three-year stint with the Los Angeles Lakers, in which he contributed to the franchise’s 2001 and 2002 NBA championships.

“I’m really excited to have Mark join our staff and return to the Stanford basketball program,” said Dawkins. “Mark’s energy and enthusiasm is infectious and his experience at Stanford will provide an invaluable resource to our team. I have no doubt that our student-athletes will benefit greatly from working with Mark on a daily basis.”

Known back in the day as “Mad Dog” for his signature physical and aggressive style of play, Madsen, now 36, has spent the last two years on campus, completing coursework toward his MBA at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

“I am very grateful to Coach Dawkins and Stanford University for the opportunity to join the basketball staff and work with such a highly talented group of student-athletes,” said Madsen, who accompanied the Cardinal on its preseason trip to Spain last September. “I feel extremely fortunate to represent an institution that has meant so much to me, both personally and professionally. I’m excited to get started and look forward to contributing immediately as our program builds on last year’s success.”

Read the full announcement on gostanford.com.

New members inducted into Stanford Inventor Hall of Fame

June 6th, 2012

Management Science and Engineering professors Walter Murray, at podium, and Michael Saunders, far right, were inducted into the Hall of Fame for a suite of optimization packages, including MINOS and SNOPT. OTL Director Katharine Ku, left, looks on.

What do nucleotide sequence amplification, engineering optimization software and Google’s PageRank algorithm have in common? They’re all quite lucrative. They and four other inventions have earned their creators coveted seats in the “Stanford Inventor Hall of Fame.” The inductees have each come up with devices or processes that have brought the university $5 million or more in royalties. There are not, as it turns out, very many members of this elite club.

“There have only been 17 in our 42 years of operation,” said KATHARINE KU, the director of the Stanford Office of Technology Licensing (OTL). “It’s hard to bring in that amount of money.”

The inventions are all the result of research conducted at Stanford, by Stanford professors, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. The inductees were honored last week during a reception at OTL.

The new inductees are:

Oncology Professor RON LEVY and former postdoctoral fellow LOIS LAMPSON, for a set of antibody-producing cell lines used for research and diagnosis.

Management science and engineering Professors MICHAEL SAUNDERS and WALTER MURRAY, Stanford Systems Optimization Laboratory member PHILIP GILL, BRUCE MURTAGH (former professor at Macquarie University, Australia) and former graduate student MARGARET WRIGHT, for a suite of optimization packages, including MINOS and SNOPT. The software has been used to design everything from an America’s Cup yacht to power grids.

Former anesthesia Assistant Professor MARK YELDERMAN, for a flow measurement technique that has proved invaluable for monitoring blood flow through the heart in emergency rooms.

Microbiology and immunology Professor JOHN BOOTHROYD, and former postdoctoral fellows JAMES LAWRENCE BURG and PHILIPPE POULETTY, for a method of amplifying nucleotide sequences that is now used in a number of diagnostic tests.

Biochemistry Professor PATRICK BROWN and former graduate student DARI SHALON, for the basis of DNA microarrays, which have become an essential tool for genotyping and measuring gene expression levels.

Professor of pediatrics and of microbiology and immunology CHRISTOPHER CONTAG, former postdoctoral fellow PAMELA CONTAG and consulting professor of pediatrics DAVID BENARON, for “glowing mice” – a technique that uses bioluminescent bacteria for real-time pathogen imaging.

LARRY PAGE and SERGEY BRIN, for the hypertext searching algorithm that would later form the basis of Google, which they developed as graduate students at Stanford.

Licensing from Google’s algorithm alone has brought in around $337 million.

The eclecticism of the inventions drives home how difficult it is to reach the $5 million mark. “There really is no pattern to who gets in,” said Ku. “It seems random – which is why it’s interesting.”

— MAX MCCLURE

 

Stanford bioengineer Stephen Quake wins $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize

June 5th, 2012

STEPHEN QUAKE, a professor of bioengineering and of applied physics at Stanford and an investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, has been named the 2012 winner of the $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize.

Holder of over 80 patents, founder of at least four companies based on his conceptions and inventor of technologies that have transformed science and medicine, Quake does work that cuts across a diverse array of fields, such as genomic sequencing, microfluidics, immunology, infectious disease and medical diagnostics. His innovations include a rapid DNA sequencer, a non-invasive prenatal test for Down syndrome and the biological equivalent of the integrated circuit.

“We are thrilled to honor Steve Quake, whose groundbreaking work in the field of molecular measurement has created new devices and technologies that will contribute to improving health,” said Dorothy Lemelson, chair of The Lemelson Foundation, a private philanthropy that funds the Lemelson-MIT Program. “Stephen has also been a pioneer in inventing new tools that will allow others to engage in scientific discovery and the prototyping of new biomedical devices quicker and easier, paving the way for even more breakthrough ideas.”

Quake is one of an emerging class of scientists in the burgeoning discipline of bioengineering, which seeks to fuse engineering and life sciences to promote scientific discovery and the development of new technologies and therapies in human health and environmental sustainability. Stanford’s Department of Bioengineering is a collaboration of the School of Engineering and the School of Medicine. Established in 2003, it is the university’s newest department. Quake serves as its co-chair.

“I’ve never been satisfied to just publish a paper and leave it at that. I try to turn these ideas into inventions and companies so the research can change people’s lives,” Quake said. “As a physicist, I’m interested in basic science and in measuring things and this turns out to have important applications in medicine.”

“I first encountered Steve when he took an honors freshman physics class I taught at Stanford,” said current U.S. Secretary of Energy and Nobel laureate, STEVEN CHU, a mentor to Quake. “He later worked in my lab making the first single molecule measurements of DNA elasticity with optical tweezers. For this work, he was awarded the Apker Prize for the best senior physics thesis in the country. Even as an undergraduate, I was in awe over how fast he could grasp new ideas and apply his extensive command of mathematics. I was a total novice in polymer physics, and we taught ourselves and each other. He had a fearless approach to his laboratory work.”

Early inventions

Stanford recognized Quake’s potential early on. “My wife Jean discovered how much promise Steve had in her role as Dean of Admissions,” said Nobel laureate and U.S. Secretary of Energy Stephen Chu, who was then a professor in the physics department. “She wrote on the admission file, ‘The Physics Department will love this guy!’”

Chu recalled first encountering Quake in an honors freshman physics class he was teaching, and they became even better acquainted when Quake worked in Chu’s lab in his junior and senior years. During this time, Quake made the first single molecule measurements of DNA elasticity with optical tweezers, Chu said. For this work, Quake was awarded the Apker Prize for the best senior physics thesis in the country.

“I was in awe over how fast he could grasp new ideas and apply his extensive command of mathematics,” Chu said. “I was a total novice in polymer physics, and we taught ourselves and each other. He had a fearless approach to his laboratory work that one person in my group thought was like the proverbial bull in a china shop. Dishes were broken, but things happened — and I loved it.”

After graduating from Stanford, Quake went to Oxford as a Marshall Scholar with the intent of studying string theory, but returned to the molecular strings he studied at Stanford. He earned his doctorate combining the polymer theory he mastered at Oxford with experiments he did in Chu’s lab during his final year as an Oxford student. After Oxford, he spent another two years in Chu’s lab further developIng his experimental skills, Chu said.

— BY ANDREW MYERS, Stanford Engineering

Stanford Video wins four awards Telly Awards

June 1st, 2012

Stanford Video won four bronze statuettes from the 33rd Annual Telly Awards recently.

The Telly Awards honor “the very best local, regional and cable television commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions and work created for the Web,” according to the organization’s website. The same firm that makes the Oscar and Emmy designs the Telly statuette.

"NCAA Champions" recently won two Telly Awards this year

Stanford’s current television spot, NCAA – Champions, which profiles the academic and athletic experiences of a few Stanford student athletes and airs regularly during broadcasted sporting events, received two Telly’s: one for Institutional Image and another for Videography.

For the second year in a row, the Roundtable at Stanford also has been recognized by the Telly Awards. Hosted by Charlie Rose at Maples Pavilion during Reunion Weekend last fall, the 2011 Roundtable, Education Nation 2.0, Redefining K-12 Education in America, before it redefines us, has been rebroadcast nationally on public television.

Straw Into Gold, produced for the Stanford School of Engineering, part of their eDay, was the fourth entry that won.

“Stanford Video is proud to support the university’s national television presence with our dedicated, professional crew” says Gordon Gurley, Stanford Video director. “It’s great to get recognized.”

Visit the Stanford Video website.

— BY ROB HUFFMAN