TECHNICIAN
Raleigh, North Carolina
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Dan Allen gate approved The proposed gate to close off Dan Allen Drive has been approved.
Making a name for himself as undergrad After being published in journal Nature, Adam Keith credits his success to his alma mater.
Jessie Halpern News Editor
The N.C. State Office of Transportation approved a new plan to block off parts of Dan Allen Drive. Later this summer, the installation of new gates will cut off throughtraffic between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The gates will be located on either side of the railroad bridge, allowing only buses and University vehicles to pass. According to the Office of Transportation, this change is meant to increase the safety for drivers, bus passenger and pedestrians. By limiting access to Dan Allen Drive, Transportation hopes to increase the use of sustainable transportation and decrease the number of accidents.
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the behavior of these phases using established physical laws and rely on complex models to examine their data. Some models can grow large enough where they can no longer be read on a standard computer. Noah Rouse That is where Keith and his team Correspondent stepped in. Keith spent his time at NIST solvWhile many PhD candidates are dreaming of the chance to be ing equations by hand and writpublished in a prestigious jour- ing code to numerically evaluate the quantities his nal, recent N.C. group was interState graduate ested in. NIST reAda m Keit h searchers used this made it his recode to compare ality when he his theory to their was published results. Keith said in Nature, an his method made international it much simpler to journal detailcreate large simuing the newest lations by allowing findings in scithem to evolve natence and mediurally, so it could be cine. Adam Keith, recent graduate read off the values Last summer, Keith and his colleagues at the of interest. Keith believes the method could National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at Boul- open the gateway to more ambider, Colo., undertook the task tious efforts like research into suof simplifying the rules of con- perconductivity and the possibility densed matter systems to make of exploring deeper questions conmore complex simulations pos- densed matter physicists are eager to explore. He joked, though, that sible. Condensed matter phys- he is a member of a team and not a ics examines the properties of standalone genius. “I actually did not write the pacondensed phases of solids and liquids. Physicists who work in the field attempt to understand NATURE continued page 3
“I am no genius, but I do feel I was well prepared to conduct this research...”
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New stents make for healthier hearts Noah Rouse Correspondent
Jordan Kaufmann, an alumna with a doctorate in biomedical engineering, has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the University of Texas to develop a new method of treating abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) using stent-grafts. Kaufmann’s inspiration for this method came from noticing the flaws of the current treatment, endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR). The method uses a physical object placed near the site of the aneurysm to strengthen the walls of the aorta. EVAR has strong results, but the risks of endoleaks—blood flow around the graft and into the aneurysm sac —persist. Kaufmann’s device, known as a stent-graft, improves the current procedure by using the body’s own tissue to repair the aneurysms and reduce the chance of rupture and endoleaks According to the CDC, abdominal aortic aneurysms is a condition where a section of the aortic artery, the tube which carries blood from the chest down through the abdomen, balloons to dangerous sizes, with some reaching sizes of seven centimeters or more. Prolonged swellings often result in rupture and subsequent death by internal bleeding, with a mortality rate as high as 90 percent. Doctors have recently seen a slow decline in deaths caused by the condition thanks to early screenings and medical advancements like those developed by Kaufmann. Her project has the potential to
improve treatment of patients with AAA and increase their lifespan with minimally invasive surgery. The device took years of hard work, perseverance and the mercy of the UT grant board, but Kaufmann credits the foundations of her skills to the engineering department here at N.C. State. “The device itself comes from my dissertation work in Biomedical Engineering at UTSA, but N.C. State provided me with not only the engineering background, but also how to think and overcome obstacles,” Kaufmann said. “Most engineers at N.C. State know that it’s not exactly an “easy A” degree. What they might not realize is that those hours spent trying to solve homework problems— sometimes unsuccessfully—not only teach you mechanics or differential equations, but they’re also teaching you to think and how to overcome failure.” Kauffman’s technical skills were not the only factor that led to her success. Her skills as both a businessperson and presenter were ultimately what helped convince the grant board that her work would guarantee success. “While at N.C. State I also had the opportunity to be a Franklin Scholar and worked on a degree in interpersonal communication, which has come in handy for the business side of this adventure,” Kaufmann said. “Then, of course, there were the design classes I took which gave me the very real (and very necessary) hands-on skills I needed to build equipment for my project.”
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FIND US ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF HARRELSON HALL UNTIL THE NEW TALLEY STUDENT CENTER OPENS IN 2014 ncsu.edu/bookstore | bookstore@ncsu.edu | 919.515.2161
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Construction on the new Talley Student Center continues daily through both summer sessions as part one of renovations is set to open late 2013.
Talley renovations stay on track Despite upsets over fees, the University is excited to reveal the plans for Talley. Arth Pandya Senior Staff Writer
Construction for the new Talley Student Center on schedule, and the University is on track to finish phase one construction around September or October of next year. Despite ongoing construction, the center is still open and accessible to students. Despite recent concerns of going over budget with the project, the University has stayed on track, according to Dan Adams, associate vice chancellor for Campus Enterprises. “With a project like this, you’re always leery of costs going up,” Adams said. “We are on target financially. We will not have to go back and ask
for additional dollars.” The latest efforts are associated with the branding and graphics of the building, according to TJ Willis, assistant director of University Student Centers. “We’re establishing a look, identity, feel and character for [the building],” Willis said. The student body expressed frustration with the Talley plans in past years particularly with regard to increased student fees needed to finance the project, but Student Body President Andy Walsh isn’t concerned. “The most negative feedback is just about the fee in general. We need to move on from that conversion at this point,” Walsh said. “We need to make this the best student space that it can be.” The lack of excitement over the project in the past is attributable to
the lack of information available to students, according to Adams. “In my opinion, part of the resistance and bad feelings about the fee being moved forward with Talley have to do with students not knowing what they were paying for. There were no pictures, no visuals, no concepts of what it was,” Adams said. Adams believes students will begin to see a return on their investment once certain aspects of the project come to fruition. The University has set October 2012 as a big reveal date for certain information, such as venue names, logos and sample menus. “A lot of work has gone into what the space will look like, what foods are being served and how it can be special for students,” Adams said.
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Jordan Kaufmann, a recent N.C. State graduate, changes medicine with development of artery stents.