Under the guidance of Oregon State robotics professor Bill Smart, Arvey and his fellow students in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) and the University Honors College work to empower people with disabilities. Their idea: Equip an electric wheelchair with an operating system that can respond to verbal commands or eye blinks.
Get a glimps of OSU’s grants and contracts for the 2014 fiscal year in this Annual Report of Research.
Two five-year grants from the National Science Foundation aim to increase the participation of women and underrepresented minorities in science, technology, engineering and math disciplines, or STEM, at Oregon State University.
Oregonians will go to the polls on November 4 to decide whether or not to require prominent labels on food containing ingredients made from genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. The issue of labeling has been around for years, and — déjà vu! — Oregonians have even voted on it before. But the rhetoric has heated up to where its passage has a far better chance this year than it did in 2002.
Genetic engineering has become a valuable scientific tool. It has enabled us to gain tremendous insight into the mechanisms of plant reproduction, disease resistance and other useful traits. However, commercial use of this technology has not lived up to expectations and has created serious hurdles for plant breeders. That in turn hampers genetic progress and innovation.
For computer scientist Margaret Burnett, the call for broader impacts (see “Terra Up Close” below) means reaching far and wide outside her door. But it begins right inside the heart of her lab at Oregon State University. Every year, she brings in a handful of students, both high schoolers and recent graduates, to work side-by-side with her team of budding computer scientists.