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Leonor Sierra is press officer for science and engineering. She covers computer science, electrical and computer engineering, laboratory for laser energetics, optics, mechanical engineering, physics and astronomy, and the Office of the Dean of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

RECENT POSTS

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Science & Technology
May 25, 2016 | 11:13 am

Close encounters of a tidal kind could lead to cracks on icy moons

Until now, it was thought the cracks on icy moons such as Pluto’s Charon were the result of processes like plate tectonics. But new computer models suggest that the pull exerted by another object might have been the cause.

topics: Alice Quillen, Cynthia Ebinger, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Natural Sciences, planets, research finding, School of Arts and Sciences,
Science & Technology
May 19, 2016 | 10:30 am

A digital ‘Rochester Cloak’ to fit all sizes

Using the same mathematical framework as the Rochester Cloak, researchers have been able to use flat screen displays to extend the range of angles that can be hidden from view. Their method lays out how cloaks of arbitrary shapes, that work from multiple viewpoints, may be practically realized in the near future using commercially available digital devices.

topics: Department of Physics and Astronomy, featured-post-side, Institute of Optics, John Howell, Joseph Choi, research finding,
Science & Technology
April 28, 2016 | 02:01 pm

Researchers demonstrate record optical nonlinearity

A team led by Robert Boyd has demonstrated that the transparent, electrical conductor indium tin oxide can result in up to 100 times greater nonlinearity than other known materials, a potential ‘game changer’ for photonics applications.

topics: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Institute of Optics, Materials Science Program, photonics, research finding, Robert Boyd, School of Arts and Sciences,
Science & Technology
March 22, 2016 | 08:47 pm

A new way to determine the age of stars?

Rochester researchers have developed a new conceptual framework for understanding how stars similar to our Sun evolve. Their framework helps explain how the rotation of stars, their emission of x-rays, and the intensity of their stellar winds vary with time. According to Eric Blackman, professor of physics and astronomy, the work could also “ultimately help to determine the age of stars more precisely than is currently possible.”

topics: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Eric Blackman, Natural Sciences, planets, research finding, School of Arts and Sciences, stars,
Society & Culture
March 21, 2016 | 02:56 pm

Can a computer tell if you’re drinking while tweeting?

Computer science graduate student Nabil Hossain and his collaborators have taught computers to analyze tweets about drinking to determine if people were actually drinking at the time they were tweeting and if they were tweeting from home or some other location.

topics: data science, Goergen Institute for Data Science, Henry Kautz, research finding,
Science & Technology
March 15, 2016 | 10:59 am

Paying attention to words, not just images, leads to better captions

A team of University and Adobe researchers is outperforming other approaches to creating computer-generated image captions in an international competition. The key to their winning approach? Thinking about words – what they mean and how they fit in a sentence structure – just as much as thinking about the image itself.

topics: data science, Department of Computer Science, Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Jiebo Luo,
Science & Technology
March 4, 2016 | 03:03 pm

Rochester scientist discovers new comet

David Cameron, a visiting scientist in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, has discovered a new comet – the first to be discovered by an astronomer associated with the University or with the Rochester area in over a century, his colleagues believe.

topics: comets, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Eric Mamajek, research finding, School of Arts and Sciences,
Science & Technology
November 9, 2015 | 05:16 pm

Rochester team among those awarded $3 million Breakthrough Prize for work with neutrinos

A team led by professors Steven Manly and Kevin McFarland was honored “for the fundamental discovery of neutrino oscillations, revealing a new frontier beyond, and possibly far beyond, the standard model of particle physics.”

topics: announcements, awards, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Kevin McFarland, School of Arts and Sciences, Steven Manly,