Session Descriptions

New Directions in Dynamical Systems Inspired by Biological, Energy, Environmental and Information Sciences

Co-Chairs: Arvind Raman (Purdue University); Oliver O’Reilly (University of California, Berkeley); N. Sri Namachchivaya (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)

Speakers: Andrea L. Bertozzi (University of California, Los Angeles), Mark Anderson (Los Alamos National Labs), Derek A. Paley (University of Maryland), Kayo Ide (University of Maryland), John Guckenheimer (Cornell University), Michael Riley (University of Cincinnati), Maurizio Porfiri (Polytechnic Institute of New York University), Duncan Callaway (University of California, Berkeley)

This is a series of 3 sessions:

Uncertainty Quantification (UQ) and Data Driven Dynamical Systems (DDDS)
Dynamical Systems in Biomechanics/Biomimetics and Energy Generation/
Distribution Systems
Panel Discussion on New Directions in Dynamical Systems

Hot Topics in Engineering Design

Chair: Paul Collopy

Speakers: Paul Eremenko, Abhijit Deshmukh, Armand Chaput, Anna-Maria McGowan

There is a surge of interest in the research community and among research-supporting agencies on the topics of model-based design, value-centric design for adaptability, and fundamental examinations of systems engineering processes. This workshop will bring together thought leaders and researchers in these fields to develop a holistic view of future directions and opportunities in engineering design and systems engineering research.

Emerging Research Opportunities in Energy Manufacturing

Steve Danyluk, Matthew J. Realff
John Pellegrino (University of Colorado at Boulder), Cori Ehman (University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign), Leon McGinnis (Georgia Tech)

Meeting the energy needs of the world over the coming decades and simultaneously reducing the carbon footprint of production will require a transformation of the existing energy infrastructure. This challenge will require innovative manufacturing systems both to create the infrastructure and in the processes to turn diffuse renewable energy sources into liquid fuels and electricity.

In this workshop we will explore three different research topics that connect to this manufacturing problem.

Research challenges for large area manufacturing of micro and nano structured surfaces.
Research challenges for dilute stream separations, such as recovering algae and algae products from water.
Research challenges for systems engineering in the development of large scale energy production.

These topics will be explored in three sequential sessions with an introduction and two to three short talks followed by a general discussion to develop research topics and an agenda that could lead to program development at NSF.

NSF Workshop on Challenges and Opportunities for Research in Multiscale Modeling in Mechanics (M3)

Glaucio Paulino

This NSF sponsored workshop will discuss future directions, scientific challenges and opportunities in the broad area of multiscale approaches in mechanics. In recent years, there have been several significant developments that have given rise to the need for examining the scientific challenges and opportunities regarding multiscale modeling involving length and time scales. For instance, our capacity to create or design new materials with properties that seem to be related to specific features at different length and time scales has increased significantly, but, rational evaluation/simulation methodologies that are needed have not kept pace. Thus engineers and mechanicians have resorted to a variety of heuristic methods to carry this out. Moreover, biological applications of mechanics have necessitated the development of many multiscale simulation techniques at various levels. There has been a similar vast increase in the availability of computational tools focused on modeling at different length and time scales. But techniques to bridge scales have generally remained heuristic rather than scientific, especially when considering multifunctional and non-linear materials. Mathematical tools such as homogenization techniques, notions of gamma convergence, etc. have made strides in some limited areas but their application to complex nonlinear materials is not clear. There are both scientific and philosophical questions as to the applicability of these techniques when there is no clear way to develop a hierarchy of increasing length scales. In other words, questions remain as to even if it is possible to use such multiscale approaches in general. This workshop will address these issues aiming at a systematic rational, which is scientifically rigorous, to the field of multiscale modeling in mechanics.

Pre-Conference Student Workshop: Communicating Your Research

Michael Alley

This workshop is designed to help engineering graduate students communicate their research more effectively. Specifically, the workshop focuses on publishing dissertation research in journal papers, and presenting research at conferences and seminars. In publishing research papers, the workshop focuses on meeting the reviewers’ expectations for structuring sections and achieving clarity. In presenting research, the workshop focuses on achieving confidence, finding effective entry points, and rising above the common practice of presentation slides. The workshop consists of lecture, analysis of examples, discussion, and practical exercises.

About the Instructor

Holding a master of science in electrical engineering and a master of fine arts in writing, Michael Alley is an associate professor of engineering communication at Pennsylvania State University. He is the author of The Craft of Scientific Presentations (2003) and The Craft of Scientific Writing (1996), both of which have been translated to Japanese. Over the past twenty years, he has taught communication workshops to engineering researchers around the world. Sites include MIT, Sandia National Laboratories, Simula Research Laboratory (Norway), the University of Barcelona, European Young Engineers (Italy), KAUST (Saudi Arabia), and the European Space Organization (Chile). Alley is the founder for the popular web-site “Writing Guidelines for Engineering and Science Students,” which has a half-million visitors each year and is the first Google listing for the search term engineering writing.

Attendance is limited to 300 students.

Note: All students receiving travel awards to attend the conference are required to register and attend this pre-conference workshop. Additionally, these students should bring their posters to the session for use during the workshop. Please contact Matthew Carnavos at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or concerns.

Research Program Development Workshop

George Hazelrigg

This workshop covers many topics that are crucial to planning, proposal writing, and development of a sound academic research program. The subject matter is appropriate for graduate students and young faculty about to begin a career involving academic research, and for more senior faculty who would benefit from an update on how one interfaces with NSF. The workshop is presented by George Hazelrigg, who has overseen the review of more than 5,000 proposals and who has conducted several hundred panel reviews during his 28-year tenure at NSF. George will present many of the lessons learned from his experience.

Workshop on NEEShub—The George E. Brown Jr., Network for Earthquake Engineering (NEES) Platform for Cyber Collaboration

Julio Ramirez

To register for this workshop, click here.

The ABCs—Ellen Rathje, University of Texas at Austin

“The ABCs” part of the workshop is intended to introduce researchers and educators to the NEEShub, and its features for data management, research collaboration, and educational resources. The NEEShub may be used by any researcher or educator and accounts are free. Features described include:
The Project Warehouse (i.e., data repository of NEES). An easy-to-understand introduction is given herein. More details are provided in the second part of the workshop.
The Project Display and the new data viewer inDEED. Together, these tools provide user-friendly access to and presentation of research data. The Data Model used for research data (i.e., Project, Experiment, Trial, Repetition) will be presented along with the data upload tool PEN (Project Explorer for NEES).
Group space, a new way to facilitate Research collaboration. The Group space is a user-controlled area dedicated to group members for sharing data, files, and communication.
o The NEESacademy, on NEEShub, provides online learning resources and collaborative design space using research data and research-grade simulations for educators and students of all ages.

Project Warehouse—Santiago Pujol, Purdue University

The second part of the workshop describes in more detail the NEES repository of data about earthquake engineering called The Project Warehouse. Web-based tools that can be used to visualize and understand the data in the repository are showcased. These tools are also shown to have potential for use in a wide range of applications (extending well beyond NEES) in which sets of information from drawings, photographs, and sensors (or numerical simulation tools) need to be combined to describe a simulation (physical or numerical).

Using & Contributing Tools—Michael J. McLennan, Purdue University

The final part of the workshop, “Using and Contributing Tools”, will cover significant aspects of tools and other resources available in the NEEShub. NEEShub provides a rich yet safe computing environment allowing users to run tools directly in NEEShub without downloading them. Tools currently available on the NEEShub include the inDEED data viewer, OpenSees, SAPWood, and the Real-time Data Viewer (RDV). First, general information about searching for and using NEEShub tools will be provided. After that, the process to contribute tools to NEEShub for tools will be examined.

Advanced Manufacturing Cluster Break Out

George Hazelrigg, Manufacturing & Construction Machines & Equipment
Charalabos Doumanidis, NanoManufacturing
Mary Toney, Materials Processing & Manufacturing
Russell Barton, Manufacturing Enterprise Systems

The Advanced Manufacturing Cluster supports fundamental research leading to transformative advances in manufacturing and building technologies across size scales from nanometers to kilometers, with emphases on efficiency, economy, and minimal environmental footprint. Research is supported to develop predictive and real-time models, novel experimental methods for manufacturing and assembly of macro, micro, and nanoscale devices and systems, and advanced sensing and control techniques for manufacturing processes.

Mechanics and Engineering Materials Cluster Break Out

Richard Fragaszy, Geomechanics & Geomaterials
Clark Cooper, Materials and Surface Engineering
Glaucio Paulino, Mechanics of Materials
Dennis Carter, Nano and Bio Mechanics
Grace Hsuan, Structural Materials and Mechanics

The Mechanics and Engineering Materials Cluster supports fundamental research aimed at advances in the transformation and use of engineering materials efficiently, economically, and sustainably. The cluster’s programs support research topics relating to the design and use of solid and biological materials that span multiple time scales and length scales from nanometers to meters.

Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructures Cluster Break Out

Konstantinos Triantis, Civil Infrastructure Systems
Joy M. Pauschke, George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation Research
Richard J. Fragaszy, Geotechnical Engineering
M. P. Singh, Hazard Mitigation and Structural Systems
Dennis Wenger, Infrastructure Management and Extreme Events

The Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructures Cluster supports research to advance fundamental knowledge and innovation for resilient and sustainable civil infrastructure and distributed infrastructure networks. The Cluster funds research on geotechnical, structural, and earthquake engineering, distributed infrastructure systems management and response to hazardous events. Research on social, behavioral, and economic issues related to natural and technological hazards is also invited. The Cluster plays a major role in the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), created by Congress by the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977.

Systems Engineering and Design Cluster Break Out

TBA, Control Systems
Eduardo Misawa, Dynamical Systems
Christina Bloebaum, Engineering Design and Innovation
Michael Fu, Operations Research
Shih-Chi Liu, Sensors and Sensing Systems
Russell Barton, Service Enterprise Systems

The Systems Engineering and Design Cluster supports fundamental research on the decision-making aspects of engineering, including design, control, and optimization as applied at levels ranging from component to enterprise systems. Supported research examples include sensors, sensing, and the use of sensor data in decision-making and control, and extends to service enterprise systems that address healthcare delivery. Support is provided to enable advances in engineering decision-making, optimization and control, and their application to engineered systems.

Plenary Session

Dr. G. P. “Bud” Peterson, President, Georgia Institute of Technology
Phil Gingrey, U.S. Representative, State of Georgia
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Dan Arvizu, Director, NREL

Research Needs Emerging from the 2010 Haiti and Chile Earthquakes

Joy Pauschke and Dennis Wenger
Moderator: Jay Berger, Executive Director, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI)

On August 19, 2010, and September 30–October 1, 2010, workshops were held at NSF to identify research areas emerging from NSF-supported post-earthquake investigations of the magnitude 8.8 Chile earthquake on February 27, 2022 and the magnitude 7.0 Haiti earthquake on January 12, 2010, respectively. These two earthquakes rank among the top five in terms of earthquake magnitude size and number of fatalities. This session will summarize new research areas for U.S. hazard mitigation based on the post-earthquake investigations following these two earthquakes.

“Overview of 2010 Earthquake Reconnaissance and Research Needs Workshops,” Jay Berger, Executive Director, EERI
“12 January 2010 Haiti Earthquake,” Reginald DesRoches, Professor and Associate Chair, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology; and Liesel Ritchie, Assistant Director for Research, Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado, Boulder
“27 February 2010 Chile Earthquake,” Roberto Leon, Professor, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology; and David Frost, Professor, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Director, Georgia Tech Savannah; and Vice Provost, Georgia Institute of Technology

Interdisciplinary Research (IDR) Update

Bruce Kramer

The Interdisciplinary Research (IDR) Program of the Directorate for Engineering has been evolving mechanisms for funding interdisciplinary projects. These projects typically require the collaboration of multiple investigators to transfer knowledge between disciplines or investigate phenomena touching multiple disciplines. The session will provide a brief overview of the FY 2010 IDR Program, the current status of the FY 2011 program, and an opportunity for discussion and comments.

Perspectives on Energy Manufacturing

Steve Danyluk, Matthew J. Realff
Kori Ehman, Leon McGinnis

This session will discuss research opportunities in the area of manufacturing energy. It will address the topics of creating large surface areas with nano/microstructures, systems issues in manufacturing energy at large scale, and the separation of dilute liquid systems.

Industry/University Research—GOALI & SBIR Programs

Don Senich

A major objective of the NSF is to improve the nation’s capacity for intellectual and economic growth. It does this by supporting the discovery of new knowledge and the enhancement of a skilled workforce. One mechanism is the GOALI initiative, which aims to synergize university-industry partnerships by making funds available to support an eclectic mix of industry-university linkages. A second mechanism is the SBIR/STTR initiative aimed to harness the Small Business High Tech resources to meet national innovation goals this session will address objectives, experiences, and opportunities in these efforts.

PhD and Beyond

Matthew Carnavos

Unsure where your academic studies will take you after you earn your doctorate? Both new and seasoned researchers will discuss such topics such as: how to achieve your first academic position; how to begin a research program; and the merits of a postdoctoral position as part of a panel discussion on beginning a career as an academic researcher. Additionally, foreign-educated researchers will discuss how they brought their expertise to the U.S. as well as issues concerning visas, and other important documentation.

Bio-Inspired Technology

Alison Flatau (University of Maryland) and Jerome Lynch (University of Michigan)
M. Tomizuka (University of California, Berkeley), Rahmat Shoureshi (University of Denver), Henry Yang (University of California, Santa Barbara), Ming Wang (Northeastern University), Anbo Wany (Virginia Tech), Yang Wang (Georgia Institute of Technology), Kenneth J. Loh (University of California Davis)

Researchers in the civil and mechanical engineering fields have been advancing the state-of-the-art in sensing and actuation technologies over the past three decades. While micro- and nanotechnologies have yielded many high performance sensors and actuators, technology development has generally slowed in recent years due to bottlenecks associated with current design and development paradigms. To overcome these limitations, engineers have begun to closely study the sensing and actuation systems naturally found in biological systems. This move toward bio-inspiration is due to the fact that nature has evolved over millennia to offer functionally efficient sensing and actuation mechanisms at almost all length scales. This session is intended to highlight NSF-funded research in the development of next-generation sensing and actuation technologies based on the principles of biological systems. The highlighted research in bio-inspired sensing and actuation will specifically focus on technologies aimed to attain broader impact in addressing complex societal problems such as aging infrastructure, structural health monitoring, among many others. In addition, the session will emphasize efforts to modernize current engineering and biological science curricula to train a cadre of students capable of leading the on-going bio-inspired engineering revolution.

Agenda for the Design of Large Scale Complex Engineered Systems in the EDI Program

Christina Bloebaum
Paul Collopy, Tim Simpson, and others to be identified

The Engineering Design and Innovation (EDI) program has supported several workshops in a series pertaining to the Design of Large Scale Complex Engineered Systems. This session will provide an overview of the workshops held as well as identify key research challenges that provide opportunities for individual and collaborative research efforts in the EDI program as well as other programs across NSF.

Data Management

Eduardo Misawa, Clark Cooper

Multiscale Fundamentals

Glaucio Paulino

While individual experts in mechanics, computations, physics and mathematics have on occasion identified specific problems and issues in multiscale modeling and advocated potential new directions, there has been only limited success in developing a systematic rational, mathematically and scientifically rigorous approach to the field of multiscale modeling especially in the context of multifunctional nonlinear response. This session will be a panel discussion on the fundamentals of multiscale techniques. The audience will be comprised of researchers who apply multiscale modeling to problems in science and engineering. The purpose of the panel discussion is to address the fundamental advances needed in the field and to promote collaboration among the participants.

Sustainable Design & Manufacturing

B. Bras, Georgia Tech
Delcie Durham (University of South Florida), Tim Gutowski (MIT), Deborah Thurston (University of Illinois Urbana-Chamapign), John Sutherland (confirmed)

It has been 10 years since NSF co-sponsored an international benchmarking study on environmentally benign manufacturing. In this session we have invited some of the members of the original study group to discuss in a panel what has changed over the last 10 years in this area. They will also discuss findings of recent NSF sponsored workshops in the area of sustainable design & manufacturing.

NSF-Wide Cross-Disciplinary Opportunities Update

Eduardo Misawa

NIST Technology Innovation Program (TIP)

Michael Schen (NIST)
Lorel Wisniewski (TIP Acting Director), Kesh Narayanan (NSF Director NSF/IIP), TIP awardees

The panel will introduce and discuss the NIST Technology Innovation Program (TIP), its role in funding transformational innovation and research in areas of critical national need, and how it can complement/leverage NSF engineering programs and funding.

Interagency Perspective on Systems Engineering

C. Bloebaum, Anna McGowan

Failures pertaining to the processes used to design and build large scale complex engineered systems (such as aircraft) have been of keen interest across Federal agencies. In this panel, parties from various agencies will provide their viewpoints on these critical issues as well as discuss opportunities for the research community.

Communicating Research Within A Changing Media Landscape

Josh Chamot

As the internet continues to redefine how people gather and disseminate information, new communication challenges, and opportunities, are emerging. Learn how NSF is developing new products and partnerships with NBC, CBS, LiveScience.com and others to reach broader audiences in the new media landscape, and how you can work with NSF to publicize your work.

Catalyzing Broader Impacts and Global Diversity

Omnia El-Hakim
Gilda Brabino ((Minority Faculty Professional Development), Mary Lynn Realff (WIRES)

The National Science Foundation is committed to broadening participation and reaching out to women, underrepresented groups; and persons with disabilities. The Directorate of Engineering continues to support and initiate new activities such as BRIGE (Broadening Participation Research Initiation Grants in Engineering), GRDS (Graduate Research Diversity Supplements), and numerous diversity workshops such as WIRES (Women’s International Research Engineering Summit) to enhance partnership and collaboration among local and international women and underrepresented groups. In this session, new diversity opportunities and sharing best practices in diversity programs will be discussed. NSF’s strategic goal of broadening participation of the scientific engineering workforce will be reviewed; and funding opportunities at NSF to support global diversity through international components of research grants will be presented.

Industry’s Perspective on the Factory-of-the-Future

Dr. Richard Cowan, Manufacturing Research Center, Georgia Tech
Invited representatives from industry (e.g., Boeing, Siemens, Cummins, Ford)

As it has in the past, manufacturing in the future will require aerospace and auto companies to produce consistently excellent outcomes for its customers. Methods to manage production, quality, cost, cycle time, and safety have been critical in past decades, and they will continue to be so in the future. Investment in manufacturing technologies will be required to maintain competitive edge, while keeping costs down and supply chains lean as desired volumes are produced. This session will draw on the expertise of industrial leaders to examine what applications are emerging, what technological developments show promise, and what research is needed to provide a better understanding of the factory-of-the future and its implications for the existing social and economic order.

NIST Technology Innovation Program (TIP)—New Topics

Michael Schen (NIST)

The purpose of the session is to discuss a new societal challenge topic under development at TIP and to solicit attendee views on it and other societal challenge topics and key roadblocks as input to the TIP topic selection process.

Update on the State of Dynamical Systems

Eduardo Misawa

The Role of Value in the Design Process

Paul Collopy
Ali Abbas, Panos Papalambros

A fundamental change in engineering design and systems engineering over the past two decades has been the shift from requirements-focused problem solving to a new paradigm of making good design decisions to realize value. While the decision process has been thoroughly studied, crisp approaches to measuring, conveying, and using notions of value are only now being broached. This session will discuss new research on the use of value in design, within the context of a series of workshops being conducted by CMMI.

10 Years of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI)

Charalabos C. Doumanidis

Resilience and Vulnerability Observatory Network (RAVON)

Dennis Wenger

Due to a variety of physical and social factors, the threat of devastating natural and technological disasters appears to be on the rise. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is considering starting a new program on Disaster Resilience, Vulnerability, and Risk Reduction. Three directorates within NSF (Engineering; Geosciences; and Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences [SBE]) are proposing this initiative. These directorates want to construct an interdisciplinary program that will advance our knowledge of the fundamental physical and social processes associated with specific natural and technological hazards in order to better understand the causes, interdependencies, impacts, and cumulative effects of these hazards on the physical, built, and social environments. This program may support a network of research sites that will assess the levels of physical and social vulnerability and resilient capacity of areas across a variety of hazards. The network would construct a comparative data base for research. The overall goal is to develop measures and monitor levels of physical and social vulnerability and resilience. This session will discuss this issue.

Manufacturing Research from 30,000 feet—What is the Government Doing?

Warren DeVries
Sridhar Kota (Assistant Director, Advanced Manufacturing, OSTP)
Howard Harary (Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory, NIST)

This session will look at the role of the Federal Government in promoting research and innovation in manufacturing. It will consist of three brief presentations followed by a panel session to discuss the proposed role of the Government in manufacturing over the next decade and to debate the efficacy of alternative priorities.

Broader Impacts: Expanding the Industrial Knowledge Base

David Cranmer, NIST

Tell Us What You Think

Steve McKnight

NSF Program Directors’ Office Hours

This is an opportunity to speak one-on-one with an NSF Program Officer for 10 minutes. These slots are designed for you to discuss new research ideas with a program officer. Please note: if you have a poster, the PO will be visiting you during your assigned poster session times.

Sign up for office hours at the NSF table starting on Wednesday at 10:00 am.

Plenary Session

Top Advances from CMMI Funded Research
Mechanics of Stretchable Electronics – Y. Huang – Northwestern University
Controlled Rocking of Steel-Framed Buildings with Replaceable Energy Dissipating Fuses – Gregory Deierlein – Stanford University
CMMI Division Director Future Directions
Announcement of next conference venue