Arizona State University’s Sensor, Signal and Information Processing research center (SenSIP) is extending its global reach, joining forces with leading research universities in Europe.

The center’s research encompasses development of a broad array of digital signal processing, imaging and communications algorithms for sensor technologies, including those used in chemical sensors, cell phones, and radar and sonar systems. Download Full Image

This year SenSIP has begun developing a multi-university collaboration with the University of Cyprus, Polytechnic Milano in Italy, ETH Zurich (the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) and Boston University.

The partnership is undertaking a far-ranging project based at the University of Cyprus KIOS Research Center for Intelligent Systems and Networks to accelerate technological advancements for use in sensor networks, “smart” power grids and telecommunications systems.

The endeavor is being supported by the European Union through funding from the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation.

New UK connection

Most recently, the Imperial College London, one of the leading science and engineering universities in Europe, has become a SenSIP partner.

Imperial College is the home of the University Defence Research Centre (UDRC) – funded by the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence – which pursues advances in signal processing technology for use in national defense systems.

A joint project involving Imperial College’s UDRC and ASU’s SenSIP has been granted support from the prestigious British Council UK Prime Minister Fund. It was one of fewer than 30 research projects selected for funding from among 230 recent proposals to the British Council.

SenSIP is directed by Andreas Spanias, a professor in the School of Electrical, Computing and Energy Engineering, one of ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.

He has led efforts to establish the new partnership, along with fellow ASU electrical engineering professor Trevor Thornton, director of ASU’s Center for Sold State Electronics Research.

Spanias and Thornton recently joined Imperial College professors Eric Yeatman, Athanassios Manikas and Tony Konstantinides in London to present information on their research project on nanopore sensors and give British Ministry of Defense officials an overview of SenSIP’s research.

“The collaboration brings together two world-class signal-processing research centers,” says Manikas, chair of the communications technology research group in Imperial College’s Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.

In addition, Manikas notes, SenSIP’s partnership with Imperial College’s UDRC will enable the ASU center to share resources with 12 United Kingdom universities and six multinational companies.

“This provides a global forum enabling the signal-processing research community to share experiences and encourage cross-fertilization of ideas and strategies,” Manikas says.

Benefits for industry

“This collaboration will help accelerate the advance of sensor-array technology for the benefit of both countries,” says Cynthia Jaskie, president of BRE Systems, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., an information technology and computer consulting company and associate member-at-large of the SenSIP consortium.

The wireless sensor array with integrated data fusion that SenSIP will develop with its news partner “is an important technology with immediate military and security applications,” Jaskie says.

The partnership’s research focus aligns with the goals of the U.S. Department of Defense Small Business Innovation Research Program, says Joseph Marvin, president of Prime Solutions Group, an Arizona aerospace industry consulting firm, and a SenSIP consortium member.

“The work will add tremendous value to the emerging portfolio of aerospace and defense initiatives in Arizona targeted at a global community,” Marvin says.

Sprint, the global voice, data and Internet services provider, will support the partnership with donation of a state-of-the-art 4G network for use in research on interfacing sensor networks with smart phone systems for time-critical applications.

“This research is important to Sprint/Nextel,” says Debbie Vogel, a Sprint account manager in Phoenix. “It will provide test data on the throughput and capacity of our network.”

Extensive collaborations

More than a dozen ASU electrical and computer engineering faculty contribute to SenSIP’s work.

Established in 2007, the center is part of an industry-university consortium that has attracted support from numerous companies in signal processing and communications technology industries and established collaborations with leading research institutions such as Johns Hopkins, Princeton and Purdue universities, among others.

SenSIP’s industry partners include Intel, LG Electronics, Lockheed Martin, National Instruments, Raytheon Missile Systems, Sprint Communications, Brainstorm Technology, IQ Engines, and Acoustic Technologies.

In 2010, SenSIP earned designation as a National Science Foundation Industry/University Collaborative Research Center and became a partner with a similar consortium led by researchers at four Texas universities.
The consortium, called Net-Centric, includes major industry members such as Hewlett-Packard, Texas Instruments and Boeing.

SenSIP also collaborates closely with ASU’s School of Arts, Media and Engineering on research in sensor systems and algorithms for video and audio scene analysis for dual-use applications in security systems and computer gaming.

In addition, SenSIP research partnerships involve work on chemical sensors with ASU’s Biodesign Institute, and research on signal processing algorithms for threat detection for the Security and Defense Systems Initiative in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.  

Written by Joe Kullman and Natalie Pierce
 

Arizona State University is participating in the worldwide celebration of International Education Week (IEW) on all four campuses, with a full schedule of music, performances, food, cultural displays and lectures through Nov. 18.

As one of the top destinations for international students who want to study in the United States, ASU’s diverse student body will showcase their culture to the public and the campus communities. Download Full Image

IEW is a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education, recognized by Gov. Jan Brewer in an official proclamation.

The highlight will be one of ASU’s most popular events, the 8th Annual International Night, from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m., Nov. 18, on Hayden Lawn in Tempe. The celebration of dance, music, food and cultural displays is free and open to the public. Performances will include belly dancing, the Sun Devil Drill Team, a yo-yo performance and a cha-cha demonstration.

Student groups performing will include the Indian, Bangladesh and Turkey Students Associations, Chinese Student and Iraqi Student clubs, Students for Justice in Palestine and the band Dream Angels.

One of the world’s leading authorities on Mahatma Gandhi, Dennis Dalton, will give a presentation on “Nonviolent Change and Reform Today: Lessons from Gandhi” at 6:30 p.m., Nov. 16, at the Nursing and Health Innovation Building Two, 550 N. Third St., Phoenix, Innovation Auditorium, room 110. For more information visit http://csrc.asu.edu/.

A lecture, “A Palestinian State: In U.S. and International Interests,” will be given at 12:30 p.m., Nov. 17, in the Memorial Union, by Maen Rashid Areikat, chief PLO representative to the United States. RSVP by 5 p.m., Nov. 16, at http://outreach.asu.edu/specialevents/rsvp-lecture.

Another cultural showcase, the 2nd Annual South Campus Festival for World Change, will take place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Nov. 17, at Palm Court lawn in Barrett, the Honors College. The event will include performances by the African Drum Ensemble and the ASU Tango Club, and an organizational fair featuring many ASU and Phoenix organizations.

For a complete schedule of events, visit http://global.asu.edu/iew.

Written by Sarah Auffret

ASU continues to be one of the top choices for international students, placing 20th in the nation last year among all colleges and universities, according to a report released this week from the Institute of International Education (IIE).

ASU has a record 4,430 international students enrolled in fall 2011, up from 3,856 last year. The university draws students from 120 countries because of the breadth of its programs and its increasing reputation. Download Full Image

The IIE compiles its ranking each year based on the previous year’s enrollment numbers. ASU’s 15 percent international enrollment increase this fall, one of the highest on record at ASU, will be reflected in next year’s ranking.

“ASU is an outstanding value for international students among major research institutions, offering a dynamic and diverse academic and campus environment,” says James Brailer, executive director of the ASU Center for Global Education Services (CGES). “The university has an international reputation in a wide array of disciplines.

“ASU’s international undergraduate admissions has been actively reaching out to prospective students by increasing the number of recruiter visits abroad.”

ASU also is recruiting students through virtual fairs, he said, and has significantly improved the welcome and orientation of new international students.

International students contribute more than $21 billion to the U.S. economy through their expenditures on tuition and living expenses, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Higher education is among the United States’ top service sector exports.

For the second year in a row, China is the leading country of origin for ASU international students, followed closely by India, which had long been the leader. China’s enrollment grew 30 percent to 1,296, and India’s enrollment increased almost 16 percent to 1,003.

The next highest countries of origin are South Korea (340), Saudi Arabia (234), Taiwan (155), Canada (154) and Mexico (106).

The most popular ASU major is engineering, with 1,784 students, followed by business, with 850 majors. There has been an increased interest in the arts and sciences, with 821 majors. The Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts drew 288 students, and the College of Technology and Innovation has 197 international students enrolled.

The majority are graduate students, at 2,551, with another 1,879 enrolled as undergraduates, a higher proportion than last year. Freshman international students increased by 45 percent, from 378 to 549.

ASU’s International Students and Scholars Office staff worked hard to increase services to international students this year, according to Angela Mitchell, marketing and outreach coordinator for CEGS.

They converted to a paperless mandatory SEVIS check-in, implemented the first-ever “ASU International Arrival Day” offering free airport shuttle service to the Tempe campus and assistance with early arrival housing, and they coordinated more than 20 welcome events and two full-day orientations.

The ISSO also started a success workshop series focusing on academic and cultural issues faced by international students on campus.

“ASU is sending the strong message that we welcome international students, and we support and advocate for them while they are here,” Brailer says. “We are invested in their success through graduation and beyond, as lifelong members of the Sun Devil family.”

ASU also was named one of the top 40 doctorate institutions for students studying abroad, with 1,387 ASU students abroad in 2009-2010, the year these numbers were ranked.

The IIE report counts an additional 1,000 ASU students in the total international enrollment, since they include students who are in a practical training program or are enrolled in the American English and Culture Program.

More students who are attending the American English and Culture Program for English language training are choosing to remain at ASU for degree study, Brailer says.

Written by Sarah Auffret

On Friday evening, October 21, 2011, an audience of about 60 people from diverse generational, ethnic, racial, educational, religious and gendered backgrounds gathered at Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, Ariz., to discuss some of the controversial issues surrounding the box office hit "The Help," based on the bestselling novel of the same title by Kathryn Stockett.

The book and the film have been criticized for troubling stereotypes of African American women as domestic workers and inaccurate portrayals of African American life in the Jim Crow-era American South. On the flip side, the book has also been celebrated for its fine storytelling style by a talented writer. Download Full Image

Where do we draw the critical demarcations of ‘”accurate” historical representation and "inaccurate" artistic license for a feature film? Would a multi-cultural Southwest community have perspectives similar to those voiced in the national controversy? Or is the controversy located only in specific gendered, racial or regional communities? Are African Americans still more sensitive about the historical realities of having been the ever-present "help" against the backdrop of slavery and domestic servitude in the Big House?

“These questions looking for some answers were part of my motivation to propose and host a community discussion on 'The Help' at Changing Hands,” says Angelita Reyes, professor of African and African American studies in the School of Social Transformation and professor of English, in ASU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Reyes moderated the event, which included panelists Stanlie James, professor of African and African American studies; Pamela Howard, lecturer in speech and hearing sciences; Jonathan Young-Scaggs, ASU alumnus and community member; Kathi Hofferth, of Novel Ideas Book Club; and Joel Orona, independent scholar and consultant among Indigenous peoples.   

“My personal reaction to the book and film were contrary to some of the criticisms,” Reyes notes, “for I found both to be entertaining. The lively townhall-style discussion we enjoyed that evening reminds us about how powerful art can be,” she reflects.    

[download PDF of remarks by panel organizer Angelita Reyes, which includes links for further reading]

[download PDF of remarks by panelist Joel Orona]

The Fletcher Library Lawn at Arizona State University’s West campus will come alive with the sights and sounds of Native drummers and dancers on Saturday, Nov. 12, during the campus’s annual Veterans Day Weekend Traditional Pow-Wow. The event, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. at 4701 W. Thunderbird Road in Phoenix, is free and open to the public.

In addition to dance and drum performances, the Pow-Wow will feature grand entries at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m., Native arts and crafts, and food booths offering fry bread and more. Download Full Image

“The event’s theme is ‘A Celebration of Native Veterans,’ and American Indian veterans are especially encouraged to attend,” said Dennis Eagleman, event chairman. “They will be welcomed and thanked for their service to our country.”

The day’s schedule is:

• 11 a.m. – Gourd Dancers
• 1 p.m. – Grand Entry
• 5 p.m. – Dinner break
• 6 p.m. – Gourd dancing
• 7 p.m. – Welcome and acknowledgement of veterans
• 7 p.m. – Grand entry
• 10 p.m. – Closing

Participants include Announcer Dennis Bowen, Arena Director Donald Sabori, Head Man Dancer Jarod Pidgeon, Head Woman Dancer Elyse Monroe, Head Boy Dancer Mashuska (Kunu) Pidgeon, Head Girl Dancer Renae Blackwater, Northern Drum Saste Takoja, and Southern Drum Chris Dinehdeal. The color guard will be the First Nations Warrior Society.

Attendees are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs. (Limited seating will be provided for tribal elders.)

The Pow-Wow is sponsored by the Native American Events Committee, Native American Student Organization, and the Office of Public Affairs at ASU’s West campus.

For more information, call (602) 543-5300.

ASU professor Alfredo Artiles has been named to Hispanic Business magazine's 2011 list of  "100 Influentials" and profiled in the October issue. Artiles was one of eight Latinos/Latinas honored  for their influence in the "Academic" arena. 

A professor of culture, society and education in the School of Social Transformation, an academic unit of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, he also co-directs the Equity Alliance at ASU. Artiles has achieved an international reputation for his work focused on the educational consequences of inequities related to disability, race and language. In May, he was appointed to the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. Commissioners advise President Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on matters pertaining to the education attainment of the Hispanic community. 

Weekend performances scheduled for Oct. 22-Nov. 13

The epic tale of Aztec culture and the Conquest of Mexico comes to life as never before in the latest Childsplay world premiere, "The Sun Serpent," directed by ASU's Rachel Bowditch. Download Full Image

Visual-based aesthetics, multimedia and movement will engulf the audience in the sights and sounds of the sea shore, jungles, waterfalls, and the legendary City of Dreams, transforming the experience far beyond the conventional drama.

At the center of the story is young Anáhuac who sees Cortés arrive and wonders, like the rest of his people, if Cortés is the Sun Serpent of Aztec legend rising from the sea to bring peace and harmony. Anáhuac believes so at first but soon realizes all is not what it seems. He sets out to warn his older brother who’s marching with the conquistadors and is forced to grapple with his own identity as the world around him is changing irrevocably.

The diverse team assembled for the project is unprecedented, reflecting the tremendous range of Arizona’s artistic community.

Bowditch, an assistant professor in ASU's Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, brings a noted background in physical theatre and the use of movement to the production.

“It is an honor to direct the rich, dynamic story crafted by José Cruz González and to work with our amazing design team to create a potent, provocative, and moving glimpse into a part of history that is often overlooked,” said Bowditch. “This adventure story is not only entertaining but portrays the strength of the human spirit.”

Connie Furr-Soloman, associate professor, served as costume designed on the project.

Playwright José Cruz González’s (Tomás and the Library Lady) script incorporates English, Spanish and Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs.

Arizona master mask maker Zarco Guerrero created more than 30 original masks. Just three actors will perform more than 20 roles, making the masks a pivotal element of the storytelling.

Music composer Daniel Valdez developed a complete soundscape that includes distinctive musical motifs.

Film designed by Adam Larsen, reflecting Anáhuac’s journey, will be projected on screens throughout the theater creating an all-encompassing experience for audiences.

The show stars actors Ricky Araiza, Andrés Alcalá and Andrea Morales, rounding out the diverse artistic team.

Performances take place at the Tempe Center for the Arts – weekends only: Oct. 22 through Nov. 13. Flexible, discounted Play Passes and single tickets are available at www.childsplayaz.org or through the Tempe Center for the Arts box office at 480-350-2822.

The Sun Serpent is part of the first Celebración Artistica de las Américas (CALA), a biannual festival spotlighting Latino arts and culture venues Valleywide.

Iraqi-born Wafaa Bilal, assistant arts professor at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, specializes in online performative and interactive works. He will be engaging students, faculty, staff and the general public at the 2011 Diversity Scholar Series, scheduled to take place Nov. 15-16.

The series is a bi-annual event sponsored by the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost of the university and co-sponsored by the School of Art, in the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, and the Campus Environment Team. The topic, speaker and co-sponsors change for each event. Download Full Image

Bilal will deliver a speech "The Dynamic Encounter" from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Nov. 15, in the University Club Bistro and Heritage Room, on the Tempe campus. The event is free and open to the public. Bilal will discuss how he uses physical and virtual encounters to provoke dialogue and understanding about international politics, war and oppression.

Attendees also will learn about his online and performative works and how he uses them to educate his audiences about war and the importance of peaceful conflict resolution.

Follow-up workshop sessions with Bilal are scheduled for 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., Nov. 16, in the Memorial Union room 242, on the Tempe campus. The morning session is designed for faculty and graduate students and the afternoon session is designed for student support staff. Light refreshments will be provided at both sessions, and seating is limited.

The Diversity Scholars Series targets programs for faculty, academic units and staff, and provides the opportunity for discourse with nationally and internationally recognized scholars and leaders in higher education. The series aims to bring visibility and understanding to current intergroup, multicultural, diversity and social justice research, policymaking and teaching practices in higher education.

For more information, or to RSVP, send an email to diversityscholars@asu.edu. RSVPs also can be received here.

An exhibit of maps that illustrate how the present U.S.-Mexico border region has evolved over the past four centuries will be on display at ASU through Feb. 10.

The opening of the “Changing Boundaries” map exhibit coincides with an open house for the School of Transborder Studies, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Oct. 12, in the Interdisciplinary B Building, Suite 164 B, 1120 S. Cady Mall, on ASU’s Tempe campus. The event is free and open to the public. Download Full Image

The maps on display are from the collection of Simon Burrow, who curates the exhibit. Burrow, who will be at the open house to discuss the maps as art, as well as the history behind them, has been acquiring items in his collection from map and used book dealers around the world over a span of 25 years.

Burrow was a manufacturing entrepreneur who had factories in Mexico in Mexicali and Tijuana, and in Singapore. He notes on his website that “about the time of my first Mexican factory I read a book called ‘Confessions of an Advertising Man’ by David Ogilvy. One piece of advice he gave was to make your hobby align with your career. … I started to collect maps and books showing the history of the relationship between Mexico and the United States. I framed some of the maps and hung them in my factories and offices in the U.S. and Mexico.”

The maps, which date as early as 1597, show the explorations, claims, counter claims and conquests that resulted in the current borderline. There are examples of how California was depicted as an island populated by Amazons and maps that show where ancient and mythical cities were thought to be, as well as treasure maps that would allegedly lead to Cibola – the Seven Cities of Gold.

“What I want to do with this collection is to give people an opportunity to think about borders and migration in a different way,” writes Burrow on his website at www.changingboundaries.com.

The exhibit illustrates the history of the Southwest and Northwestern Mexico region, and also adds perspective to current day discussions, said Carlos G. Vélez-Ibáñez, an ASU scholar and director of the School of Transborder Studies in ASU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “Politics, economy, geography and war are the factors most responsible for the creation of the border region but its dividing markers have also formed the complex characteristics of its evolving regional economy, politics, culture and geography,” he said.

The “Changing Boundaries” exhibit recently was at the Arizona Historical Society in Tucson. Previously, it was at California State University in Los Angeles, as well as in Tecate, Mexico.

The exhibit will be on display at ASU from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays, when school is in session, through Feb. 10. The exhibit is co-sponsored by the School of Transborder Studies and the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies. Additional information about the exhibit, including the availability of group tours, is available online at http://sts.asu.edu or at 480-965-5091.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Irma Arboleda, arboleda@asu.edu
480-965-0071

Carol Hughes, carol.hughes@asu.edu
480-965-6375 direct line | 480-254-3753 cell

One Arizona State University student has found an out-of-the-ordinary way to deepen his knowledge of his field of study: teaching the tough subjects to other students.

“Sunder” Karthik (full name Punnai Sunderkarthik Anantha Krishnan) is pursuing a master’s degree in the School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, one of ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. As much as he wants to be an engineer, Karthik also aspires to be a teacher. He says he performs at his best academically when he’s also instructing fellow students in the fundamentals of engineering and science. Download Full Image

“His passion is teaching. That’s what motivates him,” says Joyce Donahue, a career advising coordinator for the engineering schools.

Karthik has developed Eneradi.com, a website on which he posts instructional videos offering simplified versions of lectures from electrical engineering classes. In the past three months he has posted 32 lectures on the site that so far have drawn about 3,000 views from users in at least 28 countries. (The website name Eneradi is a combination of “energy” and the name of the first pupil Karthik ever tutored, his younger brother Aditya.)

He also is conducting free tutoring sessions for fellow ASU engineering students struggling with their physics lessons and review sessions for close to 30 freshmen who need help learning calculus.

Karthik recalls his own difficulties grasping the challenging material students must strive to master in engineering and science courses. He says he has learned the value of “being able to break down the most complex of concepts into their simplest forms” and then building on a rudimentary understanding to gain insight into a subject.

He sees that approach as the basis of good teaching, and “what can make the difference between a student hating or loving a subject.”

Garrett Austin, an industrial engineering major in ASU’s Barrett, The Honors College, attests to Karthik's teaching abilities. After tutoring by Karthik, Austin says, “I felt more prepared for my recent physics exam than any test I’ve taken.”

Physics is a “weed-out” class, Austin says, one that can often discourage students from continuing in an engineering or science major. He says Karthik’s perseverance and teaching skill has likely prevented at least several students from giving up.

Sepideh Jafarzadeh, a sophomore majoring in aerospace engineering, was the first ASU student Sunder tutored.  Jafarzadeh struggled through her introductory physics course and says she was overwhelmed at the thought of fighting through another semester of study. Karthik led her through a careful review of all the physics concepts she had trouble understanding. She recalls being “shocked” at how easily and completely Karthik helped her grasp the material that at first she found so confusing.

“He truly cares about the students learning the concepts, and not just memorizing them” Jarfarzadeh says.

One student from Sudan posted this comment on the Eneradi.com website about Karthik’s video lectures: “Thank you for the great videos, am watching them all.”

A student from Michigan posted “Thank you so much, man. (You are) saving lives, one video at a time.”

Karthik says he benefits as much as those he is tutoring: “I must have a clear understanding of something to teach it to others. Whatever I’m teaching, I’m also learning it more thoroughly.”

Whatever career path he pursues after graduation, he is determined that it will include teaching.

“His dedication and love for it is apparent by the excitement he expresses whenever he talks about tutoring other students,” Donahue says. “He’s found his unique talent.”

Written by Natalie Pierce