Research Programs » Highlights

Each of the five departments in the College-Physics; Chemistry; Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences; Mathematics and Statistics-has established an excellent, well funded research programs while also carrying very high teaching loads. More than 70 percent of PAMS' faculty members are involved in nearly 400 active grant/contract accounts.

Total annual research expenditures in the College currently exceed $35 million, the bulk of which is derived from competitive grants and contracts. This past year, the five departments were responsible for attracting more than $28M in competitive grants and contracts. These funds provide support for a large fraction of the nearly 700 graduate students in the college. Major new awards announced this year include: a $5 million, five-year MURI grant from the Air Force Research Laboratory; a $2.6 million, five-year renewal of an NSF funded graduate training grant in statistics (Vertical Integration of Research and Education); a $1.3 million, three-year NIRT award from NSF in nanosciences; continuation of NSF funding for SAMSI ($2 million over 5 years for NCSU's share), and continued NOAA funding for the Carolinas Coastal Observing and Prediction System ($1.2 million/year).

Achievements in the College in federal peer reviewed research are particularly noteworthy. This past year for example, six faculty members received the prestigious National Science Foundation Career Development Award. Four of the six faculty members are women.

Other examples of research highlights over the past year include:

Chemistry: Professors Bruce Eaton and Dan Feldheim discovered that RNA can be used to create tiny, novel, inorganic particles. Their research could speed the discovery of new materials for many applications, including electronic devices and fuel cells. Professor Jonathan Lindsey and his research group proved that molecular memories are both durable and practical - a finding that could spur development of the technology to use molecules to store and process information.

MEAS: A major federal research grant was received this year for air quality related to farm operations. Other initiatives include modeling of tropical storm-related flooding, severe storm modeling and estuarine ecological studies. The most recent research announcement concerned the quicker-than-expected recovery of the coastal ecosystem after recent tropical storms.

Physics: Professor David Aspnes and a student developed a significant new method for detecting ocean mines, which has attracted much interest from the military. Professor Marco Bourngiorno-Nardelli made a significant step forward in theoretical predictions that will improve microelectronics technology.

Mathematical Sciences: Both the Mathematics and Statistics departments are partners in research projects at the NSF-funded Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute (SAMSI) in RTP. The Center for Research in Scientific Computation's annual industrial mathematics and statistical modeling workshop for graduate students is now known as the premiere event of its kind in the world. Professor H.T. Banks worked with several former students and postdocs on a book regarding the use of mathematics in bioterrorism research, which made Scientific American's book club list.

Statistics: The faculty in this department reached a record-high of $5 million in research grants awarded this fiscal year. Professor Anastasios "Butch" Tsiatis and his research team received a five-year National Institutes of Health MERIT Award ($1.5M) for their research into HIV patient reactions to treatment interruptions. Their work may help doctors better manage other complex diseases.