The Synapse

The November issue of Synapse include NAS related news and events that took place during the past month, and upcoming opportunities for NAS students, as well as reflections and review of some of the signature NAS annual events such as Grand Seminar, NAS Alumni Award ceremony, and Hauber summer research poster presentation.

What is research but a blind date with knowledge?

Will Harvey

Share your news, photos, inspiring stories, and upcoming events for a future issue. Please send any feature suggestions to Bahram Roughani at broughani@loyola.edu.

On Tuesday, November 8, 2022, Kartik Chandran, Ph.D., professor of earth and environmental engineering at Columbia University in the city of New York delivered the Grand Seminar lecture. He is a global leader in sustainable wastewater treatment and engineered resource recovery. Chandran’s work is enabled through understanding and harnessing the biochemical potential and metabolism of microbial communities and developing appropriate technologies towards addressing global environmental and societal needs. He received a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in 2015 (the so-called MacArthur Genius Award) and was named a Fellow of the Water Environment Federation in 2013. The following images are from the Grand Seminar lecture at McGuire Hall.

We are delighted that we had the opportunity to present the 2022 NAS Alumni Award to one of our most accomplished alum, Adam Phillippy, CS '02, during the reception leading to the Grand Seminar. Adam is the human genome scientist, and one of Time Magazine’s “Most Influential People of 2022”. You may learn more about his impressive accomplishment using the following link. Adam was a Hauber Research Fellow at Loyola, and his first research experience in Human Genome was indeed a Hauber research project. His Hauber mentor was Arthur Delcher from CS department and the title of his Hauber 2000 summer research project was "Efficiently Computing Whole Genome Alignments".

During the reception leading to the Grand Seminar lecture, Hauber 2022 fellows presented their research posters. the images here are representing impages from this poster presenation. President Sawyer is engaged in discussing the research poster presented by Katie McManus and Grey Flynn.

President Sawyer, and Adam Phillippy in a group picture with 2022 Hauber fellows (from left to right): Grace Prince, Martin MacStudy, Emily Bui, Grace Wayson, Jack Inman, Adam Phillippy, President Sawyer, Katie McManus, Devin DeMelis, Grey Flynn, and Kevin Wang. 2022 Hauber Fellows not in this picture are; Maggie Sullivan (Study Abroad) and Jack Mehr-Racicot.

On Tuesday November 1, Joseph DePasquale, the Senior Data Imaging Developer at the Space Telescope Science Institute presented his work on how he turns data sets into the beautiful astronomical images we have recently been seeing from the James Webb Space Telescope. This presentation was held in the McManus Theatre and it was co-sponsored by Fine Arts, Physics, and NAS. We hope to organize more similar type of talks in the future that are at the intersection of Art & Science.

Loyola University Maryland’s online Master of Science in data science program was ranked No. 5 nationally on Fortune’s list of the 10 “Most Affordable Online Master’s in Data Science Programs in 2022.”

This ranking follows the earlier ranking under “Best Online Master’s in Data Science Programs in 2022,” where Loyola ranked No. 6 of 15 schools nationally. Read more about the new Data Science affordability ranking using the following link.

Data Science in Everyday Life: Applicability, AI, and Other Trends

The Data Science panel discussion was conducted on October 20, 2022 at 5:30 pm at 4th Floor Program Room. The keynote was delivered by renowned industry executive and former Harrah’s CMO, David Norton, MBA ’95. Panelists explored data science from a variety of perspectives across industry and government—how data science is applicable in everyday life, how AI is being used across the world, and other data science trends.

Panelists for this Panel discussion were:

• Elise Beisecker, Sr. Data Scientist, U.S. Government Accountability Office
• Dr. Amanda Muller, Chief, Responsible Technology, Northrop Grumman
• Franklin Hernandez, MBA 2013 & MS Data Science 2020, Senior Lead Machine Learning Engineer at Booz Allen Hamilton
• Joseph Girsch, MS Data Science 2021, Machine Learning Analyst at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
• Mark Wicks, Retired Vice President of Data Science, Experienced Data Scientist, Machine Learning Engineer, and Software Developer

Loyola’s National Fellowships Office has two outstanding opportunities for STEM sophomores and juniors:

DAAD-RISE offers paid summer research internships in science and engineering in Germany. All work is conducted in English.

The Goldwater Scholarship offers up to $7,500 in scholarship funds per year toward your remaining years of undergraduate study. For example, sophomore scholarship recipients get two years of funding, while juniors get one year of support. Note: Goldwater pre-health applicants MUST be planning an MD/PhD career trajectory.

Interested? attend an information session with Dr. Terre Ryan, Loyola's Director of National Fellowships:

Wed., 11/16: 6:00-6:30 p.m.

Thurs., 11/17: 12:15-12:45 p.m.

Fri., 11/18: 12:15 - 12:45 p.m.

All info sessions take place in Dr. Ryan's Zoom room:

https://loyola.zoom.us/my/professortryan

For more information Contact the Director of National Fellowships, Dr. Ryan at tmryan@loyola.edu.

Each summer since 1988, a top-quality group of undergraduate NAS majors are selected as Hauber Fellows to conduct research with faculty mentors on projects in their area of interest during the summer. This 10-week prestigious summer research program is culminating with research presentations for the Loyola community, research posters, and scientific papers. Participation has been a pathway for many students to campus and national awards, publications, and admission to graduate programs. The fellowship carries a $5,000 stipend with discounted on-campus housing available with the possibility for applying for no cost housing. It runs from the first week of June through mid-August. If you are interested in applying, now is the time to identify faculty who may be interested in mentoring you this summer.

NAS faculty, if you are interested in mentoring a Hauber fellow this summer, please email your department chair and Sciences@loyola.edu with a brief description of your research interests.

For details and application, visit www.loyola.edu/hauber. Applications are due February 3, 2023, which is the 3rd Friday of the Spring semester.

The Haig Scholars Program is an academic excellence and leadership program for students majoring in Natural and Applied Sciences. The program recognizes the accomplishments of highly motivated students. Admission is competitive. Scholars are selected during the spring semester of their sophomore or junior year based on demonstrated academic achievement, leadership experience and potential, commitment to service, community engagement, and personal essay. Scholars will participate in the fall Haig Scholars seminar course which will have a strong emphasis on innovation and innovative mindset and incorporate guest speakers in leadership roles. Haig Scholar 2021 cohort are shown in the group picture.

For a complete list of eligibility requirements and application, visit https://www.loyola.edu/loyola-college-arts-sciences/divisions/natural-applied-sciences/student-opportunities/haig-scholars

Applications are due February 3, 2023, which is the 3rd Friday of the Spring semester.

POP-UP CLASSES:

Make a Quilt Square

Thursday, November 17, 2022, 4-5 pm

In-Person at LNDL IDEASpace

Instructor: Amanda Kramer

Learn how to piece together and sew a quilt square using a geometric pattern in this hands-on class!

Register for Make a Quilt Square

Zine Making

Thursday, December 8, 2022, 4-5 pm

In-Person at LNDL IDEASpace

Instructor: Mallory Walker

A zine (pronounced "zeen" is a small-batch, self-published DIY magazine made popular in the 1990s in punk subcultures as a way to share information and ideas amongst local communities. This workshop will take you through the origin of zine culture and teach you the basics of zine creation. By the end of the pop up, you'll have one "master flat" to photocopy and share with the world!

Register for Zine Making

Refectory Seating Area Open for Staff, Faculty, and Administration!

The Refectory's seating area has reopened for the 2022-2023 Academic Year. The Refectory is currently not serving food, but the seating area will be open from 11:00 am - 1:30 pm Monday-Friday. The seating area is reserved only for Staff, Faculty, and Administration.

The Bridge

Visit The Bridge for upcoming campus meetings and events.

Training & Development Sponsored by Human Resources

• Preventing Workplace Harassment - 11/16/2022, 11:00 a.m.-11:30 p.m., Sellinger VIP Lounge.
• Employee Assistance Program Training for Supervisors-12/1/2022, 12:45 p.m.-1.15 p.m., College Center Rm 114
• Emotional Intelligence for Success, 12/6/2022, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m., Online Webinar, registration link is here
  

Additional Training and Development Opportunities for Employees and Students

OUTLoyola SafeZone Training

Green Bandana Brigade

Academic Calendar

• 2022-2023 Academic Calendar

Coronavirus Resources

• Loyola Coronavirus Updates - General university information for all students, faculty, staff including reopening plans, COVID-19 dashboard, FAQs, policies, and resources

Student Support Resources

• Counseling Center
• Campus Ministry
• Office of Student Life
• Center for Community, Service, and Justice

Employee Support Resources

• Human Resources website
• Employee Assistance Program
• Financial Crisis Assistance Program
• Employee Return to Work on Campus Guidelines & Training