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Selected items from past issues: Software simulates biochemical processes Power needs of Virginia's high-tech industries studied Links
within the Virginia
Tech Intellectual Faculty
Expertise Research
Division Interdisciplinary
Research Virginia
Tech News In previous issues: 2002 January 2002 - Volume 10, Number 1: Method to establish genetic markers receives patent. Making it easy to program your VCR — from the Internet. Forests can restore surface mined land. February 2002 - Volume 10, Number 2: Project makes it easier for U.S. presidents to learn from history; faster, smaller microprocessor technology developed at Virginia Tech; tree named for VT chemistry professor March 2002 - Volume 10, Number 3: One-stop-shop to access hundreds of databases used for Social Services Administration; Communicating across 10 time zones; Longer shelf life for shredded cheese E Only. April 2002 - Volume 10, Number 4: Examples of software developed for collaboration, virtual environments, libraries, instruction, engineering in various applications, etc. E Only. May 2002 - Volume 10, Number 5: Fiber-optic field sensor immune to EMI, Mapping plant genomes, Machine vision, Smart Road June 2002 - Volume 10, Number 6: One-way repeating transmission, Bi-directional AC-DC converter, Flight control E Only July 2002 - Volume 10 Number 7: Is accounting chicanery SOP? Affordable, detachable power for wheelchairs. Improving food security E
Only August 2002
- Volume 10, Number 8 - Better winegrapes, Protecting the Bay, Preservng
farm land |
Selected items from past issues
EDGE newsletters contain brief descriptions of research activities and discoveries at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and provides links to researchers, centers, and sources of additional information.
New software simulates biochemical processes
Bioinformatics experts from the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) and the European Media Laboratory (EML) in Heidelberg have joined forces to develop a software for simulating biochemical networks.
The two young research institutes have created COPASI (COmplex PAthway SImulator). According to Pedro Mendes of VBI, who heads the COPASI project along with Ursula Kummer of EML, the new software will enable experimental biochemists to simulate complex metabolic processes in cells without taking the time to master the enormous mathematical and computing skills currently required. "This is a software, but it is really like a new technology," says Pedro Mendes. "I donít need to know how an electron microscope works in order to use one. This software will open the door to thousands of new research possibilities that will greatly expand our knowledge of the cellular process." More
Improving food security
Proper management of food resources will provide families with food security and adequate nutrition. So, Virginia Cooperative Extension agents taught a total of 18,594 families participating in the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) about recommended practices related to meal planning, food buying, food storage, and management of food resources.
Of the 5,712 homemakers who completed the program, 87 percent improved their food security by adopting practices such as budgeting to allot adequate resources for food, planning meals ahead, using a grocery list, checking food labels for best nutrition, comparing prices for best buys, and storing food properly. Forty-one percent of participants reported they less frequently ran out of food at the end of the month, and 85 percent reported they more frequently compare food prices and use grocery lists to help them manage their food resources.
A statewide cost-benefit analysis of the EFNEP, conducted by researchers in Human Nutrition and Foods at Virginia Tech, evaluated the impact of nutrition education on potential health care costs. Proper nutrition is a key factor in avoiding several diet-related chronic diseases. Based on the cost-benefit analysis, every $1 spent for EFNEP implementation saves $10.64 on future health care costs.
Contact for more information: Ruby Cox, 540-231-7156.
Task Force studies electric power for Virginia's high-technology industry
Virginia Tech's Alexandria Research Institute (ARI) has identified and characterized the infrastructure challenges and environmental concerns of powering Virginia's high-tech industry.
ARI's Northern Virginia location has enabled the creation of a task force that draws its membership from regional information technology and advanced manufacturing firms, gas and electric utilities, data center designers, a leading law practice in Virginia's energy sector, federal and state agencies, and power engineers.
Task Force members and ARI staff explored the issue from several different perspectives, including:
- Economic development agencies,charged with attracting new firms and helping existing firms expand their high-tech facilities;
- Gas and electric utilities,who must plan, build, and maintain the "pipes and wires" that bring energy to high-tech facilities, while remaining competitive in a deregulated utility market;
- High-tech customers,who bear the financial consequences of electric service interruptions;
- Third-party energy providers,who can create products and services for the high-tech market; and
- Legal and government experts,to elucidate the regulatory environment surrounding these issues.
This study focuses its immediate attention on Northern Virginia, where supply of high-quality, reliable power in the quantities and time frames needed is of pressing importance. While the approach is directed at immediate problems in the region, researchers are also developing a process for status assessment, information exchange, and strategic planning, which can be replicated in other regions.
The Task Force has identified a wide range of energy infrastructure issues. More