Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will hold its annual Black Families Technology Awareness Day on Saturday, February 12. This year’s theme is “Change the World with STEM.” Open to K-12 students locally, domestically, and internationally, the free virtual program is designed to introduce talented underrepresented students, their families, and educators to educational and career opportunities in what are often referred to as the STEM fields — science, technology, engineering, and mathematics — as well as the arts. 

In the first comprehensive study investigating the initial adoption and continuance intention of delivery services during a pandemic, Cara Wang, an associate professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, found that over 90% of people who use online delivery services would likely revert back to their original way of shopping.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute brought together academia, New York state government, and industry at a recent workshop to discuss the growing hemp industry and opportunities in New York.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society, has elected Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute researchers Georges Belfort, Nikhil Koratkar, and Rick Relyea to the newest class of AAAS fellows, among the most distinct honors within the scientific community.

A grant from the National Science Foundation will allow Shayla Sawyer, a professor in the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Systems Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Rick Relyea, a professor of biological sciences at Rensselaer, to better understand the growing problem of harmful algal blooms (HABs).

Professor Emily Liu, a condensed matter physicist and nuclear engineer, has been named head of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the oldest and one of the most renowned technological research universities in the nation. Dr. Liu is professor of nuclear engineering and engineering physics and brings extensive experience leading and managing multidisciplinary research, including collaborations with engineers, scientists, economists, and psychologists.

Suvranu De, the J. Erik Jonsson ’22 Distinguished Professor of Engineering and head of the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering (MANE) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has been selected to receive the 2022 ASME Edwin F. Church Medal.

People with type 2 diabetes who contract COVID-19 are nearly 50% more likely to wind up in intensive care if they have poorly managed their blood sugar levels over the long-term than those with better long-term glycemic control, according to a study using anonymized health care data.

Researchers have developed a new technique for revealing defects in nanostructured vanadium oxide, a widely used transition metal with many potential applications including electrochemical anodes, optical applications, and supercapacitors.

Materials and mechanical scientists are using machine learning to rapidly vet combinations of elements that could be used in next-generation environmental barrier coatings needed to protect vehicles traveling in the extreme conditions of aerospace and space environments. The project, led by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, is supported by the National Science Foundation.