2 Houston professors earn prestigious presidential awards for excellence in STEM

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UH physics professor Donna Stokes and Allison Master, an assistant professor in the UH College of Education, were recognized by the Biden Administration for excellence in STEM fields. Photos courtesy UH.

Allison Master, an assistant professor at the University of Houston, is the first from the college to be awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

Master, who works in the Department of Psychological, Health and Learning Sciences at the UH College of Education, is one of 400 scientists and engineers to receive the honor from the Biden administration. The award recognizes those who “show exceptional potential for leadership early in their research careers,” according to a statement.

“This award speaks volumes about Allison’s dedication, ingenuity and innovation in educational sciences,” Diane Z. Chase, UH senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, said in a news release. “Her groundbreaking work embodies the university’s commitment to advancing knowledge, fostering equity in education and shaping a brighter future for students and educators alike.”

Master’s research in the Identity and Academic Motivation Lab at UH involves how societal stereotypes contribute to gender gaps in motivation to pursue STEM. Her study also explored ways to counter the stereotypes through educational strategies that make students feel that they belong, what drives children’s interest in STEM and the role of social connections. Her efforts resulted in millions of dollars in grants from the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, the National Science Foundation, and other organizations, according to UH.

Established by President Bill Clinton in 1996, PECASE recognizes innovative and far-reaching developments in science and technology, expands awareness of careers in STEM fields, enhances connections between research and its impacts on society, and highlights the importance of science and technology for our nation’s future.

“This is something that was on my radar, sort of like a ‘pie in the sky’ dream that it would be amazing to win it, but I didn’t know if it could ever be possible,” Master said. “I am very grateful to the University of Houston for providing such a supportive environment for innovation, collaboration and meaningful research that made this achievement possible.”

In addition to Master’s honor, the White House also recently recognized UH physics professor Donna Stokes for outstanding mentoring in STEM disciplines with the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring.

Stokes’ previous awards include the UH Teaching Excellence Award, the 2023 UH Honors College Outstanding Fellowship Mentorship Award, the 2011 UH Provost Academic Advising and Mentoring Award, a National Science Foundation Career Award, and a National Research Council Post-Doctoral Associateship Award. The National Science Foundation manages the PAESMEM awards, and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy selects honorees.

PAESMEM award recipients will receive $10,000 and the opportunity to attend professional development events in Washington, D.C.

“Spotlighting STEM educators, researchers and mentors is important to demonstrate the critical role they play in developing and encouraging students to pursue STEM degrees and careers,” Stokes said in a news release. “It is imperative to have STEM educators who can foster the next generation of scientists to address local and national scientific challenges.”
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The funding announced Monday by the Commerce Department is part of a total investment in the cluster that, with private money, is expected to exceed $40 billion. Photo via Getty Images

Biden administration agrees to provide $6.4 billion to Samsung for making computer chips in Texas

tech development

The Biden administration has reached an agreement to provide up to $6.4 billion in direct funding for Samsung Electronics to develop a computer chip manufacturing and research cluster in Texas.

The funding announced Monday by the Commerce Department is part of a total investment in the cluster that, with private money, is expected to exceed $40 billion. The government support comes from the CHIPS and Science Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022 with the goal of reviving the production of advanced computer chips domestically.

“The proposed project will propel Texas into a state of the art semiconductor ecosystem,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on a call with reporters. “It puts us on track to hit our goal of producing 20% of the world’s leading edge chips in the United States by the end of the decade.”

Raimondo said she expects the project will create at least 17,000 construction jobs and more than 4,500 manufacturing jobs.

Samsung's cluster in Taylor, Texas, would include two factories that would make four- and two-nanometer chips. Also, there would be a factory dedicated to research and development, as well as a facility for the packaging that surrounds chip components.

The first factory is expected to be operational in 2026, with the second being operational in 2027, according to the government.

The funding also would expand an existing Samsung facility in Austin, Texas.

Lael Brainard, director of the White House National Economic Council, said Samsung will be able to manufacture chips in Austin directly for the Defense Department as a result. Access to advanced technology has become a major national security concern amid competition between the U.S. and China.

In addition to the $6.4 billion, Samsung has indicated it also will claim an investment tax credit from the U.S. Treasury Department.

The government has previously announced terms to support other chipmakers including Intel and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. in projects spread across the country.

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5 Rice University-founded startups named finalists ahead of prestigious pitch competition

student founders

Five student-founded startups have been named finalists for Rice University's prestigious pitch competition, hosted by Rice University’s Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship later this month

The teams will compete for a share of $100,000 in equity-free funding at the H. Albert Napier Rice Launch Challenge (NRLC), a venture competition that features Rice University's top student-founded startups. The competition is open to undergraduate, graduate, and MBA students at Rice.

Finalists will pitch their five-minute pitch before the Rice entrepreneurship community, followed by a Q&A from a panel of judges, at Rice Memorial Center Tuesday, April 22.

The first-place team will receive $50,000 in equity-free funding, with other prizes and awards ranging from $25,000 to $1,000. Apart from first-, second- and third-place prizes, NRLC will also name winners in categories like the Outstanding Achievement in Artificial Intelligence Prize, the Outstanding Achievement in Climate Solutions Prize, and the Audience Choice Award.

Here are the five startups founded by Rice students are heading to the finals.

Haast Autonomous

Haast Autonomous is building unmanned, long-range VTOL aircraft with cold storage to revolutionize organ transport—delivering life-saving medical supplies roof-to-roof faster, safer, and more efficiently than current systems.

Founders: Jason Chen, Ege Halac, Santiago Brent

Kinnections

Kinnections' Glove is a lightweight, wearable device that uses targeted vibrations to reduce tremors and improve motor control in Parkinson’s patients.

Founders: Emmie Casey, Tomi Kuye

Labshare

Labshare is an AI-powered web app that streamlines lab inventory and resource sharing, reducing waste and improving efficiency by connecting neighboring labs through a centralized, real-time platform.

Founders: Julian Figueroa Jr, John Tian, Mingyo Kang, Arnan Bawa, Daniel Kuo

SteerBio

SteerBio’s LymphGuide is a patented, single-surgery hydrogel solution that restores lymphatic function by promoting vessel growth and reducing rejection, offering a transformative, cost-effective treatment for lymphedema.

Founders: Mor Sela Golan, Martha Fowler, Alvaro Moreno Lozano

Veloci

Veloci Running creates innovative shoes that eliminate the trade-off between foot pain and leg tightness, empowering runners to train comfortably and reduce injury risk.

Founders: Tyler Strothman

Last year, HEXASpec took home first place for its inorganic fillers that improve heat management for the semiconductor industry. The team also won this year's Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition during CERAWeek in the TEX-E student track.

Dow aims to power Texas manufacturing complex with next-gen nuclear reactors

clean energy

Dow, a major producer of chemicals and plastics, wants to use next-generation nuclear reactors for clean power and steam at a Texas manufacturing complex instead of natural gas.

Dow's subsidiary, Long Mott Energy, applied Monday to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a construction permit. It said the project with X-energy, an advanced nuclear reactor and fuel company, would nearly eliminate the emissions associated with power and steam generation at its plant in Seadrift, Texas, avoiding roughly 500,000 metric tons of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions annually.

If built and operated as planned, it would be the first U.S. commercial advanced nuclear power plant for an industrial site, according to the NRC.

For many, nuclear power is emerging as an answer to meet a soaring demand for electricity nationwide, driven by the expansion of data centers and artificial intelligence, manufacturing and electrification, and to stave off the worst effects of a warming planet. However, there are safety and security concerns, the Union of Concerned Scientists cautions. The question of how to store hazardous nuclear waste in the U.S. is unresolved, too.

Dow wants four of X-energy's advanced small modular reactors, the Xe-100. Combined, those could supply up to 320 megawatts of electricity or 800 megawatts of thermal power. X-energy CEO J. Clay Sell said the project would demonstrate how new nuclear technology can meet the massive growth in electricity demand.

The Seadrift manufacturing complex, at about 4,700 acres, has eight production plants owned by Dow and one owned by Braskem. There, Dow makes plastics for a variety of uses including food and beverage packaging and wire and cable insulation, as well as glycols for antifreeze, polyester fabrics and bottles, and oxide derivatives for health and beauty products.

Edward Stones, the business vice president of energy and climate at Dow, said submitting the permit application is an important next step in expanding access to safe, clean, reliable, cost-competitive nuclear energy in the United States. The project is supported by the Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program.

The NRC expects the review to take three years or less. If a permit is issued, construction could begin at the end of this decade, so the reactors would be ready early in the 2030s, as the natural gas-fired equipment is retired.

A total of four applicants have asked the NRC for construction permits for advanced nuclear reactors. The NRC issued a permit to Abilene Christian University for a research reactor and to Kairos Power for one reactor and two reactor test versions of that company's design. It's reviewing an application by Bill Gates and his energy company, TerraPower, to build an advanced reactor in Wyoming.

X-energy is also collaborating with Amazon to bring more than 5 gigawatts of new nuclear power projects online across the United States by 2039, beginning in Washington state. Amazon and other tech giants have committed to using renewable energy to meet the surging demand from data centers and artificial intelligence and address climate change.

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This story appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

UH, Baylor researchers make breakthrough with new pediatric leukemia treatment device

childhood cancer

A team of Houston researchers has developed a new microfluidic device aimed at making treatments safer for children with hyperleukocytosis, a life-threatening hematologic emergency often seen in patients with leukemia.

Dr. Fong Lam, an associate professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and a pediatric intensive care physician at Texas Children’s Hospital, partnered with Sergey Shevkoplyas, a professor of biomedical engineering at UH, on the device that uses a large number of tiny channels to quickly separate blood cells by size in a process called controlled incremental filtration, according to a news release from UH.

They tested whether performing cell separation with a high-throughput microfluidic device could alleviate the limitations of traditional conventional blood-filtering machines, which pose risks for pediatric patients due to their large extracorporeal volume (ECV), high flow rates and tendency to cause significant platelet loss in the patient. The results of their study, led by Mubasher Iqbal, a Ph.D. candidate in biomedical engineering at UH, were published recently in the journal Nature Communications.

“Continuously and efficiently separating leukocytes from recirculating undiluted whole blood — without device clogging and cell activation or damage — has long been a major challenge in microfluidic cell separation,” Shevkoplyas said in a news release. “Our study is the first to solve this problem.”

Hyperleukocytosis is a condition that develops when the body has an extremely high number of white blood cells, which in many cases is due to leukemia. According to the release, up to 20 percent to 30 percent of patients with acute leukemia develop hyperleukocytosis, and this places them at risk for potentially fatal complications.

The new device utilizes tiny channels—each about the width of a human hair—to efficiently separate blood cells through controlled incremental filtration. According to Lam, the team was excited that the new device could operate at clinically relevant flow rates.

The device successfully removed approximately 85 percent of large leukocytes and 90 percent of leukemic blasts from undiluted human whole blood without causing platelet loss or other adverse effects. It also operates with an ECV that’s about 1/70th of conventional leukapheresis machines, which makes it particularly suitable for infants and small children.

“Overall, our study suggests that microfluidics leukapheresis is safe and effective at selectively removing leukocytes from circulation, with separation performance sufficiently high to ultimately enable safe leukapheresis in children,” Shevkoplyas said in the release.

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