News Release
Bioengineering Day 2015: Bridging Bench to Bedside
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San Diego, CA, April 8, 2015 -- On April 18th, 2015, the bioengineering department at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering will celebrate its 9th Annual Bioengineering Day. The event brings faculty, alumni, undergraduate and graduate students and industry partners together to discuss the yearly progress and successes within the bioengineering ecosystem at the Jacobs School of Engineering and the broader UC San Diego community.
Bioengineering Day features graduate research talks, a poster expo, a keynote and three lightning talks and a networking reception commemorating the 95th birthday of Bioengineering founding father Dr. Y. C. Fung.
There is still time for students to participate by presenting a poster or giving a graduate research talk (see below).
Bioengineering Day is Saturday, April 18th, 2015 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:15 p.m. in the Skaggs Pharmaceutical Sciences Building. To see the full schedule and to register, visit http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/events/beday/index.shtml.
Keynote Talks
In line with this year’s theme of “Bridging Bench to Bedside”, the bioengineering department has invited Dr. Philip Low, Founder, Chairman & CEO of NeuroVigil, Inc. to give the keynote address.
Dr. Low invented the SPEARS algorithm and overturned long-standing beliefs regarding the nature of human and animal neural sleep patterns. His work made possible the automated and non-invasive single channel detection of REM sleep, cortical and subcortical patterns. Dr. Low’s work also provided the foundation for the iBrain device and the Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness, which recognizes neurobiological similarities between human and non-human animals.
NeuroVigil, Inc. successfully went to market in 2009 and merges neuroscience, non-invasive wireless brain recording technology and advanced computational algorithms to rapidly generate an accurate and automated reading of brain wave data. This information is being used to diagnose and treat a variety of medical conditions.
Also in the spirit of this year’s theme, short talks will be given by BIOCOM President & CEO Joseph Panetta, UC San Diego professor of chemistry and biochemistry Michael Sailor, and UC San Diego professor of medicine Judd Landsberg.
Opportunities to Participate
Currently, the bioengineering department is seeking graduate student abstracts for the poster session and graduate research talks. The deadline to submit an abstract for Bioengineering Day 2015 has been extended to Friday, April 10th. Those interested in giving a talk are recommended to have passed the senate exam and to have completed a large portion of their thesis project. All graduating M.S. and advanced 3rd year Ph.D. students are encouraged to apply.
Anushka Michailova Student Award
Beginning this year, a prize will be awarded each year to one or more students who present their research at Bioengineering Day. The award is a tribute to Dr. Anushka Michailova, a project scientist in the bioengineering department who died on May 17, 2014 after being struck by a hit-and-run driver while walking with her husband in Rancho Bernardo.
According to professor of bioengineering and medicine Andrew McCulloch, Michailova was a mathematical biophysicist whose knowledge of cardiac cell physiology and ability to create sophisticated mathematical models produced beautiful 3D models that provided important insights into how heart cells work.
The department established the Anushka Michailova Student Award as a tribute to her tireless commitment to undergraduate and graduate student research by recognizing outstanding student accomplishment in bioengineering research.
The endowment will provide a lasting legacy to Michailova’s work as a scientist and mentor by encouraging students to continue her work on medical research.
Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @UCSDJacobs and join the conversation using #BEDay2015.
Media Contacts
Brittanie Collinsworth
UC San Diego Center for Microbiome Innovation
858-534-8390
b4collinsworth@ucsd.edu