2009-2010 Bulletin – PDF - SEAS Bulletin - Columbia University

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neers of the far-reaching political implications
of that technology as well.
After receiving a master’s degree
from the School in 1929, Admiral Hyman
George Rickover served during the
Second World War as head of the electrical
section of the Navy’s Bureau of
Ships. A proponent of nuclear sea
power, Rickover directed the planning
and construction of the world’s first
nuclear submarine, the 300-foot-long
Nautilus, launched in 1954.
THE TECHNOLOGICAL AGE
Today, The Fu Foundation School of
Engineering and Applied Science, as
it was named in 1997, continues to
provide leadership for scientific and
educational advances. Even Joseph
Engelberger, Class of 1946, the father
of modern robotics, could not have
anticipated the revolutionary speed with
which cumbersome and expensive “big
science”computers would shrink to the
size of a wallet.
In 1986 the Engineering School was
one of the first schools in the country
to use videotapes as tools for distance
learning. Today Columbia Video Network
continues to be in the forefront of distance
learning at the graduate level
through its online education programs.
Named as one of Forbes Magazine’s
“Best of the Web,” CVN offers the
opportunity for students anywhere in the
world to enroll in certificate programs or
obtain a master’s or professional degree
from Columbia Engineering and Applied
Science via the World Wide Web.
THE NEW CENTURY
No one could have imagined the explosive
growth of technology and its interdisciplinary
impact. The Engineering
School is in a unique position to take
advantage of the research facilities and
talents housed at Columbia to form
relationships among and between other
schools and departments within the
University. The School’s newest department,
Biomedical Engineering, with
close ties to the Medical School, is but
one example. Interdisciplinary centers
are the norm, with cross-disciplinary
research going on in biomedical imaging,
environmental chemistry, materials science,
medical digital libraries, nanotechnology,
digital government, new media technologies,
and GK-12 education. The School
and its departments have links to the
Departments of Physics, Chemistry,
Earth Science, and Mathematics, as
well as the College of Physicians and
Surgeons, the Graduate School of
Journalism, Lamont-Doherty Earth
Observatory, Teachers College, and the
Graduate School of Architecture,
Planning and Preservation. The transforming
gift of The Fu Foundation has
catapulted the School into the forefront
of collaborative research and teaching
and has given students the opportunity
to work with prize-winning academicians,
including Nobel laureates, from many
disciplines.
THE NEW RESEARCH
For the past several years, Columbia
has been first among the handful of
research universities that earn the
largest patent income from inventions
created by its faculty. The University is
the only academic institution that holds
patents in the patent pool for the manufacture
of MPEG-2, the technology that
enables DVDs and high definition TV.
Another exciting patent that holds great
promise is a laser-based method that
makes possible, among other things,
the sharper display screens found in
high-end smart phones. Sequential lateral
solidification (SLS) is based on
breakthrough research in understanding
how a substance is rapidly melted and
solidified. The result is an optimal crystalline
material that enables a new generation
of smart phones. Within a short
time, thanks to the innovations taking
place in SEAS labs, it may be possible
to put an entire computer on a sheet of
glass or plastic.
ENGAGED
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Entrepreneurship has emerged as an
important central educational theme
within The Fu Foundation School of
Engineering and Applied Science. SEAS
promotes engineering innovation and
engaged entrepreneurship through the
Center for Technology, Innovation, and
Community Engagement (CTICE). The
School offers a 15-credit, interdisciplinary
minor in entrepreneurship made up
of both SEAS and Columbia Business
School courses, and now provides a
four-year entrepreneurship experience
for all interested SEAS students, regardless
of major.
SEAS 2009–2010