Students will present their research posters at the 10th annual Undergraduate Research Conference on April 19, 2012.

A group of Virginia Tech students will present their research topics in life sciences, engineering, math and more at the 11th annual Undergraduate Research Conference in Blacksburg on Friday. The Inn at Virginia Tech will be hosting the conference from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nearly 100 students will give presentations, covering such topics as the effect of corn gluten in lambs, bullying prevention in middle schools, and female fashion decisions. An events schedule can be found on the Office of Undergraduate Research’s website.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., April 17, 2013 – Almost 100 students will present their research and creative scholarship at the 11th annual Undergraduate Research Conference from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, April 19, at the Inn at Virginia Tech and Skeleton Conference Center.

Family, friends, those affiliated with Virginia Tech, and the greater community are welcome to attend to see a showcase of student contributions to scholarship.

Presentation topics represent diverse areas of disciplines and focus areas from life sciences, engineering, and math to liberal arts. Student participants represent six of the undergraduate colleges at Virginia Tech. Read more »

Left to right, Tobias Ecker, a doctoral student in the Virginia tech Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering; Wing Ng, the Chris Kraft Endowed Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering; and said Todd Lowe, an assistant professor in the aerospace and ocean engineering program, work on the model-scale engine inside a Randolph Hall lab.

A research team in Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering  is one of several teams that will be working to find a way to reduce loud fighter jet noise. The U.S. Office of Naval Research’s Hot Jet Noise Reduction program is funding this three-year project. Virginia Tech is going to receive $600,000  in funds for this research project.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., March 22, 2013 – Have you ever had a fighter jet fly over your home and the noise of the aircraft booms loud enough to rattle the windows? Imagine working on an aircraft carrier or air base, up close to the engines as they take off or land. Even with ear plugs, the noise can be deafening. Read more »

Drug and alcohol testing company ARCpoint Labs has opened a location in Salem. The new location on Main Street is owned and operated by Jeff Howard. For more information, visit www.arcpointlabs.com/salem.

Here is a press release from ARCpoint Labs of Salem.

Salem, VA:  ARCpoint Labs, one of the nation’s leading Third Party Providers in the drug and alcohol testing industry, has opened another independently-owned location at 1627 E. Main Street in Salem.   ARCpoint Labs of Salem is owned and operated by Jeff Howard. Read more »

Left to right, are: Virginia Tech’s Wenjing Lou of computer science, Hanif Sherali of industrial and systems engineering, and Thomas Hou of electrical and computer engineering.

Three Virginia Tech engineers have been given a grant to research proposed solutions on cognitive radio spectrum sharing that may avoid interferences from other frequencies. Thomas Hou, professor of electrical and computer engineering in the College of Engineering, Wenjing Lou, of computer science, and Hanif Sherali, of industrial and systems engineering have received two grants totaling $800,000  from the National Science Foundation and the Office of Naval Research for this project.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Jan. 16, 2013 – Cognitive radios, the “intelligent” cell phones or police radios that help determine the best way to operate in any given situation, are becoming the “radio platform” of the next generation of wireless communications. They are also expected to play a major role in tactical communications for the U.S. Navy and for the Department of Defense,” said Thomas Hou, professor of electrical and computer engineering in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech. Read more »

Owners of the old RP Johnson & Son’s building in Wytheville are crowd sourcing for a way to use the building. William J. Smith and Gordon Jennings are accepting ideas through Facebook until Dec. 31. Facebook users can also vote for building ideas that have already been posted. Click here to submit an idea on Facebook.

Here is the press release from building co-owner, William J. Smith II.

It has been 5 years since RP Johnson & Son’s closed its doors at 355 East Main Street in Wytheville. The building’s owners, William J “Bill” Smith and Gordon Jennings, are ready to take a unique approach to decide how best to utilize the space. The duo is employing a method called crowd sourced placemaking to investigate creative ideas for the ultimate use of the 22,000 square foot building.

Submit your ideas for the building on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Smith-Enterprises/370239895350 (you’ll have to register before submitting). There, you will also find other ideas for the building and click “like” to vote for them. You can also submit an idea via email smithenterprisesva@gmail.com.

Any idea that gets more than 25 votes will be considered a HOT TOPIC at a meeting where steps to implement ideas will be discussed. Ideas will be received until Monday, December 31, 2012.

“Our goal is to generate excitement and support from the community “said Smith. They also hope the ideas will identify community needs and desires. Suggestions thus far have included restaurant(s), office space, and permanent inside/outside Farmers ’ Market, combined ‘Round the Mountain Artisan Center and Crooked Road Music Venue, antique mall, tourist information center, or multiple retail shops featuring local products.

Marketing associate professor Rajesh Bagchi studies the impact of information framing on consumer behavior, including the influence of color on purchasing decisions.

Marketing researchers in the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech are examining the effects of color and its influence on consumer shopping. Marketing associate professor Rajesh Bagchi along with  co-researcher Amar Cheema, of the University of Virginia, are investigating how red and blue influence willingness to pay and purchase likelihoods in auctions, negotiations and fixed-price situations.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Nov. 8, 2012 – Background colors, whether on websites or walls in brick-and-mortar stores, can influence consumer shopping behavior, in particular, willingness to pay, new marketing research from the Pamplin College of Businessshows. Read more »

The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation has two new members. The Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation and the Center for Geospatial Information Technology  have joined USGIF, extending Virginia Tech’s impact on geospatial research through their membership with the foundation.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 15, 2012 – The Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation and the Center for Geospatial Information Technology have teamed up to become members of the United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF).
Read more »

Wu Feng and the Hokiespeed supercomputer.

Virginia Tech is among the recipients of a $2 million grant to develop tools to get and use information from large sets of data. The grant comes from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.

Other recipients of the $2 million are Iowa State and Stanford University. The three-collegiate team will be working together to create high-performance computing methods on massive parallel computing resources for large-scale data analytics. The Hokiespeed supercomputer will be involved in the project.

According to the press release, the team will develop techniques that would enable researchers to use high-performance computing to analyze the data deluge of high-throughput DNA sequencing, or next generation sequencing.

Tech is receiving funding as part of nearly $15 million worth of grants in big data fundamental research projects from the NSF and NIH.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 5, 2012 – The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) today announced nearly $15 million in new big data fundamental research projects. These awards aim to develop new tools and methods to extract and use knowledge from collections of large data sets to accelerate progress in science and engineering research. Read more »

Virginia Tech’s Genomics Research Laboratory at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute is now open. The new lab provides new DNA sequencing equipment, results analysis and genomic analysis training allowing users to map out an entire human genome sequence in one day.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Sept. 13, 2012 – Virginia Tech has opened the doors to a new breed of genomics laboratory — the Genomics Research Laboratory at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute.

Providing a spectrum of services, the lab offers cutting-edge DNA sequencing equipment, project design assistance, analysis of results, and training in genomic analysis. The laboratory’s powerful, high-output equipment and staff bioinformaticians who help interpret the data, can sequence an entire human genome – three billion pairs of genes – in a day. Read more »

A summer program at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine helped 10 students explore careers in research. The Summer Veterinary Student Research Program allowed the students to  participated in mentor-guided lab training. Experience that comes from this program allows participants to pursue other biomedical research opportunities. Expenses for the students were covered by this program with sponsorships from the National Institutes of Health and the Merial Veterinary Scholars Program.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Aug. 24, 2012 – Ten first- and second-year students at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine explored possible careers in research this summer thanks to a program that creates opportunities for students both during and after their professional training. Read more »