News & Events
Even as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic makes many aspects of the future uncertain, a generous gift will ensure that first-year students in the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Systems Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute continue to receive a hands-on education.
Each year tens of millions of tons of plastic are sent to landfills, while another 8 million metric tons of plastic end up in the ocean. It’s an exponential problem that requires an environmentally friendly solution.
With many people stuck inside for months on end, the built environment has played a significant role in the COVID-19 pandemic. With support from a new National Science Foundation grant, a team of engineers and social scientists will study the ways in which that built environment mitigates or exacerbates the pandemic.
Anyone who has experienced a midafternoon energy slump or suffered from jetlag has felt the effects of their body’s circadian rhythm. This internal clock helps regulate many of our physiological processes, including sleep, metabolism, and even how the brain functions.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute anticipate a future in which a combination of smart wearables and algorithms assess each person’s circadian rhythm and provide personalized feedback as to what light, sleep, and work schedule would be ideal for their particular internal clock.
Cellphones, televisions, and computers all rely on the wireless spectrum, a series of signals that travel through the air by way of radio frequencies. Ever-increasing demand for this finite resource requires that policies and protocols aimed at coordinating spectrum use be updated and optimized.