Experts in the News

Want to touch a human brain, learn the mechanics behind animation or attend the “nerdiest fashion show of the year”? At the Atlanta Science Festival, you can. The Atlanta Science Festival (ASF) is back for its 10th edition from March 10 to 25. ASF is an annual celebration of learning, science and STEM career opportunities around the Atlanta region. This year, the line-up features 150 events across 80 locations in the city and metro area. Faculty members, staff, and students from the College of Sciences will be taking part in the two weeks of activities. (Schedule of events and other information is available here.)

Lithos Carbon, a US-based startup transforming farmland into carbon removal centers using the power of volcanic rocks, aims to capture 10,000 tons of carbon this year. Lithos accelerates mineral weathering by spreading basalt on croplands to increase dissolved inorganic carbon with eventual storage as ocean carbonates. Its technology uses novel soil models and machine learning to maximize carbon dioxide (CO₂) removal while boosting crop growth. Chris Reinhard, associate professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, is one of the three co-founders of Lithos Carbon. 

Florida State University climate scientists and others were recently granted $3.2 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to investigate carbon storage in the peatlands environment. Peatlands can be found across the globe, covering almost every continent. The largest area of peatlands can be found towards the Northern and Southern hemispheres and closest to the equator. In Florida, the greatest example of a peatland environment is the Everglades. FSU will work with Georgia Tech researchers on the DOE grant, including Joel Kostka, professor in the School of Biological Sciences and the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. 

Matt Baker, professor in the School of Mathematics and associate dean for Faculty Development in the College of Sciences, is on the cover of the current issue of Math Horizons, a journal of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). Baker, who is also a two-time winner of the Greater Atlanta Magician of the Year Award, is profiled about his love of math and magic, and his use of magic in researching and demonstrating math theorems. "I thought math and magic were two separate things," Baker said. "Until I was really shown the connection, I didn’t try too hard to think about creating my own magic tricks based on math principles, and now I’m kind of obsessed with that and spend a lot of time doing it."

Basic nutrition teaches that fat, when consumed in large quantities, is harmful to human health. However, the components that make up fats are complex. Good, unsaturated fats, or lipids, can lower disease risk. In fact, in a new study, researchers found that a good fat derivative may be able to relieve symptoms in patients suffering from chronic inflammatory diseases, such as multiple sclerosis. The study's authors include two researchers from the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry: Adita Das, associate professor, and Justin Kim, postdoctoral fellow. 

Matt Baker, professor in the School of Mathematics and associate dean for Faculty Development in the College of Sciences, is on the cover of the current issue of Math Horizons, a journal of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). Baker, who is also a two-time winner of the Greater Atlanta Magician of the Year Award, is profiled about his love of math and magic, and his use of magic in researching and demonstrating math theorems. "I thought math and magic were two separate things," Baker said. "Until I was really shown the connection, I didn’t try too hard to think about creating my own magic tricks based on math principles, and now I’m kind of obsessed with that and spend a lot of time doing it."

Basic nutrition teaches that fat, when consumed in large quantities, is harmful to human health. However, the components that make up fats are complex. Good, unsaturated fats, or lipids, can lower disease risk. In fact, in a new study, researchers found that a good fat derivative may be able to relieve symptoms in patients suffering from chronic inflammatory diseases, such as multiple sclerosis. The study's authors include two researchers from the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry: Adita Das, associate professor, and Justin Kim, postdoctoral fellow. 

More than 2,300 people have died and rescuers are racing to pull survivors from beneath the rubble after a devastating earthquake ripped through Turkey and Syria, leaving destruction and debris on each side of the border. One of the strongest earthquakes to hit the region in a century shook residents from their beds at around 4 a.m. on Monday, sending tremors as far away as Lebanon and Israel. Karl Lang, an assistant professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, told CNN the area hit by the quake Monday is prone to seismic activity. “It’s a very large fault zone, but this is a larger earthquake than they’ve experienced any time in recent memory,” Lang said. (Lang's comments also appeared at Kake.com,  ABC7 Chicago, The Hindu, and Newsweek.)

More than 2,300 people have died and rescuers are racing to pull survivors from beneath the rubble after a devastating earthquake ripped through Turkey and Syria, leaving destruction and debris on each side of the border. One of the strongest earthquakes to hit the region in a century shook residents from their beds at around 4 a.m. on Monday, sending tremors as far away as Lebanon and Israel. Karl Lang, an assistant professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, told CNN the area hit by the quake Monday is prone to seismic activity. “It’s a very large fault zone, but this is a larger earthquake than they’ve experienced any time in recent memory,” Lang said. (Lang's comments also appeared at Kake.com,  ABC7 Chicago, The Hindu, and Newsweek.)

Atlantic staff writer Katherine J. Wu wanted to find out if she could fix the air quality in her New England apartment. That led her to discover carbon dioxide-monitoring devices with varying degrees of success. Wu turned to climate and air quality experts for some advice, and learned that other pollutants besides CO2, such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, and ozone, can be even more harmful to health and environments. There's also the matter of, well, particulate matter, and whether the devices pick those up on their monitors. One of the experts Wu consulted is Nga Lee (Sally) Ng, Love Family Professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

One of those "comets" named to Forbes' 2023 30 Under 30 For Science list is Emma Xu, who graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas with a B.S. in Physics in 2015. While at UTD, Xu's research advisor pointed her towards a summer National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program at Georgia Tech. Xu credits that experience with helping her win an NSF graduate research fellowship. Xu is now the co-founder and CEO of her own science startup, and she is working on her Ph.D. at Columbia University. 

This roundup of all the major construction projects happening now in Downtown Atlanta includes Science Square. Developers broke ground last summer on a 13-story laboratory and office tower, the first building in the 18-acre, $1 billion development. The project is dedicated to life sciences research and biomedical technology. The development is located at the south end of campus at North Avenue and Northside Drive.