Bioengineering

Ellen Weaver Award surprises the associate professor of bioengineering, who was nominated by current and former students for helping them balance the demands of research and life.

Stanford bioengineer Christina Smolke was recently delighted and surprised to learn that she had been chosen to receive an award for student mentoring by the Northern California Chapter of the Association for Women in Science (NCC-AWIS).

“I was really touched by this,” Smolke said. “Several of my current and former students put the nomination package together, and I didn’t know about it until I got the email notifying me that I had received this award.”

Last modified Thu, 2 Apr, 2015 at 8:10

Six decades ago, Nobel Prize-winning geneticist Joshua Lederberg observed how bacteria could essentially go undercover in ways that might trick the human immune system. Now, using new techniques, Stanford bioengineers have created a time-lapse video that shows this process step by step.

Sixty years ago, Nobel Prize-winning scientist Joshua Lederberg first described a biological mystery. He showed how bacteria could lose the cell walls that define their shapes, potentially becoming less visible to the immune system, only to later revert back to their original form and regain their full infectious potential.

Last modified Wed, 18 Mar, 2015 at 12:10

Years of research satisfy a graduate student's curiosity about the molecular minuet he observed among drops of ordinary food coloring.

A puzzling observation, pursued through hundreds of experiments, has led Stanford researchers to a simple yet profound discovery: under certain circumstances, droplets of fluid will move like performers in a dance choreographed by molecular physics.

Last modified Thu, 12 Mar, 2015 at 8:18

Friday, March 13, 2015

Cubberly Auditorium, Stanford  Map

Free and open to the public, refreshments

Last modified Thu, 5 Mar, 2015 at 13:56

By selectively manipulating how DNA issues biological commands, Stanford bioengineers have developed a tool that could prove useful in future gene therapies.

Biology relies upon the precise activation of specific genes to work properly. If that sequence gets out of whack, or one gene turns on only partially, the outcome can often lead to a disease.

Now, bioengineers at Stanford and other universities have developed a sort of programmable genetic code that allows them to preferentially activate or deactivate genes in living cells. The work is published in the current issue of Cell, and could help usher in a new generation of gene therapies.

Last modified Mon, 26 Jan, 2015 at 13:13

Although the mechanisms of concussions are still being revealed, David Camarillo's lab has measured the forces imparted on the brain in greater detail than ever before. The results could eventually lead to better injury detection and prevention.

More than 40 million people worldwide suffer from concussions each year, but scientists are just beginning to understand the traumatic forces that cause the injury.

Now a team of engineers and physicians at Stanford has provided the first-ever measurements of all the acceleration forces imparted on the brain during a diagnosed concussion. The findings could lead to better injury detection or toward developing safer protective gear.

Last modified Thu, 8 Jan, 2015 at 9:36

In one experiment bioengineers found that larger genetic mutants fared better, and in a second study they created viable cells using non-standard parts.

Cells are the fundamental units of life, but the rules that govern their successful growth and reproduction have remained mysterious.

Now, in one experiment, Stanford bioengineers show that bigger bacterial cells have an advantage over smaller ones. In a second study, they discovered that experimental microbes were able grow as fast as normal cells even with replacement parts from another species.

Last modified Wed, 17 Dec, 2014 at 14:39

Stanford University will lead a 100-year effort to study the long-term implications of artificial intelligence in all aspects of life.

Stanford University has invited leading thinkers from several institutions to begin a 100-year effort to study and anticipate how the effects of artificial intelligence will ripple through every aspect of how people work, live and play.

This effort, called the One Hundred Year Study on Artificial Intelligence, or AI100, is the brainchild of computer scientist and Stanford alumnus Eric Horvitz, who, among other credits, is a former president of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence.

Last modified Thu, 18 Dec, 2014 at 9:58

Professor of bioengineering, of genetics and of biomedical informatics research, was elected for contributions in the field of bioinformatics.

Last modified Wed, 26 Nov, 2014 at 9:47

A team of Stanford engineers is creating a small wireless device that will improve studies of chronic pain. The engineers hope to use what they learn to develop better therapies for the condition, which costs the economy $600 billion a year.

Ada Poon, a Stanford assistant professor of electrical engineering, is a master at building minuscule wireless devices that function in the body and can be powered remotely. Now, she and collaborators in bioengineering and anesthesia want to leverage this technology to develop a way of studying – and eventually developing treatments for – pain.

Last modified Wed, 8 Oct, 2014 at 12:59