February 26, 2026

At Michigan Tech, atmospheric scientist Shawn Brueshaber keeps his eye on the skies — and not just our own.

For Brueshaber, an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE), studying polar cyclones on Jupiter and lake-effect snow in the Keweenaw Peninsula is all a matter of fluid mechanics.

“The only difference is we’re not playing around in, say, a jet turbine. We’re studying fluid mechanics on a rotating spherical body over a very large scale — in the thousands and thousands of kilometers,” said Brueshaber.

Join Brueshaber and his students in his Planetary Atmospheric Works (PAWs) Lab, where images from NASA’s Juno spacecraft are processed and cost-effective radiosondes are developed from biodegradable takeout containers, in MAE Magazine.

Interested in supporting our students as they engage in hands-on, discovery-based learning? Consider serving as a distinguished judge at this year’s Design Expo!

Design Expo, scheduled for April 14, showcases exceptional projects crafted by our talented students across various disciplines. This annual event showcases the breadth and depth of undergraduate student innovation at Tech, featuring more than 80 Enterprise, Senior Design and capstone projects.

As a judge, you’ll play a crucial role in supporting student success and fostering a culture of innovation. We encourage all Michigan Tech faculty, graduate students, staff, alumni, industry representatives and community members to fill out our brief judge sign-up form.

Here's what we need from you:

• Attend the Expo: Mark your calendar for April 14 and be present between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to visit assigned teams and witness their projects firsthand.

• Review Team Videos: Prior to the Expo, between April 13 and April 14, you’ll have the opportunity to review and score assigned team videos via RocketJudge. Your feedback will be instrumental in guiding the students and helping them refine their projects.

By becoming a judge, you’ll inspire the next generation of researchers, connect with fellow educators and industry professionals, and make a tangible difference in our students’ lives.

Don’t miss this chance to be part of something extraordinary! Join us as a judge at the Michigan Tech Design Expo and let your passion for hands-on learning shine!

Learn more and sign up now. For questions, please email enterprise@mtu.edu.

We look forward to seeing you at the Design Expo!

Michigan Tech’s Global Campus invites you to a live Third Thursday webinar on March 19 at 11:30 a.m. ET, featuring two online graduate programs for today’s technical professionals: the Tech MBA® and Master of Engineering Management (MEM).

Two Online Degrees from the College of Business, One Big Next Step
As organizations face rapid change, they need leaders who can connect technology, strategy and execution. This session is designed for professionals who want to grow into higher-impact roles while continuing to work.

What You'll Get:

• A side-by-side look at the AACSB-accredited Tech MBA® and MEM programs
• Insights into the STEM-focused program curricula
• Guidance on admissions and next steps
• Live Q&A with faculty and enrollment advisors

Who Should Attend:
This webinar is a strong fit if you are:

• Working in STEM, engineering or operations
• Moving toward leadership or people/project management roles
• A working professional aiming to strengthen business and decision-making skills in technical environments
• A senior interested in a practical, online graduate degree that fits your schedule

Reserve your spot to learn which degree path best aligns with your goals.

Hey you! Feeling bored and wishing you had something to do over spring break? Want to make something but don’t want to deal with the long process of finding an end goal? Have spare parts lying around, including (but not limited to) that ENG1101 parts kit you’ve been holding on to, but can’t bring yourself to throw away?

Look no further than the Doohickey Corporation’s Thingamabob Convention hosted by registered student organization AAAA - Furries at Michigan Tech. The goal of this annual competition is to see who can make the best convoluted and pointless contraption!

Come on down to Wads G42W on April 4 at 1 p.m. with any and all of the following items to show off what you’ve made!

• Doohickeys
• Contraptions
• Mechanisms
• Thingamabobs
• Whatchamacallits
• Widgets
• Doodads
• Gizmos
• Gadgets
• And more!

Last year, contestants brought items like a pear wiggler, a model train motor and a modified video game. What will you bring this time?

Check out the submission form and rules to submit your thingamajig and/or confirm your attendance, even if you’re just stopping by.

Don’t have anything to bring? No problem! Feel free to simply check out the doodads and vote on your favorite thingamabob!

The A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum was well represented at the annual Tucson Gem and Mineral Show held in Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 12-15.

The museum set up an exhibit called “Wanted! Criminal Minerals” illustrating concepts and minerals that break the classical laws of crystallography. Director and curator John Jaszczak gave a public lecture on the topic on Feb. 15.

After 106 years, the Mineralogical Society of America held its inaugural annual meeting in Tucson from Feb. 16-20. Jaszczak and co-author Assistant Director Patrice Cobin presented a talk titled, “Inspiration and Education Through Minerals: Building Vitality of the A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum of Michigan Tech Through Strategic Planning”.

Cobin and her team visited numerous wholesale shows held in Tucson to carefully examine a tremendous quantity of minerals, jewelry and related materials from all over the world in order to hand-select the best assortment of items to offer for sale in the museum’s gift shop.

Bob Cowling (VPOL/GRF) was interviewed by ArcWatch, an online trade publication of GIS industry leader ESRI, for a story highlighting his work on the Van Pelt and Opie Library’s Copper Country Historical Images spatial image catalog and the Department of Social Sciences’ Keweenaw Time Traveler projects.

WLUC TV6 quoted Trever Hassell, Wayne Weaver and Yi Hu (all ECE) in a story examining the feasibility of developing data centers in the Upper Peninsula, discussing energy demands, grid capacity, cooling considerations and battery storage systems.

BioXconomy quoted Shiyue Fang (Chem) in a story about emerging 3D-printed technology aimed at improving synthetic DNA manufacturing.

The Daily Mining Gazette quoted Michigan Tech Board of Trustees member John U. Bacon in a story about the MTEC SmartZone’s Reimagining Leadership Conference in Houghton, where he spoke about leadership, team culture and the unique challenges and opportunities of doing business in the Upper Peninsula.

Indiana’s 92.3 WOWO-FM mentioned Michigan Tech in a story about new road durability technologies in Michigan, highlighting MTU’s partnership on a Washtenaw County project testing rubberized asphalt made with recycled tire materials.

Summer Youth Programs Staff Applications Open for Summer 2026

The Center for Educational Outreach is excited to announce that counselor and program support staff applications are now open for the 2026 season of Summer Youth Programs (SYP)!

Each summer, SYP welcomes more than a thousand middle and high school students to campus for an unforgettable experience filled with hands-on learning, discovery and adventure. We’re looking for college students from Michigan Tech and beyond who are excited to help create a fun, welcoming and meaningful environment for the thinkers, doers and problem-solvers of tomorrow.

A wide range of positions are available, including roles focused on youth engagement, residence life, evening programming, transportation and daily operations. Student staff members begin paid training in early June, and programs will run through July 18.

If you know a college student seeking an impactful summer opportunity who enjoys working with youth and wants to be part of a positive, energetic campus community this summer, please encourage them to view our website to learn more and apply through our hiring portal.

Questions? You can reach us at outreach@mtu.edu or 906-487-2219, or stop by Suite 217 of the Administration Building.

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Mathematical Sciences Seminar with James Sellers

Please join the Department of Mathematical Sciences as we welcome James Sellers, professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences and Statistics at the University of Minnesota Duluth, as he gives a presentation on his research.

The seminar will be held tomorrow, Feb. 27, from 1-2 p.m. in Fisher 133. Refreshments will be provided.

Sellers’ presentation is titled “Surprising Connections Between Integer Partitions Statistics: The Crank, Minimal Excludant, and Partition Fixed Points”.

Sellers received his Ph.D. from Penn State University in 1992 under the direction of David Bressoud. Over the last 35 years, he has taught at Cedarville University, Penn State University, and the University of Minnesota Duluth.

Sellers has published over 140 research papers in peer-reviewed journals, and he has dedicated much of his career in service to the mathematical community. This includes his work from 2011 to 2018 on the College Board's Advanced Placement Calculus Development Committee (which is the committee that writes the AP Calculus exams each year) as well as his service as Secretary of the MAA, which he completed in 2022.

During the spring 2025 semester, Sellers served as a Fulbright research fellow in Budapest, Hungary (where he enjoyed the authentic Hungarian goulash very much!). He has also held the position of Visiting Fellow at the Isaac Newton Institute in Cambridge as well as being a Fulbright Scholar at the Johannes Kepler University and Research Institute for Symbolic Computation in Austria.

When he is not working on research in integer partitions or thinking about the history of Leonhard Euler, Sellers can sometimes be found playing Candy Crush. He is always proud to share details of his progress in the game (so please feel free to ask)!

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Physics Colloquium: Grad Student Presentation

A Department of Physics graduate student will be presenting her research progress at this week's Physics Colloquium:

• Nayana Suresh Palaparambil (Advisor: Ravi Pandey)

This will be an in-person event. Palaparambil will give her talk at 4 p.m. today, Feb. 26, in Fisher 139.

Event details, including the Palaparambil’s presentation title and abstract, are available on the University Events Calendar.

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KIP and BioSci Seminar Series Speaker: Lanrong Bi

Lanrong Bi, professor of chemistry at Michigan Technological University, will present as part of the Departments of Kinesiology and Integrated Physiology (KIP) and Biological Sciences (BioSci) Seminar Series. The seminar will take place in GLRC 202 from 2-3 p.m. today, Feb. 26.

The seminar is titled “Rewriting Cellular Fate at the Subcellular Level: Precision Delivery of Therapeutics and Imaging Agents”.

From the abstract:
Cellular function and dysfunction are governed not only by molecular identity but also by where molecules act within the cell. Many therapeutic and imaging agents fail to achieve their intended effects because they are unable to reach the specific subcellular compartments where critical signaling, metabolic, and quality control processes occur. This presentation focuses on chemical strategies for achieving precise subcellular delivery of therapeutic and imaging agents, with an emphasis on understanding and exploiting the rules that govern intracellular localization. I will discuss the development of organelle-targeted chemical platforms that enable controlled access to mitochondria and other intracellular compartments. By integrating medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, and advanced imaging approaches, these strategies allow the selective modulation and visualization of key pathways. These studies demonstrate that precision targeting at the subcellular level can fundamentally alter biological outcomes, shifting cellular responses from maladaptive stress signaling toward adaptive recovery.  

Bi’s research program focuses on the design of organelle-targetable therapeutic and imaging agents to enable precision and personalized medicine. She earned her Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from Beijing Medical University (Health Science Center, Peking University) and previously served as an associate research scientist at the Columbia University Genome Center before joining the faculty at Michigan Tech.

Bi has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles and holds 10 U.S. patents, with work appearing in leading journals including Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, Journal of the American Chemical Society, and Autophagy. Her research has been cited more than 17,900 times, reflecting its broad impact on chemical biology and biomedical research. She is the recipient of Michigan Tech’s Bhakta Rath Research Award, shared with her Ph.D. student Nazmiye Yapici, now an independent NSF-funded principal investigator.

Bi is deeply committed to mentoring the next generation of scientists. Her trainees have progressed to independent academic careers, including Catherine Bammert, who moved directly from Bi’s laboratory to a faculty position at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where she is now an associate professor. These outcomes underscore Michigan Tech’s strong research environment and dedication to student success.

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MAE Graduate Seminar Speaker: Geordan Gutow

The next Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) Graduate Seminar speaker will present at 2 p.m. today, Feb. 26, in EERC 103.

Geordan Gutow will present “Turning Word Problems You Can’t Solve into Math Problems You Can: Formulating Robotics Problems as Tractable Constrained Optimizations”.

From the abstract:
This talk describes a number of seemingly disparate problems of interest to roboticists, ranging from control to state estimation and motion planning, and describes how they can be tackled as optimization problems using ideas from differential geometry, probability, and operations research. We show how optimization often serves as the unifying language to connect the interdisciplinary challenges inherent to robotics.

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Today's C-Cubed Luncheon Menu

Join Carved and Crafted Catering at Michigan Technological University for the C-Cubed Luncheon, being held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Thursdays in the Memorial Union Alumni Lounge (MUB 107). All faculty and staff, along with their guests, are invited.

Menu for Thursday, Feb. 26:

• Fajita Style Chicken Thighs (PR)
• Steak Fajita (PR)
• Portobello Fajita (VG, CF)
• Flour Tortillas (VG)
• Tortilla Soup (V, AG, PR) 
• Sopapillas 
• Shredded Pepper Jack Cheese (V, AG), Pico de Gallo (VG, AG), Sour Cream (V, AG), Cuban Black Beans (VG), Spanish Rice (VG, AG)

The C-Cubed lunch buffet menus are created and prepared by the catering culinary team. As the name suggests, the meals are meant to foster conversation, community and collegiality. Attendees may bring their lunch instead of purchasing the buffet. Fruit-infused water, coffee, tea and desserts are available free to all attendees.

The buffet lunch is $16 per person. Cash, credit cards and gift cards are accepted. Gift cards can be purchased in the Memorial Union office (MUB 101). Meals are dine-in only and personal containers/tupperware or to-go meals are not permitted.

Submit C-Cubed Feedback.

To have your event automatically appear, please submit them to the University Events Calendar.

Women's Rights are Human Rights: International Posters on Gender-based Inequality, Violence, and Discrimination Gallery Exhibit - Rozsa Art Galleries

Thursday, February 26, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. | Rozsa Art Galleries, Rozsa Art Galleries A-Space

MICHIGAN TECH ART SERIES EVENT Women’s Rights are Human Rights is a fitting title for an exhibition of women’s rights and advocacy posters, as it was a term used in the women’s rights movement and was the title of an important speech given by Hillary Rodham Clinton in 1995 at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. This exhibition features posters created by artsit of all genders to celebrate and acknowledge the vital role that all citizens should play in protecting and promoting human rights while challenging gender inequality and stereotypes, advancing reproductive and sexual rights, protecting women and girls against brutality, and promoting women’s empowerment and participation in society. These poster images challenge patriarchal attitudes that subordinate, stigmatize or restrict women from achieving their fullest potential. These images argue for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls enabling empowerment of women and achievement of real equality between women and men that fosters societal stability and human dignity. Learn more at womensrightsarehumanrights.org Things to know ROZSA ART GALLERIES HOURS | M-F 8 a.m.-8 p.m. and Saturdays…

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I-9 Verification at the MUB

Thursday, February 26, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. | Memorial Union Building; Room 101

Human Resources will be on-site at the MUB to verify I-9 documentation for new hires.

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College of Engineering - Engineering Discipline Photo Op + Blizzard Appearance

Thursday, February 26, 12–2 p.m. | Campus Mall, Husky Statue

Show your engineering pride with discipline photo signs and capture the moment—Blizzard will be stopping by for a fun photo-bomb appearance. Candy and stickers will be provided. This event is part of week long activities to explore engineering pathways, connect with leaders, and have some fun with classic engineering challenges as part of the National Engineers Week. Find out more here!

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Graduate Student Seminar - Sontosh Sahani and Kamilu Adedokun

Thursday, February 26, 12–1 p.m. | Fisher Hall, 326

Please join the Department of Mathematical Sciences in Fisher Hall 326 on Thursday, February 26, 2026 from 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. for our Graduate Student Seminar Series. Refreshments will be provided. Contact the Math Department Graduate Program Assistant, Andi Schoch, via email (ajschoch@mtu.edu) or in person (Fisher Hall 318) with any questions. PhD Candidate Sontosh Sahani will present: Title: High-order Bound-Preserving Discontinuous Galerkin Methods with Lagrange Multipliers for Wormhole Propagation Abstract: Acid-induced wormhole formation in carbonate reservoirs is governed by coupled reactive transport processes that describe the evolution of porosity and acid concentration during mineral dissolution. These variables are physically constrained to remain within the interval [0, 1], with porosity exhibiting a non-decreasing behavior over time. Ensuring that numerical simulations respect these intrinsic bounds is critical for obtaining stable and physically meaningful solutions. In this work, we propose a high-order bound-preserving discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method for the wormhole propagation model that maintains these constraints at the discrete level. The formulation employs…

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Graduate Student Seminar Series

Thursday, February 26, 12–1 p.m. | Fisher Hall, 326

Please join the Department of Mathematical Sciences in Fisher Hall 326 on Thursdays from 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. for our Graduate Student Seminar Series. This seminar series will be held each Thursday from January 22, 2026 through April 2, 2026. Graduate students will share current research and research-related topics. Refreshments will be provided. Contact the Math Department Graduate Program Assistant, Andi Schoch, via email (ajschoch@mtu.edu) or in person (Fisher Hall 318) with any questions.

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KIP and BioSci Seminar Series - Rewriting Cellular Fate at the Subcellular Level: Precision Delivery of Therapeutics and Imaging Agents

Thursday, February 26, 2–3 p.m. | Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC), 202

Dr. Lanrong Bi, Professor Department of Chemistry, Michigan Technological University Abstract: Cellular function and dysfunction are governed not only by molecular identity but also by where molecules act within the cell. Many therapeutic and imaging agents fail to achieve their intended effects because they are unable to reach the specific subcellular compartments where critical signaling, metabolic, and quality control processes occur. This presentation focuses on chemical strategies for achieving precise subcellular delivery of therapeutic and imaging agents, with an emphasis on understanding and exploiting the rules that govern intracellular localization. I will discuss the development of organelle-targeted chemical platforms that enable controlled access to mitochondria and other intracellular compartments. By integrating medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, and advanced imaging approaches, these strategies allow the selective modulation and visualization of key pathways. These studies demonstrate that precision targeting at the subcellular level can fundamentally alter biological outcomes, shifting cellular responses from maladaptive stress signaling toward adaptive recovery…

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Turning Word Problems You Can’t Solve into Math Problems You Can: Formulating Robotics Problems as Tractable Constrained Optimizations

Thursday, February 26, 2 p.m. | Electrical Energy Resources Center (EERC), 103

MAE Graduate Seminar Speaker Series proudly presents Geordan Gutow, PhD Associate Professor MAE, MTU Abstract A large part of what an engineer does is figure out how to turn desires stated in words into problems expressed as math. Often, the resulting math problem is a con- strained optimization problem, in which the engineer seeks to maximize or minimize a quantity (like profit or mass), while respecting constraints on the design of the engineered solution. This talk describes a number of seemingly disparate problems of interest to roboticists, ranging from control to state estimation and motion planning, and describes how they can be tackled as optimization problems using ideas from differential geometry, probability, and operations research. We show how optimization often serves as the unifying language to connect the interdisciplinary challenges inherent to robotics. Bio Dr. Gutow completed his PhD in 2022 at the Georgia Institute of Technology under Professor Jonathan Rogers, and his Bachelor’s degree in 2018 at Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on developing robotics algorithms that can reason about the properties and capabilities of the embodiments on which…

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Engineering Week - Spaghetti Bridge Competition & Marshmallow Geodesic Dome Build

Thursday, February 26, 3–6 p.m. | Memorial Union Building (MUB), Commons Sections 4, 5, 6 - G001

Put your engineering skills to the test - design and build a geodesic structure using marshmallows and spaghetti! And - design, build, and test your spaghetti bridge—whose structure will hold the most weight? This event is part of week long activities to explore engineering pathways, connect with leaders, and have some fun with classic engineering challenges as part of the National Engineers Week. Find out more here!

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Physics Colloquium - Graduate Student Presentation (Suresh Palaparambil)

Thursday, February 26, 3:30–5:00 p.m. | Fisher Hall, 139

Please join physics graduate student, Nayana Suresh Palaparambil for her presentation on Thursday, February 26 at 4 PM - Fisher Hall 139. Nayana Suresh Palaparambil (Advisor: Ravi Pandey) THEORETICAL STUDY OF LANTHANIDE-BENZENE COMPLEXES Lanthanide elements (Ln = La–Lu) have attracted significant interest for their notable optical properties, while two-dimensional materials hold strong potential for nextgeneration devices due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Graphene is considered a suitable substrate for lanthanide-based complexes due to its high carrier mobility and favorable electronic properties. As a prototype for understanding these interactions, lanthanide–benzene (Ln–(Bz)) complexes were studied using density functional theory. We find that half of the complexes stabilize in lower-symmetry structures due to pseudo Jahn–Teller distortions, whereas metastable states are observed in Ho-(Bz), Er–(Bz), Tm–(Bz), and Yb-(Bz) complexes. Bonding analysis indicates significant metal–ligand interactions, and natural population analysis suggests a dominant 6s → 5d electron transition that stabilizes these complexes. Spin multiplicity results show spin enhancement for…

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Master's Defense: Eli Johnson

Thursday, February 26, 3:45–4:45 p.m. | Academic Office Building (AOB), 101

Applied Natural Resource Economics Advisor: Jenny Apriesnig Modeling Determinants of Significant Noncompliance in the U.S. Mining Sector: A Fixed Effects Logistic Regression Approach

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Huskies Swim Training - Session 2

Thursday, February 26, 4–5 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Pool

Huskies Swim Training is a program that provides additional attention and competitive guidance to advanced swimmers looking to focus on stroke technique and efficiency. Sessions will be designed to improve swimming through stroke drills and swimming sets focused on endurance, speed, and race strategy. Coaches will provide feedback and stroke correction in a group environment with an emphasis on promoting a love for competitive swimming and lifelong skills such as discipline, dedication, and teamwork. Come be part of the pack! Competitve swimming opportunities are now availabe to current Huskies Swim Training participants!

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The Buzz: Peer Support Community

Thursday, February 26, 5–6 p.m. | Hamar House

We invite you to join our safe and judgment-free space where students can share, listen, and support each other around substance use and recovery. You are welcome here.

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Women's Basketball vs Parkside

Thursday, February 26, 5:30–8:30 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Wood Gym

Women's Basketball vs Parkside Houghton, Mich.

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Men's Basketball vs Parkside

Thursday, February 26, 7:30–10:30 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Wood Gym

Men's Basketball vs Parkside Houghton, Mich.