October 13, 2023

Michigan Tech’s College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science (CFRES) invites you to attend the Natural Resources Career Fair 2023 on Tuesday (Oct. 17) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the U. J. Noblet Forestry Building.

The fair features regional companies and agencies that recruit students and graduates of our forestry, wildlife ecology, applied ecology, sustainability, and natural resource majors — or any current student who may have an interest in a natural-resource-related career!

Presentations by companies and agencies will be given Monday (Oct. 16) from 6-8 p.m. EST in Noblet G002. The varying topics will focus on application processes, job potential and company highlights. A "mixer" will take place after the presentations to allow students time to talk to employers.

The Natural Resources Career Fair runs on Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., allowing students to engage with approximately 24 employers from companies and agencies such as the Departments of Natural Resources from Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota; the U.S. Forest Service; KBIC Fire; Weyerhaeuser; Bartlett Tree Experts; Philmont Scout Ranch; Davey Resource Group; Besse Forest Products; and more!

For questions, contact Krause, CFRES outreach coordinator, at elkrause@mtu.edu with the subject line "Career Fair."

Make plans to attend the next William G. Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) Lunch and Learn on Oct. 23 at noon to learn more about the Essential Education Experience.

One of the signature pieces of the new Essential Education curriculum is the Essential Education Experience. This credit-bearing experience will give all Michigan Tech undergraduate students an opportunity to use what they are learning in their general education coursework to engage in collaborative, project-based work that connects them with the local community or with global partners.

On Oct. 23, join leaders from the Essential Education implementation leadership team to learn more about the Essential Education Experience and share your ideas about the kinds of innovative opportunities we can develop to address this new requirement.

Lunch will be served to those who register in advance.

Contact the CTL at ctl@mtu.edu if you have questions. We look forward to seeing you on Oct. 23.

The Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra performs its first concert of the season, “Overtures!,” presented by Michigan Tech Music, at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow (Oct. 14). Intended to preview the opera, ballet or musical to follow, each overture in this concert will bring the audience on a dramatic one-movement adventure.

Many familiar pieces may drum up nostalgia and delight for concert goers. The program includes “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” made famous by Disney’s “Fantasia,” the wild romance of Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet,” and Leonard Bernstien’s “Overture to Candide.” Check out the digital program in advance to view the full program and list of performers.

Concert Details:

• What: "Overtures!" Presented by Michigan Tech Music
• When: Saturday, Oct. 14, at 7:30 p.m.
• Where: Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts
• Tickets: Pay As You’re Able ($20 full ticket fee). Student Rush included with the Experience Tech fee.

Attend the Concert.

Last night, the outrageously fun “The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage” opened in McArdle Theatre. Composed by MIT professor and Houghton-raised composer Elena Ruehr, the 75-minute new work has four more performances by the Boston-based opera company Guerilla Opera. The Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts and Michigan Tech Music present this Rozsa Presenting Series event.

Based on the New York Times bestselling steampunk graphic novel by Sydney Padua, this is the first staging of the comedic new work. It centers on scientists Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage, the real-life unsung inventors of the first computer, fighting crime in alternate universes with their new invention.

Lovelace was a mathematician, gambler and proto-programmer whose writings contained the first-ever appearance of general computing theory. She was the first great genius to develop a programming language, and she is still not generally known. Babbage was the eccentric inventor of the Difference Engine, an enormous clockwork calculating machine that would have been the first computer, if he had ever finished it.

View the digital program in advance. 

This event is sponsored by the Michigan Tech College of Computing, the Michigan Tech Department of Computer Science, the Michigan Tech College of Sciences and Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the James A. and Margaret C. Black Endowment Fund, the Katherine M. Bosch Foundation, the Janet Locatelli Fund and the Institute for Policy, Ethics, and Culture at Michigan Tech.

This program/lecture is partially funded/sponsored by the Visiting Professor Program, which is funded by a grant to the Office of the Provost from the state of Michigan's King-Chávez-Parks Initiative.

Show Details:

• What: "The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage"
• When: Four more performances —
  
  • Friday, Oct. 13, at 7:30 p.m.
  • Saturday, Oct. 14, at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
  • Sunday, Oct. 15, at 3 p.m.
• Where: McArdle Theatre
• Tickets: Pay As You’re Able ($30 full ticket fee). Student Rush included with Experience Tech fee.

Attend a Performance.

The Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences will host Chikondi Sepula and Blessings Hwaca from Rhodes University at the next Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors (ACSHF) Forum.

There will be two presentations from 2-3 p.m. Monday (Oct. 16) via Zoom from Grahamstown, South Africa.

The first presentation is titled "Exploring the Development of Computational Thinking Skills among Pre-Service Teachers through Visual Programming: An Interventionist Case Study."

The title of the second presentation is "Working with Secondary School Educators’ on the development of Computational Thinking through lesson planning."

Full abstracts can be found on the Cognitive and Learning Sciences News blog!

The Michigan Tech soccer team is venturing downstate to open the second half of GLIAC play.

The Huskies are facing No. 9 Grand Valley State today (Oct. 13) at 7 p.m., and will play a matinee game at noon on Sunday (Oct. 15) at Davenport.

Fans can catch the contests on FloSports (a subscription is required — discounts are available for students).

Read the preview at Michigan Tech Athletics.

Michigan Tech volleyball is traveling to Hammond, Indiana, for the 15th annual Midwest Regional Volleyball Crossover Tournament.

The Huskies are 7-10 overall and 5-4 in the GLIAC, and enter the crossover as the No. 3 seed from the GLIAC. They'll open against Hillsdale at 3 p.m. EST today (Oct. 13). Later today, they'll take on Maryville at 8 p.m. EST.

Tech will wrap up the crossover tomorrow (Oct. 14) — their opponent will depend on today's results.

All three matches will be livestreamed on JEDtv Sports Network.

Read the preview at Michigan Tech Athletics.

Job Posting for Friday, Oct. 13, 2023

Staff and faculty job descriptions are available on the Human Resources website. For more information regarding staff positions, call 906-487-2280 or email humanresources@mtu.edu. For more information regarding faculty positions, contact the academic department in which the position is posted.

Manager of Admissions Operations, Admissions. Apply online.

Michigan Technological University is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution/Equal Opportunity Employer that provides equal opportunity for all, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Accommodations are available. If you require any auxiliary aids, services, or other accommodations to apply for employment, or for an interview, at Michigan Technological University, please notify the Human Resources office at 906-487-2280 or humanresources@mtu.edu.

Trista Vick-Majors (BioSci/GLRC) is the principal investigator (PI) on a project that has received a $481,851 research and development grant from the National Science Foundation.

The project is titled "Collaborative Research: Advancing a comprehensive model of year-round ecosystem function in seasonally frozen lakes through networked science."

This is a potential four-year project.

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Kuilin Zhang (CEGE/MTTI) is the PI on a project that has received a $1,050,000 research and development co-op joint agreement from the U.S. Department of Energy, ARPA-E.

The project is titled "A Decarbonized and Resilient Intermodal Freight Transportation (DRIFT) Modeling Platform for Intermodal Logistical Decisions under Uncertainty."

Chee-Wooi Ten (ECE/MTTI) and Tim Colling (CEGE/MTTI) are co-PIs on this potential 30-month project.

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Haiying Liu (Chem) has been awarded a supplementary grant of $18,995 from the National Institutes of Health.

The grant supplements Liu's parent grant related to the project titled "Near-infrared Fluorescent Probes for Sensitive Detection of NADH in Live Cells," bringing the total accumulated funding to $488,495.

Rudy Luck (Chem) is a co-PI on this potential three-year project.

This supplemental grant will enable the acquisition of a cell incubator equipped with precise oxygen level control. Controlling oxygen levels offers significant advantages for studying NAD(P)H levels in live cells during drug treatment, including enhanced accuracy, reproducibility and the ability to mimic specific physiological conditions.

The research goals of this project involve the design and development of near-infrared fluorescent probes, facilitating accurate and quantitative analysis of alterations in NAD(P)H concentrations within the mitochondria of live cells, specifically within the glycolysis pathway. This comprehensive analysis will encompass diverse metabolic processes and the variations occurring during mitophagy induced by cell starvation and drug treatment. The overarching objective is to attain a more profound understanding of both physiological and pathological processes.

The Keweenaw Report mentioned Suzanne Sanregret (ATH), Will Cantrell (GS), Gabriel Escobedo (CDI), Kat Hannum and Melissa Baird (both SS), and master's student Randy Dwyer (biomedical engineering) in coverage of a student-athlete graduate education partnership between MTU and San Jose State University.

Professor Haiying Liu of the Department of Chemistry presented an invited seminar at the University of Akron in Ohio on Oct. 3.

Liu's talk was titled "Near-infrared Fluorescent Probes for Sensitive Detection of Intracellular pH Changes."

From the abstract:
Monitoring intracellular pH is critical for understanding cellular processes like proliferation, apoptosis, enzymatic activity, and endocytosis. Abnormal pH is linked to diseases including cancer and Alzheimer's, highlighting the need for accurate pH tracking in live cells. Fluorescence imaging enables real-time intracellular pH monitoring with high sensitivity, rapid response, and spatial/temporal resolution. We have developed near-infrared fluorescent probes using BODIPY, rhodol, rhodamine, and cyanine dyes to detect pH fluctuations. Near-infrared imaging avoids autofluorescence background, photobleaching, and limited tissue penetration. To improve quantitative accuracy, we also engineered ratiometric near-infrared probes with dual emission bands for built-in self-calibration, overcoming errors from fluctuations in excitation, heterogeneity, probe distribution/concentration, and compartmental localization. Overall, these advances in near-infrared fluorescent probes and ratiometric imaging significantly enhance the reliability of intracellular pH monitoring for elucidating physiological and pathological processes.

Empowering Women to be Leaders in Science and Engineering: Leadership and Negotiation Workshop

Women scientists take on leadership roles every day — in the classroom, in their department or institution, and in their professional organizations.

This fall, Women in the Academy (WIA) and the Office of the Provost are co-sponsoring a workshop designed to give participants the basic concepts of leadership, describe recent research on leadership qualities that lead to success and failure, discuss effective leadership styles for women in different cultures, provide strategies for career advancement into leadership roles, and discuss effective negotiating techniques and developing and maintaining strong leadership networks.

The workshop is led by Pushpa Murthy, who has offered similar workshops across the world.

Event Details:

• When: Friday, Oct. 13, from 1-4:30 p.m.
• Where: MUB Ballroom A1
• RSVP Deadline: RSVP ended Monday (Oct. 9)

If you are interested in the workshop but cannot attend, please consider responding anonymously to help us better understand the barriers to attending such events.

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Open Application Tuesdays for Food Service Positions

Husky Eats will be hosting Open Application Tuesdays at MTU for anyone interested in food service jobs. Join us inside the Memorial Union Building, Keweenaw Commons area, from 12:30-5 p.m. every Tuesday for assistance with your application completion.

Husky Eats is looking to fill positions quickly. Several on-campus food service positions are available, including full- and part-time positions.

Beth Fish from Husky Eats HR will help you possibly find a convenient on-campus food service job with growth opportunities! You could also schedule an appointment by calling 906-201-1979 or emailing bfish@mtu.edu.

Learn more about open on-campus positions in food service at the Husky Eats Employment Opportunities page.

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Fall Tennis Programs: Session 2 Registration Coming Soon

Registration for Fall Session 2 Programming at Gates Tennis Center for beginner, intermediate and advanced adult Huskies group tennis lessons is coming soon. Lessons are open to players of all levels age 17 and up looking to improve their tennis games. Advanced lessons are subject to instructor approval.

Session 2 registration for weekday and Saturday group tennis lessons for youth will also open soon. Join by age group and level for some fun on the tennis courts!

Check back regularly for registration updates and visit our webpages for more information:

• Adult Huskies Group Tennis Lessons 
• Youth Huskies Group Tennis Lessons 

See you at Gates and Go Huskies!

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Upcoming Campus User Training: Cayuse Sponsored Projects Platform

The Sponsored Operations Office and the Sponsored Programs Office invite the campus community to participate in an in-person training on how to create and certify a proposal using the recently implemented Cayuse Sponsored Projects software. Specifically, research-active faculty, research scientists and research support staff are invited to attend on one of the following dates:

• Tuesday, Oct. 24, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
  Register for this session

• Tuesday, Nov. 14, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.
  Register for this session

All training will be held at the Van Pelt and Opie Library in Library 242.

If you anticipate submitting any externally funded proposals in the next year, consider attending or viewing the online training videos on the Cayuse Training webpage.

Additional information is available on our Cayuse Implementation webpage. Please reach out to Sponsored Operations at soo-l@mtu.edu with any questions.

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Chemistry Seminar with Tatyana Karabencheva-Christova

Tatyana G. Karabencheva-Christova from the Department of Chemistry at Michigan Technological University will be presenting at this week's Chemistry Seminar. The seminar will be held virtually at 3 p.m. today (Oct. 13) on Zoom (use passcode 275064).

Karabencheva-Christova’s presentation is titled "Revealing Catalytic Strategies of Metalloenzymes."

From the abstract:
More than 30% of all human enzymes with essential physiological functions contain metal ions in their active sites. Therefore, metalloenzymes are critical therapeutic targets in developing inhibitors and drugs. The discovery of effective therapeutics that target metalloenzymes requires a thorough understanding of metalloenzymes' structure and catalytic strategies. Computational chemistry methods have become a powerful tool for exploring the structure and revealing mechanistic insights into metalloenzyme catalysis, which cannot be obtained experimentally. Applying multilevel computational chemistry methods, we explored the catalytic mechanisms and structure-function relationships of two large groups of metalloenzymes: (1) zinc (II)-dependent matrix metalloproteinases and (2) non-heme Iron (II)-containing enzymes. In particular, the research implements multilevel computational chemistry methods to explore the conformational diversity of enzyme-substrate complexes and to study enzyme reaction mechanisms within the natural protein environment. These findings illuminate atomic and electronic scale details, which cannot be obtained by experimental techniques. Ultimately, the research provides insights into the structure-function relationships of metal-containing enzymes that permit fundamental advances in artificial metalloenzymes design, chemical biology, and drug discovery.

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Math Seminar with XiangXiong Zhang

Please join us for the next Department of Mathematical Sciences (Math) Seminar, taking place today (Oct. 13) in Fisher 327B from 1-2 p.m.

Our guest speaker will be Xiangxiong Zhang, associate professor of mathematics at Purdue University.

Zhang's presentation is titled "Recent Progress on Q^k Spectral Element Method: Accuracy, Monotonicity and Applications."

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Creditable Coverage Notice for Employees Covered by Medicare

Federal regulations require Michigan Tech to send the Medicare Part D certificate of creditable coverage disclosure form prior to the annual Medicare Part D election period, which begins Sunday (Oct. 15) and runs through Dec. 7.

The disclosure only applies to those employees who are age 65 and older or who have a dependent who is enrolled in Medicare. Michigan Tech’s prescription coverage is creditable, meaning that it is expected to cover on average as much as the Standard Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. The certificate of creditable coverage notice can be viewed online.

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Husky Autumn Mountain Run

The Arctic Ranger Club at MTU welcomes you to the sixth annual Husky Autumn Mountain Run tomorrow (Oct. 14) at Mont Ripley!

We are excited to have you as a part of this event as we raise money for the Copper Country Humane Society and the Arctic Ranger Club! The 10K run begins at 9 a.m. and the 5K begins at 9:15 a.m.

Visit the Husky Autumn Mountain Run webpage for more info and to sign up!

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

Layered in Between: Prints by Erin Hoffman Presented by Michigan Tech Art

Friday, October 13, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. | Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts, Rozsa Galleries A-Space

Erin Hoffman is an artist and printmaker from Muskegon, Michigan, who deals primarily with political and social concerns. Through the presentation of mismatched ideas and...

PhD Dissertation Proposal: Junyao Yang, Computer Science

Friday, October 13, 8:00–9:30 a.m. | Fisher Hall, 131

PhD student Junyao Yang, Computer Science, will present their PhD dissertation proposal on Friday, October 13, 2023, from 8-9:30 am in Fisher 131 and via Zoom online...

Image-based Computational Modelling in Aortic Haemodynamic Assessment

Friday, October 13, 9–10 a.m. | Minerals and Materials Engineering Building (M&M), 610

Biomedical Engineering Research Seminar Dr. Selene Pirola Delft University of Technology (Netherlands) Abstract Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has emerged as a...

Cookies and Coloring

Friday, October 13, 1 p.m.–3 p.m. | CDI Basement

De-stress with an afternoon of adult coloring and find out more about what the Center for Student Mental Health and Well-being has to offer!

Interview without Fear or Surprise

Friday, October 13, 1:00 p.m.–1:30 p.m. | Administration and Student Services Building, 220 Career Services

Interview without surprise or fear. After all, it's not the Spanish Inquisition!

Mathematical Sciences Seminar Series Speaker: Dr. XiangXiong Zhang

Friday, October 13, 1 p.m.–2 p.m. | Fisher Hall, 327B

Title: "Recent Progress on Q^k Spectral Element Method: Accuracy, Monotonicity and Applications" Abstract: The Q^k spectral element method has been a popular high order...

PhD Defense: Abdolvahhab Rostamijavanani

Friday, October 13, 1 p.m.–2 p.m.

Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics Advisor: Hassan Masoud Data-Driven Identification and Modeling of Nonlinear Dynamical Systems using Deep Learning Attend...

MATLAB Workshop

Friday, October 13, 2 p.m.–4 p.m. | Online

Free MATLAB Workshop! Women in Physics is hosting a MATLAB workshop that is available to anyone who is interested. It is a 7 week course that will begin with the basic...

Computer Science Colloquium: Charles Wallace

Friday, October 13, 3 p.m. | Rekhi Hall, 214

Associate Professor Charles Wallace, Computer Science, will present a Computer Science Colloquium on Friday, October 13, 2023, at 3 pm in Rekhi 214 and via Zoom webinar. The...

PADI Open Water SCUBA Certification

Friday, October 13, 5 p.m.–10 p.m. | Student Development Complex (SDC), Room 237, Pool

Earn your PADI Open Water SCUBA certification. This course is conducted over two weekends and includes 10 hours of academic instruction (some coursework to be completed...

Portage Waterway Cruising

Friday, October 13, 5 p.m.–6 p.m. | East Houghton Waterfront Park

The Sailing Club at Michigan Tech has weekly cruises on the Portage Waterway, most Friday nights in the fall semester (weather permitting). No previous sailing experience is...

Film Board Presents: John Wick Chapter 4

Friday, October 13, 5:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m. | Fisher 135 Michigan Tech

Join Film Board this weekend as we show John Wick Chapter 4! Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1. Showings are on Friday 10/13 and Saturday 10/14 in Fisher 135! More...

Valorant IM Tournament

Friday, October 13, 6 p.m.–6 p.m. | Online

This tournament will consist of remote best-of-three matches between teams of 5, with some later matches being hosted, streamed, and casted in-person at the e-sports facility....

(Women's Soccer) Michigan Tech at Grand Valley State

Friday, October 13, 7 p.m.–10 p.m.

Women's Soccer: Michigan Tech at Grand Valley State

Movie Night with YAF

Friday, October 13, 7:00 p.m.–9:30 p.m. | U. J. Noblet Forestry Building Room G002

Join us at 7 p.m. on Friday the 13th of October in room G002 of the Forestry Building for a movie! We tentatively plan to show Sound of Freedom, but RSVP to stay updated. We...

(Men's Ice Hockey) Alaska vs. Michigan Tech

Friday, October 13, 7:07 p.m.–10:07 p.m. | John MacInnes Student Ice Arena

Men's Ice Hockey: Alaska vs. Michigan Tech, Great Lakes Invitational

The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage, a Guerilla Opera Production Presented by The Rozsa and Michigan Tech Music

Friday, October 13, 7:30 p.m. | McArdle Theatre

“Thrilling Adventures as much a triumph as it is a bit of wacky fun.” Aaron Keebaugh, Artfuse 2023 Based on the New York Times best-selling graphic novel by Sydney Padua,...

Film Board Presents: John Wick Chapter 4

Friday, October 13, 8:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m. | Fisher 135 Michigan Tech

Join Film Board this weekend as we show John Wick Chapter 4! Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1. Showings are on Friday 10/13 and Saturday 10/14 in Fisher 135! More...

Film Board Presents: John Wick Chapter 4

Friday, October 13, 11:30–1:30 a.m. | Fisher 135 Michigan Tech

Join Film Board this weekend as we show John Wick Chapter 4! Tickets are $3 and concessions are $1. Showings are on Friday 10/13 and Saturday 10/14 in Fisher 135! More...

(Women's Volleyball) Michigan Tech vs. TBA

October 13, all day | Aurora, Ill.

Women's Volleyball: Michigan Tech vs. TBA, Midwest Regional Crossover