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Research Day 2023: The benefits of research for young students, the frontiers of biotech

April 21, 2023

SOUTHFIELD–Lawrence Technological University learned that its emphasis on involving undergraduates in meaningful research from their first days on campus improves learning outcomes from the keynote speaker at LTU’s 10th Annual Research Day Friday.

Erin Dolan, a biology professor and researcher into advanced educational techniques from the University of Georgia, provided the opening keynote.

Patrick Nelson, dean of LTU’s College of Arts and Sciences, called Dolan’s research “the backbone of our CRE (course-based research experiences) efforts” in encouraging undergraduate involvement in research.

LTU has been increasingly encouraging undergraduate involvement in research for more than five years, since receiving a $1 million grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to encourage it, particularly among under-represented populations.

Thus, Dolan said, “normally when I give this speech it’s a sales pitch, convincing people that undergraduates should be more involved in research. After spending the last 12 hours here, I realize I don’t have to convince you all that undergraduate research is a high-impact educational practice.”

Dolan presented results of her ongoing research showing that involving undergrads in research — all the way down to freshman year — both increases graduation rates and increases the percentage of students who enroll in STEM majors to stick with them through graduation.

Most beneficial, she said, are activities like trouble-shooting, problem-solving, and trying experiments again after they fail.

After Dolan’s presentation, Eric Meyer, associate professor and director of LTUT’s Experimental Biomechanical Laboratory, presented the 2023 President’s Colloquioum, an honor reserved for the university’s researcher of the year.

Meyer recounted his journey as a student, saying a study-abroad program in Belgium convinced him to continue on to graduate school. His decision to concentrate on bioengieneering, he said, was fueled by science fiction like Star Wars and the Terminator movies.

He said biotech has come a long way since the development of insulin produced by gene-spliced microorganisms in the 1970s, followed by insulin pumps that provide a constant, customized dosage.

Today, bioengineering can help people with amputated limbs set world records in the long jump, and have advanced agriculture beyond the dreams of centuries past.

Meyer said he’s been researching technologies to repair cartilage — human tissue that doesn’t have a blood supply and can’t repair itself when injured or damaged by arthritis. His research has used stem cells, hydrdogel, steroids and growth hormone to produce cartilage.

Meyer’s other research ranges from impact biomechanics to make both driving and sports participation safer, working with LTU athletes to minimize the impact of the huge forces, 10 to 15 times one’s body weight, generated by jumping and landing. He’s also working on small, light, Fitbit-style sensors on all joints in an athletic garment to analyze movement and track changes in movement over time.

He’s also worked with several companies on improving spinal surgery instruments, better dental implant technologies, and a tennis swing analyzer to prevent tennis elbow..

Finally, Meyer said, he’s participating in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, or Industry 4.0, the combination of high-powered computing, cloud technologies, and remote sensors to produce detailed analysis of the mechanics of sports motion and injury. LTU is establishing a Wearable Technology Innovation Center to research and produce these technologies. “The four social issues we think we can help on with this center are construction and workplace safety, youth recreation and sports injury, elder care, and general human productivity.”

Matthew Cole, an LTU business professor and Research Day director, said the purpose of Research Day was to “promote and celebrate the culture of research at Lawrence Tech.” And Nabil Grace, dean of the LTU College of Engineering and vice president of research for the university, noted that Research Day “is becoming a very important function for us, an opportunity for our students and faculty to gather to celebrate research.” Grace noted that LTU’s research efforts have skyrocketed in recent years. And he encouraged faculty in attendance to apply for LTU’s Faculty Research Fellows program, which gives faculty time off from teaching to conduct research. In a video greeting, LTU President Tarek Sobh prasised “the wonderful depth of research on our campus, much of which is supported by our industry partners.”

Mark Brucki, LTU associate vice president for economic development, noted the many industry sponsored research laboratories on the LTU campus in automotive engineering, industrial engineering, and Industry 4.0, by Johnson Controls, Siemens, and Rockwell and McNaughton-McKay respectively. He thanked gold sponsor Stefanini, the global technology firm with its North American headquarters in Southfield, silver sponsor Alta Equipment, and bronze sponsors Arbor Hive and Ward Law for their support of the event.

Stefanini executive Fabio Caversan in turn thanked LTU for its research assistance in turning the company’s AI-powered personal asisstant, “Sophie,” into a factory-floor helper in the LTU Industry 4.0 laboratory. He called LTU professors Nabih Jaber and George Pappas “my coworkers, and now my friends.”

» Document Viewer

Use Your Cell Phone as a Document Camera in Zoom

  • What you will need to have and do
  • Download the mobile Zoom app (either App Store or Google Play)
  • Have your phone plugged in
  • Set up video stand phone holder

From Computer

Log in and start your Zoom session with participants

From Phone

  • Start the Zoom session on your phone app (suggest setting your phone to “Do not disturb” since your phone screen will be seen in Zoom)
  • Type in the Meeting ID and Join
  • Do not use phone audio option to avoid feedback
  • Select “share content” and “screen” to share your cell phone’s screen in your Zoom session
  • Select “start broadcast” from Zoom app. The home screen of your cell phone is now being shared with your participants.

To use your cell phone as a makeshift document camera

  • Open (swipe to switch apps) and select the camera app on your phone
  • Start in photo mode and aim the camera at whatever materials you would like to share
  • This is where you will have to position what you want to share to get the best view – but you will see ‘how you are doing’ in the main Zoom session.