USF inventors who hold patents from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office were recognized and honored at the third annual luncheon of the USF chapter of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) on Oct. 21 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in the USF Research Park.

All of USF's efforts to provide cutting-edge research and education in global sustainability will now be housed under one entity: The Patel School of Global Sustainability (PSGS). This natural outcome, born from the Patel Center for Global Solutions, the School of Global Sustainability and the Office of Sustainability, is inclusive and holistic, and based on interdisciplinary research, design, and education. It will provide advanced research and training in five key: areas: water, energy, security, entrepreneurship, and environmental science and policy

While not as immediately disabling as the blast injuries seen in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, the toll is still huge. After retirement, back pain is a top reason that soldiers leave service, according to researchers at the University of South Florida studying a potential source of relief.

USF research administrators were recognized at the TRAIN® awards luncheon on Oct. 5, 2011. More than 100 people attend the luncheon, held annually to recognize those that have significantly contributed to the TRAIN® initiative by The Research Administration Improvement Network (TRAIN®), the Office of Research & Innovation and the Office of the Provost.

The Florida Institute for Human & Machine Cognition and the University of South Florida are partnering to cooperate on joint research in areas of common strength, which will include cyber-security, surgical robotics, underwater autonomous vehicles, natural language processing and human/machine coordination.

SRI International President and CEO Dr. Curtis R. Carlson drew a standing-room-only crowd to the ResearchOne Kick-Off Event on Sept. 22.Carlson's keynote address echoed the themes of his book, "Innovation: The Five Disciplines for Creating What Customers Want." He described innovation as not just the creation of something new, but "the successful creation and delivery of a new or improved product or service that provides value for your customer and sustained profit for your organization."

Frequently asked questions and answers about the revised financial conflict of interest regulations have been posted.

From ROCKTALK by Dr. Sally Rockey...

I hope many of you responded to the request for information from the working group of the Advisory Committee to the Director that is examining the future of the research biomedical workforce.

Until the University of South Florida’s David C. Anchin Center plowed through masses of documents and records to compile the data, there was no comprehensive view of the entire state’s K-12 education system – showing performance and achievement district by district.

A new and better way to observe how high speed, powerful shock waves move through solids — and how the solids consequently respond — has been developed. The traditional view is that when subjected to shock waves, solids at relatively low pressures exhibit an elastic state in which the crystalline lattice eventually returns to normal but, upon exceeding a threshold pressure, enters an irreversible plastic state.

The University of South Florida School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences has received a $1.59-million U.S. Department of Defense award for leading-edge musculoskeletal research intended to benefit active duty soldiers and veterans and improve military preparedness.

The National Institutes of Health awarded researchers in the USF College of Pharmacy $1.65 million to further study the mechanisms that cause cardiac arrhythmias and the roles potassium channels play in the heart.

Military leaders have anguished over the question for centuries: How do you protect soldiers in battle in a way that allows them to move around easily?

The latest seminar for USF inventors will be presented on Fri., Nov. 4, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., in the Oak View Room of the Interdisciplinary Research Building (IDR), 3720 Spectrum Blvd. in the USF Research Park in Tampa. Free parking is available.

As the Florida Board of Governors devotes resources and talent to achieve and sustain efforts that will make Florida an international leader in knowledge-based innovation economies – which includes but is not limited to “STEM” degrees (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) – it is well-known that research at all levels in the State University System often leads to successful market commercialization of discoveries by faculty and students. The Board of Governors is co-sponsoring a workshop with the National Science Foundation (NSF) on Jan. 12 in Orlando to further increase the competitiveness and success of Florida-based researchers.

A Research!America workshop and forum at USF offers students and postdoc scholars an opportunity to learn about science advocacy and effectively communicating research.

Join Florida Earth Foundation and the USF Patel School of Global Sustainability for the fourth installment of the Water Choices Forum Series. This session will create a think-tank environmnet where participants along with experts from around the state actively discuss and propose ways to solve the State of Florida's water challenges. Building on Water Choices I, II and III, Water Choices IV will take previous discussions forward with a particular emphasis on public-private partnerships. Water Choices IV will explore how these partnerships can create innovative solutions to address future water challenges.