Because of inhospitable living conditions in outer space, it will be robots – not humans – that will be the galaxy’s next explorers. To ascertain the caliber of the world’s robotics experts, the Centennial Challenges Program at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) teamed with the Space Center Houston, the official visitor center of NASA’s Johnson Space Center, for the Space Robotics Challenge. A team led by Byung-Cheol “B.C.” Min, associate professor in Purdue Polytechnic’s Department of Computer and Information Technology, is a finalist in NASA’s robotics challenge.

Jose Garcia Bravo and Brittany Newell, assistant professors of engineering technology, along with Jose Chamorro, Santiago Guevara, Jose Solorio, Laura Vallejo and other colleagues, collaborated to design a system that predicts the health of conveyance systems in industry. Improving the reliability of conveyor belts has the potential to improve efficiencies and reduce costs in a variety of industries.

Purdue Polytechnic’s Caroline Marete was selected by the nonprofit Eno Center for Transportation as the recipient of the 2021 Thomas J. O’Bryant Fellowship.

Gianna Lint, a student in Purdue Polytechnic’s Doctorate of Technology program, is applying her expertise in process improvement towards human trafficking research.

Yansi Keim, a graduate research assistant in cyber forensics, was featured as one of the “12 women of crypto” in Women of Silicon Valley, an online magazine.

Candice Sexton, a graduate teaching assistant in Purdue Polytechnic’s School of Construction Management Technology, was named one of six national trainees in the NSF INCLUDES (Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science) program.

ASTM International has awarded a scholarship to Petr Vozka, a graduate research assistant in Purdue Polytechnic’s School of Engineering Technology.

Shweta Chopra, a graduate student in the Department of Technology Leadership and Innovation, received the first place award for graduate research at the recent ATMAE Annual Conference.

Chopra was honored for her dissertation research into the rice supply chain in India, her home country. Her ultimate goal is to improve the way rice is distributed, from the growers to consumers, while eliminating corruption and waste. Her research is ongoing.