Edward D. McDowell sadly passed away on April 4, 2018. He received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Ohio State University, and M.S. in Industrial Engineering from Ohio University. Following the receipt of his Ph.D. in 1974, he joined the (then) Department of Industrial and General Engineering at Oregon State University as an Assistant Professor and continued as a faculty member for over 25 years, until his retirement as an Associate Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering in 2000.

Lewis Semprini is working to build strong, healthy communities that thrive on toxic waste.

Associate Professor Meghna Babbar-Sebens and master’s candidate Chris Conatser examine the changes in soil properties and plants exposed to contaminated stormwater in green infrastructure.

We can survive just fine without gold, or diamonds, or platinum.

But water? Not so much.

Water is the foundation of life, and in a semi-arid climate where water is scarce, groundwater contamination is a critical problem. To tackle this issue, Oregon State researchers are partnering with the U.S. Army to produce groundbreaking applied research that will ensure clean water for a region that needs it and ultimately contribute to cleaner water throughout the nation and the world.

Graduate student Grace Burleson records measurements from an InStove Water Purifier in Uganda.

Twice a day, at an all-girls high school dormitory in Eastern Uganda, a cook boils water for safe drinking over a smoky, open fire. Each 80-liter pot takes roughly an hour and multiple logs to boil. Around the world, a similar story plays out as people spend hours collecting firewood and disinfecting water in this dangerous, highly-polluted environment.

A team of six computer science students at Oregon State University competed for the first time and won the regional Department of Energy Cyber Defense Competition held at Pacific Northwest Laboratory in Richland, Washington.

Kenneth Squire did not know what to expect when attending his first academic conference — SPIE Photonics West 2018, a conference about light-based science and technology. So, he was pretty surprised to take home two awards.

“It’s really exciting to get that recognition and to know that I am capable of doing research and presenting my findings at that level,” said Squire, a graduate student in electrical and computer engineering in the College of Engineering at Oregon State University.

There are two good reasons to study cybersecurity, says Zander Work, a freshman in computer science at Oregon State University.

The first reason? Opportunity.

“There is a lot of availability right now,” Work said.

He’s right. By the time Work is entering the job market the shortage of cybersecurity professionals is estimated to be 1.8 million, according to the International Information System Security Certification Consortium.

The second reason? It’s fun.