Dietrich Stephan has been named Life Sciences Pennsylvania’s 2017 Thought Leader of the Year.

The award honors an individual “who has a clearly articulated and enacted vision for advancing the scientific and business prowess of Pennsylvania; has harnessed diverse resources to implement that vision; has advanced Pennsylvania as a hub of the life sciences and has established broad, diverse support for his/her efforts to improve the lives of patients.”

Stephan, a renowned human geneticist and entrepreneur, is a professor of human genetics at Pitt Public Health and chief executive officer of LifeX. The LifeX initiative aims to translate life sciences discovery and invention to the marketplace, focusing initially on fighting cancer, Alzheimer's, multidrug-resistant bacterial infections, obesity and diabetes, and rare genetic diseases.

The award will be presented March 14 at the statewide life sciences trade organization’s annual dinner in Philadelphia.

The National Institute on Aging, one of the 27 Institutes and Centers of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded Bryan Brown, assistant professor of bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering, a five-year, $1.57 million grant to examine how aging affects implantable medical devices. This is the second so-called "R01 grant" from the NIH that Brown has received this year to support his research of implantable materials.

His study, “Assessing the Impacts of Aging upon the Macrophage Response to Implantable Materials,” will specifically address reactions to implantable medical devices by the aged body, including deterioration of the immune system brought on by aging, dysregulation of white blood cell function and polarization, and delayed resolution of acute immune responses. Read more about this grant's work.

Kevin Chen, the Paul E. Lego Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Pitt, will lead a collaborative study to develop radiation-hard, multi-functional, distributed fiber sensors and sensor-fused components that can be placed in a nuclear reactor core to improve safety and efficiency. The United States Department of Energy announced the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering will receive $1.275 million for collaborative research that includes the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Reactor Laboratory, Westinghouse Electric Corporation and the National Energy Technology Laboratory. Chen’s research into fiber optical sensing technology earned him a 2017 Carnegie Science Award.

Twelve current Pitt students and recent alumni have been awarded 2017 Critical Language Scholarships from the U.S. Department of State. The awards provide fully funded summer language and cultural immersion opportunities for American graduate and undergraduate students. The scholarship program is part of the U.S. government’s ongoing effort to expand the number of Americans studying and mastering critical foreign languages.

While setting a new institutional record this year with 12 honorees, Pitt has now won 55 Critical Language Scholarships since the award’s founding in 2007. Pitt’s 2017 scholars are currently studying abroad in the nations of Azerbaijan, China, Japan, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Russia, Tanzania, and Tajikistan.

This year's winners are Jacky Chen, JoEllen Marsh, Ruba Idris, Isaac Joseph, Elaina Zachos, Cian Stryker, Alicia Houser, Sana Chowdhry, Alexander Stetser, Adam Shirer, Chisom Obasih and Karlee Williston.

In honor of Minking Chyu’s significant contributions to Pitt, Chancellor Patrick Gallagher has named him a Distinguished Service Professor, effective Sept. 1. Chyu is currently the Leighton and Mary Orr Chair Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, associate dean of international initiatives and the inaugural dean of the Sichuan University-Pittsburgh Institute in China. Chyu teaches Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science at the Swanson School of Engineering. His research focuses on thermal and heat transfer phenomena associated with energy and propulsion systems, such as gas turbines and power plants.

A research project led by Wei Xiong, assistant professor in the Swanson School of Engineering’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, has received a three-year, $449,000 award from the Office of Naval Research. The project, titled “Integrated Computational Materials Design for Additive Manufacturing of High-Strength Steels Used in Naval Environments,” aims to find novel ways to develop next-generation metals, especially new ways to manufacture steel and other alloys that would further enhance additive manufacturing — a technology that builds 3D objects by adding layer-upon-layer of material. Xiong's team also includes Pitt's Esta Abelev and Susheng Tan.

Tammy Haley, associate professor of nursing at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford since 2003, has been awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award for Teaching and Dissemination by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. Haley is director of nursing and radiological sciences at Pitt–Bradford. The School of Public Health recognized Haley for her work using research as a means to engage students, enhance her teaching, add to the body of knowledge in her field and provide service to the global community.

Samir Lakhani's (A&S '14) nonprofit project in Cambodia, called Eco-Soap Bank, recycles discarded bars of soap from hotels and distributes it to people in need. Read more about Lakhani and Eco-Soap Bank at CNN.

Dave Brienza, associate dean of research in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, received the National Pressure Ulcer Advisor Panel’s Kosiak Award for his significant contributions to the prevention and/or management of pressure injuries. Brienza, a leader in the wound care provider community, received the award at NPUAP's 2017 Biennial Conference in New Orleans.