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Harvard’s new Science and Engineering Complex is wrapped in a shimmering second skin

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Revision and tweaking are central to the architectural process, but it is not often that a practitioner gets the chance to design the same project twice. When the Stuttgart, Germany–based firm Behnisch Architekten first won the commission for a new biomedical research facility at Harvard University , George W. Bush had just started his second presidential term and the university’s expansion into Allston, a Boston neighborhood just across the Charles River from Cambridge, had yet to concretize . The new research building would be its centerpiece.

With an already wide-ranging portfolio of institutional research facilities, which included Cambridge’s own Genzyme Center, the first building of its size to earn LEED Platinum certification, Behnisch originally conceived of the Allston project as a group of four discrete structures. But by early 2010, with foundations excavated and early construction underway, the ongoing global financial crisis forced the project onto the back burner. Behnisch helped seal the site’s new basement and waited for the call to return.

It took four years. When Harvard invited the firm back, administrators had already decided to reconfigure the project to house large portions of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences faculty, renaming it the Science and Engineering Complex (SEC). The architects devised a new plan to integrate the often-divergent spatial needs of students, educators, and researchers under a single roof. “It didn’t look close to what we originally designed,” Stefan Behnisch, the firm’s founding partner, recalled.

The result is a highly adaptable, LEED Platinum–certified facility with 544,000 square feet of classrooms, offices, laboratories, and lounges methodically divided among eight total floors, two of which are subterranean. “Research usually requires more stability than teaching spaces can provide,” project head Matt Noblett told AN , “so we concentrated student activities in the lower, more public levels of the building.” These stacked floor plates recede as they ascend, accommodating a central atrium and vegetation-filled terraces at the edges of the structure. Seven reconfigurable classrooms, four large-capacity lecture halls, makerspaces, and smaller seminar and meeting rooms are strategically interspersed within a matrix of open gathering spaces, facilitating social interaction among the building’s users.

The laboratories, by contrast, are housed in three outwardly distinct volumes that appear to float above the lower terraced floors, insulating them from the more dynamic and high-traffic parts of the program. The architects grouped wet labs in a single sector of the building to take advantage of the infrastructural and energy-related efficiencies that come with proximity. The interstices between volumes are again dedicated to communal lounge spaces that lend themselves to the occasional chance encounter.

The laboratory volumes are set off by a shimmering mass of 14,000 boomerang-shaped panels, constituting the world’s first hydroformed stainless-steel shading screen. The fabrication technique, which relies on high-pressure hydraulic fluids to deform metals into complex shapes, enabled Behnisch to significantly reduce material waste. The panels block the radiant effects of sunlight during the warmer months of the year but allow daylight to passively heat the interior during Boston’s frigid winters.

Sustainability at the SEC, though, goes far beyond these window dressings. Rainwater captured on the building’s roof and in its ground-level landscaping is processed through biosoils and stored in three 75,000-gallon tanks in the basement, then recycled for irrigation and toilet flushing. Conscious of the energy-intensive ventilation systems normally required to safely operate a laboratory, Noblett and his team opted for a series of radiant heating and cooling systems to reduce energy consumption throughout the SEC. When natural ventilation through the structure’s operable windows proves insufficient, temperatures in the more interactive spaces are regulated through the floor slabs. Meeting rooms, offices, and laboratories use either chilled ceilings or chilled beams, while a uniquely efficient glycol-based coil system recovers heat energy in the complex’s roof.

Behnisch Architekten also worked closely with Harvard’s own researchers to analyze 6,000 interior finishes and select only those that were compliant with the Living Building Challenge’s Red List recommendations on chemically detrimental materials. For Stefan Behnisch, the collaboration with the university’s experts made all the difference: “Many developers treat sustainability as little more than a sales gimmick. But Harvard committed real resources, knowledge, and people to ensuring that this building would be sustainable, practical, and long-lasting.”

Architect: Behnisch Architekten Location: Boston, Massachusetts Landscape architect: Stephen Stimson Associates Landscape Architects General contractor: Turner Construction Company Structural engineer: Buro Happold Climate engineer: Transsolar LEED consultant: Thornton Tomasetti Facade: Knippers Helbig , GmbH Facade contractor: Josef Gartner GmbH and Permasteelisa North America Corp. Lighting design: Bartenbach GmbH and Lam Partners Laboratory planning: Jacobs Laboratory Planning Group Perforated metal ceilings: Steel Ceilings Flush wood door and interior glazing: Panello and feco-feederle GmbH Acoustic ceiling panels: Rosso Acoustic Exterior balance doors: Dawson Doors Stainless steel mesh: Carl Stahl Operable partitions: Hufcor

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The SEC redefines sustainability at the intersection of climate and health. The adjacent Greenway offers a continuous park-like setting that joins neighborhoods, public parks and facilities, University spaces, and commercial development emphasizing civic engagement, urban recreation, and relaxation.

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Science and Engineering Complex named one of the world’s healthiest lab buildings

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Achieves LEED platinum, Living Building Challenge Petal certification

Harvard University’s Science and Engineering Complex (SEC) has been certified by two international building certification programs as one of the healthiest, most sustainable, and energy-efficient laboratories in the world.

Through its innovative architecture, use of advanced technology and building materials free of the most harmful chemicals, and connection to an efficient, flexible district energy system, the eight-story, 544,000-square-foot complex will help Harvard progress toward its Sustainability Plan and achieve its goals to be fossil fuel-neutral by 2026 and fossil fuel-free by 2050 .

Home to the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), the building is a living laboratory for world-class, interdisciplinary research, learning, and innovation. The SEC is set to open its doors to students in the fall of 2021.

“I have been in few buildings as captivating as the SEC,” said Harvard President Larry Bacow. “It brings beauty, practicality, and sustainability into harmony, a symbol of the University’s commitment to making the world better as we undertake our best work. Celebrating its opening — and heralding the arrival of our SEAS faculty and students — cannot come soon enough. We have the first chapter of an extraordinary story ahead of us.”

Drawing on research by SEAS and other Harvard faculty and students linking harmful chemicals in building materials to cancer, immune suppression, diabetes, high cholesterol, obesity, thyroid diseases, and more, the University used the design and construction of the SEC to transform the marketplace for healthier building materials.

Floor-to-ceiling building materials — and everything in between, even the lab equipment — minimize the use of products with toxic substances such as PFAS, chemical flame retardants, and PVC.

“The SEC is a centerpiece of the University’s mission to create a healthier, more sustainable campus,” said Katie Lapp, executive vice president. “Together, Harvard’s community and its partners — faculty, students, architects, sustainability experts, engineers, and manufacturers — are transforming the definition of sustainable building to address climate, health, and equity for all. Our shared vision for a healthier built environment has motivated the broader supply chain to support a healthier building at local, regional, and global levels.”

Harvard used the construction of the SEC to evaluate and test 6,033 building materials, ranging from wire coatings to furniture fabrics to lighting fixtures, and worked with manufacturers and designers to create safer global supply chains. More than 1,200 companies publicly disclosed the ingredients in their products and created labels to help others make healthy decisions. Many manufacturers reformulated their products to remove harmful chemicals. Harvard eventually approved and selected more than 1,700 products that both comply with the Living Building Challenge Red List and meet the rigorous requirements of Harvard’s Healthier Building Academy, a partnership among faculty from SEAS, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, and the Harvard Office for Sustainability.

“We have shown that it is possible to minimize or eliminate toxic substances such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, chemical flame retardants, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) from new construction, making the building healthier for its occupants and creating safer conditions for workers involved in the manufacture of products,” said Elsie Sunderland, Gordon McKay Professor of Environmental Chemistry at SEAS, professor of environmental science and engineering at the Chan Health, and a Harvard Healthier Building Academy adviser. “In the SEC, you will encounter healthier products in the walls, floors, ceilings, lights, furniture, paints, composite wood, wire coatings, pipes, plumbing sealants, countertops, and even lab equipment.”

“The SEC is a model for using a holistic approach to sustainable development with a focus on climate, health, and equity,” said Heather Henriksen, Harvard’s chief sustainability officer. “It reflects Harvard’s ambition to create transparency in products to catalyze healthier building practices industry-wide. The SEC is our 41st and most extensive project to model how to identify, source, and purchase healthier products by educating and partnering with manufacturers to reduce the use of toxic chemicals. Harvard’s work to translate research into action focuses on reducing human and environmental harm upstream, where products are created, and throughout the supply chain where builders and occupants interact with products. Our goal is to send clear market signals to create healthier, affordable products for all, and reduce our supply chain impacts.”

Designed by Behnisch Architekten , the SEC also features high-performance, novel technologies to ensure energy efficiency. Integrated advanced solar shading strategies, adaptable ventilation methods, a high-performance heat-recovery system, and an energy-saving air-cascade system enhance the SEC’s energy performance while prioritizing well-being. The building also incorporates a storm-water-reuse system, superior insulation techniques, triple-glazed windows, and infrastructure to enable future solar panel installation.

“The SEC is a different kind of experience in the built environment — demonstrating that it is possible to minimize energy use while creating beautiful, healthier spaces that enhance well-being, all in support of world-class research, teaching, and community engagement” said Matt Noblett, a partner at Behnisch Architekten. “Inside the building and out, you will encounter a variety of serene, daylit, well-ventilated open spaces, along with hundreds of trees and plants that improve air quality and bring the natural world inside. The façade is engineered to optimize energy performance and maximize natural light. The patterned enclosure shields the interior from solar heat gain during warmer months while letting sun enter during the winter, reducing cooling and heating loads.”

Throughout the building a variety of open spaces, along with hundreds of trees and plants, improve air quality. The outdoor space surrounding the SEC features a sustainable, multi-modal transportation hub to connect people and communities.

The SEC is powered by Harvard’s nearby district energy facility (DEF). Designed by Leers Weinzapfel Associates , the DEF was engineered to transition to a fossil-fuel-free future, withstand climate impacts including storm surge flooding, and provide a reliable, resilient source of heating, cooling, and electricity to the buildings on the Allston campus.

The SEC is the largest building and first wet laboratory building to achieve the International Living Future Institute’s Living Building Challenge Petal certification. That certification defines the highest measure of sustainability possible in the built environment based on the best current science, and holds organizations accountable to a very high standard while recognizing that true sustainability is an ongoing journey.

“At over 500,000 square feet, the SEC shows it’s possible to create healthy, sustainable buildings at any scale,” said Vivian Loftness, board member of the International Living Future Institute and Paul Mellon Chair and University Professor at Carnegie Mellon. “This project sends a strong signal to manufacturers about the importance of screening out hazardous chemicals from building products. The SEC shows that health and transparency are widely embraced goals.”

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The SEC’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Building Council is a globally recognized symbol of sustainability achievement and leadership, and provides a framework for healthy, efficient, and cost-saving green buildings.

“The work of innovative building projects like Harvard’s SEC is a fundamental driving force in transforming the way our buildings are built, designed, and operated,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO of the Green Building Council. “The LEED certification of Harvard’s SEC is a model for sustainability and an example for the community. Buildings that achieve LEED certification are lowering carbon emissions, reducing operating costs, and conserving resources while prioritizing sustainable practices and human health.”

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Columbia University Begins Construction On New York City’s First All-Electric Biomedical Research Building

New building combines state-of-the-art medical research with a vision for a more sustainable future for science, share this page.

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Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S) will begin construction on New York City’s first all-electric university research building in May. The new biomedical research building in Washington Heights is designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) and will house eight stories of laboratories and research facilities, collaboration corners, living walls, and community engagement spaces.

The new biomedical research building will become the center of Columbia’s efforts to gain new understanding of diseases and develop next-generation treatments for some of the most significant threats to human health, including neurodegenerative disease, autoimmune disease, metabolic disorders, heart disease, and cancer.

This will be the first university-owned research building in New York City that does not rely on fossil fuels and fully incorporates sustainability goals into all aspects of its design and operations. The new building will use significantly less energy than similar buildings of its kind and is expected to perform 30% more efficiently than the ASHRAE 90.1 2010 standard, an energy efficiency benchmark for commercial buildings in the United States.

Rendering of Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons’ new biomedical research building (Credit: Kohn Pedersen Fox)

“We are so proud to be laying the groundwork for this innovative new research building at Columbia. To create a space that will advance biomedical science, bring us closer to our local community, and help our medical center reduce its carbon footprint all in one is truly remarkable,” says Katrina Armstrong, MD , d ean of the Faculties of Health Sciences and the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons  and e xecutive vice president for Health and Biomedical Sciences, Columbia University. “ Our purpose as a university is to drive discovery, educate next-generation leaders, and create inclusive partnerships with our community. This new space will offer the best environment for our people to do all three.”

Credit: Kohn Pedersen Fox 

The building’s laboratory floors will house 32 principal investigators and their teams of research technicians, postdoctoral researchers, and graduate students. The building will feature unique collaboration corners between research spaces that will help facilitate spontaneous interactions and idea-sharing among scientists. Biophilic elements such as green walls of living plants and the extensive use of natural, renewable materials will help reduce work fatigue and provide health and environmental benefits. The new building is accessible to community partners, providing ground level space to support community health engagement and research education and dissemination activities.

Research laboratories typically consume five to 10 times more energy per square foot than an average office building, according to the Department of Energy. At a time when scientists are increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of their research, Columbia’s new biomedical research building will set a leading example of a more sustainable future for science. To limit energy consumption, research spaces will incorporate many sustainable design strategies including high-efficiency lab fume hoods, demand-based controls for lab equipment, and air-source electric heat pumps.

The new biomedical building will outperform emission limits set by New York City’s Local Law 97 and help advance Columbia University’s Plan 2030 climate goal of achieving campus-wide net-zero emissions by 2050.

Columbia’s new biomedical research building is the latest in a series of climate initiatives by Columbia University, which includes the establishment of the Climate School in 2020 and launch of a global program to incorporate climate change into medical education.

Health Sciences Research Building (HSRB-II) section navigation

Health sciences research building (hsrb-ii).

Reimagining medicine from the ground up

The new eight-story, 350,000-square-foot building houses more than 1,000 researchers, including 130 principal investigators, from across a variety of specialties including: pediatrics, biomedical engineering, Winship Cancer Institute, cardiovascular medicine, the Emory Vaccine Center, radiology and brain health.

The HSRB-II is located on Haygood Drive on the Emory University campus .

The HSRB-II   f acilitates breakthroughs and discoveries across the health sciences. It transforms patient care while serving as a training ground for the next generation of clinicians and researchers.  

Spaces Designed to Inspire

More details on building design.

Public spaces in the HSRB-II are set up to encourage new thinking, collaborative conversations, and an environment that prioritizes wellbeing.

This incubator area fosters acceleration of research by pairing science with industry in a problem-solving space. It provides project and startup support to Emory employees as well as entrepreneurs from the community.

Wonder Wall

This 28' x 44' visual installation greets learners, faculty, and staff to HSRB-II. Stories on the Wonder Wall amplify the transformative research conducted at Emory. Wonder Wall can also be experienced on the first floor of HSRB-I.

This 7’ x 12’ screen is located within the main atrium of HSRB-II. It is organized using Research Spotlights centered around Burning Questions facing the health sciences field.

Traditionally, researchers shared their findings by creating large posters. This zone replaces traditional poster presentations with touch screens, and the ability to access additional content using QR codes. This zone is located on every floor of HSRB-II.

A series of display panels running vertically up the atrium walls offers a place for departments to showcase their work in the building. The Spine's screens are strategically placed outside the elevators on every floor of HSRB-II, as well as floors 2-4 of HSRB-I.

Healthier Workspace

The atrium provides space for large gatherings and presentations as well as invites natural light through the building. A central staircase, six-story green wall, balconies, and bike storage encourage walking, cycling, and stepping out to experience fresh air and views of the Lullwater Preserve.

Going for Environmental Gold

Built for LEED Gold certification, the HSRB-II consumes half the energy of an average research facility and employs sustainable solutions like green roofs, stormwater retention, graywater reuse, solar panels, and on-site energy storage. Photo: © Christopher Payne/Esto

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Mayo Clinic marks construction milestone at new research building

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ROCHESTER, Minn. ­— Today, Mayo Clinic celebrated a milestone at the construction site of an 11-floor building where researchers will make scientific breakthroughs that address the unmet needs of patients. The event marks the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Building's topping-off, meaning the structure has reached its full height. Community and Mayo Clinic leaders signed a commemorative beam to be placed atop the building, which is at the intersection of 3rd Street Southwest and 4th Avenue Southwest in Rochester.

At Mayo Clinic, research is the engine that drives advances in medical care. The investment in an expanded research footprint in the Discovery Square district honors the Mayo brothers' legacy of team science. The building will include flexible facilities for basic and translational investigation to address serious and complex conditions, as well as a prominent focus on discovery in cancer research.

"The new building will accelerate research in support of Mayo Clinic's strategy by further coalescing investigators and technology to advance biomedical discoveries," says  Gregory Gores, M.D. , Kinney Executive Dean of Research, Mayo Clinic. "We are relentless in our pursuit to translate scientific discoveries into breakthrough therapies for patients who look to us for hope and healing. Our research community is thrilled to see this midway point for the building."

"Generous gifts from the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation and from other benefactors enable us to create a facility that drives Mayo Clinic's 2030 'Bold. Forward.' research priorities," says Gianrico Farrugia, M.D. , president and CEO, Mayo Clinic. "We’re committed to providing world-class space to our staff so they may advance research to deliver new cures for our patients. This space also will help us engage new people to join us to transform health care."

The building, expected to open at the end of 2023, will have 11 floors, 176,000 square feet and a subway connector to be built in a single construction project. The new research facility complements community and industry partners dedicated to improving patient care, health and wellness in downtown Rochester's Destination Medical Center Discovery Square district , a research, innovation and development hub.

Watch a time-lapse video of the building's construction.

Journalists, B-ROLL of the building, the beam signing and being raised is now available in the downloads. Journalists who would like to access the downloads can register with the News Network  here.

About Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing. Visit the  Mayo Clinic News Network  for additional Mayo Clinic news.

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Northwestern opens largest biomedical academic research building in u.s..

Feinberg School of Medicine has fastest-growing NIH funding in biomedical research

See a slideshow of photography of the Louis A. Simpson and Kimberly K. Querrey Biomedical Research Center, and   a gallery of photos from the June 17 dedication of the new building.

The Louis A. Simpson and Kimberly K. Querrey Biomedical Research Center  – the largest new building solely dedicated to biomedical research at an American medical school* – officially opened June 17 at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Northwestern is the fastest-growing research enterprise among all U.S. medical schools – climbing from 39th to 15th in National Institutes of Health funding since 2002. The new center provides much-needed biomedical research space to continue Northwestern’s projected growth.

“The Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center is an inspired new home for discovery on Northwestern University’s Chicago medical campus,” said Eric G. Neilson, MD , vice president for medical affairs and Lewis Landsberg Dean of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Inside this modern new building, scientists will pioneer discoveries that will impact the practice of medicine and transform human health. Here, we will accelerate the pace of lifesaving medical science that fuels the local and national economy, near world-class campus partners and in a global city with unrivaled opportunities for biomedical commercialization and entrepreneurship.”

The new 12-story Perkins+Will-designed building, with striking curved-glass exteriors and light-filled laboratory neighborhoods, adds more than 625,000 square feet of research space to the Chicago academic medical campus. The building is designed for a future expansion that can more than double its size vertically, with up to 16 new floors in the second phase of construction.

The university already brings in more than $700 million in total sponsored research funding annually. The new facility will enable Northwestern to increase that by $150 million annually or $1.5 billion in the next 10 years with the additional space and investigators. It will also create 2,000 new high-paying, full-time jobs in the new space and is expected to generate an additional $390 million a year in economic activity in Chicago. In the building’s first phase, it created more than 2,500 construction jobs.

The Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center is named in honor of Northwestern Trustees Louis A. Simpson ’58 and Kimberly K. Querrey in recognition of their generous support that has advanced the University’s academic excellence and scientific discovery.

“The Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center represents one of the most important initiatives at Northwestern in recent years, and the fulfillment of promises the University made to the city of Chicago,” said Northwestern President Morton Schapiro, PhD . “It will help Northwestern’s research community to reach its fullest potential and to make unprecedented advances in improving life for countless millions.

“But while this center’s impact will be global, many of its benefits are intentionally local: It will serve as an economic engine within Chicago, working with nearby partners from education, business and government to create new opportunities for so many people who call this region home. The Northwestern community is immensely grateful to all who’ve helped make this moment possible, most notably Kimberly and Lou, whose generosity and dedication have been truly transformational for Northwestern.”

The building’s design is a direct response to the original 1925 campus master plan, which maximizes the use of limited urban land resources. Added greenery and open space at the street level along with an airy glass lobby create permeability and transparency in a dense urban neighborhood.

‘Collaborations will explode’

The medical school has principal investigators in cancer, cardiovascular diseases, neurosciences, epigenetics, nanotechnology and biomedicine, epithelial biology, infectious diseases and more, and some of those programs will be in the new building. Each floor in the new building can house 23 principal investigators and their teams.

Principal investigators, support staff and newly hired scientists began moving into the building in late April.

“Collaborations will explode on campus,” said Susan Quaggin, MD , director of the Feinberg Cardiovascular and Renal Research Institute. “I just know scientists will start talking about things that will lead to new directions and experiments, and bridge clinical and basic science.”

Quaggin, also chief of Nephrology and Hypertension in the Department of Medicine , said she is excited about her new proximity to potential collaborators, such as scientist Ali Shilatifard, PhD , chair of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics and director of the Simpson Querrey Center for Epigenetics . This proximity will enable enhanced access to his bioinformatics teams, and “very hot” single-cell RNA sequencing technology, developed in his lab. This technology, unique to Northwestern, will unlock a deeper understanding of how glaucoma occurs and how to best develop new drugs, Quaggin said.

Close to identifying a lead therapeutic candidate for glaucoma, Quaggin says the larger lab space also will enable her to hire new scientists with stem cell, vascular and developmental biology expertise to advance her efforts to develop a bioengineered kidney and pancreas that grow blood vessels, which is “the holy grail,” she said.

Flexibility is critical

The lab plan on each floor is designed around the idea of flexible “research neighborhoods,” with the goal of creating a vibrant hub for scientists and their teams. Each floor also has deliberate interaction space in the center to promote cross talk between the three lab “neighborhoods” and promote collaboration.

“The building was designed with elegance and transparency in mind, welcoming the public at street level and prioritizing varied space types, natural light and extensive collaboration areas for researchers within,” said Ralph Johnson, design director of Perkins+Will.

Flexibility is critical. “Research groups grow based on new discoveries and new funding,” said Elizabeth McNally, MD, PhD , director of the Center for Genetic Medicine and Elizabeth J. Ward Professor of Genetic Medicine. “What you want is space that is much more open to expand and contract to follow where the science is going. That’s what the new Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center gives us.”

Space in the Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center will allow McNally to hire new scientists to advance work on her new treatment for muscular dystrophy, a group of diseases that cause progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass in children, mostly boys. McNally is currently ramping up production of a newly discovered “super glue” protein that can be delivered orally to help reseal and repair damaged muscles. Preclinical testing will begin soon to ensure patient safety for a clinical trial.

A connected campus

The new building brings physicians and scientists from the Feinberg School of Medicine, McCormick School of Engineering and Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute together with top-ranked clinical affiliates Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and Shirley Ryan AbilityLab – all in one academic medical district.

The building includes floor-by-floor connections with the University’s Robert H. Lurie Biomedical Research Center as well as a new skybridge connection to the Searle Medical Research Building, enabling sensitive equipment and materials to travel long distances on campus with no exposure to Chicago’s climate.

The Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago will occupy four floors of the new building, allowing investigators in pediatrics to share the same research space as Northwestern scientists across disciplines for the first time.

“We look forward to relocating our research facility just a short distance from Lurie Children’s and on the campus of our academic partners,” said Tom Shanley, MD , chair of Pediatrics at Feinberg and Lurie Children’s and president and chief research officer of the Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute. “This building not only allows us to enhance our research capabilities across numerous scientific neighborhoods, but also more effectively leverage the proximity of our clinical and health service and policy research partners to identify greater translational opportunities to improve childhood health.”

The Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute was named for investor, business executive and generous philanthropist Stanley Manne in 2014 in recognition of a transformative gift to sustain and enhance pediatric medical research at Lurie Children’s.

Additionally, the Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center will feature new public spaces, such as the Potocsnak Family Atrium, the 160-seat Simpson Querrey Auditorium, the Judd A. and Marjorie Weinberg Gallery, the Kabiller Student Commons and the Senyei Conference Center, with five conference rooms on the mezzanine level.

The building is on track to be LEED Gold Certified, signifying a strong commitment to sustainability and energy efficiency.

*Source: Association of American Medical Colleges, New Buildings, Research list.

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Construction of New Research Building Underway

The University of Rochester Medical Center has begun construction on the Clinical and Translational Science Building (CTSB), a $76.4 million project that will serve as the hub of resources, expertise, and networks necessary to accelerate the clinical application of biomedical research. The project has received $50 million in support from New York State. 

“The Clinical and Translational Science Building represents the kind of public investment in research that can advance medicine and strengthen local economic growth,” said Joel Seligman , president of the University of Rochester. “Governor David Paterson, New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and the local Rochester Assembly delegation are to be commended for their commitment to make this vision into a reality.”

“The CTSB represents one of the cornerstones of the Medical Center’s future plans,” said Mark Taubman, M.D., acting CEO of the Medical Center. “This facility will make the Medical Center a more efficient and effective clinical science enterprise and a stronger competitor for government and private research dollars.”

The facility, which will be the first of its kind in the nation, will serve as a home for the University’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute. The Institute was created in the wake of a $40 million grant from the National Institutes of Health in 2006. The Rochester grant – which is the largest NIH award in the School of Medicine and Dentistry’s (SMD) history – was one of the first announced by the agency under a national initiative to re-engineer clinical research.

“The CTSB represents the culmination of a decades long effort to create an integrated academic home for clinical research at the University of Rochester,” said David Guzick, M.D., Ph.D. , dean of the SMD and principal investigator of the NIH grant. “This facility will create an environment that will effectively catalyze the translation of basic science discoveries into clinically useful knowledge and treatments to improve health and health care.”

Once completed, the CTSB will be occupied by 600 scientists, physicians, nurses, statisticians, research administrators, and support staff. The facility will bring together under one roof several important resources that help researchers design clinical trials, recruit participants, collect and evaluate data, and collaborate with industry and other partners. It will contain training and education programs and clinical and translational research initiatives for neurological disorders, cancer, pediatrics, health promotion with the Deaf community, and cardiovascular disease.  The building will also serve as coordinating center for the Upstate New York Translational Research Network – a consortium of 13 biomedical research institutions in a geographic region stretching from Albany to Buffalo. 

“Clinical research is a fundamentally multi-disciplinary undertaking requiring close coordination and collaboration among researchers and support staff,” said Thomas A. Pearson, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D. , director of the CTSI. “Bringing these resources together into a facility will help accelerate biomedical innovation and the CTSB will have several novel architectural features that will encourage interaction among investigators and foster team-building.”

The 200,000 square foot, four story building is being constructed adjacent to Helen Wood Hall and the two buildings will share a common lobby. Last month the site was cleared and fenced and initially utility relocation has commenced. Excavation for the foundation will commence later in the summer and the building’s superstructure will start to rise in the fall. The project is expected to be completed in the summer of 2011.

LeChase Construction of Rochester is the construction manager for the CTSB which was designed by Philadelphia-based architects Francis Cauffman along with Rochester’s Bergmann Associates and BR&A Engineers from Boston. Donald Blair & Partners Architects provided preliminary space programming and site planning, along with Mark Chen Architect who has served as a consultant for the Medical Center.

The building incorporates several design features that will increase energy efficiency and the Medical Center intends to seek a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, which will make CTSB the first LEED-certified building on the University of Rochester campus.

According to the Center for Governmental Research, the project will create 830 construction jobs and hundreds of permanent jobs both at the Medical Center and in the community with a total annual economic impact of $30 million.

“Projects like the University of Rochester’s Clinical and Translational Science Building play a key role in moving New York State forward in the New Economy, distinguishing Rochester as a national leader in translational research and leveraging millions of dollars in private investment. Life science innovation is at the core of my New Economy plan, and I’m proud that our investment in this initiative supports the creation of more than a thousand jobs.”

-- Governor David Paterson

“This groundbreaking for the Clinical and Translational Science Institute will continue the University of Rochester’s legacy of innovations that ease human suffering.  It’s also a giant step toward making this region a world center for biomedical research.     As we struggle through this global financial crisis and its profound impact on our state economy, we will need to make difficult choices.  But we will remain committed to making the important and strategic investments that will transform and revitalize the Upstate economy.”

-- The Honorable Sheldon Silver, Speaker, New York State Assembly

“I am proud to support the Clinical and Translational Science Building because its benefits will transcend to everyone in our community through fostering a streamlined process for finding cures and treatments for disease, allowing the University to develop new ways to reach underserved populations.”

-- The Honorable David Gantt, New York State Assembly

“I applaud President Seligman, Speaker Silver and my colleagues in the Assembly majority for their leadership on this project. The CTSI will significantly advance medical research by bringing cutting –edge medical care to the region’s residents, and will serve as a vehicle for economic growth by transforming the region into a powerhouse in the development and evaluation of new medical technologies. According to the Center for Governmental Research, the immediate and catalytic impact of the CTSI will be nearly $30 million annually. The direct and spillover impact of this project will total $43 million in labor income and result in the creation of approximately 600 jobs. Additionally, the Institute will enable the University to aggressively expand the number of clinical and translational investigators over the next 5 to 10 years, which could yield an additional $25 million in research revenue per year.”

-- The Honorable Susan John, New York State Assembly

“The beginning of construction of the University of Rochester's Clinical and Translational Science Building is yet another milestone in the history of this community's contributions to the advancement of science and health. Through the work that will be done here, we will gain a greater understanding of a wide range of illnesses and enhance our capabilities with regard to early diagnosis, treatments and cures. I am honored to have played a role in making this extraordinary facility a reality.”

-- The Honorable Joseph Morelle, New York State Assembly

“I am encouraged that the construction of the Clinical and Translational Science Institute building is moving forward.  The creation of this institute will further propel the University of Rochester's already outstanding reputation as an international leader in research, medical practice and education.  As a community, we are fortunate to have this facility call Rochester home.”

-- The Honorable David Koon, New York State Assembly

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Harvard medical school, new research building.

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Along the Beaux-Arts axis of Avenue Louis Pasteur focused on Harvard Medical School and continuing along, and opposite the venerable Boston Latin School ( FL18 ), a huge blue-glass-clad behemoth has risen. This extremely complex building is designed to house such varied functions as research laboratories in various biological and chemical disciplines, both theoretical and clinical, as well as places for conferences, informal meetings, and discussions, accompanied by such amenities as lounges, cafés, and a fitness center. Occupying 524,000 square feet, the building extends to Blackfan Street, making it the largest construction of Harvard University. The entrance is directly across from the grand classical facade of the high school; it leads to the foyer facing on a garden café and court with waterfall, the auditorium, and adjoining conference spaces. The four-story section of the building is centered about the ovoid auditorium, whose stainless steel walls are visible. The main ten-story working space—labs and support services—is set at an angle in alignment with buildings on Longwood Avenue and adjoins the existing Harvard Institutes of Medicine (Boston English High School) on Blackfan Street. Prime location and up-to-date facilities make this building a crucial center on the Harvard Medical School campus.

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• Location: Boston, Massachusetts Regional Overviews: Core Boston , Fenway/Longwood Architect: Architectural Resources Cambridge Types: medical schools (buildings) schools (buildings) cafés (restaurants) research laboratories Styles: Beaux-Arts (style) Materials: stainless steel steel (alloy)

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Laboratories from the Department of Neuroscience and other departments moved into our new Neuroscience Research Building in 2023. The 11-story, 609,000-square-foot facility brings together more than 100 research teams from across the university focused on solving the many mysteries of the brain and the body’s nervous system.

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Harvard’s New Research Center has been referred to by the AIA as “a monument to the pragmatic blend of form and function.” The facility is the largest expansion of the Medical School campus in more than 100 years, and the largest research and education building Harvard University has ever built. A stunning 3 and 4-story structural-glass facade parallels the street front while incorporating the building’s main entry, bathing the interior with natural light. Inside, a 500-seat auditorium and multiple meeting rooms accommodate up to 800 researchers working at the facility. The $260 million structure aims at fundamental discoveries to treat disease and injuries.

The 4-story structure is backed by a 10-story tower. Curtainwall designs for the complex tower facade program were developed by Enclos to provide ample daylight and flexible, open laboratory spaces. Multiple story sky lobbies and split-level communal areas feature clear glass facades with sprawling views of downtown Boston. These high-traffic areas are situated to encourage both formal and informal interaction between the center’s biomedical researchers and department of genetics and pathology students. Cable truss supported glass walls wrap the entire 4-story lobby and conference area at street level. The cable truss system is comprised of a series of regularly spaced pre-stressed vertical cable trusses at 5´ on-center, supporting a point-fixed glazing system. This entire facade program was designed and built at a blistering pace and was completed both on time and under budget.

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August 26, 2022

CHOP makes progress on plan for 14-story Schuylkill Avenue Research Building next to Roberts Center

The new tower is another step in a larger plan for the children's hospital to expand in philadelphia.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is moving toward starting construction on its new Schuylkill Avenue Research Building, a 14-story tower planned next to the Roberts Center.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is in the midst of a $3.4 billion development plan that will multiply its facilities in University City and along the eastern bank of Schuylkill River.

The Roberts Center for Pediatric Research, a 21-story tower completed along Schuylkill Avenue in 2017, was the the first of at least four Philadelphia projects planned by CHOP in the years to come. Now there is progress on the 14-story Schuylkill Avenue Research Building, at 2716 South St., that will be constructed next to the Roberts Center.

A submission packet to the city's Civic Design Review Board shows a number of renderings for next project, which will be built atop the the existing parking garage that's next to the Roberts Center. Portions of the Schuylkill Avenue Research Building will be encased in glass, to give the campus a more inviting appearance and to put "science on display," as the project's architect, Cannon Design, describes it in those documents filed with the city.

A rendering of the Schuylkill Avenue Research Center looking south from South St.

A rendering of the two CHOP towers side by side.

The new tower will include 10 stories of research and laboratory space, along with a second floor entirely dedicated to lecture, conference and collaboration space. There will also be opportunities for retail on the building's lower levels, along with outdoor spaces to engage the surrounding community.

The project will presented to the Civic Designer Review Board for the first time on Sept. 6. 

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Earlier in August, CHOP presented its plans for the tower at a community meeting with the South of South Neighborhood Association, laying out a timeline that would see construction begin in October. The erection of the tower would take place in 2023 and the building would be enclosed by fall 2024, with occupancy beginning in the spring or summer of 2025.

CHOP's presence along the Schuylkill River near the South Street Bridge could grow even more in the years to come with other projects that have been planned for future phases . 

This year, CHOP has been putting finishing touches on its Hub for Clinical Collaboration, a 19-story building at 3501 Civic Center Blvd.  that will add 560 new beds for patients. The building is expected to be completed next year.

The other major project CHOP has in the pipeline is its new Inpatient Tower at 515 Osler Circle in University City. The 23-story-building is expected to be ready in 2028, adding at least 300 new patient beds with space to accommodate more in the future.

CHOP also has plans for a pair of inpatient behavioral health units and a new behavioral health outpatient center.

Michael Tanenbaum PhillyVoice Staff

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• NATURE PODCAST
• 15 May 2024

Lizard-inspired building design could save lives

• Benjamin Thompson &
• Elizabeth Gibney

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In this episode:

00:45 A recyclable 3D printing resin from an unusual source

Many 3D printers create objects using liquid resins that turn into robust solids when exposed to light. But many of these are derived from petrochemicals that are difficult to recycle. To overcome this a team has developed a new type of resin, which they’ve made using a bodybuilding supplement called lipoic acid. Their resin can be printed, recycled and reused multiple times, which they hope could in future contribute to reducing waste associated with 3D printing.

Research Article: Machado et al.

10:05 Research Highlights

How housing shortages can drive a tiny parrot resort to kill, and the genes that gave cauliflower its curls.

Research Highlight: These parrots go on killing sprees over real-estate shortages

Research Highlight: How the cauliflower got its curlicues

12:27 To learn how to make safe structures researchers … destroyed a building

Many buildings are designed to prevent collapse by redistributing weight following an initial failure. However, this relies on extensive structural connectedness that can result in an entire building being pulled down. To prevent this, researchers took a new approach inspired by the ability of some lizards to shed their tails. They used this to develop a modular system, which they tested by building — and destroying — a two-storey structure. Their method stopped an initial failure from spreading, preventing a total collapse. The team hopes this finding will help prevent catastrophic collapses, reducing loss of life in aid rescue efforts.

Research Article: Makoond et al.

Nature video: Controlled failure: The building designed to limit catastrophe

23:20: Briefing Chat

An AI algorithm discovers 27,500 new asteroids, and an exquisitely accurate map of a human brain section reveals cells with previously undiscovered features.

New York Times: Killer Asteroid Hunters Spot 27,500 Overlooked Space Rocks

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Benjamin Thompson

Welcome back to the Nature Podcast , this week, creating a recyclable resin for 3D printing…

Lizzie Gibney

…and how a page from a lizard’s playbook could help mitigate disaster. I’m Lizzie Gibney.

And I'm Benjamin Thompson.

<music>

3D Printers come in lots of different types, as do the materials they actually use to print. One group of materials are known as photopolymer resins, which are essentially liquids made of molecules that bind together the polymerise and crosslink when exposed to light, creating a strong, solid material. Resins can be used to accurately print all sorts of shapes and are often used when companies are prototyping products, and some have found uses in dentistry and orthodontic settings. But although versatile, there are concerns about the sustainability of resin-based printing.

This week in Nature , researchers demonstrate a new photopolymer resin that may help overcome this issue, and what’s more, they made it using a chemical from a rather unusual source. I spoke to one of the authors of the new work — Andrew Dove from the University of Birmingham here in the UK, and he laid out some of the issues with current 3D resin technology.

Andrew Dove

So, the resins are often made from petrochemical resources, so they're mined from oil. And also, because what you're doing is you're taking the resin and making a crosslinked polymer, they're very difficult to recycle. And so really, these materials continue to contribute to the plastic-waste challenges and crisis that's going on.

And so what was the specific problem that you were looking to solve?

Fundamentally, it was a challenge that had been my head for a good few years, was how can you make a photocurable resin for 3D printing that then you can do polymerize back to something that you can then directly re-photocure again? So being able to create a closed loop, that was the key challenge we were looking to address. But when we wanted to address that, we wanted to address it in a more sustainable way. So we were thinking around bio-based feedstocks to form the material from the starting point as well.

And to achieve this then, you turn to a molecule called lipoic acid, which as I've learned is sometimes used as a supplement by bodybuilding enthusiasts. Which on the face of it is perhaps somewhat of an unusual choice. Why have you looked at that in the first instance?

I mean it's interesting you say that, we actually buy our lipoic acid from a health supplement company. I tend to buy it myself, so I think they think that I'm some bodybuilder who is getting through a lot of lipoic acid, whereas actually, we're making resins from it. Lipoic acids a really interesting molecule because of how its set up. It has a cyclic disulfide, which you can polymerize to make the backbone of the polymers. And the reason why it's particularly interesting because those disulfide bonds are quite dynamic. So we figured when we understood from the work that had been done previously, that you actually can get that polymerization to go backwards relatively easily. So unlike something like polymerizing an acrylic, where you’re going from a double bond to a single bond, that's very hard to go back up that hill thermodynamically, these closer to equilibrium polymers, are much more easy to access the back reaction from the polymer to the monomer.

So you can break this bond then and form these kind of straight monomers that you can chain together. And you can also go back the other way as well. But actually, you had to adjust it and your resin is made out of two compounds based originally on lipoic acid.

If we just polymerize the lipoic acid, we'd end up with a linear polymer that wouldn't actually be robust enough to display the source of resolution that we get in the 3D printing. So we realised with the acid group that lipoic acid offers, we can do some very simple chemistry to create molecules that have two or three or even more lipoic acid units that can then act as crosslinkers between the chains to make the polymer that results from that much more robust.

And so you put your lipoic acid-based resin through his paces then using a regular 3D printer. And in one of the tests you printed this little toy tugboat called 3DBenchy and this is a benchmark test model for 3D printers which apparently is quite hard to make.

Yeah, that's correct. If you go to a 3D printing conference, you'll probably see everyone showing you their 3D printed Benchy photographs. It's a particularly challenging structure cause of the overhangs and resolution and holes that are within it. I think it’s designed to be aesthetically pleasing, but also technically challenging to print

And how did your resin perform then printing this little toy tugboat?

We get some really beautiful prints out of this resin, the resolution is really, really high. I mean, we didn't just jump straight in and pour a resin into a printer and decide to try and print Benchy. We do a lot of tests before then to optimise the level of lights in particular that we expose for each layer in the print, and a lot of testing to really improve what sort of resolution we can get.

And how did it stack up to commercially available resins based on petrochemical say?

So we're very much at the softer end. But there are commercial resins that we highlight in the paper that are comparable mechanical properties to our materials. But one of the real beauties of this is that we can use a really wide range of different linking groups and alcohol groups to go with that lipoic acid that then infer very different properties. So we can go from things that are really very soft, up to things that are still, on the scale of materials, fairly soft but much stiffer.

Obviously, you've used this resin to make 3D structures. But the key aim was to make something that can be recycled and reused. What did you see here when you use your lipoic acid-based resin?

Yeah, we saw that it worked really quite effectively to be recycled, because we can de-polymerize. So we can undo the polymerization to go back to the starting materials that formed the resin. We can also actually go one stage further back and go back to the chemicals from which you make the resin to fully recycle it properly. It's a really simple process, so we grind the material up and then we quite simply reflux it in a solvent for two hours, and then remove the solvent and you have the resin back it’s about a 91% yield of which the cyclic disulphide recovery is about 96% of that.

I mean, that's pretty high numbers, but it's not 100%, right? For complete reusability. Do you think it's possible to get there or the laws of chemistry and physics against you at that stage?

You're always in equilibrium. So you do have a slight limitation on what you can achieve. That is the major area for improvement for us.

Of course you wanted to make something that was recyclable. And you did show that it could be used again and again. You printed multiple versions or iterations, I suppose, of the little Benchy tugboat, what properties did they show? Were they comparable? Did they show any degradation or anything like that?

The properties of the reprinted polymers are almost identical to the property of the originally printed polymer, it was slightly outstanding in the way but I think it's a demonstration that we've gone really back to the resin. So you know if you're going backwards and forwards of the same chemistry, you should get the same properties out at the end. And we do.

Obviously, your work is on quite a small scale, right, this is an experimental paper, a proof-of-concept paper. Do you think this work can ultimately be scaled up?

Yeah, it's incredibly simple chemistry actually, it's one of the things that really appealed to me when we started working on this was that actually, you can pretty much do this in a bucket — it's very scalable chemistry.

It's worth noting, though, I suppose that it’s not totally benign at the minute though, some of the solvents and reagents, you know, in your paper aren't necessarily the most kind of friendly to humans, is that something you're investigating or something that can be changed?

Absolutely something we actually already spent some time looking at. So we use DMF dimethylformamide for the de-polymerization chemistry. We tried loads of greener solvents, but they're just not as efficient. So we're still looking to optimise that further. But my argument always is, okay, we're using that solvent, what we can recycle that solvent after it's been used. So once it's been removed, we can use it for the next set of de-polymerizations as well.

So, you've shown evidence then that this system works. What are some of the big questions, maybe big hurdles that need to be overcome do you think sort of moving forward?

Cost is always the question. You know, lipoic acid is a relatively inexpensive chemical. But compared to what's currently used, it's relatively expensive. So that's a major cost. I think it's a supply and demand issue. The other thing we're actively looking at is how do we make much stiffer versions of this? The majority of resin sales in this area are on much stiffer materials. And so the challenge for us is how do we achieve that with this type of technology that we can circularise.

And where do you see this resin being used then if these hurdles can be overcome?

We've got a lot of really interesting ideas because of what this unlocks in terms of that resin recyclability. I think anywhere where you have a lot of prototyping going on, if you can get the materials properties, right for that application, I think that would be something that will be very beneficial because you're making prototypes that then can be recycled back into resin and remade into new prototypes. And we're also really interested in looking at these as potential biomaterials as well for medical device-type technologies.

And are there any other bodybuilding supplements do you think that could ultimately be used as 3D resins? I don’t know.

I haven't looked through the bodybuilding catalogue, not being in that area, but perhaps it's inspiration for future research.

That was Andrew Dove, to read his paper, where you can see a picture of what 3DBenchy looks like, head over to the show notes for a link.

Coming up, how destroying a building helped researchers design safer structures. Right now, though, it’s the Research Highlights, with Nick Petrić Howe.

Nick Petrić Howe

If you've tried to find a place to live recently, you will know that competition can be fierce. But to acquire decent real estate, some parrots have even resorted to killing. The green-rumped parrotlet may look unassuming, but in a study spanning 27 years, researchers found that in 9% of the nests, adults were attacking baby birds or eggs. Most of the attacks seem to be driven by housing shortages, as childless parrot couples would kill infants to try and evict their parents. Whereas if one of the parents simply died, it was more likely that a parrot would just move in and adopt the offspring. The researchers concluded that both adoption and infanticide seem to convey a benefit to the parents, as future breeding was limited by the available homes. Relocate yourself somewhere peaceful and read that research in full in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America .

Imagine a cauliflower. Great, now ask yourself, why does that look like that? Well, according to a new study, it's the result of 2,500 years of domestication, and a smattering of genetic changes. Researchers analysed 971 genomes of cauliflowers and related plants like broccoli to understand the curly plants evolutionary history. They found three genes that seem to underlie how it got those tight curls and whirls that make up a cauliflower heads. These changes were encouraged by the humans who grew, what was them broccoli, to give us the cauliflower we know and perhaps love today. The researchers hope that by understanding these genetic changes, it could help us grow better cauliflower in the future. Enjoy that research roasted with a bit of cheese, in Nature Genetics .

Next up reporter Dan Fox has a story about how to make buildings more resilient.

Nirvan Makoond

Not a lot of sleep. So we were all quite worried. Of course, we expected a certain result and we were well prepared for it we’d performed a lot of simulations. But there are a lot of uncertainties in simulation which is why we need to test the building. Yeah, so not a lot of sleep and very anxious.

This is Nirvan Makoond from the ICITECH institute at the Universitat Politècnica de València in Spain, discussing how he was feeling the night before a key experiment. Here's what happens next.

<collapsing sounds>

That was the sound of that €120,000 experiment partially collapsing. Fortunately, that's exactly what Nirvan and his colleagues wanted to happen.

Very relieved, and the agreement between what we observed during the test and our predictive simulations was surprisingly good. And it surprised even us. That's what I wanted to say, I think it surprised even us. Very relieved and very happy.

This team of researchers are interested in why buildings collapse, and how those disasters could be mitigated. And this experiment published this week in Nature has just demonstrated the success of their new idea, a controlled collapse that prevents the whole building falling down. Curious about how you stop a building from collapsing once it started, I called Nirvan up and asked him to tell me a bit more about why buildings collapse in the first place.

Many different kinds of threats can cause a building to collapse. This can be extreme weather events such as floods, landslides, earthquakes, hurricanes, it can be explosions. It can even be ageing, or due to deterioration, construction errors, design errors. But often, a building collapse starts in a particular part of the building and then propagates to other parts of it.

So what's the scale of this problem?

I would say very big, because whenever there is a building collapse, actually the whole society around it is affected, lives are lost, the costs are great. An important aspect is that in the current global context, this is getting worse due to climate change. We are seeing more frequent and intense extreme weather events and also there is– there are rising geopolitical tensions.

So what are the existing solutions to this problem?

All measures included in codes and the current, let's say best practices in the field of structural engineering, basically all focus on preventing any form of collapse after an initial failure. So this means for example, if a structural component is lost, the current measures focus on ensuring the building is well connected as a whole. So the loads it was supporting can be redistributed to other parts of the structure. So it focuses on preventing the initiation of collapse.

So what are the limitations of these existing solutions? And how would you do things differently?

It has been shown to be effective for when an initial failure is very small, so very localised. However, in most cases of disastrous building collapses, we see that actually, this initial failure can be quite large. And it's something we cannot design against to completely prevent collapse. So our approach, we try to arrest a collapse once it has already initiated. So we look at the problem of limiting the extent of a collapse, rather than completely preventing its initiation. So in practice, it works by controlling the sequence of components that fail during the collapse process. What this means is, for instance, ensuring that connections or beams fail before columns fail, which are basically the main load bearing elements of the system. A great metaphor, I think, for– for our approach is the way that lizards shed their tails to escape predators. For certain normal functions, a lizard’s tail is perfectly attached to its body. However, when a predator has grabbed the tail of the lizard, the lizard can activate a particular movement, which basically causes the tail to break off. And similarly, when the building is operating normally, we ensure full connectivity and allow loads to be distributed so that the building can work as it is intended to. However, when a collapse has already started, what we ensure is that the failure is controlled, and that the most important parts of the building further away from the collapse remain intact.

So you started by testing this idea in computer models, what did those teach you?

The computational models really taught us that connectivity is actually causing more collapse propagation. So basically, it helped us really look at how the loads are transferred during the collapse, and how different building design choices cause more or less propagation. So this, this idea that a building being well connected together can also cause a greater extent of propagation. We have thought about the others had thought about it, demolition experts hadn't seen it. But really, it hadn't been studied, so the computational simulations allowed us to understand this phenomena better, but also to prove that hypothesis.

And then you built a physical model. But unlike most research, you build a full-size two-story building. So why was it important to have a test at that enormous scale?

First of all, because the nature of that phenomenon itself, to understand it, scaling it down introduces a lot of uncertainties in the analysis. And for example, we cannot scale the effect of gravity, but scaling down a structure really influences the accelerations and therefore the outcomes of that test are not reliable for that highly dynamic and complex phenomenon. Also, the test also serves as a form of proof of concept. So the construction sector is very conservative, and is very risk averse for good reason no, because of the consequences where the building collapse. However, this also means that introducing changes in the way things are done really requires convincing a lot of people and basically scaled down tests are not convincing enough.

Could you talk me through what happened on the day of the full-scale experiment when you collapsed your model?

Our test had two phases. The first one was to ensure that despite our design modifications, we were still able to prevent a collapse from initiating after a small initial failure. And so the in the first phase, we actually removed two columns, and no collapse opens, really ensuring that our building complies with requirements covered in codes. And then in the second phase, there was a sudden removal of the third column that triggered the collapse. And once this collapse started in the initial phases, as the collapsing parts were falling down and the building was still very well connected, everything was being pulled towards where the initial failure was starting. And then basically, our hierarchy or sequence of failures that was planned intended in the design activated. And this cause basically just part of the structure to collapse down while the other was able to remain upright.

Did you learn anything from the from the scale model that you hadn't predicted?

Yes. The real test definitely allowed us to assess reliably the level of damage in the impact part of the structure. And that is quite important for how you could use that remaining part or if it is still safe to perform evacuation and rescue operations there. So the real test also allowed us to evaluate that with more certainty.

Given the success of the test, how easy would it be for engineers to put this type of design into practice in buildings in the real world?

So, there are two aspects of this. There’s the design aspect and there’s the constructability aspect. Actually, to implement this in a real construction project. It's all low-tech solutions, all construction details that are currently used, there's no fancy devices or anything special you need, which means it has a high potential for impact, it can be implemented really easily at relatively low cost. However, the design aspect, in its current stage of development, it requires a lot of simulations, and quite high-fidelity simulations, which practitioners are not accustomed to. So there's quite a bit of work still to be done on developing simplified methods to be able to implement this in practice, from a design perspective. But implementing it in an actual construction project, once the design has been made, is actually very straightforward.

So what's next for this research? Can this be applied to different types of buildings where you're going to take it from here?

The philosophy itself is applicable in principle to all types of building. Honestly how the implementation is completely different. So we are going to implement and even test its effectiveness in other building types. That's really the next line of what we are already working on. Also, as I previously mentioned, there's a lot of work that needs to be done to transform this fundamental research into practical solutions, no developing simplified methods, convincing the board which we hope the test will do. This is more or less our future vision for this work. And we really hope to, to really transform this into practical solutions to really have an impact on society, improving the resilience of our buildings.

That was Nirvan Makoond from the ICITECH institute at the Universitat Politècnica de València. If you want to see that partial collapse in action, we also have a video on the Nature YouTube channel which we will link to in the show notes.

Finally on the show, it’s time for the Briefing Chat, where we discuss a couple of articles from the Nature Briefing . Lizzie, what have you been reading this week?

So this is about an algorithm that scientists have been using to discover asteroids. So they found using this algorithm twenty seven and a half thousand asteroids and that is as many as were discovered by all the telescopes put together last year. So that's a hell of a lot of asteroids.

Well presumably then researchers had no idea that these existed.

That's right. So these are completely newly discovered asteroids. So this is a story in The New York Times , and the research came out of the Asteroid Institute — very aptly named. Now how people usually look for asteroids is by trying to spot them in the same picture taken over the same night, you look at the same spot of the sky, and you see these little tiny blips that move when the backdrop of stars stay the same. And that's how you know that you've seen an asteroid. But of course, that means having lots of pictures, this can be a more laborious process. What they did here was essentially harness the fact that asteroids photobomb other shots of the sky already. So they looked in over 400,000 images that already existed in the archives of NOIRlab — a research laboratory in the States. So they found 1.7 billion little dots that came up in just one image. And they use this algorithm to project possible orbits that would connect those dots. And so through this kind of quite heavy computation, they were able to figure out that those dots were actually asteroids that just cropped up in these other images. And they could connect them together to figure out their orbits as well. So that's how they were able to find so many in just existing data that didn't need anything that was new.

So rather than sort of struggling to get time on a telescope to take more pictures, then you can actually go back at this and say, this catalogue that exists and figure out what these might actually be.

Exactly. And so it takes quite a lot of computational power. So this was in collaboration with Google Cloud. And it was eight and a half million equivalent of CPU hours. So that's about five weeks, even distributed across lots of different computers. So that's, you know, that's quite hefty amount of computing time. But the benefits, as you say are you don't need to go out there and get new time on a telescope. And it begs the question of what else might already be out there in all of these images that we've got, they've been taken over decades, that could be new discoveries?

And I'm sorry to bring it down this avenue, but if researchers didn't know that these were even here, like do they pose a threat to us?

So they found around 150 that are categorised as near-Earth asteroids. So they're orbits come near Earth's orbit, none of them seem to be a threat that we are aware of at the moment. So I think we can spin it actually as a positive in that, we're able to find these new asteroids that some of them come near Earth using this technique. And actually, using this technique on other efforts to find near-Earth asteroids, is probably going to be quite beneficial in the future, because this actually was trying to find asteroids that are further out in the main asteroid belt and further out in the Solar System. And but it found these serendipitously so if it actually goes out and tries to find near-Earth asteroids, we could really boost the number that we find. So there's a telescope in Chile being built by scientists in the States called the Vera C. Rubin Observatory. And one of their mandates that's come from Congress is that they need to find 90% of near-Earth asteroids that are bigger than a certain size, I think about 150 metres across. They didn't think they were gonna be able to hit that before, because they had to take two images, to track each asteroid. So they’d potentially see an asteroid and then they need to take another one to see the movement. They no longer need to do that. So this halves the amount of time it takes, this doubles the amount of space that they can look at. So the scientists, they are now quite confident that actually they are hopefully going to get near that 90% target by using this this algorithm.

That's kind of neat. I mean, do you think this is a technique that could be applied to other things floating around in space?

Yeah, I don't see why not. I mean, the very fact that this was found in archived images, and that it's essentially just apply an algorithm on top of those, that suggests that there might be a lot more that we can find, just by going through all of this old data. So I think there's a lot of potential there.

Well, it's super interesting that, you know, there's a lot we don't know about what's in our near astronomical neighbourhood. But speaking of unknowns, let's shift to my story today. But let's look inwards somewhat. So we know that space is fantastically complicated. But a lot of people would say that the human brain is perhaps the most complicated thing in the Universe. And there's a paper that came out in Science and a news article about it in Nature , that describes a way to map a very, very small part of the human brain in astonishing detail. And it's revealed patterns of communication between neurons and all sorts of other things as well.

And is there a kind of image of this?

Oh, there are multiple images of this. And this kind of system, which we'll talk about, is available for researchers to look at online. So if you head over to the show notes, you will find a link to the story and where that can be done. And what's happened here is that the researchers took a brain fragment from a 45-year-old woman who had undergone surgery to treat her epilepsy. And this came from the cortex, okay, so part of the brain involved in you know, problem solving and processing sensory signals that sort of thing, right. And it's a cubic millimetre of brain. And within it, I mean, some of these numbers are staggering, within this cubic millimetre, there's about 57,000 cells of different types, 150 million synapses— so these are, you know, connections between neurons— and hundreds of millimetres of superfine blood vessels. And all of this kind of put together is apparently 1.4 petabytes of data.

And so this image that I've just brought it up now, it is absolutely stunning. So we've got all these colours, which I assume are false colours. It's got these wavy grasslike tadpole patterns, I mean, that that's an incredible shot.

Oh, I mean, it's absolutely fantastic. But you made the point there, that's quite a small amount, one cubic millimetre is about a millionth of the human brain. And you're right false colours as well. So what's happened here is researchers, they took this tiny fragment of brain, they preserved it and stained it with heavy metals, so you can see the cells easier. And then they cut it into about 5,000 slices, right. Each about 34 nanometres thick and then they imaged these with an electron microscope. And then, as is often the way, they're turned to an AI, right, to try and stitch these together, right. I will say it's not perfect, potentially, because this stitching might not have gone, you know, 100% according to plan. They've manually checked a proportion of it, but they're hoping that other researchers can come in and correct any errors that may have been introduced while the map was being made.

And so once they've got this image, they've got this map that they've stitched together, what have they actually seen in it?

I mean, they found some things, some of which have never been seen before. Okay, Lizzie. So, some of the things are unconventional neurons that are described in the story, and they make up to 50 connections with each other, right. And so this is a far and away more than potentially the couple you'd normally find, as the researchers in the article are quoted as saying. But they also found some other stuff as well, pairs of neurons that are almost perfect mirror images of each other, cells that wrap around themselves to form knots. And the team plan to produce maps of other parts of the brain from other volunteers as well. But I think we're a little bit away away from putting it all together. One of the researchers behind the project is quoted as saying they reckon a map of the entire brain is unlikely in the next few decades. I mean, my goodness, the stuff they found already, I mean, what more is to be discovered I guess?

Well, we've got to figure out what it all does.

Well, I think that's a reasonable thing to say, because of course, if you want to know how it works, you need to know what it's made of and then you can kind of move down the chain, I suppose. And figuring how the cortex works in particular could, you know, in the long-term help in the treatment of you know, psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases, potentially. But say, it's the first step in the right direction, but it's all available online for people to have a look at.

Amazing, I might make that my screensaver for a little while. Well, thank you Ben. And listeners for more on those stories and for where you can sign up to the Nature Briefing to get more like them, check out the show notes for some links.

And that’s all for this week, as always keep in touch with us on X, we’re @NaturePodcast, or send an email to [email protected]. I’m Benjamin Thompson.

I'm Lizzie Gibney. Thanks for listening.

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-01448-z

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After decades of advocacy from faculty, alumni, and students, the university has launched the Asian American Research Center at Stanford  (AARCS) to connect and expand interdisciplinary research on Asian American issues occurring across campus. Housed in the School of Humanities and Sciences, the new center will provide a research home for faculty, students, and the public and support and expand Stanford’s scholarship on Asian Americans.

Generous gifts from a global community of donors, including alumnus Eric Ly, are providing funding for the new center, which was co-founded by H&S faculty Gordon H. Chang , Stephen Sano , and Jeanne Tsai . Chang, the Olive H. Palmer Professor in the Humanities and a professor of history, will serve as the center’s inaugural director starting in fall 2024.

“Thanks to the faculty, alumni, and students who have long fought to advance Asian American studies, Stanford has evolved to understand the role it should and must play in building our knowledge about Asian Americans,” Chang said. “A research center at this university, in this area, has the potential to kick off a new wave of innovative, community-engaged research on Asian American issues.”

The history of Stanford University and its founders, Leland and Jane Stanford, is intertwined with Asian American populations and the Asian Pacific region. Chinese laborers played a major role in building the transcontinental railroad that established Leland Stanford’s fortune and, later, the university itself. Today, 27% of Stanford’s undergraduate population is Asian American.

“I am grateful to our phenomenal faculty and alumni community for standing up this important research center – I could not be more excited by the outpouring of support and great ideas,” said Debra Satz , the Vernon R. and Lysbeth Warren Anderson Dean of H&S. “Long overdue, the center will focus research efforts on Asian Americans – their lives, histories, contributions, and struggles.”

Building momentum

A pivotal moment highlighting the need for Asian American studies at Stanford took place in 1989, when students held a peaceful sit-in in the president’s office . Among other demands, the students called for the creation of Latino/a and Asian American Studies programs. In response, the university hired Chang and David Palumbo-Liu , the Louise Hewlett Nixon Professor in H&S, to help establish Asian American Studies at Stanford.

Several years later, the university founded the Asian American Studies Program as part of the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity . But the mission to advance Asian American scholarship was not yet complete, according to Sano, the Harold C. Schmidt Director of Choral Studies, professor of music, and the current director of the Asian American Studies Program.

“The program primarily focuses on teaching undergraduates,” Sano said. “The center will enrich the existing program by fostering interdisciplinary research on Asian Americans. The two will have a symbiotic relationship.”

Tsai, now vice chair of the Department of Psychology in H&S, was a student at Stanford at the time of the 1989 sit-in.

“As a psychology major, I noticed that the field was supposed to be about all human behavior, but it focused primarily on Western theories and Western data,” Tsai said. “I wanted psychology to speak to my experiences as an Asian American.”

This led to her interest in the emerging field of cultural psychology and her work on cultural differences in emotional and behavioral norms.

In 2020, Stanford’s class of 1991 – which included Tsai and Ly – was planning its 30th reunion. Looking for a way to make a meaningful contribution to Stanford, Ly and other classmates remembered the sit-in. With anti-Asian violence spiking during those bleak days of the pandemic, their focus quickly turned to Asian American themes. They approached their classmate Tsai, who was then the faculty director of the Asian American Studies Program.

Tsai connected her classmates with Chang and Sano, and the plan for AARCS emerged. Generous alumni funding followed.

“Events in the world over the last few years have demanded that we think big,” said Ly, co-founder and CEO of KarmaCheck and a co-founder of LinkedIn. “By supporting this work at Stanford, we want to help lead a transformation of scholarship on Asian Americans that will affect how the U.S. thinks about Asian American experiences and contributions.”

Casting a wide net for the future

AARCS lays out an expansive approach to Asian American subject matter and will foster the study of Asian Americans and the Asian diaspora. It will support interdisciplinary research not only in H&S, but also in the schools of education, engineering, law, medicine, sustainability, and business. The center also aims to connect students and scholars with policymakers, cultural producers, and community members.

This winter, the center issued an inaugural call for seed grant applications. Applicants were asked to put forth ideas that address one of AARCS’ three areas of interest – research, education, and community outreach. The call received an energetic response, and AARCS awarded eight grants.

“It’s exciting to see the connections that our undergrads, grads, and faculty are making in the way they’re thinking in their research about what Asian America is,” Sano said.

AARCS is now developing program ideas for the next few years, such as convening public-facing conferences to address anti-Asian violence and bias that limit Asian Americans’ participation in leadership positions in business, higher education, and politics.

“There’s a public need that we are responding to, and we want the center to have a public-facing component as well,” Chang said. “It’s really important to go beyond the Stanford campus.”

Inaugural seed grant projects

The inaugural AARCS seed grants are funding the following projects:

Assistant Professor of Education Eujin Park will study how Asian American and Pacific Islander teacher candidates within a Bay Area teacher education program consider their racial identities as they prepare to become classroom teachers with social justice commitments.

The Center for South Asia will produce a working paper on South Asian American arts and build local networks through collaboration with the South Asian Literature and Arts Festival hosted at Stanford in September.

Education doctoral candidate Hannah D’Apice will conduct archival research at the University of California, Berkeley and Columbia University to compare the degree to which the universities’ Asian American Studies programs affected resources and inclusion in formal curricula.

Modern Thought and Literature doctoral candidate Jennifer Lee will study early American Korean-language periodicals housed at the University of Southern California to understand their role in shaping modern Korean and Korean American identities.

Education doctoral candidate Lillian Wolfe will study how female transracial Asian American adoptees’ connections to their birth cultures are affected by their adoptive parents’ cultural engagement styles.

English doctoral candidate Christine Xiong will conduct archival research at the National Archives at San Francisco and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa on the transpacific passages of “picture brides,” bridging Asian American literature with critical ocean studies.

Undergraduate American Studies major Alexandra Huynh will research how Vietnamese experiences of refugeehood contributed to the Vietnamese American community’s relationship with the U.S. criminal legal system.

Undergraduate Urban Studies major Kaelyn Wei-Min Ong will interview community development coordinators in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo to document how their conceptions of Asian American identity affect their community development work.

For more information

Learn more about the funded projects on the AARCS website. Questions about AARCS can be directed to [email protected] .

Joy Leighton, Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences: [email protected]

Holly Alyssa MacCormick, Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences: [email protected]

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May 23, 2024

Purdue and Elanco Animal Health announce One Health Innovation District in Indianapolis

The newly created One Health Innovation District in downtown Indianapolis will solve pressing issues impacting animal, human and environmental health. (Photo courtesy of Elanco)

Purdue joins Elanco in a shared vision of a research park dedicated to solving pressing issues impacting animal, plant, human and environmental health

INDIANAPOLIS — Purdue University will partner with Elanco Animal Health Inc. and become part of Indiana’s new One Health Innovation District. The announcement was made Thursday (May 23) at Indiana’s 2024 Global Economic Summit after Purdue President Mung Chiang and Elanco President and CEO Jeff Simmons signed a shared memorandum of understanding with the Indiana Economic Development Corp. to establish a globally recognized research innovation district dedicated to optimizing the health of people, animals, plants and the planet.

Purdue and Elanco have committed to develop a new shared-use facility on 3 acres in the One Health Innovation District near the future Elanco global headquarters on the western edge of the White River in Indianapolis. The facility is designed to deliver and scale up innovation where industry and academia can collaborate including office, wet lab and incubator space. This is in addition to the nearly complete 220,000-square-foot corporate headquarters of Elanco Animal Health, with an expected opening date in the second quarter of 2025. Elanco also announced its commitment to purchase an additional 12 acres to the north of its existing footprint for future expansion and the development of the Epicenter for Animal Health.

“Totality of Purdue to the totality of Indianapolis — that’s our pledge as the Indianapolis part of Purdue’s main campus officially launches on July 1,” Chiang said. “In the coming years, all programs at Purdue will find homes throughout our state’s capital city. Today’s announcement carries a special excitement for the partnership and the location. Purdue is excited to partner with Elanco and other collaborators to build out the ecosystem of One Health Innovation District, starting from the building announced and expanding to an entire district. Human health, animal health, plant health will be jointly advanced by the nation’s leading companies and our state’s top-ranked university.”

The facility will help extend Purdue’s substantial research arm into the heart of Indianapolis, coinciding with the launch of the university’s urban extension, Purdue University in Indianapolis, on July 1. Research interests will include understanding of the microbiome, antimicrobial resistance, computational biology, comparative genomics and livestock sustainability, among others. Indianapolis is home to the biotech companies that are on the cutting edge of the revolution in animal health (Elanco), human health ( Eli Lilly and Company ) and plant health ( Corteva Agriscience ). The One Health Innovation District will be less than 1 mile from Lilly’s world headquarters, creating a unique and direct link between the two entities. 

“The One Health Innovation District will propel the state’s vision for our regional technology hub aimed at accelerating collaborative innovation in our life sciences,” Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said. “The partnership marks a rare and noteworthy move wherein a global health company, a university and a government come together with a shared vision. The district will create an ecosystem that is focused on talent, applied research and innovation that can be sustained for generations to come.”

Developing the One Health Innovation District surrounding the new Elanco global headquarters presents a unique opportunity to enable a coordinated partnership among public, private, government, university and community that will attract and retain top talent and drive growth and development for downtown Indianapolis. One Health is recognized by scientific institutions including the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as being a preferred approach where the interconnection among human, animal and plant science can help solve complex global health problems.

“For life-changing innovations to move from idea to reality, they must grow in the right environment,” Simmons said. “The many partners in the Indianapolis One Health Innovation District will set Indianapolis apart as an area where innovators will find a vast ecosystem of support — including one of the world’s leading universities, funding, lab space, collaboration with many other innovators and companies — and most significantly, shared technical development and pilot plant facilities to manufacture and scale innovations. We believe connecting innovators with access to world-class, state-of-the-art resources will help bring solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues facing people, animals and the environment. This is a key milestone in bringing to life our goal of creating an animal health epicenter to reach the world’s animals from our new global headquarters in the heart of Indianapolis.”

The unique partnership is designed to increase the ability to prevent, predict, detect and respond to health threats. One Health integrated approaches are widely recognized as the new frontier in biosciences. Purdue and Elanco, in collaboration with Applied Research Institute, AgriNovus, BiomEdit and others, are planning a One Health Summit for fall to showcase the ecosystem of capabilities and draw the first era of innovators to the One Health District.

This new announcement is yet another step forward to bring to fruition Gov. Holcomb’s goal of developing a regional technology hub in Indiana. Following the passage of the CHIPS and Science Act, through the newly constituted Applied Research Institute (ARI), Indiana stood up Heartland BioWorks and was designated as one of 31 Tech Hubs in October of last year by the Economic Development Administration (EDA). Purdue University was part of a consortium of Indiana stakeholders successful in securing that Regional Technology and Innovation Hub (Tech Hub) designation, which recognizes regions poised to ensure the U.S. is globally competitive in areas that are key to national security. The One Health Innovation District is part of that consortium, and any implementation funding from the EDA would support and greatly accelerate the district’s capability to translate innovative ideas into real-world products and job opportunities. With awards expected this summer, Heartland BioWorks now awaits word on whether it will be chosen for the next phase of funding that will invest another $50 million to $75 million in five to 10 designated hubs around the country. This Regional Tech Hub Program was authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act, of which U.S. Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., was a co-sponsor.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research institution demonstrating excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top four in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study at Purdue across modalities and locations, including nearly 50,000 in person on the West Lafayette campus. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition for 13 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis, the new Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, and Purdue Computes — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives .

About Elanco

Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE: ELAN) is a global leader in animal health dedicated to innovating and delivering products and services to prevent and treat disease in farm animals and pets, creating value for farmers, pet owners, veterinarians, stakeholders, and society as a whole. With nearly 70 years of animal health heritage, we are committed to helping our customers improve the health of animals in their care, while also making a meaningful impact on our local and global communities. At Elanco, we are driven by our vision of Food and Companionship Enriching Life and our Elanco Healthy Purpose™ Sustainability/ESG Initiatives — all to advance the health of animals, people and the planet. Learn more at  www.elanco.com . 

Writer/Media contact:  Derek Schultz,  [email protected]

Sources:  Mung Chiang, Eric Holcomb, Jeff Simmons

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New funding provided for research into fatty liver disease at UT Health and for new building

UT School of Public Health San Antonio received nearly $3 million in new funding on Monday.

Almost $2 million will go into research for hepatic steatosis, commonly known as fatty liver disease.

The remaining $1 million will be used to renovate of the new building at the UT Health campus.

About 28% of Latinos have fatty liver disease, according to recent research, but that number is higher among Mexican Americans, who are also twice as likely to experience severe cases of the disease.

San Antonio Congressman Joaquin Castro presented new funds at a press conference on Monday.

“Well, as a San Antonian I know that ours is region that confronts many medical challenges,” he said. “We need the UT Health Science Center to succeed.”

San Antonio’s population is about 65% Latino, according to a 2023 city report.

Fatty liver disease affects people with type 2 diabetes, and Latinos have a high risk for diabetes.

“Type 2 diabetes is rampant in San Antonio and South Texas and among the Latino community,” Castro added. “This will be very helpful in combatting that that and hopefully developing drugs to help patients with [fatty liver disease].”

The UT School of Public Health San Antonio will welcome its inaugural class this fall.

The school is the result of a partnership between UT Health San Antonio and The University of Texas at San Antonio.

The school said in a statement that San Antonio was the largest city in the U.S. without a school of public health. Now, it will be home to graduate students.

“We like to say we are a school without walls,” said Dr. Vasan Ramachandran, founding dean UT School of Public Health San Antonio. “Most of our learning will be outside, the county is our classroom, the community is our curriculum, the people I think we have to meet them where they are.”

Ethylene from CO2: Building-kit catalyst

Metal-free organic framework for electrocatalytic production of ethylene from carbon dioxide.

Use of the greenhouse gas CO 2 as a chemical raw material would not only reduce emissions, but also the consumption of fossil feedstocks. A novel metal-free organic framework could make it possible to electrocatalytically produce ethylene, a primary chemical raw material, from CO 2 . As a team has reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie , nitrogen atoms with a particular electron configuration play a critical role for the catalyst.

Ethylene (ethene, C 2 H 4 ) is an essential starting material for many products, including polyethylene and other plastics. Ethylene is produced industrially by the high-energy cracking and rectification of fossil feedstocks. The electrochemical conversion of CO 2 to ethylene would be a promising route to reducing CO 2 emissions while also saving energy and fossil resources.

CO 2 is very stable, which makes it difficult to induce into reaction. With the use of electricity and catalysts, it is currently possible to convert it into C 1 chemicals such as methanol and methane. The additional challenge in producing ethylene is that a bond must be formed between two carbon atoms. This has previously only been achieved with copper catalysts. Metal-free electrocatalysis would be advantageous because metals are a cost factor and can cause environmental problems.

A team led by Chengtao Gong and Fu-Sheng Ke at Wuhan University, China, has now developed a metal-free electrocatalyst for the conversion of CO 2 to ethylene. The catalyst is based on a nitrogen-containing covalent organic framework (COF). COFs are a new class of porous, crystalline, purely organic materials with defined topology. In contrast to metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), they require no metal ions to hold them together. Their pore sizes and chemical properties can be tuned over a wide range through selection of the building blocks.

The new COF contains nitrogen atoms with a special electron configuration (sp 3 hybridization) as catalytically active centers. These sp 3 nitrogen centers bind the individual building blocks into a framework through an aminal link (two amino groups bound to one carbon atom). In contrast to COFs with a classic imine-linkage (-C=N-), aminal COFs have strict requirements regarding the lengths and angles of the bonds between building blocks, which causes the frameworks to be formed through ring closures. The researchers found a suitable combination by using piperazine (a six-membered ring made of four carbon and two nitrogen atoms) and a building block made of three aromatic, six-membered carbon rings. When used as electrodes, their new COFs demonstrated high selectivity and performance (Faraday efficiency up to 19.1%) for the production of ethylene. Success of the aminal COFs is due to the high density of active sp 3 -nitrogen centers, which both very effectively capture CO 2 and transfer electrons. This results in a high concentration of excited intermediates that can undergo C-C coupling. In contrast, a variety of imine-linked COFs, which contain sp 2 nitrogen instead of sp 3 , were similarly tested and produced no ethylene. This proves the importance of proper electron configuration for the electrochemical reduction of CO 2 to ethylene.

• Organic Chemistry
• Materials Science
• Inorganic Chemistry
• Engineering and Construction
• Energy and Resources
• Carbon dioxide
• Tropospheric ozone
• Electron configuration
• Natural gas
• Chemical bond
• Autocatalysis

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Materials provided by Wiley . Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference :

• Yang Xiao, Jie Lu, Kean Chen, Yuliang Cao, Chengtao Gong, Fu‐Sheng Ke. Linkage Engineering in Covalent Organic Frameworks for Metal‐Free Electrocatalytic C2H4 Production from CO2 . Angewandte Chemie International Edition , 2024; DOI: 10.1002/anie.202404738

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Nationwide Foundation invests historic $100 million in namesake children's hospital

The Nationwide Foundation is gifting a historic $100 million to its namesake, Nationwide Children's Hospital — the largest donation of its kind to a children's hospital in the United States, according to the hospital and the foundation.

The $100-million gift, which was to be formally announced on Wednesday, includes $30 million previously given by the foundation to the hospital.

The money will go to the newly launched "Empower the Possible" campaign , which will help fund the hospital system's five-year, $3.3-billion spending plan. The plan includes a new inpatient tower and increased investments in developing programs and research, such as fetal medicine, population health around Columbus, gene therapy and children's mental health, among many others.

More: Nationwide Children's to spend $3.3 billion on new hospital tower, more programs, research

"We are in the most aspirational strategic plan of our 132-year history," said Tim Robinson, chief executive officer of Nationwide Children's Hospital, in an interview with The Dispatch. "We're really creating this ecosystem focused on the whole child."

Nationwide Children's is an internationally recognized health care provider, Robinson said, and the goal is to keep and improve the programs that live up to that standard, whether it be serving a child from Columbus' Linden neighborhood or a child in another country.

The Nationwide Foundation, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company's nonprofit arm, will parse the millions out in $10-million allocations annually over the next seven years. It's already donated $30 million of the promised $100 million to the "Empower the Possible" campaign, starting those contributions back in 2022, during what Robinson called the campaign's "silent phase."

The campaign has already raised $270 million, and the hospital hopes to reach its $500 million goal by 2027.

The Nationwide Foundation has been contributing to the hospital since 2006, when its $50-million donation led to hospital trustees electing to name it Nationwide Children's.

Outside of the direct investment, Chad Jester, president of The Nationwide Foundation, said they hope that such a large donation will encourage individuals, businesses or other corporate entities to take a closer look at Nationwide Children's, systems like it or their surrounding communities.

"We're investing in a trusted, caring and impactful partner in Nationwide Children's Hospital," Jester said, "We know years down the road that the impact of our investments and others will do nothing but provide the best care for kids."

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