Conference Gathers Students, Professors and Professionals to Discuss Biological Engineering
Society for Biological Engineering (SBE) holds seminars because of growing interest in creating SBE student chapters
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., September 12, 2005 – On Saturday the campus of MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) will play host to a conference of university students and professors interested in the study of biological engineering and establishing student chapters in this area. The first of its kind, this symposium will consist of several seminars and workshops featuring key figures in the field of bioengineering.
Spearheading the effort to expand this emerging field at the student level is the Society for Biological Engineering (SBE), an organization established by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) in 2003. SBE organized the conference in response to overwhelming student interest in bioengineering from, in particular, chemical engineering students across the country.
Each participating college or university will be represented by one professor and selected students, all of whom will attend the day’s lectures and participate in clinics to learn the value and procedure of creating student-run chapters of SBE.
Included on the agenda for attending schools is an introduction to the Society of Biological Engineering from the Chair of its Managing Board and PhD Institute Professor at MIT, Daniel I. C. Wang. Professor Wang has been a pioneer in his efforts to establish the generic value of chemical engineering principles in the analysis and understanding of microbial and biologically based systems. He is also the founder of MIT’s Biotechnology Process Engineering Center (BPEC). Started in 1985, it is a multidisciplinary research and education center that integrates faculty from the Departments of Biology, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering as well as providing interdisciplinary research and education among different universities in the United States.
“Biological engineering is a vital field of study for our universities,” said Professor Wang, “and it will only continue to become more critical as we explore the world of biological processing and make new discoveries in biologically derived products.”
Wang continued, “By introducing our chemical engineering students to the field of biological engineering before they have determined their career paths, we increase their ability to bridge the gap between the industries, allowing them to see the connections between the two fields and expand their understanding of each.”
Among the schools participating in the conference are Cornell University, Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), Ohio State University, Purdue University, SUNY – Buffalo, UCLA, University of Maryland (College Park), University of Maryland (Baltimore County), University of Missouri (Rolla), University of Massachusetts (Amherst), Vanderbilt University, Washington University, University of Colorado (Boulder), Rutgers University, Johns Hopkins University, Boston University, Tufts University and the host school, MIT.
“This is an incredible opportunity for us,” said Chris Tostado, first president of the MIT SBE chapter. “We get the chance to make connections with bioengineering students from other universities, learn how to build a student chapter that will bring together students from other disciplines, and meet many renowned leaders from the biotech field.”
Careers in biological engineering are abundant, highly diverse and increasingly vital to the global community. Included among them is the advancement of new cancer therapies, in which bioengineers assist in the research, development and final commercialization of the latest treatments of the disease.
“This conference represents only our initial step toward broadening the scope of bioengineering for our students,” noted Wang. “These college-based chapters of SBE will continue to multiply, producing the foundation of our country’s future in biological engineering.”
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