Engagement

White House and NSF Announce New Policies
Making Research Careers More Family-Friendly
Inside Science (09/26/11) Chris Gorski 



The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) announced the Career-Life Balance Initiative, which gives researchers more flexibility in the workplace and helps remove some of the hurdles to women's advancement and retention in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Under the 10-year plan, researchers will be able to delay or suspend their NSF grants for up to one year to take care of young children or fulfill other family responsibilities. Although NSF already had workplace flexibility policies in place, this will be the first time a plan is applied across the foundation to help postdoctoral fellows and early-career faculty members more easily care for dependents while continuing their careers. "Unfortunately too many young women drop out of promising careers in science and engineering and math because of conflicts between their desire to start families and the needs of trying to rapidly ramp up their careers," says White House Office of Science and Technology Policy director John Holdren. He notes that women in STEM fields currently earn 41 percent of Ph.D.s but make up just 28 percent of tenure-track faculty. To read further, please visit http://www.insidescience.org/current-affairs/making-research-careers-more-family-friendly-white-house-and-nsf-announce-new-policies/

Black Women in Computing (BWC) Online Community Launch Kickoff Events at Grace Hopper Conference

Black Women in Computing is the newest member of the Anita Borg Institute's Women of Color in Computing Groups. Community members are invited to support BWiC by contributing your knowledge and experience toward the fulfillment of our mission: to provide online support and resources and to increase the number of black women in computing-related fields. Please help spread the word by forwarding this announcement to all black women in computing fields, including students and professionals in academia and industry. Please also join the mailing list by visiting http://anitaborg.org/initiatives/systers/bwic/.

That’s not all! BWC will host its kickoff events during this year’s Grace Hopper Conference. The schedule follows:

Thursday November 10, 2011, 5:15pm – 6:15pm

• BoF Session: Black Women in Computing: Increasing Numbers Through Networking

Friday November 11, 2011, 7:15am – 9:00am

• Black Women in Computing Breakfast

For more information on the Grace Hopper Conference, please visit http://gracehopper.org/2011/.

Research Feature

Argonne Researchers 'Hack' Diebold E-Voting System

Computerworld (09/28/11) Jaikumar Vijayan 



Argonne National Laboratory researchers recently demonstrated how the Diebold Accuvote TS machine can be hacked using inexpensive, widely available electronic components. The researchers, led by Roger Johnston, were able to flip votes on the Diebold machine using about $25 worth of equipment and little technical expertise. They inserted a man-in-the-middle electronic component to intercept the vote cast by a voter and change it before it is recorded by the system. Once installed, the component can be controlled remotely from a distance of up to half a mile using a store-bought remote control. Johnston says the Diebold machines are easy to tamper with because all of the crucial electronic components are accessible and can be easily modified. To read further, please visit http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9220356/Argonne_researchers_hack_Diebold_e_voting_system_?taxonomyId=85.

Ready for the Robot Revolution?
BBC News (10/02/11) Jon Stewart 



Many researchers believe a robot revolution is underway that will soon change the way society behaves similarly to the way the computer revolution brought on drastic changes starting in the 1980s. Researchers are developing new laws for robot behavior and designing new ways for humans and robots to interact. "I think robotics technology will change who we are, just as eyeglasses and fire changed who we were before," says Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Rodney Brooks. Although there currently are commercially available robots that can perform everyday tasks, conventional robots are not humanlike. However, the time is fast approaching when robots will start looking less like machines and more like humans, says Osaka University professor Hiroshi Ishiguro. "I'm very excited about the fact that today in robotics we have machines that are sophisticated enough to be put together with people in a daily life setting," says University of Southern California professor Maja Mataric, who is leading a group that is developing robots to work with stroke patients and elderly people undergoing cognitive changes. To read further, please visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15146053.

Student Opportunities

High Altitude Student Platform (HASP) – Call for Payloads
Application Deadline – December 16, 2011

The Louisiana Space Grant has just released its Call for Payloads (CFP) for the September 2012 flight of the High Altitude Student Platform (HASP): http://laspace.lsu.edu/hasp/Participantinfo.php.  HASP can support up to 12 student payloads (providing power, telemetry and commanding) during a flight to an altitude of 124,000 feet for up to 20 hours.  We anticipate flying HASP with the assistance of NASA Balloon Program Office for at least the next three years (2012 through 2014).  There is no cost for launch and flight operations.  Student teams will need to raise their own funds to support the development of their payload and for travel to Palestine, TX for HASP integration and Ft. Sumner, NM for flight operations. Details about previous HASP flights and the student payloads flown can be found on the “Flight Information” page of the HASP website at http://laspace.lsu.edu/hasp/Flightinfo-2011.php.  Details on the payload constraints and interface with HASP as well as online access to the CFP materials can be found on the “Participant Info” page of the HASP website at http://laspace.lsu.edu/hasp/Participantinfo.php. Questions about the application materials or HASP can be sent to guzik@phunds.phys.lsu.edu