Dear Clark School Friends,

On a number of occasions earlier this year—the announcement of the $30 million Clark Scholarship Endowment, the awarding of the Draper Prize to two of our alumni, a visit by alumnus and NASA administrator Michael Griffin—I have said to myself and to others, "It doesn't get any better than this!"

I am happy to say that I continue to be inaccurate in this assessment.

Announcing the Fischell Department of Bioengineering and the Robert E. Fischell Institute for Biomedical Devices
I am thrilled to report that on December 19, we formally announced the Fischell Department of Bioengineering and the Robert E. Fischell Institute for Biomedical Devices at the A. James Clark School of Engineering. Clark School Board of Visitors member Bob Fischell and his family are contributing $31 million to support the cause so central to Bob's career—better health for millions of people around the world. The event took place in the Kim Building's Innovation Hall of Fame, where Bob's work is honored. Bob and his sons David, Tim and Scott brought some of their latest inventions—the flexible coronary artery stent, heart attack prevention system, migraine treatment system and epilepsy treatment system—to provide some idea of the enormous potential bioengineering and biomedical devices offer. Expect to hear much more from Bob and his family, and from our new department and institute. This is a major step forward for the Clark School and the university, and for the health of people everywhere.

Celebrating the new Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building
Exactly three months prior to the Fischell announcement, more than 500 guests helped us formally dedicate the new Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building. The Kim Building is the Clark School's signature facility not only because of its beautiful and innovative design but also because of the cross-disciplinary approach to engineering its design encourages. Among the building's many highlights are advanced laboratories for nanotechnology, bioengineering, intelligent transportation systems, and space robotics, including a large, state-of-the-art clean room. The Kim Building provides a perfect example of public funding and private philanthropy coming together to advance the cause of engineering research and education.

Nano in Prime Time
The Maryland Center for Nano Science and Engineering (M-CINSE) is very much in the news. The center's research and educational programs have been ranked #1 by Small Times magazine and covered by The Washington Post and most recently by PBS's Nightly Business Report. The center continues its remarkable run of successes in securing grants and contracts to fund major initiatives. In addition to its Center for Nano Manufacturing and Metrology (with the National Institute for Standards and Technology [NIST]), M-CINSE has again been selected to partner with NIST in a $1.5 million cooperative program called Nanoparticle Risk, Impact and Assessment. The program will study health and safety issues associated with the development of nanotechnology, create new safety standards and further demonstrate our leadership in this emerging and vital field. Other major nano-related grants: through a new $1.4 million National Science Foundation (NSF) program, M-CINSE will work with NIST and three other universities to develop knowledge in nanoparticle manufacturing; another NSF grant for $1.2 million will support research in nanostructured polymers for nanomanufacturing; and a $1.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health will support development of nanofluidic technology for protein analysis. Such awards demonstrate the real substance that lies behind the rankings and media coverage.

Nation's Premier Institute in Space Robotics
Congress has allocated $3.5 million for the creation of an Institute for Dexterous Space Robotics that will be led by the Clark School. Teaming with two other leading academic institutions in the field (Carnegie Mellon and Stanford), the Clark School's Space Systems Laboratory will create and lead a university consortium for advanced robotics to address NASA's current and future needs. The institute will focus on creating robotic technologies for applications ranging from large space telescope construction and maintenance, to in-orbit assembly of interplanetary spacecraft, to surface exploration of the moon and Mars in partnership with space-suited astronauts.

The Best Minds in Technology Entrepreneurship
On December 8 we were joined by one of the nation's leading engineers and entrepreneurs, Dr. Robert Metcalfe (inventor of Ethernet, founder of 3Com and now Polaris Venture Partners general partner), for "Ethernet and Entrepreneurship," this school year's second Whiting-Turner Business and Entrepreneurial Lecture. Dr. Metcalfe is not only a highly accomplished technology expert and business person, he is also a first-rate writer and speaker whose lecture was one of the highlights of this excellent series, now in its 11th year. Prior to Dr. Metcalfe we were most fortunate to hear Dr. Irwin Jacobs, co-founder and chairman of wireless technology giant QUALCOMM, predict the exciting future of cellular telecommunications and how it will come to pass. The Clark School continues to attract the very best minds in technology entrepreneurship to share their ideas and insights with our students and faculty and with the local community.

I'll say it again—"It doesn't get any better than this." And I'll continue to make that claim so that I can continue to be proven wrong!

Best Regards,

Nariman Farvardin
Professor and Dean