Better, faster, cheaper — these are the bywords of modern industry and the goal of almost any enterprise today. How do businesses continually improve their products? The answer is rooted in one of the oldest and most classic of academic disciplines: mathematics. The recent research efforts of Mason professors Roman Polyak and Ariela Sofer demonstrate that mathematics is essential to today’s most innovative technology. Both scientists work in the field of mathematical optimization. Optimization, as the name implies, involves making something as effective as possible; mathematical optimization uses math models to achieve this. As Polyak, who holds joint appointments in the Departments of Systems Engineering and Operations Research (SEOR) and Mathematical Sciences, says, “People have been working on optimization since the ancient Greeks learned that a string encloses the most area when it is formed into the shape of a circle.” Nearly 25 years ago, Polyak developed a theory and methods for solving constrained optimization problems called nonlinear rescaling (NR) that has become essential in solving complicated, real-world technological problems with thousands of variables. NR has been applied to image processing, designing building structures, and finding optimal distribution of electricity across a power grid. It has even been applied to medical diagnostics. Take a goal such as improving radiation therapy for cancer treatment. Polyak’s NR concept has been adapted and modified by others, notably German researchers Rembert Reemtsen and Markus Alber, to improve the efficiency of a treatment for cancerous tumors known as intensity modulated radiotherapy treatment (IMRT). The linear accelerator deployed in IMRT depends on optimization to determine the angles, intensity, and duration of radiation beams that most effectively destroy a cancerous tumor — but without damaging nearby healthy tissue. Software fundamentally based on NR is now built into the radiotherapy systems used in various hospitals. “I never dreamed, 25 years ago, that rather abstract mathematics could be used for cancer treatment. Of course, it makes me very happy that my NR methods have been used for such important applications. Mathematics, when it develops, you have a tool, and it can be applied in any field,” says Polyak. Polyak has continued to refine his theories. In 2006, he and Igor Griva, his former graduate student who is now an assistant professor at Mason, published a paper that outlined their new NR-based method for achieving faster and more accurate solutions to large-scale constrained optimization problems. The pair also earned a patent for Mason in 2007 for their NR optimization tools. Sofer, who chairs SEOR in the Volgenau School of Information Technology and Engineering, was one of the first researchers to focus on the application of operations research to medical treatment and diagnosis, and she has become a leader in the effort to make operations research in medicine into a field. She became interested in the medical applications of mathematical optimization nearly 10 years ago when she collaborated with Calvin Johnson, a doctoral student who worked at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on the problem of image reconstruction in positron emission tomography, a medical imaging technique for investigating the level of metabolism and blood flow in an organ. Sofer and Johnson developed reconstruction methodology and software that outperformed leading methods both in the quality of image and in the solution time. Through this research she says she discovered how rewarding it was to work on applications that could help save or extend human lives. In her current work, Sofer has been using optimization to help fine-tune the application of a relatively new medical procedure called radiofrequency ablation. The procedure is used to kill liver tumors in patients who are not candidates for surgery. She is collaborating in this research with NIH physician Bradford Wood, an interventional radiologist. "Ablation kills the tumor by applying heat," Sofer explains. "The physician inserts a needle, and electrical current in the range of radiofrequency is applied. That cooks the tumor; however, it also kills adjacent healthy tissue. The key is to apply the heat in exactly the right region. You don't want to damage vital tissue or structures." Computed tomography scans and ultrasound imaging are used to determine the tumor's location and monitor the needle's path. Sofer has been working on the problem of determining how to place one or more needles to maximize the effectiveness of the procedure. It's not as easy as it sounds. As in the radiation example, there are many variables. Not only must she consider how many needles should be used and where the needle or needles should be inserted, but also the angle and depth of insertion. Other questions that come into play are how to minimize the number of insertion points when multiple needles must be used. And in a real-life situation, this optimization must often be determined in a matter of minutes. Sofer, who spent a sabbatical at Georgetown University Medical Center, also has worked on a project to improve a prostate biopsy procedure. "These are very large problems," Sofer says, "but I get a sense of satisfaction knowing that this work may actually do some good for human beings."

The College of Science will hold its first Career Night on Wednesday 27 February from 5-8 pm in SUB II. Employers representing all the disciplines in the college will be there. Program schedule will be as follows: 4:30-5:00 student check-in 5:00-5:15 introduction and welcoming remarks 5:30-6:30 panel discussions (panels of employers) 6:30-7:30 reception where students can meet employers (pizza will be served) A list of employers will be distributed closer to the event, as will a list of each panel and the topics to be discussed. There will be several panels running simultaneously on different topics. Employers will be discussing what they are looking for when they hire, pointers for students seeking jobs & internships, and the employment outlook in their areas, among other things. We would like this to be an annual COS event at which students can learn about job possibilities, sharpen their job-hunting skills, and have the opportunity to talk to employers directly. If you are actively seeking a job, summer employment or internship this year, bring your resume. But more importantly, whether or not you are in the job market now, just come to learn more about the employment scene for your discipline. Your presence will help this event be a success. We are hoping for good representation from students. Please join us on 27 february for Career Night. If you think you will come, please reply to cos@gmu.edu so we will know how many students to expect. I look forward to seeing you there.

As Americans’ arteries become more and more clogged with fast food, pizza and donuts, there is an increased concern for aneurysm occurrences. Researchers believe cholesterol buildup and high blood pressure to be significant factors in aneurysms, which are abnormal blood-filled bulges in weakened blood vessels. However, it is still unclear as to what exactly causes them. A Mason undergraduate was recently turning heads and creating buzz over his research on aneurysms and their causes. Steve Hendrickson, a senior majoring in mathematics, took first place in the Undergraduate Research Poster Competition at the 2008 Joint Mathematics Meeting of the American Mathematical Society (AMS) and the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

The clouded leopard looked up with faint interest from the sunny perch she was napping on to see what the movement was. The red pandas continued to munch on their freshly cut bamboo, paying little attention to all the activity on this winter morning. Throughout the winter break, contractors were busy renovating a building on the grounds of the National Zoo’s Conservation and Research Center (CRC) in Front Royal, Va., where starting last week the first class enrolled in the new Smithsonian Mason Semester. Amid the new drywall, paint and fixtures, workers converted offices into sleeping rooms and updated the meeting spaces. By the time students checked in to the newly renovated facility, there would also be a recreation/work-out space and a computer lab, and a resident advisor and several faculty members would be living on site. The Start of Something Big The Smithsonian Mason Semester is a 16-credit integrated learning community based at the National Zoo’s 3,200-acre site, one of the premier conservation research facilities in the world. A part of the Smithsonian Institution, CRC is internationally recognized for its work and professional training programs in conservation. As part of this learning community, Mason students get to work alongside some of the foremost research scientists and conservation practitioners, live adjacent to some of the most extraordinary species in the world and gain access to many of the National Zoo’s facilities.

Not many undergraduate students can say that they’ve observed data on the world’s largest radio telescope. Even fewer can say that they themselves discovered a brand-new galaxy. Mason junior Lisa Horne has both those accomplishments under her belt. Horne, who has been working with assistant professor Jessica Rosenberg as part of the Undergraduate Apprenticeship Program at Mason, is part of a select group of undergraduate students involved in the Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA (ALFALFA) Survey team — a major national project looking to map the sky. Last summer, Horne and Rosenberg traveled to Cornell University, where Horne was trained to analyze data pulled from the Arecibo telescope — the world’s largest radio telescope — located in Puerto Rico. It was during this trip to Cornell that she discovered a blip in the data that was not already identified. Using the knowledge she gained, she was able to recognize that blip for what it was — a galaxy. Although she doesn’t get to name it (the galaxy is recorded as AGC #310842), under the record is “Lisa H.,” giving credit where credit is due. “This program is a really great experience for Lisa,” says Rosenberg. “She gets to see the whole process and really be a part of this larger scientific survey. The idea behind the undergraduate component to ALFALFA is to keep students interested so they’ll continue on their career path.” Earlier this month, Horne and Rosenberg traveled to Puerto Rico where they had hands-on experience working at Arecibo. Horne learned about the instruments on the telescope and the different types of sciences that can be performed there. She attended lectures about the telescope and the ALFALFA project, and several students also gave talks about their research. Horne presented a poster about her work as well. The most exciting part of the trip, Horne said, was getting to work with the actual telescope. The undergraduates at the seminar each had scheduled shifts when they could go to observe the telescope in action.

The George Mason University Aspiring Scientists Summer Internship Program gives high school, undergraduate, and graduate students to gain hands on experience in laboratories at the George Mason University Prince William Campus. Students are exposed to cutting edge technology and have the opportunity to work in areas of science including but not limited to Proteomics, Genomics, Neuroscience, Biochemistry, and Environmental Science. The 2008 Aspiring Scientists Summer Internship Program will begin on Monday June 23, 2008 and will conclude with a poster session and reception on Monday August 18, 2008.

New observations from the Voyager 2 spacecraft, which on August this year crossed the edge of the solar system known as the termination shock, are confirming astronomy professor Merav Opher’s model of a bullet-shaped solar system. (see story from May 30, 2006

Congratulations to Yuntao Wu, assistant professor in the department of molecular and microbiology, who is named one of “Tomorrow’s PIs” in the current edition of Genome Technology magazine. He is cited for his HIV research, which seeks to prevent or slow down the progression of AIDS. This is the second year Genome Technology has sought nominations for "rising young stars of science" -- defined by the magazine as being in a faculty position less than five years -- from their colleagues who already are recognized as today’s leading PIs. Wu was nominated by Emanuel Petricoin III, co-director of Mason’s Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine.

Scientists at Mason’s Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine (CAPMM) and clinicians at the Inova Fairfax Hospital Cancer Center in Falls Church, Va., will investigate living breast tissue to determine if cancer stem cells — thought to be the driving force behind the development of cancer — are present in the earliest stages of premalignant tumors. This is the first known research of its kind to use living, precancerous human breast tissue. The scientists are hopeful that this research will lead to new strategies for breast cancer screening and treatment. Ductal carcinoma in situ or DCIS, will be studied to understand how early invasive and metastatic cancer cells develop. DCIS is the most common type of noninvasive breast cancer in women and accounts for an estimated 30 percent of the 185,000 breast cancer cases detected by mammography each year. The lesions in DCIS differ from invasive breast cancer tumors because they do not invade the ductal wall and thus do not access the vascular and lymphatic systems that are conduits for metastatic spread to other organs. Goals of this pioneering research are to determine if a DCIS lesion has pre-existing invasive potential that is suppressed by the ductal wall and if a DCIS-specific stem cell exists that unlocks the invasive potential of the tumor. "Discovery of a stem cell from the DCIS lesion would represent a paradigm shift for our understanding and treatment of cancers," explains Lance Liotta, CAPMM codirector. Most scientists are concentrating on stem cells from cancer that already is present, but CAPMM's hypothesis is that a stem cell may exist within the premalignant lesion. The combination of proteomic and tissue dissection technologies that the team will bring to bear on this question will give them a unique opportunity to hunt for this cell, if it exists. This two-year, $750,000 study is funded by the newly created Synergistic Idea Award offered through the U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program. The award is given to collaborators for a proposal that addresses a critical problem in breast cancer research, exemplifies innovative research, demonstrates synergy between partners and has high potential to further breast cancer research or enhance the quality of life of breast cancer patients. The CAPMM scientists aim to not only discover a premalignant stem cell, but also use their unique protein array technology to crack open the protein pathways that are activated. "By doing this, we could identify which therapies could be used to kill or differentiate the very cell that would go on to cause invasive cancer," says CAPMM codirector Emanuel Petricoin III. "Understanding the potential role of breast cancer stem cells within the DCIS tissue microenvironment has important clinical implications for women with DCIS and for their physicians," says Kirsten Edmiston, Inova Fairfax Hospital Cancer Center medical director and co-principal investigator on the project. "This collaboration will help identify strategies to prevent noninvasive DCIS from becoming potentially lethal invasive breast cancer."

Mr. Alex Owusu has been selected as a Fellow for the Leadership Enhancement in Agriculture Program (LEAP) of the Norman E. Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellows Program. The Borlaug LEAP Fellowship honors Nobel Laureate Dr. Norman E. Borlaug who has been hailed as the father of the Green Revolution. Credited with saving millions of lives, his work virtually eliminated recurring famines in South Asia and helped global food production outpace population growth. Dr. Borlaug¹s distinguished career epitomizes the qualities of leadership, scholarship, scientific achievement, international cooperation, mentoring,and passion. Owusu is one of only a few recipients of the award, which carries a grant of almost $20,000. Funding for the Fellowship is provided by the United States Agency for International Development. He will use the support to conduct field work for his dissertation in Ghana.