The MechSE Department hosted Dr. Subra Suresh, the president of Carnegie Mellon University and former director of the National Science Foundation, on October 1 in the Center for Advanced Study (CAS)/MillerComm Lecture Series. His presentation was held in the Knight Auditorium at Spurlock Museum.
Written by Bill Bowman
The MechSE Department hosted Dr. Subra Suresh, the president of Carnegie Mellon University and former director of the National Science Foundation, on October 1 in the Center for Advanced Study (CAS)/MillerComm Lecture Series. His presentation was held in the Knight Auditorium at Spurlock Museum.
Giving a lecture titled Crossing Boundaries and Transforming Lives: Engineering, Cell Biology and Medicine, Dr. Suresh illustrated the benefits that arise when experts from vastly different fields share their research and assessment on the same challenge or problem. He provided specific examples of some cross-disciplinary developments in our understanding of human diseases across engineering, life sciences, and medicine.
"Given my background in mechanical engineering and material sciences naturally I look at it from the perspective of physical properties of materials," Dr. Suresh said. "Of course, if you talk to a biologist about human diseases, it's all biology. If you talk to a geneticist, it's all genetics. If you talk to a medical doctor, it's all related to therapeutics and curing. I'm not claiming that it's all related to physical properties and engineering, but this is one way to look at it in the broad context."
He went on to demonstrate the effect sickle cell disease has on red blood cells from a physical properties perspective. He showed how the disease reduces flexibility in red blood cells, creating clogs that impede their flow through the body.
The CAS/MillerComm Lecture Series is one of the most prominent public events on campus and draws a wide and varied audience from the University as well as the Champaign-Urbana community. MillerComm is supported by an endowment left by Professor George A. Miller upon his death in 1951. For more information about Professor Miller and the MillerComm Lecture Series, please visit the CAS website.
Dr. Suresh said he was honored to be part of the series.
"I’ve been coming to UIUC for the last 20 years or so," he said. "A lot friends and colleagues here, and it’s always a pleasure to come back."