Rivaling the kind of devotion reserved for rock stars, a band of space weather groupies surrounding NJIT Distinguished Research Professor Lou Lanzerotti stayed up all night into the next day to witness the long-awaited launch of Atlas V.   >>

As NASA readies the rescheduled launch  for 4 a.m. on Aug. 30, 2012 (view live starting 1:30 a.m. on NASA TV), read more about the role of NJIT Distinguished Research Professor Louis Lanzerotti  in The Star-Ledger. >>

Netflix Contest winners, AT&T researchers Bob Bell and Chris Volinsky, recently told 22 science and technology teachers from throughout New Jersey that collaboration was key to winning the prize money. The occasion was a teacher luncheon, wrapping up a three-day conference at NJIT highlighting the use of robots in science, math and technology classes. The NJIT Center for Pre-College Programs hosted the event, thanks to Netflix prize money won by a team led by Bell and Volinsky and donated last year to NJIT by AT&T.  Teachers walked away with teaching ideas, plus Lego Mind Storm sets to continue building robots back in their classrooms. “My kids are going to be so excited that we now have this kit,” said Rich Bettini, a technology teacher at West Essex High School, North Caldwell, who participated in the learning session. Conference organizer Howard Kimmel, director of the NJIT Center, said that robots were a great way to introduce science and math materials in a multi-disciplinary way to students. “When you design a robot you also teach algebra,” he said. “We also love them because they are a hands-on learning tool, something which always enhances learning.” >>

Rima Taher, an expert in the design of low-rise buildings for extreme winds and hurricanes, is available to educate people about best building design and construction practices to reduce wind pressures on building surfaces. >>

Better building practices for structures in hurricane-prone regions will be the focus of a paper next month in Caribbean Construction Magazine by NJIT architecture professor Rima Taher, PhD.  Taher has written extensively about best building design and construction practices to reduce wind pressures on building surfaces and to resist high winds and hurricanes in residential or commercial construction. >>

Yong-Jae Moon, PhD, a solar astronomer at the Korea Astronomy Observatory, will discuss “Towards an Empirical Model of Geomagnetic Storm Prediction Based on Solar Information” on Jan. 19, 10-11:30 a.m., Tiernan Hall Rm. 407. >>

A major solar flare, possibly the second largest ever recorded, erupted today at 6:30 a.m. The intensity of the flare has sent a space storm careening towards the Earth. If the storm’s magnetic field is in the right direction – opposite that of the earth – it could cause problems when it reaches us Wednesday. It could knock out power grids, upset satellites and disrupt GPS signals. More benignly, if the weather is clear, people who peer into the northern sky on Wednesday night could see a shimmer of lights known as an aurora,” says NJIT physicist Dale Gary. >>

 “This storm is predicted to be a strong event, but events of this size are not too unusual,” says Dale Gary, Ph.D., professor of physics at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT).  “We don’t expect to see it cause an unusually large amount of activity on earth. We see an event of this sort happening on the average of once every 30 days or during an 11-year solar cycle, about 200 times.” >>

New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and Metal Storm Limited, Brisbane, Australia, a research and development company, signed a formal partnership agreement earlier this week to commercialize biometric technology patented by NJIT and applied to an electronic handgun developed by Metal Storm. >>

The news that NJIT's "smart gun" experts have partnered with Australia's Metal Storm, Ltd. was a shot heard round the world. Most--but not all-- of the coverage is a pickup of an Associated Press story written by the AP's Canberra, Australia bureau. Here are  links to the some of  the publications and Websites that ran the story: "Australian Gun Maker and New Jersey Institute Sign 'Smart Gun' Deal" August 29, 2003 siliconvalley.com "Company, Institute Sign Smart Gun Deal" August 30, 2003  BeaufortGazette.com "NJIT Members Help Develop New Electronic Gun Safety Device" August 31, 2003 posted on Website and broadcast  News12.com "NJIT Joins with Aussie Firm on  "Smart' Gun" August 30, 2003  Star Ledger "Company, Institute Sign Smart Gun Deal " August 30, 2003  heraldsun.com "Gun Maker, Tech Inst. OK Smart Gun Deal" August 29, 2003  Quote.com "Gun Maker, Tech Inst. OK Smart Gun Deal" August 29, 2003  Findlaw.com   "Metal Storm Developing Personalised Handgun"  September 3, 2003 Ferret.com.au    "Local Firm Signs for 'Smart Gun'," September 1, 2003  AustralianIT.com >>