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Researchers at Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals and Houston Methodist will harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to more accurately predict risk of heart failure and other cardiovascular events, including estimating when an adverse event might occur, by developing an AI model that “learns” from patient scans. The National Institutes of Health awarded two grants, totaling $4 million, to the collaboration to develop the AI model. Shuo Li, professor of biomedical engineering and computer and data sciences, is leading the project.

On Tuesday, Jan. 14, President Biden awarded nearly 400 scientists and engineers the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers early in their careers. Four of the awardees are Case Western Reserve University engineering faculty: A. Bolu Ajiboye, Christine Duval, Burcu Gurkan and Steve Majerus.

Shuo Li, professor of biomedical engineering, has been named a 2025 fellow of Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE) for “pioneering medical image analysis and processing using advanced machine learning, enhancing diagnostics and safety.”

Sarah Berger, fourth-year civil engineering student, recently earned second place in a national structural engineering competition hosted by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) at their Forensic Engineering Congress in Seattle, Washington.

After bringing home first place in the Ohio Water Environment Association Design Competition, a student team traveled to New Orleans, Louisiana, to compete at the national level in October.

Sam Root’s interest in knowledge of polymers started in high school. His father worked in the flexographic printing industry and after school, Root would head to the plant to do quality control. When his interest in organic materials chemistry, soft matter physics, and engineering started to grow, he decided to study chemical engineering.

Umut Gurkan, Wilbert J. Austin Professor of Engineering, has co-authored a new publication by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Titled On Leading a Lab: Strengthening Scientific Leadership in Responsible Research, the work explores strategies for fostering ethical and effective scientific leadership in research environments.

As a member of the American Association of Physics Teachers since 1994, Kathleen A. Harper, a lifetime member, will receive the Winter 2025 AAPT Fellowship in January. The fellowship recognizes AAPT members who have shown “exceptional contribution to AAPT's mission to enhance the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching.“

In Ignas Kamugisha’s remote Tanzanian village near the Serengeti, the trek to wash clothing at the nearest river was a 5-kilometer walk each way. As a child, he knew this weekly chore was a hassle for his mother, and he was determined to find a solution.

For decades, Crain’s Cleveland Business has recognized young leaders making impacts across their communities in Northeast Ohio and beyond. This year’s “40 Under 40” publication, released Nov. 18, included two familiar faces from Case Western Reserve University: those of staff member Jason Buitrago and faculty member Christine Duval.

Since its founding in 2006, the Envoys program has impacted hundreds of high school students in Cleveland and East Cleveland schools. With the purpose of increasing access to STEAM for underrepresented minority students, the Envoys program supports a number of students each summer to engage in research projects on campus for three summers, from 10th grade through 12th grade.

From automobile and aircraft tires, to belts and hoses, natural rubber production is essential to modern production. Unfortunately, the world’s primary rubber supply—the tropical rubber tree Hevea brasiliensis—is shrinking, and supply chains originate outside of the U.S. Researchers at Case Western Reserve University are working with colleagues at The Ohio State University to accelerate natural rubber production in the United States.

Case Western Reserve University has a new offer for the 25 to 30 students each year who are named finalists for the prestigious Hertz Fellowship but are not ultimately selected as Fellows: Matriculate at CWRU and receive full financial benefits. The Fannie and John Hertz Foundation has agreements in place with more than 40 schools to let students accept their support while pursuing graduate studies.