TUFTS UNIVERSITY
The School of Arts and Sciences & The School of Engineering
Information Booklet 2006-2007

Directory: Academic and Research Centers

BIOENGINEERING & BIOTECHNOLOGY CENTER

Established in 1998, the mission of the Bioengineering Center is to foster interdisciplinary research in bioengineering-related disciplines within the University and with outside companies and collaborators. The Center groups faculty who have an interest in understanding and applying engineering principles to develop diagnostic tools, regenerative medicine technologies and medical devices. Faculty are involved in research that covers basic foundations in physics, biology, and chemistry (School of Engineering; School of Arts & Sciences, and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences) to more applied medicine (Schools of Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, and Dental Medicine)

Areas of research include

• biomedical instrumentation and sensory systems: Design, engineering, fabrication and clinical applications of novel instrumentation for diagnostic uses, including optical imaging, optical tweezers, biosensors, diffuse optical tomography, micro-electromechanical systems and related technologies;

• regenerative medicine: use of cells, genes and other biological materials along with bioengineering techniques aimed at repairing or replacing damaged or diseased tissues and organs, or developing in vitro models for in vivo systems;

• infective pathogens: use of bioengineering technologies to prevent the spread of pathogens responsible for human or animal diseases, mechanisms of resistance to antibiotics and related aspects of pharmaceutical applications; development of biological models for the environment, drug assessments;

• biomaterials: bioinductive materials used in implants, as components of instrumentation interfaces and scaffolds for tissue engineering; functionalized biomaterials to improve biocompatibility, to induce desired and predictable cell and tissue responses, and to modulate fate and stability in vivo.

The Tissue Engineering Resource Center also coordinates a number of core research facilities accessible to students, faculty, and collaborators outside of the University, including: the W.M. Keck Foundation Laboratory for Biopolymer Characterization, medical optics laboratory, molecular biology and protein biochemistry laboratory, a cell and tissue culture laboratory, and a bioprocessing facility.

CENTER FOR APPLIED CHILD DEVELOPMENT (CACD)
http://ase.tufts.edu/cacd_outreach

The Center for Applied Child Development (CACD) is part of the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. CACD is a professional development and consultation organization, offering customized inservice programs to schools and agencies all over New England. All CACD staff developers are experienced classroom teachers; we work in teams to help other teachers and administrators improve teaching and learning.

CENTER FOR COGNITIVE STUDIES
http://ase.tufts.edu/cogstud

The Center for Cognitive Studies provides a setting for interdisciplinary research on theoretical issues in cognitive science, bringing together Visiting Fellows (typically on sabbatical or fellowship from their home universities) and a Research Associate appointed by the Co-Directors, and working closely with other members of the greater Boston cognitive science community. It produces a preprint series and hosts occasional lectures and colloquia.

CENTER FOR FIELD ANALYTICAL STUDIES AND TECHNOLOGY (CFAST)

The mission of the Center for Field Analytic Studies and Technology (CFAST) is to facilitate the research, development, commercialization, and use of new field analytical techniques for characterization, remediation, and post-closure monitoring of known or suspected chemically contaminated sites. CFASTs primary objectives are to establish an environment for instrument development and validation and to organize educational programs that encourage the use of new field technologies. Through this process, CFAST expands the existing knowledge base of currently used field technologies and identifies future needs required to solve complex environmental problems.

CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS TEACHING
http://ase.tufts.edu/csmt/

The Center is working to improve the teaching and learning of science in the nations universities, high schools, and middle schools. It develops materials, including curricula and software and hardware computer tools that allow students to actively participate in their own learning, and to construct scientific knowledge for themselves. The students participate in guided experiences that involve direct interaction with the physical world. Curricular materials are designed to serve under-prepared students and those who do not intend to become scientists, as well as future scientists. The Center also maintains a strong program of research into science learning. To support the introduction of such materials into high schools and universities, the Center educates a large number of teachers and professors in national and local workshops and programs. It has also established national and international collaborations of universities and schools that use and evaluate materials and explore new methods to effectively teach science.

CENTER FOR SOUTH ASIAN AND INDIAN OCEAN STUDIES
http://ase.tufts.edu/southasian

The Center was established in 1989 to promote scholarly understanding of South Asian history, political economy, and foreign policy, as well as the civilization and economy of the Indian Ocean region. The Center's research activities emphasize two themes: democracy and development in South Asia (especially the problem of identity and sovereignty), and South Asian and the Indian Ocean Region: social, economic, and political links, 1800-2000. One of the primary aims of the Center is to enhance the cause of peace by promoting dialogue and understanding among scholars and policy-makers of South Asia.

GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENT INSTITUTE (GDAE)
http://ase.tufts.edu/gdae

The goal of GDAE is, first, to expand the existing understanding of how nations and societies at differing stages of economic development can pursue that development in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner; and, second, to assist the public and private sectors to use this knowledge to create policies that promote sustainability. Through research, publications, curriculum development, faculty seminars, and other forms of outreach within and beyond Tufts, the Institute creates new opportunities for shared activities between the Fletcher School and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. GDAEs Theory and Education Program emphasizes the development of alternatives to neoclassical economic theory and the dissemination of educational materials based on those alternatives. The Research and Policy Program carries out applied research in areas such as energy and climate change, recycling and materials use, and the sustainability of the economic integration of the Western Hemisphere.

GORDON INSTITUTE
http://gordon.tufts.edu

The Gordon Institute offers a professional graduate degree program leading to a Master of Science in Engineering Management. The program develops practicing engineers and scientists into effective leaders who can manage change and make strategic business decisions, while drawing on their advanced technical knowledge.

The Gordon Institutes curriculum includes interactive, seminar-style classes and intense, real-world projects. Technical topics such as project management, product development, and quantitative methods are studied along with the broader areas of business management, leadership strategies, and the humanities. This multidisciplinary approach fully prepares engineers and scientists to address the many challenges presented by todays business environment. The Institutes close ties with organizations in industry and government also provide unique opportunities for experience-based learning and networking.

Two enrollment options are available: a one-year intensive program, and a two-year executive-style program. The two-year program allows working professionals to continue to work full-time while earning their degree. For engineers and scientists employed in the biotechnology industry, there is a joint program with the university's Biotechnology Center leading to a M.S. degree in Engineering Management with a specialization in biotechnology.

Programs for Tufts undergraduates include a combined five-year B.S./M.S. in Engineering Management and a minor in Engineering Management. The Gordon Institute also has responsibility for the undergraduate program in Entrepreneurial Leadership.

INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL LEADERSHIP
www.tuftsgloballeadership.org

The mission of the newly-established Institute for Global Leadership is to prepare new generations of critical thinkers for effective and ethical leadership, ready to engage complex international and national issues across cultures as global citizens.

The Institute emphasizes rigorous academic preparation with experiential learning. The mission of the Institute is accomplished through its intensive engagement of students in classes, global research, internships, workshops, simulations and international symposia -- all involving national and international leaders from the public and private sectors. These activities stress critical and normative thinking, written and oral communication skills, problem-solving, and multidisciplinary approaches. There is an emphasis both on individual progress and on collaborative effort and students produce tangible outcomes to their studies through their research papers, the international forums, and other projects. The Institute promotes the linkage of theory to practice and exposes students to the rigors and challenges of a diverse world.

The Institute currently directs two interrelated programs -- Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship (EPIIC) and the Tufts Institute for Leadership and International Perspective -- and it has initiated an Immersive Education program.

Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship (EPIIC) is a rigorous, carefully integrated multidisciplinary program on a global theme that is open to students of all majors and years. Since its inception at Tufts in 1985, EPIIC has been challenging students, as well as policymakers and the public at large, to think critically about questions of pivotal importance to the world. The topic planned for 2001-02 is Global Inequities. Past EPIIC topics include: Race and Ethnicity: A Global Inquiry; Global Crime, Corruption, and Accountability; Exodus and Exile: Refugees, Migration, and Global Security; Transformations in the Global Economy; and International Security: The Environmental Dimension.

Its main components are a set of closely integrated activities: an intensive, year-long colloquium for undergraduate and graduate students; a global research and public service program; an international symposium; professional workshops; a MediaForum for editors and reporters; public service initiatives; and a high school global issues simulation program, Inquiry.

The Tufts Institute for Leadership and International Perspective is an intensive, multicultural program that fosters leadership and cross-cultural team building through intensive, intellectual inquiry and practical study with dynamic companies, organizations, and governments. The pilot institute was started in Hong Kong in 1998. Each year the Tufts Institute extends its network of established leaders in banking and finance, media and entertainment, information technology, transportation, telecommunications, and the public sector who serve as mentors to a corps of outstanding American, Chinese, and international students, and with them stimulate new ideas and form partnerships across cultures. The internships are project-based and designed explicitly for this program. The sponsoring institutions include The Government of Hong Kong SAR, Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, and Grey Advertising. While in Hong Kong, the students attend a weekly leadership lecture series and a weekly class on the case study method. The Hong Kong segment of the program is followed by a cultural trip to Xian and Beijing. The students return to their respective universities in the fall and work collaboratively to organize an international symposium on the Tufts University campus in the spring semester.

Immersive Education is a broad web of carefully integrated sequences of experiential global internships and plans of study to further prepare and educate students for the challenges of global leadership. This initiative allows and encourages students, beginning as early as their freshman year, to plan an intensive academic and practical program linking multiple years of traditional coursework, directed and independent studies, and academic research plans of study, with opportunities for demanding, cross-cutting, real-world experiential learning. Students also are encouraged to visit the Institute regarding a range of internship and research opportunities, both nationally and internationally.

LABORATORY FOR MATERIALS AND INTERFACES

The Laboratory of Materials and Interfaces (LMI) provides a nexus for the development and consolidation of interdisciplinary materials science and engineering research and education at the University. The principal research thrust of LMI relates to the study of materials process engineering and characterization, with particular interest in interface and multiphasic systems including dental materials. LMI is also coordinating the interdisciplinary graduate program for Materials Science and Engineering at Tufts.

OSHER LIFELONG LEARNING INSTITUTE

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (formally Tufts Institute of Lifelong Learning) offers alumni and people from the surrounding communities the opportunity to return to the classroom with on-campus study groups and online distance learning courses. With course offerings focusing on subjects as varied as modern art, the world economy and memoir writing, the Osher Institute provides a wealth of options for intellectual inquiry. Participants also benefit from informal "Lunch and Learn" sessions and book club discussions.

By design, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute focuses on involvement: Class participants apply for membership to the Osher Institute community, register for courses, and volunteer on committees. Courses depend on committed volunteer instructors and members. There are no examinations, course credits, or degrees awarded. As a self-governing body, the Osher Institute relies on its members to serve on committees dealing with admissions, curriculum, finance, marketing, special sessions, hospitality, and the program newsletter.

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute was launched by the University in October 2000 and is generously supported by the Tufts University Alumni Association and Tufts University

SCIENCE VISUALIZATION LABORATORY

The Science Visualization Laboratory, part of the Wright Center, produces broadcast-quality science animations and simulations as well as short videos for classroom use. In addition, the lab does contract work for institutions such as WGBH, NASA, and Paramount Communications.

THERMAL ANALYSIS OF MATERIALS PROCESSING LABORATORY (TAMPL)
http://www.tufts.edu/as/tampl/

The Thermal Analysis of Materials Processing Laboratory is committed to a mission to conduct state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research and to educate professionals for careers in this growing multidisciplinary field. Research activities focus on thermal issues in materials processing by combining expertise in heat transfer, fluid mechanics, materials sciences, and manufacturing. Recent activities focus on existing and anticipated problems of a thermal nature during materials processing and on design of new processes. Two requirements are typically met by projects undertaken by TAMPL: (1) the investigation involves unexplored fundamental issues in thermal and/or materials sciences, and (2) the findings of the research have potential to contribute to an area of industrial importance.

TUFTS INSTITUTE OF THE ENVIRONMENT (TIE)
http://www.tufts.edu/tie/

Tufts Institute of the Environment is the university-wide education and research institute that has facilitated and coordinated environmental programs at Tufts since 1998. TIE is devoted to advancing and disseminating knowledge about the many ways human interactions affect the environment. TIE focuses on primary environmental strengths of Tufts University: transdisciplinary research, technology, policy development, and education to improve environmental quality as it relates to human health. TIE develops and coordinates a wide range of environmental programs in research, education, outreach and service across the university. It offers grants to Tufts students and faculty in support of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research; identifies research opportunities; assists with proposal writing; and organizes special events, workshops, and conferences to increase awareness, foster constructive debate, and promote environmental problem solving. TIE facilitates collaborations among faculty, students, staff, and administrators in all of Tufts University.

TUFTS UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR CHILDREN (TUCC)

MISSION
Tufts University Center for Children is an interdisciplinary, cross-school center dedicated to improving the lives of children, youth and their families in the nation and around the world.

WHY TUFTS?
Tufts University Center for Children is unique in its capacity to focus the research, teaching and advocacy resources of the University on helping children grow to healthy, productive adulthood.

GOALS / IMPACTS

• To better understand the needs of children, youth, families and the communities that support them

• To demonstrate the promise of innovation in an interdisciplinary approach To train academicians, students and practitioners in child and family studies

• To make the world better for children

CREATING LINKS AT TUFTS UNIVERSITY
Many faculty and staff in departments and schools are part of the TUCC Steering Committee or are TUCC Associates. TUCC works together with faculty, staff, and community partners to organize and publicize events and seminars that emphasize children's issues. Our interdisciplinary activities with these schools and departments are detailed in our Annual Reports.

TUCC RESOURCE ROOM
The Resource Room provides a library of materials and information that are not available at the University Library. Topics include Child Care, Adoption, Mental Health, Housing, Children with Special Needs, and Maternal & Infant Health, among others. Resources range from "fugitive" publications, web-based resources, grant opportunities, and job/internship listings.

WHERE TO FIND US
TUCC's Offices and Resource Room is located in the lower level of Carmichael Hall, Room 40 (Cafeteria entrance)

Phone: (617) 627-4375
Fax: (617) 627-4376
Our hours of operation: 9:00am - 5:00pm

WRIGHT CENTER FOR INNOVATIVE SCIENCE EDUCATION
http://www.tufts.edu/as/wright_center/index.html

The Wright Center is dedicated to the creation and dissemination of novel instructional techniques and interdisciplinary resources for pre-college teachers. Through its fellowships, workshops, seminars, and a variety of public outreach activities, the Center provides leadership in the training and retraining of science teachers to use innovative methods to stimulate young minds.

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