Let Nature Be Your Guide: Diversity, Innovation, and Leadership Through Bio-Inspired Engineering

Saturday, October 5, 2013: 4:00 PM-5:30 PM
206 B (Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center)
Chair:
Elisa Maldonado, PhD, Laboratory Manager, Harvard University

Description: Nature evolved unique strategies to solve lifeʼs most complex problems. Engineers, taking cues from nature, develop bio-inspired materials and technologies for applications in industry, medicine, and technology. This session focuses on methods, materials, and technologies to study cells, tissues, and organisms in their natural environment and to inspire functional materials.



4:00 PM
Introductory Remarks
4:05 PM
Wood Chile Peppers Stalks-Plastic Composite Production: An Innovative Alternative for New Mexico Chile Growers
Delia Valles-Rosales, PhD , Associate Professor , New Mexico State University
4:25 PM
Size-dependent Mechanical Properties of Diatom Bio-structures for Nanotechnology Applications
Lilian Davila, PhD , Assistant Professor , University of California, Merced
4:45 PM
Structured Surfaces for Stem Cell Alignment and Differentiation
Yolanda Vasquez, PhD , Assistant Professor , Oklahoma State University
5:05 PM
Bioengineering a Stem Cell Niche: Using the Ever-growing Mouse Incisor as a Model
Miquella Chavez, PhD , Postdoctoral researcher , University of California San Francisco