Using the solutions observed in nature to address global challenges in health, medicine and materials innovation is at the heart of research by BioInspired Syracuse. Austin Garner, assistant professor of biology and member of BioInspired, specializes in functional morphology—studying the form and function of animals and then applying it to bio-inspired designs in a wide range of applications. Garner recently co-authored a paper in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface exploring design principles on polar bear paws which allow them to have better traction on ice compared to other bear species. The work identifies a new nature-based method that could be incorporated into human engineering challenges associated with traction, namely for products that slip on snow and ice such as tires and shoes. Read more.
News Posts
Addressing Trauma Through Writing
As director of the Minority Stress and Trauma (MST) Lab, Jillian Scheer’s research focuses on bettering the mental and behavioral health of diverse and underserved sexual and gender minority people who have experienced trauma. In support of that work, Scheer, an assistant professor and Cobb-Jones Professor of Clinical Psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences, has received several highly competitive grants through agencies including the National Institutes of Health. Scheer is most recently one of five recipients of a 2022 Walter Katkovsky Research Grant from the American Psychological Foundation. The national award provides $10,000 in funding support for research on the general topic of psychotherapy. Read more.
Nature-Inspired Designs Could Offer Solutions for Global Challenges
Bioinspired research draws from the natural world to develop solutions for global challenges. But it can be difficult to turn these research ideas into actual materials and methods that can be applied to real world problems in areas like construction, energy and health care. That’s why Lisa Manning, the William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Physics and director of the BioInspired Institute at Syracuse University, led a workshop in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in October to explore new paths to transform this research into industry applications. Manning helped organize a workshop sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) as part of its Convergence Accelerator program, which funds interdisciplinary collaboration–or convergence–to advance innovative solutions for the most pressing issues. Read more.
Can Kelp Help? Research Examines Dairy Farmer, Dairy Nutritionist Attitudes on Adding Feed Additive to Cut Methane Emissions
While the majority of climate change research focuses on reducing and capturing carbon dioxide, less attention has been paid to methane emissions, despite the gas having 30 times the warming effect. Over a quarter of the United States’ total methane emissions are derived from enteric fermentation (cow burps) alone. Emerging research finds that feeding certain species of algae (seaweed, kelp or microalgae) to cattle can reduce their methane emissions by 80 to 99%. Unfortunately, most farmers and bovine nutritionists are unfamiliar with algae-based feed supplements, and the supplements are not always available and can be expensive. A faculty member and graduate student in the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics are among a multidisciplinary team of over 50 researchers tackling this issue. Falk Family Endowed Professor of Food Studies Rick Welsh and graduate research assistant Michelle Tynan are part of the $10 million Coast-Cow-Consumer project, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s (NIFA) Sustainable Agriculture Systems Program. Read more.
5 Faculty Awarded New York State Council on the Arts Grants
Five Syracuse University faculty members have won highly competitive awards from the New York State Council on the Arts—a record in the number of awards in a single year for Syracuse University in its 20 years of participation with the council’s grant program. Read more.