In This Issue
Cutting-Edge Research in Engineering
December 1, 2005 Volume 35 Issue 4
Articles In This Issue
  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorStuart B. Adler

    Fuel cells of the future will be based on solid electrolytes.

    Fuel cells, which convert chemical energy directly to electricity, are more efficient than current means of energy conversion. The question is where they might fit in the broad spectrum of energy choices. This paper briefly reviews ...

  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorPablo G. Debenedetti

    Editor's Note

    The U.S. Frontiers of Engineering (FOE) Symposium, a yearly event sponsored by NAE, brings together some 100 outstanding young engineers (ages 30 to 45) from academia, industry, and government laboratories for three days of sharing ideas and learning about cutting-edge research on ...

  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorArne Jacobson and Daniel M. Kammen

    Ecological stewardship will be the guiding scientific principle for new avenues of inquiry.

    The recognition that human activity is transforming the planet, both in intended and dramatically unintended ways, has led to the development of a new field of research—sustainability science. ...

  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorMatthai Philipose

    An activity-recognition system could improve the lives of the elderly and infirm.

    Building computing systems that can observe, understand, and act on day-to-day physical human activity has long been a goal of computing research. Such systems could have profound conceptual and practical ...

  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorZoltán Toroczkai and Stephen Eubank

    Control over agent-based systems can be achieved via modeling tools.

    Researchers have made considerable advances in the quantitative characterization, understanding, and control of nonliving systems. We are rather familiar with physical and chemical systems, ranging from elementary particles, ...

  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorJay Keasling

    Synthetic biologists may soon design and build engineered biological systems.

    It has been estimated that for every successful drug compound, 5,000 to 10,000 compounds must be introduced into the drug-discovery pipeline. On average, it takes $802 million and 10 to 15 years to develop a ...

  • Thursday, December 1, 2005
    AuthorChiatzun Goh and Michael D. McGehee

    The world will need access to 30TW of power without releasing carbon into the atmosphere.

    Currently the world consumes an average of 13 terawatts (TW) of power. By the year 2050, as the population increases and the standard of living in developing countries improves, this amount is likely to ...