April 2021 Newsletter

Welcome to the IEEE Long Island Section April 2021 e-Newsletter. 

We will be publishing this e-newsletter periodically to try to keep our membership informed on a wide variety of technical topics.  If you have any comments and/or suggestions, please reply to us.  Thanks. 

In these unusual times it would be nice if we could all indulge in some learning as we deal with reduced or missing work hours. 

For those who are willing to volunteer a bit of your time the Young Professionals and Women in Engineering (WIE) affinity groups of the IEEE LI Section could always use volunteers to help with upcoming events. The School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI), which manages all the FIRST Robotics programs from elementary through high school on the Island can also always use volunteers at all levels.

Below are some links to free Webinars and lectures on a very wide range of highly interesting topics. 

Enjoy!

From the latest IEEE Collabratec issue.  A very relevant discussion on society and technology in this age of Big Data, AI and Machine Learning.   “On Empathy: A Q&A with MIT’s Sherry Turkle”, the pathbreaking MIT professor has a new memoir, and the past, present, and future of our efforts to make technology feel human.  https://onezero.medium.com/why-machines-will-never-feel-empathy-a-q-a-with-mits-sherry-turkle-fb627582b9ff.  Let us know if you agree that machines will “never” (a very long time indeed!) learn how to feel empathy.  

A reminder that April 22, 2021 is IEEE Power and Energy Society Day.  The LI IEEE PES is co-sponsoring an event with Farmingdale State College RESC.  The agenda and further information can be found at https://www.farmingdale.edu/events/2021/2021-04-22-earth_day_event.shtml      

Some other interesting Reads, Websites and Events

https://newatlas.com/biology/synthetic-organism-cell-division/ For the first time, a team of scientists has created a synthetic single-celled organism that can divide and grow like a regular living cell. This breakthrough could lead to designer cells that can produce useful chemicals on demand or treat disease from inside the body.

https://newatlas.com/electronics/electronic-nose-color-changing-barcodes-spoiled-meat/ Researchers have developed an electronic nose that can reveal spoiled meats, by analyzing unique color patterns in barcodes applied to packaging. 

• Please visit the LI Section LinkedIn group website: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/3173694/)

• The LI Section magazine is available at:  https://ieee.li/the-pulse-of-long-island/along with the Calendar at:  https://ieee.li/calendar-of-events/2021-03/ 

• Just a reminder that the IEEE Long Island Section Technical Reference page has several handy on-line electrical calculators; available from: https://ieee.li/ under the “Reference Menu”.

• Also, a reminder that our member, John Dunn, has been writing the “Living Analog” Blog for EDN magazine for many years. See  https://www.edn.com/category/blog/living-analog-blog/  It is also available on our LI Sections LinkedIn page at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-dunn-39964a12/

• The LI Section had been holding very well attended bi-monthly Networking events at Houlihan’s in Farmingdale until the onset of the COVID19 pandemic. We had our first virtual version of the event on March 22 and the next IEEE-LI Virtual Networking Zoom meeting will be at 7 PM on Mon May 24 (4th Monday of alternating months).  The links are:  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86315256453

Meeting ID: 863 1525 6453

Passcode: 047629

Or Dial  +1-929-205-6099

• This huge array of free videos from the Cold Spring Harbor Labs include some targeted at teen-agers as well as many aimed at adults on a wide range of fascinating topics: https://dnalc.cshl.edu/resources/dnalc-live/
• Some really interesting stuff from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine with many articles on the science associated with COVID-19 at: https://www.nationalacademies.org/home
• Interesting, short article on how communication takes place between neural networks in the brain. https://neurosciencenews.com/neural-communication-mechanism-17458/  
• IEEE Collabratec has many interesting links to current issues and technologies at: https://ieee-collabratec.ieee.org/app/community

The IEEE New Hampshire Section Broadband Forum will be holding an interesting meeting on April 21, 2021, 7:00–9:00 p.m.  While it is targeted at NH, there will be many issues raised that are relevant across the US.  The IEEE Broadband Forum is a free, virtual event addressing the challenges of providing broadband internet access to sparsely populated states. The forum will discuss the network technologies used and proposed for broadband access and address the technical/economic viability of each for urban, suburban, and rural areas. Open to the public the speakers will answer questions from the online audience. The goals for the event are to provide attendees with: An understanding of the demographic and economic issues hampering wide deployment of broadband access.

• The technology options currently proposed for delivering broadband
• Event description and registration for Zoom access is iat: https://events.vtools.ieee.org/m/269186 The event will be recorded and posted on the IEEE New Hampshire Video Newsletter page

The Long Island Engineers Club is looking at Funding opportunities through Small Business Innovation Research Program SBIR programs.  They are assembling a team of members who are SBIR knowledgeable either as successful bidders or solicitation managers and they welcome anyone interested in pursuing such opportunities to.  They may be able to help or advise.

• ACL's National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research(NIDILRR) has opened a new funding opportunity for Small Business Innovation Research Program.
• The purpose of the SBIR program is to stimulate technological innovation in the private sector, strengthen the role of small business in meeting federal research or research and development needs, and improve the return on investment from federally-funded research for economic and social benefits to the nation. The goal is to improve the lives of people with disabilities through R&D generated by small businesses, and to increase the commercial application of NIDILRR-supported research. All SBIR projects funded by NIDILRR must address the needs of individuals with disabilities and promote their health and function, community living, or employment outcomes.
• Phase II projects expand on the results of and further pursue the development of Phase I projects. Phase II applicants must be Phase I grantees with approaches that appear sufficiently promising as a result of their efforts as Phase I grantees.
• View more details and application instructions. Please visit the link above for more details about the grant opportunity and application process. This grant opportunity closes on June 1, 2021.

• There may be some discounts available for both Members and Student members– Check the IEEE Website for the latest information. https://www.ieee.org/membership/benefits/index.html  It’s not the easiest website to navigate but persistence will be rewarded. 

• Also check the Employment Assistance Committee https://ieee.li/committees/employment-assistance-committee/ for the latest available info on job opportunities.

Contributors: Arnie Stillman, Lou D'Onofrio, Carl Meshenberg (carljoanm@ieee.org), Howard Edelman
Editor:   David C Pinkowitz ( david.pinkowitz@ieee.org)