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The Edge of Discovery
Whether it’s unlocking the past or opening doors to the future, NYIT professors remain committed to groundbreaking research
- By Michael Schiavetta
NYCOM Assistant Professor Christian Sidor, Ph.D., wipes the perspiration from his brow and starts digging again. With temperatures reaching 110 degrees Fahrenheit, the Sahara heat is relentless. Yet, his team of paleontologists is on the brink of a new discovery that could reshape the way we envision life in the prehistoric world. With a party consisting of only himself, six colleagues and a small band of local military soldiers (for protection against bandits and to serve as travel guides), the search continues.
Suddenly, he hears an excited voice over the walkie-talkie. The professor races in the blazing heat to join another colleague, Dr. Roger Smith of the South African Museum in Capetown, South Africa, where he finds fossilized fragments exposed beneath the desert sand. As Sidor inspects the remains, his pulse quickens. He begins to dust off what will prove to be a remarkable find ...
SOUND INVESTMENTS
For decades, NYIT has been a pioneer in new technologies and groundbreaking research, reshaping the way we live |
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Dr. Christian Sidor, assistant professor of anatomy at NYCOM, displays the 250 million-year-old skull of Saharastega moradiensis, a carnivorous amphibian with a curious past. |
and work, as well as how we view the world. From the creation of the school’s Computer Graphics Lab in 1974 to its modern-day successes in the fields of paleontology, computer security and cardiovascular health, the college supports a diverse range of applications-based research programs that impact millions of people worldwide.
“Research is fundamental to NYIT’s mission,” says Dr. Alexandra Logue, vice president for academic affairs and provost. “An active research environment enriches faculty scholarship and gives students an opportunity to be involved in generating, testing and presenting hypotheses that have real-world impact.”
The Office of Sponsored Programs and Research (OSPAR) provides services for dozens of NYIT research programs by helping to identify funding sources, assisting faculty to develop grant proposals and working with sponsor agencies to manage grant funds.
But obtaining such funding can be difficult. “Grant programs are highly competitive and becoming more so,” says Nicole Banks, director of OSPAR. “It is a significant achievement to have a project selected from among hundreds of others for funding, and demonstrates that our research is cutting-edge.”
She adds that grant-funding is both an art and a science, requiring time and perseverance. “The main criterion for getting funded is innovation – approaching a problem or proposing a solution in a unique way.”
PERMIAN PARK
As it so happens, NYIT’s faculty is indeed filled with innovators. One such example is Sidor and his discovery in the Sahara Desert, where the NYCOM professor made the ultimate find – two new species of large, crocodile-like amphibians – Nigerpeton ricqlesi and Saharastega moradiensis. The fossils date back more than 250 million years to the time of the supercontinent Pangea in the Permian period. Until recently, paleontologists envisioned a world populated by prehistoric animals that shared strong similarities as they migrated across the globe.
However, the amphibians unearthed by Sidor were relatives of a species originally thought to have been extinct 90 million years earlier. That these animals evaded extinction raises questions in the world of paleontology as to how they survived and became isolated from the rest of Pangean fauna. “Put simply, it is a discovery that alters the perception of how life was distributed at the time,” says Sidor. “Our view of animals that existed during the Permian period will need to be re-examined as we uncover more incredible finds.”
Sidor’s decision to go digging in the Sahara Desert was based on his familiarity with another discovery in North Africa. In the late 1960s, a team of French paleontologists uncovered evidence of new life – Moradisaurus grandis – a primitive reptile 20 times bigger in size than its closest relatives that were unearthed in Texas. This discovery gave rise to the belief that certain forms of life existed near the center of Pangea – modern-day North Africa – that were not found in other areas of the supercontinent during the Permian period.
Sidor himself added to this mystery with another curious find in 2000. While still a graduate student, he was part of an excavation outside of Arlit, Niger, that led to the discovery of another extinct reptile, Bunostegos akokanensis. This 250 million-year-old pareiasaur – believed to be the ancestor of the modern turtle – bore no resemblance to any pareiasaurs that existed at that time, lending further evidence that all was not what it seemed on the Pangean continent.
Sidor sought to capitalize on these initial discoveries in February 2003 by searching for additional forms of life in central Pangea. Two months later, the paleontologist found what he was looking for.
Defined by its huge teeth, the carnivorous Nigerpeton ricqlesi is thought to be one of the larger amphibians in the local Pangean ecosystem. Its body measures eight feet in length with a skull 26 inches long. Smaller but also carnivorous, Saharastega moradiensis has a body six feet long with a 14-inch skull. “Both are relics of a group normally found in what would now be North America and Europe,” Sidor says.
He notes that additional research must be performed in more temperate regions of the world to determine whether Nigerpeton ricqlesi or Saharastega moradiensis existed beyond the Sahara regions. His plans include prospecting of the Arlit region, a trip to Antarctica to search for younger fossils, a proposal to the National Science Foundation for additional funding, and managing a team of geochemists to analyze the composition and temperature of rocks found near the fossil site (which has the added benefit of validating global Permian climate models).
MAKING DATACENTERS A VIRTUAL REALITY
Computer security is about as far as one can get from prehistoric amphibians, yet a commitment to fostering new technology and improving the way we interface in the workplace has led NYIT to incredible breakthroughs in this field.
Its “datacenter in a box” project has received $785,000 from the Department of the Navy, Office of Naval Research, and led to the creation of NYIT’s Center for Network and Information Security (CNIS). Spearheading this groundbreaking initiative are Drs. Heskia Heskiaoff, Ayat Jafari, Michael Colef and Paul Stirpe.
Through virtual technology, these NYIT professors are exploring the advantages |
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NYIT’s data virtualization team (from left): Dr. Michael Colef, Michael Madigan, Dr. Heskia Heskiaoff, Dr. Paul Stirpe and Dr. Ayat Jafari. |
of storing sensitive computer information in software-controlled environments to enhance security, reduce complexity and lower costs. The idea for this new technology originated from NYIT discussions with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), which sought to improve collaboration and sharing of information among government organizations in a secure and manageable network environment. “In general, the Internet is a very insecure place,” says Heskiaoff. “The NSA is very concerned about terrorist hackers.” He cites that protection against “active and mobile code,” as well as other threats from hackers around the world, is a top priority for various government agencies.
NYIT’s datacenter virtualization project, Stirpe says, uses physical servers to run virtual machines that in turn implement multiple computer systems and networks that make up a datacenter. This has the advantage of consolidating the components of a datacenter to fewer and better-secured physical servers, which means fewer “back doors” for hackers to exploit.
In addition, this virtual streamlining provides a much-needed level of simplicity for unsophisticated users to allow them to maintain more secure environments. Stirpe notes that one of the main reasons security breaches are still prevalent in computer networks is that implementing a high-end, secure computer network is beyond the reach of many smaller and mid-sized organizations.
“With a software-controlled environment that reduces hardware and other complex components, virtual datacenters help less experienced individuals obtain access to a more secure infrastructure,” he says. The cost of maintaining a virtual datacenter is also reduced by using open-source applications (software that is distributed freely and improved upon by previous users).
Perhaps the most impressive feat accomplished by the CNIS is the speed at which virtual technology can be rebuilt; repairing damaged data-bases and general server maintenance often takes a great deal of time for network administrators. “Traditional datacenters can take upwards of three months to rebuild,” says Stirpe. “NYIT’s virtual datacenters can be rebuilt in a few hours.”
In addition, the project directly impacts NYIT students, as it has led the CNIS to create a graduate security degree program, the Master of Science in information, network and computer security. Students pursuing this degree learn all levels of computer security, from network to application layers, with a focus on network protection, intrusion detection and hacker exploits. They enjoy a “virtual playground” where they can train alongside professors who provide examples of how network and security issues function in a virtual datacenter environment. In addition, the technology allows students to access the datacenter from any location using operating systems, such as Windows and Linux.
To further the datacenter virtualization project, Heskiaoff and his team are preparing another grant proposal. In addition, his plan calls for hiring more professors with backgrounds in computer network and software security.
“Our goal is to become a major resource for computer security education and research, lead collaborative activities with industry leaders, and become a center of excellence for computer security in the New York metropolitan area,” says Heskiaoff.
THE MILLION DOLLAR MAN
NYIT’s research programs are also committed to improving the well-being of the greater global community. Nowhere is this better exemplified than through the heart research conducted by Dr. Han-Gang Yu, associate professor of physiology at NYCOM. By analyzing the behavior of hyperpolarization-activated, cyclic nucleotide-modulated (HCN) protein channels – a major component in the normal pacing of the human heart – Yu is leading the way in the exploration of gene therapy as it relates to cardiovascular disease, including the development of a “biological pacemaker.”
So vital is this research to improving the state of cardiovascular health that in February 2005, Yu received a $1.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Heart disease remains a top killer worldwide and is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, according to the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. It is estimated that direct and indirect cardiovascular disease costs, including health care services, medications and lost productivity, will reach $393 billion in 2005, up from $368 billion in 2004, according to the American Heart Association. By comparison, the estimated cost of all cancers in 2004 was $190 billion.
Specifically, the grant gives Yu the tools to examine the behavior of HCN proteins in vitro and understand how “[they] are regulated by other intracellular proteins that may physically attach to them.” This will determine how to |
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Dr. Han-Gang Yu, assistant professor of physiology at NYCOM, is leading the way in the exploration of gene therapy as it relates to cardiovascular disease, including the development of a “biological pacemaker.” So vital is this research that Yu recently received a $1.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. |
distribute these natural proteins through a biological pacemaker to help patients with irregular heart functions.
Yu’s grant approval is no small feat, given the extensive preparation required for such government funding. Yu spent five years testing his hypothesis, making modifications when needed, before submitting his proposal to the NIH. A peer-review panel consisting of 20 heart health experts evaluated his research before granting approval. The NYCOM professor had to convince them he could achieve his goals within a four-year period, as well as demonstrate the significance of his research on the future of cardiovascular health. Add to this the countless other scientists pursuing similar grants for the highly competitive heart research market, and Yu’s accomplishment becomes more apparent.
Biological pacemakers allow the heart to beat naturally in accordance with differing situations, thus enhancing quality of life for millions of adults and children. The device stimulates the release of HCN proteins into the cardio chambers more effectively, allowing the heart to pace itself naturally – no batteries required. In effect, “the biological pacemaker literally becomes part of the heart,” says Yu. He believes the first biological pacemakers will be unveiled to the public in five years.
The advantages of this new technology are evident when compared to the existing limitations of current pacemakers that use a battery-charged electric pulse to force the heart to beat at a predetermined rhythm. As such, they are unable to fully compensate for emotional responses or physical activities, generally leading to discomfort.
Yu believes that his project and the dozens of other research programs at NYIT are vital to the college’s reputation. “All great schools perform quality research that has an impact on the real world,” he says. “This will continue to attract good students as well as professors who are leading experts in their fields.”
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