Toma Discusses Jockey Helmet Research in The Paulick Report

Sep 14, 2018

Milan Toma, Ph.D., assistant professor of Mechanical Engineering, was featured in an interview with The Paulick Report, a publication targeting the horseracing community. Toma discusses his research, which was funded in part by a $15,000 donation from the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, and his plan to apply his knowledge of fluid movement in the body to testing helmets currently on the racetrack. Toma, who has engineered computer simulation models of jockey falls, said there are lots of models aimed at replicating the movement of the brain during head trauma, but few are as complete as the one he has created.

“When you look at existing brain models out there, none of them looks at the interaction between the fluid that surrounds the brain and the brain,” he said. “They all neglect the fluid because it's very expensive to include it.”

 

Kutasovic Gives Perspective on the Economy

Sep 13, 2018

Paul R. Kutasovic, Ph.D., a specialist in finance and economics in NYIT School of Management, provides his thoughts about state tax revenues in a story for Yahoo Finance.

The story examines states’ “rainy day funds” given the current economy. “Last year was a perfect storm of good news in the revenue side,” Kutasovic says. “We now have a pretty good job market, income tax collection is strong, sales tax collection is strong and property taxes are rebounding with housing prices and oil prices much higher.”

The article also cites Kutasovic on cash reserves in states that depend on oil revenues. “They have to put more aside," he explains, "in case oil prices go down again.”

 

Gibb Poses Solution to Antibacterial Resistance in Salon Op-Ed

Sep 09, 2018

In an op-ed published in Salon, Bryan Gibb, Ph.D., assistant professor of life sciences, proposes a solution to drug-resistant bacteria: viruses. As Gibb mentions, this year, approximately 700,000 people worldwide, including 23,000 Americans, will be killed by “superbugs,” disease-causing bacteria that can’t be killed by antibiotics. Gibb recommends researchers and the U.S. government dedicate resources to new treatments like bacteriophage therapy. He states:

“It may seem absurd to fight disease with viruses, but phages are already working wonders in some parts of the world. Doctors in the Republic of Georgia and Poland have used them for decades.”

Phages, which quickly evolve just like the mutating bacteria they fight, have a major edge over antibiotics, but their flexible nature also makes phages difficult to evaluate in a traditional clinical trial setting. To overcome this obstacle, Gibb recommends a separate FDA approval track for phage therapy.

 

News Coverage Highlights NYIT's Milestone Ph.D. Program

Sep 07, 2018

As seen in InnovateLI, Inside HigherEd, and Long Island Business News, NYIT launched its first Ph.D. program, a combined Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.)/Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Medical and Biological Sciences to be available in the 2019-2020 academic year.

“This is a landmark moment for NYIT,” said NYIT President Henry C. “Hank” Foley, Ph.D. “It is a great opportunity for faculty to train new generations of clinical physicians who are fully invested in research that will advance medical science.”

 

Nutrition Expert Questions Findings of Cholesterol Study in Healthline Article

Sep 05, 2018

Mindy Haar, Ph.D., assistant dean of Undergraduate Affairs and associate professor, NYIT School of Health Professions, was quoted in a Healthline article regarding whether too much “good cholesterol” is bad for patients. In the story, Haar questions the findings of a recent study that claims people with too little or too much HDL cholesterol can have a higher risk of heart disease. She states:

“Although this research found a relationship between elevated HDL levels and heart attack risk, the findings indicate that this relationship is not necessarily a causative one but suggests the two occur together in a significant number of people. The bottom line is that this research, at this point, doesn’t change recommendations for healthy eating. We don’t consume LDL or HDL cholesterol. These substances are created in the body.”

 

InnovateLI Features NSF Grant for STEM Innovation

Sep 04, 2018

As seen in an InnovateLI article, NYIT researchers, led by Simone Hoffmann, Ph.D., assistant professor of anatomy, NYITCOM, have secured a grant from the National Science Foundation. The grant will fund the acquisition of a micro-computed tomography machine, a high-tech scanner that reveals internal details of objects on the microscopic level, without dissecting the objects being studied. As noted in the article, the micro-CT scanner will be available free of charge to faculty and student researchers from NYIT and other institutions – making NYIT one of very few places on or near Long Island to offer micro-CT scanning capabilities without a fee.

“As a researcher, it’s very difficult to complete your study when each scan comes with a substantial price tag,” Hoffmann said. “Increased accessibility to this technology will help establish NYIT as a central research facility on Long Island and nurture innovative research in biology, paleontology, nanotechnology, engineering and life sciences.”

 

NYITCOM Diabetes Expert Quoted in Everyday Health

Aug 29, 2018

NYITCOM's Patricia Happel, D.O., assistant professor of Family Medicine and associate medical director of the Academic Health Care Center, lent her diabetes and weight management expertise for an Everyday Health article. In the story, Happel addresses the ways that patients can take back control from, and in some cases, reverse type 2 diabetes. She states:

“A lot of times patients think it's a futile effort, like whatever they do is not going to matter. What I try to do is empower them and educate them about what they can do to manage it, and hopefully, reverse it.”

As she goes on to explain, if your A1C hemoglobin levels are below 8.0, you may have a chance of returning to a normal blood sugar level, provided you make and maintain healthier eating, exercise, and lifestyle habits. As the A1C increases, it is harder to return to a normal blood sugar level without medical intervention.

 

InnovateLI Showcases NYIT Climate Change Research

Aug 22, 2018

InnovateLI has announced a multinational project in which NYIT faculty members are playing a major role, with more than $300,000 promised by the U.S. National Science Foundation. The project, IN-SOURCE, is shared by NYIT, CUNY, and institutions and organizations in Germany and Austria, and its total budget is more than $1.7 million. Its purpose is to develop a data modeling tool to help policymakers forecast the effects on urban infrastructure of extreme weather conditions, which are increasing with the rise of sea level worldwide. It is due to be completed in 2021.

The article cites Principal Investigator and NYIT Associate Professor Ziqian (Cecilia) Dong, who says, “Damage from flooding has already increased noticeably in many coastal regions. Decision-makers need help gathering and interpreting data to allow meaningful, practical interventions as soon as possible.”

Other NYIT researchers working on the project are Nada M. Anid, Ph.D., vice president for Strategic Communications and External Affairs; Marta Panero, Ph.D., executive director of External Affairs; and Jeffrey Raven, FAIA, LEED BD+C, associate professor and director of the graduate program in Urban and Regional Design.

 

Strategic Messaging Staff Members Cited at ManagingEditor.com

Aug 15, 2018

NYIT Strategic Messaging's Special Communications Strategist Michael Schiavetta and Editorial Director Julie Godsoe share advice for an article at ManagingEditor.com about how professional writers can continue to improve their writing.

Schiavetta tells writers to “read, read, read” to understand their various audiences. “Read books — nonfiction and fiction — magazines, poetry, short stories, even websites with good long-form writing,” says Schiavetta.

Godsoe recommends using storytelling techniques across genres. She also likes to “put readers in the moment” using details. “Sensory details — from descriptions of setting to the smells that make a place distinct or even what an interview subject is wearing — can take even a short news item from drab to fab,” she says.

 

Koenig Cited in The Washington Post

Aug 14, 2018

Robert Koenig, associate professor of hospitality studies and associate dean of the School of Management, offers his expertise in a Washington Post story about what people take away from their hotel rooms. Koenig tells the Post, “Many hotels experience guests taking an unusually high amount of [toiletry] items throughout their stay, reasoning that they paid for these items in the cost of the room.” When this happens, he says, hotels’ operating costs increase.

A hotel room’s “branded glassware, TV remote controls, pillows, hair dryers, clock radios, VCRs and plants” are clearly not supposed to be taken away by guests, notes Koenig. When these items disappear, the guest will usually be charged.