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Left to right, Philip Nilson, Alex Chin, Suxing Hu, and graduate student David Bishel (inset) contributed to research to better understand how plasmas emit or absorb radiation. (ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ photo / Eugene Kowaluk) Background: a NASA image of plasma bursting from the sun.

How does radiation travel through dense plasma?

Understanding how atoms react under extreme pressure conditionsÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”a field known as high-energy-density physicsÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”gives scientists valuable insights into planetary science, astrophysics, and fusion energy. One important question in this field is how plasmas emit or absorb radiation. Current models depicting radiation transport in dense plasmas are heavily based on theory rather than experimental evidence.

In a paper published in , researchers led by Suxing Hu, a distinguished scientist and group leader of the High Energy Density Physics Theory group at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE), and Philip Nilson, a senior scientist in the LLEÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s Laser-Plasma Interaction group, used LLEÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s OMEGA laser to study how radiation travels through dense plasma. The research provides first-of-its-kind experimental data about the behavior of atoms at extreme conditions. The data will be used to improve plasma models, which allow scientists to better understand the evolution of stars and may aid in the realization of controlled nuclear fusion as an alternative energy source.

ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œExperiments using laser-driven implosions on OMEGA have created extreme matter at pressures several billion times the atmospheric pressure at EarthÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s surface for us to probe how atoms and molecules behave at such extreme conditions,ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� says Hu, who is also an associate professor of mechanical engineering. ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œThese conditions correspond to the conditions inside the so-called envelope of white dwarf stars as well as inertial fusion targets.ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� Learn more.


Clear benefits from new AlzheimerÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s drug

Detailed results from a clinical trial involving lecanemab, an experimental drug for AlzheimerÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s, indicate the drug is effective in slowing cognitive decline for some patients with the disease, potentially representing the first significant treatment advance in decades. The findings were published recently in the .

ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œGiven the benefits seen with lecanemab, I expect the Food and Drug Administration to grant ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½˜accelerated approvalÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™ in early 2023,ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� says Anton Porsteinsson, who leads the Medical CenterÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s (AD-CARE), and has been involved in more than 200 clinical studies for AlzheimerÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s disease since 1986. ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œThis will allow the drug to be administered to a limited number of patients participating in a registry study and the agency will most likely give full approval based on clinical benefit in about 9 months. While this medication is not for everyone with AlzheimerÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s disease it represents a significant firstÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”a disease modifying treatment with undisputable evidence of clinical efficacy.”

about the challenges involved in treating the disease in this Q&A with Mark Michaud.


Cities on asteroids? It could workÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”in theory

Illustration of theoretical cities on an asteroid

In what they deem a ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œwildly theoreticalÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� paper, Rochester researchers imagine covering an asteroid in a flexible, mesh bag made of ultralight and high-strength carbon nanofibers as the key to creating human cities in space. (ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ illustration / Michael Osadciw)

According to new research from University scientists, our future may lie in asteroids.

In what they deem a ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œwildly theoreticalÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� published in the journal Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences, the researchers, including Adam Frank, the Helen F. and Fred H. Gowen Professor of Physics and Astronomy, and Peter MiklavÄ�iÄ�, a PhD candidate in mechanical engineering and the paperÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s first author, outline a plan for creating large cities on near-earth asteroids.

ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œOur paper lives on the edge of science and science fiction,ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� Frank says. ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œWeÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™re taking a science fiction idea that has been very popular recentlyÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”in TV shows like AmazonÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s The ExpanseÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”and offering a new path for using an asteroid to build a city in space.ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½�

In 1972 NASA commissioned physicist Gerard OÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™Neill to design a space habitat that could feasibly allow humans to live in space. OÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™Neill and his colleagues worked out a plan for ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½œOÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™Neill cylinders,ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½� spinning space metropolises consisting of two cylinders rotating in opposite directions, with a rod connecting the cylinders at each end. The cylinders would rotate fast enough to provide artificial gravity on their inner surface but slow enough that people living in them would not experience motion sickness.

However, getting the necessary building supplies from Earth to space to create the OÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™Neill cylinders would be difficult and cost prohibitive.

Rochester researchers came up with this intriguing possibility: Covering an asteroidÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”which is often a pile of rubbleÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½” in a very large flexible, mesh bag made of ultralight and high-strength carbon nanofibers that would envelope and support the entire spinning mass of the asteroidÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½™s rubble and the habitat within, while also supporting its own weight as it spins. Learn more.


A new ecosystem to help musicians make a living with their art

There is a growing demand for digital music content, including music for film, television, games, and advertising, as well as the traditional recorded music market. AI (artificial intelligence)-powered tools have the potential to enable musicians to create digital music products on their own and at a very low cost in ways that are not yet possible. By eliminating their dependence on centralized music production, musicians will achieve greater creative freedom and reach larger audiences while increasing their chances of making a living with their art.

A multidisciplinary team of University researchers have received a $1.8M grant award from the National Science Foundation Future of Work at the Human-Technology Frontier program, to help musicians achieve these goals by:

  • Creating an open-access framework enabling musicians and AI researchers to collaborate in developing new music production solutions, which will run on Audacity (an open-source and free DAW that more than two million people have used to date).
  • Understanding both advances and challenges that may arise from using AI for music production.
  • Providing new learning opportunities to empower current and future musicians to utilize technology better.

Five principal investigators lead the teamÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½”Raffaella Borasi (Warner School of Education), Rachel Roberts (Eastman School of Music, Institute for Music Leadership), Zhiyao Duan (Hajim School of Engineering & Applied Sciences), Jonathan Herington (School of Arts & Sciences), and Bryan Pardo (McCormick School of Engineering at Northwestern University). This grant marks the first sizable NSF-funded research project with deep collaboration between Eastman, Hajim, AS&E, and Warner.Ìý .


PhD dissertation defenses

Corinna Hill, history, 9 a.m. today, December 16, 2022, Humanities Center Conference Room D.
Paternalistically Yours: A Historical Study of Five Friendships between Deaf and Hearing Americans from 1840-1920.
Advisor: Thomas Slaughter.

Stephen Roessner, electrical engineering, 10 a.m. today, December 16, 2022, 601 Computer Studies Building.
Non-Linear Characteristics and Subjective Listening Studies of Flat-Panel Loudspeakers.
Advisors: Mark Bocko and Michael Heilemann.

Georgiy Platonov, computer science, 11 a.m. today, December 16, 2022, 3201 Wegmans Hall.
On Cognitively Informed Models for Spatial Relations.
Advisor: Lenhart Shubert.

Yu Gu, chemistry, 1 p.m. today, December 16, 2022, 473 Hutchison Hall.
Design and Development of Macrocyclic Peptide Agents and Macrocycle-Antibody Fusions for Targeting Protein Interfaces.
Advisor: Rudi Fasan.

Jie Zhou, computer science, 1 p.m. today, December 16, 2022, 2506 Wegmans Hall.
Retrofit Memory Safety to Low-Level Software Incrementally.
Advisor: John Criswell.

Mackenzie Palmer, environmental medicine, 10 a.m. Monday, December 19, 2022, AM K207, School of Medicine and Dentistry.
The Role of Lactate in Macrophage Polarization in Radiation-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis.
Advisor: Jacob N. Finkelstein.

Phong Nguyen, biomedical engineering, Wednesday, December 21, 2022.
Determining the Effects of Recombinant Lysyl Oxidase on Tendon Mechanical Properties and Cell Behaviors.
Advisors: Catherine Kuo and Mark Buckley.


Travel insurance update for researchers

The University is now partnering with a new travel insurance provider, one of the many important international travel and security resources available to researchers through the Office for Global Engagement.

Faculty are strongly encouraged to register in advance of any university-sponsored or supported international travel. For full details on registration, coverage, and assistive resources, click here.


Population Health Research Postdoctoral Fellowship

Interested in population health research? Take your career to the next level with the Population Health Research Postdoctoral Fellowship offered by the University’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute (UR CTSI).

With an individual development plan, the program is customized to your goals. Over the course of one year, you will develop and complete a population health research project with the guidance of an interdisciplinary team of mentors.

Apply by Tuesday, January 31 for funding beginning July 1, 2023. .


Enjoy the holidays!

The next issue of Research Connections will be January 6.



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Rochester Connections is a weekly e-newsletter all faculty, scientists, post docs and graduate students engaged in research at the University of Rochester. You are receiving this e-newsletter because you are a member of the Rochester community with an interest in research topics.