Please click on the links below to learn more about our activities including Vibes and Waves as well as Courses taught by our Faculty.

Please click on the plus signs below to access the news by year and topic.

  • Presentations at the 183rd Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America - Nashville, Tenn., December 2022
    • Thompson co-chairs Acoustofluidics Sesssion
    • C. Thompson, M. Denis and K. Chandra, ‘Acoustic streaming in a channel,’ 1aPA5, in Acoustofluidics Session.
    • C. Thompson, S. Kamal, N. Shah, and K. Chandra, ‘Acoustic wave propagation in a toroid cavity carrying a steady flow,’ 4aPAb4, in General Topics in Physical Acoustics Session.
    • G. Remillard, A. Keefe, N. Le, C. Thompson and K. Chandra, ‘RAMP summer bridge: Room Acoustics: Connecting Research, Academics and Mentoring,’ 4pED6, in Connecting Industry and Education Session.

  • Future of Work with Augmented Reality: CACT Hosts Researchers from University of Akron, August 2022
    • Bach Tran, UAkron, trains CACT students on Microsoft Hololens application development. Scenarios are designed for experiments with AR on the conveyor belt physical system.
    • Eight participants conduct AR experiments and take part in participatory action research focus groups with Tripathy.

  • RAMP: Research Academics & Mentoring Pathways (RAMP) 2023 in its fifth year, July - August, 2022
  • ASEE 2022 Annual Conference - Minneapolis, Minn., June 2022
  • ASEE 2022 Northeast Conference - Boston, Mass., April 2022
    • E. Deterding, N. Agyeman, S. Tripathy, C. Keough, S. Lewis and K. Chandra, ‘Inclusive Teamwork: Using Participatory Action Research (PAR) to Improve Teamwork Projects in Intro to Mechanical Engineering,‘ Proc. 2022 Northeast ASEE Conference, 2022.
    • V. Paradorn, S. Singh Poma, N. Agyeman, T. Robinson, K. Chandra and S. Tripathy, ‘An Application Driven Framework for Delivering System and Product Life- Cycle Management Concepts in Engineering Education,’ Proc. 2022 Northeast ASEE Conference, 2022.
    • G. Remillard, S. Kamal, J. An, C. Thompson and K. Chandra, ‘Co-Creating a Cyber-Physical Systems Educational Module: A Project-Based Learning Approach‘, Proc. 2022 Northeast ASEE Conference, 2022.

  • Presentations at 182nd Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America - Denver, Colo., May 2022
    • P. Gandhi, N. Uhunsere, A. Paul, K. Chandra and C. Thompson, ‘Exploiting spatio-temporal spectral features of the indoor acoustic field for sound source localization’, J. Acoustical Society of America, 151, A232, (2022).
    • C. Thompson, K. Chandra, E. Aoki and A. Keefe, ‘Acoustic Streaming in the Cochlea, J. Acoustical Society of America’, 151, A272, (2022).

  • CACT Students complete MS and Ph.D. Theses
    • Emi Aoki completes MS research in EE with thesis on A Statistical Characterization of Covid-19 Infections Considering Population Density, Race and Ethnicity, and Poverty Rate as Covariates, May 2022.
    • Pratik Gandhi completes PhD dissertation on Acoustic Channel Modeling and Source Localization in Indoor Environments, December 2022

  • CACT students enter graduate programs and industry careers.
    Despite a disruptive year with Covid in 2020, CACT students successfully completed Master’s and Doctoral research and graduated in 2021.
    • Lejun Hu earned his Ph.D. defending his thesis on Fault Detection in an Interconnected Water Tank System using a Particle Filter. Hu is currently a senior software engineer at Teleflex Medical Inc.
    • Arielle Joasil defended her MS thesis on Simulating the space-time trajectory of aerosol droplets. Arielle received a GEM graduate fellowship and is pursuing a Ph.D. at Columbia University.
    • Habibat Olimi defended her MS thesis and is currently employed at Intel Corporation as R&D Engineer
    • Flore Stécie Norcéide received her BS degree in Electrical Engineering and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. at UMass Lowell (UML).
    • Sarah Kamal graduated with a BS EE degree and joined the MS program at UML
    • Russ Perkins graduated with a MS EE degree and continues in the PhD program at UML

  • Chandra and Tripathy serve on Deshpande Symposium Panel
    • Engaging Students and Industry: The Co-creation of Inclusive Learning Experiences in Engineering and Entrepreneurship Education: This panel explored two student-centered models for engaging industry professionals with students to promote early learning experiences that address entrepreneurship, teamwork, communication skills and mentorship. The Entrepreneurship Center at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School offers one example of this work in action — the Eship Scholars program — for other institutions that are looking to implement solutions to support high-potential entrepreneurs from traditionally underrepresented, underserved and underfunded backgrounds. The University of Massachusetts Lowell’s Research, Academics & Mentoring Pathways (RAMP) summer bridge program serves as an example of such a program in the field of engineering, with its focus on helping new female students and students of color be better prepared for the transition from high school to an undergraduate engineering degree program. Student participants from these programs will provide an overview of their experiences. The panel highlighted the various models of interaction between students, entrepreneurs and industry leaders that both Eship and RAMP have implemented.

  • ASEE 2021 Paper: Engaging Women Engineering Undergraduates as Peer Facilitators in Participatory Action Research Focus Groups (Tripathy, Chandra, Hsu, Li, Reichlen)
    • Nationally, the percentage of females enrolled in engineering degree pathways in four-year public universities has remained in the 15 – 20% range and that number for females who are also students of color is around 5%. With major efforts and financial resources having been applied to address this problem, there is currently a need to carefully identify and assess strategies and models that have demonstrably contributed to the persistence of women in engineering degree pathways. Among such models are the inclusion of counter spaces in STEM environments for underrepresented groups, peer mentors and mentoring opportunities as well as the students’ own agency in creating environments that promote belonging and success in the program. This study is part of a longitudinal effort that begins with a summer program offered to incoming female students in engineering majors and continues with opportunities and support for the participants to become engaged as peer mentors and focus group facilitators in subsequent years. Using the results of a survey on student experiences in engineering majors administered to all students in their junior and senior years, we analyze the responses from participants in the summer program with those from students who did not have this opportunity. We also analyze the agency of those who have participated in the summer program with respect to their engagement in mentoring, leadership roles and efforts in recruiting students and facilitating focus groups. We also use a participatory action research (PAR) approach to examine how student-driven program evaluation processes can be used to formulate action steps for program change and increase sense of belonging, personal agency, and engineering identity among engineering undergraduates

  • NSF Innovations in Graduate Education Award
  • NSF Future of Work Planning Grant Award
  • NSF S-STEM Award
  • UML Seed Grant for Inclusive Teamwork Design
  • July-August 2021: RAMP Program moves to hybrid mode with twenty new students beginning their engineering education
  • Fall 2021: Campus back to in-person program

  • Covid-19 closes campus in March 2020 and after an extended spring break we settle into virtual classes.

  • ASEE paper on RAMP program (Tripathy, Chandra, Reichlen)
    • Research investigated the application of Participatory Action Research (PAR) for Formative Assessment of the STEM Summer Bridge Program. Student perspectives and experiences were captured through four focus groups on topics geared towards creating psychologically safe spaces for sharing experiences, providing feedback on program activities and reflecting on personal goals, values and aspirations.

Partnerships with Industry and US Air Force

CACT faculty, graduate students and post-doc partner with National Security Information Associates at Oak Ridge, TN on the Command and Control Display Equipment Requirements Specification for the Force Protection / Integrated Base Defense Security System program office in the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Hanscom Air Force Base.

Probability and Random Processes (V. Krishnan with contribution from K. Chandra, Wiley)

This book examines the topics of applied mathematical functions to problems that engineers and researchers solve daily in the course of their work. The text covers set theory, combinatorics, random variables, discrete and continuous probability, distribution functions, convergence of random variables, computer generation of random variates, random processes and stationarity concepts with associated autocovariance and cross covariance functions, estimation theory and Wiener and Kalman filtering ending with two applications of probabilistic methods. Probability tables with nine decimal place accuracy and graphical Fourier transform tables are included for quick reference. The author facilitates understanding of probability concepts for both students and practitioners by presenting over 450 carefully detailed figures and illustrations, and over 350 examples with every step explained clearly and some with multiple solutions. Buy Probability and Random Processes from Amazon.

Linear and Nonlinear Control of Small-Scale Unmanned Helicopters (Raptis and Valavanis, Springer)

Helicopters are underactuated, highly nonlinear systems with significant dynamic coupling that needs to be considered and accounted for, during controller design and implementation. Most reliable mathematical tools for analysis of control systems relate to modern control theory. Modern control techniques are modeled-based since the controller architecture depends on the dynamic representation of the system to be controlled. Therefore, the flight controller design problem is tightly connected with the helicopter modeling.This book provides a step-by-step methodology for designing, evaluating and implementing efficient flight controllers for small-scale helicopters.

Nonlinear Filtering and Smoothing: An Introduction to Martingales, Stochastic Integrals, and Estimation (V. Krishnan, Dover Books)

For graduate students in engineering and finance with basic knowledge of probability theory, this volume is designed to give a concise understanding of martingales, stochastic integrals, and estimation. It emphasizes applications. Many theorems feature heuristic proofs; others include rigorous proofs to reinforce physical understanding. Numerous end-of-chapter problems enhance the book’s practical value.After introducing the basic measure-theoretic concepts of probability and stochastic processes, the text examines martingales, square integrable martingales, and stopping times. Considerations of white noise and white-noise integrals are followed by examinations of stochastic integrals and stochastic differential equations, as well as the associated Ito calculus and its extensions. After defining the Stratonovich integral, the text derives the correction terms needed for computational purposes to convert the Ito stochastic differential equation to the Stratonovich form. Additional chapters contain the derivation of the optimal nonlinear filtering representation, discuss how the Kalman filter stands as a special case of the general nonlinear filtering representation, apply the nonlinear filtering representations to a class of fault-detection problems, and discuss several optimal smoothing representations. Buy Nonlinear Filtering and Smoothing: An Introduction to Martingales, Stochastic Integrals, and Estimation from Amazon.

Linear Systems Properties: A Quick Reference (V. Krishnan, Dover Books)

This pocket book serves as an immediate reference for the various formulae encountered in linear systems, control systems, probability, communication engineering, signal processing, quantum mechanics, and electromagnetic field theory. It includes novel results on complex convolutions; clearly explains real and complex matrix differentiation methods; provides an unusual amount of orthogonal functions; and presents properties of Fourier series, Fourier transforms, Hilbert transforms, Laplace transforms, and z-transforms. Singular value decomposition techniques for matrix inversion are also clearly presented. Buy Linear Systems Properties: A Quick Reference from Amazon.

Group photo of Center for Advanced Computation and Telecommunications (CACT) faculty and students.

CACT faculty and students are engaged in various mentoring activities and programs.

Our students have been involved in many mentoring activities through the years:

Research, Academics and Mentoring Pathways (RAMP) to Success

RAMP was designed to increase the number of students traditionally underrepresented in engineering. The participation of women and people of color in engineering degree programs has remained around 10-15% and 5-10% respectively for several decades nationally and at UML. Summer programs that provide students opportunity to build a community of peers, connect with faculty and staff and gain research and academic skills early on have shown to have a positive impact in recruiting, retention and engagement of students in research and future graduate study. Read more about the RAMP program now in its fourth year and the first cohort expected to graduate in Spring 2022.

Presidential Proclamation — National Mentoring Month

NATIONAL MENTORING MONTH, 2016
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION

At the heart of America’s promise is the belief that we all do better when everyone has a fair shot at reaching for their dreams. Throughout our Nation’s history, Americans of every background have worked to uphold this ideal, joining together in common purpose to serve as mentors and lift up our country’s youth. During National Mentoring Month, we honor all those who continuously strive to provide young people with the resources and support they need and deserve, and we recommit to building a society in which all mentors and mentees can thrive in mutual learning relationships.

By sharing their own stories and offering guidance and advice, mentors can instill a sense of infinite possibility in the hearts and minds of their mentees, demonstrating that with hard work and passion, nothing is beyond their potential. Whether simply offering a compassionate ear or actively teaching and inspiring curiosity, mentors can play pivotal roles in young peoples’ lives. When given a chance to use their talents and abilities to engage in their communities and contribute to our world, our Nation’s youth rise to the challenge. They make significant impacts in their communities and shape a brighter future for coming generations.

My Administration is committed to fostering opportunities for mentorship — because when our children have strong, positive role models to look up to, they grow up to be good neighbors and good fellow citizens. Through the My Brother’s Keeper initiative, we are working with local governments, businesses, and charitable organizations across our country to connect more of our youth to effective mentoring programs and support networks to reinforce the fact that all young people are valued and to empower them with the skills they need to reach their full potential. We have achieved the highest high school graduation rate on record — 82 percent — and we remain focused on setting high standards that will help our students graduate ready for college and careers. In addition, we are supporting job-driven training initiatives like apprenticeships so our doers and dreamers can earn and learn at the same time. And through First Lady Michelle Obama’s Reach Higher initiative, we are working to ensure every student has the opportunity to pursue their education and life goals.

Every young person can benefit from having a mentor, and all people carry unique ideas and experiences they can employ as a mentor. I encourage all Americans to visit www.Serve.gov/Mentor to learn more about opportunities to make a lasting difference in the lives of our youth. This month, let us pledge our support for our Nation’s young people, and let us honor those who give of themselves to uplift our next generation. Working together, we can provide every child with the tools, guidance, and confidence they need to flourish and succeed.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2016 as National Mentoring Month. I call upon public officials, business and community leaders, educators, and Americans across the country to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies, activities, and programs.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fortieth.

National mentor month

Presidential Proclamation — National Mentoring Month

NATIONAL MENTORING MONTH, 2016
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION

At the heart of America’s promise is the belief that we all do better when everyone has a fair shot at reaching for their dreams. Throughout our Nation’s history, Americans of every background have worked to uphold this ideal, joining together in common purpose to serve as mentors and lift up our country’s youth. During National Mentoring Month, we honor all those who continuously strive to provide young people with the resources and support they need and deserve, and we recommit to building a society in which all mentors and mentees can thrive in mutual learning relationships.

By sharing their own stories and offering guidance and advice, mentors can instill a sense of infinite possibility in the hearts and minds of their mentees, demonstrating that with hard work and passion, nothing is beyond their potential. Whether simply offering a compassionate ear or actively teaching and inspiring curiosity, mentors can play pivotal roles in young peoples’ lives. When given a chance to use their talents and abilities to engage in their communities and contribute to our world, our Nation’s youth rise to the challenge. They make significant impacts in their communities and shape a brighter future for coming generations.

My Administration is committed to fostering opportunities for mentorship — because when our children have strong, positive role models to look up to, they grow up to be good neighbors and good fellow citizens. Through the My Brother’s Keeper initiative, we are working with local governments, businesses, and charitable organizations across our country to connect more of our youth to effective mentoring programs and support networks to reinforce the fact that all young people are valued and to empower them with the skills they need to reach their full potential. We have achieved the highest high school graduation rate on record — 82 percent — and we remain focused on setting high standards that will help our students graduate ready for college and careers. In addition, we are supporting job-driven training initiatives like apprenticeships so our doers and dreamers can earn and learn at the same time. And through First Lady Michelle Obama’s Reach Higher initiative, we are working to ensure every student has the opportunity to pursue their education and life goals.

Every young person can benefit from having a mentor, and all people carry unique ideas and experiences they can employ as a mentor. I encourage all Americans to visit www.Serve.gov/Mentor to learn more about opportunities to make a lasting difference in the lives of our youth. This month, let us pledge our support for our Nation’s young people, and let us honor those who give of themselves to uplift our next generation. Working together, we can provide every child with the tools, guidance, and confidence they need to flourish and succeed.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2016 as National Mentoring Month. I call upon public officials, business and community leaders, educators, and Americans across the country to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies, activities, and programs.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fortieth.

Mentoring Tomorrow's STEM Innovators NSF

February 6, 2014 at 11:04 AM ET by Fae Jencks & Maria Zacharias

Summary:

Last week, marking the close of National Mentoring Month in January, the National Science Foundation hosted a Google+ Hangout that convened past winners Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM)—bestowed by the President each year upon extraordinary Americans who are guiding and shaping the next generation of STEM innovators.

Barbara Deschamp considers herself one of the lucky ones. When asked what advice she would pass on to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students looking for a mentor, she said: “I’m actually lucky because my mentor found me!” Barbara was mentored by one of a select cohort of past winners of a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM)—bestowed by the President upon extraordinary Americans who are guiding and shaping the next generation of STEM innovators through mentorship.

Last week, marking the close of National Mentoring Month in January, the National Science Foundation (NSF) hosted a Google+ Hangout that convened past PAESMEM winners to share ideas and best practices for engaging students from underrepresented groups in STEM fields.

In addition to Barbara, who is a Ph.D. candidate in the Electrical and Computer Engineering program at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and her mentor, Charles Thompson, the Hangout invited NSF and OSTP officials and other past PAESMEM winners to tell their own mentorship stories, including Frank Bayliss of San Francisco State University’s Department of Biology; Sheryl Burgstahler of the University of Washington’s College of Education; and Lesia Crumpton-Young from the University of Central Florida’s Department of Engineering.

These all-star STEM mentors discussed the experiences that shaped their careers, and how they are paying it forward by providing mentorship to their own students.

Frank Bayliss, for example, was the first in his family to attend college, let alone pursue a PhD. He likened his experience to “going into a jungle without a machete, without a compass, no water filter, no idea what I was doing and getting lost.” He then explained, “mentoring is kind of like being a guide,” and along with the other participants emphasized the necessity of mentorship in helping students, especially those from underrepresented communities, navigate the many steps and phases of pursuing a career in STEM fields. As NSF Assistant Director Joan Ferrini-Mundy—who leads the agency’s Education and Human Resources Directorate—pointed out, research in this area has provided evidence that mentoring is, in fact, a key part of keeping diverse students engaged.

The panelists also provided practical advice for future mentors, noting that the most effective mentors are more than just advisors –but also show personal interest in their students, guiding them through expected and unexpected challenges and helping them navigate toward degrees and careers that are the right fit. Good mentors provide guidance on a range of issues, from identifying a research topic, to developing a study plan, to finding internship opportunities. This kind of support can be invaluable to students who are the first in their families to attend college, students with disabilities, and students who may feel discouraged from pursuing STEM studies.

These mentors—who are at once teachers, guides, tutors, sounding boards, counselors, and role models—are critical to ensuring that the Nation’s students have the support they need to become tomorrow’s STEM innovators. That’s why President Obama has called on the U.S. Government’s 200,000 Federal scientists and engineers to volunteer as mentors and why he has encouraged new partnerships such as the US2020 initiative—which encourages tech companies and education nonprofits to mobilize 20 percent of their STEM employees to complete 20 hours of STEM mentoring per year, by the year 2020.

We applaud STEM mentors across the country who continue to answer the President’s call every day, by serving as role models for the next generation of scientists and engineers.

Building a Network of Leaders: AT&T and Lucent Technologies

Building a Network of Leaders in STEM

AT&T and Lucent Bell Laboratories celebrates the 30th anniversary of their sponsorship of Ph.D. fellowship programs for under-represented minorities and women in science and engineering on October 28, 2002. Over the past 30 years, 498 students have received support and mentoring from the AT&T Labs Research Fellowship Program (ALFP), and Lucent Cooperative Research Fellowship Program (CRFP) and Graduate Research Fellowship Program for Women (GRPW). The Ph.D. completion rate is 74%, with 86% of students completing at least a Master’s degree, thus placing these programs among the premier graduate fellowship programs in the United States.

Our graduates hold top positions in industry and academia. Some are founders of companies while others hold executive positions. Approximately 30% of our graduates are professors, deans, and administrators at 70 universities throughout the States. These individuals continue sharing their knowledge and commitment to developing and mentoring students for the future. The breadth and scope of the positions held by the programs’ graduates reflect the leadership roles they play across their professions.

The AT&T Labs were recognized and granted the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring, and the Women in Engineering Programs and Advocates Network ( WEPAN ) Breakthrough Award in 1998. The GRPW also received the Maria Mitchell Women in Science Award in 1999.