SIU Research Park

August 24, 2022

SIU research team wins $1.33M NSF grant to train sustainability-focused geoscientists

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Sustainability is for everyone, and a Southern Illinois University Carbondale research team is creating a scholarship program aimed at bringing that mindset together with science and engineering training to target low-income transfer students who will become the next generation of geoscientists.

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August 17, 2022

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Two faculty members from Southern Illinois University Carbondale today (Aug. 17) received statewide awards for innovation at the 2022 STEAM Expo at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield.

SIU nominated Scott D. Hamilton-Brehm and Lahiru Jayakody for the 2022 Illinois Innovation Network awards. The two Innovators of the Year are faculty in the School of Biological Sciences. Hamilton-Brehm won the award for his work with the environment and water, while Jayakody was honored for his work in food and agriculture.  

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April 19, 2022

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. – A team of scientists from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and one of its private spin-off companies is among the roughly top 10% worldwide of groups vying for $1 million awards aimed at mitigating excess carbon in the environment.

The Elon Musk Foundation today (April 19) announced it has placed Carbon Down Under, a team largely made up of SIU faculty and researchers, in the top 60 applicants out of some 500 worldwide for its XPRIZE Carbon Removal challenge. The advancement puts the team in position to be among the 15 winners announced on Earth Day, April 22, that will win a $1 million, phase 1 award.

“What we’re trying to do is get out in front of the world and let them know we have a really viable plan that could make a big difference,” said Ken Anderson, founder of team sponsor Thermaquatica Inc.. “We think our Carbon Down Under technology can go a long way in helping us correct some of the mistakes of the past.”

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April 14, 2022

Saluki Pride: Arash Komaee works to unlock next generation of surgical robotic tools

by Tim Crosby

Ensconced in a laboratory packed with high-tech equipment, SIU Carbondale’s Arash Komaee is working on technology that might result in a new generation of surgical instruments. His efforts may someday lead, for example, to physicians using magnetize tools that can safely be operated inside a patient’s body using sufficiently strong magnets outside the body.

Komaee’s work, funded by a CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation, seeks to develop magnetic manipulators to be used in noninvasive medical, biomedical and nanotechnology applications.

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April 04, 2022

SIU researcher seeks more efficient ways to make stronger structural materials

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Sabrina Nilufar’s research involves sandwiches, but not the kind you eat.

Instead, the Southern Illinois University Carbondale researcher hopes to improve the ultra-strong “sandwich” materials hidden within the sleek, smooth and shiny car panels and airplane wings that we trust with our lives.

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February 21, 2022

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. — The appearance of oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere some 600 million years ago was one of the most radical events in the planet’s history. Now, a researcher from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, using massive databases and careful mathematical analysis, is pulling back the veil on what this process can tell us about the way the planet changes.

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Illinois Top State for Startup Creation in the Midwest in 2021, 6th Highest Nationally; Illinois is the Largest State to Rank in the Top Ten for Startup Growth in the Nation

SPRINGFIELD – Governor Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) today highlighted recently-released data from the Business Formation Statistics Report that shows Illinois is leading the Midwest, and is among the top ten states nationally, in business startups - in addition to reaching the highest recorded number of business startups.

Highlights include:

Illinois Highlights:

-  In 2021, 198,827 business startups were created in Illinois, which is an increase from 170,400 in 2020
-  In 2021, Illinois recorded its highest-ever number of business startups since the data was first reported in 2004.
-  Illinois has 69 percent more business startups in 2021 compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019 (198,827 compared to 117,392). From 2019 to 2020 there was also a 45 percent increase in business startups 117,392 to 170,400).

Regional Highlights:

-  In 2021, Illinois had the highest number of business startups in the Midwest (as defined by the Census bureau), with 44,000 more business startups than the closest ranked state (Ohio, 154,818).
-  Illinois also had the highest growth in business startups (69 percent) in the Midwest between 2019-2021.

National Highlights:

-  In 2021, Illinois had the 6th highest number of business startups in 2021 (behind FL, CA, NY, TX, & GA).
-  Illinois ranks eighth in the nation in business startup growth, from pre-pandemic levels in 2019 to 2021 (behind MS, GA, SC, LA, AL, WY, DE); it is the largest state to rank in the top ten for growth in the nation.     
-  This rate of growth in business startups from pre-pandemic levels in 2019 to 2021 is the 8th-highest in the country, highest in the Midwest, and 2nd-highest among the 20 largest states (behind Georgia).

“Illinois’ prowess in attracting and growing new businesses is a testament to the power of a state that balances its budgets, provides fiscal stability for entrepreneurs, supports families, and builds a firewall around the rights of the people who call her home,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “With yet another record-breaking year under our belt, Illinois kicks off 2022 with a message for the world: we’re back and open for business.”

“Governor Pritzker has prioritized Illinois’ workforce and economy – and it shows: businesses in Illinois are launching in record numbers,” said Sylvia I. Garcia, Acting DCEO Director. “From innovative tax incentives for new businesses, to small business centers designed to support up-and-coming entrepreneurs, Illinois remains committed to investing in proven programs that spur innovation, create jobs and boost our economy.” 

Governor Pritzker's 5-year plan for economic growth offers a blueprint for creating jobs, boosting investment in underserved communities, and leveraging growth in regional industry clusters. Key programs that support business growth include:

• Advantage Illinois: Advantage Illinois is designed to enable small businesses to obtain medium to long-term financing, in the form of low-interest loans.
• Angel Tax Credits: Angel tax credits encourage investment in innovative, early-stage companies to help companies obtain the working capital needed to further the growth of their company in Illinois. Investors in new companies can receive a state tax credit equal to 25% of their investment (up to $2 million).
• Illinois Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs): Through SBCDs small businesses receive technical assistance and other support, including helping entrepreneurs looking to launch new businesses.
• Economic Development for a Growing Economy (EDGE) program: Illinois’ EDGE program provides annual corporate tax credits to qualifying businesses which support job creation, capital investment and improve the standard of living for all Illinois residents.

For more information on the ways in which DCEO supports small businesses and startups in Illinois, please visit DCEO's website.

There are many women who have found success in scientific fields despite the challenges. Here is a small representation (or sample size, in scientific jargon) of women working in science in Southern Illinois. 

Featured are

• Marjorie Brooks (SIU Department of Zoology)
• Maureen Doran (Saffron Scientific Histology Services at the SIU Research Park)
• Mary Kinsel (SIU School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences)
• Liliana Lefticariu (SIU Geology)
• Dawn Grisley (Saffron Scientific Histology Services at the SIU Research Park)

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January 26, 2022

SIU student team makes finals in DOE’s solar power competition

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. – A team of students from Southern Illinois University Carbondale is among the finalists in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar District Cup Collegiate Design Competition.

Competitors will design systems that integrate solar, storage and other technologies for a real-world district or campus, developing skills essential for clean energy. The ultimate goal of the competition is to design a solar power system for The Ohio State University’s medical campus that maximizes energy offset and financial savings over the design’s life, said Nelson Fernandes, a senior in mechanical engineering and project manager for the SIU Solar District Cup Team from Skokie.

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January 18, 2022

SIU doctoral student’s work results in major awards

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. – A doctoral student in Environmental Resources and Policy at Southern Illinois University Carbondale recently won two major awards.

Amina Naliaka won a North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NC-SARE) grant. The highly competitive grant will fund her dissertation work on a project titled “A socio-hydrological framework for assessing groundwater sustainability in an irrigated agricultural landscape.”

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December 07, 2021

Innovation, entrepreneurial spirit highlight 2021 showcase

by Christi Mathis

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Creativity and development throughout the region were highlighted at the 2021 Innovation and Entrepreneurship Showcase at Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Dunn-Richmond Economic Development Center on Dec. 2.

The event recognized some of the university’s and region’s innovators and entrepreneurs, along with projects by student entrepreneurs.

Business plan winners announced

The inaugural Regions Bank Business Plan Competition was established to help advance small business development in Southern Illinois.  The 16 completed competition submissions featured a strong representation of technology-focused innovations, traditional business concepts and product development ideas, according to organizers.

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by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. — A team of two Southern Illinois University Carbondale graduate students and a faculty member are among only 23 teams in the world to win the XPRIZE Carbon Removal challenge funded by Elon Musk and the Musk Foundation, officials announced today.

Jennifer Pierce, Tia Zimmerman, and Scott Hamilton-Brehm, assistant professor of microbiology, are working on a system that would liquefy everyday waste biomass – everything from grass clippings to scrap vegetables – for injection into underground voids, such as empty oil reservoirs. Once underground, their plan calls for hungry microbes to consume the carbon-rich liquid and sequester it, preventing it from re-entering the atmosphere where it could contribute to climate change.

The SIU team, “Carbon Down Under,” and the 22 other winning teams – all of them led by students – were announced today at the COP26 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Scotland. XPRIZE Carbon Removal is aimed at finding working technologies to fight climate change and rebalance Earth’s climate cycle. The $100 million contest is the largest incentive prize in history.

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October 21, 2021

SIU researchers aim to turn trash from coffee, tea into biodegradable plastic treasure

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. — They’re a big problem, single-use plastics. They’re popular, cheap, one of the most common trash and landfill items, and they don’t recycle very well. Researchers at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, however, are working on promising technologies that could bring a molecular-level, sustainable solution to the table while still making it easy to enjoy your favorite beverages. All we have to do is keep drinking coffee and tea.

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August 25, 2021

SIU engineering professor uses NIH grant to probe how stem cells become specific tissue

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. — When you receive an injury to your body, stem cells come to the rescue. Now, a Southern Illinois University Carbondale researcher will use a grant to study ways to create and direct massive numbers of stem cells to speed healing, even when the injury is beyond the body’s typical ability to heal itself naturally.

Farhan Chowdhury, associate professor of mechanical engineering and energy processes, recently received a $442,500 grant from the National Institutes of Health. He will use it to study ways to meet an engineering challenge: creating lab-grown stem cells for specific types of body cells, such as heart, skin, or other organ tissue.
 
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SI Now, a Southern Illinois Success Initiative, is officially underway and serves as a regional economic development hub and unified voice for the 17 southern counties in Illinois to advance our region as a great place to live, work, and do business. 

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July 08, 2021

SIU student wildlife biologist researches how coyotes’ and bobcats’ travels impact ecosystem

by Tim Crosby

CARBONDALE, Ill. — You’d probably be surprised just how far a coyote or bobcat will go for a steady supply of good food and habitat, says a graduate researcher at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

The occasional cougar or bear sighted in the Southern Illinois area notwithstanding, coyotes and bobcats are pretty much the apex wildlife predators in Illinois. The four-legged hunters like to sink their fangs into just about anything, be it feathered or furry, while living everywhere from farm fields, to city neighborhoods and college campuses to the deep, dark woods of the state’s national forests and state parks.

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In this report, you'll find the results of a February 2021 survey regarding the economic impact of COVID-19 on southern Illinois businesses. This is a follow up to the initial survey conducted in 2020 and compares the impact across time and industry.  The summarized results present a snapshot of the southern Illinois region as reported through businesses in five counties: Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Perry, and Williamson.

The Illinois Small Business Development Center at SIU in collaboration with regional partners use the survey results as a guide to better assist the region's businesses and provide services and resources in response to the challenges presented.

The Strategic Planning Report Presentation for the World Shooting and Recreational Complex, and Pyramid State Recreation Area, was held on Monday, August, 5, 2019 at 4:00 p.m. at the World Shooting and Recreational Complex’s Main Event Center.   An electronic version of each report is linked below.

Strategic Planning Report (electronic PDF version)

• Pyramid State Recreation Area
• World Shooting and Recreational Complex 

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Several Southern Illinois University Carbondale students are participating in a unique program designed to help them become more innovative, creative and entrepreneurial and to foster those traits in fellow students.

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Life: You find it in the darnedest places, and in all its weird glory.

Now the challenge for a student in the microbiology program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale is keeping it alive to study where it fits within the tree of life.

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