2011-2012 Bulletin – PDF - SEAS Bulletin - Columbia University

a message from the dean
As students of The Fu Foundation
School of Engineering and Applied
Science at Columbia University, you
are part of a long line of engineering and
applied science leaders who have studied at
Columbia. Across the centuries, our alumni
have exemplified the excellence, leadership,
and impact that defines Columbia Engineering.
John Stevens (Class of 1768), inventor of the
steamboat, William Barclay Parsons (Class
of 1882), chief engineer of New York’s first
subway line, Robert C. Merton (Class of 1965),
Nobel laureate in economics, and NASA
Astronauts Gregory Johnson (Class of 1985),
who successfully piloted the space shuttle
Endeavour on its last mission, and Michael J.
Massimino (Class of 1984), who twice repaired
the Hubble Space Telescope, are but some
examples.
You are among the select few who have
joined our community for an education that
will enable you to become part of the next
generation of socially responsible engineering
and applied science leaders whose work
results in the betterment of the human
condition. You, too, will become part of the
history of this School, which is inextricably
entwined with Columbia University’s and with
the city of New York.
We foster an engineering education
paradigm that is symbolized by the Greek
letter π. The first support column of the
π is the depth of knowledge you gain in
your engineering or applied science major.
The second is the knowledge you acquire
through a minor, or your involvement
in entrepreneurship initiatives, research
opportunities, and community-based servicelearning.
The overarching connector of these
two foundations, the crossbeam of the π, is
Columbia’s famed liberal arts Core Curriculum,
the umbrella that positions engineering and
applied science within the context of the
larger society, for the betterment of the human
condition and the sustainability of our planet.
Some of you will choose to make an impact
by bringing together your knowledge and
leadership in pandisciplinary research, perhaps
in an area that I call “CyberBioPhysical
Systems”—where the biological, physical, and
digital worlds intersect and fuse. These areas
bring together our knowledge of sensors,
materials, nanotechnology, and biological
systems and hold promise as a frontier for the
development of innovative solutions to the most
challenging problems of modern society.
You are part of a School that offers great
opportunities for learning and advancement
within a premier research university that is
situated in the vibrant and cosmopolitan city
of New York. I encourage you to take full
advantage of all these opportunities.
Feniosky Peña-Mora
Dean
engineering 2011–2012