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

iomedical engineering. Up to 12 points
of research (BMEN E9500) may be
applied toward doctoral degree course
requirements.
All graduate students admitted
to the doctoral degree program
must satisfy the equivalent of three
semesters’ experience in teaching (one
semester for M.D./Ph.D. students).
This may include supervising and
assisting undergraduate students in
laboratory experiments, grading, and
preparing lecture materials to support
the teaching mission of the department.
The Department of Biomedical
Engineering is the only engineering
department that offers Ph.D. training to
M.D./Ph.D. students. These candidates
are expected to complete their
Ph.D. program within 3.5 years, with
otherwise the same requirements.
Doctoral Qualifying Examination
Doctoral candidates are required to pass
a qualifying examination. This examination
is given once a year, in January. It
should be taken after the student has
completed 30 points of graduate study.
The qualifying examination consists of
oral and written examinations. The oral
examination consists of the analysis of
assigned scientific papers, and the written
examination covers three areas: applied
mathematics, quantitative biology and
physiology, and track-specific material.
Students must declare a track (biosignals
and biomedical imaging, biomechanics, or
cell and tissue engineering) at the time of
registration for the qualifying examination.
A minimum cumulative grade-point
average of 3.2 is required to register for
this examination.
Doctoral Committee and Thesis
Students who pass the qualifying
examination choose a faculty member
to serve as their research adviser.
Each student is expected to submit a
research proposal and present it to a
thesis committee that consists of three
to five faculty members. The committee
considers the scope of the proposed
research, its suitability for doctoral
research and the appropriateness
of the research plan. The committee
may approve the proposal without
reservation or may recommend
modifications. In general, the student
is expected to submit his/her research
proposal after five semesters of
doctoral studies. In accord with
regulations of The Fu Foundation
School of Engineering and Applied
Science, each student is expected to
submit a thesis and defend it before a
committee of five faculty, two of whom
hold primary appointments in another
department. Every doctoral candidate is
required to have had accepted at least
one first-author full-length paper for
publication in a peer-reviewed journal
prior to recommendation for award of
the degree.
Courses in Biomedical
Engineering
See also the sections for Applied
Physics, Chemical Engineering,
Computer Science, and Computer
Engineering in this bulletin, and the
Columbia College and Graduate
School of Arts and Sciences bulletins
for courses in the biological sciences:
biomedical informatics, cell biology,
microbiology, and physiology.
BMEN E1001x Engineering in medicine
3 pts. Lect: 3. Professor Konofagou.
The present and historical role of engineering in
medicine and health care delivery. Engineering
approaches to understanding organismic and
cellular function in living systems. Engineering
in the diagnosis and treatment of disease.
Medical imaging, medical devices: diagnostic
and surgical instruments, drug delivery systems,
prostheses, artificial organs. Medical informatics
and organization of the health care system.
Current trends in biomedical engineering
research.
BMEN E2300x or y Biomechanics track
0 pts. Professor Laine.
Rising juniors are required to register for this
course in the spring of their sophomore year if
they choose the biomechanics track.
BMEN E2400x or y Biosignals and biomedical
imaging track
0 pts. Professor Laine.
Rising juniors are required to register for this
course in the spring of their sophomore year if
they choose the biosignals and biomedical imaging
track.
BMEN E2500x or y Cellular and tissue
engineering track
0 pts. Professor Laine.
Rising juniors are required to register for this
course in the spring of their sophomore year if
they choose the cell and tissue engineering track.
ECBM E3060x Introduction to genomic
information science and technology
3 pts. Lect: 3. Professor Varadan.
Introduction to the information system
paradigm of molecular biology. Representation,
organization, structure, function and manipulation
of the biomolecular sequences of nucleic
acids and proteins. The role of enzymes and
gene regulatory elements in natural biological
functions as well as in biotechnology and
genetic engineering. Recombination and
other macromolecular processes viewed
as mathematical operations with simulation
and visualization using simple computer
programming. This course shares lectures with
ECBM E4060, but the work requirements differ
somewhat.
BMEN E3150y The cell as a machine
3 pts. Lect: 3. Not offered in 2011–2012.
Prerequisite: MATH V1101 or equivalent.
Corequisites: One semester of BIOL C2005
or BIOC C3501, and one semester of PHYS
C1401 or equivalent Cells as complex micronsized
machines, basic physical aspects of cell
components (diffusion, mechanics, electrostatics,
hydrophobicity), energy transduction (motors,
transporters, chaperones, synthesis complexes),
basic cell functions. Biophysical principles,
feedback controls for robust cell function,
adaptation to environmental perturbations.
BMEN E3320y Fluid biomechanics
3 pts. Lect: 3. Professor Huang.
Prerequisite: APMA E2101. The principles of
continuum mechanics as applied to biological fluid
flows and transport. Course covers continuum
formulations of basic conservation laws, Navier-
Stokes equations, mechanics of arterial and
venous blood flow, blood rheology and non-
Newtonian properties, flow and transport in the
microcirculation, oxygen diffusion, capillary filtration.
BMCH E3500y Biological transport and
rate processes
3 pts. Lect: 3. Professor Vunjak-Novakovic.
Prerequisites: CHEM C3443, APMA E2101.
Corequisites: BIOL C2005. Convective and
diffusive movement and reaction of molecules
in biological systems. Kinetics of homogeneous
and heterogeneous reactions in biological
environments. Mechanisms and models of
transport across membranes. Convective
diffusion with and without chemical reaction.
Diffusion in restricted spaces. Irreversible
thermodynamic approaches to transport and
reaction in biological systems.
BMEN E3810x Biomedical engineering
laboratory, I
3 pts. Lab: 4. Professor Kyle.
Statistical analysis of experimental
measurements: normal distribution, test of
significance, linear regression, correlation,
error analysis and propagation. MATLAB
programming, EKG signal acquisition and
processing, microscopy, cell counting and
scaffold encapsulation, mechanical testing of
linear and nonlinear biomaterials.
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engineering 2011–2012