Dear Friends,

I have just finished my first five-year term as dean, so this seems a good time both to reflect back and look forward.

I'm pleased to report that since 2006, the number of undergraduates enrolling in engineering classes has increased 41 percent; the amount of space committed to engineering has increased by 38 percent; and our endowment -- thanks to the exemplary generosity and vision of Princeton alumni -- has increased 87 percent.

When President Shirley Tilghman asked me to serve a second term as dean, I was delighted to accept. The next five years hold tremendous promise, as our students and faculty continue to push the research frontiers of health, security, and energy and the environment.

It was wonderful seeing many of you at Reunions -- for photos and more news, keep up with Princeton Engineering on Facebook and Twitter.

Dean H. Vincent Poor *77
Michael Henry Strater University Professor of Electrical Engineering

Engineers Without Borders builds library in Ghana

This summer five members of the Princeton chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) are traveling to Ashaiman, Ghana, to spend eight weeks finishing the construction of a library that will serve as both an educational center and a community gathering place. This video, filmed by Jane Yang '11, chronicles the first phase of the EWB Ghana library project.

EPA's Lisa Jackson speaks at She Roars

In a wide-ranging keynote speech at Princeton's She Roars conference, Environmental Protection Agency chief and Princeton Engineering alumna Lisa Jackson *86 spoke about the historic importance of women's leadership in efforts to safeguard the well-being of the planet.

Mapping Princeton's microclimate

Elie Bou-Zeid, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, is mapping the microclimate of Princeton's campus in order to better understand how local environments affect the global climate -- and vice versa.

Flock Logic

What happens when humans behave as if they were schooling fish or swarming insects or flocking birds?
Engineering professor Naomi Ehrich Leonard '85 and choreographer Susan Marshall conspired with a creative group of undergraduates to host live human flocking events. President Shirley M. Tilghman highlighted the project in a marquee speech on the importance of the arts in a research university.

Faculty News

Loren Pfeiffer and H. Vincent Poor (in the photo above) have been elected members of the National Academy of Sciences, "an honor considered second only to a Nobel Prize." ... Kelly Caylor, Justin Sheffield, and Eric Wood have won a grant from the Princeton Global Collaborative Network Fund to study how rainfall variability and land and water degradation affect food security... Marlan Scully has received the 2011 Herbert Walther Award... Pablo Debenedetti delivered the Eli Ruckenstein Lecture... Rodney Priestley and Philippe Rigollet have received National Science Foundation CAREER Awards... In memoriam: Steven Alan Orszag *66.

Alumni News

Frank Moss '71 has a new book out on the MIT Media Lab ...  Robert Kahn *64 received a Digital Patriot Award ... Knowledge@Wharton explored the connection between William Fung '70 and designer Vera Wang... 

Popular Mechanics highlighted E-Paper screens developed by Andrew Steckl '68... Steve Papa '94 spoke at the J.P. Morgan Technology Media and Telecom Conference... Business Insider profiled Jeff Bezos '86... Wired magazine showcased Warren Powell '77 in an issue devoted to artificial intelligence... Dan Barry *80 is on the board of directors of a new space-training foundation...

Jordan Culbreath '11 is the subject of a new documentary... Pixar's David Laur '84 won an Academy Award... Princeton honored Kathleen Chesmel '85 as an exceptional teacher... H. Vincent Poor *77 received the IEEE Eric E. Sumner Award... Derek Lidow '73 is the new James Wei Visiting Professor in Entrepreneurship... James Ma '06 chose all three daily doubles on a recent episode of Jeopardy...

Eric Schmidt '76 has been named Media Person of the Year by the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity...  A new book on the entrepreneurial spirit quotes Paul Maeder '75... The Atlantic magazine featured the 3D sound invention of Edgar Choueiri *91, as did the Discovery Channel and Studio 360...