Catherine Mann
Blending biology and computer science
Newswise — From an early age, Cate Mann envisioned a future connected to the biological sciences. But it was only at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute that she found her future in bioinformatics, a blend of computer science and biology.
Mann graduates this May with a bachelor’s degree in bioinformatics and molecular biology and a slew of research experience. She will intern at Merck this summer, and return to Rensselaer in the fall to complete a master’s degree she has already begun.
“Now I know what I want to do; I have an idea of where I want to go. And everything I have been able to do at Rensselaer has led me down that path,” said Mann. “The coursework, the undergraduate research, my professors, my advisers, I’ve had so much support. Whenever I’ve been worried that I don’t know the next step, that I don’t know what I’m doing, they have been there to help and to say ‘keep going, keep working, you’ll be fine.’”
Mann arrived at Rensselaer as a transfer student in her sophomore year. As a freshman, she had studied biology in a program with limited opportunity to study genetics, which had attracted her interest since grade school lessons introduced her to Gregor Mendel’s studies of heredity traits in pea plants. She knew she wanted to transfer to a university with a program in genetics, and Rensselaer stood out for its additional opportunities in bioinformatics.
“My work is a bridge between biology and computer science. I am able to talk with biologists and understand higher-level terminology and the meaning of the data they are using—it’s not just numbers to me—and on the computer science side, I know how to code and what analytics to apply to answer research questions,” said Mann.
Her sophomore year at Rensselaer was hard, as she adjusted to the rigorous workload, and she initially worried that she was behind peers who had already served internships. But the opportunities for undergraduate research put her back on track.
“Undergraduate research is like an internship in and of itself. I was able to get the experience, but also take my classes, so I could make up for lost time,” said Mann. “The research I’ve worked on has given me something that I understand and have experience in, and can speak well to. I think it’s been very helpful.”
Mann found time for research in addition to an already full life at Rensselaer. She played on the varsity women’s soccer team, making it to the Liberty League championships. She was a founding member of the Sole Survivor’s Club, dedicated to raising awareness of sexual assault on college campuses. And she worked as an artist services student driver at the Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center. In her junior year, she tore her ACL during a soccer game, adding the burden of doctor’s appointments, tests, and surgery to her other activities. And in the summer before her senior year, she interned at the National Institutes of Health, working on common variable immune disorder.
Her current work is part of ongoing research into circadian rhythms in the lab of Rensselaer Professor Jen Hurley. As part of a collaboration with the Rensselaer Institute for Data Exploration and Applications, the Hurley lab is building computer programs to identify “clock-controlled” genes and patterns of activity across multiple organisms.
Many genes are transcribed in a cycle that oscillates over 24 hours, anticipating the day/night cycle, but some clock-controlled genes oscillate in an unvarying pattern throughout the cycle, while others are either “damped,” meaning the amplitude of the oscillation weakens throughout the cycle, or “driven,” meaning it strengthens throughout the cycle. Clock control is manifested as daily oscillations in the levels of enzymes and hormones to affect cell function, division, and growth, as well as physiological parameters such as body temperature and immune responses.
Mann is building a preprocessing pipeline for a computer program that can ingest and reconcile existing datasets obtained using a variety of analysis methods, and identify rhythmic oscillations.
Long-term, Mann said she hopes to apply her skills to solving riddles in rare diseases, although she has a particular interest in autism, which affects her younger brother. In the immediate future, she looks forward to continuing her education and building experience when she completes her second degree.
Students like Catherine Mann exemplify the vision of The New Polytechnic, an emerging paradigm for higher education which recognizes that global challenges and opportunities are so great they cannot be adequately addressed by even the most talented person working alone. Rensselaer serves as a crossroads for collaboration—working with partners across disciplines, sectors, and geographic regions—to address complex global challenges, using the most advanced tools and technologies, many of which are developed at Rensselaer. Research at Rensselaer addresses some of the world’s most pressing technological challenges—from energy security and sustainable development to biotechnology and human health.
Nwaram-Billi Ugbode
Using the past to inform the future
In the weeks before completing her master’s of architecture degree at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Nwaram-Billi Ugbode was preparing to present her senior thesis, a look at the staying power of the Shaker community of southern Maine.
“They practiced celibacy and so the only way they could grow their population was through proselytizing,” says Ugbode, who calls herself Billi. “They are the longest surviving utopian community in America. What made their lifestyle so appealing?”
It’s not that she’s interested in remote religious sects so much as the ways in which large groups of people have successfully co-existed through the ages. As an architect, Ugbode hopes to combine the lessons of history with the newest technology to design urban spaces that bring people together. “More and more,” she notes, “we live in separate worlds.”
Born in Nigeria, Ugbode moved to New York City at age 10. By high school, she had decided to become an architect. After earning her undergraduate degree in architectural technology from the City University of New York’s College of Technology, she was eager to focus on urban ecology and sustainable practices. Hersearch for a graduate school quickly narrowed to Rensselaer, which had a strong reputation among the firms she was interested in working for.
In two years at Rensselaer, Ugbode packed in as much as many people do in twice the time. During her first semester, her design for a transparent music center with audio engineering capability was chosen for Influx, the architecture school’s publication of top student work. The following semester, the architecture dean, Evan Douglis, selected her as Rensselaer’s nominee for the Center for Architecture Design Scholarship, based on her academic performance. “I didn’t win but I was proud to just be nominated,” she said.
She soon won an $18,000 fellowship from the American Association of University Women, an organization that promotes the graduate studies of women. Ugbode has devoted the award to completing her thesis.
Her journey at Rensselaer also included a semester at the Center for Architecture Science and Ecology in New York, where she assisted in ongoing research into using coconut agro-waste by-product as an energy-efficient building material. “It was the most fun experience ever,” says Ugbode. “We worked with Professor Josh Draper to exhibit our agro-wall at the World Maker-Faire in Queens.”
She also took part in a paid summer internship with Vincent Martineau Architect in Brooklyn, drafting documents, researching building code, and sketching preliminary drawings. She hopes to return there or work at a firm that also focuses on cultural, residential, and urban architecture.
Ugbode is especially aware of her strong start in a field with few women and even fewer African-American women. She looks forward to mentoring others, just as her Rensselaer professors and the supervisors at her internships have mentored her. The mission is deeply personal.
When she told her parents she wanted to be an architect, they informed her that her great aunt, Stella Nsolo-Ugbode, was Nigeria’s first-ever female architect. Pursuing her education had meant leaving her country, which was in the middle of a civil war, to study in the England.
“I don’t know her aesthetic as an architect,” Ugbode notes. “But the whole notion of leaving everything behind to pursue her passion really struck me. I hope I can make that kind of impact.”
Students like Billi Ugbode exemplify the vision of The New Polytechnic, an emerging paradigm for higher education which recognizes that global challenges and opportunities are so great they cannot be adequately addressed by even the most talented person working alone. Rensselaer serves as a crossroads for collaboration—working with partners across disciplines, sectors, and geographic regions—to address complex global challenges, using the most advanced tools and technologies, many of which are developed at Rensselaer. Research at Rensselaer addresses some of the world’s most pressing technological challenges—from energy security and sustainable development to biotechnology and human health.
Joseph Vengen
Utilizing inventive solutions
In high school, Joseph Vengen faced adversity and suffering every day. Born completely deaf, he received his first cochlear implant as a toddler. The technology opened doors but has limitations in noisy environments. Too often, Vengen was left feeling isolated and frustrated.
To help him overcome his struggles, Vengen’s father issued a challenge: Channel that energy and frustration into the productive task of inventing a better combustion engine. His mother encouraged him to follow the Buddhist practice of chanting Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo with the determination to become happy no matter what.
Vengen took both parents’ advice—with impressive results. He will graduate with the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Class of 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, a patent for an alternative to the traditional piston engine, and another invention in the works.
He describes Rensselaer as “the right place for someone who’s passionate about designing, building, and inventing,” and credits his parents with “giving me the spark I needed to determine the direction of my life.” Vengen also attributes much of his success to his Buddhist practice and membership in the Soka Gakkai International of America, which has helped him overcome his many challenges.
His patented engine design relies on a rotating valve ring and rotating piston assembly to reduce the number of moving engine parts, decrease wear and tear, and increase power and fuel efficiency. His second invention, still in its early stages, was inspired by his personal experience with music and his ability to change sound by tweaking his implant. Vengen has developed software that enables him to customize music in new ways. His hope is that others can use his invention to redefine music by creating their own auditory experiences.
Vengen’s immediate goal is to sell the patent and his company, Vengen Technologies LLC. Meanwhile, he plans to work as a mechanical engineer, ideally in research and development for a smaller company with potential for growth.
He owes his decision to attend Rensselaer to his younger brother, Evan, who came to the Institute in 2015 to study nuclear engineering. At the time, Joseph Vengen attended a different school and was in a co-op program in Lancaster, New York. On weekends, he traveled across the state to see Evan.
“Every time I visited the campus, I regretted not seriously considering this school when applying to colleges,” Vengen said. “By the end of the co-op, I applied to transfer.”
He came to Rensselaer in spring 2016, immediately joined the Humans vs. Zombies Club, and was the “last man standing” after a five-day game. In fall 2017, he completed a mechanical engineering internship at Sikorsky Lockheed Martin. As part of a capstone team, Vengen helped design and build a fully functional glove to assist a quadriplegic in tasks such as writing, brushing teeth, and shaking hands.
He and his brother routinely exercise together at the Mueller Center. They recently joined the Rensselaer Entrepreneurship Club, which has introduced them to StartUp Tech Valley and networking events that eventually could help Vengen realize his goals. His advice to other students: Take advantage of opportunities on and off campus. “So much of the education occurs out in the real world,” Vengen said.
Students like Joseph Vengen exemplify the vision of The New Polytechnic, an emerging paradigm for higher education which recognizes that global challenges and opportunities are so great they cannot be adequately addressed by even the most talented person working alone. Rensselaer serves as a crossroads for collaboration—working with partners across disciplines, sectors, and geographic regions—to address complex global challenges, using the most advanced tools and technologies, many of which are developed at Rensselaer. Research at Rensselaer addresses some of the world’s most pressing technological challenges—from energy security and sustainable development to biotechnology and human health.
About Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, founded in 1824, is America’s first technological research university. For nearly 200 years, Rensselaer has been defining the scientific and technological advances of our world. Rensselaer faculty and alumni represent 86 members of the National Academy of Engineering, 17 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 25 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 8 members of the National Academy of Medicine, 8 members of the National Academy of Inventors, and 5 members of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, as well as 6 National Medal of Technology winners, 5 National Medal of Science winners, and a Nobel Prize winner in Physics. With 7,000 students and nearly 100,000 living alumni, Rensselaer is addressing the global challenges facing the 21st century—to change lives, to advance society, and to change the world. To learn more, go to www.rpi.edu.
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