Renowned tissue engineering researcher Kristi Anseth from University of Colorado named 2015 Bayer Distinguished Lecturer at Pitt
PITTSBURGH (January 22, 2015) … The Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering has named
Kristi S. Anseth, PhD
as recipient of the 2015 Bayer Distinguished Lectureship. Dr. Anseth is the Tisone Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Associate Professor of Surgery, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at the University of Colorado-Boulder Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, and a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, the National Academy of Engineering, and the National Academy of Sciences.
The Bayer Distinguished Lectureship is presented annually by the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, and recognizes outstanding excellence in chemical education, outreach and research. The lecture is sponsored by Bayer MaterialScience. Dr. Anseth will present lectures on Thursday, April 23 at 5:00 pm with a reception following, and Friday, April 24 at 9:30 am. Both lectures will be presented in Benedum Hall Room 102, 3700 O'Hara Street. Parking is limited. For more information email che@engr.pitt.edu or call 412-624-9630.
"Dr. Anseth is one of the elite researchers bridging biology, chemistry and engineering, and our department is honored that she would accept this award," noted Steven R. Little, PhD, CNG Faculty Fellow and chair of the Swanson School's Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering. "Her research is helping to advance the fields of biomaterials and tissue engineering, especially with regard to medical applications such as artificial valves and cartilage. We look forward to hearing her presentations."
Dr. Anseth earned her B.S. from Purdue University in the lab of noted researcher Nicholas A. Peppas, and PhD from the University of Colorado under the direction of Christopher Bowman. Her primary research is the design of synthetic hydrogel biomaterials that replicate the extracellular matrix surrounding living cells, creating scaffolds for the growth of new tissue. In 1999, she was named to the MIT Technology Review TR100 as one of the top 100 innovators in the world under the age of 35. She has filed for 18 patents, and published more than 250 research articles, and in 2003, she and her students were the first to successfully develop an injectable and biodegradable scaffold to regenerate cartilage.
She was first engineer selected as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, which includes 17 Nobel laureates and 172 members of the National Academy of Sciences. Her other awards include the Hazel Barnes Award, University of Colorado (2013); Mid-Career Research Award, Materials Research Society (2012); Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award, Purdue University (2012); Distinguished Research Lecturer, University of Colorado (2011); Professional Progress Award, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (2009); named one of the 'Brilliant 10' Scientists by Popular Science (2008) and one of the "One Hundred Chemical Engineers of the Modern Era," by AIChE (2008); Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award, Research and Teaching, University of Colorado (2008); Clemson Award for Basic Research, Society for Biomaterials (2008); Alan T. Waterman Award, National Science Foundation (2004); Allan P. Colburn Award, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (2003); Curtis W. McGraw Award, American Society for Engineering Education (2003); and the David and Lucile Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering (1997).
About Bayer MaterialScience
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech materials. As an innovation company, it sets trends in research-intensive areas. Bayer's products and services are designed to benefit people and improve the quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power.
Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and acts as a socially and ethically responsible corporate citizen. In fiscal year 2012, Bayer employed 110,500 people and had sales of €39.8 billion ($51.9 billion). Capital expenditures amounted to €2 billion ($2.6 billion), R&D expenses to €3 billion ($3.9 billion).
Bayer MaterialScience is a Bayer Group company. With 2012 sales of €11.5 billion ($15 billion), Bayer MaterialScience is among the world's largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction and sports and leisure industries. Bayer MaterialScience has 30 production sites around the globe and employed approximately 14,500 people at the end of 2012.
About the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering
The Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering serves undergraduate and graduate engineering students, the University and our industry, through education, research, and participation in professional organizations and regional/national initiatives. Our commitment to the future of the chemical process industry drives the development of educational and research programs. The Department has a tradition of excellence in education and research, evidenced by recent national awards including numerous NSF CAREER Awards, a Beckman Young Investigator Award, an NIH Director's New Innovator Award, and the DOE Hydrogen Program R&D Award, among others. Active areas of research in the Department include Biological and Biomedical Systems; Energy and Sustainability; and Materials Modeling and Design. The faculty has a record of success in obtaining research funding such that the Department ranks within the top 25 U.S. ChE departments for Federal R&D spending in recent years with annual research expenditures exceeding $7 million. The vibrant research culture within the Department includes active collaboration with the adjacent University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the Center for Simulation and Modeling, the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation, the Petersen Institute of NanoScience and Engineering and the U.S. DOE-affiliated Institute for Advanced Energy Solutions.
About the Swanson School of Engineering
The University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering is one of the oldest engineering programs in the United States and is consistently ranked among the top 50 engineering programs nationally. The Swanson School has excelled in basic and applied research during the past decade and is on the forefront of 21st century technology including sustainability, energy systems, bioengineering, micro- and nanosystems, computational modeling, and advanced materials development. Approximately 120 faculty members serve more than 2,600 undergraduate and graduate students and Ph.D. candidates in six departments, including Bioengineering, Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Materials Science.
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