CSEE professor Fow-Sen Choa has been selected as a Fellow of SPIE, the International Society for Optics and Photonics.

SPIE Fellows are honored for their technical achievements and for their service to the general optics community and to SPIE in particular. Professor Choa was cited for for achievements in the development of standoff chemical sensing using quantum cascade lasers. In the announcement of Dr. Choa’s section, the SPIE noted that

“Choa has contributed significantly to the advancement of standoff chemical sensing using quantum cascade lasers, achieving a greater than 41 feet standoff chemical detection distance. In addition his research on MOCVD growth and regrowth of quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) has led to the development of high power QCLs, integrated widely tunable QCLs, and power scalable surface-emitting QCL arrays. He has developed large format (64×64) photon counting arrays and demonstrated current-bias-mode photon counting techniques to simplify the bias circuits for 64×64 single photon arrays. Notably, his research has extended into broadband, low crosstalk, low noise semiconductor gain materials, Photon-neuron interactions, high speed long distance (loss-limited) multimode fiber transmissions, and other technologies associated with optical networks, lasers, and integrated coherent receivers.

A prolific scientific author, Choa has published nearly 200 refereed conference papers and over 70 peerreviewed articles, has received nearly 50 grants, and has been issued 10 patents. He has also served the greater optical community by serving as an associate editor, topical editor, and reviewer for several journals and he has been recognized as for his expertise as research faculty for eight years.

Choa has made sustained contributions to the SPIE community by serving on program committees of the SPIE Defense, Security, and Sensing Conference. He has authored and co-authored more than 50 SPIE journal and conference publications including three invited papers.”

In his opto-electronics and MOCVD lab at UMBC, Dr. Choa uses a Chemical Vapor Deposition System to grow semiconductors, which include semiconductor lasers, semiconductor detectors, semiconductor optical amplifiers, modulators, and optical switches. A member of MIRTHE (Mid-Infrared Technologies for Health and the Environment), whose mission is to conduct research with postdocs and graduate students, while engaging undergraduate students, high school teachers and students in science and engineering projects as a way to encourage them to pursue careers in the field, Dr. Choa is responsible for providing MIRTHE with mid-IR materials, lasers, detectors and subsystems.

The semiconductors grown in his lab can also be applied for chemical detection and breath analysis using photo-acoustic (PA) effects. “When the wavelength of the photon matches with molecules’ vibrational transition, light can generate acoustic signals through thermal expansion,” he explains. “Using the PA effect, people have demonstrated parts per billion chemical detection sensitivities. Using the chemical sensing capability we can monitor contamination in our environment and the chemical content of our breath as precursors of our health conditions.”

This article shows web developers how to display calculation results using the new HTML5-only output markup element.

We have just released a brand new project that teaches you how to make a website! This project focuses on building a portfolio website from the very beginning. If you’ve never built a website before and you have no coding or design experience, this is the place to start.

In this project, we learn how to build a modern portfolio website for desktops, tablets, and mobile devices. We start with basic HTML and CSS syntax. Next, we learn how to build custom web pages with an image gallery and contact page. Finally, we walk through how to share a website live on the web.

I’m looking forward to hearing your feedback about this new project. Enjoy!

How to Make a Website

The post How to Make a Website appeared first on Treehouse Blog.

If you were to name the hot button topics rocking the US today, you’d likely include in your list:

Gay rights, gun laws and marijuana legalization.

Gays and guns remain divisive issues. But now, more and more Americans are in favor of relaxing marijuana laws, both on the state and federal level.

As momentum is building in legalization’s favor, here are two questions worth asking:

(1)  Inconsistent Research 
Americans frequently compare pot to alcohol, noting that drinking is more harmful to the body than THC consumption.

Yet recent research about marijuana further highlights the lack of concrete knowledge about its effects on perception. Conclusions about the long-term effects of the drug are even more opaque.

Would it be wise to conduct more exhaustive/conclusive research on the dangers of marijuana before proceeding with legislation reform?

(2)  Safety behind the Wheel
While taking drugs potentially impacts the health of the consumer, driving under the influence of drugs has the potential to harm others.

“I think (marijuana) is the next big issue in highway safety,”

says Jonathan Adkins, executive director of the Governors Highway Safety Association

Although researchers are uncertain about marijuana’s short-term effects on the brain, they have proof that drivers under the influence of THC are more likely to swerve between lanes than sober drivers. However, more studies need to be conducted to determine how this relates to crash risk.

“We have so many processes in our brain that help us to do a complex behavior of driving, and under the effects of marijuana, we just don’t perform as well,”

Says senior investigator Marilyn Huestis at The National Institute on Drug Abuse

There are also concerns regarding the establishing and enforcing of legal limits of consumption. Only a few states have a legal limit for drivers and it is harder to test for than alcohol.

Considering consumption of marijuana might increase due to legalization, would this make out roads more dangerous? Is it worth the risk?

We at USDemocrazy are interested to hear your arguments for and against legalizing marijuana.

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