enneth H. Buetow, a human geneticist and former director of the Center for Biomedical Informatics and Information Technology at the National Cancer Institute, is joining Arizona State University as director of Computational Sciences and Informatics in the Complex Adaptive Systems Initiative. He will hold the rank of full professor in the School of Life Sciences in ASU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. His appointment is effective March 5.

The Complex Adaptive Systems Initiative (CASI) was established in 2009 to leverage ASU’s interdisciplinary research strengths on complex global challenges where an integrated cross-disciplinary effort is essential. The establishment of the Computational Sciences and Informatics program in CASI will represent a major foundational resource in this effort by developing world class computing and modeling expertise and capabilities with breadth and depth in key areas such as agent base modeling, visualization, algorithm development and expert systems in healthcare, the environment and national security.

“Dr. Buetow is one of the world’s top experts in addressing the major challenges facing the biomedical research community in the integration and analysis of the rapidly growing volumes of highly diverse data and their application to improved patient care,” said George Poste, an ASU Regents’ Professor and chief scientist at CASI.

At the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Buetow designed and built one of the largest biomedical computing efforts in the world. He was responsible for coordinating biomedical informatics and information. The NCI center he led focused on speeding scientific discovery and facilitated translational research by coordinating, developing and deploying biomedical informatics systems, infrastructure, tools and data in support of NCI research initiatives.

“Dr. Buetow is bringing the expertise in computation and informatics to establish a hub for many of the projects that are developed or implemented across complex adaptive systems research at ASU,” said ASU President Michael M. Crow. “We are looking to his leadership to create and expand these crucial capabilities in the management of rapidly growing data to the benefit of ASU's strong research agenda and to position ASU as a leader in building collaborative networks with other institutions.”

“Dr. Buetow’s appointment will bring advanced computational and modeling methods to our biological scientists and health care practitioners,” according to ASU Executive Vice President and Provost Elizabeth D. Capaldi. “He will add an important dimension to our efforts to improve health and health care delivery.”

ASU’s senior vice president of Knowledge Enterprise Development, Sethuraman Panchanathan, noted that “biomedical research is undergoing massive changes that are driven by the production of daunting volumes of data from genome sequencing and other advanced analytical technologies. Dr. Buetow’s vast experience leading a large enterprise in this field at the National Cancer Institute will be a tremendous asset to our research efforts in complex adaptive systems here at ASU.”

"We are very excited to have Dr. Buetow join the faculty of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences,” said Robert E. Page Jr., ASU vice provost and dean of the college. “He will anchor two major initiatives at ASU: complex adaptive systems and biomedicine."

Buetow, who has a doctorate and a master’s degree in human genetics from the University of Pittsburgh and an undergraduate degree in biology from Indiana University, has spent much of his career in cancer research, approaching cancer as a complex adaptive system. His laboratory has a long history of developing and applying new analytic methods to find genetic components underlying complex traits and was instrumental in the earliest studies developing and applying linkage disequilibrium methods as genetic mapping tools.

“This is an extraordinary time to be in biomedicine,” said Buetow. “New ecosystem models are emerging that use information technology to reweave the very fabric of biomedicine, ushering in a new era of personalized, precision medicine.

“ASU and its New American University model is a unique place to be part of this revolution. The university’s commitment to transdisciplinary programs, especially through its Complex Adaptive Systems Initiative, provides a novel opportunity for me to work at the boundary of what is feasible today,” Buetow said.

The Complex Adaptive Systems Initiative at ASU, under the leadership of three co-directors, cuts across the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities. In addition to Poste, the other members of the CASI leadership team are Sander van der Leeuw, dean of the School of Sustainability, and Anna Barker, director of ASU’s Transformative Healthcare Networks.

More information about ASU’s Complex Adaptive Systems Initiative is available at http://casi.asu.edu.

On Wednesday, May 1, John Jeffries, dean of the college of arts, humanities, and social sciences, gave the annual history department Low Lecture in celebration of his retirement.  The lecture can be seen below.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdMAMJBEERw]

The lecture was followed by a celebratory reception in the Black Box Theatre.

Classes each Wednesday evening starting July 8.

This five week workshop prepares participants to take the computer-adaptive Graduate Records Examination. The purpose of the course is to improve students' performance on the GRE by:

• Providing students with successful test management techniques
• Familiarizing students with question types specific to the GRE
• Teaching the logical, rhetorical, and mathematical problem-solving techniques relevant to the GRE
• Teaching essential grammatical and mathematical concepts and techniques in application to real test problems
• Identifying the specific problems posed by the GRE, and analyzing common test-taking errors
• Improving performance and reducing test anxiety through practice testing

This workshop is taught by Dr. Anthony Poplawski, who has helped thousands of students perform better on their GRE examinations. While this workshop provides participants with very valuable information, techniques and strategies for maximizing their potential on the GRE, please note that it does not replace studying. In addition to taking this workshop we recommend that students dedicate significant time to studying for the examination in order to be truly prepared.

Please visit the Graduate Record Examination web site at www.gre.org to view information on the GRE exam.

TO REGISTER AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE COURSE, PLEASE VISIT:

http://www.umbc.edu/testprep/gre.html

Take advantage of early bird discounts by registering before June 17, 2013!

Medifast is looking to hire UMBC IS, CompSci, BTA and EE majors for summer positions in Owings Mills, MD.  Get involved with this fantastic company!  Position descriptions are below.  To apply, make sure to click the link on each position title to get directed to the Medifast website.  Get your credentials in to them today!

IT Business Analyst Intern: - IS, CompSci, BTA & EE Majors

Job Description:

As part of the I.T. Project Team, the Business Analyst Intern will participate in project meetings and discussion and based on the teams input, and with direction, take ownership of creating the Business and Functional Documentation based on a best practice template.

The Business Analyst Intern will be part of the project team and support the team through the phases of the project by gathering information, seeking answers to question, creating process flow diagrams and following up on open items.

Knowledge and Skills:

The candidate should have experience with or exposure to the following technologies and skills through hands on experience and/or relevant course work:

• Excel
• Word
•  Written and verbal communication skills
• Good comprehension skills
• Ability to adapt to changing priorities

Education:

Viable candidates must be currently enrolled in a degree college/university program working toward a degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering or other Information Technology related discipline. Must be able to work 15-20 hours per week during the school year and 40 hours during breaks.

Reporting Analyst Intern - FIEC and ECON Majors

Medifast is looking to hire an intern to join our Client Solution Center Operations & Technology Support team for Summer 2013. This person will take on a Reporting Analyst role to conduct data analysis on performance metrics for our call center agents.

• Update reports, spreadsheets and databases daily
• Modify model based on learned information to allow for more precise volume and staffing projections
• Identify objective and reportable metrics for balanced scorecard
• Tie the metrics to areas of delivery that may be impacted and contributing to negative results to derive actionable items for resolution
• Identify and extrapolate information from Business Intelligence data sources where appropriate

Skills Needed:

•  Advanced level Experience using Excel including data links; VLookup, Pivot Tables, advanced formula, macros, etc.
• Experience conducting interviews to determine existing data sources to create output to meet business needs
• Ability to assess current reporting methods and identify ways to produce quality and accurate reports with greater efficiency and broader output options
• Must be able to create and manage Access Database
• Ability to import source data and create reports
• Adept at queries and report writing
• Ability to train staff on data management techniques
• Proficiency using Word and PowerPoint

As a developer, designing is a big challenge. My process is a lot different than “normal designers”. I design much like I code: trial and error.

When I’m programming, it’s constantly running the tests to see what failed, trying a fix, and then repeating. It’s finding a bug, trying a fix, and repeating. You get the idea. That’s how I work. It’s constantly iterating on ideas to see if they work.

When I was first starting out, I’d find myself reading entire source files to try to understand everything that was happening and only running the code very rarely. It’s no surprise that were lots of bugs in my code. Letting the computer do the work for you is the whole point, so it’s a good idea to let the computer help you out.

So, here is a look at how I design.

Sketching

Sometimes I start by sketching on paper or on an iPad. I only do this if I have no idea what I’m trying to do. If I can’t picture what I’m trying to make in my head, I sketch. There’s something about sketching that really helps me visualize the end result. Scribbling down idea after idea is where most of the actual “designing” takes place for me.

Again, it’s an iterative process.

So once I have a rough idea of the structure and layout, I jump into code. I don’t use Interface Builder at all (on iOS anyway—Mac is a different story). I haven’t used Interface Builder since my very first application (unless it was removing other people’s NIBs). We’ll save the why for another article.

Prototype Early

On iOS, it’s so easy to just get something you can use. Just throw together some UINavigationControllers, etc. A lot of developers confuse “design” with “visual design.” They think it’s only pretty pixels. The flow is the most important part. If your app is super pretty but no one can use it, it’s pretty useless.

I like to just get something I can use on my phone with all system controls. If things feel good, then I move onto designing at the pixel level. Most of the time, my first take is terrible and I go back to sketching. Again, I look to iterate.

Pixel Time

For pixels, I work the same way. Once I have the layout, it dictates what needs some extra love. If I can’t picture what I’m doing, I’ll open Photoshop and mess around until I see something I like. A lot of the time, I don’t save my PSDs. They are just pixel sketches. Once I know what I’m doing, I start implementing in code.

I often try to implement as much as I can in code instead of using images, but sometimes it’s a lot easier to just use an image asset. I have an “asset farm” PSD with all of the assets I need. I keep this one around for when I inevitably need to change something.

Go

So there’s no secret to getting into design. Just do it. Go get a piece of paper and start scribbling down your ideas. If you want to get better as a designer, go browse Dribbble or the App Store for inspiration. All you need is inspiration, iteration and to start.

The post How I Design for iOS appeared first on Treehouse Blog.

Now that <hgroup> is gone, use a <span> inside the main header, or group them with <header> and use a <p> for the subtitle.

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jQuery Conference Portland 2013 has a limited number of regular tickets still available. Two days. Two tracks. Fresh speakers. Jun 13-14. $50 off for members of the jQuery Foundation. Join today and get your first year of fan dues paid for with purchase of both a training and conference ticket. Training provided by Bocoup on Jun 12. Use coupon code CSSTricks25off for $25 off.

How to mark up subtitles is a post from CSS-Tricks

Comprehensive research by Nicholas C. Zakas on the correct markup to make a graphic-only button accessible.

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Making accessible icon buttons is a post from CSS-Tricks