Georgia Tech researchers help shut down drug counterfeiters
Chemistry professor Facundo Fernandez and his research team were part of a three-continent, multi-organizational effort known as “Operation Jupiter” that successfully identified and shut down manufacturers who were flooding Southeast Asia with counterfeit – and ineffective – anti-malarial drugs. (full story...)

Physicists discover gold can be magnetic on the nanoscale
Physicists at the Georgia Institute of Technology have made two important findings regarding gold on the nanoscale. They found that applying an electrical field on a surface-supported gold nanocluster changes its structure from a three-dimensional one to a planar flat structure. In another paper, they relate their discovery that gold in this size regime can be made magnetic through oxygenation of gold nanowires. ( full story... )

AP professor Mindy Millard-Stafford introduces the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Act
Wed., March 12, - Washington, D.C. American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) President-elect Mindy Millard-Stafford, a professor of Applied Physiology at GEORGIA TECH, led a Capitol Hill news conference with Members of Congress to announce the introduction of a Congressional bill to make the regular development and promotion of U.S. physical activity guidelines a reality. ( full story... )

Expert: Improving air quality now will be harder
Atlanta Journal-Constitution - March 20 Metro Atlanta and dozens of other urban regions across the country fail to meet the new Clean Air test announced last week by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  . . Despite cleaner fuels, cleaner car engines and pollution controls on coal-fired power plants, metro Atlanta has not yet met the old standard, which replaced the original ozone standard in 2005... .Dr. Michael Chang, a senior research scientist at GEORGIA TECH who is part of the air quality forecasting team that issues smog alerts, recently discussed the new smog standard. Chang said metro Atlanta experiences about 30 days of violations in an average year under the old standard, or about one bad-air day out of every five during the smog season, from May 1 to Sept. 30. Under the new standard, he estimates that number will rise to 53 days, or about one every third day. (Q & A follow) ( full story...  | Michael Chang )

Recent awards & honors
We'd like to acknowledge  numerous student and faculty  award & honor recipients of late. If we've missed anyone please let us know for inclusion in next month's edition!  ( full story... )