Stargazers are invited to the Georgia Tech Observatory’s Public Nights for a close-up glimpse of the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn, and other night-sky wonders. Public Nights, which are held on select Thursday evenings, are free and open to everyone.
On the grounds between the Howey and Mason Buildings, several telescopes are typically set up for viewing, and visitors are also welcome to bring their own telescopes.
Public Nights are contingent on clear weather.
For updated schedules, potential closures, driving and parking directions, and other information, please consult the official website: astronomy.gatech.edu
Fall 2025 Semester
- September 4 - 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Alberio
- October 2 - 8:00 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Saturn
- October 30 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Moon, Saturn
- December 4 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Full Moon, Saturn
Spring 2026 Semester
- January 22 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
- February 26 - 7 to 9 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
- April 2 - 8 to 10 p.m. - Jupiter, Orion Nebula
- April 23 - 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
Event Details
Stargazers are invited to the Georgia Tech Observatory’s Public Nights for a close-up glimpse of the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn, and other night-sky wonders. Public Nights, which are held on select Thursday evenings, are free and open to everyone.
On the grounds between the Howey and Mason Buildings, several telescopes are typically set up for viewing, and visitors are also welcome to bring their own telescopes.
Public Nights are contingent on clear weather.
For updated schedules, potential closures, driving and parking directions, and other information, please consult the official website: astronomy.gatech.edu
Fall 2025 Semester
- September 4 - 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Alberio
- October 2 - 8:00 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Saturn
- October 30 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Moon, Saturn
- December 4 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Full Moon, Saturn
Spring 2026 Semester
- January 22 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
- February 26 - 7 to 9 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
- April 2 - 8 to 10 p.m. - Jupiter, Orion Nebula
- April 23 - 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
Event Details
Stargazers are invited to the Georgia Tech Observatory’s Public Nights for a close-up glimpse of the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn, and other night-sky wonders. Public Nights, which are held on select Thursday evenings, are free and open to everyone.
On the grounds between the Howey and Mason Buildings, several telescopes are typically set up for viewing, and visitors are also welcome to bring their own telescopes.
Public Nights are contingent on clear weather.
For updated schedules, potential closures, driving and parking directions, and other information, please consult the official website: astronomy.gatech.edu
Fall 2025 Semester
- September 4 - 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Alberio
- October 2 - 8:00 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Saturn
- October 30 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Moon, Saturn
- December 4 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Full Moon, Saturn
Spring 2026 Semester
- January 22 - 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
- February 26 - 7 to 9 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
- April 2 - 8 to 10 p.m. - Jupiter, Orion Nebula
- April 23 - 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. - Moon, Jupiter
Event Details
Seating is limited. Register here.
Hear from former GT neuroscience undergraduates about their current jobs and how their education prepared them for success.
This is an event in the Professional Development Series for Neuroscience Majors and other undergraduate students interested in neuroscience, neurotechnology, and their intersections with society. To receive updates on future events in this series, sign up for the mailing list here.
Event Details
Georgia Tech and Shepherd Center recently awarded four seed grants totaling nearly $200,000 to researchers focusing on projects that will advance discoveries in neurorehabilitation, including acquired brain injury, spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, and other neurological conditions.
The Georgia Tech-Shepherd Center Seed Grant Program is part of an ongoing partnership between the two institutions that started in 2023 with the goal of advancing rehabilitative patient care and research.
“The seed grant program is intended to stimulate new interdisciplinary research collaborations by providing seed funding to obtain preliminary data or prototypes necessary for the submission of an external grant or industry opportunities,” says Deborah Backus, vice president of Research and Innovation at Shepherd Center. “As two leading research institutions, we know the potential for advancing rehabilitation therapies is even greater when we work together. We look forward to the solutions, treatments, and therapies that emerge from these initial seed grants.”
Experts from both institutions evaluated and scored seed grant applications based on the research’s innovation, approach, and potential for training opportunities, as well as its anticipated impact, prospects for commercial translation, and strategy for securing continued funding. This year, each awardee team received close to $50,000.
“We are very excited to launch this new seed grant program, which will spur ideas and propel research forward,” said Michelle LaPlaca, professor in the Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Georgia Tech lead of the Collaborative. “The complementary expertise of Georgia Tech and Shepherd Center researchers, combined with the motivation to find solutions for individuals with neurological injury and disability, is a winning formula for innovation.”
"Offering new hope for neurorehabilitation patients requires bringing together interdisciplinary researchers to explore new and creative ideas,” adds Chris Rozell, Julian T. Hightower Chaired professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the inaugural executive director of the Institute of Neuroscience, Neurotechnology, and Society (INNS) at Georgia Tech. “I'm excited to see the talent at these world class institutions coming together to develop new solutions for these complex problems."
This year’s seed grants were awarded to the following projects:
- Proof of Concept Development of the Recovery Cushion – Stephen Sprigle, professor, School of Industrial Design and School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Tech; Jennifer Cowhig, research physical therapist, Shepherd Center.
- Paving a Smooth Path from Hospital to Home: A Feasibility Study of an Integrated Smart Transitional Home Lab to Support Stroke Rehabilitation Patients’ Transition to Home – John Morris, senior clinical research scientist, Shepherd Center; Hui Cai, professor in the School of Architecture, executive director of the SimTigrate Design Center, Georgia Tech.
- A Comparative Analysis of Lower-Limb Exoskeleton Technology for Non-Ambulatory Individuals with Spinal Cord Injury – Maegan Tucker, assistant professor, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Tech; Nicholas Evans (AP 2023), clinical research scientist, Shepherd Center.
- Improving Accessibility and Precision in Neurorehabilitation at the Point of Care with AI-Driven Remote Therapeutic Monitoring Solutions – Brad Willingham, clinical research scientist, director of Multiple Sclerosis Research, Shepherd Center; May Dongmei Wang, professor, Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech.
The College of Sciences has named eight alumni as recipients of the 2025 Distinguished Alumni Awards, recognizing those who have made a lasting impact in their professions, communities, and the world.
“We are excited to launch this event that honors the achievements of our incredible alumni,” says Susan Lozier, dean and Betsy Middleton and John Clark Sutherland Chair of the College of Sciences and professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. “Their accomplishments reflect the principles that define our College — curiosity, collaboration, and a relentless pursuit of knowledge. We’re grateful for the ways they continue to inspire and lead our community, and we look forward to celebrating them.”
Honorees will be recognized at the inaugural Distinguished Alumni Awards Celebration on Wednesday, October 1, from 6 - 8 p.m. at the Historic Academy of Medicine.
Recognition categories include the Distinguished Alumni Awards, honoring one graduate from each School; the Distinguished Young Scientist Award, recognizing early-career excellence; and the College of Sciences Impact Award, honoring transformative contributions to the College’s mission and future.
“These outstanding alumni, nominated by their peers and leadership from the College of Sciences, are bold thinkers, dedicated leaders, and passionate advocates for progress,” says Director of Alumni Relations Leslie Roberts. “As the inaugural class of honorees, they embody the breadth of talent, vision, and valued engagement that define our alumni network.”
Alumni and friends are invited to join the 2025 Distinguished Alumni Awards Celebration at the Historic Academy of Medicine and help us honor these outstanding alumni. More information and registration links can be found here.
Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Rutt Bridges (Physics 1973, M.S. Geophysical Sciences 1975)
Geophysicist, Entrepreneur, Author, and Founder, Rutt Bridges Venture Fund
School of Biological Sciences
Jack McCallum, M.D., Ph.D. (Applied Biology 1966)
Chairman and CEO, IntegerHealth
School of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Kelly Sepcic Pfeil, Ph.D. (M.S. Chemistry 1992, Ph.D. Chemistry 2003)
Owner and President, Villa Splendida and Former President, ArrowInno
School of Mathematics
Frank Cullen, Ph.D. (Math 1973, M.S. Industrial and Systems Engineering 1976, Ph.D. Industrial and Systems Engineering 1984)
Emeritus Principal, Blackstone and Cullen
School of Physics
D. Nathan Meehan, Ph.D., P.E. (Physics 1975)
Professor, Texas A&M University and Founder, CMG Petroleum Consulting, Ltd.
School of Psychology
Margaret Beier, Ph.D. (M.S. Psychology 1999, Ph.D. Psychology 2004)
Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University
Distinguished Young Scientist Award Recipient
Kristel Topping, Ph.D. (Ph.D. Physiology, 2021)
Principal Researcher, The Home Depot
College of Sciences Impact Award Recipient
John Sutherland, Ph.D. (Physics 1962, M.S. Physics 1964, Ph.D. Physics 1967)
Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics, Augusta University
Abstract: Large scale surveys of natural prokaryotic communities (metagenomics) or isolate genomes have revealed species clusters around 95% Average Nucleotide Identity (ANI) of shared genes. That is, members of the same species tend to show >95% ANI among themselves and <85% to members of other species with a clear scarcity (gap) of genome pairs showing between 85-95% ANI. We have recently reported a similar ANI gap within species, around 99.5% ANI, revealing that discrete, intraspecies units may also exist. We suggested referring to these units as genomovars (Rodriguez-R, mBio 2024), and to employ a higher ANI value (99.9%) and level of shared genes (>99% of total genes) to define strains (Viver, Nat. Comms. 2024). Interestingly, similar patterns have been also observed for viruses, especially bacteriophages (Aldequer-Riquelme, mBio, 2024). Exceptions to these main patterns are generally rare, and typically attributable to the unique ecology and/or evolution of the corresponding organisms. To further understand and model these patterns of diversity, however, the underlying genetic and/or ecological mechanisms that maintain discrete units at the species and intraspecies levels need to be elucidated (Konstantinidis, mLife, 2023). By analyzing closely related isolate genomes from the same or related samples we show that high ecological cohesiveness among the genomes, coupled to functionally and spatially (across the genome) unrestricted homologous recombination, likely underly these ANI units (Conrad et al., Nat. Comms. 2024). Therefore, our results represent a departure compared to previous models of microbial speciation that attributed speciation to either recombination or ecological cohesiveness but not their synergistic effect. Collectively, these findings should facilitate future micro-diversity studies across clinical or environmental settings because they provide more natural definitions of the species- and intra-species units of microbial and viral diversity. I will also take this opportunity to briefly highlight other projects that are ongoing in the Konstantinidis Lab.
Event Details
Tim Cope
Director, Neuroscience and Neurotechnology Ph.D. Program
Professor, School of Biological Sciences, Walter H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology
Faculty Host: Ming-fai Fong
Join virtually: https://gatech.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_dQ1tKbJGQhu9SCts9ctdZw
Event Details
Loren Frank
Professor
Department of Physiology
University of California San Francisco
Faculty Host: Annabelle Singer
Join virtually: https://gatech.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_dQ1tKbJGQhu9SCts9ctdZw
Event Details
Populations fluctuate through time, including populations of the same species distributed across space and populations of different species co-occurring in a single place. These fluctuations may be random, or may be structured in response to the environment, competition, or dispersal among neighboring habitats. We will discuss several projects related to explaining what causes populations to vary through time and across space, as well as what drives synchronous (positively correlated) population dynamics both within a species across spatial gradients, as well as between species within a community (e.g., compensatory dynamics).
Host Ben Freeman
Event Details
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