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Dartmouth Engineer Magazine: Spring 2025

In this Issue

The Design Initiative at Dartmouth is finding ways to disable the threat of 3D-printed machineguns. Plus, a conversation between the outgoing and incoming deans of Thayer; showcasing "Machine Engineering" final projects; and more.

Features

Using Design Thinking to Disable the Threat of 3D-Printed Machineguns

BY MICHAEL BLANDING | The Design Initiative at Dartmouth is helping find ways to stem the tide of illegal 3D-printing of machinegun conversion devices (MCDs).

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Curious to the Core

Outgoing Dean Alexis Abramson and incoming Dean Douglas Van Citters discuss Thayer's spirit of collaboration and discovery. READ MORE»

Roll Over, Rover

Seven teams. Five minutes. Countless gears, bearings, and chains. ENGS 76: "Machine Engineering" students test their prototypes on the obstacle course. READ MORE»

Great Hall

Tissue Engineers Work to Improve Quality of Life

Professor Katie Hixon and her team are developing methods to repair, rehabilitate, and replace tissue damaged by cancer treatment. READ MORE»

Committed to Community

Triumph Kia Teh '26 was selected for the King Scholars Program, which supports students from developing nations who are determined to alleviate poverty in their home countries. READ MORE»

Preventing Bone Loss in Space

A Dartmouth project led by Adjunct Professor of Engineering Jay Buckey will test a new inflight calcium monitor during the mission. READ MORE»

Study Predicts Sea-Level Rise for Future Generations

A multi-institutional study, led by Professor Hélène Seroussi, extends scientists' predictions of how greenhouse gas emissions will likely affect sea-level rise beyond the twenty‐first century. READ MORE»

New Way to See Cancer

A new imaging technology, called "Pressure-Enhanced Sensing of Tissue Oxygenation," can help surgeons distinguish cancer from healthy tissue in real time. READ MORE»
 

Solution for Food vs Fuel Debate

Led by Professor Lee Lynd, new research describes a strategy for using crop residues to produce large amounts of biofuel, improving the sustainability and economics of food production. READ MORE»

More Bike-Walk-Friendly Town Planning

Thayer won a $10,000 NCEES Engineering Education Award for a student project that leverages technology to help municipalities make better planning choices for pedestrians and cyclists. READ MORE»

New Faculty

Thayer welcomed three tenure-line faculty in 2024. READ MORE»

Better Sea Ice Monitoring

A team led by Professor Don Perovich was awarded $296,000 to increase the number and capability of seasonal ice mass balance buoys that improve understanding of sea ice change. READ MORE»

Collaborations

Ryan Halter, Keith Paulsen, and Kim Samkoe

A Precise Surgical Solution

A Dartmouth Engineering-led team has earned a $31.3-million commitment from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health to create a laparoscope-integrating imaging solution that can improve surgical outcomes, particularly for prostate cancer. 

Led by Professors Kimberley Samkoe, Scott Davis, Ryan Halter, and Keith Paulsen, the team will use nerve and vascular contrast agents to cause these critical anatomical structures to fluoresce, then map and visualize the 3D shape and depth of the structures. "It's currently not possible to image these subsurface structures in real time," says Samkoe. "The goal of the project is to be able to identify and locate the structures such that surgeons can make rapid intra-operative decisions to avoid unnecessary injury to the patient." 

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First Look

Cliffhanger

One "Machine Engineering" student team created a winch and fishing rod to help its rover—Chris McGnome—climb the cliff in the obstacle course competition. See more designs in this issue's photo essay. (Photo by Rob Strong '04)

Back Cover

The Adventure Begins

Photographer Savannah Byron, a PhD Innovation Program student, captures the ascent of the fall first-year grad student trip up Mount Moosilauke, Dartmouth's own 4,802-footer.