News & Events
Research
Call for Volunteers May 1, 2014
The Awareness and Localization of Explosives Related Threats (ALERT) program at Northeastern University employs an Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) lab in the Egan building on Campus. In this lab there are technologies used to image the surface of the human body, very similar to the systems used at airports worldwide today. We are exploring combinations of imaging techniques in order to determine optimum detection of threats capabilities. The types of technologies (Video, Radar, X-ray, thermal imaging, and passive nuclear quadrapole resonance) have all been proven to be safe for human exposure. We are now in the testing phase of this research. We are calling out now for volunteers willing to be imaged by these technologies.
Research Participant FAQ
Read more details about what volunteering requires in the Informed Consent to Participate in Research FAQ.
Volunteer
Please contact us if you are interested in participating:
Professor Carey Rappaport
ALERT Thrust Lead – Bulk Sensors & Sensor Systems,
Northeastern University
[email protected]
Alyssa White
ALERT Research Consultant,
Massachusetts General Hospital
[email protected]
315-244-8178
Please note, this call for volunteers has been approved by Northeastern University’s Institutional Review Board.
ALERT Researchers Win Best Propagation Paper Award at 2014 EUCAP April 18, 2014
Congratulations to our ALERT researchers, Prof. Yuri Álvarez, Yolanda Rodriguez (Ph.D. Candidate), Borja Gonzalez (PostDoc), Prof. Jose Martinez, and Prof. Carey Rappaport, who won the Best Propagation Paper Award at the EuCAP 2014 – the 8th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation. Their paper, “A compressed sensing-based imaging system,” was presented by Prof. Álvarez at the conference, which was held at the World Forum in The Hague in The Netherlands, on April 6th – 11th, 2014. Congratulations to our amazing ALERT team!
Congratulations to our Scholars!!! April 18, 2014
Congratulations to the ALERT and Gordon-CenSSIS Scholars who have completed the 2014 Spring Program! The Scholars program is for freshmen engineering students at Northeastern University, who participate in an ALERT or Gordon-CenSSIS related research project during the spring semester. They also attend Scholar meetings and seminars, and complete 5+ hours of STEM outreach to students K-12 in the Boston-area. On Tuesday, April 8th, the Scholars gave their Final Research presentations to their peers, faculty advisors, graduate students, and mentors. Congratulations to our Scholars!!!
RI Senator Jack Reed Visits ALERT at URI February 25, 2014
FROM URI NEWS, KINGSTON, RI – February, 25, 2014 — U.S. Sen. Jack Reed met Monday with University of Rhode Island professors from chemistry, engineering and cyber security to see firsthand some of the leading research they are conducting on explosives, explosives detection, and cyber security, and discuss efforts to strengthen URI’s role in physical and cyber security study.
During a campus tour yesterday with Gerald Sonnenfeld, URI vice president for research and economic development; Jimmie Oxley, URI professor of chemistry and director of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence in Explosives, Detection, Mitigation, and Response at the University of Rhode Island; Otto Gregory, URI distinguished professor of engineering and co-director of the Sensors and Surface Technology Partnership; Lisa DiPippo, associate professor of computer science and the academic director of the Cyber Security Program at URI; Alan Davis of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport; and URI students, Reed observed demonstrations of some of the work URI is doing to improve security, detect explosives and neutralize their impact, and strengthen the nation’s cyber security capabilities.
[Photo Credit: URI Photos by Michael Salerno Photography.]
VAST program featured on fedscoop.com February 14, 2014
W. Clem Karl has been named an IEEE Fellow December 19, 2013
ALERT researcher W. Clem Karl of Boston University has been named an IEEE Fellow. This is the highest grade of membership in the world’s leading professional association for advancing technology for the benefit of society. Less than .1% of members are selected each year. Congratulations, Clem!
Research aims to reduce security threats from explosives October 1, 2013
Purdue News highlights the work of new ALERT researchers, Stephen Beaudoin, Steven Son, and Charles Bouman.
Photo at Right: Purdue doctoral student David Kittell, at left, and graduate student Peter Renslow perform an experiment to study homemade explosives as part of a national effort to protect against terrorist attacks. Purdue researchers are participating in the Awareness and Localization of Explosives-Related Threats center (ALERT). (Purdue University photo/Andrew Hancock)
Read MoreProfs. Octavia Camps and Mario Sznaier Awarded NSF Grant September 16, 2013
ALERT and Gordon-CenSSIS researchers, Profs. Octavia Camps and Mario Sznaier, were awarded a $455K grant from the National Science Foundation to study “Dynamic Invariants for Video Scenes Understanding.” Congratulations, Prof. Camps and Sznaier!
August 1st at 1pm EDT – Technologies for Bomb Response Twitter Chat August 1, 2013
DHS S&T will be hosting a twitter chat on Technologies for Bomb Response today at 1pm EDT. Those of you that are interested can follow the conversation at https://twitter.com/dhsscitech or at #STTechTalk.
The First Responders Group, with support from the Explosives Division and the DHS Office for Bombing Prevention, is hosting a Twitter Chat August 1 from 1:00-2:00 pm EDT. The topic is Technologies for Bomb Response, and the discussion will feature the Semi-Autonomous Pipe Bomb End-Cap Remover (SAPBER), FiRST App (a smart phone application for bomb response), and more!
A Twitter Chat is a virtual, two-way conversation that allows us to reach out to targeted audiences, ask for their feedback on S&T products/services, and answer their questions. We encourage our Twitter followers to tweet (message) us during the Chat so we can provide real-time responses. Twitter users can follow the full conversation using our hashtag (#STTechTalk), a designated word that links tweets from S&T and from participants.
Read MoreSummer REU Program is underway at ALERT July 23, 2013
The ALERT Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) 2013 summer program is currently hosting 9 exceptional undergraduate students at Northeastern University, and ALERT partner institutions. Prof. Carey Rappaport, Prof. Jose Martinez-Lorenzo, and Mr. Richard Moore, are working with the five ALERT REU students at Northeastern University. Two students are working with Profs. Brandon Weeks and Louisa Hope-Weeks at Texas Tech University, and two students are working with Prof. Samuel Hernandez at the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez.
The summer program, which runs for 10-weeks from June 3rd – August 9th , provides students with full-time work experience on ALERT research, as well as meetings and activities geared to enhance professional development. A few of the students working at NEU begin their involvement in ALERT research through the ALERT Scholars program, which provides freshmen undergraduates an introduction and gateway to engineering research on campus during the spring semester.
Rachel Shaffer, an REU student working with Mr. Moore, began her work with him on Video Analytics through the spring 2013 ALERT Scholars program. She has become an integral part of his research team, and provided a demonstrated of some of their work during TSA Administrator, John Pistole’s lab visit on June 12th.
At the end of the program, the REU students will give presentations on their research projects. Students at Texas Tech University and University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez will present to the group online on August 6th, and Northeastern University students will present on August 8th from 9:00am – 1:00pm EST in room 378 in 140 The Fenway.
