When the National Science Foundation (NSF) asks manufacturing engineers to think big, Purdue University researchers think really big. They proposed a breakthrough vision and roadmap to tackle history’s most persistent problem: food security. Their plan, creating a manufacturing infrastructure for cultured meat, has won 1st place in the NSF Manufacturing Blue Sky Competition.

Tahira Reid Smith, associate professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering, has been named an "emerging leader" by the Society of Women Engineers.

They say “slow and steady wins the race.” But does that apply to motorsports? For 30 years, Purdue Formula have been pushing their custom-built race car up the mountain, and in 2022, they reached their best-ever podium finish: 2nd place overall.

Laura Blumenschein, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, has been named to MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35 list for 2022. Blumenschein developed the Vine robot, an inflatable soft robot which can maneuver through tight spaces.

Brother and sister Reese and Riley Holloway are twins with much more in common than 50% of their DNA. Both served as Purdue College of Engineering ambassadors, received best project awards for their senior design projects and recently accepted positions at Fortune 500 companies upon graduation from Purdue this spring — an accomplishment they credit to their professors, senior design teams and strong bond as twins.

When the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled in-person academic conferences, some groups saw the restrictions as an opportunity to be seized. A group of Purdue students established a webinar series focusing on solid-state batteries, which quickly grew in popularity. Now they have been named Electrochemical Society’s Outstanding Student Chapter for 2022.

Werner Soedel, who served as a professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue for 41 years, has passed away.

There aren't too many fighter pilots with PhDs! But even that is not enough for Purdue grad Zachary Adams. When he's not busy flying Strike Eagles for the Air Force, Zach puts his Purdue research into practice by developing the first ever cyclorotor hybrid drone, and starting a company called Pitch Aeronautics to bring it to market.

We are sad to report the passing of mechanical engineering student Timothy St. John, who died in a cycling accident while working at his co-op in North Dakota.

We've sent many probes, landers, and rovers to Mars, but we've never been able to send anything back from the Red Planet. That may change, thanks to some Purdue researchers who have successfully demonstrated a solid rocket propellant using the same perchlorates found in Martian soil.