Nanotech, robotics student earns prestigious NSF Research Fellowship

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Nathan Brooks, a University of Tulsa senior from Euless, Texas, majoring in electrical engineering and computer science, has received the National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship.

NSF Graduate Research Fellows receive an annual $30,000 stipend, $10,500 cost-of-education allowance, $1,000 one time international travel allowance, and TeraGrid Supercomputer access. TeraGrid is the world's largest, most comprehensive distributed cyber infrastructure for open scientific research.

Brooks, who will attend Carnegie-Mellon University for his master's degree in robotics, took advantage of many University of Tulsa programs:

  • The Tulsa Undergraduate Research Challenge offered Brooks a mentoring and research opportunity with Peter LoPresti, associate professor of electrical engineering;
  • NanoJapan, a TU-Rice University collaborative study abroad program for engineering students, organized Brooks’ 2007 summer research in nanotechnology at the Osaka Institute of Technology in Japan;
  • Challenge X alternative vehicle competition benefited from Brooks’ work with microcontroller communication;
  • TU professors helped Brooks apply to the NASA Robotics Academy program at Marshall Space Flight Center where he spent the summer of 2008.

While at TU, Brooks’ academic interests included autonomous agents, electronics and computer vision. Those interests led him to pursue advanced studies in artificial intelligence, electrical circuits and robotics.

Contact:
Amethyst Cavallaro
918-631-2656
cavallaro@utulsa.edu

Faculty Profile

LoPresti
Peter LoPrestiAssociate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Director of the Optical Networking Laboratory
Dr. LoPresti has performed research in a number of areas, all with a focus on optics »

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