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New Penn State online degree prepares cyber security professionals

8/8/12

Cyber attacks are on the rise, according to the Department of Homeland Security's Industrial Control Systems Emergency Response Team, which tracks and investigates incidents. In 2011, the nuclear, energy, government and chemical sectors experienced multiple sophisticated spear-phishing campaigns aimed at accessing sensitive information. To help safeguard critical national computer systems and technology infrastructure, Penn State is launching a bachelor of science in security and risk analysis degree online.

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IST researchers examine interplay of cognition, physiology, behavior

8/6/12

Researchers at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology are using cognitive architecture - a broad theory of human cognition based on a wide selection of human experimental data and implemented as a running computer simulation program - to understand how cognitive processes interact with biological systems and influence social behavior.

This work, being conducted by doctoral students Christopher Dancy and Changkun Zho, and Frank Ritter, professor of information sciences and technology, has broad implications in areas including educational software design, military operations, video games and the formation of social networks.

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IST student enjoys internship at Microsoft, awarded scholarship

8/2/12

Leah Kim, who will graduate from the College of IST in December 2012, is now exploring a career in delivering cutting-edge technologies into the hands of consumers. This summer, she has been doing an internship at Microsoft Corporation in Redmond, Wash., a suburb of Seattle. In recognition of her efforts, she has been awarded a scholarship by the company for the 2012-2013 school year.

IST faculty organize 'Operation Banana Splits' with National Guard

7/19/12

Ryan Roberts, who was born with Down syndrome and a congenital heart defect, only lived for 21 months before he died on July 8. Before he passed, however, he inspired thousands of people to treasure the little moments in life by participating in a worldwide ice cream party.

Two faculty members at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology, along with a faculty member at the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, recently lent their services to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard to celebrate Ryan's life. They were assisted by a few local business owners, who have been nominated to receive an award from the military in recognition of their efforts.

Tonex donates $6.7 million to Center for Enterprise Architecture

7/19/12

The Center for Enterprise Architecture (EA) at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) has received a donation of $6.7 from Tonex, a company that provides training and consulting services to a wide variety of industries. The donation will support curricular development in the field of enterprise architecture at IST.

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Rosson appointed associate dean for undergraduate studies at IST

7/18/12

Dr. Mary Beth Rosson, a professor at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), has accepted the position of associate dean for Undergraduate Studies for the college. She replaces Dr. Fred Fonseca, who stepped down from the position in order to become the director of the Center for Innovation in Online Learning, a new research center at Penn State being developed in coordination with the College of Education and the World Campus.

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Researchers to examine 'Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield'

7/18/12

Military intelligence analysts, when devising strategies for operations, must take a number of threat conditions into account. "Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield" is a term used in the military that defines the methodology employed to reduce uncertainties concerning the enemy, environment, and terrain for all types of operations. Researchers at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) recently received a grant that will enable them to explore the ways in which battlefield planning methods can be improved, with the ultimate goal of helping the U.S. Army develop a technological game plan for winning on the battlefield.

IST alum's iPad app puts high-res satellite imagery at your fingertips

7/11/12

Throughout history, people have relied on maps and geospatial information to gain a greater understanding of places throughout the world and make decisions. Nowadays, iPad users can deepen their knowledge of ancient wonders and current events through high-resolution satellite images, thanks to an app developed by College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) Alumnus Todd M. Bacastow and his team at GeoEye.

Attending the Arts Festival in State College? There's an app for that!

7/11/12

The Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts will mark its 45th anniversary on July 11-15 by bringing more 125,000 people to downtown State College and the University Park campus of Penn State. With an event of this size, it can be difficult for festival attendees to recall the location of a particular booth, or decide what musical acts they want to see. Fortunately, a free, Android app developed by researchers at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology is now available to provide real-time guidance and online interaction to festival goers.

Center for EA leads prestigious InfoWorld/Forrester award selection

6/21/12

In order to stay competitive in today's global economy, companies are increasingly turning to enterprise architecture (EA) to help implement organizational strategy and drive agility, efficiency and effectiveness. Penn State's Center for Enterprise Architecture is playing a major role in selecting EA programs that ensure aligned plans, shape business transformations, or boost the business value of information technology for the 2012 InfoWorld/Forrester Enterprise Architecture Award.

Penn State's enterprise architecture center gains prominence with DoD

6/21/12

Enterprise architecture (EA) -- the alignment of enterprise information systems and technology with business strategy and goals -- is having a growing impact on business, industry and government. Brian Cameron, executive director of Penn State's Center for Enterprise Architecture, recently presented at the U.S. Department of Defense's 2012 Enterprise Architecture Conference, where about 600 people gathered to interact around the role of EA in the Department of Defense.

Jeff Rimland EEL - Touch Screen

Hard/soft data fusion research has broad potential

6/13/12

Human observations are playing an increasingly important role in gathering information related to a wide range of phenomena, including natural and man-made disasters, environmental changes over time, law enforcement, and efficient energy utilization. Jeff Rimland, a research technologist and Ph.D. candidate at Penn State's College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), is exploring in his research how combining information from human observations ("soft data") and data from physical sensors ("hard data") could help military personnel and emergency responders gain a more comprehensive understanding of crisis situations.

Trauth: Acknowledging differences leads to equality in STEM

6/13/12

Diversity in higher education is widely viewed as desirable, but how to achieve it is a hotly debated issue. Dr. Eileen Trauth, professor of information sciences and technology, believes that equality can be realized in the areas of science technology, engineering and math (STEM) and in society at large, by acknowledging differences among groups rather than pretending that they don't exist.

Rosson named CIC Academic Leadership Program fellow

6/13/12

Mary Beth Rosson, professor of information sciences and technology, is among five Fellows from the Penn State ranks recently named to the Committee on Institutional Cooperation's (CIC) Academic Leadership Program.

The CIC is the academic consortium of the Big Ten universities plus the University of Chicago. Through its leadership program, participants who have demonstrated exceptional ability and administrative promise are aided in further developing their leadership and managerial skills.

Cameron speaks on big data at InformationWeek, Wipro conference

6/13/12

Big data--the massive amount of information that is generated by social networks, mobile devices, blogs and other disparate content sources-- creates both challenges and opportunities for companies. Dr. Brian Cameron, executive director of the Center for Enterprise Architecture (EA), recently attended a symposium where he discussed how the practice of enterprise architecture--the alignment of enterprise information systems and technology with business strategy and goals--can be employed by companies to maximize the potential of enterprise big data and cloud computing environments.

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Organizational leaders gather to discuss enterprise architecture profession

6/6/13

The Federation of Enterprise Architecture Professional Organizations (FEAPO), which is led by Brian Cameron, executive director of the Center for Enterprise Architecture (EA) at Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) held the Summit on the Enterprise Architecture Profession in early May at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel. FEAPO is a worldwide association of professional organizations which have come together to provide a forum to standardize, professionalize and otherwise advance the discipline of enterprise architecture. Representatives from a diverse array of organizations met at the conference to more precisely define EA and chart a course for the profession.

O'Toole discusses holistic approach to Web design in new book

6/6/13

Greg O’Toole, a lecturer and senior Web UI engineer at Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), plays a dual role in the college as a Web media technologist and educator. His new book, “Sustainable Web Ecosystem Design” (Springer, 2013), is intended to serve as both a resource for Web professionals and a learning guide for his IST students.

Tapia joins task force to examine social media opportunities for sociologists

6/6/13

Sociology is a highly esteemed field with a massive canon of literature, but according to Dr. Andrea Tapia, an associate professor at Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), many sociologists are not well-versed in using social media to promote their research and activities. As a recently appointed member of the American Sociological Association’s (ASA) new Task Force on Social Media, she will have an opportunity to help other sociologists gain greater exposure by using social media as a publicity and networking tool.

Berardi receives Penn State Outstanding IST Alumni Award

5/29/13

Since graduating from Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) in 2003, Nick Berardi has made his mark in the areas of open source software development, consulting and cloud-based computing. In honor of his achievements, he was recently recognized by the college as the first recipient of the Penn State Outstanding IST Alumni Award.

Carroll discusses minimalist learning design in magazine interview

5/23/13

The legendary Funnel of Nurnberg was said to make people wise very quickly when the right knowledge was poured in—a philosophy that designers continue to apply whenever they over-structure information designs. However, according to Jack Carroll, Edward M. Frymoyer Professor at Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), and the author of a landmark book on minimalist design, designers should prescribe less, and enable users to think and do more with new technologies.

Two Penn State engineers named ASME fellows

5/14/13

Two Penn State engineering faculty members were recently named fellows of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). The faculty members are Mike Erdman, the Walter L. Robb Director of Engineering Leadership Development, and Soundar Kumara, the Allen E. Pearce/Allen M. Pearce Professor of Industrial Engineering.

IST grads, students explore San Francisco start-up scene

5/14/13

The second annual Start-up Week, which was held at Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) March 18-23, 2013, featured more than 25 entrepreneurs from trailblazing companies such as Weebly, Reddit and Songsplit, who networked with students and dispensed advice on starting and growing innovative technology-based companies. Several IST students decided to foster the connections established with the entrepreneurs and educate themselves about the field of entrepreneurship by embarking on a trip to San Francisco, Calif.

Tapia heads to Costa Rican jungle to join discussion on sustainability

5/10/13

Sustainability research, which examines the complex interactions between humans and the rest of nature, has the potential to bring economic and social benefits to the developing world and tropical countries such as Costa Rica. However, sustainability research in the tropics has been slow to develop. Andrea Tapia, an associate professor in Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), is one of about 30 people worldwide who have been invited to participate in a consortium that will hold its first planning meeting in June in the jungle of Southern Costa Rica, where they will discuss issues of sustainability and biodiversity conservation in the tropics.

Tapia to engage Schreyers Honors students in crisis informatics discussions

5/10/13

Andrea Tapia, an associate professor in Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), seeks to develop information and communication technology solutions that promote better decision-making across all responders in disaster settings. Starting in the Fall 2013 semester, she will have the opportunity to engage students in the Schreyer Honors College in a deeper discussion than what is typically allowed in a classroom setting of how technologies can be used to save lives during a crisis.

IST dean announces $50,000 gift to establish scholarship

5/3/13

David Hall, dean of Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), says he feels indebted to Penn State for the opportunities it has provided him, and would like to show that appreciation by easing the financial burdens of future IST students. To solidify that commitment, he recently finalized the documentation for an estate gift of $50,000 for the David L. Hall Scholarship in IST.

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Leadership emerges spontaneously during games

4/29/13

Video game and augmented-reality game players can spontaneously build virtual teams and leadership structures without special tools or guidance, according to researchers. Players in a game that mixed real and online worlds organized and operated in teams that resembled a military organization.

IST research: "Friendly" privacy concerns on Facebook?

4/18/13

In recent years, social network sites such as Facebook have become hugely popular platforms that provide users with various features to facilitate social connectivity, information sharing and relationship development. However, the highly interactive nature of communication and data exchange on those sites has led to an increasing number of privacy concerns by users. Researchers at Penn State’s College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) are studying interpersonal privacy issues on social network sites through the use of a particular feature—Friendship Pages on Facebook.