How well do you know your whereabouts? Better yet, how does one get acquainted with a new location when traveling or relocating?

A team of researchers at NJIT has created a place-based artificial intelligence project that helps denizens expand their knowledge of the city of Istanbul.

“[AI]stanbul has been designed as a curious machine that aims to be a virtual native,” explains the [AI]stanbul team about the installation on display at the 4th Istanbul Design Biennial, Sept. 22 – Nov 4. 

Known as a chemical manufacturing by-product of many cosmetics and home cleaning products, the industrial solvent 1,4-Dioxane is now considered by the Environmental Protection Agency to be an “emerging contaminant” and “likely human carcinogen” that can be found at thousands of groundwater sites nationally — potentially representing a multi-billion dollar environmental remediation challenge. 

Traditionally, many engineers and developers of solar cell technology have turned to crystalline silicon — a tried and tested material absorber capable of efficiently converting solar radiation to electricity at just four times the thickness of a strand of hair.

At up to a 100th the thickness of a hair strand, nano-thin metal films offer an even more cost-effective and flexible material alternative, holding promise in the future development of everything from solar power to sensor technology. 

While not featured on most product ingredient labels, the organic chemical stabilizer and manufacturing byproduct, 1,4-dioxane, can be found in countless everyday household items — from shampoos and cosmetics to laundry detergents and antifreeze. 

Partly due to its widespread use over many decades, the chemical has now been implicated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an “emerging contaminant of concern” at groundwater and drinking water sites across the U.S., with no effective method for its removal yet established. 

Second in a Three-part Series*

It’s been three decades since NJIT established Martin Tuchman School of Management (MTSM). As the business landscape has changed over the years, so too has the school, becoming a nationally accredited institution offering students a technology-rich environment in which to learn, excel and succeed. We pick up our conversation about MTSM with longtime professors Hindy L. Schachter (HLS) and Theologos H. Bonitsis (THB).