Rural Sociology SOC 3720/CHE 4973 or 6810 or 7970 – Rural Sociology is a collaborative effort between Drs. Lachelle Norris (Sociology) and Joseph Biernacki (Chemical Engineering) that will explore the impact that biomass technologies, particularly pyrolysis, might have on rural agro-economies.  The interdisciplinary student body in this course, sociology majors and engineering majors, will be conducting a number of focus groups sessions with farmers and will also be developing technical position papers on the pros and cons of converting biomass directly or indirectly into energy or chemical or fuel precursors.

Molecular Modeling Workshop – A six day workshop designed to disseminate project specific knowledge to a new generation of graduate students working on pyrolysis and modeling of organic-surface interactions was offered between May 24 and June 9.  Lecture recordings and presentation materials are posted at the workshop page.