Think you know about think[box]? Think again.

Claire Dorsett, the dynamic new leader of Sears think[box], brings a background in museum design and hands-on exhibits to the largest open-access maker space on an American college campus. She’s adding new positions and programs to the acclaimed innovation center, including “tinkering opportunities” designed to make it more approachable to novice makers, including alumni. The recent “thinkbox Derby” was just the first of creative events to come. Whether you’re a veteran thinkboxer or never stepped inside the Richey-Mixon Building, you’ll know a whole lot more about the possibilities after this podcast.

Please note that Sears think[box] will be closed from May 9th - June 1st to attend to maintenance.

There will also be special summer hours at think[box]: Monday-Friday 12pm-7pm and CLOSED on weekends.

You can find hours and information here: case.edu/thinkbox

A $300 million research flagship is rising on Case Quad and Nick Christie is the

man with the plan. As Assistant Vice President for Construction, Campus Planning & Facilities Management at CWRU, he oversees construction projects on campus. That includes the biggest building project in the history of Case Quad-- the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building.

Hundreds of workers from nearly a dozen trades are at work on the massive

project, which is highlighted by a 170-foot tower crane looming over the Quad.

From crane operators to ironworkers to plumbers, Nick is aware of every

contracting team and its contribution to the big picture. In this debut podcast, he explains some of the engineering and construction strategies at work, as well as innovations that are speeding progress and helping to achieve environmental goals.

After hearing from Nick, you’ll have a much better idea of how a complex,

180,000 square-foot research building comes together. You’ll also be clued in to what comes next.

Did you know We Are Case is also available as a video? visit: www.youtube.com/@CaseAlumniAssoc/videos to see this video and all other Case Alumni Association videos.

Visit casealumni.org for more episodes and stories.

Driven, smart, creative. That’s Franco “Krais” Kraiselburd, a student so atypical, he

typifies today’s Case student. The third-year biomedical engineering major is CEO

of his own startup, a guitarist in a rock band, and the founder of a new student

group. Hailing from Argentina, he speaks four languages, which is why he can

order his pizza in Italian in Little Italy.

For complete show notes and a video version of this podcast, visit:

casealumni.org/podcast/season-2-ep-9-krazy-for-case

Anirban Sen Gupta, a professor of biomedical engineering, has spent much of his career seeking a substitute for whole blood, which is always in short supply. Suddenly, his quest looks a lot more attainable. Sen Gupta’s lab will play a key role in a $46 million federally funded effort to develop artificial blood. It’s a project could achieve an historic first as it revolutionizes approaches to emergency care.

For extended show notes and a video version of this episode, please visit: casealumni.org/podcast/season-2-ep-8-bold-science-new-blood

Joy Ward is a biologist, a climate scientist, and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Case Western Reserve University. She’s also a research catalyst who has clearly made her mark since arriving from the University of Kansas three years ago. Her signature program, the Expanding Horizons Initiative, has opened up new research opportunities to faculty and students by funding interdisciplinary student-faculty teams. It also offers a window onto some of the fascinating research taking place at Case.

For extended show notes and the video version of this podcast, please visit: casealumni.org/thinkboxradio/

While most popular with students, Sears think[box] is open to all. That includes alumni like Steve Burns ’11, MEM ’11, Brecken Blackburn, PhD ’21, and Matt McPheeters ’12, MS ’13, PhD ’21. The trio tapped the resources of the campus innovation center to launch their company, Lighthanded, and to develop a promising medical device.

For additional show notes and the video version of this podcast, please visit: casealumni.org/uncategorized/season-2-ep-6/

Sears think[box] began a decade ago as a basement maker space in an

engineering building. Today it’s the largest open-access innovation center on an

American college campus. Jim McGuffin-Cawley, PhD ’84, the faculty director of

Sears think[box], shares his vision for the future of this uncommon resource as

workers add the finishing touches to the towering Richey-Mixon Building.

To lear more please visit: casealumni.org/podcast/season-2-ep-5

You might be surprised to learn that the biggest single source of microplastics in our drinking water is your laundry. The fibers and dies in your clothes teem with specs of plastic, which flow out in the washing machine wastewater. It’s an unseen mess that a trio of young Case engineers aims to clean up. Their startup, CLEANR, is developing a washing machine filter—just as many states and nations are poised to mandate such a device.

Tapping campus resources

Max Pennington ’22, David Dillman and Chip Miller became friends through their fraternity, Sigma Chi. But they became partners because of their shared concern for microplastics in our in our drinking water.

Pennington, a chemical engineering major, alerted his classmates to the problem and they resolved to find a solution. They combined their skills and their passions to launch CLEANR, which incorporated in July of 2022. They also tapped the entrepreneurship resources available to students at CWRU. Those include the campus startup consultancy, LaunchNet, the classes and advising offered by the Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship, and the fabrication and prototyping equipment of Sears think[box], where CLEANR is headquartered.

Their story illustrates what can happen when drive meets resources—as it often does at Case.

Follow the company on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/cleanrh2o/

Company website: https://c212.adwatchmedia.com/

Eric Kaler, the first engineer to lead Case Western Reserve University in 20 years, is going to make Case a busy place. He wants to grow enrollment, expand the research enterprise, and build a $300 million science and engineering flagship on Case Quad. Meanwhile, he and his wife, Karen, have introduced a new lord of the manor at Harcourt House, a beloved rescue dog named Adelbert—whom you will

meet in this podcast.

For extended show notes and additional episodes, please visit casealumni.org/thinkboxradio/.

In the Energy Lab on Case Quad, Burcu Gurkan is leading a team trying to solve some of society’s biggest challenges—including climate change. The U.S. Department of Energy is backing her efforts to filter carbon dioxide from the air with new techniques, because if her science succeeds, the world will be a cleaner, greener place.

More…A scientist for her times

Burcu Gurkan is a chemical engineer and the Nord Distinguished Associate Professor in the Case School of Engineering. In less than six years, she has gained a national profile as a highly cited scientist who attains coveted research grants. In 2021, the National Science Foundation awarded her an Early Career Development grant, its most distinguished award to junior faculty at research universities.

Much of her work addresses challenges of growing importance to humanity, which attracts top graduate students to her lab, the Energy Lab in the A.W. Smith Building, home to the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. Her team’s primary focus is “carbon capture”—finding new and better ways to filter excess carbon dioxide from the air—on Earth and on space ships, which has NASA intrigued. She’s also at the vanguard of battery research and the quest to find a renewable source of energy.

Meanwhile, she’s a busy mom with two young children. She’s truly a scientist for her times.

Read more here: https://casealumni.org/stories/faculty/a-scientist-for-her-times/