Idaho Office of Science & Technology July 2006

In this issue:

# Idaho Innovation Awards Nomination Deadline Nears
# Washington Group Partners with U.K. Oil & Gas Company
# Micron Completes Lexar Media Purchase
# Mountain States Lead in IT Hiring Plans
# MotivePower to Build Commuter Trains for Utah, California
# Optimal Solutions Wins Annual TechLaunch Competition
# Treetop Tech Develops Environmental Evaluation Tool for Paper
# AMI Semiconductor Top Preferred Supplier for Rockwell Collins
# Micron Targets Image Sensors at Webcam Market
# SBIR SWIFT Tour Planned
# Boise State Professor Files for Patent for Safer Chemotherapy Drug
# INL, NorthStar Nuclear Medicine Join Forces on Cancer Technology
# Study Ponders Whether Unruly Children Can Derail Marriages
# Graduate Program Focuses on Biological Applications of Nanotechnology
# Idaho Undergrads Receive Biomedical Research Fellowships
# Interim Dean Named for ISU’s College of Technology
# Engineering Projects Needed for Boise State Students
# GIS Software Proves to be International Hit
Idaho Innovation Awards Nomination Deadline Nears

(Statewide) Nominations for the Stoel Rives Idaho Innovation Awards must be in by July 14.
The new peer reviewed program, which recognizes the best innovations in the state, was created to highlight Idaho’s culture of innovation. The state has led the nation in patents per capita for the past decade. Its inventors receive more patents than most neighboring states with far greater populations.
The awards luncheon is Sept. 26 in conjunction with the annual Intermountain Venture Forum, which brings in venture capitalists and angel investors from around the country. Information on this year’s forum is at http://www.ivfboise.org.
Nominations for the Idaho Innovation Awards can be submitted online at http://www.stoel.com/innovation.

Washington Group Partners with U.K. Oil & Gas Company

(Boise) Washington Group International has formed a joint venture with Whessoe Oil & Gas Limited, a United Kingdom-based leader in the global liquefied natural gas storage and processing market.
The companies will team up to provide engineering, procurement and construction services for LNG tanks, receiving terminals and storage facilities in the United States and at select locations internationally.
Worldwide demand for LNG facilities is expected to grow significantly during the next decade. In the United States alone, LNG supplies currently make up less than 2 percent of the U.S. gas supply but are predicted by the U.S. Department of Energy and several independent sources to reach between 8 percent and 12 percent in the next 10 years.

Micron Completes Lexar Media Purchase

(Boise) Micron Technology has completed its purchase of Lexar Media for $850 million.
"With this acquisition, Micron becomes a vertically integrated provider of flash storage requirements for retail customers as well as consumer electronics and enterprise segments," Micron Chairman and Chief Executive Steve Appleton said.
Under the definitive merger agreement, each outstanding share of Lexar common stock will be traded for 0.5925 shares of Micron common stock.
Micron, based in Boise, is one of the world’s largest advanced semiconductor products companies.

Mountain States Lead in IT Hiring Plans

(Regional) A hiring and skills report shows that the Mountain States – Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming lead the country in hiring optimism for technology workers.
Nineteen percent of chief information officers in this region expect to add personnel in the third quarter of 2006, 9 percentage points above the national average. None anticipated staff cutbacks.
The report was issued by Robert Half Technology based in Menlo Park, Calif.

MotivePower to Build Commuter Trains for Utah, California

(Boise) MotivePower, the Boise-based subsidiary of Wabtec Corp., will build MPXpress commuter locomotives for the Utah Transit Authority and Southern California Regional Rail Authority as part of a $180 million contract.
Work will begin this year on the new, high-efficiency locomotives.
The firm has recently delivered locomotives to Chicago, San Francisco and Albuquerque and has new orders for Toronto, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles.
The locomotives will have significant technological improvements compared to the current equipment used by these transit authorities, including higher-horsepower engines to increase acceleration, greater fuel efficiency, reduced emissions and microprocessor controls. They will also meet new crashworthiness and safety standards set by the American Public Transportation Association.

Optimal Solutions Wins Annual TechLaunch Competition

(Sun Valley) Idaho Falls-based Optimal Solutions Software won a $10,000 prize and recognition as a company with significant potential for growth at the annual TechLaunch competition in Sun Valley.
The firm uses computational fluid dynamics technology to provide modeling software that enables better designs in everything from race cars to surgical procedures.
The business plan competition was judged by a panel comprised of seasoned entrepreneurs, angel investors, and venture capitalists.
Gov. James E. Risch, who keynoted the event, said encouraging emerging entrepreneurs is important for Idaho’s economy.
"If we’re going to look forward, it’s important to nurture the new economy – and that’s the science and technology economy," said Risch.
More information about Optimal Solutions is at http://www.optimalsolutions.us.

Treetop Tech Develops Environmental Evaluation Tool for Paper

(Boise) Treetop Tech has developed a business procurement tool to evaluate the environmental performance of paper products.
The Boise firm worked with Metafore, the non-profit organization that works with businesses concerned about the environment, and 11 businesses that collaborate with Metafgore in the Paper Working Group.
The tool was unveiled at the Forest Leadership Forum in Oregon this spring and is planned for general release in late summer. The firm has led extensive beta testing with the companies in the Paper Working Group. They includedHewlett-Packard Co., FedEx Kinko’s, McDonald’s and Starbucks.
The goal is to increase the supply and affordability of environmentally preferable paper.
"This innovative Web-based tool establishes for the first time consistent language and metrics for companies to evaluate the environmental footprint of paper-based products they buy," said Metafore President David Ford. "The process of developing this tool is as unique as the tool itself. Leadership companies from many market sectors are collaborating to achieve common social and environmental results."
More information is at http://www.treetoptech.com.

AMI Semiconductor Top Preferred Supplier for Rockwell Collins

(Pocatello) AMI Semiconductor, a designer and manufacturer of state-of-the-art integrated mixed-signal and structured digital products, has been named a Top Preferred Supplier for 2006 by Rockwell Collins.
AMI Semiconductor was cited for meeting delivery schedules, product quality, design and engineering support and the teamwork demonstrated with Rockwell Collins.
Rockwell Collins is a worldwide leader in the design, production and support of communications and aviation electronics solutions for commercial and government customers.
More information is at http://www.amis.com.

Micron Targets Image Sensors at Webcam Market

(Boise) With the advent of free Web-calling, instant messaging and high-quality imaging technology, video chat is fast gaining popularity among friends, family and co-workers. Micron Technology Inc. is helping spur the adoption of video chat, targeting its line of high-performance image sensors for the burgeoning webcam market. Micron has supplied image sensors for webcams for several years, and today commands more than 60-percent market share.
While the majority of webcams are the traditional tethered style with video graphics array or 1.3-megapixel resolutions, the market is steadily trending toward higher resolution cameras at 2-megapixels and above.
Additionally, the PC manufacturer market is taking advantage of the webcam trend, embedding cameras into their newest notebook and flat panel monitor designs.
Important image sensor performance elements for the webcam market include fast frame rates for capturing crisp and clear video, a high dynamic range to ensure a quality picture in various lighting conditions and a small form factor to fit into today’s ultra-thin notebook and flat panel monitor designs.
More information is at http://www.micron.com.

SBIR SWIFT Tour Planned

(Statewide) Idaho businesses and entrepreneurs interested in meeting with federal SBIR program managers will have the opportunity at a much more convenient location than Washington, D.C.
The SBIR/STTR Where Innovation Focuses Technology Tour, or SWIFT Tour, is taking place in Bozeman, Mont. , on Sept. 12. SBIR program managers from 10 federal agencies use the tour to bring the benefits of a national SBIR/STTR conference to regions across the country.
The event will include morning briefings and individual meetings. Afternoon workshops will round out a full day of information and networking for both experienced companies and those new to the SBIR process. An evening networking session on Monday, Sept. 11, is also planned though full details have not yet been announced.
The Idaho Office of Science & Technology wants to identify Idaho businesses and entrepreneurs interested in attending the event. Transportation assistance to Bozeman for Idaho businesses may be available if there is enough interest. Contact Jeff Viano by e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at (208) 334-2650 ext. 2118 for information.
The Montana Department of Commerce contacts for the event are Michele Cheeseman, SBIR Program Assistant, phone: (406) 841-2748, e-mail: [email protected]; or Linda Brander, SBIR Program Manager, phone: (406) 841-2749, e-mail: [email protected].
Following the stop in Bozeman, the tour will be in Casper, Wyo., on Sept. 13 and in Denver on the 14th.

Boise State Professor Files for Patent for Safer Chemotherapy Drug

(Boise) Boise State University chemistry professor Henry Charlier has filed a provisional patent application for a drug that may have potential to make chemotherapy treatments for cancer patients safer and more effective.
The provisional patent application, made by Charlier and owned by Boise State, is the beginning of the legal process to obtain protection for the discovery for one year while Charlier continues his research studies.
Charlier demonstrated that bithionol, commonly used to treat patients with liver flukes or other parasites, has an unexpected effect. Specifically, bithionol and a related drug, bithionol sulfoxide, inhibit an enzyme that is known to convert anthracyclines used in chemotherapy treatments into a heart-damaging substance. Bithionol and bithionol sulfoxide could be used to block the formation of this dangerous substance, making anthracyclines safer for treating cancer.
"This new discovery is promising because it could lead to the development of drugs that would prevent this serious side effect from occurring," Charlier said.
During his research, Charlier worked with scientists at the Veterans Affair Regional Medical Center and at Boise State.
Charlier is also investigating other potential inhibitors that may improve anthracycline therapy.

INL, NorthStar Nuclear Medicine Join Forces on Cancer Technology
(Idaho Falls) Unused nuclear fuel at the Idaho National Laboratory may be the key to curing cancer.
NorthStar Nuclear Medicine Inc. and the INL have signed two agreements on a major new technology to produce the medical isotope, actinium-225, for use in cancer research and treatment.
The agreements open the door to another source of a medical isotope that can be used in a cancer treatment regimen that offers many advantages over traditional treatment approaches.
A patented invention that has been nominated for R&D Magazine’s top 100 technologies during 2006, the Medical Actinium for Therapeutic Treatment, also called MATT, involves separation processes that recover actinium-225 from unused nuclear fuel. This technology is expected to increase the world production of the medical isotope, enabling important clinical cancer treatment trials to proceed.
Actinium-225 can be used effectively in alpha-immunotherapy treatments, which combine an alpha particle-emitting radionuclide that is carried by a targeting agent such as monoclonal antibodies. The targeting agent seeks out and selectively attaches to cancer cells. The radioisotope then kills the targeted cancer cells, while minimizing collateral damage to surrounding normal cells. This treatment regimen offers many advantages over external radiation exposure and chemotherapy.
The agreements between INL and NorthStar include a license for the company to use the MATT technology and a cooperative research and development agreement supporting further development of the technology. The license gives NorthStar the exclusive right to use the technology for the life of the patents in exchange for fees and annual royalty payments to the laboratory. The cooperative agreement directs NorthStar to provide INL funding to develop MATT during the initial planning stage for designing and building a pilot plant to recover the medical isotope.
The Department of Energy is currently providing actinium-225 to researchers from its Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. If INL and NorthStar successfully develop their technology, it would supplement this limited supply.
INL researchers have a significant source of actinium-225 in the 14 metric tons of unused nuclear fuel created for breeder reactor research that was discontinued in the early 1970s.
More information is at http://www.inl.gov.

Study Ponders Whether Unruly Children Can Derail Marriages
(Pocatello) Parents have been hearing about it for decades: Fighting with their spouses hurts their children. The spotlight, for the general culture and for researchers, has generally aimed at the parents.
But why couldn’t children with bad behavior affect their parents’ marriages? How could their children’s misbehavior affect their relationship? Those are the questions that Idaho State University psychology doctoral candidate Greg Snyder began to answer in his dissertation, "Should We Throw the Baby Out With the Bath Water? The Effect of Deviant Child Behavior on Marital Communication."
"We’ve known for a long time parental conflict has a profoundly negative effect on child development and pathology, but we have neglected the possibility that an opposite effect exists. Specifically, that bad kids can hurt marital relationships," said Snyder, a psychology intern at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota in Minneapolis. "This is the first controlled, empirical study I know of that directly examines how kids with bad behavior affect the way couples talk with each other."
Snyder, whose research was supported by a grant from the Idaho State Office of Research, studied how normal misbehavior such as breaking rules, hitting, noncompliance and destructiveness by normally developing children decreased the amount of specific positive communicative behavior between their parents on a problem-solving task. Snyder is finishing a one-year pediatric psychology internship and will begin working at Methodist Children’s Hospital in Omaha, Neb., as a psychologist this fall.

Graduate Program Focuses on Biological Applications of Nanotechnology

(Moscow) A new doctoral program at University of Idaho, focusing on the biological applications of nanotechnology, is looking to recruit highly motivated students.
Applicants should be able to contribute to an interdisciplinary initiative studying one of the following themes:
– Nanomaterials for investigation and treatment of intracellular infectious disease agents;
– Bio-nanostructures to study gene knockdown;
– Development of a reusable nano-array for genomic screening.
Positions are available with an interdisciplinary team of researchers with expertise in nanomaterials, conjugation chemistry, molecular physiology, molecular biology, cell biology, host-pathogen interactions, biochemistry, physics and engineering.
Successful candidates will receive a competitive stipend and work with a multidisciplinary group of co-investigators at the University of Idaho, Moscow campus.
For information or to submit an application, contact Dr. Kurt Gustin at (208) 885-7525 or [email protected].

Idaho Undergrads Receive Biomedical Research Fellowships
(Statewide)The Idaho IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence has awarded 35 summer research fellowships to undergraduate students currently enrolled in seven colleges and universities across Idaho.
The fellows received awards of up to $5,000 to conduct biomedical research at Boise State University, Albertson College of Idaho, Idaho State University, Northwest Nazarene University, the University of Idaho, Brigham Young University-Idaho and North Idaho College.
As part of the 10-week program, the students are working with experienced research scientists and attending seminar presentations. They will present their results at the annual INBRE research conference in Coeur D’Alene Aug. 6-8. The program is funded by a five-year, $16.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.

Interim Dean Named for ISU’s College of Technology
(Pocatello) Idaho State Board of Education Chief Academic Officer Marilyn E. Davis, a 1969 Idaho State University alumna, returned to her alma mater July 1 as interim dean of the College of Technology.
Prior to going to work for the Idaho State Board of Education in 2004, Davis spent a decade at the Rock Creek campus of Oregon’s four-campus Portland Community College District, serving as chief academic officer and dean of instruction, dean of academic services and director of industrial occupations.
She had previously spent three years in Bend, Ore., as dean of professional technical programs at Central Oregon Community College. From 1986 to 1990 she was director of the Oregon Department of Education’s vocational program operations section in the Division of Vocational Technical Education.
From 1982 to 1986, Davis was regional coordinator for career and vocational education for Multnomah Education Service District in Portland. Her classroom experience includes teaching at Wood River High School in Hailey and Oregon’s Redmond High School and Albany Public Schools.

Engineering Projects Needed for Boise State Students
(Boise) The College of Engineering at Boise State University is asking those with engineering or materials science design needs to submit well-defined design problems to challenge its students. Students will work with the industrial sponsor, program faculty and their multi-disciplinary teams to solve these real world problems important to industry in Idaho. Problems are being sought in civil, electrical, computer, mechanical and materials science engineering. The project timeline is three to six months, and the industrial sponsor should provide the supplies, parts, travel and other resources the project requires.
Interested parties should contact Janet M. Hampikian, associate dean, College of Engineering, at [email protected].

GIS Software Proves to be International Hit
(Idaho Falls) Geographic Information System software developed by faculty and graduate students in the Idaho State University geosciences department is proving to be an international hit.
Geosciences professor Daniel Ames, with the help of several master’s degree students in the geographic information sciences laboratory, have developed new software, MapWindow GIS, to view and analyze computerized map data. The free, open-source mapping software can be used to make maps using environmental, political, social, economic or any other spatial data.
"Imagine an interactive computer-based map that allows you to overlay U.S. counties with terrorist threats or a map that allows you to overlay school district boundaries with addresses of known sex offenders," Ames said.
Commercial GIS software capable of this type of data analysis has been available since the 1980s. However, it has been expensive for the average user, costing as much as $15,000 for a single license. The Idaho State MapWindow GIS tool is unique because it is available for no charge and users are free to manipulate or change the source code to improve it or modify it as needed. It is also the only fully Microsoft Windows-based, open-source GIS software available for use on personal computers.
MapWindow GIS is available at mapwindow.org. Interest in the site has surged since January with up to about 5,000 hits per day including 500 first-time visitors each day.

Have an Idea/Submission for this Newsletter?
Contact Julie Howard at the Idaho Commerce & Labor’s Office of Science & Technology at (208) 334-2650, ext. 2147, or at [email protected]

Read More Idaho Technology News
Miss last month’s Science & Technology newsletter? Find the complete newsletter archives at http://www.technology.idaho.gov and click on "news."

2006 Events Calendar
June 9 – July 14
Idaho Innovation Awards Nominations
Statewide
Entry forms for the first annual Stoel Rives Idaho Innovation Awards can be submitted during this period. The program is designed to recognize innovations and the Idaho companies that created them. Entry forms can be downloaded from http://www.stoel.com/innovation.

July 13
Kickstand
Ha Penny, Boise
Regular gathering of Kickstand, a monthly networking meeting of innovators and entrepreneurs. To join or RSVP, go to kickstand.org.

June-August
Sawtooth Science Institute
Southern Idaho locations
Idaho State University’s Sawtooth Science Institute includes more than 20 workshops over the summer. Workshops are open to both degree-seeking ISU students and community members. Topics range from botany to paleontology. More information is at imnh.isu.edu/ssi.

July 17-21
Idaho Business Week
Boise
A hands-on, interactive Entrepreneur Camp for high school students to connect with like-minded students, business owners, and community leaders to learn how to create ideas that will change the world. Held at Boise State University, this Entrepreneur Camp provides real-world experience in a creative, challenging, and fun environment. More information: http://www.iaci.org/bweek.

Aug. 8
Governor’s Science & Technology Advisory Council
Post Falls
Governor’s advisory group on science and technology will hold its quarterly meeting in Idaho Falls. Contact Karen Lewis, at the Office of Science & Technology, for information – (208) 334-2650 ext. 2101.

September 20
Boise Angel Alliance
Boise
A group of private "angel" investors, meet. Entrepreneurs can apply to present to this group and interested investors can get more information online at http://www.boiseangelalliance.com.

September 26
Idaho Innovation Awards
Boise
The first annual Stoel Rives Idaho Innovation Awards luncheon will be held Sept. 26 in conjunction with the Intermountain Venture Forum. For more information, go to stoel.com/innovation.

September 26-27
Intermountain Venture Forum
Boise
Annual venture forum brings together rising entrepreneurs and venture capital firms. For information, go to ivfboise.org.

October 4-6
Idaho Energy Conference
Boise
Longest running conference of its kind in the Northwest, the Idaho Energy Conference provides a casual forum where policy makers and technical implementers of code and energy efficiency programs meet to negotiate the future of conservation and energy in Idaho. Information at http://www.idahocities.org.

For more calendar information, visit Conferences and Events at http://www.cl.idaho.gov

"We Create Jobs, Strengthen Communities and Market Idaho."

IDAHO COMMERCE & LABOR
PO Box 83720, Boise, Idaho 83720-0093
Tel: 208-334-2470; Fax: 208-334-2631
Web: cl.idaho.gov
06-62000-250

JAMES E. RISCH, GOVERNOR
ROGER B. MADSEN, DIRECTOR
KARL TUELLER, DEPUTY DIRECTOR & OST EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

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