As three storms stirred in waters to the east and south of the state, a new approach to hurricane modeling is not only bringing in major research dollars for LSU, but it could also eventually help communities in south Louisiana better prepare for the inevitable events that go along with living near the Gulf of Mexico. Q. Jim Chen, LSU associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, and his team are developing computer models that rely on open source capabilities, meaning anyone can access the computer software and modify or edit it, which in turn could lead to even more breakthroughs.
The work has already produced a number of educational opportunities that aren’t available anywhere else in the nation, including the LSU High School Scholarship in Coastal Engineering, the LSU Minority Fellowship in Coastal Engineering and a new graduate program in coastal and ecological engineering. These opportunities have opened up because the Chen Group concluded that inadequate coastal engineering research and education in the Gulf Coast region prior to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was reflected in the failures of the civil engineering infrastructure. “If we can not only produce a well-educated group of coastal engineers, but also arm them with the most advanced tools available for their field, I think we’ll start to see a difference in how the Gulf Coast fares in future hurricanes and coastal events,” says Chen. Read the full story here.—Jeremy Alford
