2026 Featured Trek Talkers

• HANDS ON THE FUTURE: TRAINING STUDENTS FOR THE QUANTUM REVOLUTION

  Laurence Lurio, Ph.D.

  Laurence Lurio from the Department of Physics in CLAS will present on establishing NIU’s first on-campus, room-temperature optical-qubit lab to give students hands-on quantum hardware experience, support research and workforce training, and position NIU as a meaningful contributor in the growing regional and national quantum technology ecosystem.
   

• QUANTUM LEAP: SHARPER, FASTER, AND WARMER

  Tao Xu, Ph.D.

  Tao Xu from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in CLAS will share his proposal to develop a new type of quantum computing technology that can operate at much higher, far more affordable temperatures, dramatically reducing costs and making scalable, practical quantum computers easier to build and deploy.

• INTELLIGENCE IN MOTION: ENGINEERING A SAFER, MORE INDEPENDENT WORLD

  Peter Lin, Ph.D.

  Peter Lin from the Department of Mechanical Engineering in CEET will share his work to develop an affordable, AI-powered robotic “guide dog” that helps visually impaired, older, and vulnerable individuals move safely and independently in their daily lives.
   

• FROM GUTENBERG TO GENERATIVE AI: HOW TECHNOLOGY SHAPES US

  Melissa Adams-Campbell, Ph.D.

  Melissa Adams-Campbell from the Department of English in CLAS whose work aims to create a center at NIU that helps students and the community better understand and responsibly use AI and other technologies by connecting them to the history, ethics, and human impact of how we create and share information.
   

  Beth McGowan, Ph.D.

  
   

• THE GRANTMAKING CLASSROOM: WHERE WE FUND IMPACT

  Anna-Mary L. Walker

  Anna-Mary Walker from the Center for Nonprofit & NGO Studies in CLAS will share how her work is developing students into real-life grant makers, giving them hands-on experience in philanthropy while connecting local nonprofits with flexible funding opportunities to make a difference in their community.
   

• TWO GENERATIONS, ONE GOAL: KEEPING OUR MINDS HEALTHY

  Jamie Mayer, Ph.D.

  Jamie Mayer from the School of Allied Health & COMD in CHHS will share her program work that pairs NIU students with older adults in senior living communities to learn about brain health together, helping both groups build mental resilience and reduce the risk of dementia through fun, interactive activities.
   

• LISTENING SMARTER: HOW AI CAN HEAR WHAT PARENTS CAN’T

  Lichuan Liu, Ph.D.

  Lichuan Liu from the Electrical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering Program in CEET is creating a smart stethoscope that uses AI to help parents quickly detect breathing problems in young children, especially in areas without easy access to doctors.
   

• VIDEO: INSIDE THE NIU BIOPLASTICS LAB: THE RACE TO REINVENT PLASTIC

  Sarahjean Brown, Calvin Siessel, Ian Janusz, Ryan Mueller and J.C. La Barbera

  Sarahjean Brown, Calvin Siessel, Ian Janusz, Ryan Mueller and J.C. La Barbra, Engineering Technology majors and research assistants in Mahdi Vaezi's Bioplastics lab will present on their work to advance sustainable materials innovation while building their own technical expertise, professional skills and confidence through hands-on, interdisciplinary projects addressing real-world environmental challenges.