Early career engineering faculty member selected to attend Lindau conference
The highly selective meeting fosters collaboration between young scientists and Nobel Laureates
3/10/2020
By Tessa Woodring
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Huanyu (Larry) Cheng, assistant professor of engineering science and mechanics in Penn State’s College of Engineering, has been selected to participate in the 70th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting from June 28 to July 3 in Lindau, Germany.
The annual Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting brings together young scientists — undergraduates, doctoral students and post-doctorate researchers — and Nobel Laureates from all over the world to foster scientific exchange among different generations, cultures and disciplines. The aim is for participants to build lasting collaborative relationships with each other and continue to stay connected even after the conference has ended.
“The Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to meet and interact with the greatest minds in the interdisciplinary research that brings together medicine, physics and chemistry,” Cheng said.
Cheng is one of 650 applicants who were chosen to attend this scientific conference. Each year, the most qualified scientists are chosen from a large pool of international applicants who go through a rigorous, multi-step selection process.
At this year’s meeting, 68 Nobel Laureates and one laureate of the Association for Computing Machinery Prize in Computing will be in attendance. These laureates will represent 13 nationalities and five disciplines: chemistry, physics, physiology and medicine, literature and computing.
“This will be an invaluable experience for me to access guidance and advice from the leading experts in person,” Cheng said. “It is also helpful to showcase some of the great research we have been doing at Penn State and establish new contacts and collaborations in the field, which will help take our research beyond the existing scope and open up new opportunities for my career.”
Throughout the entire week of the meeting, Cheng will attend lectures, panel discussions, social events, open exchanges, insight sessions and “Science Walks” — a reoccurring activity that Cheng said will provide an excellent opportunity for him to interact with participants in a less technical setting.
Cheng credits the support Penn State provides for interdisciplinary research for helping him earn the opportunity to attend this year’s Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting.
“Since I started my career at Penn State, I’ve worked on the design and low-cost fabrication of wearable and biodegradable devices for biomedicine, which has helped me establish interdisciplinary research in my group at the engineering and medicine interface,” Cheng said.
Cheng also received an invitation to apply for the Baden-Württemberg Post Conference Programme for Young Scientists of the 70th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. This conference takes place directly after the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting and is hosted by Baden-Württemberg International. Only 20 highly qualified scientists from the application pool are chosen. The conference provides participants with opportunities to explore universities, research institutes and companies in the Baden-Württemberg area.
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Huanyu (Larry) Cheng, assistant professor of engineering science and mechanics. IMAGE: PENN STATE
