The SCY-QNet facility envisioned across Stony Brook, Columbia, Yale and BNL. The end nodes will have atomic-based Quantum Internet Processing Units (QPUs) and Quantum Frequency Converters (QFCs). The intermediate nodes will deploy Entanglement Sources (ESs), Quantum Memory Banks (QMBs), and Entanglement Swapping Stations to facilitate the generation of long-distance entanglement via quantum repeaters. Image design courtesy of L. Castillo-Veneros, Stony Brook University.
The National Science Foundation launches its first 5 pilot projects under NQVL
Stony Brook University is leading a new project funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to advance Quantum Information Science and Technology (QIST) in the United States. The project is one the first five under the NSF’s National Quantum Virtual Laboratory (NQVL) program. Each project receives $1 million in funding. The Stony Brook-led project is in collaboration with Columbia University, Yale University, and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL).
Global research with quantum computing and quantum networks is taking place with the goal of developing a quantum internet, a network of quantum computers, sensors, and communication devices that will create, process and transmit quantum states and entanglement. The emerging technology is expected to not only enhance society’s wider internet system but also provide certain services and securities that the current internet cannot provide.
Titled “Wide-Area Quantum Network to Demonstrate Quantum Advantage (SCY-QNet),” the project involves a process to build a long-distance 10-node quantum network to demonstrate quantum advantage through quantum communication and distributed quantum processing, which would enable secure and privacy-preserving long-distance communications systems.
“This project has the potential to boost the scaling of quantum computing systems via quantum networks, forming a first version of the Quantum Internet,” says Eden Figueroa, PhD, Principal Investigator, and Presidential Innovation Endowed Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Stony Brook University, and Director of the Center for Distributed Quantum Processing. Figueroa also holds a joint appointment with BNL.
“To realize this ambitious vision, we have assembled a team of the leading quantum physicists, electrical engineers, and computer scientists in the region,” adds Figueroa.
“We are thrilled to have received this inaugural award from the National Science Foundation alongside our partner universities,” says Nina Maung, Senior Associate VP for Research Development and Partnerships at Stony Brook University. “It represents the considerable efforts each institution has dedicated to re-envisioning the future of quantum information science research, bond by a shared sense of the importance of collaborative scientific discovery for societal advancement.”
Figueroa and colleagues say that the project will not only advance science and the internet but also cultivate a quantum-ready workforce.
For more details and perspective about the project and its collaborators, see this SBU news story. For more about the NSF’s NQVL program and all five pilot projects, see this link in the NSF newsroom. For more details on the grant for the Stony Brook-led research team, see this NSF awards page.
The Renaissance School of Medicine (RSOM) welcomed the incoming Class of 2028 in August. Set for their medical school training are, from left, students Gabriel Chan, Henry Wilmot, Reinaldo Powell, and Emily Cahill. Photo by Arthur Fredericks/SBU
The 136 students comprising the incoming Class recite the Hippocratic Oath for the first time. Photo by Arthur Fredericks/SBU
Family experiences, commitment to service, intrigue with biotech advances, drive many of the new 136 RSOM students to pursue medicine
At the Renaissance School of Medicine’s (RSOM) White Coat Ceremony, 136 incoming students officially began their medical school training by taking the Hippocratic Oath and wearing their physician “white coats” for the first time. Held at Stony Brook University’s Staller Center on August 9, the annual ceremony brings students, their families, and faculty together as the academic year begins. The RSOM has held a White Coat Ceremony since 1998.
The incoming Class of 2028 is a highly select group, as only eight percent of all applicants to the RSOM for this academic year were accepted into the program. Collectively, the students received their undergraduate degrees from 57 different colleges and universities around the nation. Stony Brook University had the most representation, as 33 students earned their undergraduate degrees at Stony Brook. While a good portion of the students are from around the country, nearly 75 percent are from New York State.
Peter Igarashi, MD, Knapp Dean of the RSOM, congratulated the incoming class and told the students they are entering the field at a time when the practice of medicine is rapidly evolving and where discoveries to diagnose and treat disease are advancing and newer practices such as telemedicine are becoming commonplace. He emphasized the RSOM’s commitment to science-based medicine, and also urged the students to place the heart of their work around patients, as the practice of medicine is best with a “focus on a strong doctor/patient relationship.”
While the students’ paths into medicine and reasons for choosing the profession are varied, their experiences with family members who suffered from diseases, interest in service to people, and intrigue with advances in biotechnology, appeared to be some common factors for pursuing medicine.
New student stories
Gabriel Chan, a Long Island native, says that a turning point for him when deciding to pursue medicine was when his grandfather was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He has entered the RSOM’s Medical Scientist Training Program, or MD/PhD program. Chan starts medical school fresh from a Fulbright Scholar experience in France where he conducted computational neuroscience research at Centre Borelli in Paris.
Reinaldo Powell, graduated in 2024 from Stony Brook with a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Sciences. He was eager to enter medicine and felt at home with the RSOM and its approach to education.
“I was always enamored by the role a physician can play in improving the lives of their patients. This was further exacerbated when I lost my mother to lymphoma when I was 14, and this inspired me to pursue a career to help those who hurt and one that looks to understand the specifics behind disease,” says Powell.
Two of the new med students are using their experience in the military as an inspiration and catalyst toward entering medicine.
Juan Diego Carvajal Ramirez, who most recently lived in California, spent time in the U.S. Army as a combat medic. That training sparked his interest in trauma medicine, and he hopes to ultimately specialize in trauma surgery. Additionally, he chose the RSOM because during a conversation with a current fourth-year medical student in the interview process he learned how much hands-on training and mentorship the RSOM faculty provides, something he sees as essential for trauma and emergency training.
Another Stony Brook University graduate and U.S. Army Second Lieutenant, Pamela Chen, found that all of her army training drills, including combat medic training, fit her pursuit of medicine given the discipline the work requires and its focus on teamwork and caring for soldiers.
Chen’s experience of losing her father at a young age due to Parkinson’s disease, her life in the New York City foster care system, and eventually growing up with a permanent family in Bethpage, NY, made her sensitive to the needs of people and families, especially when family members are ill.
Emily Cahill, who hails from Rockland County, NY, worked at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in a cell culture lab producing therapeutic antibody candidates for drug development. While she enjoyed the science and laboratory work, it was a program she was involved as an undergraduate at Johns Hopkins University designed to improve communication between patients and their caregivers that drove her interest in patient care and people’s stories themselves, not just their illnesses.
Cahill is interested in caring for children. She is enrolled in the RSOM’s three-year MD program and will continue on in a Pediatric Residency position at Stony Brook Medicine after graduation.
Another student, Massachusetts native Henry Wilmot, recently worked in the biotech/pharmaceutical industry in Manhattan in a consulting capacity where he collaborated with clients to support commercialization for products geared to treat rare diseases. Working in biotechnology, he says, was fascinating and had impact but he also felt a disconnect.
Wilmot comes from a family of service professionals including a social worker, paramedic and pediatrician. He felt moved to add this aspect to his career path.
“I knew that I wanted to interact at the human level with patients and bring my experience from the business side of healthcare into the clinic to advocate for patients seeking complex therapeutics.”
Captions:
The Renaissance School of Medicine (RSOM) welcomed the incoming Class of 2028 in August. Set for their medical school training are, from left, students Gabriel Chan, Henry Wilmot, Reinaldo Powell, and Emily Cahill.
The 136 students comprising the incoming Class recite the Hippocratic Oath for the first time.
Student falling asleep at his desk. Courtesy MetroCreative Connection
By Daniel Dunaief
Imagine a typical school classroom filled with adults, listening as intently as they can to a detailed lecture about the finer points of tax law or multivariable calculus.
The adults in the room who weren’t particularly interested in the topic might struggle to concentrate, and several of them might try — perhaps unsuccessfully — to stay awake.
Now, bring a group of 8-year-olds into the same room, with the same instructor, and the same material. The likelihood that any of those younger students would fall asleep in their chair is far lower.
One reason for that difference is that the younger set, consistently, gets more sleep, while the older generation, from high school students on up the chain, typically, are not as well-rested.
“We think it’s normal, if you’re bored, to fall asleep, but it’s not,” said Dr. Steven Feinsilver, director of the Center for Sleep Medicine at Northwell Lenox Hill Hospital. “Falling asleep in a lecture that doesn’t interest you means that you either have a sleep [problem] or, more likely, are sleep deprived.”
Indeed, the percentage of the population that is sleep deprived is estimated at around 50% or more, a staggering number, which means that at least half the population needs more restorative sleep.
With the start of another academic year just under a month away, sleep experts are urging students to start shifting back to their respective school sleep schedule in the coming weeks.
These sleep experts suggest that students who may sleep until 9 a.m. or later during the summer, but will soon get up for school at, say, 6 a.m., are experiencing a type of jet lag people often feel when they travel across the Atlantic.
Sleep experts say that changing an adolescent’s schedule to an earlier waking routine, a week or more before school starts, can ease that school-year transition, while others recommend shifting up wake-up time, by an hour earlier per day during the September lead-up.
“If you know you’re going to have to be waking up at 6 a.m. for the first day of high school, you should be starting to wake up within that hour, within three days or so, before that so your body gets used to it,” said Lauren Hale, professor of preventive medicine and sleep behavior expert at Stony Brook Medicine.
Routines, including getting enough sleep, are important in preparing for the mental effort required to meet daily learning challenges.
“Our brains like a consistent schedule,” said Brendan Duffy, director of Sleep Services at Catholic Health, which includes Port Jefferson-based St. Charles Hospital and Smithtown-based St. Catherine of Siena. “It’s important to get up at the same time,” even on weekends.
Teenagers need more sleep
The academic age group that needs the most sleep is the one that is often getting the least.
High schools often start just after 7 a.m., in part because after-school activities such as athletic practices and events, as well as other extra-curricular activities, take up the hours between the end of school and the onset of darkness.
“Between 15 and 25, everybody’s clock tends to run slow,” Feinsilver said.
The school districts that have pushed high school start times back have seen their test scores go up, added Feinsilver.
He acknowledged that it’s challenging for parents who are managing their own work schedules to balance their children’s academic hours. Parents and schools can and should try to compromise, he urged.
Benefits on the athletic field
Boy chases a soccer ball. Pixabay photo
A return to school also means the restarting of athletic programs, some of which begin before the first day of the new academic calendar.
Student-athletes are pushing their minds and bodies, as they juggle demanding academic requirements with training and competition.
Sleeping the estimated optimum of seven to nine hours per night not only helps improve an athlete’s competitive skills but also helps prevent physical problems.
Sleeping enough is a “way to avoid injuries,” said Duffy, who has been talking to students in a range of ages all the way through college.
Duffy added that professional teams are also encouraging athletes to budget for the sleep their minds and bodies need.
Additionally, he suggests sleep is a form of prehab, as sufficient rest can prevent injuries that would require rehabilitation.
Duffy has spoken with several area teams about the importance of sleep, including the Stony Brook women’s soccer team.
“For 90% of the players, this is the first time” they hear about the importance of sleep athletically, said Tobias Bischof, the head coach of SBU women’s soccer team. “My players are 18-to-22 years old and it’s not on their radar yet how important sleep is.”
He describes sleep as “probably the greatest recovery tool we have” and believes it’s “super important for injury prevention.”
As a coach, Bischof has started journaling his sleep patterns and believes he and others can be better coaches with enough rest.
He suggested that coaches are under tremendous pressure and sleep helps him become more patient.
Numerous factors contribute to success on and off the field with these student athletes, including nutrition, hydration, self-care and relationships with their families, as well as sleep, Bischof added.
The soccer coach doesn’t ask about sleep when he’s speaking with high school players who might join the SBU team, but it comes up when athletes ask about ways the school works with athletes beyond training.
He describes mental health support as well as sleep education.
“You always want to make them a better version of themselves,” Bischof said.
Jim Taylor, who specializes in the psychology of sports and parenting and who has been a consultant to the U.S. and Japanese ski teams, met Duffy when they were on a podcast panel related to sport psychology in 2022. Taylor suggested that sleep is much more than a physical process, as it has psychological and emotional implications.
“One of the most powerful tools that athletes have is sleep, which impacts them in so many ways,” he explained in an email.
Taylor, who competes in triathlons, has seen his results improve from top 20 in his age group to two national championship titles and three world championship podiums.
“Of course, I’m sure other factors contributed to my improved results, but I know that improved sleep was a key contributor,” he explained.
Mental health
Sleep can also be a sign of, or a contributing factor to, mental health issues.
In a Sleep-to-Rise campaign, the Sun Belt Conference suggests that talking about sleep is a gateway to discussing mental health.
Not getting enough sleep or poor sleep quality can increase the risk for mental health issues, while poor sleep itself can reflect mental health challenges.
In its sleep-to-rise online effort, the conference urges athletes to consider sleep a “competitive advantage.”
“With student-athletes, we emphasized the importance of prioritizing your sleep,” Lauren Shear, assistant commissioner of Championships & Sports Administration at the Sun Belt Conference, explained in an email. “This meant highlighting how sleep affects both mental health and physical health.”
Shear added that the conference tries to provide educational resources on mental health, nutrition, sleep and other factors to equip the student-athletes with the information they need to succeed in and outside competition.
She tries to get seven to eight hours of sleep per night and has noticed that when she gets six or less, she’s more irritable and lethargic. She’s also more likely to get sick.
Stony Brook’s Hale added that sleep, unlike diet or other life changes, can provide a noticeable benefit.
“People can see immediate results quicker than other behaviors,” Hale said. “If you choose not to have dessert, you might feel like you lost something and you don’t see a benefit the next day. If you actually got a full night of sleep, you might feel the benefits that day.”
Sleep tips from SBU’s Hale
•Prioritize your sleep health
• Try to have regular sleep times, even on
weekends
• Make sure you get morning light
• Avoid substance use, like caffeine late in
the afternoon
• Put screens away before bedtime
• Sleep in a cool, dark, quiet place
• Pay attention to your body. Figure out when you get restorative rest compared with when you don’t.
After the removal of former head coach Chuck Priore in Nov. 2023, the Stony Brook football team has found his replacement in hopes that brighter days are ahead.
Finishing the 2023 season with an 0-10 record — the worst in program history — was not the way the Seawolves hoped to bounce back from 2022 that ended with a 2-9 finish. Just under a month after removing Priore, Stony Brook hired former Western Michigan University offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Billy Cosh to fill the role.
Cosh, 32, a resident of Smithtown, started his coaching career at Concord University in 2015, soon getting the position as a graduate assistant and quarterbacks coach for Indiana from 2016 to 2017. Cosh made the move to the Virginia Military Institute in 2018, serving as the wide receivers coach in 2018 and 2019, then getting promoted to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
Cosh jumped to Richmond in 2022 where he led a top 20 offensive SP+ rating, advancing to the second round of the FCS playoffs in his lone season. After serving as offensive coordinator at Western Michigan for the 2023 season, Cosh was named the third head football coach in Stony Brook history. At 31 years old, he became the second-youngest current head coach in NCAA Division I football.
Coaching at Richmond in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) — the same conference as the Seawolves — Cosh said he has “always admired Stony Brook from afar.” In his first head coaching position, Cosh will look to pull the Seawolves out of the cellar.
“I knew this place has a chance,” Cosh said. “I knew they had the capability, so that’s kind of what attracted me to the job.”
Football is in Cosh’s blood. Bouncing around from place to place during his upbringing, he is the son of Chris Cosh who played linebacker for Virginia Tech from 1977 to 1981. Chris coached for 40 years at multiple FCS schools such as UNLV, Maryland, Michigan State, South Carolina and many more. He currently serves as an analyst at Western Michigan.
Billy Cosh (right) set to coach Seawolves football for the 2024 season. Courtesy Stony Brook Athletics
“I thought my dad had the coolest job in the world,” Cosh said. “I was like a sponge; I was around the game all the time. I got to see different players that played in the NFL and watched how they work and watched how coaches coached, it was really unique.”
Cosh was raised with his brother, James, who went on to play football at the United States Naval Academy from 2007 to 2011. James is currently a scout for the Chicago Bears in the NFL.
Being brought up around football, Cosh was destined to be a star on the field. Attending Arundel High School in Gambrills, Md. from 2006 to 2009, Cosh won the job of starting quarterback his junior year. He went on to break seven state records that season including most passing yards (3,909) and touchdowns (56), but it paled in comparison to his senior season.
Cosh’s senior year was special, throwing for 3,913 yards and 56 touchdowns. He set Maryland state records for career completions (594), passing yards (7,433) and touchdowns (112), finishing his high school career with a 22-3 record and leaving college coaches clamoring to have him on their team.
Though Cosh’s achievements on the field spoke for themselves, he credits playing with future NFL wide receivers RJ Harris and Alec Lemon for much of his success at Arundel.
“That kind of made a big difference,” Cosh said. “I wasn’t a great player, but I was very appreciative of the guys around me.”
When the college recruitment process came around, the choice was rather simple for Cosh. At the time, his father was the defensive coordinator at Kansas State University. A chance to play at a Big 12 school and have his father guide the way was too good for Cosh to pass on, deciding to play college football as a Wildcat.
Unfortunately, when things seem too good to be true, they often are. Cosh’s coaches opted to give him a freshman redshirt his first season at Kansas State, meaning he would be sidelined and not see action the entire season.
Looking ahead to his sophomore season, Cosh realized there may not be an opportunity for him to play anytime soon. With three quarterbacks on the roster that were returning the following season, all of them were ahead of him on the depth chart. He was paid a visit by James Madison University’s head coach Mickey Matthews who told Cosh he would have a better opportunity playing for him, so Cosh made the move.
Transferring to James Madison for his sophomore year hoping that he would have the chance to play, Cosh’s wishes were not answered. Again, Cosh was at the bottom of the depth chart and did not see action the entire season, later claiming that the move from Kansas State was one that he regretted.
“I really made a rash decision to leave, Coach [Bill] Snyder told me I would regret it, and he was right in some ways,” Cosh said. “I went [to James Madison] and was kind of told I wasn’t good enough, which was probably true, I wasn’t the greatest player, but I was never really given a shot.”
Cosh realized that he would have to step down a level if he wanted to get any real playing time, opting to transfer again, this time to Butler Community College in the NJCAA. Making the move in hopes to impress scouts and get back to the Division I level, Cosh did just that.
Stony Brook football is set to open the 2024 season on Aug. 31 at Marshall University in West Virginia. Courtesy Stony Brook Athletics
Stepping down a level gave Cosh the opportunity to see the field, but the talent pool in the NJCAA was very deep. He played with “12 to 15” future NFL players and against current All-Pro players such as Tyreek Hill, Alvin Kamara and Cordarrelle Patterson.
Cosh’s lone junior college season was described as a “rebirth” for him by Butler head coach Troy Morrell. He turned heads by throwing for 2,856 yards and 25 touchdowns in 2012, but he would soon face another obstacle. Cosh tore his ACL in the NJCAA junior college championship game and lost to Iowa Western, 27-7.
Despite the sour ending, Cosh reflects on his time at Butler fondly.
“I loved that time,” Cosh said. “I loved my teammates. I loved the coaching staff … so that was awesome.”
Despite the injury, Cosh had impressed college scouts enough to receive some offers. He committed to the University of Houston before the conclusion of the 2012 season, successfully making his way back to the NCAA Division I level.
However, Cosh soon faced another roadblock. His commitment to Houston came before the injury to his knee, something that he thought would lead the team to pulling his scholarship. To Cosh’s surprise, the Cougars chose to keep him around.
Still rehabbing his ACL tear, Cosh missed the entire 2013 season due to injury. He made his debut in 2014, and though he only saw the field three times at Houston, he was able to end his college career on his terms, not others’.
Though Cosh’s time at Houston was underwhelming on the field, it was where he met his wife, Kelsey.
Being around the game of football his entire life, Cosh has faced plenty of adversity throughout his career. Due to these challenges, it makes sense that Stony Brook Athletic Director Shawn Heilbron believes that Cosh is the man for the job to bring the Seawolves back to relevance.
Kenny Spurrell is a reporter with The SBU Media Group, part of Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism’s Working Newsroom program for students and local media.
Jesús Pérez Ríos at the New York Public Library in 2023. Photo by Anne Martinez Hoth
By Daniel Dunaief
When he’s looking to relax, he builds and rebuilds some of the LEGO sets in his house in East Setauket. One of the things he likes best about being on Long Island, where he’s lived for the last two years, is that he can be alone to think and develop new ideas.
To hear Jesús Pérez Ríos describe himself, he is “just a kid having fun.” An Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Stony Brook University, Pérez Ríos enjoys bridging scientific knowledge, applying his physics background to questions, problems and puzzles in other fields.
Recently, the Stony Brook physicist, who is also an affiliated faculty member at the Institute for Advanced Computational Sciences, collaborated with Stefan Willitsch, Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Basel in Switzerland, to explore the forces that might be inhibiting the reaction between hydroquinone and neon.
In a paper published in the journal Nature Chemistry, Pérez Ríos, Willitsch and members of their teams described in detail several potentially opposing forces that affect the reactivity in the experiment.
Jesús Pérez Ríos at the Barnes and Noble in New York City in 2022 with Lego batman. Photo by Anne Martinez Hoth
“I started collaborating with [Willitsch] because he had accurate results, and it was hard to explain the observations,” said Pérez Ríos. “We had a hypothesis but needed to develop models to test it.”
Pérez Ríos described two interactions in detail. One is due to the long range atom-molecule interactions and the other comes from internal rotational dynamics.
With the experiments in Willitsch’s lab and the theory developed by Pérez Ríos and his colleagues, they highlighted the role of rotational quantum states in a hydroquinone-neon chemi-ionization reaction. A similar mechanism and approach may be suitable for other reactions as well, such as molecular ion-atom reactions.
These molecules are akin to puzzle pieces coming together. Instead of a two-dimensional alignment where pieces find each other and lock together in their complementary parts, these pieces also have rotational effects that can cause a misalignment.
“That is one of our key findings,” Pérez Ríos explained. “It is like the shape of the puzzle piece evolves depending on the molecule’s collision energy and internal state.”
The results presented in the scientific paper are in the realm of fundamental research, with no “immediate practical application in synthesis or catalysis,” explained Willitsch.
Nonetheless, the insights gained through this collaboration “leads to a better understanding of the relevant reaction mechanisms and thus enables a more efficient design of future chemical reactions.”
At this point, Willitsch has presented the work at several conferences, where he has found a receptive audience and expects it will “foreseeably stimulate further work in the field.”
A search for answers
Pérez Ríos explained that Willitsch had some possible explanations for his data, but he did not have a mathematical model to test his hypothesis.
Jesus Pérez Ríos in Port Jefferson in 2022. Photo by Anne Martinez Hoth
“He mentioned the experimental details to me and we discussed the data,” said Pérez Ríos, who has known Willitsch for about 12 years. “Then, we started to do calculations from our side.”
Pérez Ríos has a team of 7 PhD students, one postdoctoral researcher, one Master’s candidate and three undergraduates.
Members of his lab work on simulations of physical phenomena regarding atomic and molecular processes. Additionally, they work on machine learning applications to atomic and molecular physics, exploring ways to teach a machine classical mechanics or quantum mechanics through chemical reactions.
In the reaction he was studying, Willitsch was working with hydroquinone, which has two conformers. These are two molecules with the same chemical formula that have two different structures.
Willitsch was able to select for a particular type of conformer in its reaction with neon.
Pérez Ríos considered many possibilities and models, none of which was fully satisfactory.
An insight at a conference
When he was at an Air Force Office of Scientific Research review program in Washington DC, Pérez Ríos was considering the problem from numerous perspectives.
He had tried many possibilities, but none were convincing. He needed something new.
“I had the physical picture of the model during a conference: in a break, I started to work on the code, and, in a few hours, I had something ready to get some very preliminary results,” Pérez Ríos recalled.
Willitsch enthusiastically embraced the preliminary results and the group decided to make it more realistic, developing the version of the code to explain Willitsch’s data.
The dynamics simulations were ready in a month, with extra checks conducted for another month to ensure everything was correct. The joint effort took over a year and a half to produce a fulfilling explanation.
Many of Pérez Ríos’s collaborators come from different disciplines, which gives the Stony Brook Assistant Professor an opportunity to learn about a variety of topics. He has worked with particle, atmospheric, atomic and plasma physicists and spectroscopists and chemists.
Pérez Ríos suggested that a physics perspective can help in a variety of settings, even including household problems and daily challenges.
Echoing a theme from the main character Jason Nesmith (played by Tim Allen) in the movie Galaxy Quest, Pérez Ríos said, “you can never surrender.”
Pérez Ríos added that you “are the only one putting limits on yourself. However, you need to pick the battles worth fighting, which is a very difficult matter.”
More American than Americans
A resident of East Setauket where he lives with his wife Anne Martinez Hoth, Pérez Ríos grew up in Guardamar del Segura, a small town in Alicante, Spain.
The son of restaurant owners,Pérez Ríos said he didn’t travel during summers to the beach, the way many of his friends did.
When he wasn’t helping in the restaurant, he used his free time to learn about math, zoology, genetics, chemistry and physics.
He enjoys living on Long Island and in the United States. His wife suggests he is “more American than the Americans” because he likes the American job philosophy and the freedom.
At Stony Brook, Pérez Ríos teaches quantum mechanics to undergrads, some of whom say he is strict.
“I have a very particular approach focusing on learning to think rather than knowing how to solve a problem,” he said.
As a research partner, Pérez Ríos is an unusual find, bringing constructive and valuable insights to discussions.
“I have rarely collaborated with someone so energetic and broadly interested” as Pérez Ríos, Willitsch said. “I particularly value his pragmatic approach and that he is not afraid to leave his comfort zone to delve into totally new classes of problems, which have not been tackled before either by himself or others.”
Willitsch added that few scientists have the same broad knowledge of physics and chemistry, which is “vital to push this interdisciplinary frontier.”
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids. Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Medicine/Kali Chan
Stony Brook Medicine recently hosted its annual Stony Brook Heights Rooftop Farm Nutrition and Cooking Workshop for Kids, a three-day farm-to-table nutrition education program based out of Stony Brook University Hospital’s organic rooftop farm.
Twelve children ages 7 to 10 took part in the workshop from July 23 to 25. Participants picked fresh vegetables from the 2,242-square-foot garden and then prepared their own meals which included hummus and veggie wraps, tabbouleh and fruit smoothies.
By day 3, they had learned about how food and ingredients are grown; harvesting and choosing ingredients to prepare healthier food options; trying a variety of fruit and vegetables with the health benefits behind them; and proper use of kitchen equipment. They also learned about composting and water conservation. Each young chef went home with easy recipes they can duplicate for their families.
Stony Brook University researchers are conducting a pilot program aimed at facilitating equitable public access to the Long Island Sound waterfront. Professor Anil Yazici, Undergraduate Director, Department of Civil Engineering; and Professor Elizabeth Hewitt, Department of Technology and Society, received a grant from the nonprofit New York Sea Grant (NYSG) program, which is being used to provide participants no-cost, round trip shuttleservice between their selected pick-up location and West Meadow Beach.
The free shuttles run every weekend of summer 2024 and can be requested by downloading a free app, which is available in both English and Spanish. As part of the project, rideshare participants will be asked to complete a survey to identify changes in attitudes toward the Long Island Sound environment.
The objectives of the project being conducted are:
To provide beach access to disadvantaged communities with limited mobility options
To determine if participants have an increased appreciation toward the Long Island Sound waterfront
To gauge if improved public beach access increases awareness of the environmental issues and climate change concerns for Long Island Sound and how the public sees its role within the overall ecosystem
To use ridership trends to assess long-term feasibility of the shuttle, such as future shuttle schedules, travel routes, the popularity of different beaches, and how much users are willing to pay for a transportation service
“Long Island is car-dependent, which can be a real barrier to accessing local amenities for some community members. We’re excited to provide a free shuttle to expand mobility options and Long Island Sound beach access to underserved populations this summer,” said Professor Elizabeth Hewitt, Department of Technology and Society.
“Having access to natural resources has been shown to improve health and quality of life, yet especially disadvantaged populations face transportation related barriers to utilize the natural resources. Our project addresses both transportation and environmental equity concerns by providing a transportation service for people who do not own a car or means to access Long Island Sound beaches. We welcome all Long Island communities to utilize our shuttle with their families,” said Professor Anil Yazici, Undergraduate Director, Department of Civil Engineering.
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About Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University — New York’s flagship university and No. 1 public university — is going far beyond the expectations of today’s public universities. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. With nearly 26,000 students, more than 2,900 faculty members, more than 200,000 alumni, a premier academic healthcare system and 18 NCAA Division I athletic programs, Stony Brook is a research-intensive distinguished center of innovation dedicated to addressing the world’s biggest challenges. The university embraces its mission to provide comprehensive undergraduate, graduate and professional education of the highest quality, and is ranked as the #58 overall university and #26 among public universities in the nation by U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges listing. Fostering a commitment to academic research and intellectual endeavors, Stony Brook’s membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU) places it among the top 71 research institutions in North America.
Satellite image of the phytoplankton bloom. Photo courtesy NOAA
By Aidan Johnson
From a young age, children are taught that the ocean isn’t actually blue but is simply reflecting the color of the sky. However, the ocean recently took on a turquoise color not caused by the sky but by organisms called phytoplankton in the water.
Phytoplankton are tiny, commonly single-celled photosynthetic organisms in bodies of water that are carried by tides and currents and are too weak to swim against them.
Along the South Shore, all the way from Montauk to Brooklyn and spanning about 100 miles into the Atlantic Ocean, there is an algal bloom full of a specific type of phytoplankton called coccolithophores, explained Christopher Gobler, a professor at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University.
According to Gobler, this particular type of phytoplankton has a shell that’s made of calcium carbonate, which is the same substance that clam shells are made of, albeit to a much larger degree.
“What can happen is that after [the coccolithophores have] grown for a while, the shell begins to dissolve and then they might start dying off,” he said in an interview. “And so the coloration seems to be from the dissolution of that shell. It looks green, but it’s really just the interaction of the calcium carbonate with the seawater and the sunlight that collectively leads to that color.”
Gobler also clarified that the coccolithophores do not pose a direct health risk to sea life, but instead “fuel the food chain.”
“And so for the present time at least … we can call it a neutral deposit,” he said.
The bloom already seems to be dissipating, according to Gobler, which means that the sky will once again take credit for the water’s blue appearance.
TAKE A BOW: Above, the winners of this year's Stony Brook Film Festival, from left, Daniel Rashid and Reilly Anspaugh (Chauncey), Tathagata Ghosh (If), Zach Finger (Mimesis), Axel Dahan (On the Paths Awakened), Ryan Ward and Mackenzie Leigh (Daughter of the Sun), Bradley Gallo (Audrey’s Children), Mediha Alhamad (Mediha), and Barnabas Toth (Mastergame). Photo from Staller Center
The 29th annual Stony Brook Film Festival, presented by Island Federal Credit Union, wrapped up with its closing night awards ceremony on July 27.The evening recognized the outstanding new independent films screened at the festival, which was held at Staller Center for the Arts at Stony Brook University from July 18 to 27.
This year’s festival brought together hundreds of directors and filmmakers and featured 36 films from 19 countries of which 13 standouts received awards.
GRAND PRIZE WINNER Mediha Alhamad, the subject and co-writer of the Grand Prize Award-winning ‘Mediha,’ with festival director Alan Inkles. Photo from Staller Center
Mediha took home the Grand Prize Award. Directed by Hasan Oswald, this masterful documentary chronicles the journey of a young Yazidi girl returning from ISIS captivity. Using her camera to process her trauma, she documents her experience while rescuers continue to search for her missing family members. The Grand Prize is given to films that have ‘wowed’ both the audience and the jury beyond what could be contained in the simple phrase ‘best film’ in this or that category. Mediha is the 11th film in the festival’s 29-year history that has received a Grand Prize and only the second time awarded to a Documentary Film.
Two short films won the audience’s hearts, resulting in a tie for this year’s Audience Choice Award for Best Short. The winners for this category included two of the youngest filmmakers to win an award in the 29-year festival history. Mimesis, a drama about a struggling alcoholic actor who finds solace in an audition for the role of therapist, and On the Paths Awakened, a WWII-era story of two French teens facing intimate conflicts as the resistance recruits them. The festival’s youngest filmmakers directed the two winning short films: 20-year-old Zach Finger from Long Island and 19-year-old Axel Dahan from France.
One feature that truly captivated the audience was Running on Sand, which took home the Audience Choice Award for Best Feature. Adar Shafran directed this heartfelt crowd-pleaser about a refugee from Israel who, facing imminent deportation, is mistakenly identified as a Nigerian soccer star at the airport. The film highlights the precariousness of refugees’ lives, the power of second chances, and the complex intersections of identity and survival.
The Spirit of Independent Filmmaking Award is for filmmakers who use a distinct indie perspective to bring their stories to life vividly. It is reserved for filmmakers who have created a standout film with very few resources, financial or otherwise. “When it looks and sounds great, plays great, creates its own world, and you would never suspect how hard the filmmakers worked to bring it to life on screen, then you’re watching the kind of film we give these awards to,” said Festival Programmer, Kent Marks.
Daughter of the Sun secured the honor of this year’s award. This vintage-feeling, breathtaking fantasy tells the story of a man with Tourette’s Syndrome and supernatural powers and his 12-year-old daughter navigating life on the run.
The festival also announced that one of the films received an especially rare award in the 2024 Dr. Gabriel Sara Humanitarian Award. In 2022, the Stony Brook Film Festival created an inaugural prize in honor of Dr. Gabriel Sara, who worked wonders in cancer at Mount Sinai in New York by treating patients with dignity through song, dance, and teaming up with some of the most caring individuals in healthcare. He went on to play a role not unlike himself in the film opposite Catherine Deneuve.
This year, the festival hosted a non-competing sneak preview of the film. Titled Audrey’s Children, it tells the story of Dr. Audrey Evans, who brought new treatments to pediatric cancer patients in the U.S. and went on to co-found The Ronald McDonald House.
The Jury Award for Best Short went to Where We Belong, the Jury Award for Directing given to Mastergame, and the Jury Award for Best Feature went to The Strangers’ Case. (To listen to a podcast interview with The Strangers’ Case writer and director Brandt Andersen with TBR News Media reporter Daniel Dunaief, visit www.tbrnewsmedia.com.)
Mastergame director Barnabás Toth, who attended the awards ceremony, said, “Being here as a filmmaker is special. Coming here is like a therapy, a cure for any kind of artist because people who create are appreciated here. So please continue to keep it that way.”
The Festival’s Opening and Closing Night Feature and Short films were also recognized, including Director Aexandre Arcady of The Blond Boy From the Casbah (Opening Night Feature), Christopher Doll, Director/Producer and Karoline Herfurth, actress of One Million Minutes (Closing Night Feature), Daniel Rashid, Director of Chauncey (Opening Night Short), and Tathagata Gosh, Director of If (Closing Night Short).
In addition to Island Federal’s generous support as presenting sponsor, additional sponsors for the Stony Brook Film Festival included News 12 Long Island; Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP; Suffolk Arts and Film; Strata Alliance; and WLIW/PBS.
A scene from 'The Stranger's Case'. Photo courtesy of Philistine Films
A scene from 'A Stranger's Case'. Photo courtesy of Philistine Films
UPDATE: “The Strangers’ Case” won the Jury Award for Best Feature at the Stony Brook Film Festival.
TBR News Media reporter Daniel Dunaief recently spoke with Brandt Andersen, writer and director of the film “The Strangers’ Case,” about five families in four countries who are confronting the refugee crisis. Andersen will attend a screening of his feature film directorial debut at the Stony Brook Film Festival on July 20th at the Staller Center.
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