UAF innovators honored in Juneau

March 3, 2017

Photo by Michael Penn. Inductees to the Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Juneau pose with, at far left, Dan White, University of Alaska vice president of academic affairs and research, and, at far right, Mead Treadwell, former lieutenant governor and a member of the State Committee on Research. Inductees in the front row, from left, are Peter Webley and Marcy and Geoff Larson. In back row, from left, are Brian Shumaker, Jeff Rothman and Rajive Ganguli.

Three University of Alaska Fairbanks employees joined the Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Juneau during the Innovation Summit Feb. 15-16.

The 2016 inductees include:

Rajive Ganguli, professor of mining engineering, who led a team that developed dynamic mill simulation software that will prepare students in the university's 12-week training program to work at large-scale mines.

Jeff Rothman, supervisor of the Geophysical Institute Electronics Shop, who most recently created a tiny sensor that can detect volcanic eruptions or nuclear explosions from distant locations.

Peter Webley, associate research professor of the Geophysical Institute's remote sensing group, who developed tools to predict the drift of volcanic ash, helping speed decisions after an eruption.

The Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame was created in 2014 by the State Committee for Research, an advisory body of the University of Alaska system tasked with promoting research and development as an economic engine for Alaska.

The Innovation Summit is organized by the Juneau Economic Development Council.

Other people inducted into the Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame at the summit were Sandro Lane of Juneau, founder of Alaska Protein Recovery, which extracts oil from fish waste; Brian Shumaker of Anchorage, CEO of BeadedStream LLC and creator of a system to make ground temperatures at Arctic sites available via the web; and Geoff and Marcy Larson, whose Alaska Brewing Co. in Juneau burns spent brewing grains to power its entire operation.