Vol. 46, No. 9 April 26, 2021 whistle.gatech.edu
GET YOUR SHOT Meet Dr. Jon Duke, Principal Research Scientist
VICTOR ROGERS INSTITUTE COMMUNICATIONS
Dr. Jon Duke is the director of the Center for Health Analytics and Informatics at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) and a principal research scientist at the School of Interactive Computing in the College of Computing. He began working at Georgia Tech in 2016. His career before Tech was entirely in medical environments, both as a Photo by Christopher Moore physician and a researcher. What started as a single shipment of 1,200 Covid-19 vaccine doses on Jan. 12 has grown to a full-fledged campus vaccination effort that sees nearly 1,000 people At Georgia Tech his research inoculated daily. With Covid-19 vaccines available to everyone age 16 and older, focuses on advancing techniques for Georgia Tech’s vaccine clinics are now able to meet the demand of students, identifying patients of interest from faculty, and staff who have been eager for appointments. Make yours today at diverse data sources with applications mytest.gatech.edu. spanning research, quality, and clinical
see DUKE, page 4
The Future of Work at Georgia Tech While the Institute is planning to restore normal occupancy in residence halls, classrooms, and laboratories, many employees are asking what “normal” means for employee offices, cubicles, and other workspaces. What is the new normal for employees? To answer those questions and more, the Institute launched the Future of Work @ Georgia Tech working group. With a focus on the fall semester, the cross-campus partnership seeks to understand what the optimal return-to-work strategy should be for Georgia Tech. This new project builds on the foundations created by the Workforce of the Future Initiative.
The group expects to make recommendations in June. Learn more at
hr.gatech.edu/news/future-work-georgia-tech. Photo by Christopher Moore Dr. Duke is a member of Georgia Tech’s Covid-19 Recovery Task Force. PAGE 2 • April 26, 2021 whistle.gatech.edu • THE WHISTLE EARTH DAY AT GEORGIA TECH This year’s Earth Day celebration was marked with remembrance, stewardship, and celebration. The week began with the grand opening of the EcoCommons on Monday, April 19. On Wednesday, April 21, a historical marker was unveiled at the EcoCommons acknowledging the racial injustices of the past that took place at the site. On Thursday, April 22, The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design was officially declared a Living Building, making it one of the most sustainable buildings in the world. Read more about all the week’s events at news.gatech.edu.
Photos by Allison Carter, Rob Felt, and Christopher Moore (Top left, middle left): Attendees reflect on the history of the EcoCommons at the former site of the Pickrick Restaurant. (Bottom left): Volunteers transplant trees from the grove at the Krone Engineered Biosystems Building to the Biotechnology Quad. (Above): The steps in The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design are an example of its sustainable construction — they are salvaged from a renovation of Tech Tower.
Editor: Kristen Bailey Published biweekly throughout the year Copy Editor: Stacy Braukman by Georgia Tech Institute Communications. Photographers: Allison Carter, Rob Felt, Christopher Moore Archives are posted at whistle.gatech.edu. Georgia Tech is a unit of the University System of Georgia. PAGE 3 • April 26, 2021 whistle.gatech.edu • THE WHISTLE
These awards recognize faculty and staff for their work throughout the previous year.
Sigma Xi Awards Staff Awards Leadership in Action Award GT Faculty Award for Academic Sigma Xi Faculty Best Paper Excellence Award Jeremy Gray Outreach Award Georgia Tech Remote and Hybrid Chandra Raman Rising Wreck Award Clio Andris, Zeb Rocklin, and Teaching Academy (GTRHTA) Tyler Barker Innovation in Co-Curricular Joshua Weitz Christian Birk, Jason Brewer, Education Award Pamela Buffington, Jassen Ceci, Service to the Community Award Sigma Xi Young Faculty Award Ameet Doshi, Monica Halka, Troy Courville, Samba Diop, Steven Sheffield Cassie Mitchell and Paul Verhaeghen Ameet Doshi, Shakis Drummond, Kyriakos Vamvoudakis Student Emergency Fund Desmond Gardfrey, Yakut Gazi, Teaching Excellence Award for Will McKenna and Gina Summers Sigma Xi Sustained Research Marlee Givens, Warren Goetzel, Online Teaching Award Christie Hayes, Elizabeth Spirit of Georgia Tech Award Pascal Van Hentenryck Eberhard Voit Holdsworth, Nilufer Korkmaz, Grace Battle, James Godard, Scholarship of Teaching and Matt Lisle, Valerie Morrison, Chung Kim, OIE ISS Advising Learning Award Chaohua Ou, Rebecca Pope-Ruark, Team: Nikolas Baranco, Scott Institute Research Awards Michael Evans and Carrie Shepler Bleiweis, Frances Davis, Casey Outstanding Achievement Alison Reynolds, Tami Salz, Giacomini, Kayli Harlan, in Research Enterprise Norah Sinclair, Vincent Spezzo, Evelyn Hill, Sarah Scott, Jamie Faculty Honors Enhancement Carol Sullivan, Alison Valk, Joyce White-Jones, Leyu Wondwossen Steven A. Denning Faculty Leslie Schlag Weinsheimer, Chris Williams, Kate Award for Global Engagement Williams, Charlie Wright Outstanding Achievement in Adjo Amekudzi-Kennedy and ANAK Award Advancing Diversity, Equity, and One Giant Leap Award Rudolph Gleason Jennifer Hirsch and Inclusion in Research Testing Site Operations Dr. Benjamin Holton Outstanding Undergraduate Stefan France Dale Allgood, Alfred Blue, Tokiki Research Mentor (Senior Brown, Anton Bryksin, Jenny Outstanding Achievement in Faculty) Cotton, Greg Gibson, Sheree CTL Curriculum Awards Early Career Research Ying Zhang Gibson, Benjamin Holton, Jamison Curriculum Innovation Award Ryan Lively Dima Nazzal, Andreas Bommarius, Keller, Brian Liu, True Merrill, Outstanding Use of Educational Mark Prausnitz Outstanding Achievement in Alex Ortiz, Miles Paca, Mike Technology Research Innovation Shannon, Nicholas Speller, Sara CTL Undergraduate Educator Aaron Lanterman Christopher Jones Warner, Joshua Weitz, JulieAnne Todd Fernandez and Class of 1934 Outstanding Williamson Stephanie Reikes Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Service Award Advisor Award Postal Services Team Geoffrey G. Eichholz Faculty Andrew Peterson Omer Inan Felice Albany, Jerome Barbour, Teaching Award Class of 1934 Outstanding Gwenda Bryant, LaKesia Collins, Amy D’Unger and Dan Margalit Outstanding Faculty Research Interdisciplinary Activities Karen Jesnowski, Michael Author Award Award Maddox, Nelson Moncada, CTL/BP Junior Faculty Teaching Konstantinos Konstantinidis Elizabeth Mynatt Jonathan Moody, Shanyyah Excellence Award Claudio Di Leo, Ellen Yi Chen Outstanding Achievement in Vaghn, Kenric White, Gary Wright Class of 1940 W. Roane Beard Mazumdar, Young Jang, Koushyar Research Program Development Outstanding Teacher Award One Small Step Award Rajavi, Danielle Wilkens Award Pamela Pollet College of Sciences Asset and Anton Bryskin, Gregory Gibson, Endpoint Management Dashboard Innovation and Excellence in Class of 1940 W. Howard Ector Pinar Keskinocak, Michael Steven Daniele, Justin Filoseta, Laboratory Instruction Award Outstanding Teacher Award Shannon, Joshua Weitz, Loren Troy Hilley, Jeffrey Lowe, Nguyen Himani Sharma Susan Burns Willams, JulieAnne Williamson Nguyen, Arian Padron, Michael Sheldon, Troy West PAGE 4 • April 26, 2021 whistle.gatech.edu • THE WHISTLE
DUKE, from page 1 domains. “Explaining health informatics and healthcare to someone who does not spend their time in that world is definitely a challenge. I’m certain that my mom would say she still doesn’t know what I do,” he joked. “I describe it like this. Health analytics is all about making sure that people have the information they need to make decisions about health. Sometimes the person is a patient. At other times it’s a doctor, an executive at a health system, a policymaker, or a public health official.” Photo by Christopher Moore Dr. Duke’s current projects include work with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Dr. Duke and his fellow (CDC), addressing a variety of illnesses from Covid-19 to chronic diseases. researchers look at data from a variety of sources challenge.” surprised to hear that I novel was about a pandemic in different formats. For Dr. Duke has been a speak Japanese. I was a and its impact. example, health information member of Georgia Tech’s history major in college and “We had to change a lot may come in as billing Covid-19 Recovery Task I studied a lot of Japanese of things about the story codes, doctors’ notes, or Force since March 2020. history. I also spent time because reality caught up patient responses to a “Throughout my in Japan in college, and I with us and it seemed a question like, “How do you time on the task force lived there for a while after little too on the nose at this feel today?” The answer I have been impressed college,” he said. point,” he said. “It’s been fun can go in many different by how much expertise to do something together directions, so the researchers Georgia Tech has brought Away From the Office like that. Hopefully we’ll must apply different to bear on everything When he isn’t working, finish it this year.” technologies to pull the data from epidemiology and Dr. Duke enjoys exploring He also plays chess with together in a harmonious vectors of transmission the city on his bike, writing his 7-year-old son, who was manner that can be to vaccine logistics and a novel with his wife, and given a book on chess at analyzed and communicated communications,” he said. playing chess with his the beginning of the social effectively. “How many places can children. distancing period. His current projects bring together that type “We live in Midtown, and “We started to get into include work with the of expertise? I’m so very a stretch of the BeltLine goes chess, and now he’s better Centers for Disease Control privileged to be here.” behind our street,” he said. than I am. But I try not to and Prevention (CDC), Dr. Duke, who grew up “There’s a string of parks, get too depressed about addressing a variety of in Atlanta, has a bachelor’s designed by Frederick Law it,” Dr. Duke said. “There’s illnesses from Covid-19 to degree from Emory Olmsted, going through something mentally chronic diseases. University, a master’s Decatur. I’ve driven down cleansing about those games. “Getting to work on degree in human-computer Ponce de Leon Avenue During the pandemic you challenging problems interaction from Indiana a hundred times, but it’s have to make your brain that have really affected University, and a medical amazing to bike through the work differently by getting people’s lives is extremely degree from Harvard Medical parks.” off your Zoom brain for a rewarding,” he said. “We are School. He speaks Japanese, In November 2019 Dr. while. It’s been fun playing an applied research shop, so and when he was in medical Duke and his wife started chess with my kids, but it’s balancing new innovations practice he had several writing a novel as part of not all chess at our house. with improving existing hundred Japanese patients. National Novel Writing We still play a fair amount approaches is always a “People are sometimes Month. Coincidentally, the of Nintendo.”