Bestselling authors like Mark Twain, Sinclair Lewis and Theodore Dreiser portray the American Midwest as what Noe, a professor of English at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, describes as “full of nice, honest, wholesome people.” Her newest book titled, “The Innocent Midwest: Culture, Region, and Identity, 1793-1930,” however, dissects a history of the region that is much darker.
Behind the research at UTC: Dr. Howard Wall
Since coming to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2024, Dr. Howard Wall—director and chief economist of the UTC Center for Regional Economic Research—has gained insight into the Chattanooga community through his research.
MOCS Innovate! mini-grants help researchers take the next step
Small amounts of early funding are often what determine whether a research idea moves forward or loses momentum. At UTC, that push comes from the MOCS Innovate! The Harris Chair Seed Fund for Innovation award, a mini-grant program that—for the past five years—hasprovided seed funding to UTC researchers working to develop their work into real inventions.
UTC’s Murat Barisik earns third journal cover recognition in recent months
For the third time over the past year, a research paper co-authored by University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering Murat Barisik has been featured on the cover of an international journal. Barisik is a co-author of the cover article in Nanomaterials, a journal focused on materials science research.
Finding her formula: Cosmetic internship in France shapes UTC student’s direction in biochemistry
Brielyn Hallam has chemistry in her blood. Growing up with two chemists as parents made it a natural fit when she was considering colleges, but her own experience helped her choose a specific field.
Behind the research at UTC: Dr. Amy Brock-Hon
For Dr. Amy Brock-Hon, Robert Lake Wilson Professor of Geology, the past 15 years in the UTC Department of Biology, Geology and Environmental Science have been a time to explore her passion and deepen her understanding of the field.
The people of UTC: Get to know Lisa Piazza
Dr. Lisa Piazza came to UTC in 2018 with a goal to help more students see themselves as researchers. As a first-generation college student, Piazza learned much of higher education as she went, often with the help of mentors who took the time to guide her. That perspective carries over into her work at UTC, where she aims to make research feel approachable rather than intimidating.
UTC anthropologist examines how power shapes global food systems
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Assistant Professor of Anthropology Emma McDonell’s central question this past summer: Who controls the food on people’s tables?
UTC invited to join Southeastern Quantum Collaborative
This week, UTC accepted an invitation to join the Southeastern Quantum Collaborative (SQC), created by the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). Founding members of the SQC include IBM, Davidson Technologies and Alabama A&M University. Additional organizations—including UTC, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, IonQ and Leidos—have committed to join as inaugural members.
How students use Canvas: Grad student maps attention and engagement
If you’re a student or faculty member at the UTC, you have most likely used Canvas. Menekse Adar, a graduate student in engineering management at UTC’s College of Engineering and Computer Science, is working to understand how different Canvas course layouts shape students’ engagement in their classes.