The Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB) at Georgia Tech has launched the Spatial Omics and Data Analytics (SODA) Center, a new interdisciplinary research hub advancing the next frontier of biomedical discovery. 

The center is co-directed by Ahmet Coskun, Bernie-Marcus Early-Career Professor and Associate Professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, and Xiuwei Zhang, J.Z. Liang Early Career Associate Professor in the School of Computational Science and Engineering. 

The rapidly growing field of spatial omics is a way to study lipids, genes, proteins, and other biological molecules while keeping track of where they are in tissue. This can allow researchers to determine how cells interact with their native environment, providing potentially critical information for the treatment of cancer and other diseases.  

The SODA Center envisions a future where spatial omics is used to help researchers understand biological function through their precise spatial and temporal relationships within tissues and organs, rather than solely through molecular components. By integrating expertise in biomedical engineering and computational science, the center seeks to transform raw spatial omics data into predictive models of health and disease. 

Through the development of next-generation analytical methods, computational tools, and open-source resources, SODA aims to empower researchers to map the cellular and molecular architecture of life with unprecedented resolution and translational impact. The center’s broader goal is to establish Georgia Tech as a global leader in spatial omics research. 

To build community and foster collaboration, the center is launching the SODA Synergy Seminar Series, beginning May 15 from 12–1 p.m. in the Krone Engineered Biosystems Building, CHOA Seminar Room. This series will bring together researchers across disciplines to share emerging discoveries and accelerate innovation in spatial omics and data analytics. 

The SODA Center represents a major step forward in uniting data science and bioengineering to unlock new insights into complex biological systems. 

Students, faculty, and researchers from Georgia Tech and Kennesaw State University gathered on April 8 for a joint workshop between Georgia Tech's NSF Sustainable Development of Smart Medical Devices (SUSMED) program and KSU's Mobility for Everyone (MOVE) Center. The full-day event explored how sustainable design, mobility science, and health technologies are converging to shape the next generation of medical devices.  

Hosted in Georgia Tech’s Marcus Nanotechnology Building, the workshop brought together trainees from the NSF SUSMED program and students from the MOVE Center for a day of presentations, posters, and hands‑on demonstrations.  

The event was co‑led by Hong Yeo, Peterson Professor in Pediatric Research in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech; Karam Kim, research faculty at the same school; and Ayse Tekes, associate professor in Mechanical Engineering at KSU.  

“I am thrilled to have hosted this first joint event between the NSF NRT in the WISH Center at Georgia Tech and the KSU MOVE Center. When I first envisioned it, I hoped it would spark meaningful conversations between students and researchers — but what unfolded far exceeded every expectation,” Yeo said. “This was not just a gathering; it was a launchpad for exciting new collaborative projects, dynamic student exchange programs, and bold, ambitious bets on the future of our field. A heartfelt thank you to IMS Director Eric Vogel, Josh Lee, the WISH Center program manager, and Karam Kim, research faculty extraordinaire — none of this would have been possible without their support.”  

A central goal of the workshop was to give students meaningful opportunities to present their research and engage with peers across disciplines. According to Tekes, who is the director of the MOVE Center, events like this play a critical role in shaping early career researchers.  

“I think these events are very eye-opening,” Tekes said. “They give students a real opportunity to showcase their results, but also to collaborate and learn about research outside their own area. Seeing work across disciplines sparks new questions and helps them think differently.”  

Throughout the day, students presented projects on wearable devices, mobility technologies, digital health tools, sustainable engineering approaches, and more. Tekes emphasized how valuable it is for students to practice communicating their work to a broad audience.  

“They are getting the practice to present their outputs — the key outcomes of their research — and explain the significance and importance,” she said. “They’re also learning to answer questions from different perspectives, because in this room you’re seeing engineers, computer scientists, and clinicians.”  

Due to the strong turnout and enthusiastic participation throughout the day, organizers are already planning another session next semester. By bringing together diverse expertise from both schools, the event highlighted the shared commitment to developing medical technologies that improve mobility, health, and quality of life.   

Funding sources: NSF NRT-FW-HTF: NSF Traineeship in the Sustainable Development of Smart Medical Devices (Award # 2345860) and WISH Center grant from the Institute for Matter and Systems 

It’s not glamorous. It’s not trendy. In fact, it’s downright grubby. But the work that a Georgia Tech researcher and his students are doing is improving campus sustainability, one pound of food waste at a time. 

David Hu, a professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and the School of Biological Sciences, gave his senior-level biology class this semester a unique assignment: Feed food waste to black soldier fly larvae, collect the organic byproduct (called “frass”), and analyze the results. What they’ve found so far is a composting method with the potential to dramatically reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions while producing a nutrient-dense fertilizer. 

“There’s something special about these grubs,” said Hu, who is also a faculty member within the Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience. “They smell, and they’re kind of ugly, but they process food extremely efficiently. When we feed them, they eat twice their body weight, finish that in five hours, and you can do it again the next day. Traditional composting could never be that fast.” 

Using a unique closed-loop system pioneered by private-industry partner and early-stage startup Biotechnica, the larvae eat their way through more than 300 pounds of food in one semester, creating valuable frass that students harvest. When the larvae mature into adults, they fly into a shared chamber to reproduce, make more grubs, and start the process over again.  

“You can get a turnaround from food waste to frass in a day or two, and then from the raw frass to our ground-up frass that we use for our plants,” said Mikkelle Peters, a fourth-year biology major in Hu’s class. “It’s just a much quicker process to get rid of the food waste.” 

Feeding and studying an army of larvae that can eat more than 10 gallons of food a day keeps Hu’s students busy. The solution? Divide and conquer. 

The first group in the process gathers and grinds food scraps to feed the grubs, then collects the frass they produce. The next group mixes the frass with soil and analyzes its chemical makeup, comparing its nutrient density to commercial fertilizers. A third group uses the fertilized soil to grow vegetables like arugula and radishes that are measured against plants grown using synthetic fertilizer. The final two groups observe the environmental conditions that affect productivity and analyze the grubs’ digestion to uncover the secrets to their success. 

More testing will need to be done on outdoor farms to provide rigorous results. Data over the past few semesters were, at times, inconsistent. But the students’ projects reveal a lot of promise for future experiments. Despite limitations to the study, including a small sample size and minor instrument malfunction, the students have been able to find helpful nutrients in their product and grow certain crops more successfully with frass than with commercial fertilizer. Unlike chemically based products or some traditional composts that need to be specially treated, black soldier fly frass is organic and easily processed. 

“A lot of fertilizers can cause harmful runoff, and they can change soil balances over time,” Peters said. “Frass is a natural product, has more fibrous material, and has a lot more organic compounds.” 

In addition to the science that the students are exposed to, Hu said it is also eye-opening for them to see the work of sustainability. The project is an excellent case study for how a small group can make a big impact. 

“The students have learned a lot,” Hu said. “For one of the activities, we had them bring in their own food waste from home to feed the composter. They realized that a person makes pounds of waste per day.” 

According to the Office of Sustainability, the campus produces about 400 tons of food waste per year. Although Georgia Tech boasts one of the largest commercial composters on an urban campus in the Southeast, the machine can only process 175 tons per year. That leaves a gap that Hu said his research might one day be able to fill. 

“Right now, it’s working,” he said. “We want to expand and see if it can work some more. The big issue is visibility, getting people to know that what we’re doing is good. Because in some ways, saving the planet takes energy.” 

One of the main energy sources for the experimental composter is something Hu hopes to reduce: manpower. With a campus the size of Georgia Tech’s, it’s a very labor-intensive process for students to collect food waste from campus partners. Hu hopes that more community members will volunteer, not only to collect food, but also to improve the system. 

“We need people power — people willing to volunteer to move, because right now, campus produces a lot of waste in different places,” he said. “And we also need biologists and engineers and computer scientists. We need people to make this system more well-engineered.” 

Although the current black soldier fly composter still has some flaws, Hu said his goal is to create an affordable, climate-friendly food waste recycling system that can scale up to support U.S. agriculture. By solving problems at the local level, his research is potentially removing economic and operational barriers to sustainability. But, according to Hu, the final step to long-term success is community involvement. 

“In the end, we need people who care,” Hu said. “It doesn’t take that much effort to do a little bit, and a little bit can go a long way.” 

Artificial intelligence has been touted as the most transformative technology of our time. With only a few years of mainstream use, it’s changed how we work and communicate, generated billions of dollars in investments, and sparked global debate. But according to leading neuroethics expert Karen Rommelfanger, the race isn’t over yet. 

“Can you think of a more transformative technology than one that intervenes with the fundamental organ that drives your experience in the world?” 

That fundamental organ is the brain.  

Technologies interfacing directly with the brain have been reserved for treating severe injury or disease for decades. Now, neurotechnology is expanding into brain-responsive wearables meant to enhance, augment, and monitor everyday life. As these technologies accelerate and AI is incorporated, the question is no longer if neurotechnology will transform society, but how — and who will shape the boundaries. 

These are some of the questions on which Karen Rommelfanger has built her career. Trained as a biomedical researcher and neuroscientist, Rommelfanger went on to found the Institute for Neuroethics, the world’s first think and do tank devoted entirely to neuroethics, public engagement, and policy implementation.  

“The brain is special; it’s central to who we are,” says Rommelfanger, who was also an inaugural recipient of the Dana Foundation Neuroscience and Society Award. “And that means when you intervene with the brain, there are unique responsibilities. The field of neuroethics addresses things like: How do you ensure mental privacy? How do you protect free will? How do you ensure that people have the power to be narrators of their own lives and their cognitive experience?” 

Now, Rommelfanger is joining Georgia Tech’s Institute for Neuroscience, Neurotechnology, and Society (INNS) as a professor of the practice, where she will work to further embed neuroethics into Georgia Tech’s research and technology development ecosystem. 

“Georgia Tech is producing the next generation of neurotechnologists, and Karen’s expertise will help ensure we’re preparing them to think about societal impact as deeply as they think about the technical and scientific aspects of their work,” says Christopher Rozell, executive director of INNS. “Her leadership strengthens the Institute in exactly the way this moment in neurotechnology demands.”  

“Georgia Tech has many, many ways that it leads in the technology ecosystem. But one of the powerful, unique ways it can lead is through neurotechnology,” says Rommelfanger. “I hope that the INNS, given its unique mandate for neuroscience, neurotechnology, and society, can be a lighthouse for these types of conversations.” 

Neuroethics by Design 

From institutional review boards to mandatory responsible research conduct training, ethics are a foundational part of scientific research. But designing neurotechnologies raises ethical challenges beyond the scope of typical training. What happens when discoveries leave the lab and enter people’s lives? 

That question sits at the core of Rommelfanger’s work. She argues it’s a neurotechnologist’s responsibility to recognize and proactively address the need for unique safeguards for privacy, autonomy, and long-term responsibility. Her solution is to move neuroethics upstream, embedding it directly into the research, design, and deployment of neurotechnology through an approach she calls “neuroethics by design.” 

“Neuroethics by design considers ethics as a core criterion where principles can drive innovation with more of a lens toward societal outcomes,” she says — an approach informed by years of advising national-level brain research initiatives and her experience at the intersection of clinical practice and ethics scholarship. 

Rather than treating ethics as a compliance checklist or a post hoc review, neuroethics by design integrates ethical thinking throughout the entire innovation lifecycle, from early ideation and research questions to product requirements, governance strategies, and long-term sustainability. She has used the approach for years as an embedded partner for neurotechnology startups in her neuroethics consultancy, Ningen Co-Lab. 

After decades as a traditional academic professor and then years advising companies and policymakers with this philosophy, Rommelfanger says Georgia Tech is the right place to scale this work. With its strength in neurotechnology and INNS’s rare focus on neuroscience and society, “I could not think of a better place to launch and pilot this neuroethics by design scaling effort.” 

She will work with INNS to help equip researchers, students, and industry partners with practical tools for ethical decision-making. Her vision is not to create neuroethicists as a standalone profession, but to cultivate ethically engaged neurotechnologists and engineers. 

Central to her plans at INNS are hands-on training programs that bring ethics out of the abstract and into practice. “I wanted to be a professor of the practice because, while the field does need more scholars, what it really needs most at this point are practitioners.”  

Rommelfanger is exploring modular content that can be embedded into existing courses across disciplines, as well as immersive training — such as neuroethics boot camps and problem-solving hackathons — that bring together students, faculty, and professionals to tackle real-world challenges collaboratively. 

“No one discipline can solve all the ethical challenges ahead,” says Rommelfanger. She is particularly interested in creating spaces where experts from across science and engineering, policy and law, design and the arts, and philosophy can work side by side with people with lived experience of neurological conditions. “The onus is not on scientists alone, but is a shared responsibility that benefits immensely from dialogue, accountability, and action across diverse communities.” 

By situating neuroethics within Georgia Tech’s broader research ecosystem, Rommelfanger hopes INNS can help shift how the field evolves globally.  

“It's really difficult to get your arms around something once it's out of the gate,” she says, citing the rapid adoption of AI without proper ethical or policy guidelines. “With neurotechnology, we still have a little bit of time, but not that much time. We are at that moment where we could change the course of global history.”