A technology developed by University of Oklahoma researchers—the GeoChip—is one of the top 100 most outstanding technology developments of 2009, editors of R&D Magazine announced today.
GeoChip, which analyzes functions of microbial communities, was co-created by Jizhong Zhou, Presidential Professor in OU's Department of Botany and Microbiology, with project team members Zhili He, Liyou Wu, Joy D. Van Nostrand, and Ye Deng.
Since 1963, the R&D 100 Awards have indentified revolutionary technologies with promising commercial potential that have been newly introduced to the market, many of which have become household names. Some of these include the automated teller machine (1973), the halogen lamp (1974), the fax machine (1975), the printer (1986), the Kodak Photo CD (1991), the Nicoderm antismoking patch (1992), Taxol anticancer drug (1993), and HDTV (1998), just to name a few.
"The R&D 100 Awards honor the latest technology developments that are designed to meet societal, scientific, or business challenges facing us today—and tomorrow," according to Rita Peters, editorial director for R&D Magazine.
The winning of an R&D 100 Award provides a mark of excellence known to industry, government, and academia as proof that the product is one of the most innovative ideas of the year. This helps provide an important initial push a new product needs to compete successfully in the marketplace.
Winners of the R&D 100 Awards are selected by an independent judging panel and the editors of R&D Magazine. The publication and its online portal serve research scientists, engineers, and other technical staff members at high tech industrial companies and public and private laboratories around the world.
Zhou and his team members will be among the winners recognized at the 47th Annual R&D Awards Banquet on Nov. 12, 2009, in Orlando, Florida. A full list of winners is available at www.rdmag.com.
The development of GeoChip was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology.