WNCG Open House 2009

The Wireless Networking and Communications Group Open House was held on January 23. Fourteen individuals representing six of the WNCG Industrial affiliates attended, remarkable attendance given the travel restrictions now in place at many of our affiliate partners. The event is focused on getting our affiliates in touch with our talented students, learning about their research, and connecting them with summer internships and full-time employment. Further, it aims to allow the affiliate members to interact with technical people who might be interested in obtaining a deeper understanding of WNCG activities and meeting with faculty and students on campus.

In the morning, a kickoff presentation was provided by WNCG Director Jeffrey Andrews. This was followed by nearly thirty graduate student poster presentations and several demonstrations using state- of-the art wireless prototypes.

After our now traditional Indian buffet lunch, our affiliate guests formed an informative panel on the future of the wireless industry and how it is coping with the economic downturn. The panel was moderated by Ted Rappaport, and included Eric Starkloff, VP of National Instruments, Willie Anderson, VP of Qualcomm, and Dr. Dwayne Rosenberg of the Department of Defense. Surprisingly, the panelists had an upbeat view of the downturn: NI and Qualcomm see it as a chance to put distance between themselves and their less healthy competitors, while DoD technology divisions have not surprisingly seen interest in their operations increase due to their stability and lack of dependence on the usual credit and stock markets. All agreed that now was a good time to invest for the long-term and in innovation, in order to be well-placed when the downturn subsides. After the panel, students met individually with our affiliate attendees.