CBE student selected as Astronaut Scholarship recipient
Michael Bowen, a senior studying chemical engineering and economics, has been selected as a 2019-20 Astronaut Scholar. He was presented the award on Wednesday, October 2, in Talley Student Union by Maj. Gen. Charles Frank Bolden Jr., a retired astronaut and former NASA Administrator.
Astronaut Scholarships are awarded to college juniors and seniors studying science, technology, engineering or mathematics with the intent to pursue research or advance their field upon completion of their final degree. This year’s Astronaut Scholars include 52 scholarships to students from 38 universities in the U.S.
To be considered for the Astronaut Scholars, scholarship candidates are nominated by faculty members in their respective department. Then, they are selected by a university committee that submits the nominees to the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation Scholarship Committee.
Bowen is an independent researcher in Dr. Milad Abolhasani’s lab in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, where he is working to develop machine learning programs to map complex, multi-component chemical processes to help develop more affordable, efficient and accessible photovoltaic technologies. These techniques combine cutting-edge deep learning research with original and fully-autonomous microfluidic devices to significantly reduce the cost, time and error inherent to human-run batch experimentation.
After completing his B.S. at NC State, Bowen plans on attending graduate school, followed by a career in economic and environmental advocacy – starting a consulting firm focused on integrating affordable green-energy technologies into new and existing infrastructure.
Bowen attended the 2019 Innovators Gala held by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation on August 24, 2019, in Washington, D.C.
