The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center has scored baseball great Cal Ripken Jr. as the guest of honor for A Conversation with a Living Legend, the annual fund-raising luncheon scheduled for December 2 in Dallas.

Ripken, who retired from the Baltimore Orioles in 2001, holds Major League Baseball's record of consecutive games played, a coveted title held by Lou Gehrig for 56 years.

The news of Ripken's participation as M. D. Anderson's legend follows his Sept. 6 induction into the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame. That date was also the eighth anniversary of Ripken's record-consecutive 2,131st game.

CNN anchor Paula Zahn will interview Ripken at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel. Zahn, a 23-year news veteran, began her career at WFAA-TV in Dallas.

In its 14th year, the fund-raiser has historically filled the Anatole's ballroom, attracting a crowd of approximately 1,500 each year.

Previous sports legends have included Lance Armstrong (2002), Arnold Palmer (1993), Tom Landry (1991) and Nolan Ryan (1990).

For event information, please call 1-866-262-9029.

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)is presenting a presentation by Bob Larsen, the director of the Argonne National Laboratoy at 6 p.m. on December 9 at the Holiday Inn Select, located at 1655 North Central Expressway in Richardson. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact Ron Ogan, Activities Chair, 972-894-6036 or rtogan@ieee.org.

FutureTruck is a unique five-year engineering program that brings together the resources of industry, government, and academia in a cooperative effort to address important environmental and energy-related issues posed by the growing demand for sport utility vehicles (SUVs). FutureTruck is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Ford Motor Company, and a variety of other sponsors and is managed by Argonne National Laboratory's Center for Transportation Research.

Larsen is the director of Argonne National Laboratory's Center for Transportation Research. He is responsible for Argonne's work in hybrid electric vehicle and fuel cell vehicle powertrain development, advanced engine research and exhaust emissions control technologies, alternative fuel vehicle and infrastructure technology, advanced technology vehicle competitions, technology assessments, and vehicle simulation and energy consumption modeling for the U.S. Department of Energy's transportation programs. He served on the Board of Directors of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International from 1998 to 2001, is active on several SAE technical committees, and is currently a member of SAE's Finance Committee. A two-time winner of Argonne's Pacesetter Award and a recipient of a national Technology Transfer Award, Bob has been at Argonne National Laboratory for twenty four years.

The Southwest Bio Venture Conference & Symposium is a gathering of investors and growth companies in the Life Science, Biotech, Medical and Healthcare Industries. Those with an interest in meeting with venture capitalists, strategic corporate investors, angel investors, CEOs of growth companies, lifescience researchers and entrepreneurs, tech commercialization experts are encouraged by the organizers to attend. The conference will be on December 9-10 at the Hyatt Regency Downtown hotel, located on 1200 Louisiana Street in Houston. For more information, see http://www.cnevents.com/events_overview.php?e_id=13&past_event=

The University Venture Forum, formerly the Telecom Corridor Technology Club, in collaboration with University of Texas at Dallas, will present an update on the state of research from Dr. Robert Helms, Dean of Computer Science and Engineering at UTD.

As a result of a major funding made possible through Texas Instruments and its selection of Texas for its next manufacturing site, more than $300 million in new funding from a combination of private and public sources will be directed to Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science at UTD. Dr. Helm will discuss the University's research and growth plans made possible by this significant funding event.

This presentation and breakfast will be at 7:00 a.m. on December 11 at the UTD Conference Center in Richardson, Texas. The cost is $5.00/members, $10.00/non-members. For more information, visit www.universityventureforum.org, or email sandyb@utdallas.edu to register for the event.

The IEEE Communications and Vehicular Technology Society Dallas Section is hosting a luncheon at 11 a.m. on December 15 featuring Dr. Cyrus Peikari, the CEO of Airscanner Corporation, which produces a leading virus scanner for Windows CE. The presentation will be held at the Holiday Inn Select, located at 1655 N. Central Expressway in Richardson. This is a free event, but there is a charge for lunch - $5 for members, $10 for non-members. For more information, contact Bob Shapiro at 972-599-1165 or rcshapiro@att.net

The SMU School of Engineering will host the 2004 National Science Foundation Design, Service and Manufacturing Grantees and Research Conference, "Putting a Face on the Future: Engineering Emerges from the Lab," Jan. 5-8, 2004 at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel.

The National Science Foundation's Division of Design, Manufacture and Industrial Innovation has been the sponsor of this conference for more than 27 years, which, in the beginning comprised only 75 people with research grants, who met on a university campus. The 2004 conference, with over 600 in attendance, is North America's largest gathering of researchers in this field.

This year's conference focuses on three aspects of humanizing engineering:
-Connecting with cognitive sciences to enhance human performance
-Connecting with social and behavioral sciences to facilitate positive acceptance of change
-Building engineering education infrastructure to ensure continual growth.

Selected speakers representing industry, academe, national laboratories, consortia and federal agencies will examine topics relevant to the future of design and manufacturing research. Conference attendance is open to the public and industry representatives are encouraged to participate.
For more information on the conference, please visit http://engr.smu.edu/nsf2004/announce.htm.