News in Brief
Heinz alumnus identified as 9/11 victim
The New York City medical examiner’s office said last Thursday that it positively identified a 1997 Heinz College alumnus as a victim of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
Matthew David Yarnell, 26, of Jersey City, N.J., was the 1,640th victim to be identified by the examiner’s office.
He was vice president and programmer analyst in technology at the Fiduciary Trust Company International on the 97th floor of the south tower.
The office identified Yarnell by retesting DNA samples that they had collected in 2001 and 2002.
At the time of the attack, 2,753 people were reported missing, and while more than half have been identified, 1,113 people — or 40 percent — have yet to be identified.
Matt and Kim coming for Spring Carnival
Indie performers Matt and Kim are this years’ Spring Carnival Concert headliners.
Activities Board (AB) announced the artists on March 2 via a Spring Carnival Concert crossword puzzle that they had distributed across social media platforms before the announcement. When they revealed the artist, AB posted an updated crossword with the words “Matt,” “and,” “Kim” circled in yellow scattered throughout the puzzle.
Members of The Cut Magazine on March 1 correctly identified the artist via their own Facebook page with the same words circled in white.
Along with Matt and Kim, Philadelphia native RJD2 will perform. Matt and Kim are set to release their latest album New Glow on April 7, with such singles as “Get it” and “Hey Now.” They are well-known for “Daylight” from 2008’s album Grand.
Their most recent studio album before their upcoming album is 2012’s Lightning. RJD2’s most recent studio album More Is Than Isn’t was released in 2013.
CMU spinoff announces device at SXSW
A device developed at the Robotics Institute made its first appearance at the SXSW Interactive Festival in Austin,Texas.
The device, Speck, will track the quality of air within a person’s home by identifying the “level of fine particulate matter suspended in the air,” according to a Carnegie Mellon news release.
It will identify exposure to PM2.5, particles that can negatively affect the heart and lungs.
“Sometimes you can see air pollution as a haze in the distance, but in and around your home, it’s invisible,” said Illah Nourbakhsh, professor of robotics, in the news release. The device was created in Nourbakhsh’s CREATE lab and is now marketed by spinoff Airviz, Inc.
The release states that about 300 Specks are in use in the Pittsburgh area.
The device has a screen that shows the quality of air in the home, and records data about the air over time that can be uploaded to a database. The Heinz Endowment and Pittsburgh Foundation paid for 1,000 Specks to be used in public libraries, schools, and other groups in the Pittsburgh area, according to the release.