San Francisco 49ers Get Active in the Community

After spending three years studying chemical engineering at UC Davis, Niraj Vora was accepted into a competitive advanced software engineering program and became a full stack software engineer. Niraj Vora balanced his studies at UC Davis and Hack Reactor with his interest in sports, including the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League.

In addition to preparing for the 2016 season, several members of the 49ers recently volunteered at a philanthropic event in the East Bay area that was organized by a nonprofit called Convoy of Hope. The 49ers’ Vance McDonald maintained a relationship with the charitable organization after he and his teammates worked with the group to coordinate a trip to Haiti in 2015. During the three-day trip, the players met with families affected by the 2010 earthquake and supported recovery efforts in the country.

Inspired by this experience, McDonald has continued to work with Convoy of Hope and recruited his teammates to volunteer at the recent East Bay event, which provided community members with health screenings, groceries, employment services, and other resources. A number of Niners joined the effort, including Busta Anderson and Eric Reid.

The Use of Ceramics in Healthcare

Before becoming a full-stack software engineer, Niraj Vora studied chemical engineering at UC Davis. While attending UC Davis, Niraj Vora served as a research assistant, studying the conductive properties of ceramic pellets.

Scientists and academic institutions study ceramics and ceramic engineering, developing usage ideas for this versatile material all the time. Different forms of ceramic components are used to help computer and electronic devices operate, to provide global telecommunications, to protect military personnel, and to improve healthcare as well.

At Murdoch University in Australia, scientists are researching the use of a certain type of ceramic, hydroxyapatite, that can be formed into a pellet to replace damaged bone. The hydroxyapatite powder is heated to extremely high temperatures before being formed into pellets. These pellets possess a balance of porosity and strength similar to real bone.

For experimental purposes, the ceramic pellets are implanted into sheep muscle, and scientists are finding that the porosity of the ceramic allows cell infiltration and stimulates bone growth, while the strength of the ceramic can hold up to the sheep’s biological matter. Additionally, the pellets are economical to produce, making them an appealing alternative to other available synthetic bone options.