Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - The Technical Association of the Graphic Arts' (TAGA) Annual Technical Conference is the perfect venue to glimpse the future of printing--the processes, the ideas, and, most importantly, the minds. Every year the Technical Conference hosts a student competition for undergraduate and graduate students for an opportunity to submit a technical journal and win the Harvey R. Levenson Student Paper Award and the Dusty Rhodes Graduate Student Paper Award, respectively. While those awards go to individuals, the universities that enter a technical journal are all vying for the Helmut Kipphan Student Publication Award--the highest distinction TAGA offers students.

This year's recipient of the Helmut Kipphan Student Publication Cup was the ryeTAGA team from Ryerson University of Toronto, Ontario--their second win in as many years. Their publication, RYETAGA, is filled with an array of in-depth, technical articles on: Examining Microprinting Security; The Effect of Ink Tack in Four-Colour Printing; Modern Marbilization; Visual Similarity Between Coated & Uncoated Papers; and Halftone Dots: A Comparison of Stochastic & Conventional Printing.

The Ryerson student journal was printed digitally by the students on an in-house Xerox DocuColor 7000. The book incorporated an interesting die cut cover that wrapped around silver metallic paper by Wassau Paper Company. The students also had a cleverly designed back cover sleeve that held a CD of their journal work. They had some professional assistance for printing on the sleeve and the perfect binding, but the majority of the production was done in-house by the students themselves.

Dr. Martin Habekost, faculty advisor to ryeTAGA, says, "Receiving the Cup was a combination of the student research papers, design of the publication, and execution of printing and binding as well. From what I saw at the conference, the quality of the majority of the student publications was very high. It might have been the overall quality of the publication together with the design and layout that put ryeTAGA ahead of the other student chapters."

Further showcasing their technical talents, The Effect of Ink Tack in Four-Colour Printing, written by Rebecca Dykopf, Gloria Leung, and Pauline Wut of Ryerson University received the Harvey R. Levenson Student Paper Award. The paper investigates the influences of ink tack on print properties like ink trapping and achievable color gamut.

The Dusty Rhodes Graduate Student Paper Award competition was won by students from Clemson University in South Carolina. The winning paper, All Paper Membrane Switch, written by John Jay Jacobs, Sarah Stafford, and Andy Walker, explores the possibility of printing a membrane switch on paper and the influences the paper quality has on the functionality of the switch.

Also honored at this event for their journal were:

Special Recognition Award for Technical Writing
Western Michigan University, MI

Special Recognition Award for Publication Design
Rochester Institute of Technology, NY

Special Recognition Award for Production Quality
Rochester Institute of Technology, NY

Special Recognition Award Conference Attendees' Choice
Clemson University, SC

The wealth of entries and the depth of the journals is proof that the future of printing is in great hands and that this medium is as viable as it ever was.