. Page 12.755.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Fostering Bioengineering through a Quiz Bowl: the 1st Annual BQBThe Concept and Mission of a “Bioengineering Quiz Bowl”Quiz Bowls are fairly common annual events at both the college and high school levels.[1]Typically, Quiz Bowls engage teams of four individuals, paired against other teams, in matcheswhere answers to questions are awarded points, and a winning team emerges after a certaincontest duration. Traditionally, quiz bowls have involved a teams of students competing todemonstrate academic superiority. Prizes for Quiz Bowl winners and champions typicallyinclude a trophy, and sometimes a grant to the winning school. Quiz Bowls
parameter extraction from photo-plethysmographic signals, light/tissue interactionmodeling, and the use of photo-plethysmograms in applications such as biometric authentication.These new devices have been employed in (a) a Fall 2006 lecture/laboratory pair within abiomedical instrumentation course sequence taken by undergraduate and graduate students, (b)undergraduate honors research experiences, and (c) graduate signal processing research.I. IntroductionBlood oxygen saturation, often referred to as the sixth vital sign, can be obtained via a wellknown, empirically discovered technique referred to as pulse oximetry.1, 2 In recent decades,pulse oximeters have become a staple in clinical environments and are therefore an expectedelement of any
, having projects that are based onbioengineering problems is necessary. Fortunately, there are numerous problems that can beaddressed which are well-posed. Finding a textbook can be somewhat challenging since most numerical analysis books arewritten for MATLAB or C. Most of the Excel textbooks are not well-suited to a formalnumerical analysis class because they are written to address typical spreadsheet usage rather thancustomization by macros [1]. We ultimately settled on using a newly published book entitled,Numerical Analysis for Biomedical Engineers [2] even though it was written for MATLAB. Inthis case, MATLAB script could be treated as pseudo-code and easily ported to Visual BASIC inExcel.II. Learning Objectives and Outcomes
order to introduce freshmen students toBioengineering. BENG 1, Introduction to Bioengineering, is designed to introduce students tobioengineering as a discipline and also to introduce them to the research activities in thedepartment in a large lecture-style course format. Bioengineering faculty members speak abouttheir research during the class sessions and teams of students explore a design project of theirchoice. BENG 87, Freshmen Seminars in Bioengineering, is offered to introduce students toaspects of bioengineering in a small interactive group setting with faculty. Faculty members offerseminars each quarter on topics of their choice, usually related to their research interests.Students select seminars on a topic of interest and are
AC 2007-2611: A REAL INTRODUCTION TO ENGINEERING ANDBIOTECHNOLOGYRachael Schmedlen, University of MichiganMimi Adam, University of MichiganRobert Sulewski, University of MichiganMatthew O'Donnell, University of Washington Page 12.103.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 A Real Introduction to Engineering and BiotechnologyAbstractWe have developed a unique section of the required Freshman Introduction to Engineeringcourse for the College of Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor: Biotechnology andHuman Values. Our course is predicated on the assumptions that a meaningful introduction toBiomedical Engineering and biotechnology includes 1. solving
essential as is the case for a distance learningenvironment.Thus, we conducted a series of surveys with our faculty and students to assesstheir needs, with an emphasis on recognized competencies for distance education.We present lessons learned about both the process of needs assessment fordistance education as well as the identified challenges.IntroductionDuring the last decade, the expanding range of educational technologies hascreated many choices for universities to deliver instruction. With these advances,distance education (DE) is becoming more prevalent in postsecondary institutionswith 62 percent of public and private 2- and 4-year institutions offering DEcourses in 2004-05. 1 “At its most basic level, distance education takes placewhen a
higher orlower than the ratings determined in the previous step. This sequence of collecting,disseminating, and rating is continued until a consensus is reached regarding theimportance/relevance of a set of ideas to the topic of interest. Page 12.1584.3Overview of the VaNTH Key Content SurveyThe VaNTH Key Content Survey is a Delphi study focused on identifying key concepts that allundergraduate biomedical engineers should know upon graduation. The study is designed toundergo three iterations: 1) rate the importance/relevance of a comprehensive list of biomedicalengineering, biology, and physiology concepts, as well as a list of co- and pre
-on learning? An hands-on learning approach requires students to become activeparticipants instead of passive learners who simply listen to lectures. The concept of “hands-onlearning” is not new in engineering education. A previous study of engineering educationshowed that hands-on learning is an effective method for engineering classes.1 In fact, over thepast 10 years or so, many engineering schools and programs have started to adopt “hands-onlearning” into their curricula. Whether using simple everyday household items or sophisticatedequipment, professors are now trying to integrate hands-on learning into their classes.Laboratory activities are the traditional method of providing students hands-on experience.However, with advancements in
their participation in weekly meetings with the facultyadvisor, to gage their mastery of the material. Individual performance (based on the exam,participation, log book, and level of involvement) accounts for 50% of the student’s grade in thecourse. Exam on Project Content 1. Consider the actuation supplied to your prototype system, or consider the power source if your prototype will run on batteries. a. Describe your team’s final selection for the actuation or battery power for your device. b. Describe at least one alternative choice that was considered. c. List 3 reasons, either in favor of your choice, or against your discarded option, that led to your final design
Page 12.112.2approaches such as graphical programming have significant advantages in helping teachconcepts to BME students.3. Graphical Programming: An Integrated ApproachOne of the natural mechanisms that engineering students use to learn concepts is block diagrams.In the programming world, the paradigm that they use is generally referred to as dataflowparadigm[4,5]. Under the dataflow paradigm, the solution to a problem is modeled as a series ofoperations (represented as blocks) with the data seemingly invisible. While this may seem aminor detail, it helps provide a much higher level of abstraction when designing algorithms andsystems.Figure 1 shows the difference between a C-code snippet to add two numbers and multiple theresult by 25 and
claims that an educational innovation“works” (i.e., the learning outcome for the group exposed to the innovation is greater, onaverage, than that of participants exposed to traditional instruction) is the quality of theresearch design used to derive the relative effect. Consistent with the guidelines foridentifying evidence-based educational practices, we first examined the quality of theresearch design used in each of the VaNTH-sponsored studies. Designs were classifiedinto two broad categories: (1) randomized experiments; and (2) quasi-experiments. It iswidely held that results from randomized experiments (where participants have been Page
accomplishmentsof programs. This approach attempts to capitalize on available experimental and non-experimental as a means of testing effectiveness and monitoring subsequent performance.We also present analyses that show the unique contribution (to learning and otheroutcomes) of variations in specific core components of the Legacy Cycle and its learningprinciples.I. Introduction The Vanderbilt-Northwestern-Texas-Harvard/MIT Engineering Research Center(VaNTH/ERC) for Bioengineering Educational Technologies has developed over 60innovative instructional modules in a variety of bioengineering areas (See Harris et al.1).These innovations are based on the model of learning and instruction, (referred to as HPLfor “How People Learn”) described by Bransford et
culture, microscopy, RNA and protein extraction, western blotting, RT-PCR, biomaterials and tissue engineering, ultrasound, EKG, biomechanics, microfluidics,biofluid dynamics, and quantitative clinical measurement methodologies. The end of this courseconsists of a four-week project which empowers the students to integrate the skills andknowledge accumulated throughout the year towards independently addressing a relevanthypothesis or question in BME. Student lab proficiency and analytical ability were assessed viadetailed group lab reports on each module, weekly quizzes, in-lab observation by the instructorsand TAs, and a final written practicum exam. Additionally, feedback on the course was gatheredfrom: 1) student evaluations, surveys, and
students not be asked to stretch and explain how the client can capitalize on thenew and innovative features; should the students be encouraged to be entrepreneurial? Ingeneral, engineering faculty members believe that teaching entrepreneurship is a sound idea;however, including it as an integral part of an engineering education is another story. How doesone approach changing from educators of competent engineers, or what Carol Steiner refers to as“technipreneurs,” 1 to educators of engineering entrepreneurs?Entrepreneurship in an engineering education is nothing new. Durgin and Zwiep describe theentrepreneurial aspects of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) engineering programsdating back to 1865 2 and other engineering programs that
. Moreover, we decided to rely on direct measures of outcomes and avoidmore subjective surveys. Since a myriad of measurement possibilities have been written aboutpreviously, this paper focuses on the overall system used to track and assess the measures ratherthan detailing specific outcomes measures.Tracking and Assessing OutcomesThe Biomedical Engineering Program has adopted an assessment process with a three-year cycletime. Figure 1 shows that during the three year cycle, relevant data are gathered from specificmeasures of a particular outcome. Throughout the cycle, collection of these relevant data isperformed using well defined measurement instruments within the curriculum (e.g. examquestions, homework problems, reports, etc.). Then, these data
AC 2007-1170: A PROJECT-DRIVEN APPROACH TO BIOMEDICAL SIGNALSAND SYSTEMSJoseph Tranquillo, Bucknell UniversityDaniel Cavanagh, Bucknell University JOSEPH V TRANQUILLO is an assistant professor of biomedical and electrical engineering at Bucknell University. Dr. Tranquillo teaches courses primarily in bioinstrumentation. His research focuses on theoretical and computational models of electrical activity in the heart. Page 12.101.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Biomedical Signals and Systems Design Course 1 A Project-Driven Approach to Biomedical
benefits. A summary of the scoresfrom the exit quiz is shown in the table below. A detailed tabulation is presented in Appendix G. Raw score Score % n n% 7 100 19 35 6 85 14 26 5 71 10 19 4 Fail 8 15 3 Fail 2 6Table 1: Ranked results from ‘Quiz’, Part I of ‘Exit Survey’At least two of the graduating participants have received job offers in clinical research withbiomedical companies, and attribute their success in obtaining that job to their participation
cornerstone of engineering education is design education. Accredited programs are required toprovide a capstone design experience in which students integrate knowledge gained from theircoursework. For many engineering programs, design education begins in the freshman yearwhere students are introduced to the design process.1, 2, 3, 4 Following this freshman experience,many students are not required to implement the design process in a systematic fashion until theyperform their capstone project . Integration of design across the curriculum is challenging sincethe outcomes of most lecture courses rely predominately on mastery of subject matter.Both freshman and capstone design courses for biomedical engineering students often involvethe design of
perform with less guidance and in which astronger emphasis is placed on the acquisition of valuable results. These projects include: 1) amedical device benchmarking project; 2) a fluid flow feedback control project; 3) a finiteelement modeling project; 4) a CAD/rapid prototyping project; 5) a cell culture project; and 5)senior design projects mentored by external experts in the biomedical field.Overall, the four-year series of approximately eight open-ended projects provides students withextensive experience in recognizing and tackling less-defined technical projects. Since studentsare presented with projects in the early years that are more process driven, they have time to gainexperience with project planning and execution before they enter
AC 2007-1166: BUILDING ENGINEERING COMMUNICATION SKILLSTHROUGH SHORT ASSIGNMENTSJoseph Tranquillo, Bucknell University JOSEPH V TRANQUILLO is an assistant professor of biomedical and electrical engineering at Bucknell University. Dr. Tranquillo teaches courses primarily in bioinstrumentation. His research focuses on theoretical and computational models of electrical activity in the heart.Daniel Cavanagh, Bucknell University Page 12.331.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Building Engineering Communication Skills 1 Building Engineering
the area of emerging infectious diseases to enable them ingeneration, storage, analysis and/or interpretation of ‘omic data. The effective interaction hasenhanced discovery of new knowledge as well as feedback for infrastructure development.1 IntroductionAdvances in computational technology are changing the way research is conducted in all aspectsof science. Rapid advances in scientific engineering and computer technologies have facilitatedthe generation of a vast amount of research data. For example, the number of nucleotidesequences in public databases doubles every six months. The integration of knowledge fromvarious fields such as computer science, mathematics, chemistry, and biology has resulted in avast opportunity for creating new
necessary. For all levels and areas of engineeringinterdisciplinary need, tasks are defined as D – desirable, or R – required (Figure 1). Abstractsare collected into a database, with the Consortium Director on the university side serving as afacilitator for matches between students and projects. After signing a non-disclosure agreement,students are invited to explore the database and form teams to complete projects. Minimalguidance is given regarding how to form teams, as leadership is a key skill that is nurturedthrough this program. Projects are self-selected by the students, and companies do not haveinput to prioritization – it is understood by the companies that students who are excited about aparticular topic will perform at a higher level. An
biological systems make in order to create the most efficient forms and attributes. I can't see the relevance of any of the material so far, to electrical engineering.Unfortunately this last comment was often repeated by multiple students and some students wereunable or unwilling to see the relevance of biology to engineering. Another survey takenapproximately two-thirds of the way through the fall semester shows the following scales ofresponse to the question “How interesting is this class?” as reported by the student’s engineeringdiscipline (Figure 1). Page 12.310.5 80
capstone courses,which range from 1-2 semesters and generally take place during the senior year2. Students mustwork in teams of 3-6 in the majority (83%) of programs, and work on the completion of a projectsolicited from faculty, industry, a sponsored design competition, or a student’s own idea. Theteams are advised by a faculty member, with whom they have weekly meetings, which carries asignificant time requirement. The number of projects offered each semester varies, and does notalways match the numbers of students especially in large engineering programs. Most projectscan be completed on a modest budget, providing there is access to a machine shop and otherneeded fabrication facilities3. While the cost is not excessive, properly supporting
attract and retain a diverse studentpopulation. At Saint Louis University and elsewhere, two obstacles have been noted in attractingfuture students: (1) many students are not prepared for the rigors of engineering and (2) studentsdon’t see role models like themselves in engineering. A variety of K-12 programs3-5 have beenset up to address these issues, however local outreach efforts, such as demonstrations for middleschool students performed by undergraduate students, may be able to address both of these issueson a small scale. If these demonstrations are performed at the middle school level, students canmore easily recognize their needed coursework and take these courses in high school. Thesemiddle schools students also better identify with
development. CVengineering education programs, whether defined as such or embedded in broader engineeringeducational programs include the following areas of study: underlying basic science issuesinvolving CV anatomy and physiology, fluid characterization and flow, systems engineering,materials aspects of prosthetic devices, sensor devices, MEMS technology, drug delivery,imaging, etc. The purpose of this presentation is to define the current state of CV educationalprograms in engineering. All biomedical engineering programs identified by the WhitakerFoundation were reviewed to determine the extent of CV engineering education. The goals ofthis analysis are: 1) understand the extent to which “cardiovascular engineering” is indeed anemerging engineering
“Engineering in Health Care”, scientific concepts include a range of topics, some of which arelikely covered in previous high school courses (e.g. molecules, membranes, solutes) and othersthat are more specific to hemodialysis (e.g. diffusion, concentration gradient, dialysate).Figure 1 shows student scores on scientific content questions both prior to and after use of thecurriculum module. Only the C-tech2 data show a statistically significant improvement inscientific content knowledge. Not surprisingly, the pre-assessment scores for undergraduateengineering majors are higher than for high school students. By the junior year in college, allundergraduates in the study had passed a course in fluid mechanics and were co-enrolled in heatand mass transfer
of skills, but also provides opportunities for students to learn to identify the appropriateapplication of each skill.IntroductionFrequently, students’ exposure to biomedical engineering design and professional skills isconcentrated in their senior design capstone courses at the end of the curriculum.1-4 Whilecommon, this approach may lead to instances where students apply these skills for the first timein their projects with little opportunity for continued reinforcement. In addition, some projectsmay not appropriately address all necessary skill areas. One curricular model that may address Page 12.499.2these limitations has recently been
BME perspective 1. Concerns regarding designcontent are often raised in discussions of BME curricula 2,3. The relationship between design andresearch in the development of the capstone course and the need for design with regards toaccreditation is certainly recognized within the field 4 as well as this institution. Projects areselected and approved only if there is a significant design component. In practice, beyond thetheoretical aspects covered in class, students are required to apply design practices and conceptsto their specific projects. These include, but are not limited to, basic design topics such asestablishment of need, consideration of social and ethical aspects, case studies 5, market analysis,development of multiple solutions
team interacts with their client and advisor to define thespecifications for their project and maintains a dialog with their client throughout the course. Theclient provides meaningful feedback as the design progresses as well as access to the appropriateclinical or research setting. Faculty are fully responsible for all aspects of the design courses. Wedo not use teaching assistants.The Figure shows relationships among the six design courses. As part of the overall goals oflearning the design process and creating a physical prototype, each of the courses has differentindividual goals. Page 12.504.2 Soph 1 Junior