Conference Session

The Role of Engineering in Public Policy

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Cady, National Academy of Engineering; Norman Fortenberry, National Academy of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Engineering and Public Policy

previous workshops that have explored the representations ofengineers and engineering in films and television in order to advance the implementation of a“prime-time” commercial television series that highlights the positive roles of engineers inmodern society. A key first step was to have a committee plan and convene a forum whereinexperienced producers, writers, and directors devoted one and one-half days in November, 2008,to discussion of key questions which will determine the viability of attaining an engineering-focused narrative television series. This project builds upon social constructivism and cultivationtheory to offer the hypothesis that those who view positive television and/or movie images ofengineers are more likely to believe that

Conference Session

The Role of Engineering in Public Policy

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Melissa Lott, University of Texas, Austin; Carey King, University of Texas, Austin; Michael Webber, University of Texas, Austin

Tagged Divisions

Engineering and Public Policy

Power Simulator was designed at the University of Texas at Austinto communicate key lessons concerning the tradeoffs of electricity generation methods in TexasThe key target audiences for this project include college students, high school students, statelegislators and their staff, as well as the general public. The Texas Interactive Power Simulatoraccomplishes the project goals by allowing the user to manipulate the electricity generation mixin the state of Texas and immediately view the economic and environmental impacts of thesechanges. This manuscript extends upon previous publications that described the backendcomponents and user interface design of the basic version of the Texas Interactive PowerSimulator.1 In particular, this manuscript