Conference Session

Biological & Agricultural Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Abhijit Nagchaudhuri, University of Maryland - Eastern Shore; Abbas H. Diab, University of Maryland - Eastern Shore; Christopher E. Hartman, University of Maryland - Eastern Shore; Lei Zhang, University of Maryland - Eastern Shore; Madhumi Mitra Ph.D., University of Maryland - Eastern Shore; Yakov Pachepsky, USDA-ARS; Rakesh Joshi

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

with students have providedanecdotal evidence of positive learning outcomes. Formal assessments has been undertaken todocument assessment of academic, life-skills, and civic responsibility outcomes of the studentengagement with the project.1.0 IntroductionAt University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) efforts to develop autonomous robotic boatplatforms have been ongoing for the past few years [1-3]. These efforts were largely funded byMaryland Space Grant Consortium and NASA to promote design and experiential learningendeavors of undergraduate students at UMES in multidisciplinary team settings that parallelsimilar undertakings in the real-world. Collaboration among engineering and environmentalsciences faculty also resulted in providing

Conference Session

Biological & Agricultural Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Aurelio Lopez-Malo, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Silvia Husted, Unicersidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez; Judith Virginia Gutierrez; Nelly Ramirez-Corona, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Enrique Palou, Universidad de las Americas Puebla

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

assessments) in a FoodProduct Development capstone course for Food Engineering students at Universidad de lasAméricas Puebla (UDLAP). This course was designed in order for them to experience a realwork environment, where they have the opportunity to think and act as experts in the field do,and included several problem-solving learning environments (PSLEs)1. Course main goal is thatstudents design and develop a new food product involving idea generation, formulation, processselection, nutritional facts and label, shelf-life estimation, costs, sensory evaluation, among manyothers aspects of its development. Students were organized into teams of two members; thegroup had a total of eight students (3 male). Course activities were designed for student

Conference Session

Biological & Agricultural Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Silvia Husted, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Nelly Ramirez-Corona, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Aurelio Lopez-Malo, Universidad de las Americas Puebla; Enrique Palou, Universidad de las Americas Puebla

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

development processes in thestudied Design and Development of Food Products and Processes capstone course2-5.Assessment of creativity was grounded on the Consensual Assessment Technique6 (CAT), whichis based on the idea that the best measure of creativity regardless of what is being evaluated, isthe assessment by experts in that field. Therefore, a group of experts in the FE field were invitedto evaluate capstone course final projects and developed food products by means of the CreativeThinking VALUE Rubric, which is made up of a set of attributes that are common to creativethinking across disciplines1, 7. Possible performance levels were entitled capstone or exemplar(value of 4), milestones (values of 3 or 2), and benchmark (value of 1). Instructor

Conference Session

Biological & Agricultural Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kirk D. Dolan, Michigan State University; Yinjie J. Tang, Washington University; Wei Liao, Michigan State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

metabolic reactions under controlled variables. TheMathWorks grant-funded project of systems biology and kinetic process modeling relied onfundamental knowledge in biology, chemistry, mathematics, statistics, kinetics, and chemicalprocess engineering, which was integrated into the curriculum for four major courses at WUSTLand MSU. 1. Metabolic engineering (ChE596) at WUSTL focuses on analysis of complex interactions in biological systems and introduction of metabolic changes to achieve desired cellular properties [1]. Currently, numerous chemical compounds, ranging from pharmaceuticals to biofuel, have been produced with the aid of biological tools. The ability to efficiently synthesize natural or synthetic products requires a

Conference Session

Biological & Agricultural Division Technical Session 1

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ann D. Christy, Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

learning and serves as a springboard for pair sharing and whole class discussions.The main deliverable for the course is a professional student portfolio8 showcasingstudents' best work over their college careers, organized by ABET a-k outcomes.9,10 Page 24.1134.3 2Results and DiscussionTable 1 presents the choices that various classes have made over the ten years from 2005to 2014. This course was offered under quarters during years 2005-2011. The Ohio StateUniversity changed to a semester calendar in the summer of 2012, so the last twoofferings of this course

Conference Session

Innovations in biological and agricultural engineering education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kyle Mankin, Kansas State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

project provided opportunity for experiential learning that engaged students,provided essential problem solving and teamwork skills, and assessed their learning about thedesign process. Students prepared a functional layout design for one of the BAE/ATM studentspaces within Seaton Hall. The development of the layout design followed the design process,culminating in a presentation to the client (Department Head) and other constituents. Studentswere assessed using self-assessment, assessment of the presentation, and a short-answer exam.Results were classified according to seven elements of the design process: 1) teamwork, 2)information gathering, 3) problem definition, 4) idea generation, 5) evaluation and decisionmaking, 6) implementation, and 7

Conference Session

Biology and Engineering

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

George Meyer, University of Nebraska-Lincoln; David Jones, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

the conclusion of the course, studentswere to be able to (a) develop and test FST and apply selected FST models to their particularresearch interest, (b) use current modeling literature related to biological and environmentalsystems for theory formation and hypothesis building, and (c) effectively use these methods tosimulate systems for understanding and solving new research problems. Supporting topicsincluded neural networks, machine vision, and genetic algorithms. Table 1 shows the syllabus ofcourse topics by number. Appendix A gives the university catalog description. Of particularconcern is the treatment of uncertainty and incomplete information associated with biologicaland environmental systems.Fuzzy Logic ModelingThe universe of

Conference Session

Innovations in biological and agricultural engineering education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jinglu Tan, University of Missouri

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

accredited programto formulate a set of program outcomes that support its educational objectives, to assessperiodically the level of achievement of the outcomes, and to use the assessment results forfurther improvement of the program [1].The central idea behind Criteria 2 and 3 is not new. It is simply the concept of assessment andimprovement routinely used in quality control and other fields. Since it is a change from thetraditional prescriptive approach, it has generated tremendous discussions. Numerous papershave been published, expert lectures given and workshops held; but most faculty membersfind the literature more puzzling than enlightening. Aside from a lack of prior experiences ineducation program assessment by engineering faculty, some

Conference Session

Biology and Engineering

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ernest Tollner, University of Georgia-Athens; Caner Kazanci, Univ. of Georgia

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

showing how these laws describe solids and gases at themicroscopic level in the context of isolated, closed and open systems. We addressed thedifficulties of extrapolating from nanoscale to macro scale, critically evaluating theimplications of the scale change as related to the laws. We evaluated the impact ofdeparting from near-equilibrium conditions to far-from-equilibrium conditions. The seminar set forth the following broad objectives: *Appreciate the pervasive nature of the laws of thermodynamics and how these first principles may serve as a basis for interdisciplinary science/engineering research. *Appreciate the potentials and pitfalls of 1) scale-ups and 2) departures from equilibrium on reasonable

Conference Session

Innovations in Biological/Agricultural Education-II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

George Meyer, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

student.Thirteen topic areas of the course are presented in Table 1. The student begins with a study duringweek 1, the analysis of static and dynamic signals using an oscilloscope. Background is furtherenhanced by learning about features and capabilities of signal processing circuitry and digitalacquisition. From that background, the student can select modern data logging equipmentaccording to specifications which work best for obtaining measurement information for theproblem at hand. Automation of measurements not only includes hardware but software.LabVIEW® (www.ni.com or National Instruments, Austin, TX) programming is introduced usingBishop (2006). During the first five weeks, there is a concurrent and intensive introduction toLabVIEW and a review of

Conference Session

Innovations in Biological/Agricultural Education-II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Schreuders; Sara Driggs

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

are quantitativelydifferent as to degree, betweenness, and closeness.IntroductionMen and Women in Engineering Much research has been conducted about women in engineering, ascertaining the socialimpacts, interactions and affects of women in a male dominated workplace.1 However, theintimate details of these issues will not be discussed here. The focus of this research is to studythe structure of the social networks and the impact of gender on position within these structures.Biological engineering, like many engineering disciplines, faces challenges recruiting andretaining women at all levels of the profession, from freshman undergraduate to professor. Whencombined with a strong move toward teamwork in the educational process, the question

Conference Session

Biological & Agricultural Technical Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kumar Mallikarjunan, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Anand Lakshmikanth, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; John Cundiff, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Andrew Fulton, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

them continuously revisit keyconcepts, which increased in levels of complexity, through a four-year spiral themed curriculum.The focus of the curriculum was on active learning of concepts of design, systems, and ethicsthrough hands-on activities or learning modules as is indicated in figure 1.Figure 1. Schematic representation of the spiral curriculum indicating re-visitation and deepening of concepts pertaining to systems approach, engineering design, and ethicsSome of the activities planned under the DLR project included use of electronic portfolios inengineering instruction, development of student team building software, incorporating researchand cutting edge laboratory experiences into the undergraduate curriculum14. Studies

Conference Session

Innovations in Biological/Agricultural Education-II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kumar Mallikarjunan, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Christan Whysong, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Jenny Lo, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

the National Science Foundation (NSF), is currentlyunderway. The goal of the DLR program for these two departments is to reformulate curriculawithin the EngE and BSE programs by utilizing a theme-based spiral curriculum approach. Page 13.716.2Jerome Bruner, the twentieth-century psychologist, proposed the notion of a spiral curriculum inwhich basic ideas are visited repeatedly in an increasingly complex manner.3 Figure 1 provides avisual description of the spiral curriculum being implemented by the EngE and BSE faculty.Active learning in the form of hands-on activities is one of the strategies being used to teach themain theme of

Conference Session

Biological and Agricultural Tech Session I

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ernest Tollner, University of Georgia, Athens; John Schramski, University of Georgia; Caner Kazanci, University of Georgia

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

this point forward). Using a compartment network model as depicted inFigure 1, each particle is followed from input through the system to output. Animproved version of Gillespie’s algorithm (1977) for solving stochastic differentialequations greatly extended the tracking capability of the Tollner and Kazanci (2007)approach enabling feasible solutions to ecological-scale problems. Knowing particlerouting probabilities provides interpretive insight as to how particular ‘particles’ ofenergy or mass may move through a system before exiting. Kazanci and Tollner (2008)mark and follow each discrete element, with the unique capability of attaching variousidentifying attributes to each particle as it routes through compartments maintaining ahistorical

Conference Session

Biological and Agricultural Tech Session I

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Schreuders, Utah State University; Scott Greenhalgh, Utah State University; Steven Mansfield, Utah State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

values to minimize subjectivity (Gall, 2003). The rubric consisted of threemain categories: scale, craftsmanship, and design. Each aspect was sub-divided into five sub-categories with students scoring up to two points (three points in the case of design) in quarterpoint (1/4 point) increments for each subcategory. The categories and subcategories are givenbelow: Page 14.188.3Scale ≠ Internal scale consistent within model ≠ Consistency to human scale ≠ Material proportionate to full scale representation ≠ Model built to exact scale (1/2"=1') ≠ Professional Evaluator's opinionCraftsmanship ≠ Material appropriate

Conference Session

Biological and Agricultural Tech Session I

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Schreuders, Utah State University; Amanda Feldt, Utah State University; Heather Wampler, Utah State University; Sara Driggs, Utah State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

detailsthe student and material implementation cost. This project fulfills several requirements from theStandards for Technological Literacy and the National Science Education Standards for the fifthand sixth grades. Therefore, creation and dissemination of this project has the potential foroutreach and wide use in the classroom. Page 14.5.2PurposeCurrently, China is producing more graduates in engineering than the US. According to a recentstudy in 2004, China had 664,106 graduates compared to the US’ 222,335 [1]. In addition, thenumber of foreign nationals obtaining higher education degrees in the US is rising. Engineeringliterature is coming to the

Conference Session

Biological and Agricultural Tech Session I

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stacy Klein-Gardner; Rick Williams, East Carolina University; Stephanie Sullivan, East Carolina University; Loren Limberis, East Carolina University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

rationale for a general engineering program at ECU is made by Kauffmann et al.1“Instead of the traditional engineering disciplines, these operations require engineeringgeneralists with a strong theoretical background, broad knowledge in a range of areas, andspecific skills in problem solving to give them a sound but flexible base for managing andimplementing technology change and operations.” In 2004, East Carolina University initiated abachelor’s degree program in general engineering (BSE) to fulfill this requirement. The BSEcurriculum is implemented “through a concept and program identified as the IntegratedCollaborative Engineering Educational Environment (ICEE). The ICEE program… emphasizesa broad but highly integrated foundation of engineering

Conference Session

Innovations in Biological and Agricultural Engineering

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ernest Tollner, University of Georgia-Athens

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

how these first principles may serve as a basis for interdisciplinary science/engineering research. *Appreciate the potentials and pitfalls of 1) scale-ups and 2) departures from equilibrium on reasonable application of the laws of thermodynamics. Page 11.506.2 Briefly, we concluded that in order to build a rigorous basis for physically baseddesign, ecological or otherwise, one must begin with energetics. The system must beclearly defined, thermodynamic coordinates must be identified, and an effective equationof state must be developed. Thermodynamic coordinates may include temperature,energy, constituents, and possibly

Conference Session

Biology in Engineering

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kurt Rosentrater, USDA-ARS; Kasiviswanathan Muthukumarappan

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

now be effectively utilized to produce variousmanufactured products in their place. Similar to refineries that are used in the petroleumindustry, new processing facilities are being designed and constructed to manufacture, frombiomass resources, multiple value streams including energy, fuels, chemicals, and variousintermediate and finished products. Thus, biomass refineries (known as “biorefineries”) arepoised to contribute significantly to the growth and sustainability of the U.S. economy in comingyears [1]. Engineering expertise will be required to design, construct, and operate all of theequipment, processes, and facilities for these processing plants. Because biorefineries presentmany opportunities for the engineering profession, the main

Conference Session

Strategies to enhance student learning

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christopher Josh Ramey, Colorado School of Mines; Judy Schoonmaker, Colorado School of Mines; Sarah M. Ryan, Colorado School of Mines

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

introductory biology course into an active learningexperience that resonates with a wide range of undergraduate students. Backward course designled to an innovative curriculum that (1) is based on biology’s big ideas, (2) has measurablelearning outcomes, and (3) encourages development of higher order thinking skills. Our studioclassroom design maximizes interactions; cantilevered workstations distributed throughout theroom encourage student-instructor and student-student interactions. Group discussions occur atwhiteboards as students solve problems, create concept maps, plan experiments and interpretexperimental data. Workstation computers and dual monitors support whole-class instruction aswell as student-led group explorations. The classroom design

Conference Session

Outreach, recruiting, and retention

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Keshwani, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Evan Curtis, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

beadapted to meet the unique characteristics and motivations of students enrolled in AE or BEdegree programs. For example, course instructors can connect theoretical course content to real-world examples. Meeting the challenges of a growing world population will require broadeningparticipation in agriculture and biological engineering. Promoting the potential of these fields tosolve real-world challenges related to food, water, energy and healthcare will help inspire thenext generation of agricultural and biological engineers to meet these needs.IntroductionThe fields of agricultural and biological engineering represent a distinct facet of engineeringapplied to living things (1). Growing from agricultural engineering in the early 1900s, programsnow

Conference Session

Outreach, recruiting, and retention

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alicia A. Modenbach P.E., University of Kentucky; Sue E. Nokes, University of Kentucky

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

this proposed arrangement is four-fold. (1) Students will be preparedto make a more informed decision regarding their selected area of specialization, leading to amore straightforward path to graduation. (2) Content will preview topics and information thatstudents will see again in upper-level engineering courses, providing a scaffold framework to aidin their transition to becoming more autonomous and engaged learners. (3) Students willpractice working with open-ended problems in a low-stakes environment, building theirconfidence for making sound engineering decisions. (4) Students will begin developing aportfolio of design experiences in a variety of areas to draw upon as they progress through thecurriculum, leading to a broader, systems

Conference Session

Strategies to enhance student learning

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marybeth Lima P.E., Louisiana State University; Ann D. Christy P.E., Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

100(1): A-27.Lima, M. 2013. Building Playgrounds, Engaging Communities: Creating Safe and Happy Places for Children. Baton Rouge, LA: LSU Press.216 p.Lima, M., and W. Oakes. 2013. Service-Learning: Engineering in Your Community. 2nd ed. Oxford University Press. 336p.Passino, Kevin M. 2016. Humanitarian Engineering: Advancing Technology for Sustainable Development. 3rd edition, Bede Publishing, Columbus, Ohio, 785 pages Ward, Andy D., Kerry Hughes Zwierschke, Carol Moody, and Ann D. Christy. 2007. Developing Sustainable Solutions for Impoverished Communities in South Africa: A Student Centered and Service Learning Capstone Design Experience." American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers Annual Meeting. ASABE Paper

Conference Session

Strategies to enhance student learning

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ann D.. Christy, Ohio State University; Oladiran Fasina, Auburn University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

by grades on their portfolioassignments over four years are summarized in Figure 1. The average annual score did not fallbelow 80% on any outcome, reflecting the fact that these were materials specifically selected bythe student to show their mastery of the appropriate learning outcome, and that many of thesematerials had already received instructor feedback in the courses for which they were initiallysubmitted. 100% Meangradeforportfoliosection 95% 90% Year1 85

Conference Session

Strategies to enhance student learning

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Tim Foutz P.E., University of Georgia; Christopher Ward

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

, provides the foundationof the investigation outlined in this manuscript(Nussbaum, 2008). A form of discourse found inmultiple fields of education primarily due to itsrelationship with critical and higher order thinkingand argumentation supports  articulating the reason for approaching a Figure 1. The general structure of Toulmin’s problem in a particular way, framework that provides a logical process for  justifying the approach using data and/or analyzing how a student constructs an information to support the reasoning, and argument and for determining how the  providing the principles that establish

Conference Session

Outreach, recruiting, and retention

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Deepak R. Keshwani, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Ryan Drew Anderson, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Jennifer Keshwani, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Jeyamkondan Subbiah P.E., University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Ashu Guru, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Nathan C. Rice, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

largest crop grown byfarmers in the Midwest according to USDA (2016). In addition to food production, corn grain isused for ethanol production, feeding livestock, and the distillers grains from the ethanol plantsare high value feed for the beef cattle industry. The FEW Nexus is briefly illustrated in Figure 1.The system as a whole interacts with the environment through the use of water, energy, andemission associated with the various processes in the system. Teaching students how thesesystems work and how they are connected will greatly influence upcoming generations ofagricultural producers and consumers. Being mindful of the larger system will encouragesustainable practices that are more aware of the environmental impacts of their decisions

Conference Session

Outreach, recruiting, and retention

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

D. Raj Raman, Iowa State University; Amy L. Kaleita, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

– whichallowed grouping students into multiple risk categories based upon a small set of pre-enrollmentdata – with our insights into key success predictor courses. Specifically: What grades, onaverage, do different risk category students earn, in each of our key success prediction courses?A related question was as follows: To what degree are students in each risk category achievingthe success threshold grade in the key courses? We believed that answering these questionsmight help us better support at-risk students in multiple ways, including (1) providing data-basedadvice on which courses to focus on; (2) providing insight into how course scheduling mightimpact performance (by comparing first vs. second semester performance in key courses); (3)helping

Conference Session

Outreach, recruiting, and retention

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Tim Foutz P.E., University of Georgia

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

24,000 acres in 2007 with almost all of this change occurring on the western 1/3 portion of the county. The eastern half of the county remained rural, and agribusiness was the primary business. Taking advantage of this situation, a local developer designed a subdivision adjacent to an active dairy farm where the residents of the subdivision could use part of the farm for gardening and could purchase milk and produce from the farmer.Ten first-year first-semester students who enrolled in this FYOS course were asked to use thiscase study and develop hypothetical Farming Subdivision. The Farming Subdivision was to bea large single-family housing community where the residents became the actual owners andoperators of a farming operation. The

Conference Session

Bioengineering laboratories: Bringing research into the classroom

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alvin Post, Arizona State University; Qiang Hu, Arizona State University; Milton Sommerfeld, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

systems will prove more productive, but they are also more costly andthey present different technical challenges.Figure 1: Algae seeded into a full bioreactor tank.These systems are not particularly complex, but they do pose challenging and educationallyuseful engineering problems. Efficient algal production requires environmental control oftemperature, CO2 and pH levels, nutrients, aeration and mixing, and light. Design andconstruction of a reactor that maintains optimal environmental conditions and resists corrosionposes standard engineering problems that engineering students can successfully work through, Page 12.309.2with a sense of real

Conference Session

Innovations in Biological/Agricultural Education-I

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kurt Rosentrater, USDA-ARS; Jerry Visser, South Dakota State University

Tagged Divisions

Biological & Agricultural

, engineering economics, and biocomposite manufacturing.Because the role of the instructor is to utilize advances in research to bolster the classroom, andbecause the interest and actual utilization of biomass is currently burgeoning, incorporating thesetopics could provide a tremendous boost in student interest in coursework, as well as bolster theworkforce who will be working in the emerging bioeconomy.IntroductionTo meet the needs of dynamic markets and global technological changes, it is important forengineering and technology programs to adapt as they move toward the future. A thoroughreview of some of these needs has been provided.1 One area that is becoming increasinglyimportant is alternative energy, which has many facets to consider.2 Interest