Conference Session

Anything New in Dynamics?

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian Self, California Polytechnic State University; Charles Birdsong, California Polytechnic State University; Eileen Rossman, California Polytechnic State University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

themotion first hand. Similarly, toy gyroscopes can be used to help teach students about precessionand demonstrate how gyroscopic navigational devices operate. These hands-on laboratories canbe much more powerful than demonstrations and lecturing – the students can actually feel thegyroscopic moments generated. These demonstrations were assessed through two problems onthe final examination. The first asked what happens to the motion of a gyroscope when you pushgently on the outer gimble. The second involved the action-reaction moments involved withgyroscopic motion (e.g., if you are riding your bike and lean to the left, which way to do youhave to push on your handlebars). Scores on these different problems along with subjectivesurvey results were

Conference Session

Mechanics Education Programs and Projects

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bridget Wadzuk, Villanova University; David Dinehart, Villanova University; Edward Glynn, Villanova University; Shawn Gross, Villanova University; Frank Hampton, Villanova University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

diverse with public and private, research and teaching oriented and large andsmall institutions all represented. Forty-six of the fifty assessed programs grant a Bachelor ofScience in Civil Engineering or Bachelor of Science in Engineering and are ABET accredited.The other four schools grant Bachelor of Science in Engineering or similar degrees withconcentrations in civil engineering or related fields.The information collected from each program was: 1) total credits in the curriculum 2) total credits in the mechanics courses 3) degree title 4) innovative aspects 5) general notes on the curriculum 6) required or elective status of each mechanics course 7) credits per course 8) lecture hours 9) laboratory hours 10) semester

Conference Session

Enhancing Mechanics Instruction

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Phillip Cornwell, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

in 20039. Thiscourse involves a “roving laboratory” for undergraduate students. Experiments in the rovinglaboratory are to be carried out in class, in two different on-campus facilities, and in the field.Experiments are used by the instructor to motivate each and every theoretical discussion in class,to teach students how to plan, conduct and interpret their own experiments, and to exposestudents to important emerging areas of experimental mechanics. Students are then required todesign and implement a vibration test. The original offering of this course only had 14 students,and it is not clear if this approach is scalable to larger classes.It is clear that experimental vibration analysis is an important tool for identifying dynamicproperties

Conference Session

Mechanics Education Programs and Projects

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sridhar Condoor, Saint Louis University, Parks College of Eng.; Sanjay Jayaram, Saint Louis University, Parks College of Eng.; Lawrence Boyer, Saint Louis University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

media/interactive video) in comparison to a traditional instructor-led course.Several teaching instruments focused on exploiting the role of physical experience in teachingthe concepts. Ji and Bell12 argue that making abstract concepts more observable and tangibleenable students to better learn them. To make concepts observable and tangible, they use threethemes in their teaching: providing simple demonstration models, providing good engineeringexamples, and improving teaching material by including new research concepts. A goodcollection of the teaching material is available online13. Williams and Howard14 emphasize therole of laboratory experience for a physical insight. They outline the design of a versatile andeconomical apparatus for both

Conference Session

Enhancing Mechanics Instruction

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gangbing Song, University of Houston; Mithun Singla, University of Houston; Christy Chang, University of Houston; Richard Bannerot, University of Houston

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

, initiate testing, and to collect experimental data. The data can then be accessed and downloaded from a remote web server for further analysis.These proposed laboratory experiments are examples of possible educational laboratory uses ofthe smart flexible beam. More detailed descriptions of such laboratory and experimentimplementations of the smart flexible beam in engineering education are planned.Student Survey ResultsBoth the vertical and horizontal smart flexible beams have been demonstrated in severalengineering courses in different, but related, disciplines. Students completed anonymous surveysfollowing the demonstration of the smart flexible beam to evaluate the ability of the beam toachieve its teaching goals. Students were asked to

Conference Session

Anything New in the Mechanics of Materials?

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rani Sullivan, Mississippi State University; Masoud Rais-Rohani, Mississippi State University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

AC 2008-1633: DESIGN AND APPLICATION OF A BEAM TESTING SYSTEMFOR EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING IN MECHANICS OF MATERIALSRani Sullivan, Mississippi State University RANI W. SULLIVAN Rani W. Sullivan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Mississippi State University. She teaches the core courses in engineering mechanics and maintains a strong interest in developing experiential education. She received her Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering in 2003, M.S. in Engineering Mechanics in 1993 and B.S. in Aerospace Engineering in 1989 from Mississippi State University. Her major technical interests are in solid mechanics, and in particular on the time-dependent deformation

Conference Session

Mechanics and the Internet

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Calvin Ashmore, Georgia Institute of Technology; Bo Yeon Lee, Georgia Institute of Technology; Geoff Thomas, Georgia Institute of Technology; Daniel Upton, Georgia Institute of Technology; Sneha Harrell, UC Berkeley; Christine Valle, Georgia Institute of Technology; Wendy Newstetter, Georgia Institute of Technology; Janet Murray, Georgia Institute of Technology; Laurence Jacobs, Georgia Institute of Technology; Sue Rosser, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

solving has not been understood orembraced. As a foundational course, difficulties here can impact student academic confidenceresulting in a diminished sense of self-efficacy that is particularly problematic when amplified bygender and under-represented (URM) minorities issues. And such faltering so early in the majorcan cause a student to leave engineering.While difficulties in the course arise for several reasons, our project seeks to address the problemof context. Our hypothesis is that women and minorities particularly, and students generally, aremore likely to do well in statics when the problems are placed in the context of real worldusefulness. An approach to teaching that effectively scaffolds students' efforts at model buildingand

Conference Session

Mechanics Education Programs and Projects

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Hennessey, University of St. Thomas

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

). Page 13.1095.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Statics and Dynamics Projects Emphasizing Introductory Design and ManufacturingAbstractThis paper describes in detail 4 major projects undertaken by mechanical engineering students inan abbreviated laboratory (lab) component of a combined statics and dynamics course, oftentaken by sophomores. For each of the projects, there was a significant analysis, design,manufacture, and testing aspect with significant interdependent synergy. Specific requirementswere provided and the projects were essentially fun-spirited design contests with either aperformance index or a class vote determining the best overall project. Two projects were in