Conference Session

Renewable Energy in Classroom

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Omonowo David Momoh, Indiana University Purdue University, Fort Wayne

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

relatedissues since most students are in mid-career managerial positions in their organizations. Energyis a prime mover of every business and would be more efficiently and profitably utilized whenpolicy makers have adequate knowledge of the basics. In most cases, the profit margin of anorganization depends largely on how much is being spent on energy. With the knowledge acquiredfrom the course, students have the knowledge to determine types of feasible, available renewableenergy sources that could be harnessed to supplement the conventional energy usage of theircompany. The renewable energy technology course was designed for students with engineeringtechnology and non-engineering technology backgrounds. The course was first taught in the SpringSemester

Conference Session

Mechanics Concepts II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sinead C. Mac Namara, Syracuse University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

engineer.Engineering education researchers and practitioners have acknowledged the problem ofdesign education in engineering programs. In the 1990s first-year design courses werewidely introduced in engineering programs in an attempt to introduce students to thenature of their chosen profession earlier in their college careers.5,6 Capstone designcourses at the end of engineering programs likewise represent an opportunity for studentsto take on both design work and a holistic real world project. However, design is notgenerally included as part of the curriculum in core courses in the second and third yearsof study. There is a critique that this bookending approach (with cornerstone courses inthe first year and capstone in the final year) can create a “valley

Conference Session

Engineering Technology Curriculum Innovations

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

William H. Blanton, East Tennessee State University; Zhibin Tan, East Tennessee State University; Davin A. Strom, East Tennessee State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

to many professional areas strongly qualifies the subjectfor introduction at an early stage in one’s academic career. A good introduction to the Fouriertransform is the fast Fourier transform (FFT). The FFT is an efficient algorithm based on thediscrete Fourier transform (DFT) for converting time domain sequences into frequency domainsequences. The results obtained by the FFT are exactly the same results that are obtained by theDFT, not an approximation of the DFT. Whereas the evaluation of an N-point DFT requires N 2complex multiplications and additions, the FFT method (assuming N is power of 2) requires Nlog2 N calculations. Thus, the FFT calculations become significantly less than the DFTcalculations as N gets larger. The inclusion of the

Conference Session

Embedded Control and Instrumentation

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gerald Thomas Ruch, University of Saint Thomas

Tagged Divisions

Instrumentation

actuallycontrol the telescope and have ownership of the resulting data, both of which motivate thestudents, and their response has been very positive. Engineering students in particular benefitfrom seeing and using remote controlled robotic equipment, experience that they will find usefulin their careers. The new laboratory exercises are designed to mimic professional observationalastronomy by leading the student through the design, data acquisition, and data analysis phasesof an investigation. Each exercise takes place over two lab periods. Period one is dedicated toexploring the principles underlying the experiment and developing an observing plan. Periodtwo is dedicated to performing the data analysis and reporting the results. During

Conference Session

New Classrooms, New Challenges II: Assessing Non-traditional Approaches

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard L. Zollars, Washington State University; Adam Scott Carter, Washington State University; Christopher Hundhausen, Washington State University

Tagged Divisions

Chemical Engineering

. in computer and information science from the University of Oregon in 1993 and 1999. Having previously served both as a Postdoc and Assistant Professor at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, Hundhausen is presently an Associate Professor in the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Washington State University, where he directs the Human-centered Environments for Learning and Programming (HELP) Lab (http://helplab.org/). Recipient of more than $2 million in funding from the National Science Foundation, including a CAREER Award, Hundhausen applies the methods of human-computer interaction to the design and empirical evaluation of software environments and pedagogical approaches to improve learning and

Conference Session

International Engineering Education: Developments, Innovations, Implementations, and Pedagogical Challenges in Engineering Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael E. Auer, Carinthia Tech Institute, Austria; Arthur Walter Edwards, University of Colima

Tagged Divisions

International

have to be able toexercise their profession effectively and creatively.The proven IGIP engineering education curriculum is based on the knowledge of traditionalpedagogy in philosophy and the liberal arts, but with respect to the particular character of thetechnician and the analytical-methodological approach in the fields of engineering science.After many years of experience in industry or research, engineers who are appointed asteachers at a technical school or university are influenced by their professional careers. Theirway of thinking is determined by the precision of the technology they work with, by their workwith quantifiable and measurable events and objects. The influence of their discipline and the"language" of engineers must be

Conference Session

Innovative Course Developments in Construction

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Suat Gunhan, University of Texas, San Antonio; Yilmaz Hatipkarasulu, University of Texas, San Antonio

Tagged Divisions

Construction

25.1321.3This way, CM students can develop proper skills in estimating courses for MEP scopeunderstanding, and they can eliminate the fear of dealing with technologically complex workscope when they are assigned as junior estimators early in their career. Due to limitations incredit hours, it is not always possible to launch specialty courses such as MEP estimating. Thepurpose of this paper is to present an estimating course module that addresses the currentshortcoming in CM curriculum. The paper presents a systematic approach that is used in anestimating course on how to develop a MEP scope which later can be used in detailed estimatingprocess.The Course Structure and Teaching MethodologyThe MEP estimating module is integrated into a third year course

Conference Session

Innovative Teaching in Architectural Engineering

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Blythe Marlow Vogt, Kansas State University

Tagged Divisions

Architectural

competitive advantage for them in gaining employment, higher annual salaries and successful careers in the AEC workplace?”The response from both an Architectural Engineering Industry Advisory Council andConstruction Science and Management Industry Advisory Council was a resounding yes;especially for larger national firms working in complex building markets with multiple design Page 25.1335.6and construction firms under contract. So the question becomes, where does the exam fit into thecurriculum or assessment of student skills upon graduation? This is an issue that departments aretrying to grapple with. Existing faculty often lack the expertise

Conference Session

Leadership, Design, and Entrepreneurship

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Julia M. Williams, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Jameel Ahmed, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; James H. Hanson, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Samuel N. Peffers, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Shannon M. Sexton, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

Manager, Large Caliber Ammunition, at General Dynamics, Inc., served as guestjudge for the 2011 Case Study Competition.Leadership Workshop SeriesThis series brings students together to explore specific leadership topics and to further developtheir leadership skills. The 2011-12 Series consists of three workshops:  An interactive team leadership workshop led by Dr. Jason Winkle, CEO of WinkleCorp, a leadership development and coaching company.  A workshop on Leadership, Innovation & Career Coaching, co-presented by National Instruments and Rose-Hulman faculty and staff  And a Rose-Hulman alumni panel discussion on the topic of leadership.We initiated the LAP in the summer of 2008, with the first Leadership Academy

Conference Session

Emerging Information Technologies

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert E. Efimba P.E., Howard University; Tori Rhoulac Smith, Howard University

Tagged Divisions

Computing & Information Technology

in engineering disciplines, she shifted her career focus and now serves as an instructor and undergraduate education coordinator for the department. Her primary focus is now undergraduate teaching, advising, curriculum, and evaluation. Rhoulac Smith earned master’s of science and doctorate of philosophy degrees in civil engineering from North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C., in 2000 and 2003, respectively. She also earned a bachelor’s of science degree in civil engineering from Howard University in 1998. Page 25.1352.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2012

Conference Session

Innovative Teaching in Architectural Engineering

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sinead C. Mac Namara, Syracuse University; James K. Guest, Johns Hopkins University

Tagged Divisions

Architectural

2.1 Teaching Structures to ArchitectsThe teaching of structures is often viewed as marginal in the overall architecturecurriculum. The first author’s senior colleagues anecdotally report that they have seen thenumber, and level of complexity, of required structures courses decline over the course oftheir teaching careers. When surveyed on the first day of their first structures course, lessthan 30% of the architecture students of Syracuse University say they would take thecourse if it were not required. Our graduates will practice in a world of hyper-specialization and an ever more technologically complex environment. We must find anappropriate way to prepare them for both the status quo and the technical challenges yetto come. However, we

Conference Session

Green Renewable Energy and Engineering Technology

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Muhammad Zafrul Hasan, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

several concepts into a functionalprototype that solve a technical challenge or meet some customer requirements [3]. It enablesstudents to view project in its totality rather than in isolation. Students learn to understand aproblem, think about possible technical solutions, their complexities and cost associated witheach solution, choosing a solution with trade-off between competing demands. They also gothrough the process of implementing the project, testing the project to meet some specifications,and documenting the project for ease of understanding as well as further improvement. As such,the capstone project provides a complete engineering experience for the graduating studentswhich they can readily apply in their career

Conference Session

Developing Young MINDS in Engineering, Part II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Abhijit Nagchaudhuri, University of Maryland, Eastern Shore; Madhumi Mitra Ph.D., University of Maryland, Eastern Shore; Terry John Teays, Johns Hopkins University; Craig S. T. Daughtry, USDA-ARS Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory; Jurgen G. Schwarz, University of Maryland, Eastern Shore; Lurline Marsh

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

of the Food Science and Technology Ph.D. program. The teaching, research, and outreach activities of this program focus on the safety and quality of poultry, seafood, and produce. Schwarz is focusing his research and teaching activities on food processing, food safety, and food defense. Schwarz received a M.S. degree in food engineering from Hohenheim University, Stuttgart, Germany, and a Ph.D. in food science and technology from Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. Prior to his academic career, he worked as a Project Manager in the Technical Research Department at a General Foods subsidiary in Bremen, Germany, on product and process development projects.Dr. Lurline Marsh

Conference Session

Two-year Institutions Help Fill the STEM Pipeline

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

George D. Ford, Western Carolina University; Robert Elliot Steffen, Western Carolina University; Robert Wayne Ford, Western Carolina University

Tagged Divisions

Two Year College Division

years in the civil engineering, engineering consulting, and manufacturing profession. Upon completing the Georgia Tech civil engineering graduate school program, Steffen worked as an Assistant Professor in the University of New Hampshire Civil Engineering Department.Robert Wayne Ford, Western Carolina University Robert Wayne Ford spent his first 37 years working in numerous trades, but always managed to move into leadership positions after a short period of time. After his father’s death in 1997, Ford ended his career on the road and accepted a supervisory position with a local manufacturer in Arkansas. In 1999, Ford was given an opportunity through the NAFTA agreement to get a degree from the local two-year college

Conference Session

Recruitment and Retention Matters in Engineering Technology

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian P. DeJong, Central Michigan University; Dru M. Wilson Wilson, Central Michigan University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

., Enhancing the recruitment and retention of first-year students with improved career selection opportunities, in IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, Atlanta, GA, November 1-4, 1995. 13. Wood, J.C. and E.L. Craft, Improving student retention: Engaging students through integrated, problem- based courses, in ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition, St. Louis, Missouri, June 18-21, 2000. 14. Central Michigan University, Office of Institutional Research and Planning, http://www.cmich.edu/OIR.htm, 2011. Page 25.1421.13  

Conference Session

Methods of Teaching and Learning in Construction

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Arundhati Ghosh, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Construction

aspects toremain current with the changing trends in the Architecture Engineering and Construction (AEC)industry. This paper summarizes the research to develop a curriculum progression involving theuse of BIM tools at every relevant stage of a student’s academic career, culminating in acapstone project as a Virtual Construction and Collaboration Lab.The Virtual Construction and Collaboration Lab (VC2L) is a pod based collaborative learningenvironment at the Del Webb School of Construction (DEWSC), Arizona State University,wherein interdisciplinary groups of students can investigate real-world projects from theviewpoint of industry representatives in their own particular field of study. Collaboration is ateam assignment, modeling the project life

Conference Session

Engineering Technology Futuristic Planning

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mert Bal, Miami University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

relatively high cost of design and development of the 3-D virtual reality simulationsystems. VR is most suitable for replicating educational laboratories with highly expensive orpotentially dangerous equipment.IntroductionIn the recent years, trends of the globalization have affected the higher education, resulting in anincreasing flow of students seeking a new career in engineering technology. Economic pressureson the universities and the emergence of new technologies have spurred the engineeringtechnology programs to create new systems in engineering technology education in order toafford the increased demand. The distance learning is one such a new system, which has recentlybecome very popular in order to deliver undergraduate engineering

Conference Session

Engineering Education for Modern Needs Part II: Novel Curriculum Development and Project-based Courses

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Catherine M. Polito, University of Texas, Austin; Leslie P. Martinich, Competitive Focus

Tagged Divisions

Continuing Professional Development

AC 2012-5515: WHAT DO ENGINEERING LEADERS WANT?Ms. Catherine M. Polito, University of Texas, Austin Cath Polito has been in leadership positions for more than 30 years in the capacity of Manager, Director, Executive Director, and Owner. As Director of marketing for start-ups Globeset and iBooks, she managed geographically dispersed teams (nationally and internationally). She was the Founder/Owner of Manage- ment by Design, an Austin-based advertising, design, and marketing firm. Throughout her career, she has taught courses on leadership, ethics, teamwork, marketing, and streamlining processes while improving quality and cutting costs. In Oct. of 2010, while in Singapore, Polito was elected to the International

Conference Session

NSF Grantees' Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stephanie Farrell, Rowan University; C. Stewart Slater, Rowan University; Zenaida Otero Gephardt, Rowan University; Mariano Javier Savelski, Rowan University

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees Poster Session

curriculum 1, 2, 3. We have had positive assessment results from our ownpilot testing at Rowan University and with the use of some of the materials in the FreshmanChemical Engineering course at the State University of New York-Stony Brook 4. We havedisseminated some of our results through ASEE conference papers, and some of the problem setsdescribed in this paper will be used in the next edition of Felder, Rousseau and Newell,Elementary Principles of Chemical Processes, 4th ed 5.Our current efforts are to expand our dissemination through the ASEE Chemical EngineeringDivision (CHED) Summer School. This will help extend the reach of our materials to anaudience of educators early in their careers who will be able to directly impact the students

Conference Session

Design Tools and Methodology II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Richard Cozzens, Southern Utah University

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

”, I had the opportunity to attendseveral training sessions. In those training sessions, references to YouTube Channels,podcasts, and blogs were listed as external references and/or additional training for thespecific SolidWorks tool being presented in the session. June 2011, I attended a UACTE(Utah Association for Career and Technical Education) Conference. At this conference, thetraining for all the state CAD instructors included how to access and use free web-basedtraining material. All the instructors were eager to view and sample the training. Most of theinstructors were eager to implement the training into their class rooms.Keeping this in mind, in this paper I describe changes implemented in my web-based CADtraining used at a university

Conference Session

"Modular" Learning

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Matthew Cooper, North Carolina State University - Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Chemical Engineering

career.”was a bit different from typical • “Yes, it was a good assignment.”engineering homework sets. Do • “I thought it was a really interesting way to learn theyou think that the DOE concepts.”assignment demonstrated therelevance of DOE concepts ineveryday life?Was the DOE assignment more • “Yes! It was a fun assignment that challenged students’enjoyable to complete than a creativity.”typical homework assignment? • “Yes! I liked it a lot.” • “I'm not sure if enjoyable is the right word, but it is a great way to illustrate the concepts in DOE.” • “I don't usually consider homework to ever be

Conference Session

Electrical Energy Courses, Labs, and Projects I

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dale H. Litwhiler, Pennsylvania State University, Berks Campus; Elizabeth Wiggins-Lopez, PSU-Berks

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

Paper ID #6786Low Voltage Power Distribution System Provides Incubator for Energy-RelatedStudent ProjectsDr. Dale H. Litwhiler P.E., Pennsylvania State University, Berks Campus Dr. Dale H. Litwhiler is an associate professor at Penn State, Berks Campus in Reading, Pa. He received his B.S. from Penn State University, M.S. from Syracuse University, and Ph.D. from Lehigh University, all in Electrical Engineering. Prior to beginning his academic career, he worked with IBM Federal Systems and Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems as a hardware and software design engineer.Mrs. Elizabeth Wiggins-Lopez, PSU-Berks

Conference Session

Design in Engineering Education (DEED) Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stewart Parnell Prince, California State University Northridge; Yassaman Tarazkar, California State University, Northridge

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

, and career advice each semester and would be supervised directly by a faculty mentor.Students who demonstrated skills in the area of research were given the opportunity to performsuch paid activities in summer.While the primary goal of the study was to increase the number of minority students enteringSTEM at CSUN, goals also included increasing this student base who transfer from JCs ,monitoring their progress and ensuring they graduate in a timely manner, and creating atemplate, or model for other institutions to use in the future.As shown in figure 1, the number of minority students at CSUN, and in particular Hispanicstudents, is increasing. These students enter CSUN (1) as freshman (2) as upper divisiontransfers from JCs

Conference Session

Adaptive and Supportive Learning Environments

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Shiran Zhavian; James P. Abulencia, Manhattan College

Tagged Divisions

Chemical Engineering, Minorities in Engineering

Learning”, J Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 11(4) pp421-437 2006[2] Lang, H.G., et al., “A Study of Technical Signs in Science: Implications for LexicalDatabase Development”, J Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 12(1) pp 65-79 2006[3] Marschark, M. et al., “Learning via Direct and Mediated Instruction by DeafStudents”, J Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 13(4) pp 546-561 2008[4] Santos, Carol, “New program encourages deaf to pursue engineering careers”, PurdueNews, Accessed January 10, 2012,, February 1996[5] Schock, Jaimie, “How engineering instructors adapt to the needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing students”, PRISM, January 2011[6] Lang, H., “Teaching Science, Enigneering, and Mathematics to Deaf Students: TheRole of Technology in Instruction and

Conference Session

Approaches to Teaching Ethics

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marilyn A. Dyrud, Oregon Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Ethics

quit raising their hands in the affirmative,although there are always a few diehard hold-outs, whether out of sincere belief or sheerobstinance, I can never tell.One cautionary note: some students may see professionalism as a checklist, perhaps as anunintended consequence of our board lists: develop that skill/attribute and presto! You are aprofessional! So it is important to discuss, in a follow-up session, that professionalism involvesmuch more than checking items off of a list; it comes from within. It is part of an individual’sintellectual and psychological make-up, and, for some, an almost epiphanic awareness.Professionalism is much more than a job or career. It is a lifestyle.Student ReactionsStudent reactions emerge in two written

Conference Session

Mechanics Classroom Demonstrations

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brianno D. Coller, Northern Illinois University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

AC 2012-3659: PRELIMINARY RESULTS ON USING A VIDEO GAME INTEACHING DYNAMICSDr. Brianno D. Coller, Northern Illinois University Brianno Coller is an Associate Professor of mechanical engineering. He started his research career ap- plying fairly deep mathematical ideas to gain insight into how complex physical and engineering systems work. His work was theoretical and somewhat abstract. Since then, his research has evolved toward studying a different type of complex system: how students learn and become excited about engineering. In this endeavor, Coller is mostly a ”nuts and bolts” practitioner, an engineer, and an experimentalist

Conference Session

Mechanics Concepts II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert E. Efimba P.E., Howard University; Tori Rhoulac Smith, Howard University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

applications and engineering mechanics education.Dr. Tori Rhoulac Smith, Howard University Tori Rhoulac Smith began as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at Howard University in 2003. In this position, she served as an academic and research Advisor, instructor for a variety of undergraduate and graduate engineering courses, and researcher on traffic engineering and engineering education projects. Feeling an overwhelming desire to work more directly on identifying and meeting the needs of increased recruitment, retention, and achievement of traditionally-underrepresented minority students in engineering disciplines, she shifted her career focus and now serves as an instructor and undergraduate

Conference Session

Laboratory Experiences with Thermal and Chemical Systems and Sensors

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jeffrey Corbet Johnson, Grand Valley State University; Nael Barakat, Grand Valley State University; Lihong (Heidi) Jiao, Grand Valley State University

Tagged Divisions

Division Experimentation & Lab-Oriented Studies

like solid state micro-electronics, students’ exposure to experiences related to equipment and processes used for thefabrication of functional devices greatly impact their education and understanding of the field.Moreover, it provides them the opportunity to develop a skill set and an advantage that helpsthem as they start their careers in this field.The production of completed devices often entails a considerable investment of time andresources owing to the number of processing steps associated with these devices as well as thecomplex nature of the processing technology. Successful device fabrications necessitate acertain level of procedural optimization, which is not suitable for integration into a semester longundergraduate course. This is

Conference Session

NSF Grantees' Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ravi P. Ramachandran, Rowan University; Robi Polikar, Rowan University; Kevin D. Dahm, Rowan University; Ying Tang, Rowan University; Sachin Shetty, Tennessee State University; Richard J. Kozick, Bucknell University; Robert M. Nickel, Bucknell University; Steven H. Chin, Rowan University

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees Poster Session

Ames, Iowa in 2000 in electrical engi- neering and biomedical engineering. He is a Professor of electrical and computer engineering at Rowan University, Glassboro, N.J., where he chairs the department and also directs the Signal Processing and Pattern Recognition Laboratory. His recent and current works are funded primarily through National Sci- ence Foundation’s CAREER and Energy, Power, and Adaptive Systems programs. His primary research interests encompass various related areas of computational intelligence, neural networks, and learning systems, including ensemble based learning, incremental and nonstationary learning, data and decision fusion, and their real-world applications, in which he has more than 120

Conference Session

Projects in Alternative Energy

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David H. Domermuth, Appalachian State University

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

AC 2012-4039: PYROLYTIC CONVERSION OF BIOMASS TO BIOCHAR,BIOCRUDE, AND ELECTRICITYDr. David H. Domermuth, Appalachian State University David Domermuth is a professor at Appalachian State University where he has been teaching for 22 years. His career began in metals manufacturing and has shifted to furniture and now industrial design. Domer- muth teaches the engineering aspects of product design. He has three degrees in mechanical engineering and has lived abroad for five years. His research focus is alternative energy, beginning with ocean geother- mal, and moving to biomass pyrolosis. His primary hobby is road biking with 30 years of riding in the Appalachian mountains