Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Daniel J. McCarthy; Michael J. Kwinn

Program Assessment and Alignment Lieutenant Colonel Daniel J. McCarthy, Assistant Professor Lieutenant Colonel Michael J. Kwinn, Jr., PhD, Associate Professor Department of Systems Engineering United States Military Academy West Point, New York 10996Abstract.The Systems Engineering program at the United States Military Academy at West Point is quite a youngprogram especially when compared to the other programs at this 206 year-old engineering university. Asa young program we continue to evolve into the program necessary for our constituents - the Nation, theArmy, the Academy and the

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Elif Kongar; Tarek Sobh

A Preemptive Goal Programming Model for the Sustainability of Growth in Engineering Colleges Elif Kongar*Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Technology Management. University of Bridgeport Tarek Sobh University of Bridgeport AbstractToday, ever-decreasing budgets and dynamic variations in the number of both faculty and student bodiesare two major challenges that most U.S. universities deal with. In addition to the effort to solve theseproblems, every higher education institution also concentrates on ensuring its sustainability in

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Peter Thomas Tkacik

Racing to Learn Engineering Dr. Peter Thomas Tkacik, Asst. Professor The University of North Carolina at CharlotteAbstractStudents are encouraged to drive a race car in order to learn more about the job of a MotorsportsEngineer. Mechanical Engineering students at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte can focus ona new Motorsports program which emphasizes skills in the area of the large and growing motorsportsindustry. In one particular course, Motorsports Instrumentation, the classroom extends to the engineshop, the race shop, and the race track.Students analyze the requirements of the instrumentation, install video and dozens of sensors on the

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Gad J. Selig

and managers. • Develop, lead and motivate high-performance and diversified global teams. • Champion and sustain innovation initiatives and environments. • Manage accelerating change proactively.As part of our market research, we reviewed about 20 leading edge university programs offering eithergraduate TM or equivalent degrees such as Engineering Management, Management of Technology,Manufacturing Management, Information Technology well as MBA or MS degrees offered by leadingedge business schools relating to some aspect of technology (e.g. Information Technology, Health CareManagement and Technology, Supply Chain Management, New Product and Venture Creation,Entrepreneurship and others. We focused on universities that had both

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Joseph Robert Yost; Randy D. Weinstein

. The first programs within the CoE were Civil Engineering and Electrical 1Engineering. Today there are four degree programs in Chemical Engineering (Che), Civil andEnvironmental Engineering (CEE), Electrical and Computer Science Engineering (ECE) andMechanical Engineering. All programs offer BS and MS degrees through the respectivedepartments. A five year program that combines the BS and MS degrees is also available in alldepartments, and an interdisciplinary PhD degree is administered and offered through the CoE.The CoE offers a common freshman year to all incoming students (Table 1). As can be seen inTable 1, the first year curriculum includes two semesters of calculus, two semesters of

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Rashmi Jain; Keith Sheppard; Elisabeth McGrath; Bernard Gallois

Promoting Systems Thinking in Engineering and Pre-Engineering Students Rashmi Jain, Keith Sheppard, Elisabeth McGrath and Bernard Gallois Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, New Jersey, 07030 AbstractThe context of engineering is one dominated by systems. In order to better prepare graduates with asystems perspective and the competencies to be effective in system design, we discuss initiatives topromote the development of systems thinking, both in undergraduate and K-12 communities. This paperdescribes vertically-integrated curriculum innovation, in which graduate-level coursework spawned apilot program to embed

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Junichi Kanai

for managing project related informationsince the spring of 2005. Learning to use the tool effectively also contributes to ABET’s programoutcome (k): (k) an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice.3 1In this paper, we present our experience in selecting and deploying the MDL Projects Forum, a web-baseddiscussion board, and ways to use the system for enhancing the course work and assessing students’performance.Choosing a SystemSince each university has a unique set of computer/network policies and support capabilities, there is noready made recommendation that

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

David I. Schwartz

7game changes discretely or continuously by approximation within a unit of time. In either case, a scoringfunction can measure the temporal game state.Although game theory and the study of algorithmic game complexity offer similar “in-roads” to gamesand engineering mathematics theory, they do not easily handle realistic games a student might wish tobuild and/or study. Reducing a game’s representation into the proposed two-dimensional functional formaddresses both practicality and theory. As shown in this paper, a variety of educational concepts wouldbenefit from application and study of scoring functions: • Describing the relations between points, scores, and measures of game state can demonstrate applications of discrete and

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Dean M. Aslam; Zongliang Cao; Cyrous Rostamzadeh

on a restructuring of schoolscience around real-world problems [1], inquiry based studies [2][3][4][5] including Design-Based Science(DBS) [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] and Learning By Design (LBD) [16][17][18], augmented reality(AR) [19][20][21][22][23][24][25], and Technology Assisted Science, Engineering and Mathematics (TASEM)[26][27][28]. A unique feature of the TASEM program is that it, encompassing a number of inquiry-basedhands-on ideas, focuses on current and future technologies and it is capable of dealing with a variety of learningconcepts and environments studied by other researchers [29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39]. BecauseTASEM is based on technology, it can address (a) technological learning issues in a

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Dean Aslam; Aixia Shao

I, A S, T, E M M, H A Sensors generators 6Conclusions and Future Plans Focusing on technology innovations, rather than education research, this paper reveals for the first time Lego-based hands-on nano-educational modules field-tested on approximately 200 K-12, undergraduate and graduatestudents. As most of the educators in engineering in the US have doctoral degrees in research areas related toengineering fields, their knowledge and focus on education research is limited. On the other hand most of

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Roger Chapman Burk

emergency. The hook was the human drama. This program gave and excellent picture of engineers working together, and also showed the size of the mission control effort required to support manned spaceflight. Block V: 22-24. Visions Visions for Student teams presented their analyses of space travel proposals from the Future science fiction or imaginative non-fiction.The reader will observe that no opportunity was missed to connect to topics likely to be of interest toliberal arts majors. The reader will also observe that a great deal of material was covered, necessarilyvery lightly. For each topic, the emphasis was first on

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Roy T.R. McGrann

courseMechanical Engineering Design (ME 392) and, in the senior year, by the two-semester capstone designsequence (ME 493/ME 494).Departmental Course Review Process and ABET AccreditationABET requires that accredited engineering programs show that their graduates attain certain abilities,understandings, knowledge and recognitions. These characteristics are listed in the document Criteriafor Accrediting Engineering Programs 4 and are commonly referred to as “3(a-k).” As stated in thecriteria: “Engineering programs must demonstrate that their students attain: (a) an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering (b) an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data (c) an ability to

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Aaron S. Bradshaw; Gary N. McCloskey; Franklin Miguel

is centered on the concept of reflective action to foster development of “soft” engineering skillsthrough guided reflection about action at various stages in the design process on the relation of theoriesand practices to the specific context for which a design is being developed. According to Killion andTodnem (1991) “Through reflection, we develop context-specific theories that further our own 1understanding of our work and generate knowledge to inform future practice.” In this approach,reflection on the context-specific design also becomes a means for ongoing development of a repertoire ofapproaches that interconnect the technical and “soft” engineering

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Philip L. Brach; Ahmet Zeytinci

youngsters have an inquisitive mindand when nurtured have the potential for some engineering or related technical career. As we venture intothe future it is imperative that we (engineering faculty) reach out to the youngsters of every gender andethnic identity exposing them to the essence of engineering, exciting them to consider joining our ranksfor the future well-being of humankind.PHILIP L. BRACH, PH.D., P.E., F-NSPEDistinguished Professor (Emeritus), former Dean, Past President, DCSPE, current DCSPE Representative to theNSPE House of Delegates. Currently teaching and doing research in the Civil Engineering and STEM programs atUDC. He is the Past State Coordinator for DC MATHCOUNTS and has over 45 years of teaching, engineeringpractice and

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Hudson V. Jackson; Evelyn A. Ellis

aligned with the realworld needs of business and industry. Several programs such as STEM summer programs and internshipshave been developed to address these issues, but to a large extent, such programs are short-term based.Additionally, they mostly target high school students; are only applicable in one grade level; or are onetime project-based events. What would be the impact of systematically exposing PK through high schoolstudents to engineering concepts, applications, and career opportunities on a long-term, continuous basisat each grade level? If students are constantly reminded that engineering is part of their daily lives, thiscould generate a lifetime interest in the engineering profession and engage them in benefiting humanity.The

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Elif Kongar; Paul Kontogiorgis; Nancy L. Russo; Tarek Sobh

and manufacturing as the leading contributor to gross domesticproduct in the world today. As the global economy has become more integrated, and the demand for aworkforce required to run service-focused organizations in an efficient manner grows, the level andvariety of skills needed in this new service economy have also changed and grown. In particular, thegrowth rate of technology-driven service industries is significantly outpacing the growth in other service-oriented sectors. It has been argued that women in general possess many characteristics that make themoptimal candidates to fulfill this workforce gap. However, the percentage of women enrolled inengineering, technology and related programs have been dropping. This paper attempts to

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Robin K. Burk

, theAcademy currently offers majors in a number of engineering, mathematics, science and humanitiesdisciplines. Students who do not major in an engineering, math or science discipline must complete asequence of 3 courses in one of the seven engineering disciplines for which majors are offered.In their senior year, students complete an integrative experience to synthesize knowledge and skillsnurtured in the core and their majors programs. These experiences “present students with professionallyrelevant situations that include political, social, economic, and technological issues and challenge studentsto anticipate and respond effectively to uncertainty and change.”6 For engineering majors, the experiencetypically consists of a year-long capstone

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Barrie Jackson

The Role of Process Safety Management in the Chemical Engineering Undergrad CurriculumBarrie Jackson Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering Queen’s University, Kingston Ontario CanadaAbstractThis paper will discuss the role of Process Safety Management education in the Chemical EngineeringCurriculum.It is recognized that the core body of knowledge for a Chemical Engineer continues to grow, and therenever seems to be enough time to adequately cover it all, one has to consider which issues are moreimportant than others. Basic fundamentals such as the sciences and math are considered essential butthere is always a question about some of the peripheral subjects such as Process Safety Management.With the notorious incidents such

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Interactive Web Based Animation Software: An Efficient Way to Increase the Engineering Student’s Fundamental Understanding of Particle Kinematics and KineticsAbstractAnimation software for an introductory Dynamics course has been developed, which may be asupplement to the proposed text: Riley, Sturges, Stanley “Dynamics”, 3rd Edition (Wiley andSons, Inc. New York). This interactive software is unique because each animation is directlylinked to a homework problem and no programming is required of the user. The animations areweb-based (hard-coded in Adobe Flash Action Script), so no external computer programs areneeded.The software was piloted in two sections of Dynamics during the fall term of 2007, where it

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Gregory S. Parnell; Michael Kwinn

course drifted because we lacked sufficientdocumentation defining the process and the techniques. In 2006, unable to find an appropriate text forour course, the first author used his sabbatical to lead the development of a book to be the text and areference for our capstone research course that culminates our engineering programs. With tremendoushelp from our colleagues, the first draft of our text was completed and used in Fall 2006. We designedthe text and the first course based on three core foundations: systems thinking, the profession of systemsengineering, and a new value-focused Systems Decision Process. After several revisions, our text,Decision Making for Systems Engineering and Management, was published in the Wiley SystemsEngineering

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

R. Radharamanan; Ha Van Vo

CAD/CAM and Robotics Applications in Laboratory-Learning Environment R. Radharamanan and Ha Van Vo School of Engineering, Mercer University, Macon, GA 31207-0001, USAAbstractIn this paper, how the design/automation hardware and software and manufacturing laboratory facilitiesare effectively integrated to teach Computer Aided Design (CAD), Computer Aided Manufacturing(CAM), CAD/CAM integration, and robotics with appropriate hands-on experiences in the Biomedical,Mechanical, and Industrial Engineering Programs are presented and discussed. A typical CAD moduledeveloped and taught in Biomedical Engineering includes the use of patient-specific 2D

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Christopher W. Swan; Julia Carroll

engineeringeducation has been similar to that of three to four decades ago. One of the more recent, substantial changes in engineering education was theimplementation of what is commonly referred to as “ABET 2000”, which moved ABET from a“bean counting” mentality in what constitutes a good engineering program, to a structure whereprograms must demonstrate, via appropriate assessment, that desired program objectives andoutcomes are being achieved.3 Specifically, ABET program outcomes include the development of student’s value ofprofessionalism and ethics and the ability to effectively communicate. ABET does not stipulatethe methods for achieving these or other outcomes, rather it requires a demonstration that theyare being achieved, normally via

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Eileen M. Kowalski; Joe D. Manous

, while they described their rationale and methodology to members of theChemistry and Environmental Engineering faculty. Each student was provided the same selection ofproblems. Outcomes of these interviews are presented as trends in recall of basic facts (e.g., students know thatbrackets indicate concentration in molarity), concept recognition (e.g., students identify conservation ofenergy in a heat transfer problem), or general problem solving skills (drawing sketches, identifyingknown and unknown variables). The strength or weakness in conceptual understanding will be comparedto the students’ exposure to these concepts in the college curriculum. The discussion also includes ananalysis of fundamentals (e.g., mathematics) related to the

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

John Hartke; Robert Kewley; Greg Kilby; Greg Schwarz; Gunnar Tamm

study and identify the specific design issues addressed by the student team. It willalso describe how the project was structured so that each student on the team had both an in-depthexperience within their discipline and learned how to integrate their discipline specific expertise in thelarger multidisciplinary project. Finally the paper will present the results of the students’ work andlearning outcomes.1. Introduction One of the desired outcomes of nearly all engineering programs is that the students participate ina project where their work is integrated into a larger multidisciplinary project. The multidisciplinaryproject adds more real-word constraints and considerations to the problem than a single-disciplinaryproject can offer

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

) is one of the nation’s four federalservice academies. CGA focuses on the academic, military and physical development ofyoung men and women as leaders in service to our nation. CGA provides the U. S. CoastGuard (USCG) with approximately 190 new Coast Guard officers each year. Upongraduation, each graduate receives a commission as an Ensign in the Coast Guard and aBachelors of Science degree in one of eight fields. The Civil Engineering program, one offour engineering majors at CGA, averages 30 graduates per year. The CGA Civilprogram has taken advantage of the small class size in its development of the capstonedesign course. Students work in teams on several projects each year with clients in theCoast Guard or the local community.In the late

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Ali Setoodehnia; Kamal Shahrabi; Anthony Manno

How to Improve Student’s Retention Rate in Science and Technology Dr. Ali Setoodehnia Chair, School of Electronics and Computers ITT-TECH, Woburn MA asetoodehnia@itt-tech.edu Dr. Kamal Shahrabi Dean, School of Engineering Technologies Farmingdale State College, Farmingdale, NY kamal.shahrabi@farmingdale.edu Anthony Manno Assistant Professor, Computer Science Department Kean University, Union, NJ

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Arthur Heinricher; Brian Savilonis; David Spanagel; Robert Traver; Kristin Wobbe

Great Problems Seminars: A New First-Year Foundation at WPI Arthur Heinricher1, Brian Savilonis2, David Spanagel3, Robert Traver4, Kristin Wobbe5AbstractThe Great Problems Seminars are a new program designed to engage Worcester PolytechnicInstitute’s first-year students with current events, societal problems, and human needs. Eachseminar starts with an important global problem and helps students to find a place where they canmake real progress, no matter how small, in solving the problem.Four WPI faculty representing Chemistry, Mechanical Engineering, and Humanities developedand delivered two Great Problems Seminars in 2007. Feed the World

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Richard B. Mindek

control, and remote I/O.Today, PLC’s are used in all facets of industry, provide a broad range of functions, can be programmedusing a desktop personal computer, and can be purchased for as little as several hundred dollars. Withsuch broad use in industry, wide-ranging application in engineering related fields and availability to usersat all levels, it is imperative that engineering educators provide young engineers with a fundamentalunderstanding of the operation and capabilities of PLCs. This task has recently been undertaken withinthe Mechanical Engineering Program at Western New England College, through the building of a PLCplatform and development of a PLC laboratory. This laboratory is unique in that it is designed to allowstudents to self

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Ashraf Ghaly; Megan Ferry

To Dam Or Not To Dam: An Insight Into The Environmental Politics Of Rivers Ashraf Ghaly, Ph.D., P.E. Professor of Engineering, Union College, Schenectady, NY 12308 Megan Ferry, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Modern Languages, Union College, Schenectady, NY 12308ABSTRACTIn today’s highly charged climate of environmental politics, decisions about building dams are extremelyhard to make. Simply put, those who have the authority to make such decisions are damned if they damand are also damned if they don’t! There is no easy answer to many of the questions related to damconstruction. No matter what the

Collection

2008 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Harry Knickle; Don Gray

ABET 1There are five objectives of the data acquisition and control part of the senior laboratory..Each of these are related to the ABET outcomes indicated by the letter following eachoutcome.The student will learn1. to develop the laboratory skills needed for data acquisition and control. (b)2. to integrate data acquisition and control with the use of the microcomputer. (b),(k)3. to reinforce the concepts in the chemical engineering control course. (e)4. to be able to report experimental results in an engineering format. (g)5. to be able to work in teams. (d)The ABET program outcomes related to the above objectives are:Engineering programs must