Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

K. A. Narh; R. N. Dave

NSF-Research Experience for Undergraduates in Engineered Nano- Composite Particulate Materials at NJIT K. A. Narha and R. N. Daveb a Department of Mechanical Engineering b Otto York Department of Chemical Engineering New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ 07102-1982IntroductionThe NSF funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site program at NJIT, was designed tofulfill the main requirements of the NSF solicitation document for this program - that REU projectsinvolve students in meaningful ways in ongoing research programs or in research projects

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

M.G. Prasad

The Role of Cultural Diversity in Enhancing Engineering Education Dr. M.G. Prasad Department of Mechanical Engineering Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, New Jersey mprasad@stevens.eduAbstract:It is well known that diversity is in all schools of higher education. It is also noted that diversity in aschool exists in faculty, students, staff and administration. Engineering schools and programs are noexception. The role of cultural diversity in enhancing engineering education is studied in this paper

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Charles H. Forsberg

verified that the measurements agreed with the calculated predictions. The labsession was lively and the students really enjoyed it. They gained knowledge in a mannersuperior to a straight lecture.A follow-on activity was to design a scale using the cantilever beam apparatus. An outlineof the activity is given at the end of the Appendix. The scale was to be designed for a givenweight range (e. g., 0 to 10 lb.). The students specify the material and dimensions of thebeam, determine the placement location of the strain gage, and determine the appropriateresistances and voltage of the Wheatstone bridge circuit. If time permits (it didn’t in 2006,but hopefully it will in 2007), the students would actually construct the scale and compareits performance

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Philip L. Brach; Ahmet Zeytinci; Pathickal Polouse

years of teaching, engineering practice andadministration experience.PATHICKAL POULOSE, PH.D.Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering. Over 30 years of teaching and research experience. Field ofresearch interest: materials science and solid mechanics. Actively involved in research in areas of light metal alloydevelopment, fatigue, stress corrosion cracking and fracture mechanics. Currently PI for Department of EducationGrant for freshmen engineering Courses.AHMET ZEYTINCI, PH.D., P.E.Professor of Civil Engineering, former Chairman of the Department of Engineering, Architecture and AerospaceTechnology at UDC. He is a Past President of DCSPE and is currently the Director of the Civil EngineeringProgram and the Chairman of the Professional

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Graham Walker

process project.2 Background Several efforts have been made over the years to improve the experimental experience thatstudents obtain at the undergraduate level. With respect to teaching students about mathematical design ofexperiment concepts and statistical analysis Gleixner, et al.2 and Munson-McGee4 both introduced theseelements into a laboratory course in chemical engineering. Equally, Lyons, et al.3 has introduced theteaching of instrumentation and experimental practices into a mechanical engineering laboratory, whileCyr, et al.1 has exposed students to open ended experimental process projects to promote creativity andinnovation. However, there is no documented case of where all of the material and practices necessary toaddress a

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Vincent Winstead

mathematics and physics mirror those of the electrical andmechanical engineering disciplines with the exception of calculus. This department does not requireadvancement in the area of calculus beyond methods of integration, typically covered as a subset of topicsin the second semester calculus course. Further, methods of partial and ordinary differential equations arenot a part of the required curriculum. The Automotive Engineering Technology curriculum does includecourses in direct current (DC) circuits and statics, dynamics and mechanics of materials as well as basicconcepts from thermodynamics.The Electrical and Computer Engineering and Technology department includes the Electrical Engineeringprogram. It incorporates a broad curriculum focused in

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Suzanne Keilson

even “self-healing” materials solutions from the natural world are often looked to asexemplars. With the advent of nanotechnology and the convergence of mechanical and electrical systems(MEMS) there are yet other strong forces to push towards an integration of engineering knowledge andeducation and a restatement of fundamental design principles.The implications for teaching design are profound, because we usually try and show design as a processproceeding from user needs, to requirements, design specifications, preliminary prototype, test andredesign. Although iterative elements in the process are acknowledged, it is generally thought of as beingmore amenable to analysis than might, in fact, be the case. As in much of the recent emphasis on

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Hassan A. Kalhor; Mohammad R. Zunoubi

practical use. But, we should not lose hope andcontinue our endeavor.In the interim, we need to educate engineering students to become more energy conscious. Anincreasing number of our students now take two elective courses in energy conversion andelectric power. The ones that don’t choose these courses can be taught the material in thispresentation in seminar form. In this talk, I will concentrate on conservation of electrical energy,as it is the most common form of energy used in residential, commercial, and industrial premises.Loss is waste of energy that adds to the infrastructure and running costs of power equipment. Italso depletes our energy resources and increases the environmental pollutants.Many government agencies have stepped in and set

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Shari J. Klotzkin; Howard S. Kimmel

, students can easily and inexpensively have hands onexperiences while being exposed to software used in industry. After the students have learned to solvethe simple problem by hand, Working Model can be used to complement the learning experience byhelping students tackle more interesting and complex problems and allow them to experience howchanging the parameters of the problem affects the solution.Two popular statics textbooks, Hibbler9, and Beer and Johnston10 are accompanied by a CD with WorkingModel examples. In addition, Beer and Johnston includes a section of computer problems at the end ofeach chapter. These problems require more extensive calculations and a more thorough understanding ofthe material than the standard problems elsewhere in

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Josephine Lamela; James Finne; Karen Ford; Deborah Iacontino

intellectualizedand the minutia can be engineered to many significant figures, but ultimately it takes bold leapsof faith to create good design. Unfortunately, the bold leaps of faith produce many failures alongthe way and failures are discouraging. How do you do this with 15 year old girls? How do youmake it fun? How do you assure success?The underlying assumption with this group was that they had little or no skills using tools andlittle or no knowledge of materials, hardware and mechanisms. This assumption was valid withTechXploration 2006. The assumption was, unfortunately, also valid for the counselors whowere responsible for the students. When asked, almost universally, any experience in this areawas credited to the fathers.The curriculum was laid out

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

E.N. Bart; Joseph Kisutcza

Solving problems in packed absorption using Mathcad® E.N. Bart, J. Kisutcza NJIT, Department of Chemical Engineering, University Heights, Newark NJ 07102-1982The techniques for solving problems in packed tower absorption are very dated. Thesetechniques have been subjected to a host of different approximations. Much of thesecalculations are very slow and tedious. The procedures dated back to the time when theprimary means of computation was by slide rule and mechanically drawn graphs.Engineering students were well versed in the use of the slide rule and were taughtengineering drawing. The present age is the age of the computer and the old techniquesare no longer needed. The

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

R. Barat; G. DiBenedetto; T. Boland

’ background with popular software as well as theirmechanical experiences prior to arriving at NJIT. All of the software and mechanical skillsmentioned in the questionnaire are put to use in this course. The results provide guidance as to 1Figure 1: First-day student survey FED (ChE) Survey of Student Backgroun Please answer the following questions honestly. answers will help me to try to provide you with a better course this term. Don't be embarrassed; your responses will be kept private Scale (0 to 5): 0 = none, 5 = a lot Computer What is your general experience with Microsoft Word? _____ + Using the equation editor in Word

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Howard Kimmel; John Carpinelli; Rosa Cano; Angelo Perna

will be impacted earlier and with a greater intensity that is otherwisepossible.Since its inception, the Pre-College Center has sought to become a driving force in providing increasingaccess to scientific and technological fields to all students. Through its careful and thorough planning thePre-College Center has been remarkably successful in reaching those populations that are traditionallyunderrepresented. The Center’s models for success bring academic opportunities to children who needthem most in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) areas, as well asdevelopment and dissemination of resource materials, standards-based classroom lessons and practices,laboratory experiments and demonstrations to teachers to integrate

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

L. Kuczynski; C. McGuinness; S. Farrell; B. G. Lefebvre; C. S. Slater

to the project during the summer, and this student initiates a literature search andbecomes familiar with the technical aspects of the project before the semester begins. 2 When the semester begins, undergraduate students are matched to projects based on theirranked project choices and on the needs of the project. The professor provides a briefintroduction to the project, and the students are required to read introductory material forfamiliarization. Early in the semester, typically in the second week, the team meets withindustry representatives who provide an overview of their industry as well as a description ofthe technical problem that is to be addressed. At this meeting, students

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Shaina Slonim; Richard Puerzer

need to know.”1 Theauthors’ point is that research needs to be done in four areas: The “knowledge, skills, processes, values,and attitudes [that] characterize engineering…and…the mechanisms by which these elements changeover time”; how “innovation, critical thinking, systems thinking, biology, mathematics, physical sciences,engineering sciences, problem solving, design, analysis, judgment, and communication relate to eachother to characterize the core of engineering as a profession”; “the source of these core elements, andhow” they are shaped and whether engineering is “best characterized by the people it serves, the problemsit addresses, the knowledge used to address problems, the methods by which knowledge is applied., or itssocial relevancy

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

John C. Giordano; J. Scot Ransbottom

into consideration the diversity of the faculty whowill be instructing the material, as well as the diversity of the learners. The military has long been at the forefront of the nation's efforts to enhance equal opportunity, butrecently the focus has shifted from merely providing opportunity to those less advantaged to actuallyrecognizing the value and benefits returned through diversity. The Leading Diversity Process Model(LDPM), Figure 1, proposed by Colonel André Sayles, has been adopted by for use throughout theDepartment of Defense. The LDPM has three primary components of accept differences, understand Figure 1. Leading Diversity Process Model [2]differences and value differences [2]. As leaders and educators

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Stephanie Farrell

, the time between first contact and obtaining a defined and funded clinicproject averages about one year. Prior to the start of the semester, background work is done so that undergraduate studentswill be able to “hit the ground running”. A graduate or advanced undergraduate student isassigned to the project during the summer, and this student initiates a literature search andbecomes familiar with the technical aspects of the project before the semester begins. When the semester begins, undergraduate students are matched to projects based on theirranked project choices and on the needs of the project. The professor provides a briefintroduction to the project, and the students are required to read introductory material forfamiliarization

Collection

2007 Spring ASEE Middle Atlantic Section Conference

Authors

Paul G. Ranky

that learners can interrogate objects, takeproducts virtually apart in 3D, enjoy virtual factory or facility tours and evenparticipate/ collaborate actively by e-mail and other Internet methods.In terms of challenging the learner to learn and investigate the illustratedcase(s) further the cases give them several direct URL (web) contacts, e-mailaddresses so that they can get in touch with anybody over the web, includingany of the authors who have created/ presented the cases. In several cases,assessment is supported by spreadsheet-based automated tools, that in case ofan incorrect answer hyper-links the learner back to a variety of revisionsolutions, so that the missed material can be learned, and the test re-taken. Theassessment questions