Conference Session

Mechanics Concepts II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Xiaobin Le P.E., Wentworth Institute of Technology ; Richard L. Roberts, Wentworth Institute of Technology; Ali Reza Moazed, Wentworth Institute of Technology; Anthony William Duva, Wentworth Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

objects orcomponents. Most exercise problems are an abstraction of real-world applications. After themethods of joints and sections are fully explained and used to determine the internal forces ofeach member for simple trusses, most students are eager to know how to deal with truss analysisin real-world designs. SolidWorks Simulation is one of many tools used in real-worldengineering design [5,6,7,8,13]. SolidWorks is the simulation tool chosen for, and implementedin our mechanical engineering and technology programs [9, 10, 11, 12]. After the methods of joints and sections are fully explained and used to determine theinternal forces of each member of simple trusses, we use one 2-hour lab to demonstrate how touse SolidWorks Simulation to

Conference Session

Using Technology to Support Learning in Mechanics

Collection

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Ning Fang, Utah State University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

, the instructor in engineeringdynamics had to spend a significant amount of engineering class time to do remedialmathematics lessons.The author of this paper further interviewed engineering students about their perceptions ofmathematics courses. Some indicated that when they took mathematics courses (e.g. calculus),they could not see real-world applications and felt that many concepts in mathematics are veryabstract and irrelevant to students’ real-world life experiences. Therefore, some students lackedextrinsic motivation to learn mathematics. As a result, their performance in mathematics did notmeet expectations and also caused a chain reaction affecting their subsequent performance inengineering.One potential approach to improving

Conference Session

Teaching with Technology in Dynamics and Mechanics of Materials

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Honghui Yu, The City College of New York; Feridun Delale, The City College of New York

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

all the basic topics intact while replacing many old examples bynew ones from real life and emerging technologies. These new examples are used toillustrate basic concepts, to give a broad view on the applications of the course, especiallyin modern technologies, to make the course more interesting, to provide workingknowledge in emerging technologies and more importantly, and to cultivate the ability ofmodeling, formulating and solving real world engineering problems. Based on these considerations, we added more examples of applications of MoM inthe real world, expanded the content of thermal stress into one special topic, adoptedseveral simple experiments to be carried out by students at home, and introduced severalapplications of beams in

Conference Session

Teaching Statics

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christine Valle, Georgia Institute of Technology; Sue Rosser, Georgia Institute of Technology; Janet Murray, Georgia Institute of Technology; Wendy Newstetter, Georgia Institute of Technology; Laurence Jacobs, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

particularly problematic when amplified bygender and under-represented minorities (URM) 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 connects abstract principles/concepts to real world, every day applications will benefit allstudents while promoting diversity in engineering. Towards that end, we have been developingInTEL

Conference Session

Innovative Teaching Techniques in Mechanics

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Andrew Szmerekovsky, AFIT; Brian Self, U.S. Air Force Academy

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

. Preflights have motivated me to read the textbook before class. 2. Prelights have helped me to identify key concepts for the lesson. 3. I learned more during class time because I completed the Preflight before class. 4. The Preflights made me consider real world applications of Mechanics. 5. I like the way the professor uses the Preflights to generate discussion in the classroom. 6. The course should use more Preflights the next time it is offered.Two disgruntled students who scored every question with a rating of 1 were deleted from thedata, and the average scores for the Dynamics and the Mechanics of Materials (labeled “StrMatls”) courses are shown in Figure 3. 5 4

Conference Session

Learning Mechanics Through Experimentation

Collection

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Timothy Aaron Wood, The Citadel

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

; Exposition, Jun. 2019, Accessed: Mar. 17, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://peer.asee.org/interactive-physical-experiments-in-an-advanced-undergraduate- structural-dynamics-course.[5] D. R. Kraemer, “Real-world Acceleration Measurements for Engineering Dynamics Course,” presented at the 2017 ASEE Mid Atlantic Section Spring Conference, Apr. 2017, Accessed: Mar. 17, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://peer.asee.org/real-world-acceleration- measurements-for-engineering-dynamics-course.[6] S. Bevill and K. Bevill, “Smartphone-based Measurement of Acceleration: Development of a Smartphone Application for Use in an Engineering Dynamics Course,” presented at the 2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Jun. 2015, pp. 26.1377.1

Conference Session

Addressing the Human Dimension in Teaching Statics, Dynamics, Mechanics

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Norman Reese P.E., LeTourneau University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

first hand example of how the calculations and material covered in class is used to help design and use a product.”  “It was a cool applicable demonstration of how strengths analysis is needed in any industry....”  “It was very informative and very neat.”  “Showed a real life application...showed software and Excel integration well.”  [It showed…] “how complex impact loading is and how it can be measured in the real world.”  “Safe design should plan also for possible mis-use and stress, not just intended use.”  “Real world example of testing.”As shown, most comments recognized the value of a “real world” example of how theory isapplied. In addition, side benefits were mentioned such as learning

Conference Session

Learning Mechanics Through Experimentation

Collection

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Authors

Kathleen Bieryla, University of Portland; Nikolene A. Schulz P.E., University of Portland; Rebecca D. Levison, University of Portland; Heather Dillon, University of Portland

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

due to the activity.Each of the students’ essay questions were analyzed for trends, by learning objective, by aneducational expert working with the instructor.For the objective, “Ability to connect life experiences with course content,” several students(n=3) students identified a specific application or real world system where they felt massmoment of inertia was important. Characteristic student statements: • “When I think of the pendulum, I think of a music pendulum for piano and how the mass moment of inertia works with the rhythm.” • “Now, rotating objects and pendulums have a difference in now knowing what mass moment of inertia is and how objects rotate differently depending on their geometry and mass.”For the

Conference Session

Innovative Mechanics Education Programs and Projects

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Morgan, Texas A&M University; Luciana Barroso, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

projects & incorporates civil engineering examplesand real-world applications with much more emphasis on vibration than in a traditional dynamicscourse.The increased emphasis on the vibration material keeps our civil engineering students moreengaged in the course. There is an initial resistance to learning the material when all students seeare box-spring examples when first going through the derivation of the equation of motion forsingle degree of freedom systems. Instead of starting with the simplified model, a one-storybuilding is presented to the class and the first step in solving the problem is the development ofthe analytical model for the system. This also serves to connect the concepts of the dynamicscourse with other courses in the

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

connects abstract principles/concepts to real world, every day applications will benefit allstudents while promoting diversity in engineering. Towards that end, we are developing InTEL(Interactive Toolkit for Engineering Education), a computer-based manipulable environment thatsupports teaching and learning in statics by mapping images from real-world environments toabstract diagrams for 2D and 3D equilibrium problems. With such digital technology, staticsprofessors will be able to offer students important scaffolding for developing model-basedreasoning by contextualizing abstract concepts and principles in lifelike models. Interacting withand manipulating these models will help students develop the kind of intuition that characterizesengineering

Conference Session

Curriculum and Instruction in Engineering Mechanics

Collection

2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Javad Baqersad P.E., Kettering University; Yaomin Dong, Kettering University; Arnaldo Mazzei, Kettering University; Azadeh Sheidaei, Iowa State University; Basem Alzahabi, Alghurair University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

required to work on problems in the textbook as part of the course assignment. As instructorsof this course, the authors have observed that many students are not successful in the coursebecause they do not appreciate the real-world applications of the course. Many students believeconcepts in this course are over-simplified and may not have real-world applications. As part ofa Kern Entrepreneurship Education Network (KEEN) project, we propose using a real-worldstructure (wind turbine) to show the applications of the theory in this course. In this project,students need to use concepts they have learned in the Mechanics of Materials course to analyzea utility-scale wind turbine. Students also learn how to integrate and use their engineeringknowledge

Conference Session

Teaching Mechanics

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dean Q. Lewis, Penn State Erie, The Behrend College; Mary Lynn Brannon, Pennsylvania State University, University Park

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

project while keeping enough emphasis on the technical aspects ofthe course. It should be noted that students welcomed and were challenged by the application ofengineering principles to solve real-world problems. The project was successfully used by adifferent faculty member who was teaching the Strength of Materials course following the firstsemester of implementation. To test transferability, a future iteration could have the studentsbegin this project in the fall semester course and complete the project during the next course inthe sequence the following spring semester. This could allow for a depth of learning that was notpossible in one semester. This would require that the scope of the project be broadened and moredetailed requirements be

Conference Session

Teaching Statics

Collection

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sue Rosser, Georgia Institute of Technology; Laurence Jacobs, Georgia Institute of Technology; Janet Murray, Georgia Institute of Technology; Wendy Newstetter, Georgia Institute of Technology; Christine Valle, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

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 connects abstract principles/concepts to real world, every day applications will benefit allstudents while promoting diversity in engineering. Towards that end, we have been developingInTEL (Interactive

Conference Session

Learning Environments for Statics, Dynamics, and Mechanics of Materials

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

David Brian Dittenber, LeTourneau University; Allyson Jo Barlow, Oregon State University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

, and the delivery of a physical activity kit toeach student filled with demonstration materials relevant to the concepts of the course. Studentperceptions about the efficacy of the tools and projects at meeting the goal of increasingconnections between course concepts and real world applications were collected through a briefsurvey of participating students. Based on the results of the survey, students appear to self-identify that both small projects and several of the materials available in the physical activity kitcontributed positively to their connections between the course concepts and real worldapplications. Student feedback through free-response also included helpful recommendations,such as increased interaction opportunities between

Conference Session

Internet Delivery of Mechanics Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kurt Gramoll, University of Oklahoma

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

, examples and simulation.A concerted effort has been invested in relating the theory to real world engineering applicationsthrough the case studies. Applications from different disciplines (e.g., daily experiences,mechanical, aerospace, and civil engineering applications) are included. The design approach ofthis eBook is to capture students’ interest by first presenting a case study. The theories andconcepts necessary for the students to solve the specific case study are then covered, andfollowed by a complete solution for the case study. Some additional examples are also providedfor some sections. The material of this eBook is open for any institution or student to use withoutcost or condition.I. IntroductionElectronic media has been widely used

Conference Session

Mechanics Division Technical Session 4

Collection

2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Diana A. Chen, University of San Diego; Sarah Wodin-Schwartz, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

with an engineering education that is explicitly socio-technical in nature. As such, inaddition to the work presented here about contextualizing Statics, other ongoing engineeringwork at USD includes introducing social relevance to heat transfer [12], reimagining energy asan interdisciplinary and decolonized concept [13], integrating social justice into engineeringcurricula [14], and teaching social responsibility in circuits and materials science [15], [16],among others [17]. At Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), where author SWS works, giving students theopportunity to tackle real world problems began nearly 50 years ago when the curriculum wasrevolutionized to focus on project based learning (PBL) [18]. This curriculum shift

Conference Session

Mechanics of Materials

Collection

2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jonathon E. Slightam, Marquette University; Mark L. Nagurka, Marquette University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

students is highly encouraged for anyonedeveloping new laboratory experiments. The revised experiments were implemented in the “Design of Machine Elements” course in Page 26.1101.7the Spring 2014. Feedback from students and teaching assistants has confirmed the value of theexperiments in engaging students in the analysis and design of gears and geared systems. Stu-dents became familiar with different types of gears, experimentally determined parameters ofgears, analyzed, designed, and fabricated gears. From this, students gained an understanding ofthe applicability of gears to real-world problems while peaking interest.Feedback The intent of

Conference Session

Teaching Mechanics of Materials

Collection

2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Peter W Malak, Marquette University; Mark L. Nagurka, Marquette University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

various types of springs and their applications. It consists ofseveral tasks. In one task, the student team is presented with ten different springs (Figure 1) andasked to identify each by type (compression, extension, torsional, wave) and end type, and meas-ure each free length and coil diameter. The team is then challenged to answer several questionspertaining to applications, providing examples for the use of each type of spring. The team isalso asked to identify real-world objects that have spring-like behavior and describe the source ofthe elastic nature. In a separate activity, the student team analyzes an automotive rear seatback latch (Figure 2)and key fob (Figure 3). (The authors are grateful to STRATTEC Security Corp for these dona

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching: Statics

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Christine Valle, Georgia Institute of Technology; Sue Rosser, San Francisco State University; Janet H Murray, Georgia Tech; Wendy C. Newstetter, Georgia Institute of Technology; John D. Leonard II, Georgia Institute of Technology; Laurence J. Jacobs, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

attempts to remedy this by leveraging computer animations to explicitly show students Page 22.935.2how statics is tied to everyday life and everyday situations they may encounter. One of theadvantages of computer animations is that they provide an important opportunity for students tomanipulate objects and tools – something that is often lacking, especially for women and URMswho are typically not taught or encouraged to take apart machines as they grow up. Anotheradvantage of computer animations is that they effectively scaffold students' efforts at modelbuilding and connect abstract problems with multiple real world applications – for example

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

Mechanics of Materials

Collection

2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jenn Stroud Rossmann, Lafayette College; Clive L. Dym, Harvey Mudd College; Lori Bassman, Harvey Mudd College

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

, and builds gradually from one- to higher-dimension analyses. In essence,we start with the a-ha of continuum mechanics: the similarities between solids’ and fluids’governing equations, and the connections between their constitutive laws. Stress and strain arealways understood to be tensors, and students are reminded that one-dimensional analyses aresimplifications of more complex conditions: they have “zoomed in” on regions within the largerlandscape of the mechanics of materials.A key aspect of our implementation is the integration of multiple case studies, involving theapplication of course material in relevant real-world situations from the design of biomedicaldevices to the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. In addition to demonstrating

Conference Session

Curriculum and Instruction in Engineering Mechanics

Collection

2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Scott R. Hamilton P.E., York College of Pennsylvania; Jakob C. Bruhl, U.S. Military Academy; Joshua Richard Wyrick, York College of Pennsylvania

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

Activities or SolidWorks in the course?While not unanimous the clear majority of the students agreed that the hands-on activities werebeneficial for their learning (see Figure 1 for results). It was interesting to see that a significantnumber of students listed the engineering design project (EDP), SolidWorks and other classdemonstrations as the best hands on activities, even though we had not initially thought of themas hands-on activities. The EDP and SolidWorks were major components of the course redesignand some of the students clearly appreciated getting to work with them in this course. The EDPespecially seems to have had a favorable impact on students’ views of the course as they felt ithad real world application and allowed them to do a

Conference Session

Improving Mechanics Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Madhukar Vable, Michigan Technological University; William Kennedy, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

communicators and, therefore, teachers must be able to: (i) engage students emotionally,(ii) demonstrating their profound mastery of the subject at hand, and (iii) present new ideas withclarity and cogency. Aristotle’s advice to contemporary college instructors might be that theyshould present real world cases that demonstrate the utility and efficacy of the material being pre-sented as well as exposing students to theory and problem-solving protocols.More contemporary learning theorists, like David Kolb10, argue that humans learn best when theyengage in learning that complements the way that the human nervous system processes experi-ence. He suggests that deep and more durable learning occurs when students are given an oppor-tunity to encounter

Conference Session

What's New in the Mechanics of Materials?

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Andrea Surovek, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

factor to early attrition rates in engineering students2.Unfortunately, addressing real world applications in engineering courses is typically left untilupper division, discipline specific classes. Contextual learning is often left out of engineeringcore course such as Statics and Mechanics of Materials, despite both the significance of thematerial taught in these courses to upper division classes and the pedagogical advantages tousing such an approach in engaging multiple types of student learning styles3. Labs and casestudies can help in developing context; this paper presents a project that can easily be adaptedinto any mechanics class, regardless of discipline or lab component, that helps students topersonalize the material.In order to

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

flexible beam systemto be exceptionally effective in improving and motivating learning in their courses, with 94% ofstudent responses rating the beam system as “effective” or “very effective” in various aspects ofthe demonstration.IntroductionA common limitation of traditional engineering education is the weakness of presenting theoriesand techniques in a way that students can link to real-world experiences or pre-existing intuition.For many students, the largest obstacle to full comprehension of course material is a disconnectbetween the lecture-based teaching style traditional in engineering and the student’s ownexperience-based learning style 1,2,3. For those students, course concepts are not completelyunderstood until they are able to see or

Conference Session

Mechanics, Hands-on Demo - Show & Tell!

Collection

2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sinead C. MacNamara, Syracuse University; Joan V. Dannenhoffer P.E., Syracuse University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

a new concept. The George Washington Bridge, the Eiffel Tower, the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston (which boasts an 80ft long cantilevered gallery thanks to the trusses embedded in the side walls), Shaq dunking a basketball, hanging planters in the instructors’ garden, the mobiles of Alexander Calder, the bridges of Santiago Calatrava, the cranes in the shipyards where the Titanic was built, the rescue apparatus for the Chilean Miners, the Liberty Suspension bridge in North Carolina, and the “Flying House” of architect Rem Koolhass’ Villa Bordeaux were all mathematically analyzed as part of the course. A real world application of all new concepts was discussed in lecture. The

Conference Session

Teaching Dynamics

Collection

2010 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Benson Tongue, University of California, Berkeley; Daniel Kawano, University of California, Berkeley

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

. Rather, the particular tools necessary to handle theparticular range of problems presented in the modules are gone over so that the mental barrier of“I hate MATLAB” or “I hate plotting” are removed.Students uniformly expressed an overall positive affective outcome as a result of the modules.Those coming into the course with “MATLABphobia” expressed a much higher comfort level withcomputation in general as a result of the assignments, and overall the students expressed anincreased perceived ability to analyze and solve “real” engineering problems as a result of goingthrough the modules.Students also reported an increase in their appreciation of the engineering world as a result oftheir work. Many of the systems around them had not previously

Conference Session

Statics Online

Collection

2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Devin R. Berg, University of Wisconsin, Stout

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

student perception of the tasks.The tasks that students were asked to complete as part of the study involved required weeklypostings to Twitter relevant to the topics of discussion in the course that week. With these tasks, itwas intended for the student to look beyond their standard homework and relate to the coursematerial in a new way, independent of their textbook or course notes. Similar work by others hasdemonstrated success in getting students to make the connection between the classroom and the“real world” 8 . Page 26.1567.2The deliverables for these tasks consisted of either a photograph or video, along with a writtendescription, of an

Conference Session

What's New in Mechanics of Materials?

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lucas Passmore, Pennsylvania State University; Aiman Kuzmar, Pennsylvania State University-Fayette

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

focus is more on the actual calculation of the stressesbased on the loadings. Part of the reason that this is important for them is the application ofthese stresses for proper material selection, or dimensioning. As an example of this, whencalculating bearing stress, it is important for the technology student to be able to calculate theproper cross section for a column to ensure that it does not crush a gravel, or concrete base. Forthe traditional engineering student these problems are much more conceptual with less focus onthe application to real world problems. Page 11.26.5StrainStrain relates the actual deformation of the structure to the

Conference Session

Innovations in Solid Mechanics

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Irina Nicoleta Ciobanescu Husanu, Drexel University; Yalcin Ertekin, Drexel University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

enhancedlearning and teaching strategies in engineering technology education. More than ever, theeducational advance is leaning towards meeting the demands of industrial world. EngineeringTechnology curricula needs to adjust to novel technologies by enabling students to acquiremeaningful and relevant practices. Laboratory activities should be incorporated into dry-lecturedcourses, being vital to ET programs, since they are ultimately enhancing the understandingprocess, leading towards developing experience-led engineering technology degree. Laboratoryactivities are the main promoters of creativity and critical thinking, a place where studentsdevelop, practice and improve the required skills, and a place where theory meets the real-likescenarios.One way to