Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Earl Owen

RF circuits, impedance matching, and transmission line theory including the use ofthe Smith chart. The microwave amplifier experiment includes the design steps necessary toextend circuit design and analysis from RF into microwave frequency range.Before beginning their amplifier design, students must learn about s parameters and the sparameter equivalent circuit used in circuit design and analysis at high frequency. Once theyunderstand these concepts, they can measure the s parameters for a high frequency transistorusing an s parameter test set. This introduces them to the network analyzer and the role thisinstrument plays in microwave circuit design and analysis. The measured s parameters are used to

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Georg Mauer

Session 1566 An Interactive Visual Environment for Scientific Problem Solving Georg F. Mauer University of Nevada, Las VegasAbstractScience and engineering students do not typically receive explicit training in scientific problemsolving, i.e. applying science principles to specific situations. Students’ problem solving skills oftenshow little improvement throughout their course of studies.This paper describes a structured, graphical, interactive (GUI) learning environment, whichpresents problems and tools for analysis in systematic and logical order, and encourages

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Albert Biggs

Session 2793 Optimum Matching of Two Unequal Impedances in Acoustical, Optical, or Microwave Stepped Transmission-Lines Albert W. Biggs University of Alabama at HuntsvilleAbstractA simplified method is described for designing periodic structures with transformer sectionsconnected in series to match impedances or provide transitions from slow wave to fast wavetransmission lines in acoustical, optical, and microwave waveguides. For a given bandwidth,transformer section characteristic impedances are designed to provide a Chebyshev Polynomial,or equal ripple

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Laura Lucas

toeffectively discuss someone else’s ideas… two basic needs for successful teamwork. With theincreasing role of group work in student learning, faculty have an increased responsibility to teachstudents how to collaborate successfully on group projects… in essence, ‘how to develop a wholethat is better than the sum of the parts’. The focus of this paper is on one aspect of teamcollaboration… the teaching and use of constructive feedback to discuss and evaluate each othersideas and/or projects as incorporated in the course ART 155 Residential Construction as part of aSchool Faculty Development Grant beginning during the 1999 school year, and continuing to thefollowing semesters.Furthermore, to truly reinforce in class instruction in constructive feedback

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2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Nora Christianson; Henry Russell

Session XXXX Representation of Women and Minorities in the Science and Engineering Disciplines Nora P. Christianson, Henry P. Russell U.S. Army Research Laboratory Adelphi, MarylandAbstractThe United States (U.S.) Army Research Laboratory (ARL) has aggressively pursued workforcediversity by establishing a corporate Diversity Advisory Board and a Minority OutreachProgram. In cooperation with the Equal Employment Opportunity and Human ResourceManagement offices, these

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Willie Ofosu

groups ofpeople are defined along racial lines or ethnic lines, by denomination or by gender.Through education, the government assists the citizens to raise their standard of living.This creates the sense of accomplishment that generates a high level of confidence in thepeople, making them see themselves as contributing members of the society.The government has the responsibility of demonstrating to the citizens that it issupportive of their aspirations. One way of doing this is by providing an educationalsystem that will prepare the students well for a future in which they can anticipateexperiences that will enhance their being. The government can use this mode to showfairness in the distribution of the nation’s resources, and thus gain the

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

William Jordan; Norman Pumphrey

the math and statics/strength courses that the students takeat the same time. In the Fall 1999 quarter, all sophomore students were put into these new courses,regardless of whether they had taken the integrated freshman courses. The students who have takenthe materials course during the last two years are in two different groups: one that has had theintegrated curriculum background and one that has had a traditional background.We wanted to examine two different aspects about this new curriculum. The first aspect is whether weare more effectively teaching materials engineering with our new course. The second aspect is whetherthe new integrated curriculum better prepares the students for our materials course. We believe that thenew materials

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Laura Lucas; Erdogan Sener

Session 1421 Ensuring Quality Articulation for Enhancement of Construction Workforce Education Erdogan Sener, Laura Lucas Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)AbstractIt is common knowledge that the construction industry is experiencing a serious workforce shortageat all levels of the workforce that will only get worse in the future unless something is done about itand done soon.1,2The issue is receiving broad discussion at diverse levels and different solutions are being suggested.In most cases, however, the measures being foreseen to

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Ralph Staus; Henry Ansell

students hadpreviously attempted, and doing homework problems. Following in importance were studyingfor an exam, and in-class practice in solving problems. Other highly important activities werereviewing returned and corrected exams, and listening to lectures concerning concepts andrelationships. The paper goes over the various results that were found, and suggests possibleexplanations.Introduction Penn State Berks-Lehigh Valley College, in Reading and Fogelsville, Pennsylvania,comprises two small branch campuses that are part of The Pennsylvania State University. Thesurvey was conducted at the larger of the two campuses, which is in Reading. The college hasseveral functions. It serves as a feeder for the main Penn State campus at

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Karen Batty; Joseph Clair Batty

engineering and those who hire our graduates are expanding everywhere.Now we must give greater attention to our suppliers. We can no longer afford to allow our K-12suppliers to "throw high school graduates over-the-wall" to colleges of engineering resulting inhigh rejection and dropout rates.Utah’s Governor has recently called for a doubling of graduates from Utah’s colleges ofengineering within five years and tripling in eight. This paper describes some of the initiativesunderway at Utah State University to motivate, guide, and help create a more seamlessexperience for students who could potentially do well in engineering.IntroductionHorror stories from the over-the-wall era of American industry are legion. These stories describeengineering designs

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2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Nathan Richardson; Carl White

must possess both technical andcritical thinking skills able to embrace the rapid pace of technological change. Providing thisqualified talent is a challenge facing many engineering schools across the nation. Candidates ofABET accredited universities are instilled with the required technological literacy; however,their critical thinking skills are typically obtained through years of on-the-job training orparticipation in research-based graduate study. Today’s technical employer demands candidatesthat have these skills well in hand for quick industry assimilation and productivity.To meet the demands, engineering schools, with the guidance of ABET, are revamping theirundergraduate curriculum to include activities that stimulate and develop

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Hilda Black; Jenna Carpenter

Session 1365 Enhancing Freshman Engineering Mathematics Courses with Web-Based Material Jenna P. Carpenter, Hilda Marino Black Louisiana Tech UniversityAbstractThe internet provides access to a wide-variety of valuable resources which can be used toenhance college-level courses. In addition, it provides many new opportunities for connectingwith and supporting students. One convenient way to organize and access these resources andopportunities is through the use of web-based course management software. This paper willoutline the experiences of

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2001 Annual Conference

Authors

William Szaroletta; Lloyd Ewing; Nancy L. Denton

Session 2168 Analog to Digital Mechanics Lab Conversion: Lessons Learned Nancy Denton, Bill Szaroletta, Lloyd Ewing Purdue UniversityAbstractTo upgrade the laboratory supporting an introductory sophomore-level strength of materials courseto reflect current industry practice and address student requests, the authors have begun convertingthe current experiments from analog instrumentation with hand-recorded data to NationalInstruments LabVIEW based testing. This paper reviews the challenges encountered during theconversion of one experiment; a three-point beam bending experiment

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Jr., Vernon Lewis; Carol Considine

Session 2647 Assessment Methods for Virtual Laboratories in Civil Engineering Technology Carol L. Considine, Vernon W. Lewis, Jr. Old Dominion UniversityAbstractOld Dominion University has developed an extensive distance learning system that includes 40remote sites. A majority of the sites are located at community colleges. There are 30 sites inVirginia, three sites in North Carolina, one site in Washington State and one site in Arizona. Inaddition, there are four sites at Higher Education Centers in Virginia and one site at a localindustrial

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Elsa Napoles

Session 2793 The integration of knowledge in the Mechanical Engineering career Elsa Nápoles University of Camaguey, CubaAbstractThe integration of knowledge into the scientific and academic disciplines is being increased as aconsequence of the scientific and technological achievement and the complex problems that mustbe solved by the society.This paper presents a study of the trenches on the integration of knowledge in the mechanicalengineering disciplines and its relationship with this specialty. A holistic curriculum model basedupon the integration of knowledge and

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Daniel Davis; Elizabeth Petry; James Fuller

critical thinking, problemsolving skills, and creativity. Realistic issues are integrated into the design studios – realprograms, real sites, cost estimating, and scheduling. We are integrating ‘the basics’ –architectural history, architectural theory, drawing, and technical courses (such as structures andenvironmental systems) with design. In the design studio courses, we are attempting to findbalance and connection, and increase the awareness of the interrelationships between these areasof study for the students. Faculty, practitioners, and students know that learning in acompartmental fashion has never been that successful. We look towards this new integrativedesign studio approach as a better way to prepare our students for the demands of

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Nand Jha; Bahman Litkouhi

Session 2793 Optimal Life Cycle Cost Analysis and Design of Thermal Systems Nand K. Jha and Bahman Litkouhi Professor Department of Mechanical Engineering Manhattan College, Riverdale, New York, 104711. Introduction and background Life cycle cost is the sum of all of the costs associated with a product from inception to disposal. LCC seeks to maximize thermal systems contribution to the society while minimizing combined cost of design, manufacturing, customer, and environment. Most researchers agree that

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2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Fazal Chaudhry; Elisabete Castellano

environmental education of schoolchildren as well as in planning environmental science courses for engineering degree students.IntroductionAlthough one may argue that industrial production and technological progress have broughtabout the present day environmental crisis, it is the lack of social awareness and moralconsciousness with regard to the environment which hold the clue. The resolution ofenvironmental questions involves not only direct measures of political, social, scientific andtechnological nature but also actions dealing with the ethical and moral attitudes ofindividuals and the society as a whole. Environmental education is considered as an essentialinstrument towards creating a new universal ethic and consciousness in favor of

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Frederick Reardon; Cici Mattiuzzi

Session 1566 Industry Visits as an Assessment Tool Cici Mattiuzzi and Frederick H. Reardon California State University, SacramentoAbstractUnder the new ABET criteria for judging the effectiveness of engineering and technologyprograms, the success of program graduates serves as an additional and necessary measure ofprogram quality. This paper describes a structured, industry site visit program employed by eachof the departments of the College of Engineering and Computer Science at California StateUniversity, Sacramento. The visits typically consist of plant tours and

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

D. Yogi Goswami

Session 1433 Present Status of Solar Energy Education D. Yogi Goswami Solar Energy and Energy Conversion Laboratory, Dept. Mechanical Engineering, University of Florida, POB 116300, Gainesville, FL 32611-6300 USA Tel: 352/392-0812; Fax: 352/392-1071 Email: solar@cimar.me.ufl.eduAbstractThis paper briefly describes the history and status of solar energy education. The energyawareness in the early 1970s led to a concerted research and development effort in solarenergy applications. Solar energy education followed these efforts at the advanced collegelevel. However, R&D slowed

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

William Berg; Morris Boughton

Session 2649 Enhanced Suitcases for Upper Division Electronics Laboratories William M. Berg, Morris W. Boughton University of Texas at BrownsvilleAbstractInexpensive ($200 - $350) attaché cases filled with equipment pertinent to a basic electronics testlaboratory have revolutionized basic electronic laboratory courses. These are called electronicstrainers or mini labs by two of the manufacturers. At a minimum, the cases contain a prototypingboard, power supplies (± 5v, ± 12v, and variable), function generators, potentiometers, andswitches, LEDs, and clocks, for analog and

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Rodney Allen; Richard M. Felder; Catherine E. Brawner

by research and experience.As part of the assessment effort, SUCCEED fielded e-mail surveys in 1997 and 1999 to whichrespondents reported their use of such instructional practices as writing formal instructionalobjectives for undergraduate classes, conducting in-class learning activities, and assigning team-based homework in traditional lecture courses (in contrast with laboratory and design courses,where teams have traditionally been used). About a third of surveyed faculty members returnedthe survey in each administration (32% in 1997 and 36% in 1999).This paper compares the results of the two surveys with respect to the use of certain teachingpractices among faculty and shows the relationship between attending faculty

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Luis Ortiz; Elisa Mestorino Bachofen

Perry´s Model, with important savings in classroom time.The Experimental Methodology was initially applied in Aeronautical Estructures at the UTN,and according with the results was expanded to Mechanical and Civil Estructures in the UM.During 1999 the Argentine Federal Counsel of Deans of Engineering Schools (CONFEDI),adopted a similar criteria of the ABET 2000, in the Manual for Acreditation of EngineeringCareers.Regarding the Laboratories, this Manual recommends that students must acquire aptitudes to:design and improve components, systems and processes, plan and conduct investigations andexperiments on their own, analyzing and expounding the results, stressing teamwork, whichmatch the objectives of the Experimental Method.After three years

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Hal Nystrom

surveys also capture the student’s observations andpreferences regarding team structure.OpportunityIn the Fall Semester of 2000, the author had the opportunity to teach Advanced FinancialManagement, an Engineering Management class, in which half of the students were on-campus and half were distance students. There were fourteen graduate students that tookthis class in the traditional, on-campus, mode. They were all international students withlimited industry experience. In addition there were fourteen distance students who wereworking engineers and used a variety of communication technologies to participate in theclass. Seven utilized an audio-visual network that allowed them to see and hear the class,as well as be seen and heard by the other

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

James Heidenreich; Dr. Eugene Silgalis; Nicholas Akinkuoye

assigned toan intensified national interest in quality, which was in turn partly being driven byincreased international economic competition. Other initiatives may also be assigned tothose emanating from within the academy. Necessary impetus were from those who aredoing what leaders in any organized enterprise should be doing- asking questions ofpurpose and performance such as: What are we trying to achieve? How good a job are wedoing and how do we know? These are simple but penetrating questions appropriate toany sector of our national life and certainly no less important for all Educationalinstitutions including colleges and universities. Contemporary commentary within andoutside the academy makes clear that the quality of American schools

Collection

2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Joseph K. Hitt; Wayne Whiteman

the input of constituentsand a process that links outcomes and assessment to program objectives. This paper is apreliminary study of selected mechanical engineering programs to discern the impact of EC2000on curriculum development. Data on the layout and composition of mechanical engineeringcurricula for nine schools with Ph.D. programs and nine schools without Ph.D. programs ispresented. This research establishes a baseline for these mechanical engineering programs at thebeginning of EC2000 implementation. A follow-on study in two to three years is envisioned.This follow-on study will compare results and identify any significant changes in curricula as theEC2000 assessment process matures.I. IntroductionThis paper is a preliminary study of

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2001 Annual Conference

Authors

Jeffrey Johnson; Janet Rutledge; Eric Sheppard

ReviewCriteria that address both intellectual merit and broader impact. This has changed thevery basis on which panelists view scholarship and the measures thereof. The third Page 6.718.1(*Any views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the National Science Board orthe National Science Foundation)Proceedings of the 2001 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2001, American Society for Engineering Educationchange came after the 2000 GRFP competition, when a policy review was conducted ofthe existing GRFP eligibility guidelines, including representatives of