Conference Session

Multidisciplinary and Liberal Education

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Hilkat Soysal, Frostburg State University; Oguz Soysal, Frostburg State University

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education

, Technology, and Society-STS” programs. Engineers and scientists have beenprime movers in developing interdisciplinary STS curriculum for liberal arts studies. Ageneral overview of TLC programs in American colleges is presented in [2].Art Hobson [3] points out alarming statistics of 1990s reflecting the science education atpre-college and college level. He states that “Only 21% of our high school students takeany kind of high school physics course, let alone a course that includes socially relevanttopics. It is depressing that only 20% of all elementary school science teachers havetaken any college physics course, and only 35% took a college chemistry course. And asurvey of 1800 college campuses indicates that only 50% of the nation campuses offerany

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade in Research

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adrienne Minerick, Mississippi State University

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

.” Page 11.850.3Secondly, it is important to remain organized and to communicate well in advance the student’sassigned article and presentation date. The author develops a syllabus for each semester outliningobjectives of the Journal Club, the schedule, and expected performance. The schedule ispublished on the lab’s website and updated to reflect any changes made throughout the semester[5]. More recently, this has been organized into a 1-credit hour directed individual study coursewith a full 5 point (A through F) grading scale. The students write a short 3-page report on theirresearch, including a literature review as a final project in the course. An excerpt from thesyllabus on course objectives and grading is included below.“Objectives

Conference Session

Interdisciplinary Education in ET

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John Blake, Austin Peay State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

could not expect some of thecourses we had required on the main campus to be offered successfully at the satellite location.We had to change our requirements to adapt to the new site. The changes included a reduction incalculus requirements (from ten to three credit hours) and elimination of a computer lab wherewe had introduced students to the EXCEL spreadsheet and other software.Some of the changes and cuts reflected a need to better align our requirements with engineeringtechnology, rather than engineering, requirements. However, the changes did cut some materialwe deemed valuable to our students. We added a new course, ENGT 3050 Problem Solving inEngineering Technology, where we would have a chance to cover this material. This is designed

Conference Session

Design Projects in Wind and Solar Energy

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Samuel Lakeou, University of the District of Columbia; Esther Ososanya, University of the District of Columbia; Ben Latigo, University of the District of Columbia; George Karanja, University of the District of Columbia; Wagdy Mahmoud, University of the District of Columbia; Wilfried Oshumare, University of the District of Columbia

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

around the X-axis progressively from June 21 to December 21 in one direction andfrom December 22 to June 20 in the opposite direction.For a simple tracking system, the daily solar tracking is achieved by rotating the array about thesolar tracking axis Y, by equal incremental angular steps ∆ϕ = 150. It is to be noted that thisproposed angular step does not reflect the actual angular step to be performed every month. Infact, the angular step varies from month to month and is location dependent. The programmable Page 11.406.5nature of the proposed design can easily account for these variations. The number of angularsteps covered

Conference Session

Capstone Courses II

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan Donohue, University of Virginia; Garrick Louis, University of Virginia; William Scherer, University of Virginia; Michael C. Smith, University of Virginia; K. Preston White, Jr., Jr., University of Virginia; Peter Beling, University of Virginia

Tagged Divisions

Systems Engineering Constituent Committee

, Universidad de los Andes, andUniversidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro.Administrative staff members support the web-based administrative tools, faculty and studentactivities, SIEDS preparation and implementation for and contract and accounting requirements. Administrative ActivitiesJune – AugustDeveloping and staffing Capstone projects are the first tasks for each Capstone “cycle.” Projectstypically reflect the research and professional interests of the faculty advisor and are carefullyselected for their appropriateness for the Capstone experience based on the appropriateness ofthe topic, potential student interest, faculty interests, and funding availability. Once the projectsare set through a joint effort of faculty

Conference Session

Use of Technology in Teaching Mathematics

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Melinda Z. Kalainoff, U.S. Military Academy; Dawn E. Riegner, U.S. Military Academy; Matthew Deloia, U.S. Military Academy; Russ Lachance, U.S. Military Academy; Andrew Biaglow, U.S. Military Academy

Tagged Divisions

Mathematics

after only one examination. The statistical differences areinsignificant in most cases. We are encouraged by the fact that none of the sectionsappears to be lower than their peers. Future results that show additional graded events asa function of time will be very informative. We also place a considerable amount ofimportance on student attitudes as reflected in Table 1. The follow-up survey, to beadministered at the end of the semester, will tell us a great deal about whether we are ableto improve student attitudes toward use of technology.Question ResponsePlease rank the following in terms of your preference for solvingproblems. Pencil and paper

Conference Session

FPD8 -- Systems, Nanotechnology & Programming

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Youssef Allam, Ohio State University; David Tomasko, Ohio State University; John Merrill, Ohio State University; Bruce Trott, Ohio State University; Phil Schlosser, Ohio State University; Paul Clingan, Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

very broad multi-disciplinary project that appeals to manyinterests and this is reflected in the nanotechnology teaching modules contributed by a diversegroup of nanotechnology researchers from around campus.Nanotechnology is introduced in related readings and laboratory tours as well as a nominalexperimental component. Pre- and post-tests on nanotechnology concepts helped to gaugeincreases in student knowledge and understanding of fundamental nanotechnology topics. Pre-and post-surveys indicated the effects of the course on student interest and participation inresearch and nanotechnology-related issues at an undergraduate, graduate, or professional level.Efforts to expand the initial pilot implementation into a scaled-up regular course

Conference Session

New Trends in Engineering Graduate Education

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ernest McDuffie; Elaine R. Milliam; Robert Kavetsky; Ronald Bennett; Eugene Brown

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

, to join in an afternoon session ofdefining the critical components of effective leadership. Theywere able to join in small groups to discuss their own experiencesof working with inspiring, admirable leaders and the impact thoseleaders have had on them. By the end of the first day, the grouphad developed a full set of characteristics they felt reflected theideal leader of the future and were able to consider which of thesecharacteristics matched the image they would embrace for theirfuture.The following two days, students spent time individually, in smallgroups and as a large group, learning about their assessmentresults, synthesizing the data and developing a short and long-range plan of action. Through interpretations of the

Conference Session

Design for Manufacture and Industry

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Betsy Aller, Western Michigan University; Alamgir Choudhury, Western Michigan University; James Kamman, Western Michigan University; Jorge Rodriguez, Western Michigan University; Mohammed Elsamawal, Western Michigan University; Michael Desjardins, Western Michigan University

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

-based course design trend reflects industrypractice, where teamwork has become the prevalent mode5. During this bidding process, studentsare required to seek out the faculty who presented the project, with the goal of both learningmore about the project and allowing the faculty to get a sense of the best team for the project.The course coordinator encourages students to ask faculty advisors questions about projecttiming, budget, potential funding, objectives, etc. In the case where the project has an industrysponsor, be that for commercial purposes or for non-for-profit organization, students are urged toask about sponsor expectations, additional or unusual time lines, and specific design constraints.Naturally, not all of these questions can be

Conference Session

Environmental Engineering Undergraduate Research

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Simeon Komisar, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Lupita Montoya, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Tagged Divisions

Environmental Engineering

. Thefollowing weeks were spent refining the details of the design, building and subsequently testingand debugging the prototype. As the semester came to a close, design teams conducted the finalevaluations and demonstrations of their system design concept prototypes. Among issues toconsider, they reflected upon the design process and discussed how it impacts people in generalas well as any specific questions regarding their design. As Milestone 3, teams made final projectpresentations and submitted design documentation in the form of a written report. For those students who enjoyed this course experience, they could choose to continue theirinvolvement in similar projects by joining the Rensselaer chapter of Engineers for a SustainableWorld.Evaluation

Conference Session

Trend in Construction Engineering Education II

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Chinowsky, University of Colorado-Boulder; Hyman Brown, University of Colorado-Boulder

Tagged Divisions

Construction

thetransformation source. The constructor must understand that responses to these requirementshave effects that are not limited to the level at which they originate. Rather, decisions made ateither end of the source spectrum can significantly affect the entire spectrum. For example, adecision at the organization level to enhance the reputation of the organization throughexceptional quality will be reflected at the task level through increased implementation times atcritical project phases.Constituent ModifiersEach project contains requirements that must be addressed during the transformation process.For example, each project has a unique site on which it located, and each project has specificinfrastructure integration constraints such as traffic, electric

Conference Session

Industrial Collaboration & Applications in ET

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

William Loendorf, Eastern Washington University; Donald Richter, Eastern Washington University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

engineering and engineeringtechnology whether it is electrical, computer, or mechanical. It would have been impossible toaccomplish this goal of offering a real world engineering education without the generousassistance of many organizations through a series of collaborative efforts.Conclusions, Reflections, and the FutureThe success of Eastern Washington University’s program to build and furnish a new buildingshows that the new paradigm of forming collaborative partnerships with all of the stakeholders inengineering and engineering technology has great merit. By utilizing this new approach to thereoccurring problem of funding engineering education Eastern Washington University was ableto build a new state-of-the-art facility for its programs. This

Conference Session

Approaches to K -12 Engineering

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Leslie Wilkins, Maui Economic Development Board

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

diverse young technology professionals whograduated from local high schools on the subject of “How I Got My Start.” The final activity is avisit to the normally inaccessible observatories at the Maui Space Surveillance Complex, tenthousand feet above sea level atop Mount Haleakala.In its first year, Tech Careers employed a passive recruitment process to enroll interestedstudents. Sixty-six percent of participants were male, and most came from private schools orthose in wealthier districts. Anecdotally, they were also primarily Caucasian. In subsequentyears, gender equity recruitment protocols were implemented and refined so that now theparticipant population appropriately reflects the gender, socio-economic and ethnic diversity ofthe community

Conference Session

Emerging Trends in Engineering Education Poster Session

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Henry Sneck, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Donald Bunk, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Douglas Baxter, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

. Page 11.546.11ConclusionsThe evaluation of the effectiveness of a course like this is difficult for several reasons. First, thestudents have no bench-mark to use for their judgment of the course because its goals and itsdelivery are unlike any course they may have taken or, for that matter, will take. As with manycourses the long-term benefits cannot obviously be assessed in the short term. The students whotook this course will be tracked throughout their educational career to collect their impressions of“Discovery” as they reflect back upon it in the context of their subsequent education.Determining whether we have succeeded in our goal of helping students discover the professionof engineering will depend on the long-term tracking

Conference Session

Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics Instruction

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Andrew Foley, U.S. Coast Guard Academy

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

Transport Equation : the first law and then the second law as more of thesame. In a previous paper Foley (2005) describes a method of introducing the first law usingthe Reynolds Transport equation. Briefly a generic property B is considered with respectto a general ‘catch all’ control volume. (See Figure 1.)DB •B ? - Â B% net _ gen - Â (m% b) net _ in …….(1)Dt •tNote that the summation signs have been used instead of the integral sign to reflect thatmost of the problems in an introduction to thermodynamics course involve discreteinputs, outputs etc. While not to the ‘purists’ satisfaction it has worked well with studentswho later ‘ramp up’ to functional, continuous type inputs with little difficulty

Conference Session

Emerging Trends in Engineering Education Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jonathan Hill, University of Hartford

than a 3 hour lab • Less stress, less chaos • I do not feel necessary to have 3 hours, 2 hours is plenty enough • A 3 hour lab time would not be very efficient because of the differences in pace that students work at. This makes scheduling tasks more difficult • I wouldn't mind using more studio time to work on independent project but all in all it was done very well.In reviewing student feedback and reflecting on my own experience, 1.5 hours is hardly enoughtime to accomplish a task in studio. Between 2 and 3 hours is ideal. I agree with the studentshowever, that 3 hours is a long session.ConclusionThe introduction of studio content to this course has changed it from being a bother, to beingtruly

Conference Session

Effective Learning Innovations in Civil Engineering Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Guoqing Zhou, Old Dominion University

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

the remotely students to immediatelyinteract with instructors, the major shortcoming from the instructor’s perspective is the lack ofvisible body language and eye contact from students. This means that instructors used totraditional in-class teaching cannot use these immediate non-verbal cues to make adjustmentswhile teaching. Thus, the student evaluations often reflect the position that conventionalinstruction is perceived to be better organized and more clearly presented than the distanceeducation. Thus we always maintain eye contact with the camera, are willing to repeat questions,and possess a sense of humor. 3. Web-based Lab: The students conducted their laboratory via Citrix software in theGIS laboratory class before 2004

Conference Session

Professional Graduate Education & Industry

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Norman Egbert; Donald Keating, University of South Carolina

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

demonstrated by the rest of theworld from the 1950s into the 1990s (Figure 1) correlate to convergence of the per capita GDPgap through the mid 1990s (Figure 2). Higher U.S. productivity since the 1990s, however, hasrestored some of the GDP advantages the U.S. enjoyed through most of the 20th century relativeto Japan and Germany. Page 12.606.7 Figure 2. GDP at current prices and exchange rates per employee, comparison U.S., FRG, and Japan.Acceleration of U.S. productivity in the 1990s reflects many engineering and technologyenhancements that go beyond improvements exclusive to the manufacturing process. SelectedU.S

Conference Session

Internet Delivery of Mechanics Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Steif, Carnegie Mellon University; Anna Dollar, Miami University

Tagged Divisions

Mechanics

. could again show just after release. Fig. 6 Simulation which allows student to explore the roles of force magnitude and direction in causing rotation about a fixed point.The theme of building student intuition regarding equilibrium through observing motion iscarried further when we study what combinations of multiple forces result in equilibrium.Through the dynamic potential of the interactive medium, we can simultaneously allow studentsto adjust forces, to see how they combine in terms of total force and moment (with equationsautomatically adjusted to reflect the students chosen forces), and to see the net motion of thebody

Conference Session

Environmental Engineering Curricula I

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Xiaoqi Zhang, University of Massachusetts-Lowell; Clifford Bruell, University of Massachusetts-Lowell; Yexin Yin, University of Massachusetts Lowell; Praveen Jayaradu, University of Massachusetts Lowell; Mark Hines, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Tagged Divisions

Environmental Engineering

in the bubble that best reflects your opinion. Strongly Neither Agree Strongly Disagree Disagree nor Disagree Agree AgreeI have a better understanding of nanotechnology aftercompleting this course.I would like to experience additional nanotechnologymodules in other courses.My interest in science (and/or engineering) hasincreased as a result of this course.I will enroll in other courses that have nanotechnologymodules in them. Please answer the following questions. If you need additional space, please use the back of this survey.1. What did you like about this module?2. What was most

Conference Session

Teaching Ethics

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

June Marshall, St. Joseph's College; John Marshall, University of Southern Maine

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Ethics

modelthat can be consistently applied for resolution.Do what’s best for the greatest good reflects the ends-based philosophy. This approach isa form of consequentialism because when we attempt to determine the greatest good weare also guessing at what the future consequences might be. Rule-based thinking centerson what will happen if everyone in the world follows the rule I am about to apply? Thistrain of thought challenges the idea that we can never know what the outcomes of ouractions will be; however we believe that we must follow our principles and let thingshappen as they may. The Golden Rule or care-based principle asks us to put ourselves inanother’s shoes. Also called the rule of reversibility, it calls us to imagine how therecipient will

Conference Session

Multimedia and Distance Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Veeramuthu Rajaravivarma, Central Connecticut State University; Peter Baumann, Central Connecticut State University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

, and other concerns as determined from theassessment data.Program revision, curriculum and course revisions are to be approved by the ComputerElectronics and Graphics Technology Department faculty before being submittedaccording to School of Technology and University procedures to the UniversityCurriculum Committee, Faculty Senate and appropriate administrators for approval.Student’s Evaluation of Learning OutcomesCourse evaluation is a continuous process and should include a feedback from studentsabout their learning experience. Traditionally, student evaluations focus on the learningoutcome measured by the instructor through quizzes or other tools, as summarized above.However, these measures do not reflect the individual learning experience

Conference Session

Mentoring Graduate Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ronald Kane, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Clarisa Gonzalez-Lenahan, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Michael Kerley, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Jerome Paris, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Janet Bodner, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Ronald Rockland, New Jersey Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

variety of ESLcourses. Many students require no placement at all after testing. It is a matter of historicalinterest that in the many years that most of the authors of this paper have been at NJIT, we haveseen a marked improvement in the English language communications skills of our newinternational students. This reflects the experiences of those of us who have traveled overseasand particularly to locations in Asia.The ESL courses that are recommended to students are generally at the intermediate level orhigher. There are courses on accent reduction and on technical writing which may be requiredby some academic programs. Most courses are graded Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory but count as ifthey are credit-bearing classes for the purpose of

Conference Session

Environmental Engineering Curricula III

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michelle Jarvie, Michigan Technological University; Kurt Paterson, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Environmental Engineering

DominionUniversity found increased retention of students within the college, and more studentstransferred from engineering to engineering technology12. It is possible that students that maynormally be averse to the traditionally reflective math and science course work of engineering,may be attracted to the more active and applied classes offered in engineering technology. If theloss of these students was due to the desire for more experiential learning, the implementation ofthese techniques within engineering classes could increase retention.Another introduction to engineering course at the University of Virginia focused on teaching Page 12.1073.8engineering

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Course Innovation

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Sweeney, Florida Gulf Coast University; Diane Bondehagen, Florida Gulf Coast University; Claude Villiers, Florida Gulf Coast University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

and poster presentation that will occur in a class time slot at semester’s end. Your poster must incorporate a number of elements that reflect the skills we are developing this semester in EGN1008C, including: information searching, professionally written summaries of information, use of the engineering design process, and use of Excel®, MATLAB®, and AutoCAD® to convey engineering information and to solve problems. Most homework in the remaining portion of this course will be related to this project. Some in-class exercise time slots will also be devoted to developing components of your project and poster

Conference Session

Software and E-learning in the ME Curriculum

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Autar Kaw, University of South Florida

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

mathematical procedures taught in a typical Numerical Methods course. Coupledwith other improvements, the effect of the problem-centered approach improved studentsatisfaction and student examination performance in the course.Acknowledgments - This material is based upon work supported by the National ScienceFoundation under Grant#0341468, and the Research for Undergraduates Program in the USFCollege of Engineering. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressedin this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NationalScience Foundation. The research problem used in the paper was funded at University of SouthFlorida by Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) under contract#B-C008 (1998

Conference Session

What's New in Dynamics?

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Benjamin Liaw, City College of the City University of New York; Ioana Voiculescu, City College of the City University of New York

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

%), exams (25%)and final group presentation and report (21%).Traditionally exams are used as the main assessment tool to evaluate a student’s progress.However, since most of, if not all, students tend to prepare for an exam seriously only a few daysbefore the exam, their learning usually is sporadic and the hastily acquired knowledge may beeasily forgotten after the exam. Hence, two exams, each counts as 12.5% toward the coursegrade, are held in the course to test students’ accumulated knowledge in the middle and at the Page 12.216.4end of the semester. On the other hand, in order to reflect the new grade distribution system, thecurrent course

Conference Session

Aspirational Visions of Civil Engineering in 2025 & Policy 465

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kenneth Fridley, University of Alabama; Richard Anderson, Somat Engineering, Inc.

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

understand the principles of leadership.Engineers will need to exhibit high ethical standards and a strong sense of professionalism, andthey need to be lifelong learners. The NAE also recognizes that engineers will need somethingthat cannot be described in a single word or phase but involves dynamism, agility, resilience, andflexibility.As for the second NAE report which focuses on preparing the future engineer for entry into theprofession, the first recommendation states that “The baccalaureate degree should be recognizedas the “pre-engineering” degree or “bachelor of arts” in engineering degree, depending on thecourse content and reflecting the career aspirations of the student.”The common theme and mutual support communicated through ASCE Policy

Conference Session

Novel Applications of Computers/Software in Energy Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carl Spezia, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

graphing into a single, easily mastered environment. The program displaysmathematical symbols in standard form on the screen, so developed documents are similar to aprinted book except that any change in a numerical value will reflect throughout the document.This makes the format ideal for exploring cause and effect relationships between problemvariables and solutions2,3. The electronic book was developed using Version 2001 and isupwardly compatible with newer releases and is intended for student use.A Mathcad electronic book is a collection of hyperlinked Mathcad documents which open in aseparate window from the main program. A table of contents links the user to topics andcalculations. Electronic book users can cut and paste solution templates

Conference Session

The Impact of Curriculum on the Retention of Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rose Marra, University of Missouri; Barbara Bogue, Pennsylvania State University; Kelly Rodgers, University of Missouri; Demei Shen, University of Missouri

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

major barrier to completing their engineering degree 10. Women who leaveengineering consistently express less confidence in their abilities than the men and women whostay, regardless of the fact that their actual performance is the same or better than their peers whodo not leave 8,11. The discouraging nature of low-self confidence is reflected in the fact thatwomen faced with actually failing a course are likely to leave the engineering programaltogether, while their male peers are more likely to repeat the course and continue to pursuetheir engineering degree.While gender differences in “confidence” are often reported 7, studies that examine genderdifferences in self-efficacy of students already enrolled in engineering programs show