NACME news: PLTW partnership begins

White Plains, NY – In a new partnership, the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME) and Project Lead the Way (PLTW) introduced their Urban Initiative in the Milwaukee, WI public schools last fall. Combining PLTW’s curriculum with NACME resources, the project provides a support system for students studying the STEM disciplines.

Research shows that only 4 percent of underrepresented minority students nationally take the high school math and science courses needed to prepare for studying engineering in college. The Urban Initiative seeks to raise that percentage, producing a more diverse engineering workforce.

NACME will provide up to $90 thousand over the next three years for pre-engineering scholarships to high-performing students and teacher innovation grants, along with engineering awareness materials and links to NACME board companies and partner universities.

HRC corporate equality index finds human rights improved in ’09

Washington, DC – The number of businesses with perfect ratings based on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workplace policies and benefits rose by 20 percent in the past twelve months despite the serious economic downturn, according to the annual report released by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. HRC is the nation’s largest LGBT civil rights organization.

The HRC Corporate Equality Index rates 590 businesses on a scale from 0 to 100 percent. The 2010 edition reports 305 businesses that achieved top ratings, compared with 260 last year. These 305 companies employ more than 9.3 million fulltime workers.

Among the firms with 100 percent ratings are 3M, ADP, Citigroup, Credit-Suisse, BP America, Mass Mutual Insurance, Nielsen and Pfizer.

Read the report online at www.hrc.org.

Siemens PLM donates software to Northern Caribbean University

Maryland Heights, MO – Secondary and post-secondary schools on the island of Jamaica are the latest beneficiaries of the product lifecycle software donation program at Siemens PLM Software. The donation was announced at the end of November.

Erica Simmons, a native of Jamaica who is global marketing manager for the high-tech and energy vertical market at Siemens PLM, is working with the initiative. She will deliver the first software grant to Northern Caribbean University (Manchester, Jamaica), and has personally overseen the training of university personnel.

“It has been such an honor for me to expose the schools in Jamaica to the latest in product lifecycle management technology,” says Simmons. “I know Jamaica aims to be recognized as a developed nation by 2030. I believe our software can play a very important role in developing engineering and manufacturing skills on the island, and help provide the foundation to reach this important goal.”

Sandia researcher gets NIH grant

Albuquerque, NM – Jerilyn Timlin, a chemist at Sandia National Laboratories, received an NIH “new innovator” grant, one of fifty-five given by the NIH this year. The awards encourage researchers to explore ideas that have the potential to speed research into improved health.

Timlin received the award for her project on multiplexed measurements of protein dynamics and interactions at extreme resolutions. The work aims to develop state-of-the-art imaging technology that can measure protein complex formation and protein networks in a multiplexed fashion with spatial resolution beyond that of optical microscopes.

NACME president and CEO named to SME Education Foundation Board

White Plains, NY – The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) education foundation recently named Dr Irving Pressley McPhail to its board of directors. McPhail, president and CEO of National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME), is one of six new board members. Since 1980 the SME Education Foundation has provided more than $29 million in grants, scholarships and awards through its partnerships.

“I am delighted to join the SME Education Foundation board of directors,” says McPhail. “The SME Education Foundation is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing manufacturing education through youth outreach programs, scholarships and grants. It places special emphasis on attracting underrepresented populations. The work is a perfect complement to the historic efforts of NACME to achieve diversity with equity in STEM education and the workplace.”

NASA team develops new material

Greenbelt, MD – Materials engineers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center are developing a coating that mimics the self-cleaning properties of the lotus plant. It will be used to prevent dirt from sticking to the surfaces of spaceflight gear, and bacteria from growing inside astronaut living quarters.

Although a lotus leaf appears smooth, under a microscope its surface contains innumerable tiny spikes. These spikes greatly reduce the area on which water and dirt can attach, preventing them from adhering strongly to the leaf. Water droplets roll off, taking mud, tiny insects and contaminants with them. “The ability to replicate these properties could prove invaluable to NASA,” says Wanda Peters, principal investigator for the research.

The new coating, made primarily from silica, zinc oxide and other oxides, offers great potential for use in space, particularly on landed missions to Mars or the moon where dust can accumulate on rovers and prevent them from doing their work. Northrop Grumman Electronics Systems turned to Goddard for its expertise in fitting out equipment to endure the harsh environment of space.

The team plans to partner with Northrop Grumman to add biocide capabilities to kill bacteria. Applied to a planetary lander before launch, the biocide-infused coating would prevent earth-born bacteria from adhering and potentially contaminating extraterrestrial surfaces.

This version of the coating may also have applications in hospitals and other commercial uses here on earth.

Sheila Widnall receives NAE award

Washington, DC – During its 2009 annual meeting the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) presented awards for extraordinary impact on the engineering profession.

Sheila Widnall, a member of NAE and Institute Professor at MIT, received the Arthur M. Bueche award for leadership in expanding opportunities for women and minorities in engineering, as well as her “remarkable academic career in fluid dynamics combined with the highest levels of public service.” She was recognized for active involvement in determining U.S. science and technology policy, and contributing to the enhancement of the relationship between government and universities.

Widnall served as secretary of the Air Force from 1993-1997, the first woman to lead a branch of the U.S. military. In 1964 she was the first MIT alumna appointed to the faculty of the school of engineering and became the first female faculty chair in 1979.

She was also the first woman president of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Widnall has an impressive background in fluid mechanics. She was elected to the NAE in 1985 and served as NAE VP from 1998 to 2005.

Apply now for 2010 Google Anita Borg memorial scholarships

The 2010 Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarships will give a group of female students scholarships for the 2010-2011 academic year. Anita Borg devoted her life to revolutionizing the way people think about technology, and dismantling the barriers that keep women and minorities from entering the computing and technology fields. The scholarships go to women likely to follow in Borg’s good work.

A candidate must be a female student entering her senior year of undergrad study or enrolled in a graduate program; be enrolled in a CS or CE program or a closely related technical field as a fulltime student for the 2009-2010 academic year; and maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 in her current program. Application deadline is February 1, 2010.

All finalists and scholarship recipients will be invited to attend a three-day scholars’ retreat at the Googleplex. See www.google.com/jobs/scholarships.

Nation’s first two-year tech college turns 100

New York, NY – In 2009, Technical Career Institute (TCI) celebrated one hundred years of technical education. The nation’s first two-year technical college, the school was founded by radio pioneer and Nobel Prize winner Guglielmo Marconi in 1909 as the Marconi Institute.

Today TCI offers degrees in electronics and computer technologies, accounting, office and new media technologies, climate control, and facilities maintenance technologies. The school gives more engineering-related two-year degrees than any other U.S. institution.

Of the school’s more than 3,000 students, 6.8 percent are Asian, 39 percent African American, 42.8 percent Hispanic and 32 percent female. For additional information, check out www.tcicollege.edu.

RIT summer camp stresses STEM fun for girls with hearing loss

Rochester, NY – Thirty-three deaf and hard-of-hearing girls who entered seventh, eighth or ninth grade in the fall of 2009 attended TechGirlz summer camp at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf of Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT, Rochester, NY).

Young women with an interest in science, technology, engineering and math participated in hands-on activities ranging from biomedical engineering to CS and PC building. Participants worked with an artificial hand, uploaded images to create video blogs, created a custom-color dye and dyed a bandana to learn about energy in light and color, and enjoyed many more real-life STEM experiments. They met other girls with similar interests and enjoyed social activities as well.

Classes were taught in English and American sign language. To learn more, go to www.rit.edu/NTID/TechGirlzNR.

Hispanics lag in tech careers, salaries

Chicago, IL – A new study from Chicago’s Latino Technology Alliance (LTA) reveals that Hispanics are employed in only 5.5 percent of IT jobs nationally and only 5.8 percent of key non-IT high tech jobs and are largely unaware of or disconnected from opportunities in high-tech occupations.

In addition, significant barriers prevent students from pursuing STEM careers. These include an educational disadvantage as shown by low scores in standardized math tests, and a lack of knowledge among parents about how to advance to college. The study also found that median salaries for Hispanics in science and engineering are 10 percent lower than all science and engineering workers.

The LTA is forming alliances to create opportunities for Hispanics to get tech jobs in high-growth industries and to prepare students for STEM careers. One step will be developing programs that engage educators, inform parents and improve students’ interest and aptitude in science and math.

The research report is available at www.LatinoTechnologyAlliance.org.

ABI studies impact of minority underrepresentation on tech firms

Palo Alto, CA – New research shows that underrepresented minorities remain a very small proportion of the high-tech workforce, especially at the senior level. Obstacles and solutions for underrepresented minorities in technology, a study conducted by the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, finds that this underrepresentation carries a clear risk of losing diverse techies, and that the lack of ethnic diversity at the top ranks makes it harder to recruit diverse employees.

The study notes that only 6.1 percent of technical men and 8.2 percent of technical women in Silicon Valley high-tech companies are underrepresented minorities. Representation at high technical levels is especially poor for women of color.

The study is available at www.anitaborg.org/news/research.

NSF funding accelerates research growth at CCNY

New York, NY – New York’s City College is developing its research capacity. The plan took a big step forward in the first half of the 2009-2010 academic year. Since the start of the year CCNY faculty have received twenty-two grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) totaling $8.9 million.

The new NSF grants will support investigations into issues like improved techniques for measuring the surface mass of the Greenland ice sheet, factors affecting the desulfurization of diesel fuel and the movement of interstitial fluid within bone cells.

Five of the grants were funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The ARRA funding will support research and administrative positions at CCNY and provide orders for businesses that supply scientific equipment to the college.

These are some of the principal investigators and the projects that their grants will support: Jorge Gonzalez, NOAA-CREST professor, ME: Understanding impacts of climate change on energy infrastructure in urbanized coastal areas.

Sang-Woo Seo, assistant professor, EE: MRI: Acquisition of a multi-pocket e-beam evaporator for nano/micro facility at CCNY.

YingLi Tian, associate professor, EE: Context-based indoor object detection.

Raymond Tu, assistant professor, ChE: Rapid DNA detection with a fluctuating surface-active peptide.

Ioana Voiculescu, assistant professor, ME: Novel MEMS biosensor for real-time study of the attachment of cancer cells.

U.S. NRC commissioner honored by U Michigan

Washington, DC – U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Kristine L. Svinicki, a grad of the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering, has received a 2009 Alumni Society award.

Before joining the NRC, she worked as a staff member on the Senate Armed Services Committee. She is a member of the American Nuclear Society and served two terms on its special committee on nuclear non-proliferation. She has also been a member of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Task Force on Global Nuclear Materials Management.

Engineering students design super-efficient vehicles

Marshall, MI – The Society of Automotive Engineers’ Supermileage competition challenges engineering and technology students to design, develop and construct a single-person, super-fuel-efficient vehicle. Vehicles are powered by a small four-cycle engine donated by Briggs and Stratton. The vehicle that combines high gas mileage with design points wins the event.

The top three overall winners were: first place, Université Laval (Quebec, Canada); second, Michigan Tech University (Houghton, MI); third, California State University, Los Angeles. The University of Massachusetts, Amherst team was recognized for most visually appealing vehicle. The University of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, OH) came closest to its predicted fuel economy and Michigan Tech submitted the best design report.

For more information on the event, see students.sae.org/competitions/supermileage.

JETS high school competition looks at clean water challenge

Washington, DC – Every year the Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS) holds Teams, an engineering competition for high school students. Teams gives the kids an opportunity to make a connection between classroom math and science and an actual engineering challenge.

This year’s theme is access to clean water. Students will tackle water issues ranging from digging wells and crop irrigation to policy issues.

“Focusing the competition on tangible real-world-based engineering challenges is unique to Teams,” says Peter Carrato, a Bechtel Fellow and president of the board of directors of JETS. “Students are interested in learning how they can impact the world, and Teams provides a foundation to help them discover how they can become part of the solution to this global crisis.”

Like other JETS programs, Teams encourages U.S. students to pursue engineering by showing them how the discipline impacts everyday life and how engineers help solve social and community problems. More than 50 percent of JETS participants are from groups traditionally underrepresented in technology, a third of them females.

Registration stays open until the competitions begin: from February 15 through March 16, 2010 at various university campuses across the country. For more information see www.jets.org.

Smith College announces new engineering BA

Northampton, MA – Smith College’s engineering program for women has a new academic option: a bachelor’s degree in engineering arts. The new degree is based on the idea that engineering concepts can enhance the pursuit of such varied interests as architecture, landscape studies, education, public policy, economics, energy policy and ethics.

“The new degree is designed for students who recognize the increasing importance of science and technology in all facets of life in today’s world yet don’t want to specifically become engineers,” says Linda Jones, Rosemary Bradford Hewlett ’40 professor of engineering and director of the Picker engineering program.

This year, the Picker engineering program will mark its tenth anniversary and the completion of Ford Hall, a state-of-the-art building that will be the new home for engineering as well as the molecular sciences.

When Smith launched the Picker engineering program, it was the first in the nation just for women and one that sought to position the study of engineering in a liberal arts context. To date, 138 students have graduated from Smith with a BS in engineering. To learn more about the program, see www.science.smith.edu/departments/Engin/index.php.

Purdue researcher receives Presidential award

West Lafayette, IN – Purdue University researcher and assistant professor of engineering education Monica Cox received a Presidential early career award for scientists and engineers in the fall of 2009. Cox’s research focuses on preparing engineering grad students for careers in academia and industry.

“I am honored to receive this Presidential award and am excited that our nation’s top thinkers recognize the importance of engineering education research, particularly research exploring the diverse experiences of doctoral engineering students,” says Cox.

Cox came to Purdue with a 2005 PhD in leadership and policy studies from Vanderbilt University, a 2000 masters in industrial engineering from the University of Alabama and a 1998 math BA from Spelman College.

Cox also was among nine Purdue faculty members who won the 2008 National Science Foundation’s faculty career development program award for research in engineering education. The federal agencies involved in nominating the award winners include the NSF; the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Health and Human Services and Veterans Affairs; and NASA.

FEAsy makes designs from raw sketches

West Lafayette, IN – Going back to the drawing board is much easier now that researchers have developed a new type of design program. The program allows the designer to sketch a rough concept of the part and then analyze the part’s characteristics while it is still only a drawing, says Karthik Ramani, Purdue ME professor.

The software transforms informal and ambiguous freehand inputs to more formalized and structured representations. “The computer has to do what we call sketch understanding,” Ramani explains. “If I don’t close a circle completely, the computer knows I mean to draw a circle and completes it. If I don’t draw lines exactly horizontal or perpendicular, the program recognizes these flaws and corrects them.” The program then displays a formal version of the sketch and several alternatives, and it also saves the original rough sketch.

Doctoral student Sundar Murugappan named the new design program FEAsy: “finite element analysis made easy.”

Findings were detailed in a paper presented in September 2009 at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers design engineering technical conference. Videos on YouTube show FEAsy at work.

JETS announces scholar sisters

Alexandria, VA – Competition for the JETS/Power Engineering “next generation scholarship” is stiff, often seeing more than a hundred applicants for four awards. One of the 2009 scholarships went to Sarah Hornbostel of Houston, TX who entered the Georgia Tech this semester. Her older sister Katherine, won the scholarship two years ago.

Katherine is currently in her third year at Georgia Tech. She spent the summer in an internship at Progress Energy’s Brunswick Nuclear Plant.

“On my project this summer I came up with a solution to a real-world problem,” she says. “Working there confirmed for me that I was born to be an engineer;” she’s already planning to go for a graduate degree in ME.

Younger sister Sarah expects to get involved in Engineers Without Borders. “I am attracted to a career in engineering because I would be able to help people in my community as well as in the global community,” she says.

Details at www.jets.org.

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