International Future Energy Challenge
The 2009 International Future Energy Challenge (IFEC), sponsored by the IEEE Power Electronics Society and the Power Sources Manufacturers Association (PSMA), is an international student competition for innovation, conservation, and effective use of electrical energy. The competition is open to college and university student teams from recognized engineering programs in any location. The 2009 competition addresses two broad topic areas:
- Integrated Starter/Alternator-Motor Drive for Automotive Applications: The main purpose of this challenge is to conceptualize, design, and develop a one kW, 3000 rpm electromechanical energy converter for operating efficiently (not less than 75% at cruising speed) as an alternator and motor. It is also desired to have a (cold) stand still torque of 30 N-m and to reach rated speed of 3000 rpm within three to five seconds.
- Low Cost Wind Turbine Energy Maximizer: The goal of this challenge is to construct a power electronic interface converter for a wind generation system that will support and protect system operation under all operating conditions; achieve maximum energy transfer when charging a 12 V battery over a wide range of wide speeds without overcharging or damaging the battery; reliably operate without significant user support over many years of use; and be a leading-edge solution in the areas of performance, reliability, and safety.
Participation is on a proposal basis. Schools interested must submit a proposal no later than 2 May 2008. Proposals will be judged by a distinguished panel of volunteer experts from the IEEE and industry. Schools with successful proposals will be notified by 12 May 2008. For more competition details, please visit the Future Energy Challenge web site.
UK Student Branch Robot to be Tested for Moon Readiness
The IEEE student branch in the United Kingdom (UK) has taken on the challenge of building a robot designed to retrieve minerals from the moon by entering a tournament during the SoutheastCon conference in Huntsville, Alabama, USA. Peter Ferland, an electrical engineering junior and the chair of UK's robot contingent, said the team, which began building the robot in October, is composed of half a dozen engineering students. "The contest offers engineering students a chance to tackle a design problem start to finish, providing valuable experience for future engineers," Ferland said. For the tournament, autonomous robots will run an earth-bound course, collecting colored wooden blocks representing moon minerals and returning them to its home base to score points. The eight teams with the most points after three preliminary rounds advance to play in a tournament to decide the overall winner. Read more
 BACK TO TOP
U.S. Tech Industry Sponsors Elementary Engineering
Chemical engineering in the fourth grade? That's right. U.S.-based tech companies, in an effort to populate the pipeline through which job candidates trained in engineering and computer science graduates will flow, are funding programs aimed at revamping the way science, math, and engineering are taught in the nation's schools. This, they hope, will eliminate the fork in the academic road where most girls and minorities turn their attentions to other subjects, decreasing the population of potential scientists and engineers long before they have to choose a college major. States such as Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New Jersey have included engineering and technology in their state science requirements, and federal education standards will include engineering starting in 2009. Learn more
BACK TO TOP
New Degree Programs Help Launch Careers in Renewable Energy
As the need increases for technical and design skills related to renewable energy, colleges and universities have begun to offer degree programs in the field. This year the Oregon Institute of Technology, USA, will award its first bachelor’s of science degrees in renewable-energy systems. After basic engineering coursework, students take specialized classes in photovoltaics (solar energy research and technology), wind, biomass (the recycling of biological material), hydropower and geothermal energy development, preparing them to pursue a range of careers in the region’s expanding green-power sector. The State University of New York, USA, and Illinois State University, USA, have started similar four-year degree programs. Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, USA, offers an undergraduate degree in appropriate technology, an environmentally and socially responsible approach to engineering, and Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA offers several energy and environment research and teaching programs. More community colleges are offering one-year certificates and two-year associate degrees in building and installing clean-energy systems, such as Lane Community College, Eugene, Oregon, USA; San Juan College, Farmington, New Mexico, USA; and Bronx Community College, part of the City University of New York, USA. Read more
Learn more about renewable energy in IEEE Xplore®
BACK TO TOP
IEEE Fellow Gives Advice for Engineering Students
Pam Cosman, IEEE Fellow and Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The Jacobs School of Electrical Engineering, University of California, San Diego, USA, talks about her research, where she sees electrical engineering going in the future, and gives advice for people thinking about studying engineering in a video posted on YouTube. Cosman was named an IEEE Fellow in 2007 for her contributions to image and video compression and wireless communications. Cosman is the Director of the Center for Wireless Communications at the Jacobs School and the Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications. See the video
BACK TO TOP
Boeing Engineering Student of the Year Award
Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is sponsoring the Engineering Student of the Year award. The award, now in its third year, is aimed at engineering students around the world. The winner of the award will receive a paid trip for two to attend the 2008 Farnborough Airshow this summer in the United Kingdom. The key criterion for award entries is the impact, or potential for impact, of the candidate's work on current or future aeronautical or space technology. This impact might be seen in new or enhanced systems, processes or tools; new levels of performance; improved life cycle costs; new capabilities; or in other areas. The award is open to all full or part-time engineering students in a program leading to a recognized academic degree. To enter the competition, students need to submit a summary of their work (500 words maximum), plus any supporting material by 13 June 2008. The award will be presented during Flight International's 100th anniversary celebration on Tuesday, 15 July 2008 at the TAG Aviation terminal’s VIP suite at Farnborough. Learn how to submit your entry
BACK TO TOP
SMU Appoints Etter New Director of TI-Sponsored Caruth Institute
Southern Methodist University’s Caruth Institute for Engineering Education in Dallas, Texas, USA is the recipient of a US$2 million gift from Texas Instruments, a donation which will establish a directorship for the Institute. SMU chose Delores M. Etter to fill the new position, effective 1 June 2008. Etter has served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, and as Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for science and technology. She also was a member of the electrical engineering faculty of the U.S. Naval Academy, where she was the Office of Naval Research Distinguished Chair in Science and Technology. Etter will serve as Texas Instruments Distinguished Chair for Engineering Education at Caruth Institute. SMU President R. Gerald Turner said. "With this endowment, the TI Foundation has enabled us to appoint a leader who brings with her extensive experience in education, public service and research – a combination that uniquely suits the goal of advancing engineering education." Established in 2002, the Caruth Institute has launched three educational programs with TI support: the Infinity Project helps teachers make advanced math and science courses relevant and exciting for high school students; the Gender Parity Initiative promotes interest in engineering and technology among girls and young women, and Visioneering selects middle school students to participate in engineering activities, giving them a preview of the occupation. Read more
BACK TO TOP
Engineering the Harvard Engineer
Venkatesh Narayanamurti, Dean of the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences, outlines the formation of Harvard’s new engineering school for an article in this month’s IEEE Spectrum. The first new school at Harvard in 70 years—the engineering school is designed to fill a glaring gap in Harvard's report card, Narayanamurti says. “Harvard will always get a grade of incomplete until it has a preeminent engineering school.” With a US$999 million endowment, the engineering school plans to increase its faculty from 70 full-time professors to 100, double its graduate student body to 600, enhance undergraduate courses for nonengineering students, and establish more collaborations with other Harvard departments and with industry. In pushing for a first-rate engineering presence at Harvard, Narayanamurti had the backing of some well-placed academics. Thomas E. Everhart, a former president of Caltech and a Harvard graduate who has presided over Harvard's board of overseers—a body that advises the university on a wide range of issues—says the move was long overdue. “With engineering and applied sciences becoming much more important in academia and in the economy as a whole, Harvard wasn't doing its share,” he says. Since Narayanamurti became a dean at Harvard nearly 10 years ago, Everhart says, the technology-oriented fields are finally getting much more recognition. Read more
BACK TO TOP
Ireland Green with Opportunities for Research
Called its “third level of education,” research disciplines in Ireland are growing thanks to close industrial links, favorable policies by stable governments, and a booming economy. Ireland is currently a hub for pharma and biotech industries, creating a need for trained graduates in these fields as well as engineering and technology. To encourage research, Ireland is making a significant investment across activities at several higher education programs, including Trinity College, Dublin; Cork Institute of Technology, Bishopstown; University College Cork; University of Limerick; Dublin Institute of Technology; Griffith College, Dublin; and Dublin City University. The country plans to produce 8,000 PhDs from its universities by 2013. The government plans to launch a green-card system for skilled immigrants, which will allow international students to stay on and work in Ireland after they finish courses there. Read more
BACK TO TOP
Program Success Leads to Increase in UK and Pakistani Research Linkages
Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairman Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman announced 50 more linkages with British universities in both basic and applied research, to enhance research and training capacity of higher education institutions. He made the announcement during a ceremony jointly organized by the British Council and HEC to celebrate successful completion of the 15 three-year partnerships between UK and Pakistani universities that comprised the Higher Education Links (HEL) Program Phase I. The Phase II HEL Program, launched in 2006, has 35 links now operational in such subject areas as pure sciences, social sciences, health sciences, environment, and engineering. Requiring an estimated investment of 31,000 pounds each, links can cover faculty, workshops and research collaborations. Emphasizing the need to sustain efforts made in the higher education sector, Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman said that children were the real wealth of a country. “Concerted efforts are required to unleash their creative potential through higher education,” he said, adding that such problems as terrorism and poverty could be eliminated only with education. He expressed interest for developing education links in distance learning and training of technicians at UK universities. British Council directors described several new courses developed to strengthen research culture and train faculties, and called for sustainability of links as exchange of knowledge and ideas were beneficial to both countries. Read more
BACK TO TOP
Study Groups Now Offered Anonymity on the Web
Sharing or cheating? That’s the range of reaction to the launch of a study group website created by an 18-year-old web designer in Thornhill, Ontario, Canada, to offer anonymous file-sharing. Evgeny Kalashnikov designed www.thestudygroups.com to include use of student aliases, allowing users to avoid the controversy faced by Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, student Chris Avenir with his earlier Facebook study group. With Kalashnikov’s site, users compile a list of friends with whom they can share information and files, including PDFs and PowerPoint presentations, and can pick aliases which allow them to hide their identities from teachers or administrators. While some students are still concerned that sharing files could be construed as cheating, a reported 5,000 people from 18 universities across Ontario have registered with the site. Kalashnikov, who is promoting the site through Facebook, said, “I think people will just realize how easy it is to share their knowledge. It simplifies things and I think teachers and professors themselves will see this and eventually start to use the site too." Read more
BACK TO TOP
Read Past What's
New @ IEEE Newsletters 
Search
Issues Prior to May 2007
|
