I. ASEE |
MEMBERS CHOOSE BEVLEE WATFORD OF VIRGINIA TECH AS PRESIDENT-ELECT
Bevlee Watford, associate dean of engineering for academic affairs at Virginia Tech, was elected President-Elect, a term she will hold for one year before assuming the presidency in 2017. She will be the first African-American woman to hold the Society’s top elected office. Watford has been an active member of ASEE since 1986, serving the organization in multiple capacities. She has held elected office in both the Women in Engineering and the Minorities in Engineering Divisions, and chaired the Diversity Task Force. She most recently served as First VP and VP for External Affairs working to increase membership through strategic partnerships. She currently serves as an associate editor of the journal Advances in Engineering Education.
“ASEE is a great organization for many reasons, including its focus on the education of engineering and engineering technology students across all disciplines, its efforts to engage an increasing number of precollege students in thinking about pursuing engineering degrees, and because of its strong commitment to broadening participation in the engineering profession,” says Watford. “I have been a member since I started my first faculty appointment because I continue to see the positive impact that ASEE has on students and faculty. As President, I will work to increase the visibility of ASEE and its work at the national and international levels, creating transformative partnerships with strategic organizations to achieve real and lasting change.”
Grant Crawford, professor of mechanical engineering in the Quinnipiac University School of Business and Engineering, was re-elected Vice President of Member Affairs. Check the ASEE website for other election results.
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II. DATABYTES |
WHICH ENGINEERING DISCIPLINES ATTRACT THE MOST ASIAN-AMERICANS?
Traditionally, Asian-American students are the largest minority population in engineering. They accounted for 19 percent of engineering bachelor’s degrees in the 2013-14 academic year. (1) The graphic above is based on a review of Asian American bachelor’s degrees by fields of engineering. It shows the five most popular engineering disciplines among this cohort of students. Altogether, these five represent 94 percent of the total.
(1) According to NCES 2013-2014 Table 322.30. Bachelor's degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and field of study: 2012-13 and 2013-14. |
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Are you looking for career enhancement resources to help you develop or sharpen skills such as time management and goal setting strategies?
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• Stress Management For a taste of the first episode—Goal Setting Strategies—visit video.sae.org/12130
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III. POLITICAL HOTLINE |
NEW EU-U.S. DATA-SHARING PACT FACING DISSENT
Last fall, Europe’s highest court quashed a long-standing data-sharing agreement between the United States and the European Union, the so-called Safe Harbor pact. Two months ago, a new data-sharing agreement was hammered out by European and American negotiators, which now has to be approved by EU member states. But, the New York Times
reports, data privacy regulators in some of Europe’s largest countries are already complaining that the deal is too lax, and doesn’t do enough to safeguard the personal information of Europe’s Internet users. The newly negotiated Privacy Shield pact would allow companies like Facebook and Google to continue sending personal information back and forth between the U.S. and Europe. The regulators, echoing the concerns of some privacy campaigners, say the proposed pact is an improvement on Safe Harbor, but they nevertheless fear American tech companies could misuse information gleaned from search-engine inquiries or social-media posts. They also claim Privacy Shield doesn’t do enough to protect personal information of Europeans from U.S. law enforcement and security agencies once it’s transferred across the Atlantic, the paper reports. American officials tell
the Times that the new pact would sufficiently protect privacy, and that American safeguards over use of data by security agencies are more robust than many in place in European countries. Despite the qualms of some national regulators, the Times says, Privacy Shield is expected to be approved by all EU countries by early summer. But given the concerns of the national regulators, American tech companies could still face legal battles in individual countries.
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GM WHEELS IN D.C. LOBBYISTS FOR AUTONOMOUS CARS
America’s largest carmaker, General Motors, has hired and registered the Fritts Group, a boutique lobbying firm, to help it promote autonomous cars, connected cars and cybersecurity to Washington lawmakers and regulators, according to The Hill newspaper. GM, like most other major automakers as well as some Silicon Valley tech companies, is clearly convinced that self-driving cars are the future of automotive transport and is making major investments in the technologies needed produce them. Just a few weeks ago GM was one of several companies that testified before a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on self-driving cars, The Hill
reports, and committee Democrats used the forum to call for industry standards to protect autonomous cars from cyberattacks. Several other companies, including Intel, Verizon, Volvo, and Google, have also disclosed they’ve included autonomous vehicles in their lobbying portfolio, the paper says. |
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IV. INNOVATIONS
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SOLAR CELLS THAT RECYCLE LIGHT MAY BOOST EFFICIENCY
Solar energy is rapidly gaining market share, thanks to falling costs and improved efficiency. But solar cells could become even cheaper and potentially super-efficient if recent research at Britain’s University of Cambridge pans out. Currently, solar cells are made from silicon and the most efficient of them convert around 22 percent of the sun’s energy to electricity - still some way off from the top limit of photovoltaic efficiency of 33 percent. That 33 percent figure comes from a still-accepted 1961 paper that posited the theoretical thermodynamics limit of solar efficiency. But Cambridge researchers led by Felix Deschler, a physicist and research fellow, have developed cells made from a synthetic material—hybrid lead halide perovskites—that recycle light, which
increases their efficiency. Various researchers have shown since 2012 that the material, which is very inexpensive and simple to manufacture, could be used to make solar cells. Already, perovskite-based cells can reach an efficiency of around 20 percent. But Deschler’s team has discovered that after the perovskite cells absorb photons from sunlight and create electricity, they actually emit light themselves—and that light can be converted to even more power. This photon recycling process could easily be exploited, the team says, to create cells that reach efficiencies well beyond 20 percent—perhaps up to the golden threshold of 33 percent.
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OHIO STATE TEAM FINDS WAY TO FASHION WEARABLE CIRCUITS
When it comes to wearable technology, two Ohio State University researchers are moving well beyond Fitbits and Apple Watches. They’ve figured out a way to embroider circuits into fabrics with 0.1 millimeter precision. That’s a size that’s small enough to weave electronic components—sensors, antennas, computer memory devices—into clothing. The e-textiles developed by John Volakis, a professor of electrical engineering, and Asimina Kiourti, a research scientist, are fashioned using an ordinary tabletop sewing machine. It can embroider thread into fabrics based on a pattern loaded from a computer file, but instead of thread, the pair substitutes fine silver wires. The resulting patterns allowed them to achieve the accuracy of printed metal circuit boards. How the
embroidery is shaped determines the frequency of operation of the antenna or circuit. Their tests show that an embroidered spiral-shaped antenna that’s about 6 inches across can transmit frequencies of 1 to 5 gigahertz with near-perfect efficiency—so it’s capable of working with both broadband Internet and cellular connections. An embroidered shirt could be used to boost the reception of a smartphone or tablet, or it could send signals to a device. The wearable technology could lead to clothes that monitor fitness levels, or bandages that would allow doctors to monitor how well the tissue beneath it is healing. |
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PRESIDENT HOSTS AND ENJOYS HIS FINAL SCIENCE FAIR
President Obama earlier this month hosted his sixth and final White House Science Fair—the largest one to date. More than 130 students from more than 30 states participated, as well as some student alumni from the previous five fairs. The fair puts the spotlight on student competitors and winners of local and regional STEM competitions. Around 40 different student teams exhibited their projects at the White House event. Among them: Gabriel Mesa, of Canton, Conn., whose carbon battery is environmentally safe and compostable; Devon and Trevor Langley of Terre Haute, Ind., who were part of a team that developed an app based on the colors of the rainbow to teach math concepts to students with learning disabilities; Maya Varma, of San Jose, Calif., who used a 3D printer to devise an
inexpensive device to analyze lung health and diagnose lung diseases; and Olivia Hallisey, of Greenwich, Conn., who created a diagnostic test to detect the Ebola virus. It’s been clear that Obama has enjoyed all of the fairs, and he said as much during remarks he made after viewing the exhibits: “Some of the best moments that I have had as president have involved science and our annual science fair...The only problem with the science fair is it makes me feel inadequate.” The president added: “We could not be prouder of all the students. We are counting on all of you to help us build a brighter future.”
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UC DAVIS DESIGNS A K-12 COMPUTER SCIENCE CURRICULUM
The Integrated Computing and STEM Education Center (C-STEM Center) at the University of California, Davis, has developed a full K-12 computer science curriculum in collaboration with California teachers. It was done in response to President Obama’s Computer Science for All initiative, and UC Davis has made it available nationwide. It’s based on educational computing and robotics technologies developed at the C-STEM Center, and the curriculum offers students hands-on computer science and math classes, says Harry Cheng, the director, who is also a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the school. The curriculum’s ICT Pathway provides K-12 students with 12 years of computer science education through hands-on integrated learning of math and computer science, and
including Blockly and C/C++ coding. For elementary school children, the package includes robotics and math with coding activities, while middle school courses include computer programming and robotics. High school courses also feature programming and robotics, as well as AP computer science principles, a capstone course on principles and design of cyber-physical systems, and a Common Core-compliant math curriculum integrated with computing and robotics.
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VI. JOBS, JOBS, JOBS |
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VII. COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS |
NETI WORKSHOP IN WASHINGTON
An Advanced National Effective Teaching Institute (NETI-2) workshop will be held June 1-2, 2016 at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, D.C. Faculty familiar with NETI-1 and who have more teaching experience will benefit from this advanced teaching workshop, led by Drs. Susan Lord, Matt Ohland, and Michael Prince. You may obtain additional information about the workshop by going to
https://www.asee.org/conferences-and-events/conferences/neti. Participants in NETI-2 will include a maximum of 50 faculty members from all branches of engineering and engineering technology. The registration fee of $950 covers organization and presentation costs, participant notebooks, breakfasts, lunches, and breaks. Attendees' institutions are expected to cover the participants' expenses for transportation, lodging, and one meal per day.
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PPC, ERC PRESENTATIONS ARE ONLINE
Presentations delivered at ASEE's Public Policy Colloquium and Engineering Research Council meeting are now online. Find them on the ASEE PEER archive.
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'ENGINEERING-ENHANCED' LIBERAL EDUCATION
ASEE, with financial support from the Teagle Foundation and expert guidance by leading education consultant Sheila Tobias, has launched a website highlighting case studies that examine the benefits of greater integration between the liberal arts and engineering. Find out more.
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2016 ANNUAL CONFERENCE UPDATE
Engineering & Engineering Technology Chairs Conclave: Join us at the ASEE Annual Conference in New Orleans on June 26, 2016, for the inaugural Chairs Conclave, an exclusive forum for Engineering and Engineering Technology Chairs to exchange ideas, share experiences, talk through challenges, and build working relationships. This full day event, designed by Chairs, for Chairs, includes presentations on relevant topics including financial development and managing external connections, and facilitated opportunities for group discussion and brainstorming. Register today—space is limited! Learn more
and view the full agenda.
New Navigation Section - Papers Management: The new section contains upcoming deadlines, guidelines, call for papers, and kits for authors, program chairs, reviewers, and moderators.
Author's Kits are Available: The 2016 Annual Conference Author's Kit—available on the website—contains extremely important information regarding the submission process as well as all relevant deadline dates.
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e-GFI: SUMMER READING
Is your school hosting an engineering camp, bridge program, or professional development session for K-12 teachers this summer? Jump-start the learning with eGFI (Engineering, Go For It), ASEE's award-winning magazine for middle and high school students. Filled with engaging features, gorgeous graphics, and useful information about engineering colleges and careers, eGFI aims to get teens fired up about engineering. To purchase copies, go to http://store.asee.org/ For bulk purchases or other inquiries, contact eGFI@asee.org or call 202-331-3500.
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