STEP Events Archive Fall 2005 - Spring 2006
Complete List of Spring 2006 Lectures
ENGR 1010 Student Presentation at ASEE-NCS Conference
37th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects
Tuesday, November 29, 2005, 9am to 3pm, CEAS Parkview Campus.
NOTE: All CEAS Lectures are canceled during the Conference on 11/29 so CEAS students can attend the sessions. This does NOT apply to CEAS Labs or other WMU classes. Plan accordingly. 
The College of Engineering and Applied Sciences sponsors this conference to showcase the work of its graduating seniors, who are required to complete a capstone project that puts into practice what they have learned. Many of the projects are sponsored by business and industry. The conference is free and open to the public. You are welcome to attend all or part of the day's events. Reservations are not necessary.
Presentations begin on the hour and half hour. Please do not enter a room after a presentation has begun.
Session locations, times, and conference brochure page number for project descriptions:
Civil and Construction Engineering D-202 9am to 10am page 4
Computer Science D-204 10am to 11:30am page 5
Electrical and Computer Engineering D-109 9am to 12noon page 6
Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering D-208 10am to 2:30pm page 9
Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering A D-115 9am to 3pm page 12
Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering B D-201 9am to 1:30pm page 16
Lunch break is scheduled from noon to 1pm.
CEAS students! This is an excellent opportunity to see what kinds of projects you might be working on for own your senior capstone efforts and also learn about some of the business and industry sponsors.
IEEE Stress Reliever
Wednesday November 30, 2005 · Noon, B-210 Parkview.
A lot of you are either in class or on the wrong campus at that hour, but if you're up at Parkview, they'll have pizza and some entertainment.
Presentation on Einstein - "What Makes Einstein So Smart"
Timothy Gay · University of Nebraska · Lincoln NE
Monday 21 November 2005, 7:00-8:00pm, 1104 Rood Hall
The Physics Department issponsoring a uniquepresentation on Albert Einstein, with a reception following in Bradley Commons, 2202 Everett Tower.
Abstract: Albert Einstein is the second-greatestGenius that ever lived. One-hundred years ago, in 1905, while laboring in obscurity after being rejected by the academic establishment, he published a series of papers that essentially reinvented physics, and completely revolutionized humankind's philosophical view of the world in the process. This popular lecture will discuss his discoveries of that year, and consider why Einstein's ideas set him apart.
Note: If you wish to speak with our guest contact Prof. Nora Berrah at nora.berrah@wmich.edu; 269-387-4955 .
Department of Geosciences Lecture Series
"Using 'X-ray Vision' to Observe Structures and Processes at the
Mineral-Water Interface"
Dr. Paul Fenter, Environmental Research Division,
Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne IL.
Monday 21 November 2005, 4:00pm, 1118 Rood
Abstract: The mineral-water interface is the primary site of low-temperature geochemical processes and exerts a strong influence over our environment. Yet our understanding of these systems is strongly impaired by our inability to 'see' the associated structures and processes in-situ through an aqueous phase. While interfacial geochemistry is most widely studied with spectroscopic approaches (e.g., X-ray absorption spectroscopy), X-ray scattering techniques offer a number new and powerful capabilities to understand these processes. I will discuss opportunities in this area derived from advanced X-ray scattering techniques that incorporate additional elemental and chemical sensitivities with surface specificity and Å-scale resolution. Examples will include the determination of interfacial water structure and interfacial ion distributions at mineral-water interfaces with both elemental and chemical sensitivities. *Supported by the US Department of Energy (BES, Division of Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences)
Stryker Instruments Plant Tour
Monday, November 14, 2005
IEEE Bowling Event at Harpo's Lanes
Thursday 10 November 2005, 6:45 - 8:30pm, Harpo's Lanes on Stadium Drive.
The IEEE student branch at WMU is hosting a bowling outing at Harpo's Lanes on Stadium Drive. We have informed the other engineering groups and hope to get a big turnout. This will be a great way for the first year students to meet with upper classmen in their major and meet other first year students in their major and other engineering majors. Josh Yeiter has arranged for the Metro to make an extra stop on their route to the Parkview Campus. We will meet at 5:45 near Rood Hall. We will be picked up at 8:30 from Harpo's and dropped off back at Rood Hall. This event is open and encouraged for all students regardless of their major; so, if you have roommates or other friends they are more than welcome to come too.
Please see the attached flyer for information on advance ticket sales, etc.
Questions? Send e-mail to: ieee.wmu@gmail.com
Dana Corporation Tour and Dinner
Wednesday 9 November 2005.
Stryker Instruments Plant Tour
Thursday, November 3, 2005 11:15-2:00pm, carpool leaves from Bernhard Center lobby 10:45am
Organized by Tau Beta Pi. Contact andy.li@wmich.edu for more information.
Engineering Ethics
Dr. Michael Pritchard, The Willard A. Brown Professor of Philosophy and
Co-Director, Center for the Study of Ethics in Society.
Thursday, November 3, 2005 5:30 p.m., D-109 Parkview
Abstract: Ethics in engineering, like ethics in general, calls for acting responsibly, doing what is right (or at least not wrong), and good character. This talk will discuss how developing and exercising one's engineering imagination plays an important role in all of this. This involves not only acquiring appropriate knowledge, understanding, and skills, but also being ready and willing to make good use of them in engineering practice. We will consider a number of instances in which the exercise of imagination has made, or could have made, an important difference in fulfilling engineering responsibilities. William LeMessurier, chief structural engineer of Manhattan's 59 story Citicorp Building, is a good case in point. Through the exercise of what he call "intellectual play," he discovered, and then corrected, a critical structural flaw that might easily have been missed by less imaginative engineers. We will talk about this, as well as several other important examples. Engineering students are reminded that they can get extra credits in the Life Long learning component of IME 1020, Technical Communications, if they write a brief essay about the presentation and turn it in. Click here for speaker's bio.
University Theatre Presents Pulitzer Prize Winning Play "Proof"
Thursday October 20th through Sunday October 30th for seven performances, Multiform Theatre, Gilmore Theatre Complex.
As remarkable as it is to see a mathematician in a hit TV series (CBS' NUMB3RS),
it is even more remarkable to have a play about mathematicians and mathematics
win the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, as well as three 2001 Tony Awards for
the Broadway production (Best Play, Best Actress Mary Louise Parker, Best Director).
A number of the Student Learning Communities will be attending "Proof" as a
cultural event, but even if your group isn't going, you might want to check out
this amazing play.
The movie version of "Proof" is currently in limited release, starring
Gwyneth Paltrow (who played Catherine on the London stage) and Sir Anthony Hopkins.
Click here for a brief synopsis.
Intellectual Property and Commercialization of New Design
Michael Sharer, Ph.D., MBA, Director,
Technology Transfer & Commercialization, WMU
Thursday, October 20, 2005 5:30 p.m., D-109 Parkview
Abstract: Intellectual property (patents, copyrights, trademarks, and
trade secrets) has apparently increased in importance in recent years
and can be critical for both Universities and corporations for the
introduction of new technologies and discoveries into the economy.
This talk will give an overview intellectual property (IP), definitions,
and strategic uses thereof. Further, some discussion will focus on
observations and causation of evolving industrial business models.
Also discussed will be general trends regarding IP, why it's important
to companies and Universities, and why engineers need to be concerned
with these issues, both for starting their careers and for planning
their education.
Intellectual Property Primer
Dr. Thomas Joyce Dept. of Paper Engineering, Chemical Engineering, & Imaging
Thursday, October 13, 2005 5:30 p.m., D-109 Parkview
Abstract: Many believe that control of intellectual property rights --
principally patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets -- have
been the driving force behind the recent economic development in the U.S.
I.P. is also a source of much friction between the U.S. and its trading
partners. We will discuss the origins of these rights and the value of
them to an industrial enterprise. Finally, how you can protect your I.P.
rights as a student at WMU will be discussed as well as what rights you
might have to cede to your employer, either as an intern or as a permanent
employee.
Presentation on the Space Shuttle Columbia
Click here for more information.
"A Summary of the Space Shuttle Columbia Accident and the Role of Ballistic Impact Research in Supporting the Columbia Accident Investigation and NASA's Return to Flight Effort"
Matthew E. Melis · NASA Glenn Research Center · Cleveland OH
Thursday 6 October 2005, 5:30-6:30pm, Room 1301 Wood Hall · (RSVP by Sunday Oct. 2)
Followed by an informal meeting and pizza with the speaker at Kohrman Hall, Room 2215, about career opportunities at NASA.
ASCE Meeting
Wednesday 28 September 2005
Complete List of Fall 2005 CEAS Lecture Series
The Fall 2005 Welcome/Orientation
Sunday 28 August 2005 - 5:30pm to 7:00pm
Lobby of the CEAS Building (College of Engineering and Applied Sciences) on the Parkview Campus
At this event, Dr. Tim Greene, CEAS Dean, will formally welcome you to WMU, and you will receive a Learning Community Student Handbook. There will be a pizza dinner, and you will have an opportunity to meet informally with your Faculty Mentor and fellow students of your Learning Community. There will also be a surprise gift to encourage you to participate the Welcome/Orientation event.
If you're a CEAS or CAS student in either WMU-STEP or one of the CEAS Student Learning Communities -- you need to be here!
CONTACT US:
If you haven't already RSVP'd and told us whether you need transportation or not, please contact either Dr. Phil (269-387-4942) or Edmund Tsang (269-276-3249). It's important we get a head count for both food and transportation.
HOW TO GET THERE:
We have arranged for a bus to pick up students at the bus stop in the northwest corner of Haenicke Hall / Rood Hall on the Main Campus beginning at 5:10 p.m.
If you are driving, it's easy:
(1) Take either Stadium Drive or West Michigan Avenue WEST from campus. (2) Turn Left (SOUTH) at the light at Drake Avenue. (3) Drive up the big hill south of Stadium Drive. (4) When you reach the WMU Parkview Campus and business park, the speed limit drops to 25mph and you'll be on Campus Drive, which loops around the site. The CEAS Building has a tall skinny metal "right cylindrical spire" out front. (5) Turn Right onto Engineering Drive at either end of the CEAS Building -- it loops around behind the building. (6) You can park in either the EAST or WEST parking structures -- park close to the far end as we will be gathering in the patio space between the parking lots (or the Lobby if the weather is bad).
WMU Campus Maps for Main and Engineering campuses available here.
Please note the regular Shuttle Bus between the Main Campus (Rood Hall) and the Parkview Campus will not be in operation on Sunday August 28th, because classes will not have started yet.
Summer Transition Program · New Student Week · August 2005
