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Engaging Engineering Adventures: Freshman Course Delight

A dynamic course for freshmen with hands-on activities and engaging videos to teach engineering fundamentals. Weekly topics with group activities and short reports promote learning and retention.

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Engaging Engineering Adventures: Freshman Course Delight

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  1. A New Activity Based Course for Freshman Engineering Jim Cowart, US Naval Academy Zbignew Bzymek, UCONN ICEE 2005 Meeting: Gliwice, Poland

  2. Objectives and Approach • To develop basic engineering fundamentals • Increased enthusiasm and retainment • ~8 topics/activities (longer final project) • Each topic includes: video clips, hands-on exercises, brief lectures • 2, 1-1/4 hour sessions each week • Short reports required for each activity • Small groups for each activity

  3. Galileo’s Inclined Planes: Graphing • NOVA clip: “Galileo’s Battle for the Heavens” • Students collect data: time and distance (d ~ t2) • Log-Log graphing -> ‘g’ gravitational const.

  4. Measure period (T) as a function of length, mass and starting angle NOVA clip: “Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude” Curve fit data to find equation Compare to Theory: T=2p*sqrt(L/g) Adjustable Pendulums: Curve Fitting & Practical Math-Modeling

  5. NOVA video clip: “Secrets of Lost Empires II: Medieval Siege” Derive equations of vertical and horizontal motion, springs (instructor calibrates ‘k’) Canon and Can at different heights Next session: test and solution, precision and accuracy Canon Launch: Engineering Estimation

  6. Hydrogen economy video Testing/Experimentation: time and volume, V&I Light->Electrolyzer->FC ->Propeller Lecture: efficiency and units/conversions Estimate light power -> solar cell Electrolyzer / Fuel Cell: Efficiency and Units www.fuelcellstore.com

  7. Newton’s Law of Cooling derived by physical argument Discretized Form: Step through solution Unsteady assignment Engineering Modeling: Heat Transfer www.insideracingtechnology.com/brakbed.htm

  8. Evaluate performance and disassemble cars Sketch mechanism: gears and clutch Present to class (various models & costs) Re-assemble! CAD introduction Mid-term project: Camera disassembly Reverse Engineering: Cars and Cameras ‘Push n Go’ by Tomy Toys Inc.

  9. Statistics: Wind Tunnel and Sports Equipment • Do a baseball and tennis ball have (statistically significant) different drag? • Basic statistics lecture (alternating groups) • Students choose two different object, run at 2 speeds • Repeat 7 times • Confidence intervals www.aerolab.com

  10. Design, build and program LEGO Mindstorm Robot Gearing Programming: Labview based (used Junior and Senior years also) New challenge most years Maze Races Search for white can Battle Bots Final Project: LEGO Robotics

  11. Original Developer: Tufts University The Center for Engineering Educational Outreach www.ceeo.tufts.edu Summary: Basic engineering skills developed, great enthusiasm

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