Improving the Quality of Life Through Technology – An Academic Perspective September 9, 2006

1. Improving the Quality of Life Through Technology – An Academic Perspective September 9, 2006 Vijay K. Dhir Dean

2. 20 Transformative Engineering Achievements • Electrification • Automobile • Airplane • Water Supply and Distribution • Electronics • Radio and Television • Agricultural Mechanization • Computers • Telephony • Air Conditioning and Refrigeration • Highways • Spacecraft • Internet • Imaging • Household Appliances • Health Technologies • Petroleum and Petrochemical Technologies • Lasers and Fiber Optics • Nuclear Technologies • High Performance Materials A Century of Innovation National Academies Press

3. UCLA Engineering Highlights • Established in 1945 under the leadership of Dean L.M.K. Boelter • Seven departments: Bioengineering, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. • Ranked 9th among public universities in the most recent US News and World Report’s ranking of engineering graduate programs. • Second highest production of Ph.D.s per faculty. • 22 affiliated faculty who are elected members of the National Academy of Engineering. • Dedicated as the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science in 2000, honoring one of our most successful alumni

4. UCLA Engineering’s Impact on Society • Transportation safety • Air pollution prevention • Early hydrogen-powered cars • Water reclamation and desalination technologies • Home to the first node of the Internet - First message sent in 1969 • Biomedical engineering • Collaborations with other disciplines and institutions

5. Emerging Technologies at UCLA Nano-Bio-Info Technologies • Embedded networks for environmental, structural, & health monitoring • Nanoelectronics • Wireless, ubiquitous computing • Lab-on-a-chip systems • Innovative medical devices and biotechnology tools • Nanoengineered water reclamation membranes

6. Emerging Technologies at UCLA Alternative Energy Solutions • Plastic solar cells • New hydrogen fuel technologies • Fusion

7. Vision for the Future of Engineering • The boundaries between traditional disciplines are weakening, leading to an emphasis on interdisciplinary research and education. • A B.S. degree will be broad-based and an M.S. degree will become necessary for a career in engineering. • An engineering degree opens doors in many other disciplines: business, law, and medicine, etc. • Future engineers will have to learn to interact globally. • Custom designed materials and manufactured products will signal the return of the manufacturing base to U.S. • We’ll see major advances in information sciences, biotechnology, new materials, aerospace systems, and nanotechnology.

8. Future Engineering Challenges • Well motivated and prepared students • Trained generalists rather than specialists • Nurturing innovation • A diverse workforce • Society’s commitment and investment in education — especially engineering • Global competition for products and jobs • Distance learning • Hands-on experience

9. “He or she will aspire to have the ingenuity of Lillian Gilbreth, the problem solving capabilities of Gordon Moore, the scientific insight of Albert Einstein, the creativity of Pablo Picasso, the determination of the Wright brothers, the leadership abilities of Bill Gates, the conscience of Eleanor Roosevelt, the vision of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, and the curiosity and wonder of our grandchildren.” The Engineer of 2020, an NAE Report