Kristina Milaj, a fourth-year student at Oregon State University (OSU) in Corvallis, Ore., was recently named as one of 10 New Faces of Civil Engineering – College Edition by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). This recognition program promotes the achievement of young civil engineers by highlighting their academic success, volunteerism, and dedication to making a positive impact on society through their chosen profession. Continue reading
Inventing the Joint Strike Fighter
Students and aircraft aficionados recently gathered for a distinguished lecture featuring Paul Bevilaqua, the former chief engineer in Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works. Hosted by the OSU chapter of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the lectured featured Bevilaqua’s in-depth discussion of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, developed to meet the multirole fighter requirements of the U.S. Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and allies. Bevilaqua spoke about the challenges involved in developing aircraft and how it has become an international program, with many engineers developing a single replacement aircraft for multiple aircraft types.
Imagining the connections between art and technology
The Oregon State University campus has seen a number of intriguing questions raised this fall:
- Imagine an orchestra of musicians, but instead of oboes, violins, and flutes, each person on stage has a networked laptop computer and custom-designed speaker. As a group they are capable of filling a concert hall with evocative and remarkable sound. What creations are possible for such a “laptop orchestra”?
- Consider also how technology can help us visualize and understand in new ways the tremendous volume of data we can now collect about our world — can this data be “art” and how in that sense can art help science?
- Everyone gets that technology evolves at a breakneck pace. But what about the ways in which this pace of change transforms how we see and understand the world around us, through our cities, and houses, and daily activities? Continue reading
ChickTech empowers high school girls to explore technology
One-hundred high school girls got first-hand experience with web programming, object-oriented 3D programming, circuits, and more at ChickTech, a workshop co-hosted by Oregon State’s Women and Minorities in Engineering Program. The brainchild of Oregon State alumnus Janice Levenhagen-Seeley, ChickTech is a Portland-based organization focused on building a multi-generational community of women in technology. The organization has presented workshops or events in Portland and Corvallis, with the goal of adding a new city each year. Hoping to address the lack of females in technology-based programs such as engineering and science, they offer hands-on learning opportunities to show young girls that it’s not all boring desk work. Read more…
Designing piloletless aircraft
They say nature does it best, and researchers in the College of Engineering are discovering just how true this can be. They are turning to birds, bats, and butterflies for inspiration in the design of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). These devices can fly above ground to lower risks to fire fighters, reduce cost of collecting data on wildlife, and help locate lost hikers or skiers. Now, College of Engineering faculty are working hard alongside businesses, economic development organizations, and the state government to advance the technology. Read the whole story in Terra.