What is Engineering and Where Can it Take You? Adapted from - ETP 2005 – Dan Houston This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the National Science Foundation (NSF).

What is Engineering? What is technology? What is science? Aren’t they the same? Differences in science and technology.

Science vs. Technology Science is the discovery of new concepts and relationships in the natural world. Technology is the application of scientific concepts to better the quality of life for humans.

Engineering Business, government, academic, or individual efforts in which knowledge of mathematics and/or natural science is employed in research, development, design, manufacturing, systems engineering, or technical operations with the objective of creating and/or delivering systems, products, processes, and/or services of a technical nature and content intended for use – National Research Council A scientist discovers that which exists. An engineer creates that which never was -- Theodore von Kármán ( ) Design in a major sense is the essence of engineering; it begins with the identification of a need and ends with a product or system in the hands of a user. It is primarily concerned with synthesis rather than the analysis which is central to engineering science. Design, above all else, distinguishes engineering from science (Hancock, 1986, National Science Foundation Workshop)

Engineering Method The engineering method is the use of heuristics to cause the best change in a poorly understood situation within the available resources – Billy Koen The engineering method is design under constraints – Wm. Wulf

The Engineering Method and Statistical Thinking Engineers solve problems of interest to society by the efficient application of scientific principles The engineering or scientific method is the approach to formulating and solving these problems.

An essential aspect of engineering is the use of heuristics. Although difficult to define, heuristics are relatively easy to identify using the characteristics listed by Koen(1984): (1) Heuristics do not guarantee a solution; (2) Two heuristics may contradict or give different answers to the same question and still be useful; (3) Heuristics permit the solving of unsolvable problems or reduce the search time to a satisfactory solution; (4) The heuristic depends on the immediate context instead of absolute truth as a standard of validity. A heuristic is anything that provides a plausible aid or direction in the solution of a problem but is in the final analysis unjustified, incapable of justification, and fallible. It is used to guide, to discover, and to reveal. Koen, Billy V Definition of the engineering method. Washington, DC: ASEE

The engineering method is the use of heuristics to cause the best change in a poorly understood situation within the available resources (Koen, 1984, p. 70). Typical engineering heuristics include: 1.Rules of thumb and orders of magnitude; 2.Factors of safety; 3.Heuristics that determine the engineer's attitude toward his or her work; 4.Heuristics that engineers use to keep risk within acceptable bounds; and 5.Rules of thumb that are important in resource allocation.

What does it take to be an Engineer? Good at math & science? Maybe. Strong problem solving skills. Natural inclination for how things work. Lots of curiosity & creativity. Willingness to work VERY hard.

Education 4 yrs. at an accredited engineering school The only 4-year professional degree. Could take the FE exam & PE exam for professional licensure (big $$) Highly desirable to go on for Master’s (more $$ & higher starting rank)

Jobs Design Manufacturing Sales Banking Systems development Management ($$) Teaching Government (FBI, CIA, national labs) Forensics (professional problem solving) Medical School or Law School

Starting Salaries (the “play harder” part) Approx. $34,000 - $70,000 Average = $52,000 EE, CompE, ChemE – highest $/most numerous BME – high/not as numerous ME – med-high/very numerous CivilE/EnvE – low-med/very numerous (going to require Master’s degree soon - $)

Disciplines Great, you’ve showed us the money. Now, what are the choices???

Biomedical Engineering VERY popular with recent biotechnology explosion. Quantifies biological signals and measurements. Applies engineering principles to understanding biological events. Prosthetics, optics, medical imaging, gene therapy, surgical devices, health care procedures & instruments, and laser guided surgery.

Chemical Engineering Applies concepts of chemistry and physics to solve process control problems. ChemE’s deal with mass production (a.k.a. process engineers) as well as development of new products using highly engineered materials. development and production of pharmaceuticals and bio-engineered materials, specialty polymers and high strength composites, semiconductors and microelectronic devices, a wide range of ultra-pure fine chemicals.

Civil Engineering Deals with repairing our nation’s decaying infrastructure, using engineered materials for stronger, lighter, more reliable buildings and bridges. Addresses problems with land-use, increasing population, environmental quality, construction management. Reliability and risk management, infrastructure networks, intelligent transportation systems, soil, air and water contamination, environmental restoration, management of radioactive materials and wastes, industrial eco-compatibility, and life- cycle analysis

Electrical Engineering/Computer Engineering/Computer Science Solely responsible for the information age (the discovery of the semi-conductor). Electricity and computers are requirements for our quality of life and the management of these technologies is essential to the health of our economy. Artificial Intelligence, neural networks, computer vision, robotics, medical imaging, semi-conductor development/manufacturing, electronics in space, power electronics, communications.

Mechanical Engineering Design, build, and operate engines, machines and devices. Whereas Civil Engineers work with things that don’t move, or move very little. ME’s manage all aspects of how things move. Applied mechanics and materials research, intelligent mechatronics, ceramics and glass, combustion and propulsion, dynamic systems, encapsulation of living cells, fluid physics, laser diagnostics of combustion, space experimentation, and vibro-acoustics.

Websites of Interest

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