scholarly journals A Critical Survey of Environmental Content in United States Undergraduate Mechanical Engineering Curricula

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6961
Author(s):  
Charles E. Sprouse III ◽  
Maximilian Davy ◽  
Anna Doyle ◽  
Grace Rembold
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Curriculum Study ◽  
Environmental Stewardship ◽  
National Society ◽  
National Council ◽  
Critical Survey ◽  
Green Technologies ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Core Courses ◽  
The Impact

This survey examines how mechanical engineers are being prepared to be responsible stewards of the environment by offering a multi-channeled look at a diverse collection of twelve US colleges and universities, with connections to the larger global context. This study enumerates the external influences of professional organizations, those responsible for program accreditation (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET)), professional conduct (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), and licensure (National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, National Society of Professional Engineers). At the curricular level, this study presents current mechanical engineering curricula via core courses (required at most institutions) and non-core courses (required at a minority of institutions or elective courses). The curriculum study identifies fifteen core courses and uses the Open Syllabus Project and online bookstores to identify a representative textbook and classify the environmental content therein. Immediate results show the environment receiving sparse treatment in core course textbooks, institutions having zero environment-focused degree requirements, and a tendency towards offering electives that are narrowly focused on green technologies. Elective offerings mirror ABET’s recent move away from emphasizing the “broad education necessary to understand the impact” of engineering solutions to instead “consider the impact of” engineering solutions in an environmental context. Overall, the environmental education mechanical engineers are receiving is insufficient in amount and lacking in scientific and ethical foundation. Ideally, every mechanical engineering program should include coordinated environmental content throughout the curriculum and require at least one course that teaches both environmental design principles and the importance of environmental stewardship. A novel approach eschews the typical artes mechanicae course structure to teach environmental stewardship in the artes liberales educational tradition, emphasizing multi-dimensional thinking by employing great books style discussions of seminal scientific, ethical, and technological works.

scholarly journals Design Integrated in the Mechanical Engineering Curriculum: Assessment of the Engineering Clinics

2007 ◽  
Vol 129 (7) ◽  
pp. 682-691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Kadlowec ◽  
Krishnan Bhatia ◽  
Tirupathi R. Chandrupatla ◽  
John C. Chen ◽  
Eric Constans ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Survey Data ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Integrated Design ◽  
Curriculum Assessment ◽  
Rowan University ◽  
Core Courses ◽  
Team Environment ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
The Impact

At Rowan University, design has been infused into the curriculum through an eight-semester course sequence called the Engineering Clinics. Through this experience, students learn the art and science of design in a multidisciplinary team environment and hone their design skills throughout their 4-year career. This paper describes the objectives of the clinics, types of projects, and how the clinics complement traditional core courses in the curriculum. Impacts and benefits of the clinics on students and faculty are discussed, including retention and graduate study rates comparing Rowan University mechanical engineering students to their peers nationally. An assessment of the clinics is presented based on survey data and accreditation objectives and outcomes. Survey data from students were assessed to determine levels of students’ satisfaction and confidence based on the clinics. Results of alumni and employer surveys also provide valuable feedback for assessing and improving the clinics as well as confirmation of the impact of clinics after graduation. Survey data are discussed along with challenges of the clinics at Rowan and adaptability of them at other institutions. Overall, the clinics are a positive and integrated design experience in the curriculum and assist students in achieving the program objectives.

scholarly journals Brain drain and brain gain in Russia: Analyzing international migration of researchers by discipline using Scopus bibliometric data 1996–2020

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Subbotin ◽  
Samin Aref
Keyword(s):  
Brain Drain ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Donor Country ◽  
International Mobility ◽  
Science System ◽  
Migration Rates ◽  
Net Migration ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Five Disciplines ◽  
The Impact

AbstractWe study international mobility in academia, with a focus on the migration of published researchers to and from Russia. Using an exhaustive set of over 2.4 million Scopus publications, we analyze all researchers who have published with a Russian affiliation address in Scopus-indexed sources in 1996–2020. The migration of researchers is observed through the changes in their affiliation addresses, which altered their mode countries of affiliation across different years. While only 5.2% of these researchers were internationally mobile, they accounted for a substantial proportion of citations. Our estimates of net migration rates indicate that while Russia was a donor country in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it has experienced a relatively balanced circulation of researchers in more recent years. These findings suggest that the current trends in scholarly migration in Russia could be better framed as brain circulation, rather than as brain drain. Overall, researchers emigrating from Russia outnumbered and outperformed researchers immigrating to Russia. Our analysis on the subject categories of publication venues shows that in the past 25 years, Russia has, overall, suffered a net loss in most disciplines, and most notably in the five disciplines of neuroscience, decision sciences, mathematics, biochemistry, and pharmacology. We demonstrate the robustness of our main findings under random exclusion of data and changes in numeric parameters. Our substantive results shed light on new aspects of international mobility in academia, and on the impact of this mobility on a national science system, which have direct implications for policy development. Methodologically, our novel approach to handling big data can be adopted as a framework of analysis for studying scholarly migration in other countries.

scholarly journals Analysis of High-Friction Surface Texture with Respect to Friction and Wear

Coatings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 758
Author(s):  
Cibi Pranav ◽  
Minh-Tan Do ◽  
Yi-Chang Tsai
Keyword(s):  
Friction Coefficient ◽  
Surface Texture ◽  
Safety Concern ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Scanning System ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Texture Parameters ◽  
Aggregate Loss ◽  
Friction Surfaces ◽  
The Impact

High Friction Surfaces (HFS) are applied to increase friction capacity on critical roadway sections, such as horizontal curves. HFS friction deterioration on these sections is a safety concern. This study deals with characterization of the aggregate loss, one of the main failure mechanisms of HFS, using texture parameters to study its relationship with friction. Tests are conducted on selected HFS spots with different aggregate loss severity levels at the National Center for Asphalt Technology (NCAT) Test Track. Friction tests are performed using a Dynamic Friction Tester (DFT). The surface texture is measured by means of a high-resolution 3D pavement scanning system (0.025 mm vertical resolution). Texture data are processed and analyzed by means of the MountainsMap software. The correlations between the DFT friction coefficient and the texture parameters confirm the impact of change in aggregates’ characteristics (including height, shape, and material volume) on friction. A novel approach to detect the HFS friction coefficient transition based on aggregate loss, inspired by previous works on the tribology of coatings, is proposed. Using the proposed approach, preliminary outcomes show it is possible to observe the rapid friction coefficient transition, similar to observations at NCAT. Perspectives for future research are presented and discussed.

scholarly journals Reservoir-Induced Land Deformation: Case Study from the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 874
Author(s):  
Yu Chen ◽  
Mohamed Ahmed ◽  
Natthachet Tangdamrongsub ◽  
Dorina Murgulet
Keyword(s):  
Land Surface ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Surface Deformation ◽  
Vertical Displacement ◽  
Nile River ◽  
Reservoir Volume ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Land Deformation ◽  
Large Scale Land ◽  
The Impact

The Nile River stretches from south to north throughout the Nile River Basin (NRB) in Northeast Africa. Ethiopia, where the Blue Nile originates, has begun the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which will be used to generate electricity. However, the impact of the GERD on land deformation caused by significant water relocation has not been rigorously considered in the scientific research. In this study, we develop a novel approach for predicting large-scale land deformation induced by the construction of the GERD reservoir. We also investigate the limitations of using the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow On (GRACE-FO) mission to detect GERD-induced land deformation. We simulated three land deformation scenarios related to filling the expected reservoir volume, 70 km3, using 5-, 10-, and 15-year filling scenarios. The results indicated: (i) trends in downward vertical displacement estimated at −17.79 ± 0.02, −8.90 ± 0.09, and −5.94 ± 0.05 mm/year, for the 5-, 10-, and 15-year filling scenarios, respectively; (ii) the western (eastern) parts of the GERD reservoir are estimated to move toward the reservoir’s center by +0.98 ± 0.01 (−0.98 ± 0.01), +0.48 ± 0.00 (−0.48 ± 0.00), and +0.33 ± 0.00 (−0.33 ± 0.00) mm/year, under the 5-, 10- and 15-year filling strategies, respectively; (iii) the northern part of the GERD reservoir is moving southward by +1.28 ± 0.02, +0.64 ± 0.01, and +0.43 ± 0.00 mm/year, while the southern part is moving northward by −3.75 ± 0.04, −1.87 ± 0.02, and −1.25 ± 0.01 mm/year, during the three examined scenarios, respectively; and (iv) the GRACE-FO mission can only detect 15% of the large-scale land deformation produced by the GERD reservoir. Methods and results demonstrated in this study provide insights into possible impacts of reservoir impoundment on land surface deformation, which can be adopted into the GERD project or similar future dam construction plans.

scholarly journals Towards a better understanding of the origins, chemical composition and aging of oxygenated organic aerosols: case study of a Mediterranean industrialized environment, Marseille

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 7875-7894 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. El Haddad ◽  
B. D'Anna ◽  
B. Temime-Roussel ◽  
M. Nicolas ◽  
A. Boreave ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Organic Aerosols ◽  
Industrial Emissions ◽  
Aerosol Mass Spectrometer ◽  
Statistical Confidence ◽  
Aerosol Mass ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Organic Markers ◽  
The Impact ◽  
First Time

Abstract. As part of the FORMES summer 2008 experiment, an Aerodyne compact time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (cToF-AMS) was deployed at an urban background site in Marseille to investigate the sources and aging of organic aerosols (OA). France's second largest city and the largest port in the Mediterranean, Marseille, provides a locale that is influenced by significant urban industrialized emissions and an active photochemistry with very high ozone concentrations. Particle mass spectra were analyzed by positive matrix factorization (PMF2) and the results were in very good agreement with previous apportionments obtained using a chemical mass balance (CMB) approach coupled to organic markers and metals (El Haddad et al., 2011a). AMS/PMF2 was able to identify for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, the organic aerosol emitted by industrial processes. Even with significant industries in the region, industrial OA was estimated to contribute only ~ 5% of the total OA mass. Both source apportionment techniques suggest that oxygenated OA (OOA) constitutes the major fraction, contributing ~ 80% of OA mass. A novel approach combining AMS/PMF2 data with 14C measurements was applied to identify and quantify the fossil and non-fossil precursors of this fraction and to explicitly assess the related uncertainties. Results show with high statistical confidence that, despite extensive urban and industrial emissions, OOA is overwhelmingly non-fossil, formed via the oxidation of biogenic precursors, including monoterpenes. AMS/PMF2 results strongly suggest that the variability observed in the OOA chemical composition is mainly driven in our case by the aerosol photochemical age. This paper presents the impact of photochemistry on the increase of OOA oxygenation levels, formation of humic-like substances (HULIS) and the evolution of α-pinene SOA (secondary OA) components.

More Than Medals

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis J. Frost
Keyword(s):  
Japanese Society ◽  
Sporting Events ◽  
Individuals With Disabilities ◽  
Postwar Japan ◽  
Disability Sports ◽  
Southern Japan ◽  
Provincial City ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Historical Nature

How does a small provincial city in southern Japan become the site of a world-famous wheelchair marathon that has been attracting the best international athletes since 1981? This book answers the question and addresses the histories of individuals, institutions, and events — the 1964 Paralympics, the FESPIC Games, the Ōita International Wheelchair Marathon, the Nagano Winter Paralympics, and the 2021 Tokyo Summer Games that played important roles in the development of disability sports in Japan. Sporting events in the postwar era, the book shows, have repeatedly served as forums for addressing the concerns of individuals with disabilities. The book provides new insights on the cultural and historical nature of disability and demonstrates how sporting events have challenged some stigmas associated with disability, while reinforcing or generating others. The book analyzes institutional materials and uses close readings of media, biographical sources, and interviews with Japanese athletes to highlight the profound — though often ambiguous — ways in which sports have shaped how postwar Japan has perceived and addressed disability. The book's novel approach highlights the importance of the Paralympics and the impact that disability sports have had on Japanese society.

scholarly journals Wetting transition of ionic liquids at metal surfaces: A computational molecular approach to electronic screening using a virtual Thomas-Fermi fluid

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Schlaich ◽  
Dongliang Jin ◽  
Lyderic Bocquet ◽  
Benoit Coasne
Keyword(s):  
Ionic Liquids ◽  
Energy Storage ◽  
Electrostatic Interactions ◽  
Debye Length ◽  
Wetting Transition ◽  
Molecular Fluids ◽  
Thomas Fermi ◽  
Electronic Screening ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Of particular relevance to energy storage, electrochemistry and catalysis, ionic and dipolar liquids display a wealth of unexpected fundamental behaviors – in particular in confinement. Beyond now well-documented adsorption, overscreening and crowding effects1,2,3, recent experiments have highlighted novel phenomena such as unconventional screening4 and the impact of the electronic nature – metallic versus insulating – of the confining surface on wetting/phase transitions5,6. Such behaviors, which challenge existing theoretical and numerical modeling frameworks, point to the need for new powerful tools to embrace the properties of confined ionic/dipolar liquids. Here, we introduce a novel atom-scale approach which allows for a versatile description of electronic screening while capturing all molecular aspects inherent to molecular fluids in nanoconfined/interfacial environments. While state of the art molecular simulation strategies only consider perfect metal or insulator surfaces, we build on the Thomas-Fermi formalism for electronic screening to develop an effective approach that allows dealing with any imperfect metal between these asymptotes. The core of our approach is to describe electrostatic interactions within the metal through the behavior of a `virtual' Thomas-Fermi fluid of charged particles, whose Debye length sets the Thomas-Fermi screening length λ in the metal. This easy-to-implement molecular method captures the electrostatic interaction decay upon varying λ from insulator to perfect metal conditions, while describing very accurately the capacitance behavior – and hence the electrochemical properties – of the metallic confining medium. By applying this strategy to a nanoconfined ionic liquid, we demonstrate an unprecedented wetting transition upon switching the confining medium from insulating to metallic. This novel approach provides a powerful framework to predict the unsual behavior of ionic liquids, in particular inside nanoporous metallic structures, with direct applications for energy storage and electrochemistry.

scholarly journals Novel approach to delivering pro-environmental messages significantly shifts norms and motivation, but children are not more effective spokespeople than adults

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. e0255457
Author(s):  
Cynthia McPherson Frantz ◽  
John Petersen ◽  
Kathryn Lucaites
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Change ◽  
Local Population ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Message Content ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Personal Connections ◽  
Norm Perception ◽  
Non Local ◽  
The Impact

Three studies provided initial laboratory tests of the effectiveness of a novel form of community-based environmental messaging intended to be deployed on public digital signs. In all studies, adult participants watched a slideshow of “Community Voices,” a display that combines community images and quotes to celebrate and empower pro-environmental and pro-community thought and action. In addition to assessing the general efficacy of the approach, a central goal was to assess the impact of alternative messengers by comparing identical text associated with either adult or child messengers (Studies 1, 2, and 3). We also assessed the impact of alternative framing of the message itself by comparing: injunctive vs non-injunctive wording (Study 1), political vs non-political content (Study 1), and future vs. present-oriented framing (Study 2). Studies 1 and 2 were conducted on a national sample. In addition, to assess the impact of local vs. non-local messengers, Study 3 compared the response of a non-local sample to a local population in which subjects had personal connections with the people and places featured in the message content. Exposure to Community Voices messages resulted in significant increases in social norm perception, concern about environmental issues, commitment to action, and optimism, suggesting that this approach to messaging is potentially valuable for stimulating cultural change. However, messages attributed to child messengers were generally not more effective, and in some cases were less effective than the same message attributed to adults. We also found no significant difference in the impact of the alternative message frames studied.

scholarly journals Green technologies for air pollution treatment by microalgae in tubular photobioreactor

2021 ◽  
Vol 926 (1) ◽  
pp. 012098
Author(s):  
T T Minh ◽  
N H Tien ◽  
L V Giang ◽  
H H Loc ◽  
V T D Hien ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Biomass Concentration ◽  
Absorption Efficiency ◽  
Green Technologies ◽  
Tubular Photobioreactor ◽  
Technology System ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Bicarbonate Ions ◽  
Stable Growth ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Air pollution in general and motorcycle exhaust, in particular, is a big problem attracting a lot of attention from people and researchers worldwide because of the significant impacts it has on humans and the environment. The issue of air pollution is growing, and the impact is more evident than ever. Carbon dioxide represents a series of problems that we face daily but have not yet been effectively solved. Currently, microalgae are known to photosynthesize and use free CO2, bicarbonate ions as a source of nutrients to grow. Microalgae are developed under appropriate environmental conditions, which will bring admirable CO2 treatment efficiency and obtain biomass for other applications. The study approach was an inexpensive and natural air purification solution by microalgae, which is designed as a tubular photobioreactor. The study was conducted by evaluating the ability of Chlorella Vulgaris to grow and absorb CO2 emissions in the newly established system with exhaust gas supplied from a mini motorcycle engine. The results showed that microalgae grew stably in the tubular photobioreactor system with a biomass concentration of 6×106 cells/ml after 42 days of the experiment. Simultaneously with the stable growth of microalgae, the CO2 emission concentration was reduced with 26.59% absorption efficiency after 11 days of the experiment. Finally, establishing the tubular photobioreactor technology system has yielded impressive initial results in cultivating stable growing microalgae combined with CO2 emission treatment.

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