Stanford Engineering Library Blog

With input from people around the world an international group of leading technological thinkers were asked to identify the Grand Challenges for Engineering in the 21st Century.

The NAE Committee has identified 14 areas awaiting engineering solutions in the 21st century: http://www.engineeringchallenges.org

The 14 areas identified:

* Make solar energy economical
* Provide energy from fusion
* Develop carbon sequestration methods
* Manage the nitrogen cycle
* Provide access to clean water
* Restore and improve urban infrastructure
* Advance health informatics
* Engineer better medicines
* Reverse-engineer the brain
* Prevent nuclear terror
* Secure cyberspace
* Enhance virtual reality
* Advance personalized learning
* Engineer the tools of scientific discovery

David Keith studies our climate, and the many ideas we've come up with to fix it. A wildly original thinker, he challenges us to look at climate solutions that may seem daring, sometimes even shocking.

Check out his recent presentation on climate change at the TED 2008 conference

Long-term data on the U.S. workforce show a trend toward increasing numbers of workers in science- and engineering-related occupations. Read the full article with links to more information at ThomasNet News

A new study shows that solar energy produces only about one-tenth as much carbon dioxide and other harmful emissions as does conventional power generation. Read the full article in Science News.

A protein formerly thought to be fluorescent may actually be giving off light using a mechanism similar to an LED. Read more about this new discovery at EurekaAlert.

Have a great Idea? Created a prototype or abstract? Uncertain about
how to turn your vision into a reality?

Enter the Stanford 2007-2008 I-Challenge!

The I-Challenge gives a chance for students to showcase these ideas.
Submit a short abstract highlighting an innovative product, an
invention, or research that you have done. Unlike other competitions
that require a business plan or knowledge of entrepreneurism, the
I-Challenge is open to students from all disciplines and backgrounds.
The I-Challenge will provide the support and guidance to encourage
students to develop their ideas and give access to knowledgeable
industry professionals

1st Place: $1000, 2nd Place: $750, 3rd Place: $500

Learn more at our kickoff dinner April 9th, 2008 6-7pm in the Cypress
Room at Tressider. Also, first round submissions are due online April
16th.

Don't miss out, apply online today at bases.stanford.edu

Unlike conventional solar cells, solar cells painted onto flexible steel surfaces being developed at Swansea, are more efficient at capturing low light radiation, meaning that they are better suited to northern countries. Read more at Science Daily.

The U.S. transportation system was designed and built based on historical temperature and precipitation data. A new report finds that climate predictions used by transportation planners and engineers may no longer be reliable. Read the summary and get the report from the National Research Council.

Two spacewalkers assembled the stick-figure-shaped Dextre, also known as the Special Purpose Dextrous Manipulator (SPDM). Dextre is a robot with two smaller arms. It is capable of handling the delicate assembly tasks currently performed by astronauts during spacewalks. Read more about the robot on the NASA website.

Teams from Penn State University in the United States and the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom has developed a process for growing a single-crystal semiconductor inside the tunnel of a hollow optical fiber. Read more at the Penn State News.

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Maryland-College Park have discovered that materials such as silica that are quite brittle in bulk form behave as ductile as gold at the nanoscale. Read more at NIST Tech Beat.

From the BBC News:

"Aerospace giant EADS says it will need a production line of rocket planes to satisfy the space tourism market.

The European company's Astrium division, makers of the Ariane rocket, has plans for a commercial vehicle to take ticketed passengers above 100km.

Its market assessment suggests there would be 15,000 people a year prepared to part with some 200,000 euros (£160,000) for the ride of a lifetime. "

Complete article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7298511.stm

From the NY Times:

"The Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi in Minneapolis collapsed last August after construction workers had put 99 tons of sand on the roadway directly over two of the bridge’s weakest points, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report.

The board, in the midst of a reconstruction of the circumstances of the collapse, released a diagram Monday showing the location of every car, truck and piece of construction equipment that was on the bridge at the time of the Aug. 1 collapse.

The diagram assigns a weight to everything on the bridge, using the car manufacturer’s weight for each vehicle and allowing 200 pounds for each adult, 50 or 100 pounds for each child depending on age, and 250 pounds for each of two portable toilets. It also puts four mounds of sand, each 12 feet wide and stretching about 55 feet, in a lane between the four operating traffic lanes.

Stress at one of the two weakest points was 83 percent more than it could have handled, according to an interim report released earlier by the Federal Highway Administration. "

Complete article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/us/18bridge.html?ex=1363579200&en=21b257a86c263656&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

The cash to card machine at the Engineering Library has finally been repaired. Once again students, faculty, staff and visitors can add cash to their photocopy cards and make copies. The scanner is still available for those who prefer to scan and mail. As for me, I use a thumb drive whenever possible and visitors might want to consider that alternative.

From ASEE Prism Magazine (3/20/08):

Hispanic college students pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) are invited to apply for more than $2 million in scholarship and internship opportunities through AHETEMS (Advancing Hispanic Excellence in Technology, Engineering, Math and Science), the educational foundation of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE). If interested, know the deadline is fast approaching. All applications must be postmarked by April 1.

Students may apply for as many scholarships as they are qualified, and there is no fee to apply. For requirements and to apply, go to:

http://ahetems.org/scholarships.html

El-E (pronounced like the name Ellie), a robot designed to help users with limited mobility with everyday tasks, can be instructed to to find and deliver an item it may have never seen before using a more direct manner of communication — a laser pointer. Read the story and watch a video about "her" at Georgia Tech News.

Cars made almost entirely of plastic are paving the way for what you may be driving in the future. Mechanical engineers use a lightweight, high-strength aerospace material called carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic in the doors, hoods, fenders, chasis and also in support frames for the engine and transmission. Read more and watch the video at Science Daily.

Arthur C. Clarke, visionary and author, passed away recently. IEEE Spectrum is hosting an article and recent podcast from Sir Arthur on their website. Access them at IEEE Spectrum.

Special Issue of ‘Proceedings of the IEEE’ Highlights Multimedia Information Retrieval

The April 2008 issue of Proceedings of the IEEE (v.96, no.4) covers the main aspects of multimedia information retrieval research and upcoming challenges in the field. Multimedia information retrieval refers to a set of theories, algorithms and systems that aim at extracting pertinent descriptors or metadata related to multimedia content and allowing search, retrieval and other user functions. In recent years, the tremendous interest of users in multimedia information retrieval has driven a significant amount of research in the field. Primarily, research objectives in information retrieval have been to develop technology breakthroughs that enable fast, natural, intuitive and personalized access to a vast number of multimedia data collections.

This special issue of Proceedings of the IEEE, entitled “Advances in Multimedia Information Retrieval,” begins by outlining specific approaches for multimedia retrieval and looking at the progress to date in the field. Papers have been carefully selected to cover the main aspects of the multimedia information retrieval research, highlight successes, critically analyze the achievements made so far and assess the applicability of information retrieval results in real-life scenarios. The issue provides insights into the current possibilities for building automated and semi-automated methods as well as algorithms for segmenting, abstracting, indexing, representing, browsing and retrieving multimedia content in various contexts. Additionally, future challenges that are likely to drive the research in the multimedia information retrieval field for years to come are also discussed. To learn more, please visit the Proceedings of the IEEE web site.

Buy and sell books at the Book Swap. Save money and meet others in your classes.

Book Swap will be held on the second floor of Old Union Wednesday, April 2 from 8-9PM. check http://outbookswap.stanford.edu to list your old books and look for ones you need.

Tasty treats and a raffle for two Amazon gift certificates will be included. Sponsored by Stanford SWE.

According to Hans Moravec, founder of Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute, robot creations are evolving similar to how life on Earth evolved, only at warp speed. By his calculations, by mid-century no human task, physical or intellectual, will be beyond the scope of robots. More

ResearcherID is a global, multi-disciplinary scholarly research community. Each researcher listed is assigned a unique identifier, to aid in solving the common problem of author misidentification. Search the registry to find citations, collaborators, and more.

This is valuable tool for listing your papers, books etc. resulting from your research - place a link to your list on your website, Facebook account, etc. If you're trying to find research, it's a good place for finding papers that aren't published or aren't searchable on the Web. Use the tag cloud or search by keyword. It's also useful for clarifying the identity of an author or researcher, e.g. if that person has a common name. The keywords and affiliations can help narrow down the possibilities.

You can also find a link to ResearchID from the Web of Science service (from this page under W).

The 10-second clip of a woman singing "Au Clair de la Lune," was recently discovered by audio historian David Giovannoni. The recording predates Thomas Edison's "Mary had a little lamb" — previously credited as the oldest recorded voice — by 17 years.

The tune was captured using a phonautograph, a device that created visual recordings of sound waves by using a needle that moves in response to sound. The phonautograph etched sound waves into paper coated with soot from an oil lamp.

Read more and find a link to the recording which will be played in public on today at the annual conference of the Association for Recorded Sound Collections at Stanford University here:
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g2WqnQ_-2fPrNuC62Vy9dn5fQ1mAD8VM3U3G0

From the Wyoming Casper Star Tribune 3/24

"The new wing under construction at the Sublette County Library represents a groundbreaking project for the community -- literally.

The $5 million addition is being built out of dirt.

Dirt from nearby Cora, to be exact.

The first-ever rammed-earth public building in the nation will complement Pinedale's decade-old library when the expansion project is completed in March 2009, library officials said."

Complete article:
http://www.trib.com/articles/2008/03/24/news/wyoming/d346b052e82d65d48725741500267952.txt

The American West is heating up more rapidly than the rest of the world, according to a new analysis by the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization. The news is especially bad for some of the nation’s fastest growing cities, which receive water from the drought-stricken Colorado River.
Read the full story.

The sharp beak of the Humboldt squid is one of the hardest and stiffest organic materials known. The question of how a gelatinous creature can operate it without injury has captivated those interested in creating new materials that mimic biological materials. The results are published in the journal Science.

While they are about the murkiest participant in the murky arena of university evaluation.
US news and World Report has rated Stanford 1 or 2 in every area of Engineering and the Sciences.
See http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/grad for details.