Volume 1 Issue 7 December 2005 |
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 NASA
Heads Back to the Moon
 Before the end of the next decade, NASA plans for astronauts to once
again explore the surface of the moon. Building on the best of Apollo
and shuttle technology, NASA plans to create a 21st century exploration
system that will be affordable, reliable, versatile, and safe. The
centerpiece of this system is a new spacecraft designed to carry four
astronauts to and from the moon, support up to six crewmembers on future
missions to Mars, and deliver crew and supplies to the International
Space Station. The new spacecraft will have solar panels to
provide power, and both the capsule and the lunar lander will use liquid
methane in their engines. Why methane? NASA is thinking ahead, planning
for a day when future astronauts can convert Martian atmospheric
resources into methane fuel.
 Once
a lunar outpost is established, crews could remain on the lunar surface
for up to six months. The spacecraft can operate without a crew in lunar
orbit, eliminating the need for one astronaut to stay behind while
others explore the surface.
NASA says that the plan is that in just five years, the new ship will
begin to ferry crew and supplies to the International Space Station.
Plans call for as many as six trips to the outpost a year. In the
meantime, robotic missions will lay the groundwork for lunar
exploration. Find out more on
NASA's
website and explore career paths in
Aerospace Engineering and
other science, technology, engineering,
or mathematics fields on the Sloan Career Cornerstone Center.
Explore
the Careers of Engineers, Scientists, and Mathematicians
 Hundreds
of professionals who have chosen career paths in engineering,
mathematics, or the physical sciences are profiled as part of the Sloan
Career Cornerstone Center. On the site you can read about how degrees in
science, technology, engineering, or mathematics can lead to interesting
careers in just about any industry. The individuals who are profiled
explain how they balance work and personal life, how their educational
background prepared them for the work they do, and how mentors may have
made a difference. Many offer tips to students considering working
toward a degree in these fields, and discuss the importance of coops and
internships. Find out more...
2006
USA Biology Olympiad
 Registration
has begun for the 2006 USA Biology Olympiad (USABO), a four-tiered
competition open to all U.S. high school students. It is aimed at
selecting the USA Biology Olympiad National Team, a four-person team
that will compete in the 2006 International Biology Olympiad to be held
in Rio Cuarto, Argentina. The International Biology Olympiad (IBO) is
the annual World Championship Biology Competition for high school
students. The first international academic Olympiads were launched under
the auspices of the United Nations in the 1960's. The programs have
expanded gradually to include over seventy participating countries
across five continents.
Currently, international academic Olympiads are held annually in
mathematics, physics, chemistry, computer science, biology and
astronomy. The USA Biology Olympiad and the International Biology
Olympiad award individual achievement in theoretical and practical
biology knowledge. The competition begins each February with a
multiple-choice exam administered nationwide to all interested U.S. high
school students nominated by their teacher. Students do not need to be
currently enrolled in a biology class, or have taken AP biology, in
order to participate in the USABO. Registrations are accepted
online through January 23, 2006.
Degree
Profile: Bioengineering
 Bioengineering
or Biomedical Engineering is a discipline that advances knowledge in
engineering, biology, and medicine -- and improves human health through
cross-disciplinary activities that integrate the engineering sciences
with the biomedical sciences and clinical practice. Bioengineering
combines engineering expertise with medical needs for the enhancement of
health care. It is a branch of engineering in which knowledge and skills
are developed and applied to define and solve problems in biology and
medicine.
Biomedical engineers may be
called upon to design instruments and devices, to bring together
knowledge from many sources to develop new procedures, or to carry out
research to acquire knowledge needed to solve new problems. Bioengineers
engineers design devices used in various medical procedures, such as the
computers used to analyze blood or the laser systems used in corrective
eye surgery. They develop artificial organs, imaging systems such as
magnetic resonance, ultrasound, and x-ray, and devices for automating
insulin injections or controlling body functions. Most engineers in this
specialty require a sound background in one of the basic engineering
specialties, such as mechanical or electronics engineering, in addition
to specialized biomedical training.
 Some
specialties within bioengineering or biomedical engineering include
biomaterials, biomechanics, medical imaging, rehabilitation engineering,
and orthopedic engineering. Major advances in Bioengineering include the
development of artificial joints, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the
heart pacemaker, arthroscopy, angioplasty, bioengineered skin, kidney
dialysis, and the heart-lung machine. Find out more about
Careers in Bioengineering...
2004
Engineering Grads Better Prepared Than Those of a Decade Earlier
Students who
earned undergraduate engineering degrees in 2004 are better prepared to
enter their profession than were similar students who finished their
degrees in 1994, according to a 3½-year study recently completed by the
Penn State Center for the Study of Higher Education and commissioned by
ABET, Inc., the accrediting body for U.S. college and university
engineering programs.
"In all nine
engineering knowledge and skill areas emphasized by the new
standards, the 2004 graduates in the aggregate have significantly,
and often substantially, higher skill levels than did their
counterparts from a decade earlier," according to Dr. Lisa R.
Lattuca, study director and assistant professor and research
associate in the Center. The skills examined include basic math and
science, design and problem solving, experimental skills,
engineering science applications, technical and interpersonal
communications, as well as working in teams and life-long learning.
The 2004 graduates also have greater knowledge of societal and
global issues, as well as ethics and professional standards.
The CSHE study
draws on information from 5,500 graduates of the Class of 1994 and
4,300 Class of 2004 graduates at 40 U.S. institutions. The report
details a number of changes that have occurred between 1994 and 2004
in program curricula, as well as in engineering faculty members'
teaching practices and perspectives on undergraduate education.
Program heads report greater curricular emphasis since 1994 on
students' communications skills and ability to work in groups, as
well as on the application of modern engineering tools.
Dr. J. Fredericks
Volkwein, a co-principal investigator, noted that industry
representatives report seeing somewhat less change in the
preparation levels of graduates than is suggested by program chairs,
faculty members, and the two classes of graduates themselves.
Nonetheless, in assessing the skills of recent graduates, 92% of the
employers report that the recent graduates they hired are
"adequately prepared" or "well-prepared" in their use of math,
science, and technical skills. Fewer employers (52%) consider recent
graduates to be adequately or well prepared in their ability to
understand important contextual considerations and constraints on
engineering. Employers are mixed in their assessments of whether
recent graduates are better prepared than graduates a decade ago.
The full report will be released
online in March 2006.
Chemistry
Meets Computer, Data, and Networking Technologies
 The
National Science Foundation has announced new grants in "cyber-enabled
chemistry," a program developed by its chemistry division to explore how
researchers and educators in that field can fully exploit the potential
of cyberinfrastructure. The lead principal investigators for the four
awards include two researchers in separate projects at the University of
California, Berkeley, and one each at the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign and The Pennsylvania State University. The awards
represent a combined investment of about $10 million over a 5-year
period, including co-funding from NSF's former Division of Shared
Cyberinfrastructure.
"Cyberinfrastructure" is an
umbrella term meant to encompass the vast webs of computer, data, and
networking technologies that have infiltrated every aspect of modern
life, and that are now beginning to revolutionize science and
engineering research. The goal of the cyber-enabled chemistry program is
to ensure that chemists can take full advantage of that revolution. One
goal of the program is to impact the day-to-day practice of chemistry
though advances such as scientific portals, workflow management,
computational modeling, and data and molecular visualization. The team
at the University of California, Berkeley will seek to develop and
validate new ways of simulating biological molecules, while those at The
Pennsylvania State University plan to develop a database to improve
communication among scientists working in various disciplines.
Foreign
Born Workers Account for Growing Share of STEM Occupations
A growing
share of workers in scientific, technological, engineering, and
mathematical (STEM) occupations in the U.S. are foreign born, according
to a new report from the Commission on Professionals in Science and
Technology. By 2002, the foreign born accounted for nearly one out of
every six individuals employed in these occupations. Analyzing data on
the employment of the foreign born in STEM occupations from 1994 to
2002, the Commission found that the total number of foreign born STEM
workers increased from 764,000 in 1994 to 1.2 million in 2002,
accounting for 38% of the growth in the STEM workforce during these
years. The largest percentages of the foreign born occur in the natural
sciences, where in 2002 they accounted for 31.8% of all medical
scientists, 27.1% of all physicists and astronomers, and 22.8% of all
chemists. The greatest growth in the time period occurred in computer
science occupations (computer scientists, systems analysts, programmers
and faculty). These occupations accounted for nearly 80% of the growth
of the entire STEM workforce between 1994 and 2002. For more details,
visit www.cpst.org.
Career Cornerstone News is a publication of the
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