Date post: | 18-Dec-2015 |
Category: |
Documents |
Upload: | dora-hardy |
View: | 217 times |
Download: | 3 times |
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
ConvergingTechnologiesand Beyond
Doug Klein,
Dean of Interdisciplinary Studies
April 7, 2008
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
C.T. @ Union
Interdisciplinary activities (courses, programs, research) which involve engineering and technology.
… ideas which spill across disciplinary boundaries will define innovation in the 21st century
Bridget Austin, ME, ’07, “The Alula and its Aerodynamic Effect on Avian Flight.” http://www.union.edu/ct/
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
CT & the NSF
Unification of science based on unity in nature and its holistic investigation will lead to technological convergence and a more efficient societal structure for reaching human goals.
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
The Medici Effect
“I’ve always enjoyed learning about science and creating art. These may seem different, but both are fundamentally about creating something. I’ve always admired people like DaVinci and Franklin, who pursued science, art and politics. When you explore between different fields, that’s when interesting things happen.”
Michael S. Bono '09Goldwater Fellowship winner
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Bioengineering
Biology
Computer Science
Engineering
Biomaterials
Biomedical imaging
Biomechanics
Biomedical instrumentation
Biological signal processing…
Supported by HHMI
1 mm
hand
wrist
elbow
shoulder
scapula(shoulder blade)
1 mm
hand
wrist
elbow
shoulder
scapula(shoulder blade)
1 mm
hand
wrist
elbow
shoulder
scapula(shoulder blade)
1 mm1 mm1 mm
hand
wrist
elbow
shoulder
scapula(shoulder blade)
humerushand
Spine implant research
Biomechanics research
Grasshopper research
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Nanotechnology
Supported by NSF and IBM
Introductory Course
Student research projects
Chemistry
Engineering
Physics
Biology
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Engineering and the Arts
Computer Science
EngineeringVisual and Performing Arts
•Digital Art courses:
•Digital Art
•The Processed Pixel
•Web Aesthetics
•Real and Recorded Time
•Physical Computing
• Engineering Acoustics course
• Many student projects…Robotic art
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
AerogelsEngineering
Chemistry
Ultra-light matrix material, insulator
Student-initiated project - Ben Gauthier ’02 (now at Stanford)
Grants, patents, industry interest39 student research students80% went on to graduate school
Faculty advisors: Ann Anderson (Mechanical Engineering)Mary Carroll (Chemistry)
Supported by NSF
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Engineering Economics Entrepreneurship Seminar
Engineering
Liberal Arts
http://engineering.union.edu/me_dept/Entrepreneurship
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Designing Union
• Modules
• Team-taught courses
• Paired courses
• New ID programs
• ID team research projects
• General Ed-Tech Lit courses
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Environmental Science, Policy and Engineering
Engineering
Sciences:Bio; Chem; Geo; Math; CS
Social Sciences:Eco;PS;History;Anthro;Sociology
Humanities: ethics; arts; literature
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Environmental Science, Policy and Engineering
Science Policy Engineering
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Year 4
Common Intro to Environmental Studies
Common Capstone SeminarEn
gin
eeri
ng
tra
ck
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Beyond CT
A typical course
Time
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Modules 1
A typical course with a module
Time
Examples: Many; just like having a guest speaker.
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Modules 2
Two courses with modules
Time
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Paired
Paired courses
Time
Examples: Acoustical Engineering and Baroque Music Neurobiology and Signal Processing
(See the “Connections” program at Wheaton College:http://www.wheatoncollege.edu/Catalog/CONX/ )
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Team
BIO basics taught to CS students
CS basics taught to Bio students
Mid-level ID course without prerequisites (team taught)
Time
Example: Bioinformatics (http://cs.union.edu/~fernandc/bio283/ )
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Massively ID
All Modules All the TimeTechnology, Culture and Society
Med
ieval Tech
nolo
gy
Pre
gn
an
cy &
Ch
ild
bir
th
En
vir
on
men
t, a
nd
Glo
bal W
arm
ing
Gen
der
& T
ech
nolo
gy
Inte
llig
en
ce
Fro
m T
ele
gra
ph
to C
ell P
hon
e
Food
Tele
vis
ion
Un
inte
nd
ed
Ou
tcom
es
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Across-the-Curriculum initiatives
Ethics36 internal grants to date
Entrepreneurship~12 courses impacted so far
http://ethics.union.edu/
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Challenges
• Staffing – hiring; promotion and tenure criteria; incentives;
• Curriculum – balancing breadth and depth; finding homes for non-traditional courses; staffing non-traditional and ID courses
• Space, Facilities, Budgets – management of shared resources; living in a discipline-based environment
Symposium on Engineering & Liberal Education May 10, 2008
Final Thoughts
• The urgent and essential learning outcome is to solve the C.P. Snow problem, and restore the ability to communicate, both to promote good and prevent bad.
As we approach a technological crisis of
unprecedented complexity, it makes
sense to try to improve our institutions for judging important technical facts. How else can we guide the leading force and minimize
the threat of terminal incompetence?