This page last updated: Febuary 5, 2011
Mirror Site (may be more recent)
Knowledge Integration Please see Aerospace Digital Library http://www.adl.gatech.edu/ CoursesIn the 1990s-2005 course websites were on the open internet. Now they are posted and updated through the GIT "T-Square" site. Most of the web page links have now been removed, though the pages are still there and will come up in web searches. The (greatly updated) content of these courses is now integrated through the EXTROVERT project site. We don't want to scare parents away by displaying the assignments and tests that GT students take - or bore students by letting them see how easy Aerospace Engineering seems to be). The first course I ever taught was "AE26xx Problem-solving Using FORTRAN77" in 1984.In those days people actually had to organize their thoughts and program computers according to a structured sequential scheme. The "case" structure and "event loops" were not available on most FORTRAN compilers. It was too much fun to be listed as work below. Our Personal Computers were almost as big and had more flashing lights than today's SUVs. Several faculty were strenuously arguing that "Students should not be allowed to use Computers because they have no role in the Aerospace Curriculum". Spreadsheets and MATLAB were not widely known. But no, none of this prevented our students from solving for oblique shocks using their own FORTRAN programs, long before they took AE3004 and validated the results against the Charts and Tables in the books that they were to study in AE3004. And that was just one of about 6 assignments in a fast-moving 8-week Quarter.
|
Quick Links
Experimental Aerodynamics and Concepts Group: Graduate Alumni Undergraduate Research Participation in the Experimental Aerodynamics Group AE 2xxx and AE4xxx Research Special Problems Permit Forms Papers on Issues in Engineering Education Archives: http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives |
|
Archives: http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives
|
||
|
|
|
|
Issues in Engineering Education
Learning how people learn is a continuing process, and knowledge advances like water spreading through a garden. We take a meandering path that depends greatly on opportunities, but with a few unchanging principles and aims. Being in an engineering school, we do hope to get better as we learn, so there is that motivation for our projects and papers, beyond just "studying" learners. |
How to guide students towards success in technology in tough times (which is all the time): Case study of the Georgia Tech "FAST" scholarship program, 2001-2009 Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., "Mentoring Students To Technology Careers". Paper 2004-1228 Division: Minorities in Engineering, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Salt Lake City, UT, June 2004. Komerath, N.., Smith, M.J., “Financial Assistance for Success in Technology: CSEMS in a Top-Ten Public Engineering Program” Proceedings of the ASEE National Conference, College Park, TX June 2009. Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., “Research Seminars as a Resource in Mentoring Undergraduates”. Paper 11-012, Innovations 2011, the INEER Special Volume for 2011.
|
How to enable engineers to solve problems across disciplines Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., "Lessons from a Resource for Learning Across Disciplines". Chap. 13. In Aung, W., Hoffman, M., King, R., Ng, W.J., Sanchez Ruiz, L.M., Editors, "INNOVATIONS 2003: World Innovations in Engineering Education and Research". INEER, Arlington, VA. Library of Congress T65.3.I55 2003 Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., "Learner Adaptation to Digital Libraries by Engineering Students". Session 2202 of the Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, June 2002 http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp02061701.pdf Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., "Integrated Knowledge Resources for Cross-Disciplinary Learning". Session D-7, Proceedings of ICEE 2001, the International Conference on Engineering Education, Trondheim, Norway, August 2001. International Network on Engineering Education & Research, 2001. ISBN: 1-588-74-091-9. Available on the internet at http://www.ineer.org/Events/ICEE2001/Proceedings/papers/108.pdf Smith, M.J., Komerath, N.M., Aerospace Engineering: Integrator for Cross-Disciplinary Learning". Session 3202, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, June 2001. Smith, M.J., Komerath, N.M., "The Virtual Laboratory: Technology Enhancement for Engineering Education". Session 2602, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, June 2001 http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp01062701.pdf Smith, M.J., Komerath, N.M.., “Learning More From Class Time: Technology Enhancement in the Classroom”. Session 3202, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, St. Louis, MO, June 2000. http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp00062002.pdf Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., Bodo, B., “Learning Across Disciplines: Aerospace Digital Library”. Session 2793, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, St. Louis, MO, June 2000 . http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp00062001.pdf Komerath, N.M., Smith, M.J., “Lessons from a Resource for Learning Across Disciplines”. Chap. 13. In Aung, W., Hoffman, M., King, R., Ng, W.J., Sanchez Ruiz, L.M., Editors, “INNOVATIONS 2003: World Innovations in Engineering Education and Research”. INEER, Arlington, VA. Library of Congress T65.3.I55 2003 Komerath, N.M., and Smith, M.J., “EXTROVERT: System For Learning Across Disciplines”. Proceedings of the 2010 ASEE Annual Conference, June 2010.
|
How to accelerate the development of a thriving economy beyond Earth We are not policy-makers or Space Agency Directors But we can try reasoning to see what might work and why. Policy-makes and Space Agency Directors are as smart and committed as engineers and professors (some ARE engineers and professors)and have far more power and authority and contacts to make things happen, so they will see the way to make things go at least as well as we predict.Hence our job in the university comes down to careful reasoning using the laws of nature and some observation of human nature and socio-economic realities. The process that we follow is simply this: 1. First dream of what we want the situation to be, (whenever that might happen). 2. Then reason how to get there from here. 3. Then see how to make that happen quicker than it will by natural course of events. So you may read about the "Space Yellow Pages" of a thriving Space-based economy, where Warp-Speed Pizza Delivery Inc delivers to the Enceladus View RingSide Resort. And how to get there in a 4-stage evolution from today's "mission-oriented" space enterprise where everyone is essentially on their own (you either take your own frozen pizza with you or don't get any). And why bring in pizza (other than the fact that the author is usually on a stringent diet)? In our scientific studies of how elementary school students (and by extension, their parents) think of Space Economics, we asked 32 of the best to do a homework assignment on "What job I would like to do in Space". The overwhelming majority were going into the food business "in space you deliver food by just sending it flying across", some were going to set up baseketball arenas "you can shoot awesome 3-pointers" and no one wanted to be a rocket scientist or aerospace engineer. That's fine, Space would be pretty scary place if everyone was going to be launching rockets all the time. Komerath, N.M., "Involving Students in Engineering the Infrastructure of a Space-Based Economy". Session 2793 of the Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, June 2002 http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp02061801.pdf Komerath, N.M., “Acoustic Shaping, Inc.: Business Plan for Space-Based Manufacturing”. Session 1454, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, St. Louis, MO, June 2000 . http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp00062101.pdf These are just about engineering education. Please see the Advanced Concepts project pages for other papers related to Space Economy development. Thanks! |
Retaining and organizing knowledge, and using it to become better at solving problems Komerath, “Experimental Curriculum in Diagnostics
and Control of Unsteady Flows”. Journal of Engineering.
Education,, 85, 3, July ‘96, p. 263-268.
Komerath, N.M., "Image Processing in the Fluid Dynamics Laboratory". AIAA Paper 92-4020, 17th Ground Testing Conference, Nashville, TN, July 1992 Komerath, N.M., "Progress Towards Iterative Learning". Annual Conference Proceedings of the American Society of Engineering Education, Session 3536, paper No. 2, June 1995. Komerath, N.M., "Flow Imaging and Control Laboratory: An Experiment in Iterative Learning". Annual Conference Proceedings of the American Society of Engineering Education, 1994, Vol. 1, p. 737-743. Komerath, N.M., Knowledge Management Techniques in Experimental Projects. Session 1426, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, June 2001 Komerath, N.M., " Undergraduate Research Participation in the Experimental Aerodynamics Group". Session 2526, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, June 2001 Wanis, S., Komerath, N.M., Armanios, E., “Acoustic Shaping in Microgravity, 3 Years of Flight Tests”. Session 1602, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, St. Louis, MO, June 2000. http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp00061901.pdf Komerath, N.M., “Micro Renewable Energy Systems – International Education Aspects”. Proceedings of the 2010 ASEE Annual Conference Komerath, N., “A Campus-Wide Course on Micro Renewable Energy Systems”. Proceedings of the ASEE National Conference, College Park, TX June 2009.
|
How to introduce students to an engineering discipline Komerath, N.M., “Design-Centered Freshman Introduction to Aerospace Engineering”. Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Meeting, Session 1202, Seattle, WA, June 1998. http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp98062801.pdf Komerath, N.M., “Design-Centered Introduction: Experience with Iterative Learning” Session 3202, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, June 2001. http://www.adl.gatech.edu/archives/adlp01062501.pdf Komerath, N.M., “Design Centered Introduction: 3-Year Experience With the Gateway to the Aerospace Digital Library”. Session 2225, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, St. Louis, MO, June 2000
|
Where is engineering headed and where should we aim in engineering education? These papers evolved from various experiences beyond my usual "day job", five of which are especially worth noting:
Komerath, N.M., Maughmer, M., “Educating the Aerospace Engineer of 2016” Paper 2005-0879, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Portland, OR, June 2005. McMasters, J.H, Komerath, N.M., “Boeing-University Relations - A Review and Prospects for the Future”. Paper 2005-1293, Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference, Portland, OR, June 2005. Komerath, N.M., “Learning by Iteration: Evolving Capabilities in Aerospace Curricula” Proceedings of the Annual Conference, ASEE, June 2006. Eberhardt, S. and Komerath, N., “The Guggenheim School’s of Aeronautics: Where are they today?” Proceedings of the ASEE National Conference, College Park, TX June 2009. Komerath, N.M., Dreams to Reality: Bringing “Far out” Back Home to Aerospace Education Through Concept Development. Proc. ASEE Annual Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, June 2008 Komerath, N.M., “Undergraduate Studies Of Supersonic Transport Development”. Proceedings of the 2010 ASEE Annual Conference, Louisville, KY, June 2010 Komerath, N.M., Excellence or Disaster? A Thought Experiment on Grading, Teaching and Learning in Engineering School. Proc. ASEE Annual Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, June 2008
|