Understanding Engineers

© David E. Goldberg 2009

Understanding EngineersLER 590 UE - Week 1: Engineering, Technology, and All That

David E. GoldbergIESE, iFoundry & School of Labor and Employment RelationsUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUrbana, IL 61801 [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


Understanding Engineers

• Engineering is a complex practice.• Important to modern life.• Not widely studied or understood by laypersons

without technical training.• Course attempts to get inside engineering mind

through direct experiences as well as through historical, philosophical, and social science study.

Roadmap

• Name badges.• Introductions: Who are you & who am I?• Review of syllabus (handout).• Choose Industry Interest Groups (handout).• What is engineering?• Simulated engineering experience 1.• Reflection on SEE 1.



Who Am I? Who Are You?

• David E. Goldberg, Jerry S. Dobrovolny Distinguished Professor in Entrepreneurial Engineering, Industrial & Enterprise Systems Engineering.

• Project engineering & marketing manager, Stoner Associates, Carlisle, PA, 1976-1980.

• Asst/Assoc Prof Engineering Mechanics, University of Alabama, 1984-1990.

• Came to UIUC in 1990 in General Engineering.• Research in genetic algorithms & philosophy

of engineering.• Co-Founded ShareThis in 2004

(Formerly Nextumi).


Who Are You?

• Undergraduate background?• Work experience?• Aspirations post degree? Job interviews/offers?• Why did you sign up for this class?• What do you hope to get out of it?


Another Job: iFoundry

• Illinois Foundry for Innovation in Engineering Education:– Curriculum change incubator. Permit change.– Collaboration. Large, key ugrad programs work together. Easier approval if

shared. – Connections. Hook to depts, NAE, ABET (?), industry. – Volunteers. Enthusiasm for change among participants. – Existing authority. Use signatory authority for modification of curricula for

immediate pilot. – Respect faculty governance. Get pilot permission from the dept. and go

back to faculty for vote after pilot change– Assessment. Built-in assessment to overcome objections back home. – Scalability. Past attempts at change like Olin fail to scale at UIUC and other

big schools. • www.ifoundry.illinois.edu

http://www.ifoundry.illinois.edu/


Syllabus Review

• 7 weeks:1. Intro2. Engineering education, knowledge & knowhow.3. Engineered artifacts: history, ontology,

representation.4. Institutional & professional setting.5. Normal versus visionary engineering.6. HR context: recruiting, transitions & development.7. IIG reports.


2 Interesting Elements

• Simulated engineering experiences (SEEs): do some engineering stuff to get you to see engineering work from the inside.

• Industry Interest Groups (Adopt-an-Industry): Form teams to use course concepts to examine a particular industry.– Handout– Formation


What is Engineering?

• You’re sitting in class at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

• Has one of the best engineering schools on the planet.

• What is engineering?• How would you define

it?

Mechanical Building & Drill Hall 1871


A Definition?

• Here: Engineering is the social practice of conceiving, designing, implementing, producing, & sustaining complex artifacts, processes, or systems appropriate to some recognized need.

• Artifacts primary object.• Science & math are among tools used for artifact conception &

support.• Social practice Engineered by and for people.• Social side as important as the physics.• Some engineered objects are physical, but all engineered objects are

social.


Simulated Engineering Experience No. 1

• Simple resistive circuit.• Familiarity with simple components,

measurements, & calculations.• Work in teams.• Followed by reflection.• Will divide teams by expertise. How many have

background in math/science? None expected or needed.


Reflections

• Accuracy & error• Modeling & prediction• Components & standardization• Notion of a “breadboard” try & test• Measurement• Different representations• Coding• What else?


More Information

• iFoundry: http://ifoundry.illinois.edu • EotF2.0: http://engineerofthefuture.olin.edu• iFoundry YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/illinoisfoundry• iFoundry SlideShare: http://www.slideshare.net/ifoundry • TEE, the book.

http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470007230.html • TEE, the blog.

www.entrepreneurialengineer.blogspot.com • TEE, the course.

http://online.engr.uiuc.edu/webcourses/ge498tee/index.html • MTV, the course.

http://online.engr.uiuc.edu/webcourses/ge498tv/index.html• Engineering and Technology Studies at Illinois (ETSI)

http://www-illigal.ge.uiuc.edu/ETSI• Workshop on Philosophy & Engineering (WPE)

http://www-illigal.ge.uiuc.edu/wpe• Twitter: www.twitter.com/deg511, www.twitter.com/ifoundry

http://ifoundry.illinois.edu/

http://engineerofthefuture.olin.edu/

http://www.youtube.com/illinoisfoundry

http://www.slideshare.net/ifoundry

http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470007230.html

http://www.entrepreneurialengineer.blogspot.com/

http://online.engr.uiuc.edu/webcourses/ge498tee/index.html

http://online.engr.uiuc.edu/webcourses/ge498tv/index.html

http://www-illigal.ge.uiuc.edu/ETSI

http://www-illigal.ge.uiuc.edu/wpe

http://www.twitter.com/deg511

http://www.twitter.com/ifoundry