Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences Archives | Page 9 of 11

SWE Team Shines at WE16

Published November 1, 2016

WE16 is the world’s largest conference and career fair for women in engineering and technology, with more than 9,000 women at all stages of their engineering careers.

Participants

Michigan Tech’s Society of Women Engineers Collegiate Section has historically been very active at the National Conference. At this year’s WE16, it was no different. The students who traveled with us were:

Leah Bectel, Environmental Engineering
Mackenzie Brunet, SWE Section First-Year Student Travel Grant Recipient, Mechanical Engineering
Romana Carden, Environmental Engineering
Erica Coscarelli, Environmental Engineering
Hannah Cunningham, Biomedical Engineering
Jocelyne Denhof, Mechanical Engineering
Jessica Geroux, Mechanical Engineering
Carly Gloudemans, Environmental Engineering
Akhila Reddy Gorantla, Materials Engineering
Madison Mroczynski, Civil Engineering
Stephanie Peterson, Environmental Engineering
Laura Schimmel, Mechanical Engineering
Lauren Sandy, Biomedical Engineering
Karsyn Van Laanen, Chemical Engineering
Lily Williams, Mechanical Engineering
Baileigh Zimmerman, Chemical Engineering

Collegiate Section

Advisers Gretchen Hein and Beth Hoy also travelled with the group. The section received the Silver Collegiate Section Award, which is based on the section’s involvement in SWE.

Team Tech Competition

Michigan Tech and Caterpillar Inc. were both rookies in the SWE Team Tech competition, a design contest sponsored by Boeing which was launched in 1992 as a way to emphasize the key role of teamwork and industry interface in the engineering educational process. An innovative approach to an interesting engineering problem proved to be a successful partnership when the team won first place at WE16, the world’s largest conference for women in engineering and technology. The winning project is entitled “Wheel Tractor Scraper Bowl Optimization System.”

Team Tech calls for collegiate teams of 4-12 members from at least three different engineering disciplines to work with an industry partner in order to solve an engineering design problem. The team submitted progress reports and design documents to Boeing, ultimately qualifying them to present at the SWE annual conference held on Friday, October 28, 2016, in Philadelphia.

Michigan Tech’s team partnered with Caterpillar Inc. to create a solution to the issue of inefficient filling on Caterpillar’s wheel tractor scraper (WTS) machines. To solve this engineering challenge, the team conceived, designed, prototyped, and tested an ultrasonic sensing system that can accurately determine the height of dirt within the WTS bowl. The team also conceived a method to relay that information to the operator, along with a video feed looking into the bowl. Perhaps most importantly, the team designed and developed a scale-model test rig that provides proof of concept of the system without costly on-machine testing.

During the competition, 11 teams presented their design ideas to the judges, and results were announced at Celebrate SWE, a dinner event on Saturday night of the conference. Third place was awarded to University of Wisconsin- Madison working with Xymox Technologies, Inc., and second place was awarded to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo working with St. Jude Medical.

The Team Tech team was composed of members from two different Enterprise programs within the Pavlis Honors College—Blue Marble Security and Consumer Product Manufacturing. The advisors were Dr. Archer (Electrical & Computer Engineering) & Dr. Rogers (Chemical Engineering). The student team members submitting the final proposal were: Team leader Ester Buhl, Electrical Engineering, Brianne Anderson, Mechanical Engineering, Derek Chopp, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Sandra Cvetanovic, Electrical Engineering, Alexis Dani, Computer Engineering, Jennifer Dzurka, Mechanical Engineering, Anna Marchesano, Chemical Engineering, and Jonathan Quinn, Mechanical Engineering.

Buhl, Marchesano, and Chopp represented the team at the competition. Caterpillar engineers and Michigan Tech alums Brent Woodard (’11 BSME) and Britta Jost (’02 BS Mathematics, ’04 MSME) mentored the team and provided technical advice.

Collegiate Leadership Institute

Three students, Stephanie Peterson, Romana Carden, and Jocelyne Denhof participated in the Collegiate Leadership Institute (CLI). The program’s overall goal is to prepare women engineering and technology students to gain employment within the engineering sector and become leaders in their field. CLI attendees are provided resources to jumpstart their professional development, broaden their networking opportunities, and help facilitate their eventual transition into the workforce. Stephanie found that:

I really liked the variety of topics that were covered which ranged from networking to managing money. As somebody who is looking for a full-time job, I feel like I was able to obtain a lot of great advice that will help me to both land a job and build meaningful professional relationships.

Academic Leadership for Women in Engineering

Renee Oats, PhD student in Civil Engineering, and Tayloria Adams, PhD in Chemical Engineering, Michigan Tech, 2014, participated in Academic Leadership for Women in Engineering (ALWE) Program. This NSF funded program is designed to provide best practices to advance in academia while creating opportunities and mechanisms to network across institutions.

Graduate Student Poster Competition

Renee Oats and Patricia Thompson, Michigan Tech Civil Engineering alumna, were selected to participate in the WE16 annual graduate student poster competition. The poster competition was organized by Kaitlyn Bunker, PhD Electrical Engineering 2014 from Michigan Tech.

eCYBERMISSION Presentations

Gretchen Hein, Engineering Fundamentals, presented on two topics: “eCYBERMISSION: A Great Way to Explore Science and Engineering”, and “How do Faculty Ensure Student Competency at Course Completion?”. The first presentation was done with Erin Lester, eCYBERMISSION Volunteer Manager, and Siona Beaudoin, Lake Linden-Hubbell eighth grader and eCYBERMISSION participant. The second presentation was on work completed in the first-year engineering program with Mary Fraley, Amber Kemppainen, and AJ Hamlin. Gretchen is currently the Women in Academia Chair for SWE.

Invent It. Build It.

Invent It. Build It. is an annual SWE conference activity for middle and high school girls. The purpose is to introduce girls and their families to the field of engineering. This year a record number of more than 1200 girls participated, including Siona. Hannah Cunningham volunteered at the day-long event.

Outstanding Collegiate Member

Tech alumna Liz Dreyer (BS Electrical Engineering, Michigan Tech, 2012) was awarded the Outstanding Collegiate Member award by the Society of Women Engineers on Saturday, October 29. Each year, the Society honors ten collegiate members who have made an outstanding contribution to SWE, the engineering community, and their campus. Dreyer was cited specifically

For leadership and innovative efforts to grow SWE’s presence on campus, particularly among graduate students, and for advancing the overall interests of women in STEM fields across the globe.

This acknowledges Dreyer’s role as Graduate Member Coordinator for SWE as well as her outreach efforts for women engineers in Liberia. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Electrical Engineering at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI.

SWE 2016 Section Students — SWE Section Students along with Beth Hoy, Adviser and Anna Marchesano, Michigan Tech alumna, May 2016.

SWE 2016 Team Tech — Michigan Tech’s Team Tech

SWE 16 Award — Ester Buhl, Derek Chopp and Anna Marchesano, Team Tech Representatives at WE16 receiving their award from SWE President, Jessica Rannow.

2016 Lake Superior Water Festival

Published October 11, 2016

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VIEW THE PHOTO ALBUM

More than 1,000 students in grades 4-8 in 34 classes from 13 schools in Houghton, Baraga, Gogebic and Ontonagon counties will flood Michigan Tech’s Great Lakes Research Center from 8:45 to 11:30 a.m. and noon to 2:50 p.m. on Wednesday (Oct. 12) for the 5th Annual Lake Superior Water Festival “October will be a Splash!”

Students from the following schools will participate: Baraga Middle School, CLK Elementary, Chassell Elementary, Elm River School, Hancock Middle School, Jeffers Middle School, L’Anse Middle School, Lake Linden-Hubbell Middle School, L.L. Wright Middle School (Ironwood), Sacred Heart School, South Range Elementary and Washington Middle School (Calumet).

More than 30 different sessions will be offered throughout the day, presented by Michigan Tech scientists, staff and students, with help from Keweenaw Land Trust, Keweenaw National Historical Park, U.S. Coast Guard, SOAR students from Dollar Bay High School, Ottawa National Forest, Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park and NECi Superior Enzymes. Presenters come from the following departments at Michigan Tech: CEE, SFRES, GMES, ME-EM, Bio Sci, Chem, Physics, Sustainable Future Institute and VPA.

The Water Festival provides an opportunity for students to learn about and celebrate our most precious natural resource—the Great Lakes. A wide variety of topics from science and engineering to history and music will be presented. Students attend four 35-minute activities. Some of the topics include: Remotely-Operated-Vehicles, Isle Royale Wolves and Moose, Leave No Trace Outdoors, cleaning wastewater and touring the U.S. Coast Guard vessel.

The 2016 Water Festival is made possible with funding from Michigan STEM Partnership, Michigan Tech Center for Water and Society and the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative. The Festival is coordinated by the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative and hosted by Michigan Tech’s Great Lake Research Center.

Schedules and descriptions of each session will be available in the GLRC lobby upon arrival.

For more information, contact Joan Chadde or Lloyd Wescoat at 7-3341.

By Joan Chadde.

Ebrahim K. Tarshizi Receives Outstanding Young Scientist Award

Published October 6, 2016

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Ebrahim K. Tarshizi (GMES), has been selected as the 2016 recipient of the Industrial Minerals and Aggregates Division Outstanding Young Scientist Award by the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME).

“I’m truly honored and very grateful to receive such a prestigious award and recognition by SME. I would like to thank the IM&AD award committee, nominator(s), my colleagues and mentors,” Tarshizi stated.

SME administers and presents numerous recognition awards for outstanding individual and group achievements in the mining and minerals industry every year. These awards and their recipients represent the highest levels of commitment and expertise that have come to symbolize the vitality of SME as a professional society.

The Young Scientist Award, established by the Industrial Minerals & Aggregates Division in 1985, brings recognition of scientific professionalism to young people working in the industrial minerals & aggregates industry.

The award consists of a plaque, a stipend of $250 to help defray expenses while attending the Annual Meeting at which the award is presented, and paid housing, registration(s) and ticket(s) for the recipient and his/her spouse at the SME Annual Conference & Expo and the IM&AD Luncheon.

This award will be presented to Dr. Tarshizi at the SME 2017 Annual Conference & Expo and CMA 119th National Western Mining Conference in Denver, Colorado, at the Industrial Minerals and Aggregates Division Luncheon on Tuesday, Feb. 21.

By Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences.

STEM Outreach During Fall 2016 at Michigan Tech

Published October 5, 2016

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Brimley Area School Students Visit Michigan Tech

Thirty middle-school students, plus two science teachers, and two chaperones from Brimley Area Schools visited Michigan Tech and the Keweenaw Peninsula from Sept. 28-30, 2016. The outreach event was hosted by Ted Bornhorst, Executive Director, A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum, and Joan Chadde, Director of the Center for Science & Environmental Outreach. The Brimley Area Schools student population is 54 % Native American and 51 % low income. Students participated in a half-day of STEM activities on campus with Brian Barkdoll and “Kiko” de Melo e Silva, faculty and research scientist, respectively, in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Dr. Sarah Sun in Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics.

“We were pleased to provide this unique opportunity for the Brimley students that may spark their interest to pursue a STEM degree at Michigan Tech,” explained Bornhorst.

“This was a great group of students,” observed Chadde. “We plan to work with them to make this an annual visit.”

Brian Barkdoll and Brimley Area Schools Students

Kiko de Melo e Silva and Brimley Area School Students

Sarah Sun and Brimley Area School Students

SIS & SAAM Hold Annual Meeting

The students of SIS (Society of Intellectual Sisters) and SAAM (Society of African American Men) alumni participated in several STEM activities just like their parents did at Tech! Joan Chadde facilitated several Family Engineering activities for the students, who ranged in age from 3-17 years. A favorite activity is the “Hot Chocolate Machine where students stack 10-15 cups to let gravity do its thing and mix the milk power and cocoa powder—and Voila! Hot chocolate!”

Unscripted Geoheritage: More than a Boulder

Published September 19, 2016

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The rocks of the Keweenaw Peninsula are ancient and full of history. Most are more than one billion years old and hold one of the world’s few native copper deposits. In their guest blog, part of a series on local geoheritage, Erika Vye and Bill Rose explain the importance of a single Copper Country boulder.

The North Houghton County Sewage Authority hit a boulder during work south of Calumet. The boulder is large—nearly seven feet across—but that’s not what makes it unusual. The rock type is a rare sight at the surface and is chock full of copper. The rock is part of the Calumet and Hecla Conglomerate, a formation considered the mother lode of the Keweenaw Peninsula, and represents an important part of the region’s history.

Unscripted Geoheritage: Stamping Through History

Published September 1, 2016

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The rocks of the Keweenaw Peninsula are ancient: More than one billion years old, containing loads of native copper deposits. Mining them created a legacy seen throughout the region.

The nation’s first big mining boom certainly left its mark on the peninsula. It left icons like the Quincy Mine Hoist; it left massive deposits of mine waste, a fine material called stamp sands, outside Gay; it left a few problems, like a Superfund site in and around Torch Lake. As rich as the copper that people once mined here, the history of the Keweenaw is full of stories, insight, dilemmas, and opportunities. Call it geoheritage.

As part of ongoing geoheritage education, the annual Geotours are an effort to bring the earth processes and cultural legacy of the land to light. The program is run by Bill Rose, a professor emeritus of geology at Michigan Tech, and Erika Vye, a recent PhD graduate of the geology program. On Thursday, July 28, they took a boatload of people to the eastern side of the peninsula for an up-close and personal view of the Keweenaw’s industrial mining legacy.

Michigan Tech Quoted on Earthquake in Chile

Published July 28, 2016

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The Guardian Liberty Voice, an online newspaper, published an article about an earthquake that hit the coast of Chile on Monday, quoting Michigan Tech earthquake experts.

From Tech Today.

Earthquake Rocks Coastal Chile

In heavily populated areas, these magnitude earthquakes can cause extensive damage. According to Michigan Tech University, tremblors of a magnitude 6 or higher, occur about 100 times each year, throughout the world.

Carnegie Museum to Host Guided Tours

Published July 12, 2016

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Four Michigan Tech Professors will act as guides during three upcoming guided tours highlighting the history of the Keweenaw.

The tours are sponsored by Houghton’s Carnegie Museum, and begin with a wine and cheese social at the museum at 5 p.m. Following the social, participants will board the Red Jacket Trolley Company’s bus for a two-hour trip through time.

The first guided tour “Torch Lake Mining Waste,” is tomorrow (July 13). Geologists Bill Rose (GMES) and Erika Vye are the guides through a tour along the industrial corridor associated with milling of Quincy and Calumet mines along Torch Lake’s western shore. The tour takes a look at areas from Mason to Tamarack City, Hubbell and Lake Linden, viewing mill sites and stampsand areas while discussing the modern implications and environmental mitigation efforts.

Upcoming tours will explore “Trials and Trails of Huron Creek,” with Alex Mayer (CEE) and Carol MacLennan (SS), Wednesday Aug. 3 and “Hockey Arenas of the Copper Country,” with Bill Sproule (CEE), Thursday Sept. 8.

All tours begin with the social at 5 p.m. with the tours to follow at 5:30 p.m. and are expected to last two hours. The cost is $25 ($20 for museum members). Reservations are recommended and your seat is not guaranteed until payment is made.

Check out the museum’s Facebook page.

From Tech Today.

NSF Video Showcase features Geoheritage Field Education

Published May 23, 2016

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photo by Jim Belote — photo by John Belote

Dr. Erika Vye, who earned her PhD in Geology at Michigan Tech just last month, together with her PhD advisor Professor Bill Rose, have created interpretative videos about the geological underpinnings of the Keweenaw. One such video, “Geoheritage Field Education in Michigan’s UP”, which features beautiful aerial drone imagery, is live now on the NFS Video Showcase, http://videohall.com/p/791 #stemvideohall. Please watch and vote. Public choice voting will end at 8:00 pm Monday, May 23. 2016, but the video will remain online.

Vye and Rose aim to connect people more personally to the the science of Keweenaw geology. Learn more at geo.mtu.edu/KeweenawGeoheritage.

Greenhouse gas emissions vary by region – GE alumnae Deborah Huntzinger

Published March 11, 2016

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Deborah Huntzinger, who earned her BS and PhD in Geological Engineering at Michigan Tech, is now an Assistant Professor at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ.

During her post-doc at the University of Michigan, Huntzinger was involved in research recently published in the journal Nature, “The terrestrial biosphere as a net source of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.” Huntzinger is a coauthor in the research, which for the first time ever quantifies how greenhouse gas emissions vary by source sector and region.

“The comprehensive approach used to compile, synthesize, and interpret the data has led to results that bolster the understanding of human contributions to greenhouse gas emissions and point to regions where more attention is needed to manage emissions,” notes John Gierke, Huntzinger’s graduate advisor and chair of the Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences at Michigan Tech.

The group’s research suggests that a reduction in agricultural methane and nitrous oxide emissions, particularly in Southern Asia, may help mitigate climate change.

Read more at Eurekalert.org: “Greenhouse gas bookkeeping turns on its head”, and Nature: “The terrestrial biosphere as a net source of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere”.

Huntzinger’s research interests focus on improving the understanding of complex environmental systems and our ability to forecast their future variability. Her current research interests are in the integration and comparison of environmental remote sensing products, model estimates, and in situ data to advance the understanding of biospheric contributions, both spatially and temporally, to land-atmosphere carbon exchange.

Category: Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences