When it comes to engineering and design, no matter the end goal, be it a device or structure or sweeping plan of action, the idea that engineering is done for the betterment of humanity is a constant, whether it can be tangibly quantified or not.As Sita Syal and Julia Kramer, assistant professors in mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan, recently wrote in their study, “Design and Justice: A Scoping Review in Engineering Design,” there is “a growing priority in the engineering design research community to incorporate justice into design and to do so meaningfully and intentionally.” This paper was recently published in ASME's Journal of Mechanical Design. Both professors joined ASME TechCast to some insights into the interconnections between engineering and social justice, some of the lingering issues, and their hopes for the discourse moving forward.
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Sweaty Rockets, Robot Embryos, and Recession-Proof Engineers
What do rockets, robots, and a looming recession have in common? They're all part of the August issue of Mechanical Engineering magazine, and our top picks for today’s podcast.Reusable Rockets Don’t Just Fly, They Sweat by Nicole Imeson looks at a surprising new idea for spacecraft design. Robots as Materials? by Nancy Kristof showcases research where biology and robotics meet in unexpected ways. And Bracing for Uncertainty by Kayt Sukel asks what economic turbulence could mean for engineers and their careers.
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Podcast: Commercial Results with Consumer 3D Printers
Mike Zimmerman, CEO and founder of Z-Polymers developed a material that allows for the printing of commercial grade materials on consumer-level 3Dprinters.
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Looking Back on Some Favorite Articles
In this special episode, Jeffrey Winters, editor in chief of Mechanical Engineering, looks back at some of his favorite articles from his 23 years at the magazine, and some of the writers who made them possible.
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Engineering Better Pointework
A new device is bringing together the two somewhat disparate worlds of engineering and ballet. When most folks think of ballet, often the first thing that comes to mind are pointe shoes, which help make dancing on your toes possible. Traditional pointe shoes are still made with paste, fabric and cardboard, although some makers now use synthetic materials. But when it comes to learning how to dance in these shoes, in addition to proper form and technique, alignment is everything. A team of students at Johns Hopkins University’s Whiting School of Engineering has developed a solution called PointeSense, which is a smart toe pad and ankle band designed to help prevent injuries by ensuring that dancers are achieving that elusive perfect alignment. Christine Fernandez, a biomedical engineering major, and Kaitlyn Kumar, a master’s student in robotics, are both ballet dancers and co-inventors on PointeSense. They join ASME TechCast to share some insights into how they developed the device, what makes it work, and what lies ahead.
New Zealand