‘E-week’ gives engineering students a chance to use their knowledge and skills
“Ready, set, calculate,” isn’t a rare utterance during Engineering Week at USU.
“E-Week,” as it is known by those inside the College of Engineering, provides students the opportunity to demonstrate skills in bridge-building, robot competition and need for speed in the calculator quick-draw. But the club competitions offer only a small glimpse of what engineering week entails.
Recognized on a national level, the observance of Engineering Week has become a tradition at Utah State. The nationally-chosen week, Feb. 21-26, is specifically designed to include George Washington’s birthday, Feb. 22, in honor of his accredited title as the “nation’s first engineer” according to www.eweek.org.
For engineers that have yet to reach national acclaim, however, Engineering Week serves as an information base to encourage and provide hands-on opportunities.
As Steve Gutke, president of the engineering council at Utah State University explained, engineering week allows people to get to know others outside their designated departments or clubs.
In order to reach this expectation, Gutke acknowledges the help and generosity of local businesses, clubs and the dean of the College of Engineering, Scott Hinton.
“This is the time we get to show off,” Hinton said. “We get to take pride in being one of the hardest majors on campus.”
Others enjoy Engineering Week for the tangible benefits. Ira Tibbitts, a junior in mechanical engineering, sums up what he considers the highlight of the week with only two words: “Free food.”
Though the food is a perk, the focus of the engineering council’s activities is more of a celebration of what Lincoln Essig, Engineering senator, describes as “the greatest college ever.” Essig is particularly enthusiastic about the week’s competitions since they are designed to take skills acquired in class and put them to use.
One such competition is bridge building. In this event, the principles of design become an integral part of using simple materials to hold potentially great weight.
The magnetic cannon contest uses concepts of magnetic and electric force to propell an object.
One of the biggest crowd-pleasers, sumo-robots, requires the advanced planning of students to purchase materials and build robots designed to push the others out of a ring.
“It’s half guesswork and half actual science,” says Eric Callister, a junior in mechanical engineering. Yet if these competitions rely on guesswork, luck is in demand since $1,500 in cash prizes and much more in merchandise is at stake. From digital cameras to printers, the competitions have held plenty of incentives for participants.
Though Engineering Week’s main competitions have already passed, there are still a few events left for students eager to get in on the action.
Friday activities include alumni speakers in the Engineering Building from 1:30-4:30 p.m., a banquet in the TSC Ballroom at 6 p.m. and a LAN (local area network) tournament put on in the Engineering computer lab from 6 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Finally, to finish off Engineering Week, Saturday offers a 3-on-3 basketball tournament at 10 a.m. and another LAN tournament from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. and 4 p.m.-10 p.m.
Though the activities are mainly tailored to engineering interests, the engineering council makes clear that anyone is welcome to participate.
As Essig said, “The more, the merrier.”
-cynthiadiane@cc.usu.edu