ENGR 102: FRESHMAN ACADEMY
FALL 2009
Instructor:
Milind Tambe
Email:
tambe@usc.edu [best way to reach me]
Office:
PHE 410
Tel:
213-740-6447
Office
hours: Thursday 3 pm – 4 pm (or send me an email to set up alternate time)
Two
sections:
Monday: 11:00-12:50 pm RTH 115
Coaches:
Jeffrey Newman (jnnewman@usc.edu) and Bryce Toth (btoth@usc.edu)
Wednesday: 11:00-12:50 pm RTH 109
Coaches: Jennifer Takasumi
(takasumi@usc.edu) and Isaac Weitzhandler
(weitzhan@usc.edu)
Course
Goals & Objectives:
The main goal is to
introduce freshman engineering students to various aspects of engineering,
including the technical, political, ethical and societal impacts of the
field. There will be a focus on the
following themes:
Schedule
of classes: Freshman Academy
·
August 24/26, 2009: Lecture 1: Introduction
·
August 31/Sept 2, 2009: Lecture 2: Introduction to Engineering topics series:
Lecture introducing Computer Science “Intelligent agents, game theory and its
applications”;
o
August 31, 2009: Societal benefits of Engineering: Chief Erroll
Southers of LAX Police will give a presentation on
use of latest technology in homeland security. Wednesday section students
encouraged to attend this class. Class will be held in another classroom.
Announcement will be sent by email.
o Engineering sorority will Alpha Omega Epsilon Presentation
·
Sept 9, 2009: Lecture 3 [No
class labor day]. Introduction to Engineering topics series: Tour of Labs USC Engineering,
e.g. Earthquake engineering, Biomedical engineering…
·
Sept 14/16, 2009: Lecture 4: Engineering Roundtable: Undergraduate
students, graduate students, postdoctoral research associates: Experiences,
Motivations and Grand Challenges in Engineering.
o
Also,
Societal benefits of Engineering: Dr. Isaac Maya,
Director of CREATE (National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism
Events), on impact of Engineering in homeland security at CREATE
·
Sept 21/23, 2009: Lecture 5: Societal benefits of Engineering: Visit
to Institute for Creative Technology (ICT), Marina del
Rey. ICT is a major research hub at USC, combining our expertise in Engineering
and School of Cinema for a variety of applications.
·
Sept 28/30, 2009: Lecture 6: Introduction to Engineering topics series: Prof.
Michelle Povinelli on Nanotechnology.
o
Transitioning to college: Coaches
discuss handling of exam pressure, managing time, getting involved in
other activities, any other advice.
[homework: prepare CV]
·
Oct 5/7, 2009: Lecture 7: CV
preparation, powerpoint generation
·
Oct 12/14, 2009: Introduction to Engineering topics series: Prof. Roger Ghanem: An overview of civil engineering.
o
Oct 12 [Mon]: Lab tour [Earthquake
Engineering, Aerospace]
o
Oct 14 [Wed]: Dr. Amos Freedy on starting up companies, entrepreneurship
·
Oct 19/21, 2009: Teamwork, Ethics of Engineering: DEBATE on HUMAN 2.0: Group project
on future with technology, “our posthuman future”
[biotech, biomed, nanotech, computer science, other robotics related
disciplines]. Will it be disruptive? What are the consequences? Science fiction
movie.
[Homework on Human 2.0]
·
Oct 26/28, 2009: Oct 26 only: Mr. Arif Alikhan, Assistant secretary
for policy development, DHS will give a lecture on homeland security policy.
Norah Xiao on library sessions (30 minutes)
·
Nov 2/4, 2009: Submit homeworks and progress report DEBATE on HUMAN 2.0:
·
Nov 9/11, 2009: Introduction to Engineering topics series Invited lecture from
Boeing on Satellite Engineering: Panel discussion with Boeing Engineers
·
Nov 16/18, 2009: Human 2.0: Group
project presentations from Oct 19/21 groups; Prizes
·
No class thanksgiving week
·
Nov 30/Dec 2: 2009: TBD
Textbook
None. Reading material will be posted to Blackboard
or handed out in class.
Class
Requirements & Grading Policy
There will be one
lecture per week. The course will
include readings, films, discussions, team activities or projects, and guest
lectures. The course will be graded
CR/NC (credit/no credit), according to the following criteria:
(1)
Participation
& Attendance (25%)
Students are required to participate in
discussions, respond to email requests, and act as responsible colleagues to
others in the class. Completion of all in-class assignments is also
mandatory. Because this course meets
only once a week, attendance is vital. If you plan on missing a class meeting
or activity, please let us know. You are responsible for any information
covered in a class you don’t attend. Students
allowed 2 unexcused absences throughout semester; coaches will be taking
attendance.
(2)
Out of class
activities (25%)
Students are required
to participate 2
of 3 (or 3 of the 4 if 4 get scheduled)
All Academy lectures and attend 50% of the out of class activities planned by
the coaches.
·
All
Academy Lectures will be held in SGM 123
·
Pizza
will be served at 5:30pm; Lecture begins promptly at 6pm
o
Schedule:
o
Henry
Petrovski (Duke University) October 1
o
*Peter
Diamandis (XPrize
Foundation) October 21
o
Christina
Smolke (Stanford) November 18
*tentative
(3)
Homework +
Project (50%)
A limited number of
homework assignments will be given and are due prior to the start of each class
via submission on Blackboard. Please
follow the USC guidelines on academic integrity in completion of any and all
homework assignments. A collaborative,
team oriented design project will be completed during the semester. Topic/Project to be
determined by class/group.
(4)
Replacement for
ONE Homework assignment
You may substitute one
homework assignment with participation in the Fall,
2009 Engineering Career Conference.
Visit RTH 218 to register for the event.
Submit a paper indicating you attended and have it signed off by Kristen
Todd or Lilian Rivera. Also turn in at least one business card from
an employer who participated and who you met at the conference.
Statement
for Students with Disabilities
Any student requesting academic accommodations based
on a disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs
(DSP) each semester. A letter of
verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP each
semester. Please be sure the letter is
delivered to me (or to coach) as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open from
8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
The phone number for DSP is (213) 740-0776
Statement
on Academic Integrity
USC seeks to maintain an optimal
learning environment. General principles of academic honesty include the
concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the expectation
that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor,
and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by
others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. All students are
expected to understand and abide by these principles. Scampus,
the Student Guidebook, contains the Student Conduct Code in Section 11.00,
while the recommended sanctions are located in Appendix A: http://www.usc.edu/dept/publications/SCAMPUS/gov/. Students will be referred to the Office
of Student Judicial Affairs and Community Standards for further review, should
there be any suspicion of academic dishonesty. The Review process can be found
at: http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/SJACS/.