Reports results of a nationwide survey on undergraduate mechanics education. These results are compared with previous surveys to document trends in mechanics education. Areas addressed include degrees granted, courses required, teaching responsibility, quality of teachers and students, subject matter taught, evaluation methods, and teaching…

Microcomputers are used in a technical writing course to enhance instructor and student productivity, improve the quality of student writing performance, and prepare young engineers for future on-the-job communication tasks. Describes the microcomputer facility, software, and activities included in the course. Also provides information on the…

Reports the results of a survey of graduates, employers, and instructors of engineering technology programs for the essential topics in mechanical engineering technology, mechanical drafting/design technology, manufacturing engineering technology, and industrial engineering technology. Identifies the proficiency level suggested for classwork and…

Describes a two-semester-hour freshman course in engineering graphics which uses both traditional and computerized instruction. Includes course description, computer graphics topics, and recommendations. Indicates that combining interactive graphics software with development of simple programs gave students a better foundation for upper-division…

Describes a technique for using lecture-laboratory facilities and faculty office facilities to provide students a site for intensive laboratory exercises. Provides a layout of the lecture-laboratory facilities and energy systems of the facilities. Presents an instructional example on the concept of the natural frequency of single-degree-of-freedom…

Develops a programed approach for developing design projects. Describes the initiation, design experiences, final report, and problems of the approach. (YP)

Discusses the need for laboratory demonstrations prior to experimentation. Describes an introductory computer-assisted manufacturing (CAM) course and includes suggestions for teachers. Provides a model exercise on train control. (YP)

Discussed is an alternative to the traditional lecture-homework-quiz method of instruction. Innovative techniques applied in a statics class are described. A comparison between the innovative course and the same course taught traditionally is provided. (KR)

Reports on a study designed to determine the current status of courses in engineering materials and their relationship to machine design and design project courses in mechanical engineering technology programs. Includes discussions of two recommendations of the study that were endorsed by a national conference. (TW)

Describes an introductory course required of all engineering students at the Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal (Canada). Discusses the design of the course, including its emphasis upon the facets of engineering careers, direct experience, and written and spoken communication. (TW)

Responses from six engineering professors to a previous article about teaching engineering ethics are presented. Programs at several schools are described. The need to teach ethics to engineering students is reinforced. (CW)

This description of a laboratory experience for engineering students emphasizes guided design, a slow-motion experience in decision making of an open-ended problem. (SA)

Discusses the need to integrate management and technology in engineering education programs. Describes the undergraduate management and technology program at the University of Pennsylvania. Outlines both the four-year and five-year options, describing two integrative courses that were developed specifically for the program. (TW)

Discusses some of the advantages and disadvantages of both live and videotaped presentations, particularly in regard to courses in mechanical engineering. Describes a graduate-level gas dynamics course that was offered live and on videotape to students both on and off campus by the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign). (TW)

Discusses the restructuring of the graduate program to accommodate emerging fields in engineering. Notes half of the graduate degrees Cornell grants each year are M.Eng. degrees. Offers 12 specialties: aerospace, agriculture, chemical, civil, electrical, mechanical and nuclear engineering; computer science, engineering physics; geological…