NEWSLETTER OF
THE
JANUARY 2006
The web site for the
IN THIS ISSUE:
2. Lasers
and Electro-Optics Society Meeting Notice
5. 2006
Baltimore Section Officers
6. Call for
2006 EAB Award Nominations
7. News from
IEEE Educational Activities and the History Center
1. Signal Processing Society
Dr. Janet Rutledge from UMBC gave a very interesting presentation of her work on audio signal processing on Monday December 5. The meeting was held at the Historical Electronics Museum (HEM). During the presentation, we learned about the human auditory system and then learned about the signal processing work that Dr. Rutledge is doing that can assist people with sensorineural hearing loss.
We will try to schedule our next signal processing meeting for February.
2. Lasers and Electro-Optics Society Meeting Notice
The Baltimore Chapter of the Lasers and Electro-Optics
Society is pleased to announce the next speaker in the Chapter’s Technical
Seminar Series. The event will be held at The Johns Hopkins University Applied
Physics Laboratory in Howard County Room 3 on Wednesday January 25. A light
dinner and refreshments will be served at 6pm followed by a discussion of
current and future Chapter activities. The evening will culminate in a captivating
technical lecture, beginning at 7pm. As always, new ideas and thoughts for
Chapter activities are welcome. Please see below and the Chapter web site for
more details and other future events:
Speaker: Dr. Misha Brodsky, AT&T Labs – Research
Location: JHU Applied Physics Laboratory Howard County Room 3
Date and Time: Wednesday, January 25, 2005, 6PM Dinner, 7PM Lecture
Topic: Quantum Key Distribution and Faraday
rotations in long fibers
Also, keep in mind the upcoming 2nd Annual Baltimore and DC/Northern VA LEOS Chapter Co-Sponsored Graduate Student Poster Competition on Wednesday, April 26. Original or recently published poster presentations from graduate students in the Baltimore-DC-Northern Virginia area are welcome. An independent panel of judges will evaluate the posters, and a cash award and merit certificate will be awarded to the best poster. All students and professionals from the region are welcome to come for education, networking, talent scouting, etc. Look for details to be sent out shortly.
3. Robot Challenge
There will be a Training session for Teachers and Mentors
on Saturday, January 21 from 10 AM to 2 PM, at the Baltimore Museum of
Industry*. The purpose is to familiarize the participants with the subtle
details of the construction of the Robot, and to understand what factors contribute
to a successful entry. Anyone planning to be a mentor to the student teams, or
a judge, either in 2006 or in the future, and wanting to develop a more
detailed understanding of the project, is welcome to attend. Lunch will be
provided. There is no charge for the session, but registration is required.
Please contact Neville Jacobs at
* The Baltimore Museum of Industry is located just across
from the
4. Intellectual Property Law
The IEEE is promoting legislation in Maryland on intellectual property law that would allow engineers rights to their inventions in cases where: (1) the engineer used his/her own time & resources to develop the idea, and (2) it was not in the same business stream as that engineer's employer, e.g., an engineer, who works for an aerospace company, and invents a new lure for fly fishing. The legislation would seek also to nullify those provisions in intellectual property agreements that would impose undue hardship on an engineer, e.g., provisions that require an individual at his/her own expense to help former employers protect company intellectual property after he/she stopped being employed by the company.
To ensure that the proposed legislation has real impact in the workplace, IEEE is looking to document specific instances where such legislation could offer protection. To do this, IEEE is asking those members to come forward who:
* Have been forced to sign employment agreements as a condition of their employment, which they feel were unreasonable.
* Have been forced to help former employers protect company intellectual property after the IEEE member stopped being employed by the company.
* Had intellectual property that they developed on their own taken from them by their company.
* Been reluctant to develop intellectual property on their own because they feared their company would claim it.
* Have examples of employment agreements that they could share with me, especially if the agreements are unreasonable.
If you, our IEEE member, has been affected in any of the above ways and would like to share your experience, please contact Russell Harrison (r.t.harrison@ieee.org).
5.
2006 Baltimore
Below are the results for the election of the 2006 Baltimore Section officers.
Chair: Boris Gramatikov
Vice Chair: Robert Cuellar
Secretary: David Sherman
Treasurer: Bill Semancik
6. Call for 2006 EAB Award Nominations
The IEEE Educational Activities Board is accepting nominations of IEEE members for its annual awards. The deadline for nominations is 30 April 2006.
The IEEE EAB Section Professional Development Award
returns in 2006:
The Section Professional Development returns in 2006. This
award is offered in alternating years with the Society Professional
Development. Nominate your Section today and join the elite group of past
Section recipients,
The Section Professional Development Award, established in 2001 by the IEEE Educational Activities Board, recognizes an IEEE Sections for major contributions to IEEE members in the area of life-long learning, continuing education and professional development. This award is given to Sections whose contributions to continuing education and professional development are outstanding as evidenced by their quality, comprehensiveness, innovation or impact.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque.
IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Accreditation
Activities:
The Meritorious Achievement Award in Accreditation Activities was established in 1984 by the Educational Activities Board of the IEEE to provide recognition for efforts to foster the maintenance and improvement of education through the process of accreditation of engineering, engineering technology, computer science and applied science programs.
The award is given to IEEE Members, Senior Members and Fellows who have served as program evaluators, made contributions that have enhanced the accreditation process and are currently or have recently been active in accreditation activities.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque and $1000.
IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing
Education:
The Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education was established in 1984 by the Educational Activities Board of the IEEE to provide recognition for dedicated contribution to the design, delivery and support of continuing education courses and programs in the fields of interest to IEEE Members.
The award is given to IEEE Members, Senior Members and Fellows who distinguish themselves as unselfish in their support of continuing education and successful in the delivery of courses as evidenced by their quality, quantity and creativity.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque and $1000.
IEEE EAB Major Educational Innovation Award:
The Major Educational Innovation Award was established in 1984 by the Educational Activities Board of the IEEE to recognize individuals who have distinguished themselves for outstanding educational innovation in a field of interest of the IEEE.
The award is given to IEEE Members, Senior Members and Fellows whose innovation has made a major impact and been emulated outside the individual's immediate environment.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque and $1000.
The Pre-University Educator Award was established in 2000
by the IEEE Educational Activities Board to recognize current pre-university
classroom teachers who have inspired an appreciation
and understanding of Mathematics, Science and Technology and the engineering
process in students and who have encouraged students to pursue technical
careers.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque and $1000.
IEEE EAB Meritorious Service Citation:
The EAB Meritorious Service Citation was established by the IEEE Educational Activities Board in 1988 to recognize those dedicated volunteers who have given outstanding and sustained service to the aims and objectives of the EAB.
The Award is given to IEEE Members, Senior Members and Fellows who are past members of the EAB, current or past members of EAB committees, but not current voting members of the EAB Awards and Recognition Committee.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque.
IEEE EAB Employer Professional Development Award:
The Employer Professional Development Award, established in 1995 by the IEEE Educational Activities Board, recognizes organizations employing IEEE members for contributions to employee continuing education and professional development. This award is given to organizations whose contributions to employee continuing education and professional development are outstanding as evidenced by their quality, comprehensiveness, innovation or impact.
The award consists of a brass and walnut plaque.
Some restrictions on nominators apply. For award descriptions, honorarium details, and nominations packets, visit:
http://www.ieee.org/portal/cms_docs/education/EABAwards/index.htm
For more information on IEEE EAB Awards, go to eab-awards@ieee.org
7.
News from IEEE Educational Activities and the History Center
(1st Quarter 2006)
STANDARDS EDUCATINAL MATERIALS NOW AVAILABLE:
The IEEE Standards in Education Web Portal has been developed in response to a need for more standards education in US undergraduate Electrical and Computer Engineering as well as Engineering Technology programs. It was created by the IEEE Standards in Education Task Force (SETF) with funding and cooperation received from the IEEE Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the IEEE Educational Activities Board, and the IEEE Standards Association. The materials developed are available within the web portal support open access training on the history, use, and applications of standards. Tutorials, case illustrations, a news and features section, and a glossary and reference guide are currently available. Additional tutorials and case illustrations are currently in development. Although these materials have been developed with the undergraduate student in mind, they are also helpful to anyone who is interested in learning more about standards. For more information about this effort or to access these materials, please visit www.ieee.org/standardseducation or contact Tara Gallus, t.gallus@ieee.org.
IEEE VIRTUAL MUSEUM:
Look for a new exhibit on nanotechnology opening this month at IEEE’s award-winning pre-university educational site (http://www.ieee.org/museum).
IEEE TO HOST “SO YOU WANT TO BE AN ENGINEER?” EVENT AT
IEEE will host “So you want to be an engineer?” - an
engineering event for high school students in the
High school students will be able to interact with current engineering students, learn why students entered engineering as well as what it’s like to study engineering in college, and experience engineering through a short series of classroom workshops. Parents will be able to ask questions of admissions personnel from local universities during a panel discussion and interact with the university representatives in an Exhibit Area. Engineering students from local universities will demonstrate mobile and flying robots, model rockets, and engineering design projects in the Exhibit Area.
For more details or to register for the event visit:
www.ieee.org/education/precollege/soyouwanttobeanengineer.html.
IEEE SECTIONS CONGRESS 2005:
In October, The IEEE History Center had a booth at
Sections Congress that was well attended.
It is hope that this will lead to more Milestones proposals, more use by
Sections of the
PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT SIGNED WITH THOMSON:
A Courseware Development and Distribution Agreement has
been signed between IEEE and Thomson. The finalization of the agreement enables
Thomson and IEEE to undertake an official product launch scheduled to take
place in November, 2005. The length of the Agreement is for one year beginning
on the effective date of
For more information on Expert Now, please go to www.ieee.org/education/Expert_Now_IEEE or contact Marilyn Catis at +1 732 562 5323 or mg.catis@ieee.org or Tara Gallus at +1 732 562 5499 or t.gallus@ieee.org.
MILESTONES:
Sections are urged to get involved in local history, particularly through the Milestones Program which is designed to help Sections promote the importance of the engineer and engineering in their local communities (see:
http://www.ieee.org/organizations/history_center/milestones_program.html).
This year continues to be a record-breaking one for the program. Three nominations were approved by the IEEE ExCom at their October and November meetings: LCD Display (Princeton-Central Jersey Section, Region 1); WEIZAC Digital Computer (Israel Section, Region 8); and Alexander Bell’s Voice over Wire (Boston Section, Region 1).
SUMMARY RESULTS OF 2003 ALL SOCIETY RESEARCH AVAILABLE:
In order to gain a better understanding of how to go about developing new educational products and services that would appeal to IEEE Societies and Councils, a summary report which highlights the results found in the 2003 All-Society Research Project specific to Societies’ responses on continuing education has been developed. The findings have been shared with members of the Society Outreach Committee. Interested in a copy? Contact Marilyn Catis at mg.catis@ieee.org.
If you have ideas for new continuing professional development products or services, contact Tamer Basar, SOOC Chair, at t.basar@ieee.org or Marilyn Catis at mg.catis@ieee.org.
CALL FOR 2006 EAB AWARD NOMINATIONS:
The IEEE Educational Activities Board is accepting nominations of IEEE members for its annual awards. The deadline for nominations is 30 April 2006. Awards include: IEEE EAB Section Professional Development Award, IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Accreditation Activities, IEEE EAB Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education, IEEE EAB Major Educational Innovation Award, IEEE EAB Pre-University Educator Award, IEEE EAB Meritorious Service Citation, and the IEEE EAB Employer Professional Development Award.
For award descriptions, honorarium details, and nominations packets, visit:
http://www.ieee.org/portal/cms_docs/education/EABAwards/index.htm.
For more information IEEE EAB Awards contact eab-awards@ieee.org.
IEEE Press Release:
7 December 2005, PISCATAWAY, NJ - - Carl Hayden High School teachers Allan Cameron and Faridodin Lajvardi have received the IEEE Educational Activities Board (EAB) Pre-University Educator Award for their influence in fostering students’ interest in engineering majors and careers. The two teachers were recognized for their hands-on mentoring program and instituting several technology-focused school organizations resulting in an increased number of Carl Hayden students receiving engineering scholarships and selecting the field as a major. With more than 365,000 members in over 150 countries, the IEEE is the world's largest professional society dedicated to the advancement of technology.
Cameron and Lajvardi joined forces in a common vision to
motivate their students at
Cameron and Lajvardi have been credited with: creating
Carl Hayden High School’s Amateur Radio Club which is nationally renowned as a
“Special Service Club”; creating the first and longest running national high
school full sized electric car program; creating a FIRST (For Inspiration and
Recognition of Science and Technology) team: Falcon Robotics 842, and winning
the FIRST Engineering Inspiration Award earlier this year. The team also won a first place award in a
“Students in our
society do not hear about the positive, rewarding, important work engineers do.
We want to change our culture. We want kids to know not only about sports
personalities, but also about the people who have made a big contribution to
our lives,” said Cameron during the IEEE awards ceremony which took place in
The IEEE (
IEEE Press Release:
7 December 2005, PISCATAWAY, NJ - - The IEEE presented
Phillip G, Huszar, a Standley Middle School, San Diego, Calif. teacher, with
the Educational Activities Board (EAB) Pre-University Educator Award for his
teaching methodology which helps his students retain their math skills. Dedicated to cultivating in his students a
deep understanding and affinity for the field of mathematics, Huszar received
the award earlier this month during an awards ceremony held in
Laying a foundation for true scientists and resourceful
engineers who have learned to think for themselves, Huszar has effectively
enabled his students to build upon a technical foundation and inspired them to
pursue science, engineering and other mathematics-related fields. Huszar has
been teaching algebra and geometry to sixth through eighth grade students in
the
Upon accepting the award, Huszar mentioned that a parent of a former student had submitted the nomination form and stated, “Knowing that I have had such a positive impact, knowing that I might have influenced a student in such a positive way, is the most wonderful gift that an educator can receive.”
The IEEE (
IEEE Press Release:
PISCATAWAY, NJ - - The IEEE presented Philip Keller with the Educational Activities Board (EAB) Pre-University Educator Award for his role in inspiring a generation of students to excel in science, mathematics and engineering through classroom interactions that bring both student and teacher to new heights in understanding, With more than 365,000 members in over 150 countries, the IEEE is the world's largest professional society dedicated to the advancement of technology.
Keller, who teaches physics and mathematics at
Inspiring students to excel by setting high goals for them, Keller also guides them through challenges which demonstrate that they can succeed as scientists. His effect on students goes far beyond the top honors they win in science competitions. Motivated by his support and enthusiasm, a number of his students work on physics projects throughout the summer. An innovative educator, Keller instills in his students a desire to learn and sets them on a path towards excellence. Many of his students have gone on to study engineering, physics, mathematics and medicine at Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Princeton, University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Michigan, with many continuing with graduate and research work in these areas.
“I have been teaching physics for 18 years. So, to receive
this award while not having quite reached the half-way mark in my career is not
only an honor, but also a challenge to me to continue to do good work. I hope
to meet the challenge,” said Keller during the awards ceremony held earlier
this month in
Keller has also developed many simulations for the
educational software program Interactive Physics, and has authored Keller’s
Math SAT Game Plan, which is currently being used by high school students
throughout the
The IEEE (
ABOUT IEEE EDUCATIONAL
ACTIVITIES:
The IEEE Educational Activities Board is responsible for coordinating the educational activities of the IEEE. The volunteer and staff members of IEEE Educational Activities carry out this responsibility by developing educational programs to ensure (1) The technological literacy of pre-college students, (2) the continuous maintenance and improvement of engineering education programs through active participation in accreditation activities, and (3) the development of continuing education products and services that serve the professional development and lifelong learning needs of electro-technology professionals worldwide. For more information, visit:
http://www.ieee.org/organizations/eab/
or email education-services@ieee.org.
ABOUT THE
The
8. Continuing EE Education
We are re-running this request for interest in a continuing education program. This program will be in the format of seminars focused on a particular topic of interest. The seminars may run either during the week after work hours or possibly on Saturday. The idea for the program is described below.
Name of project: Continuing EE Education (“CEEE”)
Goal: A section-level program aimed at:
Updating the IEEE members on new developments in the EE field.
Familiarizing engineers with basic new tools, products and techniques as well as giving them the initial knowledge and skills to use them.
Inviting representatives from different vendors to present leading novel products.
Giving tutorials in new areas.
Helping IEEE fellow members become more competitive, especially in times of uncertain jobs, off-shoring and salary stagnation.
Facilitating networking.
Broadening the horizon of each IEEE member.
Fostering collaboration between members of different societies as well as generation of new ideas (“cross-pollination” element).
The program should be open to all IEEE members, including students. It is meant to be a cross-societies initiative, i.e. should not be limited to narrow topics serving the interests of a single chapter only. Emphasis should be placed on meeting with experienced experts from different fields. Critical comparisons between different solutions of EE problems are expected to be made, and trends should be discussed.
Potential topics of interest could include, but are not limited to:
Software tools:
Programming languages
Compilers
Real-Time Operating systems
Debuggers
Emulators
Hardware tools:
Novel electronic components
Single-Board Computers (SBC)
Embedded solutions
FPGAs
Printed circuit board design (schematics capture, layout)
Circuit simulation (PSPICE)
Portable devices
Signal and image processing (examples, tools, help)
Wireless devices:
Theory
Standards
Available OEM products
Trends
Internet-based methods and devices:
Standards
Available tools
Contemporary design tools (like AutoCad and Solid Works)
Reliability and Compliance issues
We plan to invite qualified speakers from academia, industry and governmental institutions. The speakers will be professionals who can give first-hand information and share front-line experience on the technology, methods and tools being presented.
We plan to organize 2-4 meetings annually. Each meeting is planned to last for 2 hours or more. We could meet on weekdays, or on Saturdays.
Please send us your suggestions and preferences regarding topics, time and place of meetings, the name/acronym of the program etc.
Boris Gramatikov
Chair,
Bgramat@jhmi.edu