DISCUSS: How can Engineering Help Developing Nations Solve Critical Problems?

I was recently listening to Dr. Tony Marjoram, the former head of engineering sciences at UNESCO on  his discussion on how engineering can help developing nations solve critical problems.   It was a quite stimulating discussion in which Dr. Marjoram provides the following blueprint answering the subject question: He acknowledges that engineering is vital in ensuring [...]

A Great Engineer and Author – Nevil Shute

Every now and then we feature engineers that have contributed significantly to our profession. These exercises are simply to remind you of the important role that we play as engineers and also to provide useful insights into the lives of celebrated engineers, scientists and even authors. Nevil Shute is one such engineer. While he was [...]

Profile Engineer – Archimedes

Archimedes is know as one of the great scientists of antiquity mostly hailed for his mathematical work, his theories of mechanics and his clever use of machines in the defense of Syracuse against the Romans. It is believed he studied under followers of Euclid in Alexandria, Egypt before returning to his native Syracuse, then an [...]

5 Amazing Gifts for Engineers that will cost you less than $20

Engineers are peculiar people.  We see numbers where others see lines. We like complexity and dislike anything petty. Much more so, it the latter does not involve math. We admire the marriage between steel and concrete.  So it is not a surprising occurrence for a non-engineer to be unable to understand the things we like.   [...]

Brain Teaser: Fill in the Blanks

Four words with the letters SNT, in that order, have all their other letters removed. You must use the letters below to fill in the blanks.
_ _ S _ N T _ _ _
S _ _ N T
S _ N _ _ T
S _ _ _ N T
Letters to use: A, A, E, E, E, I, I, L, L, Q, S, S, U, U

Brain Teaser: A Sliding Ladder

A 25 ft ladder (assume it is not an extension ladder) is placed with its foot 7 ft away from a building. If the top of the ladder slips down 4 ft, how many feet will the bottom slide out?

Brain teaser – A distribution manager’s dilemma

John the distribution manager for a leading mobile phone company has a dilemma. The warehouse has 10 unlabelled rows of pallets, each row contains thousands of phones destined for different countries. Each 100g mobile phone is exactly the same except for those in the row destined for Japan, which have a “special” 2g chip encased [...]

Conflict in the Workplace: A Waste of Time and Energy?

A discussion on conflict in the workplace. Should you avoid it, ignore it, or address it and risk destablizing your workforce?

Brain Teaser – An 8-inch model screw

An 8-inch model screw, tested in a water tunnel at a rotational speed of 22.5 revolutions per second and a velocity of flow of 12 feet per second, yields a measured thrust of 28.5 pounds, a torque of 3.45 pounds and an efficiency of 70 per cent. If the model scale is 1:25, what should [...]

Brain Teaser – Determine the code to open the briefcase

Doug had forgotten the 5 digit code to his briefcase. However, he did remember five clues: The fifth number plus the third number equals fourteen; The fourth number is one more than the second number; The first number is one less than twice the second number; The second number plus the third number equals ten; [...]

Should an engineer be an expert in one thing, or ok/good at everything?

Today’s topic is an interesting one, and depends largely on personal preference. It’s something that comes up for engineers every day: Be decent at many things, or be the absolute end-all-be-all expert in one thing? Some might respond with, “Well, how about being an expert at everything?”

The Raffle Tickets Brain Teaser

Challenge your brain with this interesting brain teaser. Given a number of statement find the solution to the question asked.

Does Your Company Need A Data Czar?

Darron Pustam discusses the idea of effectively integrating all of your firm’s technologies under one umbrella that will undoubtedly save you time and money.

Challenge your brain – Boys vs. Girls jigsaw puzzle

A team of 6 girls and 4 boys put together a 2200-piece jigsaw puzzle in 4 hours. The same jigsaw puzzle was put together in 8 hours by a team of two girls and five boys.

Who are better at putting jigsaw puzzles together, boys or girls, and by how much?

Top 10 Engineering Graduate Schools in the USA

US News and World report recently published their list of the top 10 engineering graduate schools in the USA. This year’s list contain some of the usual contenders plus several other newcomers.

Brain teaser – Make this equation true, 999999999999999 = 1990

Insert +, -, x or / in suitable places on the left hand side of = so as to make the above equation true:

10 ways social networking can impact your business and career as a civil engineering professional

A guide pointing out the various benefits of using social networks as a means of career development and capturing news clients and employees. These benefits include,
Recruiting Professionals
Industry News
Relationship Building
Marketing/Branding
Recruiting College Students
Recruiting Boomerangs
RFP’s
Professional Growth