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Recruiting Women into the Engineering Profession

inside this issue: can concrete float? chemical engineeringâ€™s golden anniversary +1 eweek at msu

Message from the Dean Greetings from the Bagley College of Engineering at Mississippi State! Many of you may be planning graduation celebration parties this spring. Mississippi State University’s spring graduation ceremony is May 4. We congratulate all our students who will receive degrees on this special day. We are proud of you. We have other accomplishments to note as well; let me take a moment to mention those stories. Dean Kirk Schulz is now serving as the interim Vice President for Research and Development. Dr. Robert (“Doc”) Fogelsong recognized the outstanding leadership and team building qualities of Kirk’s management style and has asked him to fill this position during their vice presidential search. In the interim, I will serve as acting Dean of the Bagley College of Engineering. Thanks to a well-developed strategic plan and clear objectives this transition has been a smooth one; and our team continues to make positive strides to accomplish our vision of being recognized as one of the top 50 colleges of engineering in the United States. One of the measurable objectives in achieving this goal is to increase investments in the college from our alumni and corporate friends. I’m pleased to report that John Reece, a 1965 graduate, was instrumental in

opening a new ClearOrbit Inc. office in the Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park. This story highlights how the collaboration of the college and ClearOrbit has a positive impact on the students and the state’s economy. The college also is instrumental in developing another entrepreneurial partnership with Stark Aerospace, a new flight-testing company located at the Raspet Flight Research Laboratory. Read how our aerospace department is marketing our high-tech research capabilities to attract new businesses to the area. Other signs of accomplishment are in the areas of academic research and teaching. The college is proud to announce that Drs. Adrienne Minerick and Keith Walters have been honored with a National Science Foundation CAREER Award. The NSF bestows this $500,000 award to only a few professors in the country who are in the first three years of their career. Since the turn of the century, 12 MSU professors have been granted this prestigious award. Our “Movers and Shakers” segment lists other faculty awards and distinctions. Of course, all of our research and teaching efforts would not be possible without the generous donations from our alumni and friends. Richard Rula, a 1970 graduate, and his wife Sherry are making a donation that will create the Richard Rula Construction Engineering and Management Endowed

Professorship. Their gift will impact the lives of students and enhance the curriculum of construction engineering. Another point of pride is our recruiting efforts. Each year, the college hosts the Region V Science and Engineering Fair. More than 900 grade and high school students from across the state were here on campus presenting their science experiments. We highlight some interesting projects and introduce one of the students who is advancing to the International Science and Engineering Fair. In addition, please enjoy the photos of our students participating in some very creative activities during “Engineering Week.” Speaking of unusual projects, our civil engineering students have spent countless hours researching and creating a concrete boat that will float. They tell us an interesting story of how they achieve their goal. There is always something of interest happening here at the Bagley College of Engineering. If you are on campus for spring graduation, please stop by and see us. As always, I wish you all well and invite you to comment, participate and help us achieve our ultimate goal by letting the rest of the world know of the outstanding engineering program we have at MSU.

Go Dawgs! Glenn Steele

table of contents 03

Editors

National Engineers Week sweeps the nation and our own MSU engineers take to competitions and celebration.

Kay Jones Allen Smith

Learning to breach the system

Writers

Laura Eakes Diane L. Godwin

ASE readies businesses for â€˜take offâ€?

Ar t Direction Heather M. Rowe

Mississippi Region V Science and Engineering Fair discovers student myth busters

Illustrations

Development notes

Tom White

Can concrete shaped like a boat float?

Photographers Megan Bean Laura Eakes Diane L. Godwin Russ Houston Heather M. Rowe

Pioneering the future

Become a master engineer from anywhere in the world

Accomplished alumnus remembers his home state and alma mater

Advisory Board W. Glenn Steele Roger King Donna Reese Robert Green Ryan Little Michele Anderson

Robots tackle the quandary of laundry

Distinguished Fellows

Movers & Shakers

Subscription, Inquiries & Address Changes: Momentum PO Box 9544 Miss. State, MS 39762 or publications@ bagley.msstate.edu

www.bagley.msstate.edu

Golden Anniversary + 1

Recruiting women into the engineering profession Cover: Sheena Reeves, a graduate chemical engineering student, inserts samples into the gas chromatograph autosampler for analysis.

E-WEEK

Spanning the campus to bring you the constant variety of sport! The thrill of victory...and the agony of defeat! The human drama of athletic and intellectual competition! This is the Bagley College of Engineering E-WEEK! Eight departmental teams competing for seven days, who had the perseverance and determination to claim the title of “BEST (Engineering) MAJOR ON CAMPUS.”

E-Week Activities at MSU were planned by the Engineering Student Council.

Competition was fierce and the end points were close, but ASE pulled ahead to claim another victory with ISE and CEE hot on their heals. The other departments look towards next year with another opportunity to take down the ASE champs. For a complete list of scores and totals on all events please visit the ESC’s website at: http://www.msstate.edu/org/esc/

Officers President: Christina Matson - Senior, BE Vice President: Jack Aultman - Senior, ISE Director of Communications: Aaron Boudreaux - Sophomore, CSE Director of Legal and Finance: Lan Holloway - Sophomore, ME New Member Liaison: Dale Alderman - Sophomore, ISE Freshman Coordinator : Jacqueline Bickel - Sophomore, ISE

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ABE’s “Eggclectic” Idea Wins Egg Drop

BE students Sam Pote, Pooja Kothari, Solana Fernandez, Shelly Sharma and Teri Vaughn were “eggstordinary” in their egg drop design. BE claimed the win in the egg drop competition with their innovative design and dropping technique.

Every year, MSU engineering students look forward to the tradition of celebrating “Engineering Week.” The National Society of Professional Engineers first established National Engineers Week in 1951 and designated one week out of the year to promote the field as a whole, and to recognize the work and contributions from our country’s engineers. In February, students from eight engineering departments gathered into teams and strategized how to achieve their objective of winning the coveted “Best (Engineering) Major on Campus.” The MSU Engineering Student Council organized the week’s competitive activi-

CEE Creates “Bedlum” Around Campus

Civil & Environmental’s team of Andrew Jouben, Hayley Martin, Chris Tissue, Erica Souther, and Austin Moore put this race to bed winning first place.

ties which included E-lympics, an engineering scavenger hunt, duct tape competition, as well as counting attendance and measuring knowledge retained during educational speaker forums. The ESC sets the competition rules and regulations. Members referee each team as they accumulate points awarded for participation in the week’s community service activities, educational speaker meetings and other fun competitions. Over the past four years, a rivalry has been established here at the Bagley College of Engineering. It all started in 2003 with a tie between the chemical engineers and the electrical and computer engineering majors for the overall

Student Stuck on ASE

Aerospace student Jarred Reneau, senior, has almost a whole roll of duct tap adhering his body to a wall. Sticking to it for a whole 20 minutes won ASE second in this competition.

winner. In 2004, aerospace engineers split the prize with the chemical engineers. Aerospace claimed sole possession of the coveted award in 2005 and has held the title for two years. In 2007, their winning streak is yet to be broken as aerospace again showed tremendous effort and support from its entire student body to claim the title of “Best (Engineering) Major on Campus.” The race for the top spot was very close with industrial and systems engineering majors placing second, and civil and environmental engineering placing third. With such close scores, it is obvious that ASE will have to fight hard next year to keep its undefeated record alive.

Bagley College of Engineering

Momentum

Winning team of “Capture the Flag” Left Image: (front, l-r) Michael King of Texarkana, Texas, Bryan Robbins of Clinton and Amos Kungu, a master’s student from Nairobi, Kenya; and (back, l-r) Matt Culpepper of Chunky and Brian McFarland of Brandon. Right Image: Sherry Thomas of Greenwood, senior and Cyber Corps scholarship recipient, looks to her fellow team-mates.

Learning to Breach the System Computer engineering students at Mississippi State have been encouraged to hack into computer security systems. These student teams were competing in a “Capture the Flag” exercise staged by the computer science and engineering department. The competition was held in the Information and Security Classroom in the Center for Computer Security Research. Although the students competed to see who could break into the most security systems in the least amount of time, what they were really learning was how to defend against different types of cybercrime. Dr. Rayford Vaughn, a Billie Jay Ball Professor of Computer Science and Engineering and the CCSR director, said companies’ computer security systems are always vulnerable because hackers are relentless in trying to find ways to penetrate security systems. “It is very close to ‘hacking,’ but, in reality, it is designed to develop the special skill of penetration testing,” explained Vaughn. “This is the culmination of a semesterlong course in which we have taught the students how to secure their systems.”

By Robbie Ward

With the growing popularity of e-business, corporate America’s success and existence often depends on their computer security system software and the capability of their information technology employees. IT is constantly changing and companies hire highly skilled computer engineers to stay one step ahead of computer hackers. Keeping this in mind, graduate students Wesley McGrey and Wes Haung, along with consultation from Russ Ward, assistant systems administrator for the department of computer science and engineering, used four computers with varying levels of security. They used the computers to design four programs to challenge students to find how hackers break through security firewalls, as well as discover other vulnerabilities in the systems.

ogy to apply the theories they learned in the classroom. Bryan Robbins is a software engineering science student and member of team “b00ger,” which won the staged competition.

“We created actual real-world scenarios and added some other technological twists and complications they might see,” McGrey said. “Basically if they know how to break into a machine, then they know how to protect one.”

Haung, one of Vaughn’s graduate students, is pursing a master’s degree in computer engineering and is a recipient of a U.S. Department of Defense Scholarship. Haung will work full time as a penetrations tester for the Navy when he graduates from MSU in May.

Vaughn’s students were enrolled in a computer security course all semester and the lab competition experience provided them an opportunity to use state-of-the art technol-

As for the other students, they, along with Vaughn’s guidance, are preparing for a national student computer hacking competition.

“I saw firsthand what challenges I would face if I work as a systems administrator after graduating from MSU,” said Robbins. “It’s amazing to see how a highly motivated person can really do some harm.” The Center for Computer Security Research has enabled the College of Business and Industry and the Bagley College of Engineering to have a unique cross-college collaboration that serves as a seldom-seen model. As a result, business and engineering students are learning from some of the best professors in the field and the results are paying off.

Spring 2007

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“It allows us to build a partnership where everyone can benefit greatly. They win because of their growth; and then

ASE Department Readies Companies for ‘Take-off’

By Diane L. Godwin

the state wins because of the economic development; the department, the college and the entire University wins because it is an advantage for our students to have this technology and development locally.” says Vizzini.

Mississippi State, in collaboration with the Mississippi Economic Development Authority, is creating a favorable business climate that is attracting high-tech aerospace industries. The department of aerospace engineering at the Bagley College of Engineering supports flight industries wanting to locate in Starkville by serving as a sort of new business incubator. Dr. Anthony Vizzini, department head and Bill and Carolyn Cobb Chair, stresses that one of the roles of the university is to support industry that will grow in the area and in the state. He claims that is where aerospace engineering can really have an impact. With more than 60 years of flight test engineering, Vizzini said the department’s technical expertise, graduates and alumni network are a big draw to industry. “In the 1940s, Gus Raspet set up a program in low speed flight and that began a long-standing tradition of test flight engineering at MSU,” he explained. “As a result, we a have a lot of experience in working with developing aircraft from design, to prototype, to actual flight. That is a fairly unique capability that this university has; you won’t find another university across the nation that is involved in that aspect.” MSU’s Raspet Flight Research Laboratory and aerospace engineering program assist the new businesses by offering access to facilities, knowledge of the market and technical expertise. These factors alone are very attractive to aerospace entities, and at the same time, the university is helping to create new economic growth in the state. “We provide them with, say, a two-year window in which they can get themselves planted firmly in the area and get to know

the lay of the land, set up their market, set up their product line, and grow to the point where they move out of our facility and into their own facility,” Vizzini said. This set-up was successful for Aurora Flight Sciences. The company began its business at the Raspet Flight Lab, located on Starkville’s Bryan Field, and then grew to a point where it “graduated” and moved to Golden Triangle Regional Airport. The firm recently held a ground-breaking ceremony as construction began on its new facility that will employ more than 300 people when fully operational. “It allows us to build a partnership where everyone can benefit greatly. They win because of their growth, and then the state wins because of the economic development, the department, the college, and the entire university wins because it is an advantage for our students to have this technology and development locally,” Vizzini explained. “The Mississippi Economic Development Authority has put in a substantial investment in the facilities to renovate them to the level necessary for these companies to work in,” Vizzini pointed out. “We benefit in the long run because once those companies have those renovations done and move on, we’re left with the state-of-the-art building.” Other successful partnerships include the Honda project that involved building a twin-engine business jet. The Japan-based company built an aerospace technology and development facility at Bryan Field where it built and flew a prototype aircraft. Today Honda has its newest product on the market: a little $3 million business jet. And, it all started here at Mississippi State University. Momentum

Left to Right: MeShay LeAnn Jimmie is a fourth-grader at Conehatta Elementary School in Jackson. Jimmie created a replica of the human lungs to see if she could model the work of the lungs in the human body. Carson Miller, a seventh-grader at Fifth Street Junior High in West Point, built a science experiment called “Hover or Suffer” that uses electricity and air as energy to cut down on pollution. Rina Leigh is a fourth-grader at Fairview Elementary in Columbus. Leigh displays the design on the science fair’s t-shirt.

Mississippi Region V Science and Engineering Fair Discovers Student Myth Busters By Diane L. Godwin Many would say that Humphrey Coliseum recently looked like the television set of the popular Discovery Channel cable television show “Myth Busters,” however, instead of two scientists conducting experiments, there were 910.

themselves and to their peers that they can critically contemplate and problem-solve on their own.”

Elementary and high school students from 16 Mississippi counties were on the Mississippi State campus spring semester to compete in the Region V Science and Engineering Fair. It is hosted by the Bagley College of Engineering. Students from 40 different schools were exhibiting and defending their research projects with the hopes of qualifying for international competition; out of 910, only two earn the opportunity.

Students in grades seven through 12 and teams who place first, second or third advance to the state fair at the University of Southern Mississippi. Scholars who qualify for the International Science and Engineering Fair are evaluated on presentation and knowledge of the subject and how well they adhere to the scientific method or engineering process. Last year, a student who advanced from the Mississippi Region V competition won first place in her category and the overall grand award at ISEF competition.

Bagley College of Engineering’s K-12 Outreach Coordinator Emma Seiler said, “A science fair project can be very self-assuring for students because it involves discovering answers for their scientific questions. Learning and developing solutions can be a thrilling discovery and it proves to

Besides learning and fun, there are some added advantages for science fair entrants. High school students who win awards typically are admitted to the college of their choice because science fair honors rank high among screening factors used by admission officers at most top universities.

In addition, regional, national and international winners can earn substantial cash and scholarships. The overall winner of the ISEF can earn $50,000 dollars in scholarships, a $5,000 cash price and a laptop. The scholarships and prizes are funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, ISEF and other organizations. The Bagley College of Engineering has been hosting the Region V competition since 1988. “It’s important for Mississippi State to host this science fair because it clarifies the exciting careers that students can pursue if they study science, math or engineering in college,” explained Donna Reese, associate dean of engineering. “A lot of teachers and parents don’t encourage their children to take an interest in science, math and engineering and it seems that participation in a science fair is one sure way to show a student that they have potential in building a career in these areas.”

Spring 2007

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Hallie Freyaldenhoven will be taking her environmental science project “Effects of P450 Inhibitors on Fundulus Development and CYP1 Expression,” to Albuquerque, New Mexico to compete in the International Science and Engineering Fair. Freyaldenhoven is a senior at the Mississippi School for Math and Science. We asked her to explain in layman terms just exactly what her project is all about.

“Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is a known chemical carcinogen. BaP is very relevant in everything we do; it’s generated from carbon and fossil fuel. What I did is I mixed four different compounds—piperonyl butoxide (PBO), A-naphthoflavone (ANF), fluoranthene (FL), 2-aminoanthracene (AA) with BaP. My goal is to lessen the effects of these carcinogens on fish; however the opposite happened and it caused heart deformities.” Freyaldenhoven plans to continue her experiments to find a compound mixture that will reduce the negative affects of BaP on wildlife. Her perseverance is paying off, her project also earned 2nd place in the Region V upper class category “Earth, Space and Environmental,” and recognized with two special honors—the Navy Award and Richoh Sustainable Development Award.

Morgan Bailey is a sophomore at Philadelphia High School and she loves construction and building objects. Her project, “Which Bridge Design is the Strongest,” took second place in the upperclass “Engineering, Computers and Math” category. With Popsicle sticks, wire and hot glue Bailey built mini replicas of an arch, truss and suspension bridge. She made sure they were all the same size and weight and then put them through a strength test.

“The arch was the easiest to build, and to our surprise, it was the one that held the most weight,” Bailey said. “I figured it would be the truss; all my research suggests that the truss had a high probability of holding the most loads. However, maybe the difference is my design and the way I constructed the bridges.” Bailey has two more years of high school to try to qualify for the International Science and Engineering Fair. Right now she is concentrating on preparing her project for the state competition in Hattiesburg.

Rodgrick Hickman is a 12th-grader at Noxubee County High School. His science and engineering fair project, “Catalytic Conversion of Glycerin into Sustainable Products using Pressurized Thermal Reaction,” earned him first place in the upperclass “Earth, Space, and Environmental” category. He was named first alternate finalist for the International Science and Engineering Fair. Hickman’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to investigate how glycerin could be converted and used as a product.

“Glycerin is a bi-product of bio-diesel production. For every 100 gallons of bio-diesel produced, 10 gallons of glycerin is left over,” he explained. “With an increase in the production of bio-diesel, we could have a mass surplus of leftover glycerin that would have no value. What we did is produce small amounts of lactic acid from the glycerin, which can be used as a bio-degradable plastic.” Hickman said he will continue to conduct more research on affordable substances that can be used as catalysts to convert the glycerin into larger amounts of lactic acid. For now, he is preparing his presentation for competition at the state level. Bagley College of Engineering

Future Engineers

The Importance of Recruiting Women into the Engineering Profession By Diane L. Godwin

Only 9 percent of American engineers are women. For most, that statement may not have any significant meaning or evoke concern. However, that number becomes real and personal when it impacts the women in our lives. Their dreams of becoming aerospace, electrical, computer, biomedical, chemical or environmental engineers are being dissuaded because those jobs are not considered “domestic,” or they are considered “a tough road to follow,” or because of a lack of understanding of the careers available in the profession. For reasons like these, current work force projections show that unless more women are encouraged to pursue careers in science, technology and engineering, the United States will not have the trained personnel necessary to meet its needs. The reason: 50 percent of the population are women and they are a major consumer group. When companies hire women engineers they gain a better understanding of their customers’ needs, improve product designs and compete more effectively in the marketplace. The low numbers of women practicing in the engineering profession can be discouraging, but the Bagley College of Engineering is changing that situation. The college is hiring more female professors, conducting teacher education workshops, and offering outreach and mentor programs that teach elementary and high school girls the reasons to consider engineering as a profession. As a result, female enrollment and graduation rates at the college are up.

Spring 2007

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A female student who really studies for an exam earns a “C” while one of her male classmates earns the same grade and expresses that he is doing great in the class. After overhearing this, she begins to worry that she is falling behind in the class. Sometimes there is a big difference between the genders in how they measure performance. This female student had a false impression in thinking she wasn’t keeping up with the group. Many female students think this way and, in actuality, they are earning equal or better grades. Most days you can find Dr. Donna Reese surrounded by a group of young students asking her questions about life, academic requirements for graduation, or her opinion on how to approach a certain professor. Reese’s career centers on providing academic advice for engineering and computer science college students. Her job of associate dean also means she has administrative leadership tasks to attend to, but what is most important to her is that the students pursue and understand a career that they will enjoy. “In general, I think the engineering profession is not well understood,” Reese said. “Girls, particularly girls in middle and high school who are deciding what they want to do…their picture of an engineer is male and

K-12 Outreach Programs Bulldog BEST Science & Engineering Fair SECME UFPME Summer Camp Women In Action Camp WISE Women Camp Intro to Engineering SEE QUEST IMAGE www.bagley.msstate.edu/outreach

white and probably someone who is antisocial and doesn’t work with a lot of people and they can’t see themselves working in that environment.” The Bagley College of Engineering has several K-12 outreach programs that are critical to growing the diversity of the entire engineering student population. Just as important are the outreach programs’ role of teaching underrepresented groups, as well as all students, what it means to be an engineer—and that it is not sitting in the back room working math problems. Many say the engineering profession has the media to thank for developing teens’ misperceptions of engineering. Dr. Lori Bruce is a professor of electrical and computer engineering. “That is an uphill battle and very hard to overcome because we’re working against the movies that depict unattractive white males, wearing a lab coat, pocket protector, and thick black glasses as the nerdy scientists, engineers and mathematicians. Finally, there is a television show called, “Numbers,” and I love that show because they make math glamorous. Look what CSI did for the chemistry, biology and forensic educational programs—their enrollments have skyrocketed,” Bruce added. In addition to teaching in the classroom, one of Bruce’s many roles as an assistant director of the MSU GeoResources Institute is to help find funding for international research that supports the management and monitoring of earth’s resources. Last year, she helped generate more than $16 million in federal funds and this year her grant writing and fund-raising efforts will exceed that amount. Bruce admitted that her success has not always come easy. She recalled some challenging situations when she was a graduate student. “It wasn’t until I was in graduate school that I realized that I might be a fish out of water. Being one of the only females in the program, you begin to feel very lonely and you tend to stay in your room and study by yourself. “As a result, you become very isolated and very depressed because you are not social-

izing, you are not developing that support system,” Bruce explained. “There were times when I would want to say to my guy classmates, ‘Let’s go study or let’s go hang out on Friday night and then we’ll go work on our project in the lab.’ When I finally had the nerve to go up and ask, they would look at me like ‘Are you trying to ask me out?’ So, there was just this awkward dynamic.”

“If you’re the minority, whether that is by race or gender, feeling welcomed and included makes a big difference in retaining students.” Academic reports indicate that many female student engineers with high grade-point averages are more likely to change their major of study because of a lack of social support systems. Today, just 20 percent of the nation’s engineering students are women. Dr. Noel Schulz is an associate professor in electrical engineering. “As a society we need to change our message to girls,” Schulz said. “Right now, they are pursuing careers that appear more flexible because teachers, parents and other role models are telling them that they will not be able to balance a career in engineering and a family.” Schulz is a mother of two and sets an example of a successful woman who balances family life and a successful career. Between monitoring her boys’ homework, attending Boy Scout meetings and Little League practice, Schulz has earned the Tennessee Valley Authority Endowed Professorship in Power Systems Engineering award; she is working with Northrop Grumman on research to develop a ship that is powered by electricity; won a National Science Foundation CAREER Award; and has published more than 90 research articles. Thanks to women like Reese, Bruce, Schulz, and others, stereotypes about careers for women have changed over the years, but statistics show that candidates applying for most engineering and technology related jobs are still mostly men. We all need to work together to foster girls’ interest in engineering and at the same time check our own stereotypical beliefs about “appropriate careers that are good for girls and women.”

Bagley College of Engineering

Momentum

The Women Engineering Faculty of the Bagley College of Engineering Donna Reese Associate Dean for Academics and Administration Bagley College of Engineering Ph.D., Texas A&M University, 1985 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: John Grisham Master Teacher, 2004 Outstanding Faculty Adviser from the National Academic Advising Association, 2004 Senior Member of IEEE, 2006 and ACM, 2007 College of Engineering Outstanding Educator, 1998 Member Upsilon Pi Epsilon Computer Science Honor Society

Lori Bruce Associate Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Director of the MSU GeoResources Institute Ph.D., Electrical Engineering, University of Alabama in Huntsville Academic Awards/ Research and Fields of Interest: National Science Foundation—Graduate Research Fellowship, 1992-1995 UNLV Faculty Award for Academic Excellence and Student Focus, 1998 Outstanding Faculty Award from UNLV Alumni Association, 2000 Faculty Appreciation Award from MSU National Society of Black Engineers Chapter, 2003, 2005 Departmental Nominee for MSU Alumni Award for Outstanding Graduate Educator, 2005

Noel Schulz Associate Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering TVA Professorship in Power Systems Engineering Ph.D., Electrical Engineering, University of Minnesota, 1995 Academic Awards/ Research and Fields of Interest: TVA Endowed Professorship in Power Systems Engineering, 2005-present. IEEE Power Engineering Society Walter Fee Outstanding Young Power Engineer Award, 2002 Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) C. Holmes MacDonald Outstanding Young Electrical Engineering Professor Award, 2002. IEEE Power Engineering Society, elected Secretary for 2004-05 and 2006-07 NSF CAREER Award, 1998-2003. IEEE Senior Member, August 2000.

Carrie D. Olsen Assistant Professor, Aerospace Engineering Ph.D., in Aerospace Engineering, University of Texas at Austin, Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Numerous NASA group and individual achievement awards including two for sustained superior performance NASA Center Director’s Commendation for Technology Development

Orbital mechanics as related to space mission planning Improvement of mission operations practices and techniques Solution of human factors challenges for long-duration human space missions

University Faculty Research Award for Bagley College of Engineering-MSU, 2005 Outstanding Faculty Engineering Research AwardBagley College of Engineering-MSU 2004 Hearin Professor of Engineering Award-College of Engineering-MSU, 2001

Priscilla J. Hill Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering

Susan M. Bridges Professor, Computer Science and Engineering

Ph.D., University of Massachusetts, 1996 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: National Science Foundation CAREER Award, 2005 Crystallization Particle technology Process synthesis and design Population balance equations

Ph.D., University of Alabama at Huntsville, 1989 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest Co-director, MSU Institute for Digital Biology Hearin Distinguished Professor Computational biology Artificial intelligence, data mining and knowledge discovery

Adrienne R. Minerick Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering

Julia E. Hodges Professor and Department Head Computer Science and Engineering

Ph.D., University of Notre Dame du Lac, 2003 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: National Science Foundation CAREER Award, 2007 Director, Medical micro-Device Engineering Research Laboratory (M.D. -ERL) Counselor to the Board and Programming Chair, American Electrophoresis Society, 2004-07 Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Award, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, 2004 Clare Boothe Luce Fellowship Scholar, 1998-2002

Rebecca K. Toghiani Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering Ph.D.Ch.E., University of Missouri-Columbia, 1988 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: ASEE Southeastern Section, Outstanding Teaching Award, 2004 Dow Outstanding New Faculty Award, 1996 Outstanding Faculty Woman, 2001, MSU President’s Commission on the Status of Women ASEE CHE Division, Joseph J. Martin Award,1997 John Grisham Master Teacher, 1996-98, MSU

Keisha B. Walters Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering Ph.D., Clemson University, 2005 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, 2006 Outstanding Woman Graduate Student, Clemson University, 2004 GAANN Fellowship, Clemson University, 2002-04 Polymer Surface and Biopolymer Engineering; Stimuli-Responsive Polymers; Microsensor Technologies

Ioana Banicescu Professor, Computer Science and Engineering Ph.D., Polytechnic University, New York, 1996 Academic Awards /Research and Fields of Interest: Hearin Eminent Scholar Award-MSU, 2005 National Science Foundation Early CAREER Award, 2000-05

Ph.D., University of Southwestern Louisiana Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Knowledge Discovery Data Mining

Jenny Q. Du Assistant Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering Ph.D., Electrical Engineering, University of Maryland, 2000 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Remote Sensing Image Analysis Pattern Recognition Data Compression Super-resolution Neural Networks

Sarah A. Rajala James Worth Bagley Chair and Department Head Electrical and Computer Engineering Ph.D., Rice University, 1979 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring Fellow of the IEEE Digital Video Signal Processing Digital Image Processing Engineering Education

Kari Babski-Reeves Assistant Professor Industrial and Systems Engineering Ph.D., Mississippi State University, 2000 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Industrial ergonomics Work related musculoskeletal disorder prevention and control Occupational safety and health Total body fatigue Thermography applications in ergonomics

Spring 2007

Sandra Eksioglu Assistant Professor, Industrial and Systems Engineering Ph.D. University of Florida, 2002 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Operations Research Logistics and supply chain management Network optimization Evacuation planning and operations Information technology

Lesley Strawderman Assistant Professor Industrial and Systems Engineering Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University, 2005 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Human factors and ergonomics Service quality improvement Health care process improvement

Judy Schneider Associate Professor Mechanical Engineering Department Ph.D., University of California, Davis, 1996 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Mechanical Properties of Materials Materials Characterization High Temperature Structural Materials

Lakiesha N. Williams Research Assistant Professor Biomedical Engineering Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering, Mississippi State University, 2006 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Multi-scale mechanics of biological tissues Structure-property relationships of biological materials Bio-inspired engineering design Molecular Biology

Rani Sullivan Assistant Professor Aerospace Engineering Ph.D., Mississippi State University, 2004 Academic Awards/Research and Fields of Interest: Mechanics of Solids Time dependent behavior of polymeric composites Damage mechanics of composites Experimental testing of lightweight composite structures Tau Beta Pi Sigma Gamma Tau

www.bagley.msstate.edu

Development Notes

Throughout this past year we have gone through many transitions and come to know what it means to be One State, One Team. It’s the positive synergy a team creates when all the members know their role and believe in accomplishing a given mission and vision. President Robert H. “Doc” Foglesong calls it “Dawg Power,” and the Bagley College of Engineering is experiencing it firsthand. For changes to have the intended positive affects in accomplishing the mission and vision of the university, administrators need the entire organization’s support. In addition, change usually equates to growth and that is why we are proud to support the president’s decision in asking engineering Dean Kirk Schulz to serve as the interim vice president for research and economic development. With 28 years of experience and historical knowledge of the college, we are fortunate to have Dr. Glenn Steele serving as the acting dean. In his years of service to the university, Glenn has been honored with the Shackouls Professorship and has been named a William L. Giles Distinguished Professor. We thank him for his willingness to fulfill the responsibilities of directing the college once again. The development office has added a new member to our team. I am pleased to introduce you to Michele Anderson. Michele started in January as the assistant director of

development and brings tremendous enthusiasm and professionalism after serving the university as an associate administrator of sponsored programs. Michele’s experience includes grant and contract administration, serving as a liaison between the university and federal and state agencies, as well as corporate and private foundations. Before her affiliation with MSU, Michele was a fundraiser and event planner for continuing medical education events. She is a graduate of the University of Alabama and holds a master’s degree in business administration from Southern New Hampshire University. Michele’s husband Tommy is an assistant professor in the department of English. Please give Michele a warm welcome; we are fortunate to have her on our team. Thanks to you, new programs are being implemented and our research areas are continuing to grow and flourish. A way to ensure that a program is being supported in perpetuity is to establish an endowment. There are many opportunities here for you, such as supporting students through scholarships, supporting our diversity outreach efforts, or helping the university attract bright scholarly minds to teach the engineers of tomorrow. We have a rich history of support and one of the most recent examples is the generous gift from Richard and Cheryl Rula. The Richard A. Rula Construction Engineering and Manage-

ment Endowed Professorship will support a new faculty member in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. An endowed professorship or an endowed chair is a tool to help the college and university attract and retain top faculty. Having the honor of holding a professorship or chair carries a level of prestige that is recognized throughout the world. It helps acknowledge the hard work, dedication and impact that the individual has made in his or her respective field of expertise. We currently have 24 endowed professorships and chairs within the Bagley College of Engineering and it is our goal to significantly grow that number. Attracting and retaining faculty who are at the top of their field is an important factor that helps reach our goal to become a top 50 engineering program by 2010. To learn more about how you can make a difference through any endowment, please feel free to contact either Michele or me for details. As always, thank you for everything that you do for the Bagley College of Engineering and for Mississippi State University! We are One State. One Team.

F. Ryan Little Director of Development

Bagley College of Engineering

Momentum

Civil engineering students at the Bagley College of Engineering have done it. They achieved their goal of building a concrete canoe that can float.

Can Concrete Shaped Like a Boat Float? By Diane L. Godwin

The weight of water is 62 pounds and the concrete canoe must weigh less in order to float. Many may have doubts about such an unusual assignment and the question may be asked, “What is the point of building a concrete canoe?” Each year, university civil engineering students from across the nation compete in concrete canoe races at the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Concrete Canoe Competition. Mississippi State students entered in the Deep South Regional in Ruston, La. Creating a recipe that makes a concrete canoe float and is strong enough to hold four paddling passengers, as well as endure five water races, is not easy. In fact, Austin Moore, president of the Mississippi State chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers and the canoe team captain, said there are many steps to this unusual project. It all began with them conducting more than 400 hours of research. “Jesse Doyle, our co-captain, and I started studying ingredients that could be substituted for rocks, gravel and sand, which are known as aggregates in the concrete industry—key ingredients in concrete that don’t float,” said Moore. “What we actually ended up doing is substituting the heavy substances with a lightweight ceramic and glass material.” Formulating various concrete recipes, Moore and Doyle began sampling concrete mixtures. They tested the batches for strength and weight. The next step in the process was investigating alternative canoe shapes, or hull design, that would be most efficient for canoe racing. Keeping in mind the objective of the competition and the diversity of the races, Moore and Doyle wanted to design a fast, yet versatile, canoe with maximum stability. A shallow “V” bottom canoe proved to be the best choice and they began the process of designing the mold. In addition to lightweight concrete, it is important to have materials like Styrofoam to increase buoyancy and wire mesh for added strength. After the concrete hardens, the next strategy of taking concrete out of the form is one of the most important. A team’s dream of competition will be over with just one crack. Much like

baking a cake and greasing the pan, Moore and Doyle’s team rubbed Vaseline on the inside of the mold prior to pouring to ensure that the concrete did not stick. “The canoe literally fell out of the mold and we didn’t have to break the canoe form,” said Doyle. “This is a positive because we can use the frame to safely transport it to Louisiana.” Moore reminded Doyle that there are some negatives to consider. The canoe’s average thickness is one inch, which makes it heavy. That means it could be slower during race competition, however thicker means stronger and the probability is higher that the canoe can endure all five races and return to the MSU campus—one of the team’s ultimate goals.

“We are trying to start a tradition at MSU, and our hopes are that each year new teams will take previous years’ successes and failures and build upon them,” says Moore. The 10-member team will be judged in several categories. The first is an oral presentation where they will introduce their engineering manuscript, which includes records of mixture proportions, photographs of their mold, graphs and charts that show gradation and curves, as well as hull thickness and reinforcement. The canoe also is judged on aesthetics and durability. “We have learned a lot about teamwork and time management skills. This is a project that needs to start in August and finish by the end of March for the competition,” Moore said, adding, “Other universities are putting this kind of time in to qualify for the national event.” So far, Mississippi State University civil engineering students have spent more than 800 hours building this canoe—that converts into more than $8,000 dollars invested into this project— in time alone. In addition to the make-believe cost of time, the team has actually spent around $2,000 in materials—all of which has been donated thanks to Moore and Doyle’s fundraising efforts. Their hopes are to qualify for the National Concrete Competition that will be held

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Team Members:

The concrete canoe team consists of two, three-member teams and four alternates.

Biological Engineering graduate students:

Brendan Flynn, Meng-Hsuan Ho, & Robert Morris Biological Engineering undergraduate students:

Lauren Beatty, Joseph Chen, Courtney Harbin, Paul Kimbrough, Sam Pote, Scott Tran, & Teri Vaughn

Paddlers: Austin Moore, captain Jesse Doyle, co-captain Eric Hattox, Erica Souther, Suzanne Dees, & Hayley Martin

Faculty advisor:

Dr. Filip To, Professor, Biological Engineering Support staff:

Dr. Din-Pow Ma, Dr. Bob Reese, & Dr. Todd French

Pioneers of MSU

Alternates: Josh Littlefield, Andy Jackson, Brittany Blackledge, & Katie Strickland

in Seattle, Wash., this year. It would be a first for Mississippi State. “This is a pretty big deal. This competition is known nationwide to students and professionals in the engineering world,” said Moore. “For us, I’d compare it in importance to the Olympics or the NCAA National Football Championship.” It was smooth roads for Moore and his team as they transported the 2007 concrete canoe named “Dawgliverance” to the Deep South Regional Competition. Winning many of the water races and design competition the team and its two senior leaders saw their dreams come true as they won the regional and are now the first MSU ASCE team in history to advance to the national competition in Seattle in June. There they will compete against eighteen other conference winners from across the nation. When Moore and Doyle returned the concrete canoe to the MSU campus the tenmember team marched in sync with pride as they unloaded their “intact” winning canoe from the flatbed trailer and carried it to the lab. It was obvious that Moore and Doyle’s team knew they had already established an MSU engineering legacy for others to aspire to for years to come, but the expressions on their faces was “they haven’t seen anything yet.”

By Laura Eakes

Students in agricultural and biological engineering combined their science and engineering skills to design and build a novel biotechnological machine made entirely from units of DNA. Engineering biology has never been done and that is why the founders of iGEM created the “International Genetically Engineered Machine” competition. Each year, the event is held at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology, where students try to design and build genetic machines out of living cells called BioBricks. The MSU team worked tirelessly throughout the summer and into the fall semester to complete a working hydrogen detector that uses e-coli as the host. In addition to the actual engineering of the machine, they also had to document all aspects of development, preparation and results on a MIT/iGEM sponsored Web site. The next step was to send their DNA machine to MIT for validation and defend their design presentation.

“One interesting revelation came from Duke University; they wanted to see if they could use our design to measure their hydrogen fuel cell output,” said ABE Faculty Advisor, Dr. Filip To. “They are having a hard time measuring current output; and if our machine can be incorporated into their design, they can measure the amount of hydrogen consumption of their machine, thus, output.” The team earned an honorable mention and because of their pioneering efforts, the agricultural and biological engineering department made synthetic biology open to all interested students beginning in spring 2007.

This was the first time Mississippi State biological engineering students entered the competition. Their competitors were Harvard, Princeton, Purdue, Duke, as well as universities from England, Spain and Japan. Bagley College of Engineering

Momentum

Become a Master Engineer from Anywhere in the World By Laura Eakes The new master of engineering program is opening doors to working engineers in an individualized manner to help continue the climb of engineering excellence in the Southeast. The program was granted approval by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning last fall. It is currently active with a total of seven students enrolled in its first semester. The program is a Web-based curriculum taught simultaneously with on-campus courses at Mississippi State. The M.Eng. degree is interdisciplinary, which allows students to develop programs of study uniquely suited for their interests. The courses meet institutional-wide standards while offering a flexible schedule and are tailored to each student’s professional needs. The goal of the program is to provide professional engineers and other qualified individuals in the Southeast an opportunity to pursue graduate studies around a busy, full-time work schedule. The hope for the program is that it will significantly enhance the college’s graduate program and its ability to provide an engineering educational experience for companies located in the Southeast. Rita Burrell, the Bagley College of Engineering’s distance education manager, and Dr. Roger King, associate dean of research and graduate studies at the college, have worked to develop the M.Eng. program so that it will be successful

not only for the college, but for pursuers of an engineering master’s degree. “We are pleased to offer this degree to working engineers. Although our targeted audience is working engineers, the delivery of this program in a flexible, Web-based format will allow us to provide the opportunity to all non-traditional engineering students seeking a graduate degree who normally would not have access to traditional degree granting programs at the graduate level,” said Burrell. Even though the courses for the degree are offered online, students are given the same opportunities as those taking the on-campus course. Through Horizon software and WebCT, students can download notes, post discussion questions and replies, and interact with faculty and other students in real time or through archived class recordings. All the tools are right at their fingertips. Despite the method through which the courses are taught, the curriculum is as rigorous as that offered on campus. However, M.Eng. students have the opportunity to access course information on their own schedule and in the comfort of their own home. The first person to enroll for the M.Eng. degree was Charles Ford of Metairie, La., who works for URS Corp.’s Process and Energy Division in New Orleans. When asked what persuaded him to enter the M.Eng. program he said, “The powerful engineering

curriculum and other electrical engineering graduate courses offered an array of areas from which to choose with the potential of being directly applicable to my current job.” Ford also pointed out that the accessibility was a huge draw to the program. Being able to post and submit class notes, test materials, homework and projects online, along with being able to listen and do course work when convenient for his schedule was a huge advantage over a traditional degree program, he said. The program is designed for the possibility of successful completion of all degree requirements in a three-year period. Courses are offered during the fall, spring and summer semesters, allowing students to take one or two classes at a time. The student can build his or her degree around the following disciplines: civil engineering, mechanical engineering, industrial and systems engineering, computer science, chemical engineering, as well as electrical and computer engineering. Up to six courses may be taken outside of the engineering discipline in areas such as math or science. Interested applicants can apply online at www.msstate.edu/dept/grad/admissions/. For more information about the distance learning program, you can visit http://www. bagley.msstate.edu/prospective_students/ graduate/masterofengineering/ or contact Rita Burrell at rburrell@bagley.msstate.edu.

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John Reece in the Swalm Auditorium speaking to a class of engineering students for the Jack Hatcher Entrepreneurship Program.

Accomplished Alumnus Remembers His Home State and Alma Mater By Diane L. Godwin

Making the world a better place is important to John Reece—especially in the state where he grew-up—Mississippi. The 1965 Mississippi State University graduate is now chief executive officer of an influential software solution and technology company. ClearOrbit, Inc. is a Texas-based company specializing in software solutions technology. With the title and responsibilities of a CEO, many would think Reece’s schedule would be too full to take time to share his business experiences with Bagley College of Engineering and computer science students. However, success has not clouded Reece’s sense of what is important in life, and that is giving back. “When I graduated 42 years ago, I was looking for my first job and a professional mentor,” he said. “I wanted to stay in Mississippi, but I was disappointed because there were not a lot of job opportunities available for the number of graduates. As a result, I had to move away from home and build my career.” Today, Reece is changing all that by sharing his experiences in the classroom and opening a ClearOrbit office in the Thad

Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park. It supplements the Austin-based firm’s research and development capacity in the areas of software development and quality assurance. “We want to be known as a great company to work for, providing high-quality jobs for MSU students that allows them to have a positive economic impact in the Starkville community and the state of Mississippi,” said ClearOrbit’s president and CEO. According to a recent study, there is a growing trend in the level of high-tech companies wanting to “rural source”—utilizing technological expertise available in non-metropolitan areas that are closer to home—to supplement technical resources. That factor, combined with the high-quality talent offered by the college’s computer science and engineering graduates, the community’s low cost of living, and proximity of location to Austin, also influenced Reece to open the Starkville office. “Given our size and focus on the U.S. market, Starkville is the best combination of resources, cost of operations, and cost/

complexity of infrastructure,” Reece said. Positive employee morale, work ethic and loyalty are other characteristics important to ClearOrbit’s culture. Operating in space leased in an annex of the university’s High Performance Computing Collaboratory, the company already has hired 12 computer science engineering graduates as full-time and part-time employees. “MSU will have a significant impact on our return on investment,” Reece said. “A large portion of the cost of producing software is in the cost of a development and quality assurance. The university helps us control that cost without any loss in quality.” Reece believes the Bagley College of Engineering and computer science collaboration will move the company forward in accomplishing ClearOrbit’s mission of building a world-class company that will help customers all over the world make their manufacturing and distribution operations more agile. The company is well on its way. It recently was named by START-IT magazine to a list of the world’s 125 Most Advanced Technology Companies.

Bagley College of Engineering

Momentum

Robots tackle the quandary of laundry By Laura Eakes

For most of us, hanging laundry isn’t a difficult task, but building a robot that can accomplish the task may be a tougher chore. BEST Robotics Inc., a volunteer non-profit organization, has a mission to inspire students to pursue careers in engineering, science and technology. One way they do this is through an annual robotic competition. This year’s theme was “Laundry Quandary,” where middle and high school students were asked to build remote-controlled robots—without instructions—that are capable of removing dry laundry from a clothesline and hanging wet laundry in its place in the fastest time possible. 17

Spring 2007

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Mississippi State joined BEST Robotics on the quest to interest the younger generation in engineering, science and technology by organizing a local hub called “Bulldog BEST.” Schools from all over Mississippi and surrounding areas are invited to compete at the local hub for the opportunity to show off their skills at the regional competition, South’s BEST. The competitive process begins with BEST representatives conducting annual “BEST kick-off” events for each of the local competitions. All the participating teams attend the kick-off event to receive items such as building materials and parts donated by the Bagley College of Engineering, as well as learn rules and regulations. For six weeks, the groups of students work tirelessly putting together what they hope to be the fastest “laundry-hanging machine” of the competition. This can be a trying process because the teams are only allowed to use the materials provided at the kick-off. In the fifth week before the competition, after many trial-and-error attempts at assembling a robot, teams can meet at a scheduled “Early Bird Day” to practice. This is a great way for the teams to network and problem-solve new ways to build a robot.

“Game Day” is held the sixth week and is generally a one-day event that merges the excitement of a sporting event with the strategy of a chess game and the intellectual challenge of a science fair. The teams compete on the playing field set up by the local hub, usually in a local gym that can accommodate a few hundred people. School bands, cheerleaders and parents support their teams as they demonstrate the operation of their robots. The playing field resembles that of a racetrack; half the floor is alive with competition and the other half contains “The Pit,” which is much like the pits in car races where students can repair and tweak their robots between matches. The competition is divided into eight, three-minute heats to allow judges to examine the adequacy of the machines and to tally up the fastest times. Eight teams advance to the semi-finals for a second round of competition. Finally, the four fastest teams from the semi-finals advance to the championship round. The top two teams from each local hub progress to the regional BEST. The BEST competition began in 1993 in North Texas, with 14 schools and 221 students. Since then the program has grown and now includes 31 local hubs and three regional championship competitions:

Frontier Trails BEST held in Fort Smith, Ark., South’s BEST in Auburn, Ala., and the original championship competition, Texas BEST in Lubbock, Texas. The winners from the Bulldog BEST at Mississippi State advanced to the South’s BEST at Auburn University. Four of the original 10 teams advanced to the regional competition: Sacred Heart School, Southern; St. Martin High School, Ocean Springs; Long Beach High School, Long Beach; and Holy Cross School, New Orleans, La. Two schools from the Bulldog BEST placed in the South’s BEST regional competition among the nearly 40 schools attending: Holy Cross School placed second in the Robotics Award category and third for Most Elegant Robot. Long Beach High School placed second for Best T-shirt Design. The Bagley College of Engineering at Mississippi State offers support for numerous programs such as the Bulldog BEST to encourage interest and learning within the engineering, science and technology field. More information may be found through our K-12 outreach program at

www.bagley.msstate.edu/outreach.

Butler

Cooley

Deason

Gilbrech

Kerut

Distinguished Fellows A new set of accomplished alumni have been inducted as Distinguished Fellows of the Bagley College of Engineering. They are chief executive officers and presidents of major corporations; they are leaders in education, research, government, and politics; they are lawyers and physicians. These professionals demonstrate that MSU engineering graduates share a tradition of excellence that will serve them well into the future. We are honored to present the 2007 Distinguished Fellows.

Cary D. Butler, Ph.D.

B.S., M.S. Computer Science ’86, ‘94 Ph.D. Computer Science, Texas A&M University, 2000 Dr. Cary D. Butler is the technical director of the Information Technology Laboratory (ITL), Vicksburg, Mississippi, U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center. He has technical oversight of over 400 employees with a total budget in excess of $100M. In addition, as the lead technical architect for the Corps, Dr. Butler defines and oversees information technology standards and guidance that are applied across the entire Corps. Dr. Butler began his career in the Corps in 1986 as a computer scientist conducting research in artificial intelligence, systems interoperability and decision modeling in support of battlefield command and control systems. His research focused on the development of new computational methods of decision support that combine computer models with artificial intelligence techniques. His scientific studies were awarded the Department of the Army’s R&D award in 2002. Dr. Butler has authored more than 45 publications in the field of computer and computational science. As an adjunct professor in the department of computer science and engineering at Mississippi State University, he conducts classes in the area of artificial intelligence that consist of machine learning, advance searching, knowledge representation, and data mining.

Larry A. Cooley, P.E.

B.S., M.S. Civil Engineering ’65, ‘74 Larry Cooley has been actively engaged in the field of geotechnical engineering for the past 42 years. His advanced education includes graduate geotechnical studies at Harvard University and the University of Texas at Austin. Cooley worked with the Vicksburg District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for 19 years and served as chief of the Foundation and Materials Branch from 1980 to 1984. Cooley moved to Jackson in 1985, where he was involved in the start-up of Burns Cooley Dennis, Inc., a geotechnical and materials engineering consulting firm. Today, Burns Cooley Dennis is the largest geotechnical and materials consulting firm in Mississippi with a staff of 89 employees. Burns Cooley Dennis is headquartered in Ridgeland and has offices in Hattiesburg, Gulfport, Memphis, Tenn. and Kenner, La. An involved leader, Cooley’s volunteer services have included the Engineering Advisory Boards at MSU and Jackson State University. He currently serves as a member of the Executive Committee and President-Elect of the American Council of Engineering Companies-Mississippi (ACEC-MS). He previously served the ACEC-MS as secretary and as chairman of the Corps of Engineers Coordination Committee. He also is managing several Burns Cooley Dennis geotechnical engineering contracts with the USACE New Orleans District for reconstruction of the New Orleans Hurricane Protection System.

Doug Deason

B.S. Chemical Engineering ‘80 Doug Deason took a job at Exxon Chemical in Baton Rouge, Louisiana following his graduation from MSU. In 1994, Deason became an advisor and community educator on clean air and environmental issues. The first legislation he worked with was the Clean Air Act of 1990. In 2000 Deason took on the project of developing plans for ExxonMobil Chemical and Refining in Houston, Texas to make sure the five local manufacturing sites met the HGA Ozone SIP rules. During that time he was also involved as Co-Chair of the Business Coalition for Clean Air Technical workgroup and Chair of the Greater Houston Partnership Clean Air Committee. He was named the Environmental Advisor for ExxonMobil U.S. State Issues Team in 2004 and worked closely with refineries in Texas, Louisiana, California and Illinois in satisfying air quality regulations. Currently he is the Environmental Advisor for ExxonMobil U.S. Federal Issues Team. His responsibilities center around compliance and advocacy of NAAQS regulations of the Houston refineries. He is also overseeing the Houston Area Ozone SIP Team.

Richard J. Gilbrech, Ph.D.

B.S. Aerospace Engineering ‘84 M.S., Ph.D. Aeronautics, California Institute of Technology ‘85, ‘91 Richard J. Gilbrech was chosen director of NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) near Bay St. Louis, Miss in February of 2006. He provides overall leadership, planning, policy direction, management and coordination for all activities implementing NASA’s mission directorates. Before being named director of Stennis Space Center, Dr. Gilbrech served as deputy center director of Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va. As deputy, Dr. Gilbrech assisted in the general management of Langley Research Center. Gilbrech started his NASA career in 1991 at the Stennis Space Center in the area of propulsion test technology. In 1995, he was selected as the Stennis National Aerospace Plane project manager. Later in 1995, he was named the X-33 project manager, responsible for converting the A-1 test stand at Stennis from space shuttle main engine testing to linear aerospike turbopump single and dual engine testing. From 1998 to 2000, he served as chief of the Propulsion Test Engineering Division within the Propulsion Test Directorate at Stennis Space Center. In 2003, he was named manager of the Propulsion Integration Office responsible for managing NASA’s rocket propulsion test facilities at Stennis, the Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville Ala.; Johnson Space Center’s White Sands Test Facility, Las Cruces, N.M.; and Glenn Research Center’s Plumbrook Station, Sandusky, Ohio. In late 2003, he relocated to Langley where he served as a principal engineer in the NASA Engineering and Safety Center. The recipient of numerous awards, Dr. Gilbrech has received NASA’s prestigious Outstanding Leadership and Exceptional Achievement Medals.

E. Kenneth Kerut, M.D.

B.S. Biological Engineering ’78 M.D. University of Mississippi Medical Center ‘82 Dr. Ken Kerut was a member of FarmHouse fraternity, member of Tau Beta Pi engineering fraternity and served on the Engineering Council during his time as an undergraduate student. Four years after his time at MSU he earned his doctor of medicine degree from the University of Mississippi in Jackson, and then completed his Internal

Spring 2007

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Matson

Morris

Medicine training at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. In 1987 he finished his fellowship in Cardiovascular Diseases at the University of Maryland, in Baltimore. That same year Dr. Kerut began his career in private practice on the westbank of New Orleans, and has practiced there since. Dr. Kerut is Board Certified in Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases, and in Echocardiography. Dr. Kerut is a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology and also Fellow of the American Society of Echocardiography. He is serving his fourth term as New Orleans district councilor for the Louisiana Chapter of the American College of Cardiology. Dr. Kerut has a United States patent describing a method of tissue characterization called texture analysis. This patent uses a general mathematical wavelet algorithm and applies to all imaging modalities used to analyze all human or animal tissue. Presently, Dr. Kerut has been collaborating with MSU bioengineer Dr. Filip To in evaluating the autonomic nervous system in a rodent model. Using several different mathematical models to quantitate variability of heart rate, they have been working with scientists at Aberdeen Proving Grounds evaluating effects of nerve gas and its potential antidote.

Jessica Oswalt Matson, Ph.D.

B.S. Industrial Engineering ‘75 M.S., Ph.D. Industrial Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology ’79, ‘82 Jessica Oswalt Matson is a professor of industrial engineering at Tennessee Technological University. In 1982 Matson joined the faculty at Mississippi State, teaching for a year in business statistics and data processing before moving to industrial engineering. In 1987, Dr. Matson moved to the University of Alabama, serving for several years as the only woman in an engineering faculty position. While at Alabama, she participated in applied research contracts with JVC, Johnson Controls, ACIPCO, and Westinghouse, among others. In 1998, she accepted the opportunity to become the first woman engineering department chair at Tennessee Technological University and served two four-year terms as industrial engineering chairperson. During her academic career, Dr. Matson has authored or co-authored more than forty publications and has been principal or co-principal investigator on more than twenty funded proposals. In 1998, she received the Outstanding Teaching Award from the Southeastern Section of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). Dr. Matson has been active nationally in the Institute of Industrial Engineers, serving on the Board of Trustees as Senior Vice-President at Large for Academia in 2004-06. She has also held national leadership roles in the IE Division of ASEE. She is a program evaluator for the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET and a Professional Engineer.

Don H. Morris, Ph.D.

B.S., M.S. Mechanical Engineering ’62, ‘64 Ph.D. Engineering Mechanics, Iowa State University ‘71 Don H. Morris has taught in the department of engineering science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech from 1977 – 2005. He was assistant department head from 1989 – 2005, after which retiring and was named Professor Emeritus. Morris also taught at MSU, Iowa State (while studying for a Ph.D.) and was a visiting Professor at the United States Military Academy. His industrial experience was at the Boeing Company. He conducted funded research for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, NASA Langley, NASA Ames, Generals Motors, the National Science Foundation, and the Phillips Petroleum Company, primarily in the area of composite materials. Morris served as the President of the Mississippi Section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and in numerous capacities with the American Society for Engineering Education. He currently serves on an Advisory Board for the Engineering Science Program at Sweet Briar College. In addition to three certificates of Teaching Excellence he received while at Virginia Tech, he was awarded the Frank J. Maher Award for Excellence in Education (ESM Department), the Sporn Award for Teaching Excellence in the College of Engineering, the Outstanding Teaching Award from the Southeastern Section of the American Society for Engineering Education, and shared the XCaliber Award for Exemplary Work by a Team in Teaching With Technology.

Rawls

Wileman

Williams

James H. Rawls

B.S. Petroleum Engineering ‘74 James Rawls, a registered professional engineer, has over 30 years industry experience in engineering and finance. He is currently the owner and manager of Rawls Resources, Inc., a private oil and gas exploration company. Following graduation, Rawls worked for Exxon Company USA in onshore and offshore development as a Senior Project Engineer. He left Exxon in 1978 for what was to become a successful 11 year career in banking. He served as manager of the Energy Lending Department of Deposit Guarantee National Bank. During his career, he has participated in drilling hundreds of oil and gas wells, both onshore and offshore, domestically and internationally. Rawls has served on the public company boards of Harcor Energy Inc., Tikal Resources Corp., Aquest Energy Ltd., and Redcliffe Exploration Inc. as well as on the boards of numerous private companies, He is a past director and chairman of Junior Achievement of Miss., and has served as a local director of IPAA, Society of Petroleum Engineers, Mid-Continent Oil and Gas association, and a director as well as well as President of MIPRO. He is also a past member of the Engineering Advisory Committee of MSU.

Jay Wileman

B.S. Nuclear Engineering ‘87 M.S. Business Administration, University of Alabama at Birmingham ‘93 Jay Wileman is President and CEO of GE Equipment Services, Rail Services, where he manages and leads the business’ railcar and intermodal fleet. He is also responsible for expanding new areas of globalization and the development of new service offerings for Rail Services. Since joining GE in 1994, Jay has held positions in engineering, manufacturing and services in the U.S., Japan and Italy. For four years, Jay served as General Manager for GE Global Services for Oil and Gas in Florence, Italy where he led double-digit growth in customized service agreements. Additionally, he drove the development of conventional services into technology-based solutions for a worldwide customer base. In 1999, Wileman led the Global Nuclear Fuel joint venture integration for the Nuclear Energy business development team. He was promoted to manager of Nuclear’s Technical Services business in 2000. Wileman was a nuclear fuel engineer and commercial manager for Southern Company before he joined GE.

Albert J. Williams

B.S. Electrical Engineering ‘90 M.S. Business Administration, Tulane University ‘98 Albert J. Williams is a corporate strategic planning consultant for Chevron Corporation, the second largest energy company in the United States. Williams, who joined Chevron in 1991, is based in San Ramon, California where he coordinates the development of the corporate strategic plan and strategic planning material for the board of directors. In 1995, he worked on an offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico, helped develop and implement automated controls and training for more than 200 offshore personnel. Over the next four years Al worked on the $750 million Genesis project, Chevron’s first deepwater development in the Gulf of Mexico. He was integral in the design, construction and startup of the massive oil and gas project. In 1999, Williams joined Chevron’s now 60-year-old Finance MBA Development Program, which is designed to develop future senior managers and executives. The following year, he began working as a marketing finance consultant for Tengizchevroil, the company’s joint venture in Kazakhstan. In this job, he negotiated transportation and crude oil sales agreements with companies in Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Ukraine. Before taking his current job in planning, Williams became Finance Manager of Chevron’s largest wholly owned refinery in Pascagoula, Mississippi, where he coordinated the development of business strategies, business plans, performance goals and post-Hurricane Katrina restoration efforts. He is also a member of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Advisory Board for Mississippi State University.

Bagley College of Engineering

Momentum

Alumni Chad A. Wages, P.E., (CE, B.S., ‘90) now serving as the Project Engineering Manager for the state of Mississippi on the Toyota Plant Development in Tueplo, MS. R. Charles Anding, P.E., (EE, B.S., ‘78) recently inducted into the engeering Fellows Hall of Fame program with Systems Group at Teledyn Brown Engineering.

Movers & Shakers

Jay Wileman, (NE, B.S., ‘87) recently named president and CEO of GE Equipment Services, Rail Services.

Faculty The Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems director, Dr. Randall German, was selected as the keynote speaker at the first ever Spanish Metallurgy Conference in Madrid, Spain. Dr. Kirk Schulz was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science — the world’s largest general scientific society.

Are you an alum of the college of engineering at MSU? Have you received a promotion, a new job, an exciting recognition or award? Send alumni updates to the Publications & Communications Office so that we can spread the good news to your colleagues and peers. Publications and Communications Office PO Box 9544 Mississippi State, MS 39762 Want to be added or removed from our mailing list for Momentum? Drop an email to publications@bagley.msstate.edu

Dr. Erdem Topsakal, assistant professor at the Bagley College of Engineering, in collaboration with Dr. Elaine C. Moreland, assistant professor at UAB’s department of endocrinology, has been awarded an Innovative Grant of $100,000.00 for one year from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation for research that will result in ways to improve the daily lives of many diabetic patients through alternative glucose monitoring technology. Associate Aerospace Professor, Dr. David Thompson, was elevated to the rank of Senior Member in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Less than 8% of the 367,000 members attain this level. Dr. Seong Jin Park, Associate Professor of Research at CAVS, has been elected as a full member of the International Institute of the Science of Sintering (IISS) for his outstanding accomplishments in develop-

ing sintering modeling and simulation with material characterization. Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, Dr. Adrienne Minerick, was granted a National Science Foundation CAREER award for her research in dielectrophoresis. Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Dr. Keith Walters, was granted a National Science Foundation CAREER award for his research in the development of flexible mathematical algorithms for numerical solution of the differential equations that govern fluid flow. Piper & Rudnick, patent attorneys for MSU, have notified the Mississippi State University Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC) and the ECE department that a patent under the name “MOS charge pump” has been issued to ECE professor Raymond S. Winton by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The patent number is 7,157,961 with an issue date of January 2, 2007. Dr. Robert Reese is the winner of the 2006 E.C.E. Outstanding Undergraduate Educator award. This honor is awarded annually to an undergraduate professor nominated and selected by E.C.E. undergraduate students. Dr. Reese believes that the “ability to teach yourself and having an appreciation for life-long learning” are important skills that undergraduates should have. “Technology advances so fast that aside from fundamentals, specific technological knowledge is obsolete in a few years.” ECE Associate Professor, Dr. Yaroslav Koshka is part of an interdisciplinary team of researchers who have been awarded a $400K NSF-MRI equipment grant for the purchase of a multi-user, high resolution, research grade X-ray Diffractometer (XRD). The XRD will be used in characterization of electronic thin films, residual stresses, crystal lattice structure, phase identification, and texture mapping to support research and education.

Spring 2007

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Students MSU industrial and systems engineering senior, Brian Porter, won first place in the Student Technical Paper Competition during the Institute of Industrial Engineers Region 3 student conference held in Orlando, Florida on March 1-4. The Region 3 is composed of 16 universities in the southeastern United States including Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Florida, Auburn, Louisiana State University, and University of Puerto Rico. Byron Williams and Dr. Jeffrey Carver have been informed that their paper “Characterizing Software Architecture Changes: An Initial Study” has been accepted for presentation at the 2007 International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement to be held in Madrid, Spain, on September 20-21. Byron is a Ph.D. student in computer science working under the direction of Dr. Carver.

Five MSU students attended the 59th annual Foundation for Metal Casting Education’s (FEF) College Industry Conference in Chicago, Ill. Representing MSU was, Cornelia Hayes, Robert Neel, Phillip Pratt, Kyle Thompson and Jeremy Mowry, who received a $2,000 FEF scholarship. The first seven honorees have been inducted into the Bagley College of Engineering Student Hall of Fame. These students were recognized for their superior academic achievement, leadership, service and character: Erica Souther, Jeremy Johnson, Teri Vaughn, Wesley Holland, Amanda Wright, Austin Moore and Claire Fellman. Wesley Holland, a senior computer engineering major, has been awarded a three-year Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Science Foundation. He received the NSF Fellowship after deciding to pursue graduate studies, beginning in fall 2007, for a continued education in computer engineering.

Electrical and computer engineering students built a robot for the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers Southeast Region 3 Conference (SECON) 2007 competition. Through 12 rounds of competition with 37 other university teams, the team claimed IEEE Region 3 Championship. The team consisted of Benjamin Payment - captain, David Warren, Ryan Irwin, Michael Peach, Austin Walton, Heather

Hickman, Evan Dozier, Jeffrey Fairley, and Dr. Bryan Jones - faculty adviser. Students take top honors at Southeast Collegiate Cyber Defense competition The student team, consisting of Robert Wesley McGrew - captain, Jonathan Pittman, Michael King, Paul Cleveland, Sherry Thomas, Will McKeon, Daniel Cranford, and Dr. Ray Vaughn - faculty adviser, placed in the top three in regional competition. Through this competition students were learning how to defend against different types of cyber crime and the ability to keep information technology services available during a security breach.

Bottom Right: David Lawrence, B. Keith Hodge, Robert Taylor, Mark White, Sarah Rajala, and Jerry Gilbert were inducted into the Bagley College of Engineering’s Academy of Fellows during an evening ceremony in February. Top Right: Six of the seven honorees inducted into the Student Hall of Fame - Erica Souther, Jeremy Johnson, Teri Vaughn, Wesley Holland, Amanda Wright and Austin Moore. Left: Wesley Holland, avid juggler, senior, and soon to be graduate student, keeping his eye on the ball and earning a NSF Graduate Fellowship.

Golden Anniversary +1

The “golden” anniversary is one of the most celebrated anniversaries and last fall Mississippi State’s Dave Swalm School of Chemical Engineering commemorated its 50th with breakfast festivities before the MSU vs. Kentucky home football game. The event was such a success that organizers are planning a “Golden Anniversary + 1” celebration this fall. Keep an eye out for the invitations; they will be sent this summer.

By Diane L. Godwin

50th Anniversary Chemical Engineering Commemorative Coin.

The Gold Medallion is the symbolic way chosen to remember this special occasion and the celebration in reconnecting with alumni and friends. For more than a half century the school’s graduates have been ambassadors for chemical engineering and, consequently, the Bagley College of Engineering and MSU are highly influenced by the graduates of this time period. Many of those represent the embodiment of success through their careers. In 1989, the Chemical Engineering Hall of Fame was chartered to honor a select group of departmental alumni and recognize their career achievements. The hall of fame currently includes nine honorees. One of those honorees gave back to the department in the late 1990s and early 2000s. His contribution of more than $18 million, along with support from state

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Mississippi State University complies with all applicable laws regarding affirmative action and equal opportunity in all its activities and programs and does not discriminate against anyone protected by law because of age, color, disability, national origin, race, religion, sex, handicap, or status as a veteran or disabled veteran.

legislation, built the new chemical engineering building. The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning approved naming the chemical engineering department the Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering. Chemical engineering has experienced a long tradition of success since that one faithful faculty member began the program back in 1935. Thanks to our alumni and friends, undergraduates now practice in state-of-the-art laboratories, and two programs of study are offered at the master’s level: traditional chemical engineering and industrial hazardous waste management. The school also offers an interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in engineering. As a result, graduate research has become extensive at MSU and chemical engineering provides a variety for most any interest in the field. Since 1989, the department has experienced significant growth in research funding to a level of nearly $3 million per year. Hopes for the next 50 years are nothing less than optimistic. The college believes the department will assist in propelling chemical engineering to new heights. Thanks to the strong support of alumni and friends, the next 50 years will build on the success that was laid before them.