TUESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2010
The Poly Post
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CARS:
Right: Working together to cut sheets of metal to create the fastest racing prototype vehicle, Cal Poly’s SAE team looks forward to win the next competition. Left: To win the weekend autocross competition, Cal Poly Pomona’ s formula SAE team builds a newer, faster and aerodynamic prototype succeeding last year’s prototype model for the competition.
In the future
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Daniel Nguyen / The Poly Post
Richard Luu/ The Poly Post
Mechanical engineers drive Formula Racing Team JEFFERSON YEN
Staff Writer David Whitaker wants people to know that Cal Poly Pomona’s Formula Racing builds vehicles that go 0 to 60 mph in just over three seconds. “Materials only would cost $20,000 to build the car, and if you take into consideration man hours, a $20,000 car turns into a $50,000 car,” said Whitaker, a mechanical engineering student and former team manager of Cal Poly Formula Racing. Cal Poly Formula Racing competes in Formula SAE, an international student design competition run by the Society of Automotive Engineers. In the competition, each team must design, manufacture and pitch the sale of a prototype autocross car. The team is also judged on the aesthetic appeal of the vehicle, including ergonomics.
In essence, the team must act like a newly founded auto company and is judged on how well they would do in the real world. “This club is run like an independent business so you need engineers,” said Whitaker. “But you also need people to take care of the other stuff.” Mechanical engineering professor and team faculty advisor, Clifford Stover, fondly remembers competing in Italy in 2007 when the team was invited to compete at the Ferrari test facility and placed sixth. Although Ivan Troitsky, a fourthyear mechanical engineering student and team manager, said the club is open to anyone, engineering students dominate it. Current majors represented include aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. Recruiting happens at the beginning of the school year with the team attending orientation, BroncoFusion and the Engineering Club Welcome
Fair. Without members from other majors, the team must do the best that they can. “Currently the engineers are doing everything,” said Whitaker. “So you have to prioritize your time.” Though their work may be hard, those involved with the club said that there are benefits. Kevin Castelo, a fifth-year mechanical engineering student and former drive train design captain, said that through the club, he has made connections with people working in the automotive industry. “The teams allow the students to have real world experience,” said Stover. “[Because of] the amount of hours they spend, they mature by leaps and bounds.” He adds that every team member has gotten a job before they graduated. The club is active for nearly the whole year with senior team members working on the design of the prototype during the summer. This
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is possible due to Stover’s advisement throughout the year. Troitsky said even on weekdays, members of the team will come in and work on the prototype. On weekends, they will often stay late into the evening to work on the prototype. Stover said Cal Poly Pomona students do most of the manufacturing for Cal Poly Formula Racing on campus. Fabrication for the European team is done off-campus said Stover. The inequalities don’t stop there; the European teams come to the United States with a lot of funding. Over the years, Cal Poly Formula Racing has had to rely on donations of materials and equipment. Money is always an issue. “It costs a lot of money to build that thing—just the material itself is really expensive,” said Troitsky. Castelo also said that money is a constant factor, echoing Troitsky’s See SAE/Pg. 10
of pure water. Although this technology is still in its infancy it shows much promise. Am I ready to give up on gas all together? No way. I am far too big a fan of the conventional gasoline automobile to simply give it up entirely–and I honestly don’t think I will ever have to. This country is far too reliant on gasoline to ditch its dependency–at least in my lifetime. There is so much technology in the auto industry and cars have come so far from the humble transportation devices they started out as. Trivial things like air conditioning, sound systems, and quiet interiors, are taken for granted on a daily basis. Fifty years ago, you were lucky if your car started on the first try. Today there are cars that can stop themselves if the driver falls asleep, street cars that can do 250 mph, high intensity headlights that can peer around corners and maybe in a few years, cars that can run on water. Maybe it takes a gear-head to realize just how far we’ve come–I don’t think so. Reach Evan Perkins at:
lifestyle@thepolypost.com
App-lying smartphones to aid with college life From satisfying cravings to beating traffic, these useful apps make student life easier NAZIA QUERASHI
Staff Writer Students are getting back in the rhythm of school and can use some help getting ahead. The following are helpful applications for smartphones to make life easier for students. First up is an obvious pick: “The Cal Poly Central” app provides general information about all things Cal Poly. College students love food, and the app conveniently provides information on whether an on-campus restaurant is open or not at any given time. It also has a list of campus departments with location and contact information for each one. Every student struggles with the cost of books and where they can find them for the best deal. “BigWords” is a free iPhone application that lets users utilize BigWords.com, a textbook price-comparison search engine, while on the go and is perfect for comparing prices at the Bronco Bookstore. Other textbook apps to check out are CourseSmart’s “eTextbooks”, which lets users access over 7,000 digitized
textbooks on the iPhone and more than 50,000 free books on the Stanza eBook reader from Amazon. “I actually downloaded a very similar app recently because it was under top free apps,” said Kyle Vericker, a thirdyear accounting student. “I just think it is very useful to help save money on pricey books.” Another app available for the Blackberry and other smartphones is iStudiez Pro, which tracks your entire class schedule and assignments. Detailed and color-coded class schedules make it easy to read. In addition, there is the ability to attach assignments to each course, which then shows up on the calendar, serving as an easy way to keep track of due dates. IStudiez Pro is $2.99. Also check out the 99 cent app “My Schedule” as a cheaper alternative. Although it has fewer features, the app has tools that allow more efficient scheduling. Got a big test coming up and need to study? You’ll want to check out “Cram”, a study tool that allows users to create flash cards and multiple-choice tests with automatically randomized answers. These study aids can be shared with friends and synced to other computers. “Cram” is a bit pricey at $9.99, but offers a great way to study on your way to your class and keeps all of your notes organized in the palm of your hand.
Aside from all the apps made for studying and scheduling, sometimes other factors contribute to the banes of college life, like traffic. “Waze”, available for Motorola Droid users, is the way to travel. This service builds an accurate map of traffic data by tracking the speeds of other Waze users on major roads, allowing for accurate and updated traffic reports. Stephen Serot, a fourth-year theater student, expresses how difficult it is to commute to campus. “I just transferred here and didn’t realize how bad traffic is, coming from Costa Mesa,” said Serot. “If I would have had an app to let me know how bad traffic is in morning, I would have not been late my first day of class.” For students that are constantly trying to stay fit, lose weight and eat properly, “The Carrot” is available for all devices and helps with ways to watch your weight. This app can divulge a variety of important weight loss tips. Users can utilize it to count their calorie intake, heart rate, blood pressure, how much weight they’ve lost and more. It also gives advice for quick onthe-go meals for the busy individual. These helpful applications should make school more of a breeze and multi tasking more efficient. Reach Nazia Querashi at:
lifestyle@thepolypost.com
Photo by Richard Luu / Illustration by Aaron Castrejon / The Poly Post