Students are putting together and making final touches on their machines for the Rube Goldberg Contest. Check out the  machines so far:

Teams representing engineering student groups will compete in the 2013 Penn State Regional Rube Goldberg Machine Contest at 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 23 in Presidents Hall at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center. Sponsored and judged by the Penn State Engineering Alumni Society, the contest is free and open to the public. Doors will open at 1:00 p.m.

Held annually, the Rube Goldberg Machine Contest challenges students to use innovative ideas, unconventional problem-solving skills and a little humor to design a machine that accomplishes an otherwise trivial task. This year’s national challenge is to design and build a machine that hammers a nail in 20 or more steps. You can learn more about the contest on our Contest Details page.

Teams entering the 2013 Penn State contest include the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) of both University Park and Harrisburg, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, the Chinese Undergraduate Student Association, the Society of Engineering Science, and the Engineering Leadership Society.

ASME will be defending its four-year winning streak at the Penn State regional competition.

The top three teams will win trophies and cash prizes, and the winning team will be eligible to represent Penn State at the National Rube Goldberg Machine Contest on March 30 at the Center of Industry and Science in Columbus, OH.

The contest is named after Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist, Reuben Lucius Goldberg, who drew cartoons that combined simple machine parts and household items to create contraptions that accomplished simple tasks in a laughable number of excess steps. Although he never built any of his machines, Goldberg’s creative thought process and innovation have become an inspiration to engineers and scientists all over the world.

More information about the event is available at: www.engr.psu.edu/RubeGoldberg.

Explore and engage in the wonderful world of engineering Thursday, February 21st from 10:00a.m. to 4:00p.m. in Alumni Hall at the HUB. In celebration of National Engineers Week, the Engineering Ambassadors and many other engineering student groups invite other students to experience the magic of engineering in this interactive, hands on event.

Professional societies from each major are going to hold demonstrations throughout the day that showcase their respective majors. Some examples of the demonstrations include: biological engineering is going to be flash-freezing ice cream, industrial engineering has a robot that takes cookie orders, mechanical engineering is going to let people build marble roller coasters, electrical engineering has little robots that work together, civil engineering will let people build skyscrapers out of spaghetti and marshmallows, computer science is programming a Kinect so that people can interact with it in different ways.

Stop by the HUB and have your mind expanded into the world of engineering. The event is open to all who want to have a little fun and learn more about what engineers do.

“I am not very technical but as a senior in high school I really started to weigh my options,” explains Ryan Patrick. “Mechanical engineering is a good major to have because it is broad and the degree gives a variety of options.”

With THON weekend just two days away, we are featuring our final overall who is also a student within the College of Engineering.

Ryan is a senior from Jamison, Pa. in Bucks County and the Overall Merchandise Chairperson for THON 2013. The purpose of his role is being responsible for spreading the awareness of THON and the Four Diamonds Fund through the sale of merchandise. Patrick is also responsible for protecting the name and brand of THON.

Ryan’s THON involvement began in 2011 when he was the THON Chair for Beta Theta Pi. In 2012, Ryan became a Merchandise Captain and went on to be overall in 2013.

When asked how he manages his course load and commitments to THON Ryan replied, “I just do it.” He says time management is crucial and that his school work always comes first. Ryan is constantly making to do lists, staying on top of what he needs to accomplish and using free time effectively.

Mechanical engineering has helped Ryan to look at things differently than others and tackle problems with a different and more analytical approach. He looks at some of his tasks within THON as problem-solving and never tries to “constrain himself to staying inside the box.” His participation in THON has made Ryan realize that of the Four Diamonds, honesty is the most important one for an engineer to have.

“Being aware of ethical concerns, along with being honest to yourself and co-workers is extremely important in all aspects of life,” explains Ryan.

One of his favorite THON memories was during THON 2012. Around 3:00 a.m. on Sunday, when the wear of the weekend could be felt on volunteers, he stopped and took a good look around the Bryce Jordan Center. “I really took in the scene, seeing how selfless everyone in the Bryce Jordan Center was being,” says Ryan.

Ryan is really looking forward to THON 2013 for a lot of reasons. As a captain for THON 2012, he saw a lot of different things he wanted to change. As an overall, he has been able to implement some of those ideas into projects.

Ryan’s biggest piece of advice to a current or future student is to get involved. He says it would’ve been easy to just be an engineering student but getting involved in other things has given him extremely valuable real world experience. “You learn a lot about yourself, develop social skills, time management and how to make it all balance,” says Ryan.

“Do things that stand way after you leave. Make an impact and leave a legacy.”

Today, January 25th, in Kunkle Lounge, ten members of the Engineering Alumni Society are reviewing nearly 180 student’s resumes to prepare them for the engineering career fair next week. The event takes place by appointment only from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

“The Engineering Career Fair is the premier recruiting event in the College of Engineering. Representatives from a wide variety of companies and government agencies from around the country attend the Fair to recruit Penn State engineering students for co-op, internship, and full-time positions.”

Make sure you stop by the career fair next Wednesday, January 30th at the Nittany Lion Inn from 1:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. Visit the website: http://www.engr.psu.edu/career/ecw/students/fair.aspx to see the list of employers attending, what to wear, and more important tips to succeed at the fair.

As we began last semester by featuring the Overall Hospitality Chairperson, John Mazzochette, and Blue Band member, Shane Haydt, we are helping you get to know engineering students who are spending their time making the world a better place in their everyday life outside of the classroom. Next up is the Overall OPPerations Chairperson for THON 2103: Michelle Gettle.

Michelle is a fifth year senior in the structures option of civil engineering and knew since high school that she wanted to get into project or construction management. “Every type of construction site I saw interested me,” says Gettle. “The best route I saw to get there was through civil engineering.” She is also getting a minor in energy, business and finance.

Originally from Dillsburg, Pa., Gettle got involved with THON her freshman year through Ohana, which is an independent fundraising organization, while also being on the OPPerations committee. Since then, she was an OPPerations captain for two years and then became the Overall OPPerations Chairperson for THON 2103.

As the OPP Overall, Gettle says that event planning, logistics, and event management are huge rules that she takes on along with the other overalls and the OPPerations captains. She says that THON and her involvement in it will benefit her in many ways. “I can apply my management and planning skills to project management roles in the future,” explains Gettle. “I can also apply my leadership skills to all aspects of teamwork that occur in the workforce.”

Her favorite THON memory comes with the 40th year celebration of the Four Diamonds Fund. The fund was created by Charles and Irma Millard in honor of their son Christopher who lost his battle to rhabdomyosarcoma in 1972 at the age of 14. The story of the Four Diamonds, which is what the fund is named after, consists of a knight going on a quest to find the Four Diamonds of Courage, Honesty, Wisdom and Strength in order for him to be released from captivity of an evil sorceress. These are the four traits that Christopher believed he needed to overcome cancer.

“During the celebration, Irma Millard expressed her sincerest thanks to us for all that we do and it absolutely blew me away,” says Gettle. “They are the ones who deserve the gratitude.” She also went on to say that it is amazing that something the Millards created 40 years ago grew into something so immensely wonderful that has changed the lives of hundreds of people.
“That moment will forever be engrained in my memory and my heart and I am so blessed to have experienced it.”

Gettle with the 2013 OPPerations Captains

  As an engineer, Gettle believes that courage is the most important of the four diamonds for an engineer to have. “You have to be willing to share your ideas and take initiative when needed,” says Gettle. “I think improvement and progress couldn’t occur without courage and within a growing industry, it becomes an essential trait that engineers should possess.

Gettle is most looking forward to THON weekend and seeing the entire THON family coming together as one for one cause. She also says her favorite part of THON is the journey, every day and every moment leading up to THON provides something new and inspirational that should be cherished.

Balancing her school work with extra-curricular activities is no simple task for any student at Penn State.

“Passion is something that gets me through everything that I do,” says Gettle. ” You have to possess a love for all of the things you pursue in life in order to make it work in the best way possible.” Gettle admits that sometimes things get tough but says she loves THON, her major, friends and family.

“I can’t help but be thankful for all of the opportunities I have been blessed with.”

Innovation, engineering and attention-grabbing communication took the stage last night in the inaugural Leonhard Center Speaking Contest for engineers. Eight finalists from CAS100A classes were engineering undergraduates who excelled last semester and then were selected in the opening rounds of the contest. The purpose of the event was to provide all undergraduates within the college excellent student models of engineering presentations.

Topics of the speeches ranged from alternatives to traditional prosthetic limbs, a look at the improvement of structural engineering for One World Trade Center, innovation to dams and hydroelectric power, artificial hearts, malaria nets, and many other topics relating to engineering. There were three judges who picked the winner of the event at the end of the night along with a second place and honorable mentions. Mimi Overbaugh won the $250 grand prize for her talk on prosthetic devices when she interacted with an amputee while helping with a service project in her home town of Pittsburgh.