User:Hm112
Hunter McNamara is an undergraduate student in Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering, and is currently enrolled in Dr. G's EGR 103 class. His interests are swimming, The Beatles, and travelling.
Contents
NAE Grand Challenges
The National Academy of Engineering has proposed 14 "Grand Challenges For Engineering" that our society should work to accomplish within the 21st Century[1]. These Grand Challenges are:
1. ADVANCE PERSONALIZED LEARNING
2. MAKE SOLAR ENERGY ECONOMICAL
3. ENHANCE VIRTUAL REALITY
4. REVERSE-ENGINEER THE BRAIN
5. ENGINEER BETTER MEDICINES
6. ADVANCE HEALTH INFORMATICS
7. RESTORE AND IMPROVE URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE
8. SECURE CYBERSPACE
9. PROVIDE ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER
10. PROVIDE ENERGY FROM FUSION
11. PREVENT NUCLEAR TERROR
12. MANAGE THE NITROGEN CYCLE
13. DEVELOP CARBON SEQUESTRATION METHODS
14. ENGINEER THE TOOLS FOR SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY
Grand Challenge Attention
Recently, President Obama hosted undergraduate students in the STEM areas of research at the 2015 White House Science Fair. At the event, he announced an initiative to expand Grand Challenge Scholars Programs throughout the country.
MatLab Demonstrations
The MatLab demonstration that I found to be the most interesting was the Loma Prieta Earthquake[2] analysis demonstration. I thought it was very interesting because of the very real application that this code has. I have seen many TV specials about natural disasters, including earthquakes, and in these specials seismologists and other researchers would often analyze data from these disasters using 3-D models, graphs, and plots. To see the code for how one can actually analyze the movements of an earthquake is amazing, and makes me realize just how powerful MatLab is and how many amazing calculations it can perform.