Monthly Archives: February 2017

Reading Week is finally here

I am very excited about reading break. I look forward to sleep and taking a well-deserved rest. So far this week has been great, but tomorrow is my first Mechanical Engineering Lab Tour. For this tour, I will be taking the students to some of our awesome labs:

The Anechoic Chamber: The Anechoic Chamber is a fundamental test facility for acoustical research. It is quite unusual both physically and acoustically.  Its surfaces are made of highly sound absorptive glass-fibre wedges, creating an almost completely sound-reflection-free environment. Currently, the chamber contains two microphone-array acoustical antennas being used to localize sources of sound — in particular, on musical instruments.

MAL (Manufacturing and Automatization Lab): conducts research in the mechanics and dynamics of metal cutting operations, spindle design and analysis, micro-machining, virtual simulation of machining operations and CNC machine tools; design and digital control of high speed feed drives; precision machining, sensor assisted intelligent machining; and chatter stability of cutting processes. The academic articles published out of this lab receive the highest citation in the world in the field of manufacturing.

Although I consider myself a pretty “easy to talk to” type of person, I have to admit my strength isn’t necessarily public speaking. So, even though I am a bit scared, I am excited for this opportunity because I have the chance to learn something new and take on a challenge. I know it will be a good tour – I should know, I prepared all the logistics of the tour to make sure it is a success.

If you are interested in attending one of our future lab tours send an email to: studentassistant@mech.ubc.ca to save a spot. Our next tour will be on March 24th from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm, and includes an academic advising session.

Once this tour is over, I am going to relax for a week. . . because the week after my life is going to be crazy! I have three midterms and two assignments during that week. But wait there is more… I will also be the MC for the Women in Engineering Networking Event, for WiSE 2017! This a yearly event for which I am also the chair this year. WiSE 2017 is an amazing opportunity for female students to network with well experienced female professionals in industry and academia. So as you can see, I really need a couple days off!

See you next time!

1st Year Networking Event

 

If you like interesting stuff, have a passion to learn more about how the world works, and love things that move, then Mechanical Engineering is for you; and we want you!

The Mechanical Engineering Department hosts a first year networking event every term. This event gives student the opportunity to connect with Alumni, Professors and current students and talk about their great experiences. This event is a great chance to learn more about things you wouldn’t find in a recruitment brochure, such as student teams, research opportunities, and the industry at large. When I was in first year, I didn’t have the chance to attend these types of events because I wasn’t aware they existed. I have to say I really wished I had because it would have helped prepare me for my second year of mechanical engineering at UBC.

As a transfer student from Langara College, I can say that there is a big difference between college and university education. Classes, professors and grading are very different. It took me a while to get used to this, and get familiar with the kinds of different study methods to become the student I am today.

The students who come to these events really get firsthand knowledge and the inside scoop on the program from current students, professors and alumni. So, if you are in first year engineering in UBC or other colleges, then keep an eye out for opportunities like these.

You can check out the mechanical engineering website for future opportunities, such as Networking Events, Lab Tours, or Student Blogs.

If you have any questions, email me at: ambassadors@mech.ubc.ca

Mech 223 and Mech 2 Taco night

It is true that Mech 2’s curriculum is intense, especially during that time of year when you are hungry,  tired and trying to complete your design project “on time” – but it is a good experience to go through. For example, last week Mech 2 students had the opportunity to apply their engineering skills to a real world project. Their project consisted on the creation and design of a prototype vehicle that can successfully deploy a set of “landers” on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. Students worked long hours for about month (while taking classes) to have a prototype vehicle ready for competition day. During the competition, the prototypes were tested in five different rounds. The team who had the best prototype won the competition.  The reward you may ask? Bragging rights! Yeah, that’s pretty cool!

The whole process is part of Mech 223, a design focused course with a new challenge every year. I would say that the most rewarding part of taking a course like this is making something that works and moves. I had a great time during my Mech 2 design challenge. When I was in Mech 2, we created a completely autonomous vehicle that had to move through different paths (straight, curved or sloped). To be honest, it was very challenging because it required programming, gear boxes, electrical sensors, and more, but I feel like I learned a lot of things I had no idea about.

Apart from being able to learn about the design process and build something cool from scratch, you also get refreshments from Club Mech the night before competition. This year in particular, Club Mech made soft tacos! As you can see by the pictures, the Mech 2s look very happy.

Hopefully you too have the chance to go through this experience. I assure you that you will learn so much about yourself, design in mechanical engineering and how to work with others.