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Student engineers flex mental muscles
By ELLEN GOLDBAUM
Contributing Editor
UB faculty members challenged teams of Western New York’s best and brightest high school students to prove their scientific and mathematical mettle in a brain-teasing race last week around the North Campus.
Team members (from left)
Keenen Reed, Meaghan Weppner and Jacob Biltekoff use trigonometry to
figure out the next clue on the BEAMazing Race. Reed punches in the
answer to activate the robot. The robot then leads the students to the
orange can, where they uncover the next clue. The fourth member
of the team is Rhakeem Wiggins (white shirt).
PHOTO: NANCY J.
PARISI
Using some of UB Engineering’s high-tech lab resources, student teams destroyed a miniature building in a simulated earthquake, detected hidden weapons in X-ray images of luggage, used trigonometry to operate a mechanical robot and calculated turbulence in a wind tunnel.
The “BEAMazing (Be-Amazing) Race” was organized by UB’s BEAM program (Buffalo-area Engineering Awareness for Minorities). Volunteers from Fisher-Price, Ciminelli, Moog, URS and Verizon also participated.
The race was a special event for the 21 students enrolled this summer in BEAM, UB’s cooperative educational enrichment program that prepares inner-city, minority, female and other underrepresented students for careers in science, engineering and technology. BEAM students attended classes and field trips; some are already conducting research with UB professors.
“These 21 high school seniors all have ‘graduated’ from BEAM’s various camps, Saturday academies and other middle school and high school offerings,” said Harvey Stenger Jr., dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. “These are the ones who have consistently risen to the challenge as each program has increased in difficulty; they are tomorrow’s engineers.”
The idea for the event came from Robert Tom, director of engineering for Fisher-Price and the race coordinator, who modeled the BEAMazing Race in part after CBS’s “Amazing Race” television show concept.
Students were given clues about where to find venues and assigned engineering tasks to complete, along with trivia questions to answer throughout the UB campus. Upon reaching their final destination, they had an ultimate task to perform that reinforced how important it is for engineers to take an environmentally responsible perspective.
“The BEAMazing Race brought together two very important issues that exist today: how to generate interest in engineering careers in the United States and the importance of diversity to the profession,” said Tom, who earned degrees from UB in engineering and business administration. “Sound engineering and the innovation that comes from diversity are what we need to develop great products for an increasingly competitive and changing global marketplace.”
BEAMazing Race participants attend the following high schools: City Honors, Hutch Tech, Canisius, Maryvale, St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute, Orchard Park, Amherst Central, McKinley, Lancaster, Buffalo Seminary, Sweet Home, Cardinal O’Hara and Cleveland Hill.
UB faculty members and staff who developed and hosted the engineering contests are Thomas M. Albrechcinski, site operations manager of UB’s Structural Engineering and Earthquake Simulation Laboratory; Ann Bisantz, associate professor of industrial engineering; Andre Filiatrault, professor of civil, structural and environmental engineering; David Forliti, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering; Venu Govindaraju, professor of computer science and engineering; and Jennifer Zirnheld, deputy director, Energy Systems Institute in the Department of Electrical Engineering.
BEAM was founded in 1982 by a consortium that included UB Engineering, Linde-Union Carbide (now Praxair Inc.), Omega Phi Phi Fraternity and the Buffalo Public Schools. Funding is made possible through the generous support of companies, educational institutions, community organizations and individuals. For more information about BEAM, click here.