Students learn that dams do not last forever. Similar to other human-made structures, such as roads and bridges, dams require regular maintenance and have a finite lifespan. Many dams built during the 1930-70s, an era of intensive dam construction, have an expected life of 50-100 years. Due to inadequate maintenance and/or for environmental reasons, some of these dams will fail or be removed in the next 50 years. The engineers with Splash Engineering have an ethical obligation to remind Thirsty County of the maintenance and lifespan concerns associated with its dam.

Student teams design their own booms (bridges) and engage in a friendly competition with other teams to test their designs. Each team strives to design a boom that is light, can hold a certain amount of weight, and is affordable to build. Teams are also assessed on how close their design estimations are to the final weight and cost of their boom "construction." This activity teaches students how to simplify the math behind the risk and estimation process that takes place at every engineering firm prior to the bidding phase when an engineering firm calculates how much money it will take to build the project and then "bids" against other competitors.

TV programs such as “Law and Order” show how forensic experts are called upon to give testimony that often determines the outcome of court cases. Engineers are one class of expert who can help display evidence in a new light to solve cases. In this seminar you will be part of the problem-solving process, working through both previously solved and unsolved cases. Each week we will investigate cases, from the facts that make up each side to the potential evidence we can use as engineers to expose culprits. The cases range from disintegrating airplane engines to gas main explosions to Mafia murders. This seminar will be full of discussions about the cases and creative approaches to reaching the solutions. The approach is hands-on so you will have a chance to participate in the process, not simply study it. Some background reading and oral presentation are required.

Student groups are given captioned photographs of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant facility and surrounding towns taken before and 28 years after the 1986 disaster. Based on the captions and clues in the images, they arrange them in sequential order. While viewing the completed sequence of images, students reflect on what it might have been like to be there, and ask themselves: what were people thinking, doing and saying at each point? This activity assists students in gaining an understanding of how devastating nuclear meltdowns can be, which underscores the importance of responsible engineering. It is recommended that this activity be conducted before the associated lesson, Nuclear Energy through a Virtual Field Trip.

Students conduct Internet research to investigate the purpose and current functioning status of some of the largest dams throughout the world. They investigate the success or failure of eight dams and complete a worksheet. While researching the dams, they also gain an understanding of the scale of these structures by recording and comparing their reservoir capacities. Students come to understand that dams, like all engineered structures, have a finite lifespan and require ongoing maintenance and evaluation for their usefulness.

Students are introduced to the multidisciplinary field of material science. Through a class demo and PowerPoint® presentation, they learn the basic classes of materials (metals, ceramics, polymers, composites) and how they differ from one another, considering concepts such as stress, strain, ductile, brittle, deformation and fracture. Practical examples help students understand how the materials are applied, and further information about specific research illustrates how materials and material science are useful in space exploration. A worksheet and quiz are provided.

Students learn about geometric relationships by solving real mini putt examples on paper and then using putters and golf balls to experiment with the teacher’s pre-made mini put hole(s) framed by 2 x 4s, comparing their calculated (theoretical) results to real-world results. To “solve the holes,” they find the reflections of angles and then solve for those angles. They do this for 1-, 2- and 3-banked hole-in-one shots. Next, students apply their newly learned skills to design, solve and build their own mini putt holes, also made of 2 x 4s and steel corners.

This free digital textbook serves as a companion to EDUC 1300/1200/1100 Learning Framework: Effective Strategies for College Success at Austin Community College. This book is an accessible and relevant way to explore the research and theory in the psychology of learning, cognition, and motivation as well as factors that impact learning, and the presentation of specific learning strategies. This Open Educational Resource was remixed from a previous version found at https://courses.lumenlearning.com/austincc-learningframeworks/ by Heather Syrett and Laura Lucas. Senior Contributing Author and EditorHeather Syrett, Professor and Assistant Department ChairStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community College Contributing AuthorsPamela Askew, ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community CollegeEduardo Garcia, ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community College Edgar Granillo, Professor and Department ChairStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community College Laura Lucas, Former Adjunct ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community CollegeMarcy May, Adjunct ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community CollegeTobin Quereau, Former Adjunct ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community CollegeAmber Sarker, ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community College Paul Smith, Adjunct ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community College Eva Thomsen, Associate ProfessorStudent Development and General StudiesAustin Community College Suggested Attribution for Reuse;Syrett, H., et al. Learning Framework: Strategies for College Success. Provided by: Austin Community College. Located at: OER Commons, https://www.oercommons.org/courseware/8434. License: CC BY-NC-SA-4.0 Revised August 2020 (Chapters 1, 4, 6, 7, and 8), August 2021 (Chapters 2 and 15), August 2022 (Chapters 1, 3, and 16), August 2023 (Chapters 1, 16, and 17), August 2024 (Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, and 14.)

Students take a hands-on look at the design of bridge piers (columns). First they brainstorm types of loads that might affect a Colorado bridge. Then they determine the maximum possible load for that scenario, and calculate the cross-sectional area of a column designed to support that load. Choosing from clay, foam or marshmallows, they create model columns and test their calculations.

Here we will learn about the mechanical behavior of structures and materials, from the continuum description of properties to the atomistic and molecular mechanisms that confer those properties to all materials. We will cover elastic and plastic deformation, creep, fracture and fatigue of materials including crystalline and amorphous metals, semiconductors, ceramics, and (bio)polymers, and will focus on the design and processing of materials from the atomic to the macroscale to achieve desired mechanical behavior. We will cover special topics in mechanical behavior for material systems of your choice, with reference to current research and publications.

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