THE
FALL/WINTER 2014
THE MAGAZINE M OF THE FACULTY Y OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCE AT A QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY
Celebrating 10 years of integrated learning in Beamish-Munro Hall
INSIDE... A fea featur ture e look look at at how ho w int integr egra ated learning has evolv olved ed at at Queen Queen’’s Engineering PLUS
Find out how how the ILC ILC has shaped shaped Julie Tseng seng’’s Queen ueen’’s Engineering exp xperienc erience e on page 6
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CONTENTS FALL/WINTER 2014
1
A message from the Dean Beamish-Munro Hall is more than just a building—it also represents our learning philosophy
2
Happy 10th birthday Beamish-Munro Hall and the Integrated Learning Centre The Faculty celebrates 10 years of integrated learning
4
The ILC: An integrated part of the undergraduate experience Four students share their thoughts
6
Engineering Design and Practice Sequence: The core of Queen’s Engineering Brian Frank discusses the EDPS curriculum
8
Online and distance: The evolution of integrated learning Eric Tremblay develops online programming that will keep Queen’s Engineering at the cutting edge of engineering education
10
Integrated Learning Centre: A “living building” that’s the ultimate teaching tool for civil engineers Neil Hoult and Colin MacDougall use the ILC to teach engineering concepts
12
SparQ Labs gives students the tools to bring ideas to life The Makerspace in the ILC provides Bren Piper (Sc’15) with a space to realize his dream
13
New faculty member fascinated by how joints function Dr. Michael Rainbow is a gymnast turned biomedical engineer
14
Queen’s Rock Mechanics Lab undergoes seismic shift Innovative facility provides students with equipment to get hands-on experience
16
New lab will link nanotechnology and biomedical diagnostics Dr. Carlos Escobedo’s new lab will test technology for real world application
18
Alumni engagement QYEA Welcome Back party, GO Eng Girl and Homecoming 2014
DEAN
Kimberly A. Woodhouse DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS
Adam Walker MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR
Meagan Suckling CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Jordan Whitehouse Kirsteen MacLeod GRAPHIC DESIGN
Walker Design + Communications PHOTOGRAPHY
Rob Whelan Stephen Wild CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Anita Jansman Kirsteen MacLeod CONTACT INFORMATION
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science Queen’s University Beamish-Munro Hall 45 Union Street Kingston, ON K7L 3N6 Tel 613.533.2055 Fax 613.533.6500 Email complete.engineer@queensu.ca
COMPLETE
THE
FALL/WINTER 2014
ENGINEER THE MAGAZINE OF THE FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCE AT QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY
Celebrating 10 years of integrated learning in Beamish-Munro Hall
INSIDE... A feature look at how integrated learning has evolved at Queen’’s Engineering PLUS
Find out how the ILC has shaped Julie Tseng’s Queen’s Engineering experience on page 6
Read about the Integrated Learning Centre on pages 2-13
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FACULT Y
Dean’s Message Celebrating integrated learning
W
elcome to the fall/winter 2014 edition of The Complete Engineer. The school year is upon us again, and our hallways are buzzing with students and faculty engaged in studies and research. This issue celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Integrated Learning Centre in Beamish-Munro Hall, an extraordinary space that has already had a significant impact on the Faculty in its first decade. Beamish-Munro Hall is more than just a building—it also represents our learning philosophy. With an open-concept design that reveals structural elements and monitoring systems, the building itself becomes a teacher, demonstrating the significance of innovation in engineering. BeamishMunro’s common spaces and labs foster an environment of collaboration and discovery, and provide a hub for exploring new ideas and opportunities. As we head into yet another school year, I invite you to pause and reflect on the evolution of the Faculty’s learning environment and the contributions that our benefactors have made over the years to create exceptional buildings such as Beamish-Munro. Their gifts allow us to give our students the education they need to thrive and lead. As always, I welcome your comments on our magazine, and I wish you all the best for 2015.
“
Beamish-Munro Hall
”
is more than just
a building—it also
represents our learning
Kimberly A. Woodhouse PhD, PEng, FCAE, FBSE Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
philosophy.
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10 birthday
Happy
th
Beamish-Munro Hall and the Integrated Learning Centre Walk into Beamish-Munro Hall at the corner of Division and Union streets any time of the day or any week, and chances are you will see students engaged in group discussions or design exercises, in organizing events, and socializing. The building hums with activity and the energy of bright, enthusiastic young people. Home to the Integrated Learning Centre (ILC), it’s a space that inspires learning and creative thinking among undergraduate engineering students. This year, Beamish-Munro Hall celebrates its 10th anniversary. “It’s all in the name: the Integrated Learning Centre,” says retired Associate Dean Jim McCowan, a champion of the facility since its earliest days. “BeamishMunro Hall is a learning centre, not a teaching centre.” In fact, long before the ground was broken to start the building, a tremendous amount of research, planning and design went into creating new learning opportunities that would address how to best educate students for today’s engineering practice. In the 1990s, it was clear that forcefeeding lectures and labs to undergraduate students was becoming a thing of the past. A project-based format that brought students together in teams to collaborate, explore, investigate and solve problems was emerging as a much more effective pedagogy. In 1996, when Tom Harris (Sc’75), now Vice-Principal (Advancement), arrived as the new dean of Applied Science, he took on the daunting role of leading the charge to revolutionize engineering education at Queen’s. “We started to explore what students required to become successful engineers,” says Dr. Harris. “We investigated more active and engaging methods that addressed the need for collaborative and team-based approaches.” Several engineering faculty members travelled to universities in the United States and Europe to research best practices. With financial support from the McConnell Foundation, the team visited the U.S.-based University of Colorado at Boulder and
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, as well as Aalborg University in Denmark. They studied the learning techniques being used in those institutions, and then applied them to the Queen’s situation. “A McConnell Foundation grant allowed us to develop ideas and case studies, build prototypes, and work the bugs out,” says Dr. Harris. What emerged was the desire for a purpose-based, student-centred building that would foster collaboration and creative thinking. This compelling vision convinced government, industry and donors that a new facility was necessary to bring the new learning techniques to life. “It was a happy coincidence that the Ontario government’s Superbuild Program was available to us,” says Dr. Harris. “Then along came a couple of generous private donors, Robert Beamish (Sci’60) and Donald Munro (Sc’52), as well as many dedicated alumni.” (See “Major donors to the ILC” on the next page). At the heart of Beamish-Munro Hall’s many distinctions is the focus on students. There are no professors’ offices in the facility, and the building itself provides many learning opportunities. It’s equipped as a working laboratory where students can see structural elements of the building and monitor systems such as air quality, heating, lighting, and cooling using specially designed software, showing how sustainable practices can be incorporated into building design. There’s also an interdisciplinary design studio
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and prototyping centre, group rooms, a multimedia facility, a site investigation facility, an active learning centre, and interdisciplinary, round-the-clock laboratory plazas. The Engineering Society office and student-run The Tea Room are located in high-profile locations near the entranceway. One of the building’s major objectives is to enable students to develop communication, presentation and team skills. First-year students are assigned a problem, such as building a playground for disabled children. Working in teams, they must articulate solutions and present their findings. “We are not as concerned with the answer to the problem as we are with how they came together as a team to solve it,” says retired Associate Dean James Mason (Sc’78), who was brought in to refresh the first-year curriculum in the ILC’s early days. Changes, such as replacing set piece chemical and physics labs with team projects, resulted in a few hard-fought battles. Not everybody agreed with the new learning style, and some educators resisted the changes. However, BeamishMunro Hall opened in 2004 on time and on budget; all the money required had been collected before construction began. Soon after, a number of outside organizations recognized the building for its creative design, innovation and sustainability. In 2005, it was named one of the most environmentally advanced buildings in Canada by the Sustainable Buildings ‘05 Canadian Team. In the engineering profession, the new building and curriculum at Queen’s made a huge impression. “At the time of its opening 10 years ago, the ILC was unique in Canada,” says Dr. Mason. “Now other universities have copied some of its features.” Forward-thinking initiatives such as the ILC have helped Queen’s Engineering to maintain its excellent reputation, which boosts its ability to attract the best students and to deliver highly skilled engineers to industry. “We continue to recruit a strong cohort of students,” says Dr. Harris. “They are leaders attracted to the idea that they have ownership in the building and control of their education. And industry continues to recognize Queen’s as leaders in engineering education.” It’s all good news, but Queen’s won’t be resting on its laurels. A dedicated Engineering faculty, led by the progressive-thinking Dean Kimberly Woodhouse, Vice-Dean Brian Surgenor (Sc’77, PhD’83) and Associate Deans Lynann Clapham (PhD’87) and Dr. Scott
Yam, continue to drive innovation in engineering education by building on the firm foundations of the ILC in BeamishMunro Hall. “This is a space where students and faculty can come together to learn, not just from a textbook, but from each other,” says Dean Woodhouse. “It’s a true representation of our collaborative and hands-on approach to learning.”
Major donors to the ILC Alumni, foundations and corporations came together to make the ILC a reality, including the following ($50,000+): • The Beamish Family and the Munro Family • The JW McConnell Family Foundation • Dennis Sharp and Helene Cote-Sharp • Richard and Norma Brock • Bruce H. Mitchell • David Pakrul • Andrew Spriet • Barry Stewart • Michael Norris • Michael Rose and Susan Riddell Rose • Thomas Hitchman and Naylor Group Inc. • Estate of Donald McGeachy • Estate of James R. Grasse • Peter and Peggy Janson • The Pow Family • Mark Thomas • William Young
High praise for the ILC Since opening in 2004, the facility has received numerous accolades and honours for its innovative design. The ILC at Beamish-Munro Hall: • was given a four-green-leaf rating on the BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM); • won the 2005 Award of Excellence in Innovation in Architecture from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada; • was named one of Canada’s greenest buildings at the 2005 World Sustainable Buildings Conference in Tokyo, Japan; • was presented as a Natural Resources Canada case study at the 14th UN Commission on Sustainable Development and the 2006 World Urban Forum in Vancouver, Canada; • received a Commercial Building Incentive Program (CBIP) grant from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan): Beamish-Munro Hall was found to be 25.9 per cent more efficient than the reference building. THE COMPLETE ENGINEER 3
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he ILC: An integrated p the undergraduate Allison Chong Chong
Sc’13, Mechanical Mechanical Engineer Engineering ing (with prof professional essional inter internship); nship); MScc candidate MS candidate, engineer engineering ing education
“
When I was a high school student deciding on higher education, I took tours of three or four universities. Stepping into Beamish-Munro Hall, I knew right away this was exactly where I wanted to spend my four years.
I’ve been here for six years and am now working on my master’s. I’ve never regretted the decision I made to study engineering at Queen’s. The teaching and design studios are fantastic, and I’m constantly making use of the cool technology that the ILC has to offer. I collaborate with fellow students, and it’s wonderful to be able to meet with team members in any of the bright and studentfriendly spaces available. Having food and coffee in the building is a huge bonus. And it’s real food too—The Tea Room offers lots of healthy options! I’ve found a real community here.
”
“
David Huitema
Sc’15, Mechanical Engineering The ILC is a great place to collaborate with fellow students. That’s the best thing about it. I spend a lot of time here and my team members are like my family. It’s a very focused atmosphere and we’re all here for the same purpose—to learn engineering. Last year, our team built an airplane in the design space, one of my favourite places in the ILC. It was an amazing experience. I learned a lot—not just technical skills, but team-building and interpersonal skills too.
”
The Tea Room adds to the community feeling of the place. I go there every day. In so many ways, the ILC feels like my second home. 4 THE COMPLETE ENGINEER
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Danny Lloyd Dann
d part of experience
Sc’16, Electrical Engineering
“
As design team captain for the Queen’s Fuel Cell Team, I think the ability to work and meet together here is absolutely key. We use the ILC as a collaborative space where we all gather to build a fuel-cellpowered snowmobile. Because this is a novel invention, there isn’t much information out there about it. So being able to work together as we do, we’re creating our own knowledge base.
Last summer, I took part in the Queen’s Summer Innovation Initiative (QSII), which is a four-month start-up incubator program. We used office and design space in the ILC to develop a new technology, design our system and build a prototype. There were nine different startup companies all working on the third floor of the ILC, which became a rich and creative environment. We formed a great ecosystem that allowed us to expand the scope and breadth of what we were trying to accomplish. My team designed a product for a desktop 3D printer that expands its capability to use multiple colours.
” Julie Tseng
“
Sc’16, Mathematics and Engineering, systems and robotics option My brother was a big influence on my decision to come here. He’s a Sc’07 graduate and was in one of the first classes to study in the ILC. He told me the biggest benefit Queen’s offers is collaboration. He was right.
The ILC facilitates collaboration in so many ways. The technology we have access to is wonderful and so very helpful. There’s space for all different types of study habits. I personally like the plaza, where I can work individually but can also consult and share with the person sitting across from me. The meeting rooms are excellent for people to work together. And the Engineering Society offers a student lounge where we can sit back and relax—that’s important too. I work as a tour guide for prospective students and I always mention the excellent opportunities for collaboration. It’s awesome what people can do when you give them the space to do it. Every day I look around and see a lot of familiar faces.
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Engineering Design a The core of Queen’s E Brian Frank (Sc’97, MSc’99, PhD’02) is the DuPont Canada Chair in Engineering Education Research and Development, and the Director of Program Development in the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. He has been instrumental in developing and implementing the Engineering Design and Practice Sequence (EDPS), a fouryear curriculum pathway that supports integrated learning. We asked Dr. Frank for his thoughts about EDPS and how this series of design-oriented courses that spans all four years of each engineering program works to foster and develop students’ technical and professional skills.
What is the Engineering Design and Practice Sequence (EDPS)? The EDPS is a four-year set of courses for students in all engineering programs. It provides an opportunity to develop skills in design, creativity, economics, communications and professionalism in engineering contexts. The first two years of the EDPS are delivered by faculty-wide, project-based courses—APSC-100 (EDPS I) and APSC200/293 (EDPS II). The third and fourth years of the sequence (EDPS III and IV) are delivered by departments, and tailored to the disciplinary design and practice approaches. EDPS IV is a culminating capstone design project supervised by an engineering faculty member.
How did EDPS evolve out of the Integrated Learning Centre (ILC) concept? The idea for EDPS originated at about the same time as the ILC concept did, but it took a few years to establish. It wasn’t until 2009 that department heads, undergraduate chairs, and curriculum committee chairs in the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science (FEAS) held a retreat to discuss future directions. One outcome was the desire to create a sequence of courses in design and professional practice in all years of every undergraduate program. A Curriculum Review Committee (CRC) was formed and tasked with creating what became known as the EDPS.
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n and Practice S s Engineering The CRC created high-level objectives to be exemplified and reflected in each course within the sequence, including to: • enhance the design and innovation capacity of our students; • be primarily project based, with appropriate scaffolding in early years to develop project management,
ended engineering design project. Some examples of these projects include:
design process, teaming and communications skills; incorporate graduate attribute assessment, required by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB); include most of the CEAB accreditation units required for engineering design; ensure that the structure was designed to encourage future multidisciplinary projects; encourage professional behaviour and skills; use peer mentoring to develop leadership and provide support for early-year students.
through easy-to-understand demonstrations and teaching aids. The students working on this project were asked to design and construct a generator prototype, aiming to produce up to 40 watts of power through oscillating kinetic motion.
•
• • • •
Can you give an example of an EDPS course, and what students would experience? All first-year engineering students at Queen’s University enroll in a 12-week team design project as part of APSC100, Practical Engineering Modules. This course provides the fundamental design, professional and laboratory skills required for the engineering profession. Students have an opportunity to develop critical technical and nontechnical skills, including information literacy, leadership, teamwork, and communication and project management skills, through an open-
• Human Powered Appliance System Sustainable Kingston is a non-profit organization striving to integrate the value of sustainability into the community. They are trying to increase the awareness of sustainability
“
The EDPS is a four-year set
of courses for students in all
engineering programs. It provides
”
an opportunity to develop skills in design, creativity,
economics, communications, and professionalism in engineering contexts.
• Accessible Musical Instruments H’art School of Smiles is a non-profit organization that helps adults with intellectual and physical disabilities build their literacy and social skills through arts and education. The students were asked to create a set of easy-to-use musical instruments that would allow these adults to express themselves while improving their social skills and musical understanding.
• Dynamic Obstacle Detection System The Queen’s Mostly Autonomous Sailboat Team (QMAST) is a student design team that plans and builds autonomous sailboats. QMAST’s four-metre sailboat, the GaelForce XL, required an update to its obstacle detection system. Students were asked
to apply their abilities in research methods, coding and construction to produce several different solutions to this open-ended problem. • Easy Access Wheelchair Storage
Assistive Device
The Tetra Society of North America has regional chapters all over Canada and the United States. It’s often difficult for wheelchair users, especially those with limited torso movement, to access the contents of a bag that’s carried or hung on the back of their wheelchair. Students involved with this project designed and built a prototype of a device that provided a wheelchair user with easier access to their bags.
Why do you think EDPS is important to the student’s learning experience in Queen’s Engineering? Evidence shows that to develop mastery in any field, students require repeated exposure to the types of problems typical in their discipline. They need authentic, realistic, engaging, project-based design problems, and to solve to them by working effectively as a team. The EDPS offers students the opportunity to do just that, right through their four years of education. THE COMPLETE ENGINEER 7
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Online and distance: The evolution of in
In conversation with Eric Tremblay, Ed Faculty of Engineering and Ap Eric Tremblay discusses how his work in online and distance initiatives is reinforcing integrated learning—and helping FEAS stay on the cutting edge of engineering education. What programs have you been working on recently? This year we launched an online version of our second-year Engineering Economics course. Students could choose a blended format, which included a mixture of online material and face-to-face lectures, or a fully online course. We hope to offer the online version again in summer 2015, when face-to-face undergraduate courses aren’t typically available. This gives more flexibility to learners to take alternate paths and achieve better balance in their personal and professional lives.
How does your work in technology-based education link to the integrated learning model? There are natural links. Integrated learning in FEAS is anchored in providing students with practical skills gained by teamwork, lifelong learning and a high degree of professionalism. These ideas are commonplace in highfunctioning workplaces, as well as highfunctioning learning environments. Today’s technology is being leveraged by various industries to assemble virtual multi-disciplinary teams, which often work remotely and collaborate on projects across jurisdictions. This is also happening in higher education and is a very strong component of online learning. 8 THE COMPLETE ENGINEER
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of integrated learning
y, Educational Developer, nd Applied Science
Eric collaborates with colleague David Yokom. David (Sc’03, MSc’05) is leading the development of a new Bachelor of Technology degree, which is a major new collaboration between Queen’s University and the Northern College Haileybury School of Mines in northern Ontario.
“
”
This work will also help build the foundation for us to provide
future opportunities to offer
students a more technologyfocused mining degree.
How will your work support integrated learning and leadingedge engineering education? Every new online course and blended course we develop will promote active learning and have a balance in learner-tolearner, learner-to-instructor and learner-
to-content interaction. With good online courses we provide the practice that learners need to hone their collaboration skills remotely in order to maintain a high degree of professionalism in diverse settings, including the workplace.
What exciting new initiatives are on your horizon? Notably, we’re in the early stages of working with the Northern College Haileybury School of Mines to leverage their success with the blended Mining Technician program in order to expand the program offering for Queen’s Mining students. The development of this interinstitutional relationship is funded by the Ontario Council on Articulation and
Transfer (ONCAT). This work will also help build the foundation for us to provide future opportunities to offer students a more technology-focused mining degree, which would appeal to part-time students, for example, or those working in remote locations.
What does the future hold for online learning? We’re currently in the golden age of technology-mediated learning. We can expect it to keep gaining momentum: it’s great for learning, any place, any time and on almost any device.
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Integrated Learning C A “living building” that’s the ultimate t
Neil Hoult uses the Learning Column in The Tea Room to teach his students how to apply what they are learning in class to an actual structure.
W
hile working as an engineer with Halsall Associates, Neil Hoult helped to design the Integrated Learning Centre. Little did he know then that he was creating his own instructional tool. “I have a long association with the ILC,” confirms Dr. Hoult, who has been an assistant professor in the Queen’s Department of Civil Engineering since 2009. “The building was created to enable hands-on learning and teamwork, and to provide an environment where students can meet and work with top-notch resources at their disposal.” Computer labs, prototyping labs and many features of the ILC itself support student learning. For example, the structural, electrical and mechanical systems are exposed, unenclosed by ceilings or visible through glass cut-outs in the floors and walls. Monitored online, the building’s systems yield data for student projects.
“You can approach parts of the building to see how the structure works,” Hoult says, mentioning a gap that reveals reinforced bars. “For a teacher, it’s handy to be able to point out various features to students using the building’s openings.”
“ ” It’s a nice way for students to apply what they’re learning in solid
mechanics to an actual building.
Hoult also uses the eye-catching Learning Column, located in the ILC’s The Tea Room, for student labs in his second-year Solid Mechanics course. The column, which has a hydraulic jack underneath so that it can be lifted up using a foot pedal, with sensors to provide data, is a tremendous tool for problem-solving.
“It’s a nice way for students to apply what they’re learning in solid mechanics to an actual building,” Hoult says. “They can figure out the force they’re applying to the column and what’s going on with the structure—whether force goes into the column evenly, for example, or what happens to the beam above.” This hands-on learning creates ‘aha moments’ for students. “It’s often the first time they realize that the simplified analysis they learn in second year is just modeling and may not match what happens in the real world. From this point on, they expand their understanding of practical considerations in real buildings.” As faculty adviser to various groups, Hoult says he sees first-hand how the ILC provides much-needed space for students to gather and work. First-year students in engineering design and practice, for example, use the ILC for meetings. And
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g Centre:
e teaching tool for civil engineers fourth-year students from the concrete toboggan and concrete canoe teams, as well as the bridge building team, take advantage of the ILC, says Hoult. “The workspaces, storage space and computer design facilities support their activities.” Dr. Colin MacDougall, an associate professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, has also been involved with the ILC since its earliest days. He joined Queen’s in 2001 and participated in the first meetings to discuss what should go into the building. “The goal was to bring different types of engineers together in the same space and to provide hands-on learning. We were creating a teaching tool,” says MacDougall. Even today, he says, the Learning Column remains unique. “It allows us to hold labs to test what happens in a real structure when you put a load on it. This is great for students to be able to see
the theory and then see how much more complicated everything is in reality.” The Steel Tree, located at the back of Beamish-Munro Hall, is another tool MacDougall uses regularly. It helps students to visualize structures, understand how various components are connected, and appreciate the challenges
“ ” Our students don’t take a year to see
how theory applies to a real building— they see it early on at the ILC.
involved in taking a concept on paper and turning it into a living building. The tree demonstrates some of the most common structural steel components and elements used to build skyscrapers, bridges, office buildings, schools and hospitals. In his classes, MacDougall asks
students to create a computer model of a structure based on the steel tree. “It has a lot of weird shapes and different kinds of connections—bolted beams and columns, or welded ones—and is realistic in terms of things they’ll face as engineers,” he says. The building gives new graduates team and leadership skills, as well as solid project experience, enabling them to contribute immediately in the workplace, MacDougall says. “Our students don’t take a year to see how theory applies to a real building—they see it early on at the ILC.” Even a decade after it was built, he adds, the ILC remains a leadingedge tool for teaching engineers. “It’s great—the building gives me a chance to do assignments and lessons I can’t do in a regular classroom. And it lets my students see how things connect and where things go in a real structure.”
Colin MacDougall uses the Steel Tree behind the ILC to demonstrate how common structural steel components are used in building structures.
> To learn more about the live building visit: www.livebuilding.queensu.ca
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SparQ Labs gives students
the tools to bring ideas to life
“B
eing in this space has increased my passion for building and making things,” says Bren Piper (Sc’15), director of SparQ Labs. “And it helped me realize where I want to go—I can imagine myself making movie props.” Piper, who studies computer engineering, says he first visited SparQ Labs—a “makerspace” where people gather to share resources and knowledge, work on projects, network, and create— while in search of a heat gun. “I needed it to bend Plexiglass for gloves I was making for one of my Daft Punk projects,” Piper explains. Daft Punk, electronic musicians who wear distinctive costumes, inspire many of Piper’s extracurricular projects, such as a Spartan helmet that sits on a nearby desk. “Here in the lab, I also made an Ironman helmet with eyes that light up—right from the computer model, through making and painting it, to putting in the electronics.” How does his zeal for props relate to
his degree? “Computer engineering, and engineering as a whole, is about learning problem-solving,” Piper says. “Beyond the particulars, it comes down to the same question: You have to attach this to
“ ” Computer engineering, and
engineering as a whole, is about learning problem-solving.
this, and how are you going to do it?” As director of SparQ, Piper oversees the lab, run by volunteers from commerce, engineering and arts. There, he sharpens his computer engineering skills—working with Arduino boards, which are available for members to use, for instance—and gains unique knowledge. “I’m a collector of skills sets,” Piper says. “A custom backpack project from the Queen’s Summer Innovation Initiative
(QSII), for example, taught me a lot about sewing.” Also illuminating were a project to create books with storage compartments, often from old engineering texts, and another to make borehole cameras, he adds. “I love this collaborative space and what’s been created here—it’s phenomenal,” Piper says. “Plus there’s no investment in tools. You can come, bring materials and make absolutely anything that’s in your mind.” Piper says he’s spent countless hours in the lab. “I regret none of it. It’s feeding my passion—and everyone else’s—for making things.” After he graduates in May, he says he’d like to work in film. “I saw this twostorey monster online recently. All I could think about was, ‘I’d love to get inside and see how they built that thing!’”
> For more information about SparQ Labs visit: www.sparqlabs.org
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New faculty member fascinated by
how joints function
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hat happens when a gymnast studies physics? For Dr. Michael Rainbow, an assistant professor in the Queen’s Mechanical and Materials Engineering Department, the result was the birth of a biomedical engineer. “I like to understand how things work—especially the human body,” he explains. “I started out as a gymnast and coach, and got interested in biomechanics as applied to my gymnastics skills while I was an undergraduate.” Studying computational physics at Penn State Behrend in Erie, Pennsylvania, Rainbow did an internship at the city’s Shriners Hospitals for Children. In its motion analysis lab, he worked with physicians to plan treatment strategies for children with musculoskeletal disorders. “That’s when I learned that there are still many unanswered questions about human movement,” Rainbow says. “Even simple actions, like walking across a room or throwing a dart, are not fully understood.” Next, he earned a PhD in biomedical engineering at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island,
where he developed a three-dimensional multi-articular model of the human wrist joint. Rainbow relocated to Queen’s in July 2014 from Harvard Medical School’s Department of Physical Medicine and
“
”
I started out as a gymnast and coach, and got interested in biomechanics as applied to my gymnastics skills while I was an undergraduate.
Rehabilitation. He’s keen to continue his work, which uses imaging and modeling to understand the mysteries of how joints function—and how different ways people move might affect how they get injured. “There are many theories—take the controversy over barefoot running, for example—but none have been tested dynamically.” That will change once his new highspeed skeletal imaging lab is established
in Hotel Dieu Hospital, likely by spring. “It will be one of about five labs in the world that allow us to image joints while they are moving,” Rainbow confirms, featuring emerging technologies in MRI and CT imaging, computation modeling, and high-speed X-ray motion capture. Knowing more about the science of how joints function will help physicians and surgeons, Rainbow adds. And for patients, screening tools to identify those at risk for various overuse injuries and personalized treatments and preventative strategies will result. Rainbow remains fascinated by movement and looks forward to working in a multidisciplinary environment. “One reason I came to Queen’s is the collaborative culture,” he says. “Already, there’s been interest from my colleagues and from physicians at the Human Research Mobility Centre, which is exciting.”
> For Dr. Rainbow’s faculty page:
me.queensu.ca/People/Rainbow/index.html For a video about Dr. Rainbow’s research: vimeo.com/104036861
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Queen’s Rock Mechanics Lab
undergoes a seismic shift
Senior Program Coordinator Oscar Rielo shows undergraduate mining engineering student Adrien Belage data acquired from the testing of a rock sample.
“D
ark, cluttered and dusty,” is how Oscar Rielo, senior program coordinator at the Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining, describes the Rock Mechanics Lab—before its recent transformation. “Now we have a state-of-theart environment for students,” he says, showing off the bright, orderly facility. Since August, the second-floor lab and the basement lab have been painted and radically reorganized, and new technology, such as computers, data acquisition systems and a 3,000-kilonewton force transducer for compressing rock, have been introduced. Using funds generated from rock testing for commercial customers from Burkino Faso, Mongolia and other countries around the world, Rielo and his team—technical support staff Perry Ross and Larry Steele—tackled many upgrades. “First, we made our own Automatic Direct Shear (ADS) machine for $6,000, and it paid for itself with our very first order.” The innovative machine has
“
tripled the lab’s rock-testing speed. It also provides immediate results and
”
All the changes we’ve made will
help students to be more creative. It’s one thing to give them books, but hands-on work is what really engages them.
yields more complete and accurate measurements. Clients can log on from the office and see their samples being processed, as well as their data. It’s students who are the main beneficiaries, however. “Before, they had to use hand pumps to do their tests, and we had analog manometers to read the data. Now, everything is electronic, and the ADS machine can collect the data live,” Rielo says. As well, there are two new arrays of computers with customized software,
which makes it easy for learners to monitor results even as they watch their rocks being tested, and two new workstations. “Students can come here to build sensors, for example, and test them,” says Rielo. “We have all the equipment they need—such as oscilloscopes, volt meters, soldering irons and materials—and there’s always a tech on duty to help.” Notably, the upgrades mean the facility and its processes have become systematic, which enables more ambitious research and improves learning. “Before, it was so crowded you’d be bumping into things,” Rielo recalls. “The chaos and noise were distracting for students.” Now everything runs smoothly, making it easier to optimize lab time, for example, and to stage experiments so that students learn particular, targeted lessons. “All the changes we’ve made will help students to be more creative,” Rielo says. “It’s one thing to give them books, but hands-on work is what really engages them.”
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Technician Larry Larry St Steele checks the newly newly refurbished refurbished cor core e drill. drill.
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New lab
will link nanotechnology and biomedical diagnostics
Dr. Carlos Escobedo
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PhD candidate Hannah Dies and Dr. Escobedo examine a nano-hole array.
I
f all goes well, Carlos Escobedo, a researcher and assistant professor in the Queen’s Chemical Engineering Department, will have his new lab up and running in Dupuis Hall by spring. “My main research stream is microsystems and microstructures,” Escobedo says. “I work with sensors, trying to detect cancer at early stages.” To establish his facility, the Microfluidic and Optofluidic Systems Lab, Escobedo has received an impressive $400,000 in research grants since he came to Queen’s in May 2013. Among them, he was awarded
“
Here at Queen’s, we want to prove
”
our technology works well and
transfer that knowledge to users
to have a social effect, diagnosing ovarian and other cancers— and some viruses as well.
$125,000 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund, plus $125,000 in matching funds from the province; and a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada grant of $125,000. The support will allow him to fund a graduate student, for example, and to purchase equipment. “I need access to advanced microscopy and imaging: we’ll get some 3D printers with micrometer resolution and an inverted fluorescent microscope with an upright imaging system.”
Escobedo’s research is at an exciting point. “Here at Queen’s, we want to prove our technology works well and transfer that knowledge to users to have a social effect, diagnosing ovarian and other cancers—and some viruses as well.” During his doctoral work at the University of Victoria, Escobedo demonstrated that nanostructures can be used as sensors for early detection of ovarian cancer. “Symptoms only show up when the disease is advanced because the concentration of biomarkers in the blood is very low—so we are developing technology that can find even small amounts.” In 2013, he developed microsystems for cell studies as a postdoctoral fellow at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. Escobedo has a BSc from the National University of Mexico, an MSc from the University of Toronto and a PhD from the University of Victoria. He was also manager of the mechanical engineering division at Mexico’s Innovamedica R&D. “We developed the first Mexican artificial heart, which has recently been implanted into patients successfully.” Currently, Escobedo teaches secondyear chemical engineering and fluid mechanics. He’s also co-supervising a number of graduate students and collaborating with researchers in Chemistry and from the Human Mobility Research Centre. His ideal result from the lab within five years? “I’d like to see the technology we develop here being tested for realworld applications,” he says, “and being transferred to an important company that could bring it to users.”
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ALUMNI NE WS
Alumni engagement QYEA Welcome Back October 2014 event a big success On October 25th, QYEA (Queen’s Young Engineering Alumni) hosted their annual Welcome Back party at the Beer Academy in Toronto, giving fellow young alumni the opportunity to reconnect and welcoming the newest graduates from Queen’s Engineering to the GTA.
Left to right: Richard Hayward (Sc’00), Lily Gearin (Sc’12), James Elson (Sc’02), Paul Goddard (Sc’90), Paul Yang (Sc’09), Irene Doslo (Sc’08), Vikram Bhatia (Sc’13)
Queen’s young engineering alumni having a good time in Toronto!
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Go ENG Girl, October 2014 On October 25th, girls in grades 7-10 gathered at Queen’s for Go ENG Girl, an annual event promoting the field of engineering for women. Queen’s Engineering alumnae Melanie Riddell (Sc’99) and JoAnne Butler (Sc’78) took part in a panel discussion of careers in engineering.
Go ENG Girl brainstorming!
Go ENG Girl testing THE COMPLETE ENGINEER 19
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ALUMNI NE WS
Alumni engagement Homecoming, October 2014 During Homecoming 2014, alumni and current students had the chance to network and share old and new memories of their time at Queen’s during the Dean’s Reception in Beamish-Munro Hall on October 18th.
Lef eftt to to righ right: t: Donald Mallor Malloryy (Sc (Sc’54); Alan Pick Pickering ering (Sc (Sc’54); Pet Peter er Davidson Davidson (Scc’15), EngSoc (S EngSoc VP of Oper Opera ations; Car arolyn olyn Fisher Fisher (Sc (Sc’15), EngSoc EngSoc Pr Presiden esident; t; Ale lexander xander Shieck Shieck (Sc (Sc’15), EngSoc EngSoc Dir Direc ecttor of Design Design
Sc’54 classmat classmates Alan Alan Pick Pickering ering and Donald Mallor Malloryy presen pr esentt Dean Kimberly Kimberly Woodhouse with a cheque from fr om their class which will support support the Scienc Science e ‘54 Bursary Bursary. Their goal is to to raise raise a total total of $500,000 ov over the nex next five five years years..
Sc‘64 classmat classmates Barr Barryy St Stewar artt, Reg eginald inald Gunson Gunson and Rober Robertt Clapp Clapp presen presentt Dean Kimberly Kimberly Woodhouse with a cheque repr epresen esenting ting funds raised raised to to dat date for for the Scienc cience e ‘64 Equipmen Equipmentt Fund Fund.. Their goal is to to raise raise a total total of $750,000 ov over the nexxt five ne five years years..
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Sc’59 classmat classmates Alan Alan Hallwor Hallworth, th, Geor George ge Aitk Aitken en and David Da vid Sc Scott ott,, celebr celebra ating their 55th rreunion, eunion, presen presentted a cheque to to Dean Kimberly Kimberly Woodhouse for for $1.2 million— repr epresen esenting ting funds raised raised to to dat date for for the Scienc Science e ’59 Admission Aw Awar ard d. The aw awar ard d is the second second largest largest endow endowed fund at at Queen Queen’’s. Their goal is to to surpass Sc Sc’48½, who hold the number one spot at at just ov over $1.5 million!
Lef eftt to to righ right: t: R Rober obertt Pet Peterson erson (Sc (Sc’59, MSc MSc’61), James Shearn Shearn (Sc (Sc’59, LLB’67), LLB’67), Ralph Ralph Lundber Lundberg g (Sc (Sc’59)
Lef eftt to to righ right: t: Susan Lorimer Lorimer (Sc (Sc’74, MSc MSc’80), Anne Brook Brooke e (Sc (Sc’74), Leanne Leanne Ker Kerffor ord d (Sc (Sc’15) Lef eftt to to righ right: t: S Scc’89 classmat classmates Laura Laura Bradle Bradleyy, Joseph Thwait aites es,, Miy iye e Co Cox and Elizabeth Soria Soria celebr celebra ate their 25th rreunion. eunion. The heyy wer were e part part of the Pep Pep Talk panel that that focused focused on career career dev de velopmen elopmentt and options aft after gr gradua aduation tion for for students students..
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inspiring.engineering inspiring .engineering.queensu .queensu.c .ca a Building Our Future. The success of Beamish-Munro Hall has sparked the next phase of growth for Engineering, integrated learning and innovation on campus. The proposed new Queen’s Innovation Commons will provide the setting for cross-faculty and crossuniversity collaboration in teaching and research, fuelling the Queen’s innovation agenda. Their collective goal: driving innovation forward in Canada and beyond. Find out more at www.queensu.ca/ initiative/priorities/engineering
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCE – Development and Alumni Relations Beamish-Munro Hall, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6
RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO:
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science Office of the Dean Queen’s University 45 Union Street Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6
www.inspiring.engineering.queensu.ca 613-533-6000 Extension 75248 inspiring@engineering.queensu.ca
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