3. 3
The past several months have
feverishly gone by just like that. From
the months running up to the grand
launch, to the past several weeks of live
operation, my editorial team and I have
been moving at such a frenetic pace,
keeping several plates turning, including
conceptualizing, revising and producing
content, on top of responding to readers’
questions and addressing feedback.
We at the GineersNow team
know that we are in for a herculean
pursuit of competing with the more es-
tablished and wider reaching information
portals. Though it is inevitable to com-
pete with them, that isn’t why we existed
for. At this point, we deem it best to stay
true to our avowed purpose, assume our
own identity, and most of all, have fun
and exude fun.
Our work has been paying off
thus far, as since “project GineersNow”
started several months ago, we have
already hailed several milestones. Some-
times, we catch ourselves asking: “Did we
actually achieve this?” I, as the Senior Ed-
itor, understand where this slight doubt
comes from. More than doubt, however,
I think it is more of astonishment. But,
the engineers in us still try to make sense
of how far GineersNow have come in its
several months of existence. “If we have
already hailed several milestones in less
than a quarter of a year, does it mean
we have already covered an enormous
distance? With time being constant, and
Alice Hernandez
Senior Editor-At-Large
Ems Bagatsing
Sales & Marketing Director
Ems@LincolnMartin.com
Robert Bagatsing
Editor-In-Chief
editor@GineersNow.com
Alice Hernandez
Senior Editor-At-Large
John Vauden
Senior Editor
Asia-Pacific
Hina Sapra
Senior Editor
South Asia
Therese Matheren
Senior Editor
North America
Dion Greg Reyes
Junior Editor
Cielo Panda
Junior Editor
Farrel Pinto
Junior Editor
Raymond Gerard del Valle
Junior Editor
Abhishek Tarafder
Matrix Media
Information Technology
Aiza King
Creative & Layout
Note
Editor's
using the formula Distance = Rate x
Time, does it mean that we are moving at
a remarkable speed?
At an astonishing speed we
are moving indeed, as today, we have yet
marked another milestone in our short
history – the launch of GineersNow
magazine. What you are reading now is a
compendium of the 100 best stories that
we have featured in our website, written
by our correspondents across Asia and
Australia. Our maiden issue banners
an exclusive one-on-one with Robert
Bagatsing, the Founder and Chief Giving
Officer of GineersNow, as he shares the
history and the roadmap ahead of “the
online home of kickass engineers”. This
issue also features select articles on a wide
range of engineering fields, including
electronics, bio-medical, chemical, in-
dustrial, civil, mechanical and electrical,
to name a few. Our content covers an
extensive range of industries, among
which are mining, oil & gas, aeronautics,
renewables, robotics, IT, food, telecom-
munications and wearables.
We hope that you’ll enjoy read-
ing our maiden issue, as much as we had
fun creating it. On behalf of the entire ed-
itorial team, I would like to thank you for
your support and in making the launch of
GineersNow a resounding success. Now
that we have solved the Distance = Rate x
Time conundrum, you think it’s time to
tackle Force = Mass x Acceleration?
GineersNow is a subsidiary of
Lincoln Martin Strategic Marketing
Level 14, Boulevard Plaza Tower 1
MBR Boulevard, Emaar Square,
Downtown Dubai, UAE
P.O. Box 334036, Dubai, U.A.E.
Mob: +971 50 4289684
www.LincolnMartin.com
GINEERSNOW
T E A M
7. 7
T
A KICKASS STORY
here’s a new information
portal whose following is
snowballing as we speak.
Earlier this year, GineersNow,
a professed news platform
for badass engineers, was
publicly launched with relatively conser-
vative expectations. Venturing into a sea
of seemingly endless stream of online
information, driven by a small team of
budding engineer writers and designers,
and armed with almost nothing but inno-
vation, passion and vision, GineersNow
sailed in January, treading slowly and
steadily, but training its sight on never
going back to shore.
The impact that GineersNow
has made astounded its audience, and
even, admittedly, the team behind it.
Spurred by creative content, engaging
stories, gripping open debates and in-
novative interaction platforms, Gineer-
sNow’s following on Facebook alone has
grown to more than 140,000 in a little
over a month, with its popularity rippling
through other social media platforms, as
well as its proprietary website, www.Gi-
neersNow.com, which now enjoys almost
30,000 page views. Amidst fierce com-
petition in the digital publishing sphere,
GineersNow was able to immediately
carve a niche for itself, and command an
engaged following.
Though utterly pleased with
the initial success of GineersNow, its
Founder and Chief Giving Officer, Robert
Bagatsing, does not plan on resting on its
laurels. He recognizes that the key to con-
tinued success is constant re-invention,
consistent differentiation, and loyalty to
one’s avowed purpose.
In this exclusive interview,
Robert lets us into the story of Gineer-
sNow, and into how he, together with
his team and community of “engineers
with a social purpose”, plans to write its
successive chapters.
GINEERSNOW:
The Inspiration
Robert, the brains behind GineersNow,
fondly describes himself as a man learned
in Manila, formed in Dubai, fortified in
Boston and inspired by the world.
Using his expertise in Market-
ing and his belief in the power of CSR,
Robert headed the formation of Lincoln
Martin Strategic Marketing (LMSM), a
purpose-driven strategic marketing agency.
“I started LMSM to teach my five-year-old
son, Lincoln, the golden values in life,” said
Robert. He envisioned that LMSM would
help the poor, especially young students, by
being a vehicle through which companies
could contribute and provide financial
support to poor areas in Asia and Africa.
“We created LMSM to be able to provide
classrooms and scholarships to those who
deserve it. It’s truly a social innovation.”
LMSM gave Robert and his
team a consistent stream of revenue and
emotional profit, which he described as
overwhelming. “I wanted to replicate the
success of LMSM in a more targeted envi-
ronment,” said Robert, explaining that one
way he thought of carrying this out was by
creating a dedicated online platform for a
“marginalized” sector.
Backed by a team of young and
passionate engineer writers, social media
experts and designers, and supported by his
family and friends, Robert thus embarked
on creating GineersNow.
C O V E R S T O R Y
8. 8
Building a
Community of
Engineers with a
Social PurposeRobert ascribed the early success of Gineer-
sNow to social media platforms, particular-
ly Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram
and Google+, which he described as allies
to amplifying the presence of the website.
He also credited the creative
team behind GineersNow’s social media
sites for producing unique, engaging posts,
which includes GN Bot and Engineer-
ing Debates. GN Bot is the young robot
engineer that “answers” questions from
the readers. His “knowledge” spans from
affairs of the heart to the latest engineering
technologies. Engineering Debates, on the
other hand, allows GineersNow’s followers
to offer their insights on the latest issues
concerning the engineering and allied
industries.
“Aside from GN Bot and our
weekly debates, we have introduced a lot
of unique content in the past 30 days,” said
Robert. Trawling GineersNow’s social me-
dia pages, one can see contents like “Fash-
ioneering”, which talks about the fusion of
fashion and wearable technologies. There
is also “Kitcheneering”, which features how
industrial engineers and IT professionals
are pioneering IoT kitchen products. Then,
there’s “Life of an Engineer”, which revolves
around engineers-turned-chefs or other
career shifts. “All of these stories are inspira-
tional, funny and really compelling to read,”
said Robert.
Owing to a sweet mix of aggres-
sive, consistent marketing and quality con-
tent, GineersNow’s social media pages have
attracted an exponentially growing number
of followers, majority of which come from
the Eastern hemisphere. GineersNow’s
social media success drives notable traffic to
its website.
Why Engineers?From Robert’s extensive experience in the
energy and industrial sectors, he realized
that there was a notable deficiency in
engineering stories that actually zero in on
the engineers themselves. “Engineers are
the real heroes of this world, so I wonder
why they have not been given (by the
media) the attention that they deserve,”
said Robert. He admitted that there was an
abundance of engineering-related stories,
but most of them focused on products and
processes. “It think it’s time that the world
hears the ‘real’ stories of the engineers
behind the engineering marvels: their lives,
struggles, failures, learnings and successes.”
Robert believed that by telling the stories
of engineers, especially the young ones,
GineersNow could inspire other engineers
to strive amidst difficulties and celebrate
their triumphs, and move young students
to specialize in engineering-related fields
and make a difference.
GineersNow has been successful
in its pursuit to communicate to young
engineers, as most of its followers are 18-35
years old.
The Internet,
Native Advertising
and Hybrid
Social EnterpriseGineersNow differentiates itself from other
online news platform not only through
its targeted audience, but also through its
marketing and business models.
The continuous decline in the
consumption of printed media prompted
the team behind GineersNow to anchor it
on the Internet. “I remember a case study
that we took up when I was still in Harvard:
It was about the competition between
online and traditional media, the Hubspot
and New York Times paywall,” said Robert,
explaining that the study had revealed print
media would gradually fade as a medium
of education and information dissemina-
tion. “The revenue of print magazine and
newspapers will dwindle because of the
Internet. In 10-20 years, we’ll be seeing less
newspapers in the stands.”
GineersNow veers away from
anything conventional, even in advertising.
Traditional advertising is characterized by
pushing the ads in front of the readers, even
though they did not ask for it. Called “in-
terruption marketing”, this kind of invasive
advertising is now in decline. Harvard case
studies attributed this drop to the rise of
mobile technology, increase of ad blockers,
and decrease in TV spending habits and
of consumers’ affinity to print media. “You
go to Starbucks and you will no longer
see people reading newspapers; they hold
a coffee cup and read their social media
updates,” said Robert.
Instead of “interruption mar-
keting”, GineersNow swears by “native
advertising” as a means of making profit.
Dubbed as a non-intrusive and inbound
marketing approach, Robert explained that
the native advertising model would allow
the customers to organically find Gineer-
sNow’s contents and the contents of its ad-
vertisers. “We are able to organically attract
attention, without interrupting our reader’s
flow of activity. When the content is funny,
inspiring or really compelling, it will be
shared on social media and eventually go
viral.”
As a hybrid social enterprise, Gi-
neersNow consequently channels its profits
towards socially beneficial causes. “Amass-
ing revenue is not our main objective,” said
Robert, adding that GineersNow aimed
to help build engineering schools in Asia
and Africa. “We don’t aim to profit only to
make ourselves richer. We want to pour
GineersNow’s earnings into helping com-
munities by building schools, and sharing
information on the advantages and benefits
of engineering. We hope that by doing this,
we can inspire young students to choose
engineering as a field of specialization. We
believe that it will not only give them better
opportunities for self-improvement, it will
open roads for them to make a real differ-
ence in their families, communities and in
the world.”
In the next few months, the
GineersNow team aims to convert its
audience into a socially driven engineer-
ing community. “I think the best way to
describe it is that we are creating a com-
munity of young engineers with a social
purpose, empowered by a social innovation
movement that is making a difference in
the engineering world.” After building
engineering schools, the GineersNow team
deems to invite engineers to volunteer and
teach engineering subjects to poor commu-
nities, invent ways to electrify remote villag-
es, create portable desalination systems to
promote access to drinking water, and pos-
sibly re-purpose wastewater for agricultural
use. “If you have a community of socially
driven engineers, we can make this world a
better place. And possibly, inspire others to
do the same.”
9. 9
Creating a
Social MovementThough a relatively new entrant, Gineer-
sNow has already successfully distin-
guished itself from the competition. From
its fun, engaging content, to its marketing
and business models, to its fidelity to
its avowed purpose, GineersNow has
indubitably forged an identity of its own.
“Everyone at GineersNow is trying to cre-
ate a ‘social movement’,” said Robert. “We
aim to make engineering accessible to the
poor, break engineering stereotypes and
encourage young students to be involved
in the field. We want to change lives one
engineering story at a time. In fact it is
not just stories we are writing; we are
writing history.”
The Next ChaptersGineersNow’s initial success is nothing
short of encouraging, and the team behind
it has the highest hopes for its future. “We
are looking to expand GineersNow’s geo-
graphic and demographic reach. We have
originally developed our platform to cater
to the Eastern hemisphere, from Dubai to
Shanghai, but I think that in the near future,
we will pursue the Western market as well.”
As GineersNow becomes an established
news media outlet, the team also plans
to produce an “offshoot” to the Medical,
Finance and Civil Service industries. “We
will use the same business model for those.
We hope to see them online by 2022.”
Robert also explained that
there would be more to GineersNow than
just sharing engineering news. “In a few
months,” he said, “we will shift our platform
from an engineering news magazine to
building an online community that aims to
connect people from different engineering
industries and fields of expertise.”
The GineersNow team is also
training its sight into making the portal
a crowdfunding platform that will allow
engineers promote their ideas to the public
to attract funding for their projects. “We
are all aware that most young engineers
have so many new ideas. The realization
of these ideas into innovative products are
being curtailed by the lack of funding. If we
can connect our advertisers, friends or big
companies with these young engineers, we
would be able to create an impressive array
of social innovation products that could
change the lives of millions. Imagine the
endless possibility of creating meaningful
products for humanity? GineersNow will be
like a matchmaking or dating site between
young engineers and the engineering com-
munity.”
It is also exploring the possibility
of adding features to GineersNow to allow
young professionals and hiring companies
to connect. “On the one hand, we have the
engineers; on the other, there are companies
who might want to hire these engineers and
collaborate online. Again, GineersNow be-
ing a matchmaking or dating site will come
in handy in connecting young engineers
and engineering companies.”
Robert said that he and his team
want the business model of GineersNow to
be “open-source”; that means other com-
panies will be free to emulate it. “I believe
that the model can be replicated by other
start-up companies.”
11. 11
magine. What would our world be like
without engineers? Pretty normal?
Would the world be the same? Oh come
on, this world may not even be livable
without engineers. Imagine, if there were
no Engineers, there would be no one to
design the bridges you drive through. If
there were no engineers, there would be
no cars. If there were no engineers there
would be no video game designers to support your
lazy-ass games. If there were no engineers how
could you even “like” this post from the internet?
Better yet, if there were no engineers, there would
be no electricity in your area right now. I bet
you didn’t realize, but almost every mechanical,
electrical, structural body in your house or even
neighborhood is run by engineers.
Engineering is one of the broadest fields
of Science. It is subdivided into many divisions
such as Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering,
Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Agricul-
tural Engineering and the list goes on and on. The
responsibilities of an engineer is undeniably very
crucial in any part of the world. Unfortunately
since it is the broadest, it is also one of the most
difficult to understand. A lot of people don’t even
know exactly what an engineer does, and this
results in a shortage of people studying this field of
Science.
The pictures on the right may be a bit too
farfetched, but they speak for themselves. But if en-
gineering really has an important role in our world,
then why are the number of people studying them
getting lesser and lesser? There are a lot of factors
that are inducing the shortage of engineers in our
world. First is the most common, people don’t
really understand what an engineer does. Some
people even think that engineers are the people
responsible for repairing vending machines. Some
children think engineers are the people who drive
“choo-choo” trains. These ideas were instilled onto
a lot of people as kids. But if students, especially
high school students are properly guided by their
professors on what engineering really is and, what
the different roles of engineers are in the commu-
nity, then they would have a better understanding
of what the engineering field is all about. Who
knows they might want to take an engineering
course in the university.
Another reason why people don’t invest
themselves in the field of engineering is because, it
doesn’t make you rich fast enough. A lot of people
would rather spend their time taking up their
MBA’s and open up a business. After all, business is
the fastest way to make money.
Engineering is definitely a necessary
profession in every part of the world. If people
would understand the scope of engineering and its
effect to our world today, there might not be any
shortages. Engineers nowadays need to be given
the right credit they deserve, so they themselves
see their worth and importance as engineers.
I
Lyon Sprague DeCamp once said,
“The story of civilisation is, in a
sense, the story of engineering -
that long and arduous struggle to
make the forces of nature work for
man’s good.”
by Cielo Panda
13. 13
yperloop Technologies Inc.
proudly announced that as a
sponsor of the SpaceX Hyperloop
Pod Design Weekend January 29-
30 at Texas A&M, they will offer
$150,000 in prize money to teams
who present the strongest design concepts.
Hyperloop Tech will work with the select-
ed teams to provide resources and offset
the costs of building the pod in support of
student innovation in engineering.
After deliberate judging, more
than 115 students engineering teams rep-
resenting 27 U.S. states and 20 countries
were trimmed down to 22 to advance in
the next stage of the SpaceX’s Hyperloop
Pod Competition. The selected teams will
head to California this summer to test
their design prototype at the world’s first
Hyperloop Test Track.
Important criteria were consid-
ered to select the qualifiers: innovation
and uniqueness of design, full Hyperloop
system applicability and economics, level
of design detail, strength of supporting
analysis and test, feasibility for test tract
competition, and quality of documentation
and presentation.
22 Teams PROCEED
TO Prototype Testing
IN CALIFORNIA
WINNING TEAMS
MITHyperloopTeam,MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology
rLoop(non-studentteam)
uWaterlooHyperloop,UniversityofWaterloo
UWashingtonHyperloop,UniversityofWashington
UniversityofToronto,UniversityofToronto
RUMDLoop,UniversityofMarylandandRutgersUniversity
GatorLoop,UniversityofFlorida
TeamHyperLynx,UniversityofColorado-Denver
HyperloopUC,UniversityofCincinnati
UCSBHyperloop,UniversityofCalifornia-SantaBarbara
bLoop,UniversityofCalifornia-Berkeley
TAMUAerospaceHyperloop,TexasA&M
WARRHyperloop,TechnicalUniversityofMunich(Germany)
PurdueHyperloopDesignTeam,PurdueUniversity
Codex,OralRobertsUniversity
LehighHyperloop,LehighUniversity
KeioAlpha,KeioUniversity
DrexelHyperloop,DrexelUniversity
CarnegieMellonHyperloop,Carnegie-MellonUniversity
BEST OVERALL DESIGN AWARD:
MIT Hyperloop Team, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
POD INNOVATION AWARD:
Delft Hyperloop, Delft University of Technology (The Netherlands)
POD TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE AWARD:
Badgerloop, University of Wisconsin-Madison
POD TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE AWARD:
Hyperloop at Virginia Tech, Virginia Tech
POD TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE AWARD:
HyperXite, University of California Irvine
H
Photo Credit: Sanal Ulke
Photo Source: The Hoops News
14. 14
Water-Droplet Operated Computer
ater and a computer can be an
unusual combination. However, an
assistant professor of Bioengineering
in Stanford, along with his students,
has invented a synchronous com-
puter that works on the principle
of moving droplets of water. These computers are
being produced in such a way that they will be able
to control as well as manipulate physical matter.
The group of engineers has been working
on this project for almost a decade now. The idea
of creating such computers came to Manu Prakash
during his graduation. The dynamics of the fluid
droplet manipulates the basic element of computer
science.
The computer performs the same
functions as that of a normal electronic computer.
Nevertheless, it is comparatively slow. Though, this
is not included in the list of goals of the developers.
The primary aim is to concentrate on the physical
dimension and not on the fragments of informa-
tion.
W
The all-new computer chip has been
based on the rotating magnetic fields and a type of
maze of glass for small single droplets that is incul-
cated with the magnetic field. Each movement of
the rotating magnetic field mobilizes the droplets
of liquid in a proposed direction. In a binary code,
the presence of a water droplet is regarded as 1.
These first generation chips are very
minute in size. They’re almost half the size of
available postage stamps. In fact the water droplets
are smaller than the size of the poppy seeds. The
engineers encourages anyone who are interested in
trying out their new invention. They also want to
enable people who want to design new circuits that
are based on their start-up building blocks.
Opening this technology to the public,
can open doorways for new technologies that can
spring up. These new technologies can lead to
different new understandings that may or may not
make the world a better place.
Just add water to make your computer work.
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING
Photo Source: New Mobile Life
15. 15
Real-Life
Iron Man
As the song goes “What
doesn’t kill you makes you
stronger”. This line can be
related to Wayan Sumardana,
a 31-year old welder by trade
from Bali, Indonesia, who
was able to innovate some-
thing amazing despite his
social status and having just
survived a mild stroke.
Wayan, or Tawan
as people call him, was able
to make a bionic arm from
scratch using only tools and
scrap metals from his work-
shop.
Tawan’s arm was left para-
lyzed after he suffered from a
mild stroke. Being his family’s
breadwinner, he had to find a
way to be able to work. Using
his enthusiasm and some
knowledge in electrical engi-
neering, he was able to create
his own mind-controlled
bionic arm.
He can transmit
signals from his head to his
bionic arms, so it can work
like a real arm.
According to Tawan, his ma-
chine works like a lie detector.
Electrodes are attached to his
scalp, wherein it takes signals
from his head. The signals are
them amplified then analyzed
in the micro-control on his
back, then will be transmitted
to his bionic arm.
“I want to motivate
people who have strokes.”
Tawan said.
ELECTRO-ME C HA N IC A L ENGIN EER ING
Photo Source: We Reblog
Photo Source: Blogger Reporter
16. 16
Invisible
Lightweight
Materials Soon
To Be A Reality
n 29-year old Iranian researcher,
Dr. Mohsen Esmaily, at Chalmers
University in Sweden has recently
made a breakthrough in magnesium
lightweight materials that could
pave way to creating invisible ma-
terials. He has been awarded with the prestigious
scientific prize by the Royal Swedish Academy
of Engineering Sciences for his breakthrough
in magnesium alloys. His research could greatly
impact the future of materials science as the back-
bone of every industrialized nation science and
important to developing countries. According to
the Dr. Esmaily, saving our resources is of utmost
importance as we now experience climate change
and depleting environmental resources. Manufac-
turing lighter components is an effective way to
reduce uses of our resources and prevent further
carbon emissions.
His results in magnesium alloys
demonstrate possible microstructural design
improvements for enhanced properties such as
the invisibility effect. It is related to the interac-
tion of light and the material and producing such
‘metamaterials’ through nanotechnology. Now, it is
possible to control the bending of light in the ma-
terials. Imagine those invisible laptops and phones
in the coming decade, he says. There has been an
emerging arena in research to create lightweight
materials around the globe in the last decade.
Countries like the UK, the USA, Germany and
Japan are also undertaking major national research
in this area.
Optical Brush Takes
Images Without Lenses
MIT scientists develop the Optical Brush, through bundles of fibers immersed in pipes and liquids
to image oil fields without risking watertight housing damages.
IT scientists devel-
oped a new imaging
device that consists
of bundles of fibers
through pipes im-
mersed in fluids. This
can image oil fields, aquifers and plumbing
without risking damages to watertight
housings. These bundles of fibers can yield
narrow endoscopes that would not need
additional electronics.
The fibers are connected to an array of
photo sensors at one end and the another
left wave free to pass through micro meter
scale gaps in porous membrane and
get image on other side. By measuring
different times at which bursts of light is
photo detected, the device can identify the
relative locations of the fiber.
The commercial type will have these
bursts of lights calibrated within the fibers
while the prototype, with 1,100 fibers
C H E M I C A L
A
M
measuring 300 micrometer in diameter,
used external laser source and can pro-
duce 33 by 33 pixels. Time of flight, was
the technique used by the group and has
never been used in other things according
to Barmak Heshmat, the work leader and
author from MIT.
The device is further develop to extend
its imaging capabilities such as extracting
depth information and getting positions at
different arrival time interval of the lights
from the fiber. As of now it can produce
2D map positions of the fibers tips and can
potentially unscramble image captured by
conventional camera.
Other scientists like Keisuke Goda, a
professor chemist, says that it can be
useful for intestine endoscopy as it can
propel in complex structure. Definitely, it
is an interesting and innovative computa-
tional imaging that could be used in many
aspects.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
C H E M I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G
Photo Source: Plastic Material
Photo Source: Universal Sci
17. 17
Doodling Your Circuits That Easy
ased on personal experi-
ence, I certainly had a hard
time taking up my electrical
engineering elective where
in I struggled visualizing
circuit analysis and solving
circuit problems. Branches,
nodes and loops would just scramble in my
head. Then I get lost where to apply Kirchoff’s
Law, Ohm’s Law and Thevenin’s Theory etc.
But with this cool pen, I think students would
learn electronics faster and easier. Goodbye,
breadboards!
Elektroniks, a start-up company
from University of Illinois, creates Circuit
Scribe, a roller pen with conductive silver
ink for STEM education. It is a project based
learning where in students can build circuits
and switches in their notebooks by just
drawing lines. You can even create low-cost
high quality electronics with just papers, LED,
small batteries and clips.
It comes in different kits and tools
starting at a price of $20 per Circuit Scribe
pen. Basic kits cost $30 packed with basic
components like LED magnetic sensor and
boards, resistors, capacitors and switches.
More advanced learning kits range at $50-
$5000 from classroom to developer levels.
Add on tools can be also bought per piece.
The project was launched in Kickstarter and
has garnered a lot of pledges and backers.
Circuit Scribe has indeed attracted a lot of
people from the STEM field. Now, it can be
ordered through the Elektroniks and Kick-
starter websites and can be shipped anywhere
in the world. Definitely, this is a must-have for
electronics students and beginners. Doodle
your circuits and learn that easy!
B
E L E C T R I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G
Photo Sources
Top: The Hindu
Bottom: Crowd Supply
18. 18
by Alice Hernandez
C O M P U T E R
Karlie Kloss:
the SUPERMODEL
CODER
ou may have seen her in a Taylor Swift music
video or passed by the magazine stand and
see her face on the covers of different popular
magazines such as Vogue but there is more to
this supermodel extraordinaire than having
a pretty face and a body most women would
love to have.
She’s Karlie Kloss. Currently at the top of the
modeling game and making a difference in her attempts
to help fund meals for starving children all over the
world, Kloss also has cool hobbies we never expected
her to have. These hobbies include ballet and baking
cookies. Check out her instagram feed. She really likes
to bake. But what makes this 23-year-old cooler is her
love for coding.
Yes! The supermodel, who walks in couture
gowns for different brands and became a household
name for strutting her stuff in the Victoria’s Secret Fash-
ion Show, pursues her passion for coding. Normally,
models quit school just to pursue modeling – Kloss did
the opposite. Kloss just proves that models shouldn’t
just focus on their looks but also on their brains.
She initially took a crash course in coding
and found herself in love with it. Later on, we see her
talking about coding like it’s one of her obsessions.
Last September 2015, she enrolled herself in NYU’s
Gallatin School of Individualized Study. When she
graced the cover of British Vogue last December 2015,
she discussed her love for coding: “Call me a nerd, but I
love coding, the language of computers. Understanding
coding is a superpower. I met some tech entrepreneurs
and they are billionaires through learning this stuff. I’m
so competitive with myself and I am fascinated by the
language of technology so I decided to be part of the
conversation… I think it’s sexy to learn this stuff; it en-
Y
ables and it empowers both sexes. About two years ago
I started to think about what happens to me next. I’m
a 23-year-old model and I want to think less about my
looks and more about my future, and that involves my
brain. I want to run companies, have a business future.”
Knowing that she can’t bank on her looks
alone, she’ll use her coding skills to build an empire in
the future. Isn’t that an amazing role model for all the
younger kids out there? Speaking of being a good role
model, Kloss is also inspiring young girls to code. With
millions of followers in her social media accounts, she
uses it to let the public know the importance of coding
in today’s society. Now, she wants other women to fol-
low her footsteps. In an interview with The Guardian,
she expresses her opinion on the matter: “I think it’s
crucial that young women learn to code as early as pos-
sible to ensure that we as young women have a voice
and a stake in what the world looks like.” Last year, she
offered scholarship to 21 young girls between the ages
of 13 and 18 in her Kode for Karlie Scholarship. This is
in collaboration with Flatiron School. For two weeks,
21 girls were luck enough to immerse themselves in
the world of coding for two weeks with other young
coding enthusiasts.
Through the supermodel’s enthusiastic
posts about her love for coding, this will encourage
younger women to pursue a career in computer
science. This will allow an opportunity to address the
gender inequality issue in the workplace. Isn’t Kloss’
coding advocacy a refreshing view from all the other
shallow posts from other social media ‘it’ girls? We’re
hoping that the supermodel will inspire young women
to develop their brains instead of doing shallow things
just to get a few likes on their social media accounts.
D E S I G N
Over the last year I
started taking coding
classes and realized
how creative coding
truly is. Similar to
dance and fashion,
coding is a form of
self-expression. It's
a way to turn a cool
innovative idea to a
product, website, app,
tool or experience.
”
“
by Alice Hernandez
F A S H I O N E E R I N G
Photo Source: Pinterest
19. 19
Using a
Gemasolar
Thermosolar Plant
as the Runway
long straight stage can be a boring place
for a model to show off her clothes. The
clothes may be gorgeous but without
an interesting background, the fashion
show wouldn’t be very memorable
for an industry that thrives on the
ever-constant changes of the trends. So,
this model wants her fashion show to
be an event people would talk about – not just
in the fashion industry but also to everyone who
supports the green energy movement.
Meet Jessica Minh Anh. She’s a mod-
el, entrepreneur and a fashion show producer,
who transforms popular places into phenomenal
catwalks. She has made catwalks out of places
such as the Eiffel Tower, One World Trade Cen-
ter, Petronas Twin Towers and Londons Tower
Bridge.
What an awesome way to make a
mark in the fashion world. For her 10th year in
making extravagant productions, she chose the
famous Gemasolar Thermosolar Plant in Seville,
Spain. Who would have thought that this power
plant can be made into an awesome cinematic
backdrop for the J Summer Fashion Show 2015.
Wearing a red flamenco dress, Minh
Anh strut the catwalk located in the main road
at the center of the power plant, followed by
other models wearing maxi dresses. The show’s
audience sat on both sides of the catwalk while
drones flew around on top. These drones filmed
the whole show and featured how the sunlight
gives a stunning effect on the power plant’s
surroundings.
Thanks to Jessica Minh Anh’s catwalk
stint last July 2015, it inspired other people in the
creative world to pay attention to green energy as
well. In an interview, Minh Anh how Gemasolar
inspired her to take her extravagant show to this
power plant: “Gemasolar took my breath away. It
represents a rare modern beauty, which sees the
best of designs and sustainability efforts in one
place. I would consider this show my most chal-
lenging yet exciting project so far.” With Minh
Anh’s ambitious creative side, where will she take
her fashion show next? Would it also involve the
theme of renewable energy in her next projects?
A
by Alice Hernandez
Photo Source: jessicaminhanh via tumblr
Photo Source: jessicaminhanh via tumblr
Photo Source: jessicaminhanh via tumblr
20. 20
he physique of our human body is one of the
most grotesque creations ever made. From
the strands of our DNA in our cells up to our
outer epidermis, everything has sophisticated
structure. Honed symmetrical and function-
al, it is no doubt a vast field of intertwining
studies and gray areas. The perceptions of the human
body indeed is in a continuum of constructs and
relationships. Leonardo Da Vinci once incorporated
the beauty and architecture of the body through the
Vitruvian Man understanding its physical design.
Gregor Mendel with his study of genetics for charac-
teristics and traits. Charles Darwin for the theory of
evolution tracing our primitive origins and plotting
physiological changes over time. These all muster
to the different kinds of appreciation about what
human body is.
But what about trying to augment what
it already is? To encompass enhancement and per-
petuate the value of its functions, life in general? If
we conceptualize that our body is a manipulable cre-
ation, then it can be a technological tool for further
enhancements and innovations. Technology has now
provided earphones as the ear, the camera as the eye,
the cellular phones for the communication and other
useful advancements. Such relationship transcends
the differences and functions of what our body can
do and could do further. Let us take the perspective
of a unique ‘Body Architect’ on how she expresses
the relationship of technology and the human body.
Lucy McRae, a body architect as she calls herself, is
a featured TED speaker who works at Philips Elec-
tronics in the far-future design research lab. She is
a trained ballerina with an architecture and fashion
background. She fused the biological, technological
and philosophical fields forging a distinct job and
futuristic goals for the human body. She talks about
extending the links of what our body can do, how
certain visual imagery could do human evolution and
exploring its coexistence with technology. It’s more
of trying to move forward and reverting at the same
time in enhancing our body. To provide a redefini-
tion of our body functions as well is one mode of her
projects and creations.
T
Lucy McRae’s
Body Architecture
Experiments
B I O M E D I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G
Photos Source: Lucy McRae
by Farrel Pinto
21. 21
n invention she made was the swallowable
perfume. It is a cosmetic pill that would
perspire out fragrance from the skin once
consumed. She fascinates the way how
human attracts partners being reverted like
animals to communicate through their own
odor. Thus, making the human body also
an atomizer itself. It fastens the expression of human
emotions through digitized and enhanced body
function such as that of the skin.
Similar projects she has also initiated
embodies the adaptive function of our body through
vacuum cases. It has been inspired by the NASA
preparation for astronauts going outer space. It is
a futuristic spa prepping the body for zero gravity
and deep pressure. Participants undergoing the
prepping experience reduced tension and anxiety by
dilating body senses as they are encased in a vacuum
chamber. The device can be also used to treat autism,
depression and other physiological disorders.
Definitely, one could marvel out discov-
eries and innovations from our bodies if we started
inside out. Appreciating the functionalities and
aesthetics first idealizes how things will progress. And
through technology, we enhanced each part and then
the whole body providing new and protracted capa-
bilities. There are countless of possibilities and ideas
if we open our minds to the synergies of technology
and the nature of our human body. Who knows? Just
like Lucy McRae, we can redesign a human body that
does not age, a body that lives triple times the average
life span today or a self-healing body. We could bring
in different worlds. Wouldn’t it be exciting?
Lucy McRae’s Vacuum Case Experiment
A Lucy McRae
Lucy McRae is a trained classical ballerina and
an architect who considers herself as a Body
Architect, a science artist and a trailblazer,
who started her artistic study of technology at
Philips Design. She now leads the company’s
far-future research lab and conducts creative
innovations on human body archetype
through science and fashion technological
projects.
B I O M E D I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G
Photo Source: Lucy McRae
Photo Source:
Lucy McRae
22. 22
ver wondered what 4D
technology looks like?
Well, it’s pretty much like
3D plus another dimen-
sion: time.
Research from Harvard
University has found a way for a
3D-printed flower to shapeshift
while being immersed in water.
It is 4D-printed hydrogel com-
posite structure that is the shape
of an orchid, which is printed in
a single step but in a modified
print path.
Hydrogel composites
contain cellulose fibrils, an
organic compound found in
plants. It solidifies quickly upon
E
Shapeshifting
4D Technology
4 D T E C H N O L O G Y
printing but changes its shape
with the cellulose fibrils.
It comes from the idea
of developing an object, espe-
cially that of nature, the way
plants reacts to external stim-
uli like sun or rain. It was the
brainchild of the scientists from
Wyss Institute for Biologically
Inspired Engineering and the
Harvard John A Paulson School
of Engineering and Applied
Siences.
This groundbreaking
research is funded by the US
Army Research Office and the
Materials Research Science and
Engineering Center.
Photo Source: Twitter
Photo Source: DigitaltTrends
Photo Source: Live Science
23. 23
t has been a well-debated topic to whoever
has a more complicated job, or which
one is better: architects or civil engineers.
While to answer which one is better is
quite an unsound thought, it is safe to say
that civil engineers have a more compli-
cated job. I will say all these according to
my biases because I am a civil engineer and I have
experienced firsthand how difficult it is in the con-
struction industry to implement what architects do.
Civil engineers might as well agree with
on this one: an architect’s dream is a civil engineer’s
nightmare. To be able to fully understand that
expression, we have to know what architects and civil
engineers do. What architects essentially do is control
and innovate the overall aesthetics of a building or
structure. They study and focus on the aesthetic
principles of design and push its limits when it comes
to layout; they think outside of the box to provide
the most appealing structures according to form and
function, and also to local laws that will affect their
design.
That’s the scary part: when architects think
outside of the box, civil engineers might as well hide
in that box. Civil engineers are basically the builders
of the structures that architects put in construction
plans. We make sure that what the architects want
will be constructed according to their specifications.
Armed with technical knowledge and planning, we
have to find ways to make them work considering all
construction and structural codes necessary. It will
need several engineering laws to be followed that are
deep-rooted in math and in physics for the structure
to serve mankind for a long time. It will require
computations to prove that the structure is safe to be
constructed and feasible. This cannot be done by ar-
chitects because, as the good old joke goes, architects
are civil engineers who cannot do math.
Apart from the feasibility of the design of
the architects, civil engineers also deal with problems
on how to construct them in real life. Every single
item on the plan must be followed – each material,
dimensions, and location– which were mostly as-
signed by the architects. Civil engineers supervise the
construction work, as we have the knowledge of what
should be done to accomplish a building or a struc-
ture and what kind of building methods and practices
should be done. Perhaps there is already a grasp now
what it means to say that an architect’s dream is a
civil engineer’s nightmare; when the imagination of
architects go wild, civil engineers themselves go wild
in providing how such imagination can become real.
There would not be so much of a problem
if the two can meet halfway: an architect can be free
to design a structure with the permission of a civil
engineer that the structure can be built. Otherwise,
it will be a riot. Others say that civil engineers can
become architects on their own by having the right
amount of imagination. While that can be true, we
might end up having curve-less structures everything
will just be straight lines as that is an easier task for
civil engineers to prove to be feasible and easier to
construct. That is the reason why civil engineers and
architects need to have the collaboration in producing
structures that will serve the next generation. It isn’t
about who is better than the other, but about what
each one can contribute to accomplish a project. It is
only just sometimes, architects bring so much head-
ache to civil engineers when they go out of bounds.
I
AN ARCHITECT’S DREAM IS
A CIVIL ENGINEER’S NIGHTMARE
by Dion Greg Reyes
OPINION
24. 24
o you ever wonder
what the world
will look like by
the year 2050? Is
the technology
too advanced for
us? Will it make
the world a better
place? Or will the
world look just
like those dystopian films we see in the
big screen? Will there be more robots
than people?
Technology is advancing at
a rapid pace and affecting all industries
and sectors in one way or the other. It is
likely that technology will have brought
to reality things by 2050 that only exist
in fiction now. It will also have certainly
made a major impact in the sectors of
energy production and engineering. In
fact, researches have already uncovered
certain remarkable possibilities will come
into being by 2050.
For example, engineers at
the Stanford University have already
developed a plan that can transform
the United States into a nation that uses
only renewable sources of energy by the
year 2050. The plan details the actions
that need to be taken by each of the 50
states of the country in order to achieve
the transformation. There are aggressive
changes required in the energy consump-
tion patterns and also the infrastructure.
What does
the Year 2050
have in store
for Engineers ?
Nonetheless, the plan is feasible from an
economic and technical standpoint.
Is it the end of the coal indus-
try then? Clean energy for all? What will
the green activists complain about then?
Similar plans are afoot in
London, UK. A plan has been proposed
which can bring about major changes in
the infrastructure so as to make the city
sustainable for over 11 million people,
the projected population of London in
2050. One of the major concerns has
been water shortage, others being energy,
waste, transport and resource manage-
ment.
Some of the largest engineer-
ing groups in the world have stated that
we already have technologies which
are capable of reducing the greenhouse
gases in the planet by as much as 85%
by the year 2050. Another prediction
being made for the year 2050 is that the
world will have a total population of
9.5 billion. In order to feed such a large
population, researchers are suggesting
the use of genetic engineering and high
performance computing to increase the
photosynthetic efficiency of the plants.
This method can boost food production
and crop yields.
With all these plans for cleaner
energy and sustainability, do you think
engineers and scientists can make them
happen by the year 2050? Only time can
tell.
D
25. 25
ne of the most common
complaints against wind
turbines is not the difficulty
of use, usually it’s that the
wind turbines are quite
dull-looking. Most wind turbines
look so completely out of place in
the landscape they are placed on,
that they become eyesores.
However, that is set to
change if Jérôme Michaud-Larivière
would have his way.
Jérôme Michaud-Larivière
is the man behind New Wind, a
startup venture based in Paris. He
has created the Tree Wind, a wind
turbine that is shaped like a tree.
This is certainly a more aesthetical-
ly pleasing take on wind turbines.
At the same time, the wind tree
remains completely silent while the
‘leaves’ move in the wind.
According to Mi-
chaud-Larivière, the leaves of these
trees act as miniature versions of
wind turbines. He hit upon this idea
when he noticed tree leaves moving
even if there was almost no wind.
He wondered about the wattage that
could be produced by the leaves.
O
Trees
carry
artsy
wind
turbines
E N V I R O N M E N T A L E N G I N E E R I N G
Photo Source: Energosovet
26. 26
It demands an extreme interest
and attention to know even the
minutest detail of an object that
nobody else would ever be interest-
ed in. The air conditioner cools you
down while a room heater brings
your body temperature to normal.
However, there’s hardly anyone of
us who would have ever shown
interest in knowing what mecha-
nism works behind them or how
their electric circuits are connected,
unless you’re an engineer. Here’s
another character.
Designer Cindy Strobach
is different from most of us. For her
graduate presentation at London’s
Royal College of Art, she chose to
do something out of ordinary. She
decided to visualize the insides of
commonplace electronic objects,
specifically, a toaster and a speaker.
She used silk, organic dye made
from cabbage juice, and a pair
of electrodes to create colorful
“X-rays” (of sorts) of the internal
structures of these objects, which
completely resemble Abstract Ex-
pressionist paintings or Shibori tie-
dye. This technique, called “Electro
Colour”, was described as “painting
with electricity”. The printing pro-
cess she used was based upon the
principle of electrolysis of water,
which describes the decomposition
DESIGN ENGINEERING
of water (H20) into oxygen and
hydrogen gas when an electric
current is passed through. The
water, in her experiment, was the
red cabbage juice.
The technique she used
is simple. She stained a piece of silk
with an organic dye made from red
cabbage juice. This created a bright
monochromatic square laid on top
of the inner circuit board of the
toaster and the speaker. This was
then connected to a negative and
a positive electrode. The negative
electrode converts into alkaline and
the positive electrode into acidic,
which then sends electric currents
through the silk. The color of the
dye changes as the current passes
through it, which creates impres-
sions in midnight blues, mustard
yellows, and blacks. The appliances
are, then, draped with these dyed
“X-rays” from outside, picturing
their skeletal internal circuitry
from the outside. It looks like a hu-
man wearing one of those skeleton
T-shirts.
The new experiment
exudes a new understanding to the
everyday product and technologies
we used on a daily basis. Creativity
is truly not limited to canvas, it can
take any form you might not even
think of.
ARTWORK
MADE BY
ELECTRICITY
Photo Sources
Top: Royal College of Art
Top 3, Right: Frame Web
Bottom 2, Right: This is Paper
by Farrel Pinto
27. 27
ost construction sites
are safe when all safety
procedures from the
textbook are followed.
But when there is
already an impossible
way to gain acces in
some portions of the
construction to check for safety, the pres-
ence of drones will be a life-saver.
Well, the primary purpose of
drones in construction is its ability to
access parts that humans cannot easily
do or spot. Since safety is very much
upheld in the site, drones are of big help in
monitoring dangerously perched scaffolds,
evaluating harness equipment, and assess-
ing ladder placement for a worker above it,
among others. Being small and agile, they
can also go into hard-to-see places inside
the buildings, where small workers could
fit but may deem to be unsafe.
Other than the safety of con-
struction workers, drones are also useful
in maintaining the time frame and budget
of the project. Since it can help prevent
incidents that are harmful, the project can
make use of full-time workers that aren’t
involved in circumstances that will alter
the duration and cost of the project.
In this regard, Japan, through
Komatsu, is already exploiting the drones’
potential especially that the country is now
facing a declining population. They have
come out with a service called Smart Con-
struction, which allows workers to connect
to a cloud where drones and artificial
intelligence assisted controls will be able to
report their success. It’s meant to improve
the overall efficacy of any construction
company that is using workers and drones.
Countries like Australia and
Kenya have also began construction appli-
cation of these drones.
Drones, other than in construc-
tion, also find its purpose in surveying.
They can provide up-to-date 3D maps and
progress reports via sending pictures right
from the drone.
The use of drones in engineering
has indeed stepped up. It will be no won-
der if all construction sites will be filled
with flying machines later on.
M
Drones in the
Construction Site
by Dion Greg Reyes
CIVIL ENGINEERING
Photo Source: Rakenapp
28. 28
Harnessing
Electric Power from
Women’s Boobs
k! You think I’m pulling
your leg right? Women’s
breasts, a source of ener-
gy? No WAY! Well hear
me out here! A woman
from San Francisco –
Adrienne, wondered
if her natural D cup impediments
to her love of sport could be put to
some other good use, “they will ful-
fill their intended function for about
three of the 70 years that I have
them” she says. Fair point if you
think about it! So she thought why
not “put her girls to work”? Why not
indeed? Since human powered de-
vices are emerging across the globe.
Thus began a journey of discovery
for Adrienne.
The physics of breast
motion has been researched since
the mid 1980’s; and LaJean Lawson,
a former professor of exercise
science at Oregon State University
had discovered a D cup can move as
much as 35 inches during exercise!
This motion would be enough to
power an mp3 player or smart-
phone! However smaller cup sizes
would generate less motion thus
less power. Other solutions could
incorporate solar panels or mini
rotary generators. These rotary
generators are used in “Lightening
packs” backpacks used on long hikes
that can generate up to 7 watts of
energy (enough to power small LED
lights). But these options seemed all
too cumbersome. Then Adrienne
discovered the work of Professor
Zhong Lin Wan of Georgia State
University.
Prof. Wan is developing a
fabric made of nanowires 1/1,000th
the width of a human hair. They rub
together in the fabric converting
friction energy into an electrical
charge. Unbelievably, Prof. Wan
believes this technology will be
available within the next 5 years!
The big catch? Washing. The dis-
tance between nanowires has to be
at a constant for them to work and
washing may distort the fabric. So
it seems Professor Wan has 5 years
to perfect his fabric and when he
does? Well think of the possibilities.
Adrienne will be able to listen to
her smartphone while she exercises
and us lesser mortals could have our
Google glasses and Apple watches
powered by our frantic daily lives!
O
W E A R A B L E T E C H
Photo Source: Wikia
29. 29
Women in Space Seek More Women in Space
by Farrel Pinto
This strong sentiment is what
Natalie Panek, a mission systems engineer
in robotics and automation at Canada’s
MDA Corp., firmly believes. A wider per-
spective is necessary, which looks at the
statistics regarding women advancing in
their careers into leadership, director-lev-
el, and board-level positions according to
her.
As a child, watching TV shows
like Star Trek and Stargate SG-1 inspired
her to a life’s calling- Space. She just not
designs rovers but also aims to inspire
women to pursue their dreams and see
their reflections in the industry. She
also pointed out resolving problem on
retaining women in STEM fields through-
out their careers. Women must not be
hindered to rise up and advance in their
careers, she implied.
Natalie Panek is a rocket scien-
tist and an explorer, as she calls herself,
who dreams to become an astronaut.
Now, she works with her team to build
chassis and locomotion system for the
European Space Agency’s 2018 ExoMars
Rover. She was recently named as Can-
ada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women by
the Woman’s Executive Network.
She is a vocal advocate for
woman in technology according to The
Financial Post and named under Forbes
30 under 30 in 2015.
Photo Source: Flare
Dr. Lucianne Walkowicz, an
astronomer at the Adler Planetarium in
Chicago, also sees that diversity in her in-
dustry is imperative. Thus, conducting more
research is needed to back this up.
She also argued on a report on re-
cruiting women into technical positions by
the Anita Borg Institute that there are con-
sistent blind spots in recruiting and hiring
practices. There are hiring processes that
are implicitly biased lacking organizational
infrastructure to support diversity efforts.
It recommends to take up steps
like blind resume screening process, show-
ing technical women during the interview
process and that every technical position
has a viable female candidate.
She was inspired to pursue her
field upon her interest in chemistry and
physics in high school. Wanting a career
consisting both, she participated a research
program at the New York Academy of Sci-
ences. Someone suggested astronomy and
brought her to work with a professor in
New York University on chemistry of plane-
tary atmospheres. From there, she immedi-
ately was fascinated in the field.
Now, as an astronomer, she works
both on research and public education. Lu-
cianne currently works on the Large Synop-
tic Survey Telescope project which she says
the flagship observatory for the next decade.
Photo Source: The Lavin Agency
Dr. Lucianne Walkowicz
As a consultant in space engi-
neering and STEM outreach and founder
of Rocket Women, Vinita focused on wom-
en and space. She aims to encourage more
women to enter the field.
Vinita Marwaha Madill works
as engineering manager leading the In-
telligent Transportation Systems Team in
Canada. She also stints as an International
Space Station operations engineer at the
German Aerospace Center.
She works on a diversity of de-
signing smart roads and spacesuits, pro-
posing parabolic flights and the likes.
Vinita found her fascination
in space back in his childhood days in
London where she learned about Helen
Sharman, a chemist and the first British
astronaut, who flew to Mir. At the age of
6, she was fond of the space as her parents
took her planetarium and space centers.
She suggests that to encourage
more women, they should think about ca-
reers in space, science and other equivalent
fields that would focus impact of technolo-
gy to mankind.
From here, we see that women
as equals can also advance in science and
technology. Nothing should hinder them as
they could positively influence the young
people to pursue their dreams and express
themselves in their chosen paths.
Vinita Marwaha MadillNatalie Panek
E N G I N E E R C H I C K
Photo Source: Rocket-women
30. 30
hances are, like me, you
have already heard or read
a lot of other people’s suc-
cess stories. I can, without
any pretention, say that I
am genuinely happy for a
successful person, but at
the same time, I also feel a little jealous.
Maybe not green with envy, but I ask
myself what that successful person has
done to achieve more success than I have.
Of course, there are different measures of
success, but the most tangible, at least up
to this day, is obviously wealth. So, when I
hear or read stories about how this or that
person has become a multi-billionaire, I
wonder how he ever did it.
Some people made it big
through sheer work, with a dusting of
good luck. Some inherit the wealth of their
family. Yet some are just more education-
ally fit than others, in that their formation
proved to be the most essential through of
the arc of the generation when they lived.
A recent study conducted
by Approved Index, a UK-based busi-
ness-to-business platform, showed that
22% of the world’s wealthiest people stud-
ied engineering in college. This is in stark
contrast to only 12% who had a business
degree, nine per cent who had an Arts
degree, and six per cent who studied either
Science, Maths or Law.
Engineering-graduate billion-
aires are not only more, they are actually
richer than their ultra-wealthy peers. They
Want to be a Billionaire?
Study Engineering!
have an average net worth of US$ 33 bil-
lion, compared to US$ 29 billion for those
with a Finance degree.
Curiously, the study indicated
that having a degree was far from being
a stringent requirement to be a fat cat. A
third of the world’s top 100 billionaires
had no university degree, and they have
a net worth or US$ 31 billion, hot on the
heels of those with Engineering degrees.
In fact, those without degrees have the
most fabled success stories, read Mark
Zuckerberg of Facebook and Bill Gates of
Microsoft.
Though the billionaire’s list was
dominated by those with Engineering and
Finance degrees (like Carlos Slim who
studied Civil Engineering), and those
without (like Gates and Zuckerberg),
experts say that the results of the study,
which showed people of other specialisms
make it to the list, underline the impor-
tance of having a society in which people
have varied range of specialization to a
thriving and diverse economy.
Sure, not everyone dreams
of becoming a billionaire. We all have
different measures of success. To some, it
lies on the stability of their job, the hap-
piness of their family, the good manners
of their children and other people’s regard
of them, among others. It doesn’t matter
whatever “success” you may be enjoying at
the moment, what is important is that you
worked for it and that you’re happy and
proud about it.
C
Photo Sources:
Zuckerberg: Born Rich;
Gates: Business Dictionary;
Slim: Business Insider
31. 31
“The biggest risk is not taking
any risk… In a world that is
changing really quickly, the only
strategy that is guaranteed to fail
is not taking risks.”
Mark Zuckerberg
“If you are born poor, it’s not
your mistake. If you die poor, it
is your mistake.”
Bill Gates
“If you’re in business, you need
to understand the environment.
You need to have a vision of the
future, and you need to know the
past.”
Carlos Slim
32. 32
IEEE Foundation
Signature Program
empowers off-grid
communities through
education and the
creation of sustain-
able, affordable, lo-
cally owned entre-
preneurial energy
businesses
IEEE Smart Village, a global humanitarian
program helping remote, energy-deprived
communities build toward sustainability with
renewable energy and technology, announced
today the expansion of their partnership
with Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE).
With this expansion, IEEE Smart Village is
supporting GHE in providing clean ener-
gy access through solar power to improve
the living standards of rural villages in the
remote Himalayan frontiers of India.
IEEE Smart Village’s investment
in GHE will specifically go toward funding
access to basic electricity, through installation
of energy efficient high lumen LED lights for
residential lighting, solar LED street lighting
for the outdoor community space, mobile
charging points and customized DC HD LED
TV for these villages which are typically lo-
cated above 13000 ft. in the Indian Himalayas
bordering countries such as Pakistan and
China.
In partnership with IEEE Smart
Village, GHE’s objective is to implement the
renewable energy and technology solutions
in a sustainable, scalable and environmentally
beneficial way—leading to an overall devel-
opment of the remote villages in the Ladakh
and Zanskar regions of India. In August 2015,
an international cast of volunteers, including
IEEE members, helped set-up DC Solar mi-
crogrids, ranging in capacity from 100 watts
(W) to 300 watts (W), to the remote ancient
village of Shingo, nestled in Hemis National
Park, in the Rumbak Valley of Ladakh, under
the banner of GHE.
To date, GHE has electrified eight
Himalayan villages and has impacted over
1800 lives directly. GHE has been instru-
mental in promoting these electrified villages
in the form of Home-Stays (Hostels) for
trekkers, who usually are seeking food and
shelter while hiking through these remote
Himalayan valleys. This has helped increase
the income generation of these remote
communities and has provided them with
a livelihood opportunity towards a better
future.
IEEE Smart Village is a donor
supported signature program of the IEEE
Foundation with a vision to bring basic
electrical and educational services to more
than 50 million people by 2025. The program
is currently serving more than 50,000 people
through local partners in Haiti, Cameroon,
Nigeria, South Sudan, Kenya, Namibia,
Zambia and India. About IEEE IEEE, a large,
global technical professional organization,
is dedicated to advancing technology for
the benefit of humanity. Through its highly
cited publications, conferences, technology
standards, and professional and educational
activities, IEEE is the trusted voice on a wide
variety of areas ranging from aerospace sys-
tems, computers and telecommunications to
biomedical engineering, electric power and
consumer electronics.
About IEEE Foundation As the
philanthropic arm of IEEE, the IEEE Foun-
dation inspires the generosity of donors so
it may enable IEEE programs that enhance
technology access, literacy and education, as
well as support the IEEE professional com-
munity. The IEEE Foundation, a tax-exempt
501(c)(3) organization in the United States,
fulfills its purpose by soliciting and managing
donations, recognizing the generosity of our
donors, awarding grants to IEEE grassroots
projects of strategic importance, supporting
high impact Signature Programs, serving as
a steward of donations that empower bright
minds, recognize innovation and preserve the
history of technology. With donor support,
the IEEE Foundation strives to be a leader
in transforming lives through the power of
technology and education.
IEEE Smart Village
Expands Partnership
SOCIAL IMPACT ENGINEERS
Photo Source: IEEE
33. 33
First True Peer-to-Peer
Risk Sharing Platform
Besurance Corporation (“Besurance”)
launches besureTM the first true
peer-topeer risk sharing platform. Be-
sure’s peer-to-peer risk sharing enables
individuals to:
• Come together as a community
• Agree on risks to be protected
• Set contributions for the risk coverage
using best actuarial practices
• Have claims adjudicated by their own
community
B
esure is the vision of experienced actu-
aries and risk professionals – allowing
communities to socially share their
risk and protect gadgets, health, travel,
events, automobiles, home, job loss, and person-
al circumstances. The patent pending platform
as a service provides end-to-end processing, and
gives control back to individuals. Besure is roll-
ing out in stages over the next couple of months
a customizable, on-line, risk-sharing platform
with an efficient and scalable operational model.
“Besure is a peer-to-peer platform
that harnesses the power of social networking,
co-operation, and the sharing economy by em-
powering individuals to come together within
their community to protect the things that mat-
ter most to them.” - KarimLalani, besure Lead
About Besurance: Besurance is a private corpo-
ration dedicated to community empowerment
through the design andimplementation of easy-to-
use, transparent and cost-effective solutions in the
risk sharing economy.
SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
Photo Source: Inusa News
34. 34
PACKAGING ENGINEERS
HAVE SOMETHING TO
DO WITH TOYS THAT
ARE SO HARD TO OPEN,
THE BAGS OF CHIPS
THAT ARE HALF-AIR,
AND THE PULL TAPE
THAT ALWAYS SEEM
TO BREAK BEFORE YOU
OPEN THE ENVELOPE.
BUT NO, PACKAGING ENGINEERS DON’T
MAKE YOUR LIFE COMPLICATED.
THEY HAVE BUBBLE WRAP.
INDUSTRIAL/PACKAGING ENGINEERING
35. 35
by Dion Greg Reyes
Packaging Engineers
and What They Do
ost of
the time,
people
are never
interested
in pack-
ages of
products.
Whether these people are in the
supermarket, toy stores, drug stores
and warehouses, they just don’t give
much attention to the packaging;
as long as the package is pretty, it
doesn’t matter because they will be
thrown away after the products are
consumed anyway. Well, it hurts to
the packaging engineers who sweat
their ass out in laboratories and
computer-aided drafting software
just to give the perfect preservation
for your products.
Packaging is more than
just containing the product: the
package needs to withstand certain
temperatures, be of certain shape,
be tamper-resistant, among others,
to properly protect the products
from manufacturing down to
the consumers. The packaging
engineers determine the materials
fit to use for the product, may it be
cardboard, glass, plastic or wood,
which are the most common. They
also choose methods and machin-
ery that go into the production of
packaging supplies.
It sounds easy for most
of us but in reality, packaging
engineering is just as hard as
other engineering disciplines. It
deals with multiple disciplines like
chemical, industrial, materials,
and mechanical engineering to
perfect the design and create boxes,
cartons, bottles and other packing
materials that meet specific criteria.
There also needs to be coordination
from research and development,
manufacturing, marketing, graphic
design, and regulatory departments
to address technical and marketing
challenges.
But there is an arising
issue to this multi-billion dollar
business, as concern for the envi-
ronmental degradation increases
– they have to go green and devise
ways to minimize waste by using
the least amount of packaging ma-
terial possible. Efforts to recycle the
packages have gone to producing
recyclable or biodegradable materi-
als.
So there. The next time
you purchase a product with a
difficult-to-open package, it doesn’t
mean to make your life hard. Pack-
aging engineers have a reason for
doing that, they just don’t explain
it on the label. Or to the very least,
the next time you destroy a package
of a product which would probably
be within the next hour, remember
the packaging engineers who made
it for you. Photo Source: ECP Quality
M
36. 36
Internet of Things of the Future
BODYHACKING
ouldn’t it be nice to get things done
with just a wave of the hand? Like
when paying you bills, all you have
to do is wave your hand in front
of the scanner. Or maybe let your
car engine start once you wave in
front of your car’s ignition to prove you are
authorized to use it. All this conve-
nience relies with the power of your
hand, and is soon possible with
Bodyhacking.
Sounds too futuristic?
Well technology has already
advanced through this stage
and is making bodyhacking a
possibility. Hannes Sjöblad, a
famous Swedish bodyhacker, ex-
perimented with this technology,
by implanting electronics, including
W
a passive Near-Field Communications (NFC) trans-
mitter, into his own hand. When he wants to start
his car, he just waves in front of the ignition, when
he wants to open a door, he waves at the digital lock,
when he wants to order coffee, and all he has to do
is wave his hand! Apparently his everyday chores are
done with just a wave of the hand!
Sjöblad explained to a group
of journalists at CeBIT Preview 2016
in Hannover, Germany, that he sees
bodyhacking as the next step of
wearable computing. Though we
could wear rings, use, phones,
bracelets and gadgets to host
small electronics, the real future
would still be embedded electron-
ics. With Sjöblad’s experiment,
this kind of future doesn’t seem that
far away after all. Photo Source: Kristallen
BIOMEDICALENGINEERING
Photo Source: Tech 365
Photo Source: GPS-tracker
37. 37
In Dresden, researchers are devising microrobots
to help sperm swim its way to the egg.
Sperm Robots for the
Lousy Swimmer Sperms
o those men whose genitalia
seem to house slow swimmers,
there is now a silver lining to
conceive your baby as research-
ers from the Dresden Institute
for Integrative Nanosciences de-
velop the future deliverers of life, the spermbots.
Spermbots being studied are es-
sentially made of microtubes, which are thin
sheets of titanium and iron rolled into conical
tubes with one end wider than the other. The
microtubes are put into a solution in a Petri
dish and added bovine (bull) sperm cells, which
are similar in size to the human sperm. When
a live sperm entered the wider end of the tube,
it became trapped down near the narrow end.
The narrow end is also closed to prohibit the
sperm from swimming out. The mobility of the
sperm is generated from the trapped cell pushed
against the tube.
With the magnetic property of titani-
um and iron, the scientists can then control the
direction of the sperm, leaving the propulsion to
the sperm.
T
N A N O T E C H N O L O G Y
Once the sperm hits its desired target, that is the
mighty egg, it can be manipulated magnetically
to release the sperm. There is no certainty yet
to the way the microtubes will leave the sperm;
however, researchers say that it should be pos-
sible by altering the temperature to unroll the
tubes just before they reach the target.
Each spermbot can travel up to
100 micrometers per second, comparable to a
6-footer human swimming 50 meters in 14 sec-
onds. If that speed won’t help sperm that doesn’t
swim so well, we don’t know yet what will.
This is being studied among sperm cells since
they are easily available, harmless, and efficient
at swimming through bodily fluids. Although
it is yet to be put to human test, this kind of
assisted fertilization is planned for test among
animals.
Nonetheless, this is a promising feat
for sperms which have motor struggles and to
the men who carry them. Do not lose hope just
yet, brother.
38. 38
If you love C-3PO from the Star
Wars movie, then it’s not unlikely
for you to love Pepper too!
Pepper is the “emotional”
humanoid robot designed by the
French firm Aldebaran Robotics, a
subsidiary mobile carrier of Soft-
bank. Just like C-3Po, he is designed
to be a day-to-day companion
whose most significant function is
his ability to perceive emotions.
Pepper stands 4feet (1.2
meter) tall, with an attached tablet
on front and moves on wheels. He
can initiate small talk end even
give you advices. Pepper’s analyzer
enables him to identify human
emotions based on voices, facial
expressions and body movements.
The robot’s memory stores these
data and gradually memorizes per-
sonality traits as well as preferences
of the owner.
Pepper responses by
commenting on the mood of the
moment and expresses himself by
changing color and glittering his
eyes. He moves around and dance
while shaking his hands up. With
Pepper, there will never be a dull
moment!
You can even personalize
this robot by downloading software
applications and make if learn to
sing, dance or even speak in anoth-
er language. A specialized software
application is also programmed to
Pepper that makes you earn points
Pepper: the real
Star Wars C-3P0
humanoid robot
R O B O T I C S
Biomimetics is a damn exciting field.
Engineers in this field use nature as their
inspiration for systems and designs to
create awesome stuff. For example, they
used the elephant’s trunk to create a cool
robotic arm.
At first glance, the thingamajig
looks like a cross between a mechanical
claw and iron snake with a good measure
of tentacle horror thrown in. In fact, they
are reminiscent of the sweet robotic arms
used by the infamous Dr. Octopus, the
Spiderman villain. Of course, they are
calling it the Bionic Handling Assistant,
the blandest name possible for the cool
robot. But it’s cool anyway.
As it stands, elephant trunks
are possibly the coolest appendages in the
Animal Kingdom. So, making a robotic
arm based on that is a fantastic idea.
This robotic arm was made by Festo, a
German automation company.
What is even more fantastic
is that the arm acts and learns just like a
baby’s arm. The researcher will guide the
arm to perform certain actions. The robot
will learn and memorizes the movements
so as to repeat them whenever necessary.
This will enable the robot to fulfill func-
tions such as operating in tight quarters
and helping people in the medical or the
industrial sector. It can even be pro-
grammed to change a light bulb.
Elephant
Trunk
Robotic
ArmsPhoto Source: Innorobo
Photo Source: Rude Baguette
39. 39
by frequently interacting with him.
Earning points will give you access
to exclusive applications.
On the first production
of these robots last July 2015 in
Japan, all units were sold out on the
first minute of its sale. Pepper, the
humanoid robot costing $1,600, was
really a big hit!
A big customer, Nestle, is
said to equip its 1000 Nescafe sales
outlets in Japan with these robot
to inform their customers about
their products in an amusing way.
Definitely, this is an example of
how cost effective it would be for
businesses to save manpower using
these functional and charming
robots.
Robots that
will Cook for You
If you have a problem with your own
cooking, or wanted a chef in your own
kitchen, that won’t be so much of a prob-
lem anymore with the world’s first ever
robotic kitchen.
The robotic kitchen features
four key integrated kitchen items of
robotic arms, an oven, a hob and a
touchscreen unit. It can be operated right
at your fingertips via a smartphone or via
The Consumer Electronics Show this year
showcased many gadgets like smart-
phones, wearables, laptops, and gaming
gears. But something unusually exciting
was there too! It’s every boy’s dream to
own it. It blew the minds of all those who
were present at the event. It’s Melamon,
the future of toys.
Mekamon is not just a ‘toy’,
but much more than that. The robots
named Mekamon are really the ‘future of
toys’. These four-legged modular fighting
robots have been designed to fight, cus-
tomize, and collect. These robots are also
equipped with the infrared technology
and Bluetooth. The bots are also fitted
with internal compass, which allows
them to pinpoint at the opponent.
The main idea behind the
designing of Mekamon is to
bring robot fights to the living
room just like in a child’s
fantasies. The company behind
the development of Mekamon
is UK-based Reach Robotics.
The company is currently
developing a game, which
involves two players engage
in robot fight by using their
smartphones as controllers.
Mekamon can now be handled
using the smartphone to attack,
aim, and switch weapons.
Mekamon:
World’s First
Gaming Robot
the included touch screen; all you need
to do is pull up a recipe and wait for the
robot to serve you the food.
It isn’t a machine that just
cooks; it has hands that can cook like
a master chef. The hands get its articu-
lation – its speed, its sensitivity, and its
movement – by recording the cooking
skills of Master Chef Tim Anderson,
winner of the BBC Master Chef title, in a
demonstration and putting the skills into
its system. The hands then replicate, even
the pauses in between and the OK gesture
in the end, the master chef’s abilities into
its kitchen. No wonder about that, since
the nuclear industry and NASA uses the
same kind of hands made by the Shadow
Robot Company.
If you are concerned with being
stabbed by the robot, no need to fret as
the robots uses a food processor and lim-
its itself to knives. The kitchen also comes
with a protective screen as an additional
layer of safety.
This technology, however, will
not be available to consumers until the
fourth quarter of 2017. It will be sup-
ported by an iTunes-style downloadable
library of recipes that the robot chef can
cook at your own home which are about
2,000 recipes. Just prepare a good amount
of $75,000 at its first launch.
The robot kitchen is the
brainchild of U.K.-based Moley Robotics,
which prototype premiered at an inter-
national robotics show Hanover Messe.
The eureka moment for the idea was of
Mark Oleynik in January of 2014. The
first patents were filed in the following
month; a prototype was built by Moley in
September of the same year.
Photo Source: Moley Robotics
Photo Source: Canoe
Photo Source: Reach Robotics
40. 40
5 WEARABLES
TO WATCH OUT
FOR IN 2016
Now that wearable technology
has gone more advanced than
ever, 2016 is a good year for wear-
ables. Consumers have become
more aware of the technology and
they realize the impact of their
wearables in their life.
The wearables in the market right
now are already serving purposes
to the users’ extent, but there’s
more. Here are five wearables that
are must-look for this 2016.
Lumenus ClothingThe name suggests that this clothing is luminous. It is
a fitness-focused wear that lights up whenever users
will go for an early morning or late-night run or
cycle. The clothing has unveiled jackets, vests, shirts,
and leggings with built-in LED lights.
HTC ViveOne step forward in virtual reality (VR)
is the HTC Vive, which lets users play
graphic intensive apps, AR games, and
view HD films, among others. It will be
on sale by April 2016 with an unknown
pricetag for now. But the product can be
pre-ordered starting 29th of February.
Samsung Smart SuitThis is not your ordinary suit; this is a Smart Suit by Samsung with
NFC-powered cuffs. The cuffs works as a control to turn the handset
on the “do not disturb” mode when you run for a quick meeting. The
cuffs can also send your contact details to nearby handsets that works
with premium handsets of Samsung. With this you will no longer need
business cards.
Altra IQFor the fitness enthusiasts and heavily depen-
dent to technology, here’s Altra IQ which can
measure pace and contact time for improved
running efficiency. It has a multi-sensor
within the length of the midsole that syncs
the shoes to the smartphone. Altra’s shoe is set
for release in late of 2016. Prepare your bucks
because it will cost $199 a piece.
Apple Watch 2If you can’t get enough of the first Apple Watch, here’s for you. This is
out in the market come middle of this year with a lot of step ups from
its predecessor – improved battery life, which last at least a full day of
usage, and modern design, with more color options, mature hues, and
better typography.
WEARABLE TECH
Photo Source: Indian Express Photo Source: NFC Forum
Photo Source: Business WirePhoto Source: Tech Zaa Photo Source: Burn Tech
41. 41
Mind-reading
Wearables:
Are they Possible?
it by bit, our tech-
nology is carefully
advancing, taking
into study different
and more complex
topics. With the
current craze over
the Internet of Things, wearable
technology has boomed in the
market. Now, numerous com-
panies are trying to delve into a
new kind of wearable that can
connect to our minds—a sort of
“mind-reading” wearable.
But, are mind-reading
wearables really a possibility? Are
they safe? How will it affect our
daily lives?
The main component in these
kind of wearables are Electro
Encephalography (EEG) sensors;
many companies are claiming that
they are able to create or innovate
products that have the ability to
monitor, detect and interpret the
activities that are going on in our
brains.
Though this kind of
technology has been used and is
still being used today, many com-
panies see this technology’s po-
tential to be applied in fields other
that medical: virtual or augmented
reality for games or surreal movie
watching experiences, next level
robotics, and others.
The possibility of this
kind of technology can be consid-
ered possible, since the basic idea
for creating it is already available,
and can readily be based on med-
ical EEG machines. What makes
it difficult is the data processing. It
makes us ask questions like, how
accurate will be the collected data;
will it be able to store everything I
am thinking about? Innovators are
still in the process of learning all
there is to make this technology
possible.
With the current tech-
nology we have, and the rate by
which our technology is advanc-
ing we can expect to see this kind
of technology in the very near fu-
ture. Hopefully, when this device
is released in the market, it will be
useful, effective and positively life
changing.
B
Photo Source: Live Science
Photo Source: Choose Muse
42. 42
n this day and age of powerful
machines, there is a big chance
you’ve heard about horsepow-
er. From heavy machinery, to
cars, to air conditioners, to
lawnmowers, the term horse-
power is used to describe an
engine’s power. But, have you ever
wondered why of all animals the
horse was chosen as the benchmark
for power?
The reason was pretty
literal, actually. In the early 1780s,
Scottish engineer James Watt was
looking for a compelling way to
market his new invention – a steam
engine superior to the then classic
Newcomen steam engine. Many of
his prospective customers at that
time used horses to power their
operation, so Watt had to come up
with a new unit of measurement
that he could use to illustrate the
advantage of using his steam en-
gine as opposed to horses. Hence,
horsepower.
The way Watt came up
with the numbers he did is still up
for discussion, but after doing the
experiments that he did, he figured
out that a typical draft horse could
do about 32,400 foot-pounds of
WHY DO WE CALL IT
“HORSEPOWER”
INSTEAD OF ANY
OTHER ANIMAL?
by Raymond Gerard del Valle
work in 60 seconds, and maintain
that power rate for the entire work
day. That means that, by Watt’s
approximation, a draft horse could
lift 32,400 pounds of material one
foot in one minute. After doing
some rounding up, Watt settled for
33,000 foot-pounds per minute for
one horsepower (hp).
Of course, Watt’s esti-
mates were very generous, as the
horses involved in his experiments
were far from mutants! But that
wasn’t Watt’s original intention
anyway. By overestimating what
a typical horse could do, Watt
made sure that
his product would
always perform
better than the
real horses.
The unit of
measure horse-
power became
popular thanks
to the invaluable
contribution of
Watt’s engine
during the indus-
trial revolution.
Today, however,
the SI unit of
power, the Watt,
which was named
in tribute to James
Watt, is progres-
sively replacing
horsepower in
most applications.
I
ELECTRO-MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
Photo Source: Pinterest
Photo Source: www.sodahead.com
43. 43
by Robert Bagatsing
If you are reading this article, you
are lucky – congratulations, you
have electricity. It is oftentimes hard
to imagine the extent of un-con-
nectedness in a world, where others
enjoy superfluous modernity. The
truth is there are still over a billion
people in the world without elec-
tricity, and the future remains bleak
for them that spend their nights in
darkness.
Children are among the
most impacted by the lack of light in
un-connected households. Because
their nights remain dark, children
cannot study their lessons and do
their homework, so either they don’t
learn much from what they are
studying, or they choose to abandon
school altogether and spend their
entire days at play. But, what if there
was actually not any conundrum?
A skipping
rope that
generates
electricity
What if they can repurpose the en-
ergy that they spend playing to fuel
basic devices of modern life, like
lights, so they can study and prepare
for their lessons?
Introducing a skipping
rope whose length and handles light
up at night, called Jumping Lighting.
During the day, say after school,
children could have an hour of fun
playing with the skipping rope. The
movement of the cord between the
handles will charge the internal
batteries of the device, thanks to the
kinetic pendulum that builds up the
energy. With enough charge, once
turned on, the LED lamps within
the jump rope and its handles will
illuminate, giving off light that can
allow children to comfortably study
their lessons, and the adults to ade-
quately do household chores.
Designed by Bae Gyu Ri
of Daegu University, Jumping Light-
ing is a winner of Korea’s Interna-
tional K-Design Award in 2014.
Jumping Lighting is a cool
toy for any child to have. But for
kids in dire need of lighting in their
homes, Jumping Lighting is more
than just for play – it is a source of
hope for a brighter future.
Photos Source: vickian.blogspot.com
TOYS
Photos Source: Vickian
44. 44
by Dion Greg Reyes
ngineers, whatever
field you specialize in,
have a universal best
friend: your calcula-
tors. Almost all the
time – when your fin-
gers can no longer perform a trigo-
nometric function – you depend
on your life with the calculators
in solving problems. But there will
be cases that you will be faced with
errors you didn’t know you have
made. And that could cost you
a failing grade or even your job.
Maybe even lives of people.
While there are so many
kinds of calculators, here are the
common input errors that you may
have encountered in any calcu-
lator. It’s best that you read your
calculator manuals, but most likely
you can find those input errors
here.
E
Using [–] instead of
[(-)] to indicate that a
number is negative
Common rookie error. You use the [–] to
subtract, and [(-)] to denote a negative number.
There is a difference. When you use [–] instead
of [(-)] in the interior of an expression to denote
a negative number, the calculator responds with
the syntax error message.
Indicating the order of
operations incorrectly
by using parentheses
In your calculator, –3^2 is not the same as
(–3)^2. The calculator first performs the opera-
tion in parentheses, then it squares the number.
If there is a negative outside the parentheses, it
first performs the squaring, then the operation of
a negating a number. That’s how crucial the order
of operations is in evaluating expressions.
Entering an angle in
degre in radian mode
In the calculator, trigonometric functions can
be used with two modes: degree or radian. Just
make sure that you are using the degree mode
or radian mode, depending on what you’re
required. Changing the mode depends on the
settings of your calculator.
Entering the inverse
trigonometric notation
Here’s another: just because the trigonometric
function is raised to a negative number, which
you know is an inverse, it is not an exponent; in
the calculator, the inverse of the cos(x) function
is not 1/cos(x). In short, but,
.
Placing the powers
for trigonometric
functions
Remember the order of operations? Yeah, that’s
it. All trigonometric functions hold this nota-
tional idiosyncrasy.
&
Common Input Errors with
Your Calculator that You
Probably Didn’t Notice
E N G I N E E R I N G H A C K S
Photo Source: Davidson Math
45. 45
Cause: You executed a matrix, graphing, or some other
operation that caused remaining memory capacity to be
exceeded.
Action: Delete memory data you no longer need. Make
sure that the number of variables used in your expression
does not exceed the number of variables that are available.
Cause: The calculation result is outside of the allowable
calculation range or you are trying to perform an ille-
gal mathematical operation (such as division by zero).
Action: Check your input values and adjust them to
allow the calculation result to be within the allowable
range. If you are using memory for your calculation,
make sure that you check the memory value.
Cause: The calculation expression is the wrong
syntax, or the program you are using contains a
syntax error.
Action: Press the <right> or <left> key to display
the location of the error, and correct it.
Cause: The calculation you are performing has caused
the capacity of the numeric stack or the command stack
to be exceeded.
Action: Simplify your calculation expression. You could
also split your calculation expression into two or more
parts and execute the parts separately.
Common Output Errors with
Your Calculator that You
Definitely Will Notice
Photo Source: Livedoor Blog
46. 46
J
ake Barnett, born on
May 26th 1998, is
presently an American
Physics Student and
child prodigy. However,
his parents never knew
that he was—because at
the age of two, Jake was
diagnosed with Autism, Asperger Syn-
drome. Jake’s parents were crushed when
they were told he may never talk or read
ever again. His parents never gave up
and used a special treatment for children
with autism called “floortime therapy”,
where children are allowed to play or
focus on subjects that interested them.
Jake showed a remarkable early interest
in astronomy and would study books of
stars over and over again.
During an outing to a local
planetarium, one of the presenters asked
the audience why the moons of Mars are
odd-shaped like potatoes. The three-
year-old Jake simply raised his hand
“Excuse me, but what are the
sizes of the moons around mars?”
The lecturer answered and
Jake looked at him and said,
“The gravity of the planet is so
large that [the moon’s] gravity would not
be able to pull it into a round shape.”
Silence filled the room. All
eyes were on 3-year old Jake. It was clear
what everyone was thinking.
“Who is this three year old?”
Jake continued to attend
public school, but was soon bored. Jake’s
parents took the psychologist’s advice
and withdrew him from school and
he was allowed to sit-in on astronomy
and advanced math classes at Indiana
University—Purdue Institute Indianap-
olis (IUPUI). Jake prepared for proper
college schooling, by learning—all by
himself—pre-requisite high school
math. This includes Algebra, Algebra 2,
Geometry, Trigonometry and Calculus.
He learned all this by himself in just two
weeks! He passed all the test that were
needed to exempt him from school. Jake
enrolled at the college at the young age of
twelve.
The prodigy, Jake, tutors
fellow students, normally graduate and
post-graduate students. He has healthy
discussions with professors and is de-
veloping an alternative theory of the Big
Bang Theory, his hypothesis being that
the Big Bang couldn’t have happened
through advanced math. He is also
presently a paid researcher in Quantum
Physics.
In 2013, Jake was admitted
to the Perimeter Scholars International,
a one-year non-degree master’s level
program at the Perimeter Institute for
theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario.
At the age of 15, he was the youngest
student admitted into the program. He
completed the program in 2014, and has
subsequently been listed as a doctoral
student at the Perimeter Institute.
Jake, also wants to help other
kids and adults who find mathematics
difficult. He believes that math can be
learned easily if the subject is presented
in a much simpler manner. So he plans
to write books on how to simplify math.
He has also appeared in TEDxTeens to
inspire other kids his age. This amazing
guy hopes that one day he will be able to
disprove Einstein’s theory of Relativity.
Jake Barnett:
Autistic Child
turned
Physics Genius
by Cielo Panda
P R O D I G Y
Photo Source:
Indianapolis Monthly
Photo Source: Indianapolis Monthly
47. 47
World’s
Smallest Car
Meet the smallest car of the world
from Austin Coulson, a custom car
maker. He has always been interested
in building cars and he believes that he
will make history one day. It turns out
that he was not at all wrong.
Twenty-nine year old Coulson built
the smallest car of the world and
entered the Guinness Book of World
Record in the year 2014. Some would
say that this small car may be inopera-
ble – nope, this car has been legalized
to be taken out on the road.
Coulson was so interested in
automobiles that it drove him to look
up the previous records in the Guin-
ness Book of World Records. The mo-
ment he looked at the previous record
he felt that he could do something to
beat said record.
The result of his determi-
nation was this awesome car. This
miniature car measures 25 inches high
and 2 feet wide. You will recognize the
car the instant you see it. How? Well,
this kickass car has a license plate that
read IM BIG. Quite ironic, isn’t it?
What’s more amazing is the
paint of the car. He painted it like the
Mustang Military aircraft U.S. P-51.
The side of the car with the tail num-
ber of the same ship that Coulson’s
grandfather served on when he was
fighting in the World War I inscribed
on it.
But the main issue was getting the car
registered. For this, Coulson had to
get the car inspected and not forget to
put safety features like any other cars
out there.
Like everybody else, even
his family was skeptical about the
plan and kept questioning it through
the process of developing the vehicle.
However, he was successful in proving
everybody wrong. Seeing this tiny
vehicle on the road will absolutely be a
treat to the eye.
For some, this is merely a toy
car; but cars are toys, right?
A U T O M O T I V E
Photo Source: Leisure Wheels
48. 48
It was on March 10, 1906 that the
burning of methane by the naked
flame of a miner’s lamp led to
Europe’s worst mining accident,
resulting in dust explosion dev-
astating a coal mine and killing
around 1099 miners. This also led
to an increase number of black
lung disease cases.
ature
has
claimed
many
lives
across
the
globe with its unexpected
calamities. But things are
different with an industrial
disaster. They don’t just claim
lives but shake you from
within. There have been cas-
es when the precautionary
Lessonsfromthe
WorstIndustrial
EngineeringDisasters
N
CourrieresMineDisaster,France
steps taken by the industries
could not save life and so,
the people affected by them
have no choice but to live
with the damage caused by
them. Their mistakes have
definitely taught us some of
the biggest lessons of our life.
In this list, we will
find out the worst indus-
trial engineering disasters
that have ever occurred to
humanity.
I N D U S T R I A L
Photo Source: NDTV
Photo Source: Wikipedia