New BLOG location!

We have a new BLOG location and format!

To see the most recent postings please go to http://wp.ee.washington.edu/advisingblog/ 

Internship at Washington State Ferries

Washington State Ferries (WSF) Terminal Engineering group has a summer internship program available for 2016. WSF is looking for a mechanical or electrical 2^nd or 3^rd year engineering student who will have emphasis in electrical power, mechanical machine design or hydraulics.  They will assist with electrical/mechanical field data gathering and inspections of the movable bridges at WSF ferry facilities along with Arc Flash studies, lighting, utility inventory and mechanical design.  The person will be teamed up with mechanical or electrical engineers along with craftsman for duties mentioned above for each facility.  Time will be spent about 50/50 between the office and out in the field. 

The intern will learn

·         How the movable bridge systems works

·         How to assess what the areas of concern are during inspection

·         How to complete the inspection documentation forms

·         How to follow safety procedures and utilizing safety equipment 

·         How to gather and enter data for Arc Flash Studies

·         How to design using the National electrical code (NEC) and mechanical codes.

How hydraulic power systems and wire rope hoist are used to move large structures and key concepts of system design.

The intern will perform the following work

·         Climbing and crawling in and around the structures to gathers data

·         Learn and use safety equipment during inspection

·         Assessing wire rope cable systems, hydraulic systems, power systems, PLC systems, a variety of sensors used to evaluate systems. 

·         Assisting in completion of inspection and report documenting the findings.

·         Electrical student will have additional opportunity to assist with electrical studies which focus on lighting systems as well as arc flash studies. 

·         Take electrical measurements using various meters

·         Mechanical student will have an opportunity to work in researching design solutions taking pressure readings and assisting in design aspects of mechanical systems.  Also to design changes to these systems and prepare plans, specification and estimates to accomplish the work.

Start Date Summer 2016 (12 weeks)

To submit your interest in applying send a resume and cover letter to wsfrecruitment@wsdot.wa.gov no later than Friday, April 15, 2018.  It is in your best interest to apply as soon as possible as the hiring manager will be reviewing candidates as they come in and reserves the right to offer an internship at his discretion.

Internship at PowerUntethered Corp

PowerUntethered Corp has been established to explore, design, and manufacture solar power solutions for consumer devices (wearables, laptops, tablets, etc.). PowerUntethered utilizes an agile team methodology for rapid product development and market validation. We have a strong team of local business leaders, business relationships with world leaders in technology, and proven channels for supply and manufacturing.

PowerUntethered is looking for an EE undergrad student to support the technology product development of our solutions. We are looking for a student to join our team researching, designing, working with solar cell manufacturers, prototyping, and testing our PV solutions.   This position is a non-paid position at first but can transition into a paid position upon success of our company. We are located in Bellevue WA. Please contact Brad Wright at Brad@poweruntethered.com or call me at 253.670.0582 to discuss further details and opportunities.

New Course: EE 426 Synthetic Biology Capstone

Master Course Syllabus for EE 426 (ABET sheet)

Title: Capstone Project in Synthetic Biology

Credits: 4

UW Course Catalog Description

Coordinator: Eric Klavins, Associate Professor, Electrical Engineering

Goals: This course provides seniors majoring in the synthetic biology specialty and practicing engineers with skills in handling open-ended design problems in synthetic biology. Each student will participate on a team that designs, builds and tests a new transgenic microorganism with potential applications ranging from advanced materials, bio-sensing and/or remediation, or human health.

Objectives: At the end of this course, students will be able to

1. Propose, formulate and solve open-ended design problems in synthetic biology.
2. Write formal project reports.
3. Make formal project presentations.
4. Work in teams with heterogeneous knowledge and skills.
5. Apply recombinant DNA methods, gene circuit design, experimental design, and cell-based assays and characterization methods to support design solutions.
6. Demonstrate an awareness of current issues in and applications of synthetic biology.
7. Understand the ethics and risks of synthetic biology.

Textbook: Class notes, technical papers and reports.

References:

1. Writing in the Technical Fields, by Mike Markel, IEEE Publication
2. Writing Reports to Get Results, by Ron S. Blicq and Lisa A. Moretto, IEEE Publication.

Prerequisites by Topic:

1. Design and characterization of genetic circuits in bacteria or yeast (for example, EE423).
2. Design and construction of, and transformation with, recombinant DNA (for example, EE 425).
3. Computer literacy and experience with synthetic biology CAD tools (for example, CSE 142 for computer programming and EE 425 for CAD tools).

Topics:

1. Applications of synthetic biology - 1 week
2. Project formulation, development of specifications, and background research - 2 weeks
3. Plasmid and library design and construction - 3 weeks
4. Construction of transgenic organisms - 2 weeks
5. Characterization of transgenic organisms using cytometry, microscopy, high throughput sequencing, and/or similar methods – 2 weeks.
6. Final presentations – 1 week.

Course Structure: The class meets for two lectures a week, each consisting of a 50-minute session, and two lab sessions each week, each consisting of a 50 minute session. Students work in teams or two or three, and are expected to meet outside of class as necessary to set up their experiments, monitor progress, and complete their project. There will be weekly design review presentations involving the entire class, and seminars on relevant topics during scheduled meeting times. Students should keep detailed electronic laboratory notebooks. A written and oral project report from each team will be presented during finals week.

Computer Resources: Students will make use of the Aquarium Lab OS, CAD tools such as Coral or Benchling, laboratory instrumentation and control software, and analytical software such as MATLAB, R, and Python.

Grading: Project work accounts for the vast majority of the course grade. Teamwork as well as individual performance will be assessed.

Laboratory Resources: Students will use the UW Biofab to build their organisms and to implement their experiments. They may also perform bench work in the labs of participating faculty.

Outcome Coverage: This course provides the ABET major design experience and addresses all of the basic ABET outcomes.

Outcomes:

A. (M) an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering. The design of synthetic gene networks demands constant use of knowledge of mathematics, science and engineering. The behavior of various genes and networks in governed by biology and chemistry, modeling using ODEs, and is best-understood using statistics. The design of a system to a given set of objectives is a fundamental application of engineering knowledge. Thus, a successful design shows the student's achievement of this outcome.

B. (M) an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data. Students will develop experiments and controls to refute hypotheses about how their transgenic organisms will behave. In addition, debugging the design and construction of DNA affords many opportunities to apply the scientific method.

C. (H) an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability. The students will develop specifications defining the desired behavior of a transgenic organism for an information processing, advanced materials, or human health application. Students must choose among design alternatives on the basis of economic costs versus environmental, social, ethical, and political considerations. A discussion of environmental impacts and mitigation plans is required in the final project report.

D. (H) an ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams. Students operate in teams of two or three to solve the design problem and prepare a final report. Students will take different roles in the design team, such as leader, explorer, reflector, or recorder. Rotating leadership is recorded on assignments and progress reports. Teams will collaborate with graduate student and postdoctoral scholar advisors from labs around campus, and will learn how to translate ideas from engineering to biology and vice verse.

E. (M) an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems. The design problem presents itself as a series of interconnected engineering problems. In the open-ended design environment, the engineering problems are not explicitly stated, but must be identified by the design team before they can be solved. Evidence of this should appear in the project report and design reviews.

F. (L) an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility. At least one entire lecture will focus on ethics and another on biosafety. Students will be required to address each of these subjects in their project reports.

G. (H) an ability to communicate effectively. Teams must prepare presentations for each design review, keep detailed lab notebooks, and solve problems in scrum style meetings with their teammates. Each team member must write a section of their final report, and team members must prepare part of the presentation. Grades are given for writing quality and presentation quality, as well as technical content of the reports.

H. (M) the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context. In seminars, various social impacts and applications of synthetic biology are discussed and described, ranging from understanding the economics of materials synthesis, diagnostics in third world settings, to gene therapies. Constraints on the projects include environmental and social concerns. Discussions will be facilitated among the students on these topics in preparation for various design reviews and final reports.

I. (M) a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning. The course material distributed will not contain all of the information necessary to solve the design problem. Students must work with graduate student and postdoctoral methods, consult reference sources, and inform themselves concerning many aspects of their design problem. This helps students realize that they need to be able to learn material on their own, and gives them some of the necessary skills.

J. (H) a knowledge of contemporary issues. The design problem is constructed to focus attention on current applications of synthetic biology in industry and medicine such as the issues surrounding GMOs, the ethics of cloning and gene therapy, environmental containment, and intellectual property. These ideas and more should appear in the project reports. In addition, seminars by guest speakers later in the class will address current issues in synthetic biology.

K. (M) an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice. Students are expected to use computer aided design tools, laboratory automation software, version control software, and mathematical software to design, plan, and evaluate the systems they build. Evidence of the use of these tools, and associated techniques, appears in the project report.

Preparer: E. Klavins

Last revised: Dec 7, 2015

Paid Internship for a Startup in stealth mode

We are a startup in stealth mode based in the Seattle area focused on building a disruptive consumer electronic device. Our team consists of the leading PHDs in the sensing space.

We are looking for relevant EE students that meet the qualification below for paid work of about 10 hours a week.

Qualifications:

- EE background (Undergrad 3rd or 4th year in EE/CS)

- Good to great at soldering (some experience with SMT)

- Basic analog opamps and amplifiers knowledge

- Must have done embedded development with tools like Arduino and/or Embed etc.

- C programming (atleast sufficient proficiency for embedded development)

- Willing to learn new skills quickly

- Self motivated and driven

Please send your resume to: ranbaror@gmail.com

Thanks!

Ran 

The TUNE House scholarship

The TUNE House scholarship is awarded to female undergraduate students pursuing computer science or information technology degrees at the University of Washington.

The House is designed to promote a collaborative environment for women aligned in their effort to be innovative and outstanding leaders in the tech industry. The scholarship provides housing, laptops and other technology, a supportive community of technologists, access to professional mentors, volunteering, and network opportunities.

Students are not expected to do anything but focus on developing their own academic and entrepreneurial interests in whatever ways are meaningful to them. TUNE House is independent of any employment or internship program. Residents of TUNE House are encouraged to pursue whichever career path inspires them.


Applications accepted from March 1st - March 15th.   http://scholars.tune.com/

ENTRE 490 Grand Challenges for Entrepreneurs open to all majors

This course examines how solutions to massive challenges such as poverty and education can be researched, validated and implemented using entrepreneurial skills such as creativity, opportunity, recognition, business models, pivoting and execution. 

This Business course is offered Spring 2016 and taught by UW Distinguished Teaching Award winner Emily Pahnke. The course is Grand Challenges for Entrepreneurs and is open to all non-business sophomores, juniors and seniors.  

The course is ENTRE 490, SLN 14050, taught Mondays and Wednesdays from 10:30-12:20pm.

The class does count as an elective for the Entrepreneurship minor for any students interested in pursuing that.