In ENG 198, Introduction to the Missing Basics of Engineering (syllabus here), the qualitative thinking skills (critical and creative) required to be a great engineer are covered.  In the powerpoint presentation below, the most elusive missing basic, labeling, is discussed:

Related presentation files (ppts) are available here and here.

iFoundry students may be interested to read the Spanish & Illinois Blog highlighting iFoundry Fellow and Faculty Advisor (Engineers in Service to Society iTeam), Bruce Elliott-Litchfield found (here).  This blog by Ann Abbott, UIUC,  speaks to the iFoundry principle of inter-disciplinary learning as well as to the joy of engineering.

The profile of Professor Litchfield may be read in its entirety in the Spring 09 issue of The Newsletter of the Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership.

iFoundry students may be interested in this week’s design matters3 speakers:  Bill Buxton Principal Researcher for Microsoft at 5:30pm in 141 Wohlers Hall (1206 S. Sixth St.) on Monday, September 28th; and Michael Johnson Head of the Moving Pictures group at Pixar Animation [Monsters Inc, WALL-E, Incredibles, Cars, etc.] and UIUC Alum also at 5:30pm in 141 Wohlers Hall (1206 S. Sixth St.) on Tuesday, September 29th, 2009.

Designmatters is a campus-wide lecture series brought to you by the School of Art & Design and sponsored by the Provost’s Office, the Deans’ of Engineering and College of Fine & Applied Arts.

Do you want to be a star engineering communicator?  Flip through the powerpoint file, BizTech Communications without Tears, for some useful tips:

or on the iFoundry SlideShare page at www.slideshare.net/ifoundry.

It’s now easier than ever to become a fan of iFoundry.  Simply go to www.facebook.com/iFoundry and become a fan.

The Alliance for Promoting Innovation in Engineering Education (aPIE2) website sports a new look (here).  aPIE2 is a grassroot alliance for the transformation of engineering education.

The 8th most popular video on the iFoundry YouTube channel is Michael Loui’s contribution on “Conflicts of Interest.”  Watch in the viewer below

or on YouTube here.

Dean Michael Lovell from University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, is scheduled to speak at the next MechSE Seminar Series scheduled for 3:00pm Tuesday, September 22, 2009, 190 Engineering Sciences Building (1101 W. Springfield Ave).   Lovell’s topic:  “The Role of Entrepreneurial Universities in an Increasingly Global Economy.”

MechSE offers these seminar programs so students and faculty can hear leading national and international scholars talk about their work.  The Fall 2009 calendar for MechSE’s Seminar Series may be found (here).

iFoundry students may be interested to stop by the International Engineering Fair  sponsored by IPENG (International Programs in Engineering) between 2pm and 5pm on Wednesday, September 23, 2009.  The fair will be located on the plaza between Engineering Hall and Everitt Lab and will offer FREE FOOD to students who visit 3 or more nationality tables!

IPENG offers opportunities that introduce students to other countries and other cultures, and will teach students how to work with a broad variety of people and organizations.  More information about IPENG may be found (here).

Betty Barrett talks about social technical systems, the six principles of work redesign and their relation to product quality.

You can check the video in the embedded player

or in iFoundry’s YouTube Channel (here).