Technical Careers Research Articles

Teaching acoustics in Argentina.

In Argentina, the teaching of acoustics is included in the curricula of several academic institutions, being a part of the technical instruction received both in undergraduate and graduate majors. Acoustics is part of numerous college and technical careers, several of which will be detailed during this presentation. At the same time, a large number of post graduate and extension training classes are offered by the same and other institutions. It is only fair to mention that the Engineering School of the Buenos Aires University was the pioneer in teaching this discipline in Argentina, when Electroacoustics started to be taught in 1956 as a mandatory subject in the formerly joint Electronics Engineering plan, thus enabling the formation of the Acoustic and Electroacoustic Laboratory of the Faculty, a laboratory that still exists. Shortly after, in October 1961, the Acoustic and Lighting Research Center was founded in the Architecture and Urbanism School at the Cordoba National University. The extensive growth and ramifications we have seen so far make the list unavoidably incomplete, since the present possibilities of learning this science in the country is too large to be exposed, allowing us a reduced mention and a brief exposure.

Salvaging science literacy

AbstractThere is little evidence that the prevailing strategies of science education have an impact on the use and interpretation of science in daily life. Most science educators and science education researchers nonetheless believe that science education is intrinsically useful for students who do not go on to scientific or technical careers. This essay focuses on the “usefulness” aspect of science literacy, which I contend has largely been reduced to a rhetorical claim. A truly useful version of science literacy must be connected to the real uses of science in daily life—what is sometimes called public engagement with science. A small number of science education researchers have already begun to connect science education and the broader field of public engagement with science. Their work, as well as the work of researchers who study public engagement, suggests that it is possible to salvage the “usefulness” of science literacy by helping students become competent outsiders with respect to science. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed 95: 168–185, 2011

Math and Science Pursuits: A Self-Efficacy Intervention Comparison Study

This study compared two interventions to increase math self-efficacy among undergraduate students. Ninety-nine first-year undergraduate students participated in an intervention involving performance accomplishment or an intervention combining performance accomplishment and belief-perseverance techniques in which participants constructed a rationale for their future success in math/science university courses. As hypothesized, participants in the combined intervention immediately demonstrated higher math self-efficacy than did the Performance-Accomplishment only group; data convey that this effect was sustained at a 6-week follow-up. No differences were found between the groups in interest in technical careers, confidence in successfully completing math/ science courses, and willingness to enroll in math/science courses. Data analyses by gender indicated that male participants but not female participants in the combined intervention immediately demonstrated higher math self-efficacy than their counterparts. Findings suggest that self-persuasion activities may make an important contribution to enhancing math self-efficacy at least for men. Implications for women and future research are discussed.

<p>Advancing the “E” in K-12 STEM Education</p>

Technological fields, like engineering, are in desperate need of more qualified workers, yet not enough students are pursuing studies in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) that would prepare them for technical careers. Unfortunately, many students have no interest in STEM careers, particularly engineering, because they are not exposed to topics in these fields during their K-12 studies. Most K-12 teachers have not been trained to integrate relevant STEM topics into their classroom teaching and curriculum materials. This article explores best practices for bringing engineering into the science and mathematics curriculum of secondary school classrooms by describing a project that utilizes concepts representing the merger of medicine, robotics, and information technology. Specific examples demonstrating the integration into the teaching of physics, biology, and chemistry are provided. Also considered are the critical issues of professional development for classroom teachers, improved preparation of future teachers of STEM, and the development of curriculum materials that address state and national content standards.

Improving the public understanding of science: New initiatives

The United States may be on the brink of losing its global edge in science. Many American students are underprepared for and uninterested in the scientific and technical careers they may be asked to take on. Furthermore, these students, their teachers, and the broader public lack basic understandings of what science is and how it works, which may negatively impact their ability to make reasoned and informed decisions about science-related issues. We describe two unique and recently developed projects designed to help tackle these problems by improving public understanding of and interest in science. The Coalition on the Public Understanding of Science is a grassroots effort to lower the barriers between the scientific community and the public. It aims to inspire broad appreciation of science, inform the public about the nature and process of science, and make science accessible to everyone. Understanding Science is a web-based project that aims to improve teacher understanding of the nature of the scientific enterprise, to provide resources that encourage and enable kindergarten through undergraduate (K-16) teachers to reinforce the nature of science throughout their teaching, and to serve as a clear and accessible reference that accurately portrays the scientific endeavor. The botanical and broader scientific communities are invited to participate in these efforts.

Highs and lows?

Sue Bowler, Editor Tough financial times worldwide mean tough times for science funding, too. There are going to be difficult decisions for governments and science administrators over the next few years, as national debt bites. Yet governments also continue to acknowledge that science and technology have a pivotal role to play in national prosperity and international prestige. And this role is not limited to those science and technical careers that will boom in the future – many elements of scientific training are transferable skills, especially if early-career training fosters the sort of skills that help people move their careers into new areas. But sciences such as astronomy also play a valuable role in attracting people to science in the first place – a fact recognized in the activities worldwide for International Year of Astronomy 2009. Fascination with the stars, wondering how sunlight makes its way to Earth, and why planets have magnetic fields are all the sorts of questions that draw young people into science, and keep them there through rigorous examinations. They also form the sorts of minds that can tackle new areas of research such as geoengineering, or apply their skills to burgeoning fields such as genetic research. And we know that people follow interesting careers that do not necessarily stay within the disciplines that they started out in – but we don’t always shout loudly enough about this. Some dedicated – you might say narrow-minded – researchers see those who choose careers out of the subject as objects of pity, and forget about them. But we should be celebrating this great success, that we can send trained, capable, enthusiastic people into a whole wide range of new fields. We are producing the analysts, the communicators, the collaborators, that everyone tells us the country needs, and we should be very proud of ourselves as a group. Editorial NEws

Technical vs. Managerial Careers: What Experienced Professionals Say

Forum Experienced professionals evaluate technical vs. managerial careers. The Way Ahead has conducted three surveys among young professionals (YPs) to understand preferences between the technical and managerial career ladder. Approximately two-thirds of respondents sought to pursue a management career. It is estimated that one-third ultimately follow the managerial career path. Why do YPs see management as an attractive career? TWA is trying something new in this Forum section and asked select technical and managerial industry leaders for comments on key questions this survey raised. Let's hear what experienced technical and managerial professionals have to say on this critical subject. A total of 2,799 experienced professionals over 35 years of age responded to the survey—60% are on technical career paths and 40% in management positions. The results are representative at the 95% confidence level with a ± 1.79 margin of error. This survey aims to address questions regarding the technical vs. managerial ladder not previously investigated. All data collected, analyzed, and presented in previous articles, workshops, and papers were missing the perspective of professionals over the age of 35. Oil and gas industry veterans now share their experiences regarding the evolution of their career path and job selections. Responses provide suggestions on how organizations can motivate and retain young professionals (YPs) by effectively communicating the company's view on their potential. This survey is not designed to dissuade YPs from pursuing the management career option, but aims to explore the differences between technical and managerial career paths and share corporate expectations about what is required to succeed in both.

Carving Your Own Path: The Technical vs. Managerial Career Dilemma

What's Ahead TWA Editor Luis Ayala weighs the pros and cons of technical and managerial career paths.

At the Crossroads: Technical vs. Managerial Careers and the Common Ground for the Road Ahead

Soft Skills Finding common ground in technical and managerial careers. Daily we find ourselves at a crossroads because we have to make decisions. Although it is true that some of these decisions can affect or influence our future career paths, the outcomes are not irrevocable. In other words, a single "good" career pick made today does not necessarily predetermine a successful career in the future. Technical and managerial career paths are not mutually exclusive. On the extreme ends of the job spectrum in the oil and gas industry there are unique talents like pure research or general manager. However, for the 80 or 90% of technical management roles in between, there is significant common ground with respect to the journey, accomplishments, recognition, and relative success. All kinds of research are available that promote particular career paths. Numerous publications offer in-depth academic studies of industry employment trends, statistical compensation analyses, updates on the state of engineering and science graduates around the globe, the significance of personality profiling, the potential relevance of birth order, the differences in generations (baby boomers vs. millennials), the value of diversity and inclusion, the effectiveness of mentoring programs, and even attempts to plot career roadmaps Feng Shui-style. These types of studies do offer insight and encouragement as well as being catalysts for self-introspection, awareness, and observation. They often provide a framework or structure that so many of us need or believe we need to organize, plan, and control our lives. They do their best to: explain "why" people act the way they do, delineate "who" might have natural abilities or aptitudes, and ultimately attempt to predict future behaviors. However, I do not believe that any one of them present a magic bullet, right answer, or single path to success.

LA CAPACIDAD ESPACIAL Y SU RELACIÓN CON LA INGENIERÍA

Spatial skills, which have an impact on almost all scientific and technical careers, remain an active fi eld of research, particularly in the engineering area. This work aims to clarify the state of current knowledge on spatial skills, within the intellectual capacities of individuals, developing the concept, the components and measurement techniques. It is a brief historical overview of the stages that are distinguished in research in this area and it justified their relationship and its importance to the engineering, highlighting the findings from 1920 to present in this field. The tools and courses designed to improve space abilities are profuse; the Michigan Technological University (MTU) and Purdue University are active in this field. Furthermore, it highlights the work developed at the national level, especially that carried out by Dehaes (Spatial Skills’ Research Group), made up of researchers of the Universidad de La Laguna and Universidad Politecnica de Valencia.

Gender violence during workplace learning

abstract Workplace learning is currently a crucial component of most educational programmes leading to professional and technical careers. Students spend up to a year of their training programme at a site of envisaged work. This briefing draws on empirical evidence from the catering and hospitality industry to identify forms of gender and sexual violence during the workplace teaming experience.

Reporting results: a practical guide for engineers and scientists

This brief guide is ideal for science and engineering students and professionals to help them communicate technical information clearly, accurately, and effectively. The focus is on the most common communication forms, including laboratory reports, research articles, and oral presentations, and on common issues that arise in classroom and professional practice. This book will be especially useful to students in a first chemistry or physics laboratory course. Advanced courses will often use the same formatting as required for submission to technical journals or for technical report writing, which is the focus of this book. Good communication habits are appropriate in all forms of technical communication. This book will help the reader develop effective communication skills. It is also ideal as a reference on stylistic and grammar issues throughout a technical career. Unlike most texts, which concentrate on writing style, this book also treats oral presentations, graphing, and analysis of data.

Rules of thumb [Essay

Over the years, I have been asked many times by students, employees, and peers at management meetings, as to what approaches to my assignments during my career as an engineer and as a manager served me best. While I would always take time to think about the question, the answer was almost always the same, whether one follows a technical career or a career in management-"There are four words that can help you build strong relationships, if you use them to build your daily work approach around. You could even call them 'Rules of thumb for careers'." The usual reactions were, "Sure," "Right," or for those who insist on being literal, "What four words could do that?" At that point I would suggest that everyone get comfortable and allow me to provide some insight into the topic.

Design and use of a multimedia trainer for the subject Descriptive Geometry

AbstractLess and less time is being dedicated to Descriptive Geometry in Technical Careers. For that reason, a multimedia application that allows us improve and optimize the teaching–learning process in the resolution of typical problems of this subject has been designed. Easy of use, interactiveness or efficiency are characteristics that can be related to this application. In this article, we describe the more important aspects of the developed Multimedia Trainer, as well as the results obtained in an experience with students with the purpose of evaluating its possibilities of use. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 17: 13–24, 2009; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com); DOI 10.1002/cae20164

Message hiding using steganography, and forensic approaches for discovery

Bartholomew R. Mallio is currently the IT Director of Operations at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, where (among other things) he helps to set the Laboratory's information security policy and standards, and serves as its primary incident handler. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is a basic research and educational institution, where over 300 scientists conduct groundbreaking research in cancer, neurobiology, plant genetics and bioinformatics. Prior to his work at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Bart has served as the IT Director of the Boston Housing Authority, and in KPMG's Global Networks practice. Over the last 13 years he has provided network security solutions for his employers and consulting clients, writing policies, securing servers, performing security audits/penetration tests, and designing/deploying firewalls and intrusion detection systems. He feels that his involvement with the information technology field derives first-hand from a fascination with network security; in the early 1990's, he decided to leave the field of strategic planning and management consulting to pursue a more technical career after reading Clifford Stoll's computer security classic The Cuckoo's Egg. He first encountered steganography in the work The Codebreakers , by fellow Long Islander David Kahn, and has been fascinated with the problem of steganalysis ever since. His presentation will include a discussion of how message hiding is achieved and discovered as well as its importance for computer security and for computer science education

Hermit Points on a Box

(2008). Hermit Points on a Box. The College Mathematics Journal: Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 12-23.

Should a Technical Career Track/Ladder Be a Preferred Option for Young Professionals?

Pillars of the Industry - Ganesh Thakur, Global Adviser-Reservoir Management and Fellow for Chevron Energy Technology, discusses "Should a Technical Career Track/Ladder Be a Preferred Option for Young Professionals?"

Globalization, curricula reform and the consequences for engineers working in an international company

Since 1990, the downfall of ideological borders has triggered a tendency toward a global economy. This globalization has rewritten the market rules, forcing international companies to adapt the way in which they do business and their structures. With some delay, politics and academia in Europe have reacted, resulting in the envisaged creation of a ‘Higher European Education Area’, commonly known as ‘Bologna Process’. To help in the ongoing process of redefining university curricula, this article reviews the requirements of international employers, taking Siemens as an example, and the consequences for engineers. It will be shown that the number of jobs requiring a solid technical base has not diminished, but that the demand for graduates combining technical knowledge with other skills is growing, due to the more complex working environment. In addition, these ‘soft skills’ carry more weight when individuals move up the career ladder. Therefore, a technical bachelor’s degree that can be combined with a master’s degree in another major can be an attractive entry option for many students, who currently are deterred by the long courses that prepare them simply for a technical career.

Oferta, demanda y políticas públicas en educación superior.

The paper examines the evolution and current situation of supply and demand in the higher education system in Chile, focusing on undergraduate professional and technical careers. It analyses public policies in terms of financing and access to financial aids for students. It discusses new public loan programs for higher education and it presents the authors' concerns about the ability of this system to reach those who need it the most without introducing major changes to the design of the system. The paper also highlights the importance of developing an information system which can be used by the private financial sector to evaluate educational loans

Public Awareness Activities: HISPARC: A Joint Venture for Research and Education

Society profits from science education. However, at least in Europe, there appears to be a gap between the content and method of science teaching in high schools and the nature and practice of scientific research in academic and industrial laboratories. This gap manifests itself in the vague and often incorrect notions large numbers of high-school pupils entertain of scientific and technical professions. Bridging this gap will stimulate more students to make a well-informed choice for scientific and technical studies and careers and reverses the current trend in declining number of science students.