Developing a Culture of Scholarship : Recent Directions in Multi-Disciplinary Education and Research

1
Developing a Culture of Scholarship Recent
Directions in Multi-Disciplinary Education and
Research

• Prof. Tarek Sobh
• Senior Vice President for Graduate Studies
  Research
• Dean of the School of Engineering
• Distinguished Professor of Engineering and
  Computer Science
• University of Bridgeport, U.S.A.

University of Sharjah May 12th / 13th, 2015
2
Outline

• Central issues in Education and Research
• New directions
• Education/Scholarship Problems and a plan
• Making the Right Graduate / Professional
• New disciplines / challenges and our signature
  areas
• Mechanisms for supporting scholarship
• Research strategies and techniques
• Projects

3
Central Issues In Education / Research
Some Thoughts from the Late Eighties

• Manufacturing and linkages with Design
• Concurrency and the Product Realization Process
• Growing Role of the Computer and Software Tools
• Simulation, Visualization, Design
• Growing Importance of Information Technologies in
  All Disciplines
• Incipience of Multidisciplinary Education
• Comprehensive University / Industry Relations

4
Central Issues in Education / Research
The Twenty-First Century

• Design in Micro and Nano Scales
• Growing importance of Biological Sciences
• Increasing Pressure to Transcend Traditional
  Academic Boundaries Multidisciplinary Education
• Reduce rigidity of curriculum requirements and
  increase flexibility Programs of study that
  meld previously disparate disciplines
• Ever Expanding Impact of Information
  Technologies The Internet and Wireless
  Communication Technologies
• Asynchronous and Synchronous Distance Learning
• The Virtual University
• The Virtual Laboratory Experience
• e-learning Courses

5
Central Issues in Education / Research
The Twenty-First Century (continued)

• Socialization of Learning
• Student Centered Learning Activities
• Relations with Industry An Alternative Model
• Innovation and Entrepreneurship
• The Research / Business Interface
• Globalization
• International Study and Work Experience

6
Some New Directions

• First-Year Courses on Introduction to Systems
• Multidisciplinary, Experiential and Contextual
• Faculty participation from all disciplines
• Projects involve analysis, design, build and test
  activities that cross disciplinary boundaries and
  involve real applications
• Interactive and Collaborative
• Shift from faculty- and lecture-centered
  activities to student-centered activities
• Numerous team-based activities

7
New Directions (continued)

• A Prototype Learning Center
• Computing Clusters / Clouds for Collaborative
  Simulation and Design Activities
• Prototype Design, Making and Test Equipment
• Facilities for Conducting Experiments
• Group Work and Study Spaces
• Multimedia Presentation and Demonstration Areas

8
New Directions (continued)
Learning Center in New Building
9
The Problem(s) (and a Plan)

• K-12 Science, Math, Reading and Writing Weakness
• Curriculum / Research based (partially) on
  constituents feedback, needs, vision,
  aspirations, problems (local, regional, national
  and global)
• Leading versus following ?
• Functional body of knowledge for leading edge
  technology development and to produce competent
  and interdisciplinary professionals.
• New programs (outcome-based) utilizing
  outstanding and unique human and technology
  resources (lets not fall into the .com trap
  again).

10
The Problem(s) and Plan (contd.)

• Traditional degrees (what does that mean ?)
  versus new interdisciplinary goal-oriented
  programs that cater to new complex real-world
  21st century areas of interest and potential
  dominance.
• Global competition (in what ?) Should we be
  scared ? 500K jobs to India 2001-2003, is this a
  problem ? How to solve it ? China !
• New programs and collaborations (degree / within
  degree) driven by our vision of what the future
  should be like, not by what is the current
  state of the art. NO LIMITS (time to completion,
  etc.), example ABET, AACSB and NASAD are making
  it easy at the undergraduate and graduate
  levels.. Really!

11
The Problem and Plan (Contd.)

• Quasi-Reverse brain drain (politics / Economics)
• Europe, Asia, Canada, Australia very serious
  competition for brain power.
• Continuing to attract international talent
  (remember K-12 problem) and need for aggressive
  recruiting at all levels and international
  cooperation / programs.
• Profession Respectability / licensure, lobbying
  issues.

12
Making the RIGHT Professional

• Example Future Engineers (Joe Bordogna, COO
  NSF)
• Holistic designer
• Astute maker
• Trusted innovator
• Harm avoider
• Change agent
• Master integrator
• Enterprise enabler
• Knowledge handler
• Technology steward
• Model for education suitable to the a new world
  in which change and complexity are the rule, a
  globally linked world that needs integration in
  many ways.
• The Aftermath (Sam Florman, 2001), Prey
  (Crichton, 2002)

13
New? Disciplines / Trends or our signature areas

• BIO Deliberate strategic response versus a
  natural evolutionary process (no definitive
  mandate ?)
• Terascale tera operations / compute power,
  terabyte storage, terabyte networking.
  Fascinating (for now) infrastructure.
  Applications Communications, simulations /
  visualizations, real-time capabilities, etc.
• Nanoscale nano technologies / nano photonics,
  new materials / machines / living cells
  interface, precise control and manipulation at
  that scale femto scale ! Also, MEMS and smart
  dust for agent detection, temperature, motion,
  vision sensing, etc.,

14
New Trends / Challenge Areas

• Cognition above areas neurosciences,
  perception, sensing, machine vision, agent-based
  systems, linguistics, psychologists, mathematics,
  robotics, automation, and many others interact.
• Complexity, integration (traffic, weather,
  intelligent infrastructure and control systems,
  aerospace, aviation, large systems).
• Advanced Materials and Manufacturing.
• Information, communications and perception
  technologies (not only for defense, but many
  other applications)
• Renewable energy and power systems.
• We should not abandon all we know, but rather
  complement what we do with emerging paradigms

15
New Directions (continued)
Example Bioengineering

• A term with multiple meanings and implications
• Medical Engineering
• Prostheses
• Diagnostic and Surgical Tools
• Biotechnology
• Bioinformatics
• Biosensors
• Tissue Engineering
• Environmental Engineering/Science
• Remediation of organic wastes
• Biological destruction of carcinogens and
• toxic chemicals
• Required molecular and cellular biology course
  for all engineering students
• Departmental elective courses

16
New Directions (continued)
Integrated Research/Business Practice Courses
Fundamentals ? The Corporation and it Financial
Processes ? Human Resources and Management
Processes ? Innovation Processes ? Supply Chain
Processes and Quality
Advanced Topics ? e-Business, Globalization,
Outsourcing ? Entrepreneurship,
Logistics ? Business Plans and Business
Simulations
17
Mechanisms for Supporting Scholarship

• Periodic Programs Review
• Periodic Research Review
• SWOT Analysis
• Identification of Centers of Excellence
• Potential groups / individuals / student work.
• Existing opportunities
• Yearly / Periodic Goals (Change and Maintenance)
• Faculty Development Funds, Seed grants
• Making scholarship embedded in the culture
• Professional review
• Develop Web, training/workshops, grant
  writ(ers)/(ing)

18
Scholarship Strategies

• Sponsorship Industry, Federal, Foundations,
  State, Local
• Multi-Disciplinary
• Across departments, schools, campuses
• SWOT again
• Joint work / proposal writing Partner with
  Industry
• Centers, Other Universities, School
  Districts, etc.
• Identification / Listing of resources / agencies
  (projects)
• Recommendations regarding potential project
  resources

19
Some Techniques

• IAB role
• Student Centered Activities
• Startup co-ops, internships, GAs, low overhead.
• As a constituent, advise (and be advised) on
  emerging trends.
• Relations with Industry / University Clients
  Model
• Complete Involvement
• Joint Work (research and curricular)
• Interfacing VCs (connecting), Incubator(s)
• Overhead back to group / dept. / school.
• Seed funding / ID of potential, extending
  resources.

20
Interdisciplinary Project Examples

• Glove (Chiro, Eng and Business (law))
• Robotic Musicians (AS, Music, Eng)
• E-Assessment (Education, Eng)
• ConnCap (Education, Eng)
• Biometrics / Face ID (Bus, Eng, art (law))
• Tire changing (Bus, Eng)
• Reverse Engineering in Dentistry, Film Making
  (Eng, Art, Health sciences)
• Robotics prototyping based on task specification
  (R.E. of Maths, statics, dynamics, E.E)
• Traffic Control (vision, GPS, wireless).
• Across dept., school, campus, joint with Univ.,
  school districts, industry, VCs.