Nebraska Engineering excites with E-Week 2009

Calendar Icon Apr 30, 2009      Person Bust Icon By Carole Wilbeck | Engineering     RSS Feed  RSS Submit a Story

E-Week 2009 celebrated 96 years at the UNL College of Engineering with a focus on fun and the future.

The April 20-24 event, co-chaired by seniors Ericka Amborn and Garrett Hummel, started Sunday night with the halls of the Lincoln engineering complex turned into a mini-golf course. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers stole that show with a mini-Baja vehicle converted into a putting challenge.

Other weeknight activities included dodgeball and pitch tournaments, and Thursday night crowned UNL's first "Mr. Engineer" in a competition at the Lincoln campus City Union ballroom. From a field of nine entrants representing a variety of majors, three of the finalists were Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering students. (Congratulations to 2009 Mr. Engineer, Keith Rodenhausen, a junior with CHME!) A Scavenger Hunt and Quiz Bowl rounded out the schedule.

Food flowed throughout the week with a root beer keg kick-off (and opportunity to "Pi" an engineer), an international dinner, and a Faculty Flip, with professors cooking pancakes for students near the Engineering Library one morning.

The theme for this year's E-Week events, Inventing the Future, was strongly displayed at the annual Open House with Senior Projects and the Graduate Students' Symposium. Highlighted research and developments from the college's Lincoln and Omaha locations included "smart house" technology, water treatment refinements, and nanomaterials expertise. Friday's Open House also featured keynote speaker Gary Gates, CEO of Omaha Public Power District, on the Future of Power Generation (and how engineering shapes that).

The College of Engineering thanks the 500+ guests who attended, especially groups from local schools who joined in engineering ping-pong ball launchers and egg drop devices. The college also appreciates the event sponsors and student organizers, who helped ensure E-Week's success. See you next year!



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