The Engineering Commons Podcast

The gang discusses how one acquires the skills most frequently used by engineering professionals. Brian knows that parliamentary procedures are described in Robert’s Rules of Order, but he has not had to use such procedures in the course of his engineering career. A quorum is the minimum number of voting members from a deliberative group … Continue reading Episode 124 — Mad Skillz →

In this episode of The Engineering Commons, we discuss transitions experienced by Adam, Carmen and Jeff during the past year. Brian participates in our round-robin discussion, but it seems his 2016 was fairly routine. Adam has been residing in his new estate since mid-November, and is still uncovering new surprises on his property. A power … Continue reading Episode 123 — Transitions 2016 →

In this episode of The Engineering Commons, we answer questions from listener Jared about coping as an engineering student. Carmen informs us that making accurate estimations is an important engineering skill. In this episode, we answer questions from listener Jared about surviving the math-science death march encountered in the typical engineering curriculum. It’s normal to … Continue reading Episode 122 — Jared Asks →

In this episode of The Engineering Commons, our intrepid crew discusses planning, leading and attending the dreaded corporate meeting. It seems that Brian elects to daydream when in boring meetings, whereas Jeff has been known to doodle extensively. Jeff located a website claiming to offer doodle analysis and interpretation, although the disclaimer notes that it … Continue reading Episode 121 — Idle Doodling →

This episode of The Engineering Commons finds Adam, Brian, Carmen and Jeff predicting how virtual and augmented realities might soon be incorporated into daily engineering activities. Adam’s not so sure he’s ready to plug into the Matrix. Brian suggests that understanding differential calculus is much less practical than knowing Kung Fu. Bullet time is a … Continue reading Episode 120 — Augmented Engineer →

Brian, Carmen and Jeff discuss mechanical gears in this episode of The Engineering Commons. Although a mechanical engineer, Jeff isn’t much for working on cars. We share a few stories about synchronizing generators, including use of a synchroscope. Brian mentions mechanisms with extremely high gear ratios. The two main functions of gears are trading off … Continue reading Episode 119 — Gears →

In this episode of The Engineering Commons podcast, we talk with civil engineer Grady Hillhouse, producer of YouTube’s Practical Engineering channel. Carmen has been known to wield a reciprocating saw as he refines his woodworking skills. Our guest for this episode is Grady Hillhouse, a professional civil engineer from Austin, Texas who runs the Practical … Continue reading Episode 118 — Practical Engineering →

This episode of The Engineering Commons dives into the importance of “soft skills” to engineering professionals. A fictional giant from the 1984 Ghostbusters movie, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is the chosen form of Gozer the Gozerian. We use the LinkedIn article “Top 5 Must-Have Soft Skills for Professional Engineers” as a framework for our … Continue reading Episode 117 — Soft Skills →

Adam, Brian and Jeff discuss the electrical grid in this episode of The Engineering Commons. The difference engine, conceived of by J. H. Müller in 1786, and designed by Charles Babbage in the 1820s, is often considered the world’s first computer. Brian notes that electric furnaces are increasingly used in steel production. Adam and Brian … Continue reading Episode 116 — The Grid →

Carmen and Jeff discuss mechanical bearings in this episode of The Engineering Commons podcast. Carmen has a pretty good sense of his navigational bearing, but is less knowledgeable about mechanical bearings. U.S. interstate highways are numbered with even numbered roads going primarily east-west, and odd numbered roads passing mostly north-south. Differences between skateboards and longboards … Continue reading Episode 115 — Bearings →

Brian leads our discussion of electric vehicles in this episode of The Engineering Commons podcast. Carmen notes that a single resting electron has a mass of 9.11 x 10-31 kilograms. Brian suggests some form of positronic vehicular propulsion might be possible, although radiation issues would make it impractical for most earthbound applications. One of the … Continue reading Episode 114 — Driven Electrons →

Chris Welch joins Adam, Brian, Carmen, and Jeff to talk about the field of chemical engineering. Jeff believes in unicorns, even though he’s never seen one! From his childhood, Jeff recalls watching a DuPont film about “Better Living Through Chemistry.” Our guest for this episode is Chris Welch, a chemical engineer from New Brunswick, Canada, … Continue reading Episode 113 — Chemical Engineering →

The gang discusses opportunities and challenges of dealing with Baby Boomers as they depart the engineering field. Adam is aware of the “retirement cliff,” which describes an impending loss of skilled workers, nearly all of them Baby Boomers, in a short period of time. Americans tend to derive much of their self-identity from their jobs, … Continue reading Episode 112 — Boomer Exodus →

Bronwyn Bell joins Adam, Brian, Carmen, and Jeff to discuss the challenges and responsibilities of an environmental engineer working in the mining sector. Carmen likes to help out local beer brewers in harvesting hops, but he’s not sure what makes for a good hops growing season. Environmental engineers plan, design and manage projects associated with … Continue reading Episode 111 — Environmental Engineering →

Adam, Brian, Carmen and Jeff discuss the activities they enjoy when escaping the workplace for a few days. Brian enjoyed reading Michael Lewis’ book “The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine” on a recent vacation. Adam’s vacation time is more likely spent making home repairs than traveling to the beach. Vacation spots of possible interest … Continue reading Episode 110 — Engineering Vacation →