By Steve Gerl
“Motion” was the buzzword of the events at this year’s Engineering Expo at the University of Louisville.
Hundreds attended Saturday’s E-Expo which involved everything from a keynote speaker to the spinning blades of the Apache helicopter that landed behind Ernst Hall. This year’s theme was “Engineering in Motion: Land, Air, Sea and Space.”
Organized by the student council of J.B. Speed School of Engineering, “the broad focus of the E-Expo is to promote engineering specifically through student exhibitions, corporate expositions, high school competitions, and our keynote speaker,” said student coordinator Allison Douglas, a senior industrial engineering major.
President and CEO of Marshall Communications Veloris “Sonny” Marshall was this year’s keynote speaker. A former Speed School student, Marshall related and connected to the student audience.
Marshall’s message promoted shared enthusiasm and excitement of the engineering community. He showed a video of a recent success of military engineers, the modern combat barricade, which is designed to stop a truck full of explosives in about two feet. The video demonstration showed a truck driving at 55 MPH running directly into a barricade and not driving through it. The video received murmurs of excitement from demolition buffs in the audience.
Later in his speech, Marshall said, “It’s an exciting time to be an engineer. ‘Motion’ challenges are everywhere. My advice for current engineering students is just to keep your eyes on the prize. It will pay off in the end.” The enthusiasm in Marshall’s address spilled over into other aspects of the fair.
“Mr. Marshall provided great insight on opportunities for engineers in the world of broadband services,” said Alex Frommeyer, a sophomore civil engineering major.
After the keynote presentation, Marshall stayed around to converse with students about the Sony Playstation Portable, a popular video game system.
Following the address, students rushed out of J.B. Speed Hall to witness an Apache helicopter land on the band field. “My favorite thing was the Apache helicopter,” said sophomore Craig Richardson, a civil engineering major. “It really showed me just how many opportunities are out there for engineering students.”
Other components of the E-Expo were geared towards introducing students to career opportunities through the corporate exhibitors on hand and attracting local high school students to the Speed School, which is one of the nation’s top engineering schools. “Having high school students come to E-Expo really allows us to show them the nuts and bolts of what an engineer really does,” said sophomore Kate Bradner, a civil engineering major.
The E-Expo illustrated the fun practical applications of engineering that often go overlooked. By the end of the event, the E-Expo showed that engineering is not all calculations and classroom work.
