Uncooked spaghetti, hot glue and collapsing bridges are just some of things you’ll see in this year’s National Engineers Week.
Mark Lim/Contributing Photographer
Continuing a 10-year tradition, student groups and professors of the Watson School of Engineering are hosting a week of school-wide engineering and computer science events from Feb. 14 to Feb. 21.
“National Engineers Week is a combination of raising awareness within the engineering profession and of making the profession accessible to other students,” said John Fillo, the associate dean of academic affairs for Watson.
On one hand, the events bring attention to students about the profession they are engaged in, Fillo said. On the other, the activities attract students from outside the Watson School.
The last two events of the week, the Spaghetti Bridge Building Competition and the Senior Project Showcase, will take place this Saturday.
Sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), the Spaghetti Bridge Competition will take place in the Engineering Building, room 10, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
“We have no limitations on who can come to the Spaghetti Bridge competition and watch the bridges get destroyed,” said Tom Ruggiero, president of BU’s chapter of SAE and a senior mechanical engineering major. “We welcome any students, faculty and people from the community.”
This event brings together unconventional materials and solid engineering practice, according to Ruggiero.
Students have about two to two and a half hours to construct the bridges from uncooked spaghetti and hot melted glue. Then, the bridges are loaded until they collapse. The bridges are then judged based on the maximum load held before collapsing, compared to the weight of the bridge.
“The event is a lot of fun and allows students to apply concepts that are taught during sophomore year of the mechanical engineering curriculum,” Ruggiero said.
This competition is happening simultaneously with the Senior Project Showcase, where senior engineering majors present their Senior Design Projects to underclassmen. As part of their education, seniors are required to develop an original technical design.
“This event will help underclassmen interested in studying engineering,” Fillo said. “They will be better acquainted with requirements for the Watson School and what is expected of them.”