Here is the summary of the article I read regarding technology:
Many engineers work at their forefront of their occupation. For Peter Brett, a professor of biomedical engineering at Aston University, extensive knowledge is needed to develop medical innovations. The innovations have to be compatible and safe, on top of maintaining its basic uses. The head of engineering at the Diamond synchrotron, Jay Kay, explains that precision is very important to keep machinery workable. A functioning synchrotron will require fine tuning at nano-metric level.
In order to maintain airworthiness for battle, Mark Hunt, a RAF squadron leader, states that it is important for his planes to be made available for flight. Planes are flown in drastic climate condition and require precise tests and maintenances before they are fit to fly. Hunt feel that engineering is not just a great help in his work, but also the key to life opportunities.
Read the full article here:
Click Here
Here are some interesting facts from the site:
Engineers’ feats
1698 Thomas Savery patents the basic steam engine
1712 Thomas Newcomen develops a working atmospheric steam engine
1769 James Watt patents a steam engine with a separate condenser
1803 Richard Trevithick builds the first steam locomotive to undertake practical work
1825 George Stephenson runs Locomotion, the first passenger steam locomotive, between Stockton and Darlington
1847 Institution of Mechanical Engineers founded
1860 Jean-Joseph Etienne Lenoir develops the first successful internal combustion engine
1863 The world’s first underground railway, the Metropolitan Line, opens in London
1903 The Wright Flyer becomes the first heavier-than-air machine to fly in a sustained, controlled way with a pilot onboard
1937 Frank Whittle invents the jet engine
1953 John Gibbon develops the heart-lung machine
1954 The world’s first nuclear power station opens in Obninsk, near Moscow
1961 Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human being in space
1983 The world’s first maglev train begins operating in Birmingham
1991 Opening of Delabole, the UK’s first wind farm
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
EG1471 Writing Assignment 2
2. Based on Stephens’ article and your related readings do you think R&D should focus on coal-based CCS technologies or on other technologies which are not reliant on fossil fuels?
Research and Development (R&D) can speed up the advancement of a technology. The size of the technology, the cost of the technology or the power of the technology depends on R&D. However, there is a limit to the amount of money cycling in the world. Therefore, the amount of money going into R&D in every country is limited; one must prioritize the importance of each technology that will be researched on. In the context of two technologies, coal-based carbon capture and storage (CCS) and non fossil fuel technology, both technologies are used as the solutions to the increase in the demand of energy, rise in oil prices and increment in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions which is the main cause of global warming. However, I feel that more focus should be placed on non-fossil fuel technology. In order to explain my choice, we will have to look into the advantages and disadvantages of each technology.
In CCS technology, the focus is on capturing the emitted CO2, transporting it and finally storing it away from the Earth surface. With CCS, energy industries can increase the usage of other fossil fuel such as coal that has the highest carbon intensity among fossil fuels. Steel and cement industries will also be able to increase their productivity without worrying about the CO2 emission. The result will be cheaper steel or cement product.
Currently, there are many positive results and tests showing that the CCS technology is ready to operate. In fact, Norway’s national oil company has already started putting the CO2 into empty oil reserves. There are also many big projects involving CSS technology announced by many industries such as British Petroleum (BP).
However, much of these projects and technology are still undergoing research. As mentioned in Stephens’ article (2006), much of CCS technology is performed at a small scale, like in laboratories, or has yet to be demonstrated in large scale power plant. Also, some theses have been made that the CO2 stored in the seabed may leak and cause the sea water to be acidic, hence, making the sea uninhabitable. The executive director of Stanford University’s Global Climate and Energy Project, Sally Benson (2007), said that scientists need to have a clearer picture of what will happen to the storage location when CO2 is pumped into it, how the storage location will keep the CO2 contained and the ways the stored CO2 can escape. More researches need to be done to allow us to make accurate prediction on any negative impacts based on researches that will arise from CCS technology.
On the other hand, we have non-fossil fuel technology that does not emit any CO2. Some of these technologies include solar panel, dam and nuclear power plant. On top of the absence of CO2 as a by-product, most of this technology uses renewable resources like sunlight to generate electricity for a much longer time than what non-renewable resources like coal can produce. One example is the solar cell technology.
Some critics claimed that non-fossil fuel technologies can be dangerous. Here they are referring to nuclear waste produced by the nuclear power plant. Nuclear power is only a small part of the technology and it is its by-product that poses a threat to life. Though there has not been any method to break down nuclear wastes to a non radioactive product, through R&D we may be able to achieve a solution.
On top of that, it is said that non-fossil fuel expensive and space consuming. This is true to a certain extent. Technology has never been a cheap product; it is through years of R&D that it becomes more affordable. The fact that technology such as solar cells and nuclear plants already have a much longer time of research than CCS technology means it will only get cheaper but even more advance with R&D. The U.S. Department of Energy (2001) reported that the cost of solar electricity has been reduced by 100 times over the last few decades and further research can reduce the cost even more. Beside that, researchers have developed methods to make solar cells to be as thin and flexible like plastic films. This means that we do not need to put aside land to capture solar energy.
In summary, we can clearly understand how non fossil fuels technologies are better than CCS in many ways; from becoming a source of infinite energy to reducing the deterioration of the effects of Global Warming. As the amount of money and time spend on R&D is fixed, we must evaluate and prioritize them according to their importance and advantages the technology can bring about. Why spend it on a technology provide only a temporary solution that does not solve the problem completely when you can spend it on a technology that deals with the problem directly. Furthermore, R&D on a technology existing for many decades will show an even better result than that of a younger one.
(825 words)
References:
Department of Energy (2001, March). Making Solar Energy More Affordable. Retrieved Oct 4, 2006, from http://www.er.doe.gov/accomplishments_awards/Decades_Discovery/20.html
Stephens, J.C. (2006). CCS: Research is not enough. The world energy book London: World Energy Council. (pp. 15-18)
Research and Development (R&D) can speed up the advancement of a technology. The size of the technology, the cost of the technology or the power of the technology depends on R&D. However, there is a limit to the amount of money cycling in the world. Therefore, the amount of money going into R&D in every country is limited; one must prioritize the importance of each technology that will be researched on. In the context of two technologies, coal-based carbon capture and storage (CCS) and non fossil fuel technology, both technologies are used as the solutions to the increase in the demand of energy, rise in oil prices and increment in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions which is the main cause of global warming. However, I feel that more focus should be placed on non-fossil fuel technology. In order to explain my choice, we will have to look into the advantages and disadvantages of each technology.
In CCS technology, the focus is on capturing the emitted CO2, transporting it and finally storing it away from the Earth surface. With CCS, energy industries can increase the usage of other fossil fuel such as coal that has the highest carbon intensity among fossil fuels. Steel and cement industries will also be able to increase their productivity without worrying about the CO2 emission. The result will be cheaper steel or cement product.
Currently, there are many positive results and tests showing that the CCS technology is ready to operate. In fact, Norway’s national oil company has already started putting the CO2 into empty oil reserves. There are also many big projects involving CSS technology announced by many industries such as British Petroleum (BP).
However, much of these projects and technology are still undergoing research. As mentioned in Stephens’ article (2006), much of CCS technology is performed at a small scale, like in laboratories, or has yet to be demonstrated in large scale power plant. Also, some theses have been made that the CO2 stored in the seabed may leak and cause the sea water to be acidic, hence, making the sea uninhabitable. The executive director of Stanford University’s Global Climate and Energy Project, Sally Benson (2007), said that scientists need to have a clearer picture of what will happen to the storage location when CO2 is pumped into it, how the storage location will keep the CO2 contained and the ways the stored CO2 can escape. More researches need to be done to allow us to make accurate prediction on any negative impacts based on researches that will arise from CCS technology.
On the other hand, we have non-fossil fuel technology that does not emit any CO2. Some of these technologies include solar panel, dam and nuclear power plant. On top of the absence of CO2 as a by-product, most of this technology uses renewable resources like sunlight to generate electricity for a much longer time than what non-renewable resources like coal can produce. One example is the solar cell technology.
Some critics claimed that non-fossil fuel technologies can be dangerous. Here they are referring to nuclear waste produced by the nuclear power plant. Nuclear power is only a small part of the technology and it is its by-product that poses a threat to life. Though there has not been any method to break down nuclear wastes to a non radioactive product, through R&D we may be able to achieve a solution.
On top of that, it is said that non-fossil fuel expensive and space consuming. This is true to a certain extent. Technology has never been a cheap product; it is through years of R&D that it becomes more affordable. The fact that technology such as solar cells and nuclear plants already have a much longer time of research than CCS technology means it will only get cheaper but even more advance with R&D. The U.S. Department of Energy (2001) reported that the cost of solar electricity has been reduced by 100 times over the last few decades and further research can reduce the cost even more. Beside that, researchers have developed methods to make solar cells to be as thin and flexible like plastic films. This means that we do not need to put aside land to capture solar energy.
In summary, we can clearly understand how non fossil fuels technologies are better than CCS in many ways; from becoming a source of infinite energy to reducing the deterioration of the effects of Global Warming. As the amount of money and time spend on R&D is fixed, we must evaluate and prioritize them according to their importance and advantages the technology can bring about. Why spend it on a technology provide only a temporary solution that does not solve the problem completely when you can spend it on a technology that deals with the problem directly. Furthermore, R&D on a technology existing for many decades will show an even better result than that of a younger one.
(825 words)
References:
Department of Energy (2001, March). Making Solar Energy More Affordable. Retrieved Oct 4, 2006, from http://www.er.doe.gov/accomplishments_awards/Decades_Discovery/20.html
Stephens, J.C. (2006). CCS: Research is not enough. The world energy book London: World Energy Council. (pp. 15-18)
Thursday, September 18, 2008
いけん,意見,Ansicht, Thoughts so far..
Before I attended the EG 1471, I feel it will be hard to learn English back from basic. I thought it will be like correcting the wrong guess you made in a Sudoku puzzle. Nevertheless, I managed to learn many things such as the sentence structure, connective words and basic grammars.
However, I feel that I am still weak in my grammar. For example, when I am doing the text-editing exercises, I felt that either the passage contained mistake that I need to find or I could not find a single mistake out of it.
Hopefully, I will be able to sort this out as soon as possible.
However, I feel that I am still weak in my grammar. For example, when I am doing the text-editing exercises, I felt that either the passage contained mistake that I need to find or I could not find a single mistake out of it.
Hopefully, I will be able to sort this out as soon as possible.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Port folio task 2
It is important to learn how to write proper sentences as it helps to relate your thoughts to a reader. Of course, it also shows how much you understand English. However, that is something that I am lacking.
The first and foremost thing is to understand the type of sentence structure (simple, compound and complex) and how they are written.
A simple sentence contains only one clause.
For example: The teacher scolded me in class.
This simple sentence has one independent clause which contains one subject, "the teacher", and one predicate "scolded me in class"
A compound sentence contains the two independent clauses
For example: Orange is a fruit; it is a rich source of vitamin C.
"Orange is a fruit" and "it is a rich source of vitamin C" are 2 independent clauses joined by a semicolon.
A complex sentence contains the one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
For example: I ate the apple that you bought.
"I ate the apple" is an independent clause while "that you bought" is a dependent clauses.
A complex-compound sentence contains at least two independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses.
For example: I know that you were saving the apple for later but I still went ahead to eat the apple that you just bought.
"I know that you were saving the apple for later" and "I still went ahead to eat the apple" are the independent clauses while "that you just bought" is the dependent clause.
After being able to identify the different type of sentences, the next thing is to learn how I can write these sentences. Since English has many connecting words and punctuations that can link ideas together, be it contradicting or similar, I am able to use them to construct a proper sentence
However, all this is useless if I do not put them into practice. As the saying goes, “Practice makes perfect”; practice allow me to get use of the correct form of writing. This is a tedious process as it means reading, writing and speaking more. Of course I will need to practice the correct thing, which means I will need someone to correct me. So this is where someone comes in and corrects me. Reading also helps in this area as books, newspaper and magazines are usually written by well trained writers and are also audit before they are publish. Reading correct form of writing will familiarize me with correct sentence structure.
Sound easy? So why not try some simple exercise:
The first and foremost thing is to understand the type of sentence structure (simple, compound and complex) and how they are written.
A simple sentence contains only one clause.
For example: The teacher scolded me in class.
This simple sentence has one independent clause which contains one subject, "the teacher", and one predicate "scolded me in class"
A compound sentence contains the two independent clauses
For example: Orange is a fruit; it is a rich source of vitamin C.
"Orange is a fruit" and "it is a rich source of vitamin C" are 2 independent clauses joined by a semicolon.
A complex sentence contains the one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
For example: I ate the apple that you bought.
"I ate the apple" is an independent clause while "that you bought" is a dependent clauses.
A complex-compound sentence contains at least two independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses.
For example: I know that you were saving the apple for later but I still went ahead to eat the apple that you just bought.
"I know that you were saving the apple for later" and "I still went ahead to eat the apple" are the independent clauses while "that you just bought" is the dependent clause.
After being able to identify the different type of sentences, the next thing is to learn how I can write these sentences. Since English has many connecting words and punctuations that can link ideas together, be it contradicting or similar, I am able to use them to construct a proper sentence
However, all this is useless if I do not put them into practice. As the saying goes, “Practice makes perfect”; practice allow me to get use of the correct form of writing. This is a tedious process as it means reading, writing and speaking more. Of course I will need to practice the correct thing, which means I will need someone to correct me. So this is where someone comes in and corrects me. Reading also helps in this area as books, newspaper and magazines are usually written by well trained writers and are also audit before they are publish. Reading correct form of writing will familiarize me with correct sentence structure.
Sound easy? So why not try some simple exercise:
In the backyard, the dog barked and howled at the cat.
Some voters want special consideration that accounts for their handicaps.
Gene thought that Finny wanted venerability, but Finny, who did not care, thought that he was just being a friend.
I ate dinner and left home.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Writing Assignment 1
Imagine living in a place without television to watch, hot water to bathe with or computers to calculate your data. Your life will be full of dullness and inconveniences. Technology has become the necessity of our life but it does not come about easily. One of the challenges faced was people’s resistance to new ways of doing things. We will look at the causes for such a mindset and the effects that will arise.
New technology is brought about when there is a need to solve a common problem. One example is medical technology. The medicines on the shelves of a pharmacy are for people suffering from a particular illness. However, every individual has a unique genetic composition so the particular medicine may not be suitable. This explains why some people will need to change their medication several times before they get well. The next example is computer based technology. According to summary of a survey found in Professor Henry’s research paper(1994), “computer based technology can cause resistance on the part of end-users, because it is difficult to learn.” Computers and software are not something that one can grasp in a day. The functions available are numerous and may require days of exploring and playing with these functions before one can start to use it properly. Hence, people shun new technology as they are not made for individuals.
Another reason to resist new technology is it creates new problems while solving the current problems faced. One example is the firewall technology on the internet. In order to prevent malicious attacks from viruses and hackers, networks are under surveillance and this causes a slowdown in the exchange of information.
These are factors that lead people to resist new technology, the very thing that we thought of as necessity. Without new technology, there will be no change in our life. This is not just about conveniences, it is about survival-people who are suffering from terminal illness will need to resign to death or global warming will continue to worsen, melting the ice at the North and South poles, thus flooding low lying areas.
In conclusion, people’s resistance to new technology comes from the fact that the technology does not cater to their individual requirement or they do not gain much from it but rather suffered more. However, we cannot overlook the fact that technology has helped us in the last few centuries. Simply ignoring new technology may mean the end of the world.
Henry, J.W. (1994). Resistance to Computer-based Technology in the Workplace. Executive Development, 7(1), 20-23.
New technology is brought about when there is a need to solve a common problem. One example is medical technology. The medicines on the shelves of a pharmacy are for people suffering from a particular illness. However, every individual has a unique genetic composition so the particular medicine may not be suitable. This explains why some people will need to change their medication several times before they get well. The next example is computer based technology. According to summary of a survey found in Professor Henry’s research paper(1994), “computer based technology can cause resistance on the part of end-users, because it is difficult to learn.” Computers and software are not something that one can grasp in a day. The functions available are numerous and may require days of exploring and playing with these functions before one can start to use it properly. Hence, people shun new technology as they are not made for individuals.
Another reason to resist new technology is it creates new problems while solving the current problems faced. One example is the firewall technology on the internet. In order to prevent malicious attacks from viruses and hackers, networks are under surveillance and this causes a slowdown in the exchange of information.
These are factors that lead people to resist new technology, the very thing that we thought of as necessity. Without new technology, there will be no change in our life. This is not just about conveniences, it is about survival-people who are suffering from terminal illness will need to resign to death or global warming will continue to worsen, melting the ice at the North and South poles, thus flooding low lying areas.
In conclusion, people’s resistance to new technology comes from the fact that the technology does not cater to their individual requirement or they do not gain much from it but rather suffered more. However, we cannot overlook the fact that technology has helped us in the last few centuries. Simply ignoring new technology may mean the end of the world.
Henry, J.W. (1994). Resistance to Computer-based Technology in the Workplace. Executive Development, 7(1), 20-23.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
EG1471 task 1
After reading the 2 articles, I find the ability to analyze and solve a situation as the most important to engineers. In the article "The expanding world of engineers", Prof Seeram Ramakrishna has said, “In today’s world, systematic and critical thinking minds attract a premium.” This is what engineers of today are trained to be. And to understand why and how this is important to an engineer, one must first understand the problems of human and the 21st century World we are living in.
The World that we are in poses many problems as time passes, and most of it are much more challenging than that of the past. One of the challenges is sustainable development. The Earth has finite resources and with the use of these resources for development, we will be depleting the resources soon. Therefore, engineers have to come out with ways to utilize renewable resources and also ways to reverse environment degradation. It is with engineers’ systematic and critical thinking minds that makes them the savior to the World’s problems.
Despite the many problems of our World, engineers faced many other issues when coming out with solutions. As mentioned in the article “Introduction to the Grand Challenges for Engineering”, one of the issues faced is that engineers need to come out with solutions that are not only targeting a group of people but also for each individual. For example, most medical product and treatment are used for solving a particular sickness. However, every individual may react differently to the treatment received, due to the different genetic makeup of each individual. This just shows how engineers have to think extensively on just a particular problem.
Engineers are needed everywhere even in service sector, which is the driving force of many developed country. In the article “The expanding world of engineers”, it is mentioned that companies, organization and even nations need a workforce that does not fear technology but embraces and thrives on it. Here the workforce refers to engineers who have the ability to systematically analyze complex information and apply holistic approach in designing solutions.
From here, one can clearly see that the ability to analyze and solve a situation is important to the engineers of the 21st century. No longer are the days where engineers only design equipment and machine, they have now become our savior to the various problems of the World.
The World that we are in poses many problems as time passes, and most of it are much more challenging than that of the past. One of the challenges is sustainable development. The Earth has finite resources and with the use of these resources for development, we will be depleting the resources soon. Therefore, engineers have to come out with ways to utilize renewable resources and also ways to reverse environment degradation. It is with engineers’ systematic and critical thinking minds that makes them the savior to the World’s problems.
Despite the many problems of our World, engineers faced many other issues when coming out with solutions. As mentioned in the article “Introduction to the Grand Challenges for Engineering”, one of the issues faced is that engineers need to come out with solutions that are not only targeting a group of people but also for each individual. For example, most medical product and treatment are used for solving a particular sickness. However, every individual may react differently to the treatment received, due to the different genetic makeup of each individual. This just shows how engineers have to think extensively on just a particular problem.
Engineers are needed everywhere even in service sector, which is the driving force of many developed country. In the article “The expanding world of engineers”, it is mentioned that companies, organization and even nations need a workforce that does not fear technology but embraces and thrives on it. Here the workforce refers to engineers who have the ability to systematically analyze complex information and apply holistic approach in designing solutions.
From here, one can clearly see that the ability to analyze and solve a situation is important to the engineers of the 21st century. No longer are the days where engineers only design equipment and machine, they have now become our savior to the various problems of the World.
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