In This Issue
Spring Bridge: From the Frontiers of Engineering and Beyond
March 25, 2015 Volume 45 Issue 1
Bridge, spring 2015, frontiers of engineering
Articles In This Issue
  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorKristi S. Anseth

    Editor’s Note

    The twentieth US Frontiers of Engineering (FOE) Symposium was hosted at the Beckman Center in Irvine, California, September 11–13, 2014. This annual program brings together 100 or so exceptionally talented young engineers, ages 30–45, representing the diversity of ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorChris Urmson

    Automated driving has experienced a research renaissance in the past decade as investigators have been motivated by organized competitions to increase safety and mobility. Key advances that have shaped the field during this period have been in the application of machine learning, large-scale ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorAllison M. Okamura and Tania K. Morimoto

    Many medical interventions today are qualitatively and quantitatively limited by human physical and cognitive capabilities. Robot-assisted intervention techniques can extend humans’ ability to perform surgery more accurately and less invasively using novel physical designs and computer ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorAlvaro Masias

    Global interest in electrified vehicles is sparked by both environmental concerns and, in practical terms, the relatively recent application of lithium ion battery technology to automotive applications. Mass adoption of automotive batteries will depend on performance improvements, so methods to ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorClaus Daniel

    There is no single lithium ion battery. With the variety of materials and electrochemical couples available, it is possible to design battery cells specific to their applications in terms of voltage, state of charge use, lifetime needs, and safety. Selection of specific electrochemical couples also ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorErin M. Spinner

    The average heart beats 2.5 billion times in a human lifetime, during which its four valves must maintain unidirectional blood flow to maximize the heart’s efficiency and provide oxygenated blood to the entire body. Although heart valves were documented by Leonardo da Vinci in some of his ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorJason A. Burdick and Shauna M. Dorsey

    Biomaterials are gaining attention in the development of biomedical therapies for treating patients after a myocardial infarction (i.e., heart attack). These materials may serve as mechanical restraints, vehicles for the delivery of therapeutics, or 3-dimensional scaffolds for tissue regeneration. ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorTina M. Morrison

    With advances in materials science, manufacturers are able to develop medical devices1 from stronger, superelastic materials and tissue (patient-specific or otherwise), opening the door for less invasive surgical therapies and personalized medicine. Moreover, access to computers with substantial ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorKelvin B. Gregory

    Advances in drilling and stimulation technologies have greatly improved the economics of oil and gas production from deep, tight, hydrocarbon-rich shale formations. But the unconventional drilling required for this production is associated with challenges in the management of both the wastewater ...

  • Wednesday, March 25, 2015
    AuthorHenry Petroski

    An Interview with . . .Henry Petroski

    Henry Petroski (NAE) is a professor of both civil engineering and history at Duke University and a prolific author. Photo by Catherine Petroski.

    Ron Latanision (RML): Henry, we are very pleased that you are willing to talk with us. Let me briefly explain how ...