ENGR 11a Introduction to Design Methodology
[ sn ]

Prerequisite: Instructor permission required.

An introduction to the engineering design process, with a focus on human-centered design. Students work in teams to solve authentic design problems under the theme of “design to repair the world.” Students are guided through a highly scaffolded process in which they form an idea, sketch it, and develop it through multiple iterations leveraging quick feedback loops and the Design Thinking methodology. Students will become fluent in basic additive and subtractive manufacturing, including 3D printing, laser cutting, and CNC machining. Usually offered every year.

ENGR 12b Engineering Instrumentation and Experimentation
[ sn ]

Prerequisites: MATH 10a and PHYS 10b.

The engineering design and analysis process relies on measurements and data collected from the physical world. In this hands-on, project-based course, students will be introduced to concepts, mathematics, hardware, software, methods, and mindsets for making measurements, collecting and interpreting data, and conducting engineering experiments using the scientific method, with a focus on biomedical engineering applications. Following an orientation to the tradeoffs among precision, accuracy, reliability, error, cost, and accessibility in measurement, students will explore topics including electronic circuits and sensors, computer-based data acquisition, data visualization and representation, and experimental design. In the first half of the semester, students will conduct scaffolded projects applying concepts learned in class to measuring properties of the human body such as temperature, force, electrical activity, and walking gait. Students will then collaborate on a team project to design and build more elaborate biomedical instrumentation to collect and analyze data such as pulse, blood oxygen levels, blood pressure, or pulmonary function. Throughout, we will engage with the ethics of measurement and experimentation, explore ideas of frugal engineering, and learn social science research methods relevant to engineering design and analysis such as surveys and interviews. Usually offered every year.

ENGR 13a Modeling and Simulation
[ sn ]

Prerequisites: MATH 10a and PHYS 10a or higher, or permission of the instructor. PHYS 11a or 15a is strongly recommended.

Building models of physical systems is a critical aspect of science and engineering. While models are expressed through the languages of math and physics, developing a good mental picture of the system at hand requires drawing on experience. Towards providing students with this experience, this course will build connections between the theoretical, the experimental, and the designed. They will be guided through a structured series of labs on a variety of system classes including nonlinear mechanical systems, infectious disease dynamics, mass transport, and coupled oscillators. In three of the labs, students will not only analyze and model a physical system but also use digital fabrication (3D printing, laser cutting, or CNC milling) to build and test physical versions of their models. This course is intended as a first exposure to modeling. Prior experience in programming is not required. Students will receive Python notebooks for each lab to be used for data analysis, numerically solving dynamical models, fitting models to data, and visualizing results. Practical coding skills, such as debugging, elaborating notebooks and learning to leverage open-source software, will be taught in a lab environment where students and the instructor can readily collaborate and solve challenges. Usually offered every year.

ENGR 21a Analysis of Transport Phenomena
[ sn ]

Prerequisites: MATH 10b and PHYS 11b, or instructor permission.

Transport phenomena permeate our everyday life, ranging from the currents and winds that carry heat and matter around the planet to the circulatory system that transports oxygen, nutrients, and waste in living organisms to the working principles of refrigeration that we use to slow bacterial growth and prolong the shelf-life and availability of food. In this course, we will study the physical and mathematical foundations of how mass, momentum, and energy move through materials and across interfaces. Students will synthesize ideas from thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat and mass transfer, and learn how to integrate these concepts to analyze, design, and engineer a wide range of systems. Emphasis will be on simple models and analytic methods for obtaining quantitative descriptions of a wide range of phenomena. We will draw on examples from various branches of science and engineering, including chemical, biological, and thermal transport to enrich the subject. The material in this course will enable students to better understand transport and teach them new tools that can be used in other engineering courses and projects. Usually offered every year.

ENGR 22b Engineering a Circular Economy
[ sn ]

The way we produce, use, and dispose of materials and products today is unsustainable. Resource extraction destroys ecosystems and biodiversity worldwide; manufacturing is responsible for an enormous fraction of global greenhouse gas emissions; and waste plastics are now found in every corner of the earth, including our bodies, with as-yet unknown consequences to human and ecological health. The circular economy is a model of production and consumption that offers a potential solution to these problems -- where all materials and products are designed to be used, reused, and recycled again and again, minimizing environmental impact from resource extraction, manufacturing, use, and final disposal.

In this class, students will learn what is required to realize this vision of a circular economy from an engineering and design perspective. Based on a methodological foundation from industrial ecology, students will use life-cycle assessment and material flow analysis to characterize the profound issues with contemporary manufacturing and waste systems, and justify the principles of materials and product stewardship that underpin the circular economy model. Students will also learn to critique materials management and circular economy proposals at various scales, including materials and product design, so-called "circular business models," and municipal, national, and global materials systems. Finally, students will use what they have learned to propose new engineering design solutions to real-world challenges. Usually offered every second year.

ENGR 32a Sustainable Energy
[ sn ]

Climate change, energy poverty, resource scarcity, and health impacts are all challenges associated with the ways we currently produce and consume energy worldwide. Although the global energy system is currently dominated by fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas), renewable energy sources (e.g., solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass) and other low-carbon alternatives (e.g., nuclear and hydropower) are growing at unprecedented rates. Through an interdisciplinary engineering lens, this course explores the dynamics of the current energy transition with a particular focus on sustainable energy systems and alternative energy resources. Students will be introduced to quantitative, engineering methods for energy modeling and technology selection in the context of the economic, political, and environmental dimensions of both conventional and alternative energy resources. Usually offered every second year.

ENGR 98a Readings in Engineering

Open to exceptional students who wish to study an area of engineering not covered in the standard curriculum. Usually offered every year.