Dartmouth Engineer

Questions from Dartmouth Engineer, students, faculty, and alumni:

President Jim Yong Kim at Thayer School. Photograph by Douglas Fraser.

What attracted you to engineering as an undergraduate?
I was fascinated by the idea of biomedical engineering, and the biomedical engineering department had given me a scholarship. I did a year and a half of research with professors at the University of Iowa.

Why did you switch fields?
I switched to a double-major in anthropology and biology because I became interested in social issues. I loved my first anthropology class and felt that I would be a mediocre engineering student and a much better anthropology student. More than anything else, I was really passionate about race, culture, and ethnicity and how they related to social justice, so the anthropology major was right in line with those concerns. And I wanted to be a doctor, so I got a degree in biology.

Did you take any engineering perspectives with you?
To this day, I am extremely impressed with the precision and structure that engineering can bring to very complicated problems, not only technical problems, but also human problems. I have always felt that engineers, especially ones who have studied complex systems, have huge contributions to make to the kinds of problems I was concerned about.

What can physicians and engineers learn from each other?
Both groups can learn a lot from each other, but I’m very interested in what physicians can learn from engineers. And the most important thing that physicians can learn from engineers is to think in terms of systems. By working with engineers, we can bring a rigorous, analytic approach to understanding how something as complicated as healthcare delivery systems work. Physicians and engineers can then use this approach to make systems work better.

How would you like to see physicians and engineers work together to promote global health initiatives?
The potential is enormous. In my view, most of the problems in global health are not about the treatment of individual patients but about the systems that can support wide-ranging and effective healthcare delivery. I think engineers are critical in building those kinds of systems.

Nana Amoah ’11 asks: Where do you see Dartmouth and its engineering program on a global scale in the next decade, and what is your plan for taking Dartmouth there?
Thayer is such an important part of Dartmouth. I think that Thayer is in a great position to dramatically increase its impact in areas like healthcare, but in other areas as well. Already Thayer is having an impact on sustainability on campus and around the world. There’s a lot of value in having Thayer the size that it is currently, but I would like to explore the possibility of expanding into areas where we know it can have a huge impact and where we can build on synergies that exist throughout Dartmouth College. I would love to see that happen, and I would be willing to help make that happen.

Michael Wood ’10 asks: What advice would you give to humanitarian engineering groups to improve interactions between engineers and non-engineers?
Be patient. Most people that I have worked with in global health and global development don’t yet understand the potential impact of engineers and their work. But they will. My prediction is that soon everyone will understand the enormous impact engineers can have on all types of global problems.

Betsy Dain-Owens ’10 asks: How important will carbon neutrality and developing sustainable energy sources at Dartmouth be to you during your presidency?
Carbon neutrality and sustainability are very important to me and to Dartmouth. Again, this is another area where engineers and Thayer have enormous potential. I think we’re starting to see the impact engineering can have on sustainability and also on specific initiatives here at Dartmouth.

Professor Elsa Garmire asks: With mobile phones making possible many applications that are revolutionizing medical care in developing countries, do you have any pet applications that you’ve seen or that you would like to see developed at Thayer School?
One of the things I’ve worked on for more than a decade is the use of electronic medical records to keep track of information on particular people who are suffering from diseases. What we found is that electronic medical records can be implemented with great impact. By bringing electronic medical records to the bedside in villages all over the world, we can keep information on individuals to make them healthier in a way that will leap-frog decades of a lack of technology.

Professor Kofi Odame asks: How do you think Thayer can prepare students to respond to global challenges in general?
The most important thing for Thayer students is that they’re also Dartmouth College students. I would strongly urge Thayer students, especially undergraduate students, to take full advantage of the breadth of the Dartmouth College liberal arts education. As they’re growing and gaining a more sophisticated understanding of quantitative methods and complex systems, they have to realize that no matter where they go or what kind of job they do, they’re always going to be dealing with human relationships. I think there’s nothing that prepares people to deal with the complexity of human relationships better than a liberal arts education. While our engineers obtain practical skills, they have to make sure to take demanding courses in the humanities and the social sciences in order to prepare them to take on the challenges that they will eventually face. No matter what you do, you still have to succeed in your relationships with other human beings, and I think there’s no question that Dartmouth College’s liberal arts education prepares you for that.

Kristina Brock ’01 Th’02 asks: Given the hundreds of thousands of engineering students graduating from India and China each year, and the fact that leading technology firms are increasingly looking off-shore for top technology talent, how can we ensure that today’s Dartmouth science and engineering graduates are prepared to compete and win?
We have to educate these companies on the value of an engineering and liberal arts education. I don’t care how technical problems are, it’s teams that solve those technical problems. So I want everyone to understand that when you hire a Dartmouth engineering graduate, you’re not only getting the quality engineering education, but you’re also getting someone who has had the Dartmouth College experience. These are people who are going to be much more successful at managing complex human relationships, and that’s a key to success in any line of work.

— Compiled by Dartmouth Engineer contributing editor Elizabeth Kelsey.

For more photos from Pres. Kim’s visit to Thayer, see our set of images on Flickr.

By Ellen Frye

Horst Richter first came to Thayer School from his native Germany as a visiting researcher in 1972, then joined the faculty in 1975. During his 33 years of teaching, he chaired the department, initiated exchange programs with the University of Aachen and Bundeswehr University in Hamburg, Germany, and created one of Thayer School’s first courses for non-engineers, ENGS 2: The Technology of Sailing. He retires at the end of spring term.

Professor Horst Richter. Photograph by Douglas Fraser.

How does it feel to be retiring?

It’s bittersweet. As one would say in German, I have “one smiling and one teary eye.” I will have more time to travel with my wife and spend time with the children and grandchildren. But Thayer School is such a wonderful place that it is hard to leave.

Will you still do any engineering?

I still want to do a little research. There is still some work to be done in thermal spraying. I think it is great that Thayer School is starting a new initiative on energy, and I would like to be involved in some way, maybe only as an observer or have maybe half a foot in the door.

What drove your research interests at Thayer?

The first research I was involved in was nuclear reactors with Graham Wallis. We worked with emergency core cooling systems. I had the largest lab Thayer School ever had — next to the Dartmouth power plant. We had a pressure vessel that we used to test the emergency cooling nozzles of reactors. And we needed a lot of steam from the power plant. We had fun. Later I worked on improving power plant efficiencies. Then I got more interested in computational fluid dynamics. One thing about Thayer School is that you can do the research you want to do. You are not constrained by a sign on the office that says “Energy.” If there is research worth doing, you can do it.

How did you get involved in doing computational fluid dynamics for America’s Cup yachts?

After the U.S. lost the America’s Cup in 1995 I met with a good friend, the preeminent American yacht designer Olin Stephens. He had designed at least five America’s Cup boats that all won. He lives in Hanover, so we meet frequently and talk about boats. At the time, we were contemplating why we lost the Cup. He thought that more attention should have been paid to the performance of sails. I mentioned that we could use computational fluid dynamics to evaluate the optimum sail shape. So we approached Young America, one of the new syndicates for the America’s Cup 2000. We wrote a proposal, and they provided us with money to study sails. I had two grad students working with me. I learned a lot and it was exciting.

Are you still involved with the America’s Cup?

The America’s Cup is underway in Valencia, Spain, right now. We did some work for the American boat. As soon as the Cup is over, a new design cycle will start, and I hope to get involved again. On other sailing issues, I am working with the Sailing Yacht Research Foundation to try to improve handicap rules. Big boats sail against small boats. How do you handicap them? The critical issue is the performance of sails under various wind conditions. Further, I would like to publish a paper on computational fluid dynamics for sails in a more scientific sailing journal — and show some good graphics about the air flow around sails.

As you look back on your career, what advice would you give students who are starting theirs?

My students ask me: What should I do? Where should I go? I tell them, get a job where you can have fun because if you don’t have fun, you waste your life. It’s not the money that makes you happy, it’s the fun you have in your work, which will reflect on your whole life, the “pursuit of happiness.”

For more photos of professors past and present, visit our Faculty Flickr page.

LESS IS MORE: Merkel wants people to consider the global impact of individual choices. Photograph by Thomas Ames Jr.

Dartmouth’s sustainability coordinator, Jim Merkel, recently delivered a Thayer School Jones Seminar on sustainable design. Merkel, who holds a B.S. in electrical engineering, is on a mission to embed ecological values and practices into the College’s strategic planning, curriculum, student life, and community relationships. Much of his Jones Seminar centered on ecological footprints.

What is an ecological footprint and why is it an important measurement?
An ecological footprint estimates a human’s impact on earth. It looks at all the inputs and outputs needed to support a lifestyle. If we want to be sustainable, we need to be able to quantify human consumption. Sustainability has no teeth unless we have a metric to measure against.

What’s the average individual footprint in the U.S. and other parts of the world?
In the U.S., 24 acres per person is the average. Here at Dartmouth it’s even larger. The strongest correlation is income. In Europe, the average is between 12 and 14 acres per person. What’s interesting to note is that Europeans have a quality of life that’s comparable to ours despite having a smaller footprint. The countries of Eastern Europe and the southern hemisphere average about 6 acres per person and really poor nations average 1 to 3 acres. About 4 billion people have footprints of less than 4 acres.

How do you calculate your footprint?
There are three methods. You can use a chart to correlate income to footprint. The second method is a questionnaire that is online at myfootprint.org. The third method is filling out a detailed spreadsheet with more than 100 items. It includes categories such as food, housing, transportation, long-lasting goods, and wastes. The big ones are car, house size, utilities, and diet. Eating vegetarian versus meat is a huge impact.

What changes did you make in your own life to reduce consumption and waste?
The biggest is that I have been car-free for 16 years. I’m judicious with my fossil fuel use by using bicycles and avoiding air travel. I’ve lived in spaces ranging from 150 to 500 square feet per person. That’s putting me closer to the global average.

What was most difficult to reduce?
Things like weddings and nieces and nephews graduating from college make me choose whether to travel. It’s tough to hurt the Earth to see your family. It’s not always a clear choice inside myself.

Are there significant efficiencies to be gained by living in a community with people who are all trying to minimize their impact on the biosphere?
Yes, for sure. When you share a refrigerator with three people, it’s one-quarter the impact. When you share things you halve the footprint immediately. And then if you care for it by making it last twice as long, you’re halving it again. And if you improve your technology, you can have multiplying benefits.

Does your engineering background influence the way you approach sustainable living?
Definitely. I’m a guy who loves numbers. Things have got to make sense to me in terms of flows of resources.

Is there anything you wish engineers would keep in mind as they develop new technologies?
I’d like them to think, “What are the unintended consequences of the project?” There are going to be negative unintended consequences, so widen your awareness. Think of the impact on ecology and on social systems. When you design considering social and ecological systems, the design is going to be much tougher. It will take creativity, but for an engineer it’s just going to be more fun. For me, the harder the problem, the more fun I have with it. There’s no reason today to be designing with non-renewable materials.

When you talk to audiences about sustainability, what’s the biggest objection you encounter?
I don’t encounter that much objection. People may slip into a discussion of whether others are open-minded enough to live sustainably. The question is: can you become the doctor who takes the medicine first? I would like to challenge the engineers to show that they can live sustainably, consuming an equitable portion of the biosphere.

Of all the ways you’ve found to conserve, reuse, and re-engineer, what is your favorite?
I really like the concept of share, care, conserve. Multiplication is amazing. When you can still have a car but its impact is 1/32 of what it would be if you jumped into your car by yourself every time, it’s amazing.

For more photos, visit our Energy Technologies and Sustainability set on Flickr.