College of Engineering News • Iowa State University

Stuart Pearson built connections through being a peer mentor, TA

Stuart Pearson is a senior in electrical engineering and concurrent grad student, a peer mentor in Electrical, Computer and Software Engineers as Leaders (ECSEL) and a teaching assistant for EE 201 and EE 351. This summer Pearson will be interning for SpaceX’s Starship program and then returning to Iowa State this fall finish his master’s degree in electrical engineering.

Katie Wolf: “Why not give it all a try? Putting yourself out there is the best way to learn, connect and thrive”

When it comes to getting involved, Katie Wolf, a computer engineering major, is a maximalist. Why work on one minor when she’s interested in two? Why not see what another student club is all about? An opportunity to get hands-on research experience? Sign her up. “Putting yourself out there and trying something new is the best way to learn, connect and thrive here at Iowa State,” said Wolf. “I just showed up, a lot of different times, a lot of different places, without many expectations – and was ready to learn.”

David Wolfe: Outstanding senior in cyber security engineering

“I want to help people learn and tear down some of the walls preventing people from interacting with cyber security. You don’t need an expert in the technical details of SSL encryption to understand how to be safe online. So, I plan on going back to my hometown to talk to students about security and continue to give talks and presentations to anyone who will listen after college.”

Stuart Pearson: Outstanding senior in electrical engineering

“My undergraduate research work was valuable because I got a lot of hands-on experience with actual engineering equipment in the field, which has honed my skills in analyzing the inherent discrepancy between theory and real results. My senior design project has been very valuable in the exercise of bringing an idea that doesn’t currently exist into reality with nothing but the wits of my team.”

Hey Cimone, how do you make the most of the college experience?

When she is not working to keep the grid safe, she is working to ensure college students get the most out of their experience on campus.

“I was motivated by students that were stumbling through their college degrees. There is more to college than the degree,” Wright-Hamor said. “The real benefits of college are access to the alumni network, the free or reduced-priced resources that help build your skills, and the amount of generalized knowledge in one location.”

Presenting at the FAST’23 conference

ECpE PhD student Tabassum Mahmud, studying computer engineering, and undergrad Carson Love, in cyber security engineering, are two co-authors of a paper “ConfD: Analyzing Configuration Dependencies of File Systems for Fun and Profit”  that was accepted to appear at the 2023 USENIX Conference on File and Storage Technologies (FAST’23).

Through the blown glass: Iris Top combines engineering and art

Iris Top is a graduate student at Iowa State University studying computer engineering, with a degree focus in secure and reliable computing.

The summer of 2022 marked the end of Top’s term as president of the Gaffer’s Guild, a student organization dedicated to the education and training in the art and science of glassblowing. Members are encouraged to take their learning a step further by working on their own to master specific skills or shapes. 

Spaceflight Operations Workshop returns in August – apply now!

Do you have what it takes?
If pushing yourself to master new tasks, employing teamwork and following operational thinking to achieve goals sounds like a great way to end your summer, then you need to apply for the Department of Aerospace Engineering’s 2023 Spaceflight Operations Workshop™.

Growing crops in a solar farm’s footprint

A new Iowa State University research project will explore how to grow crops and keep bees amid solar panels. Funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, most of the research will be conducted a few miles south of Ames, where Alliant Energy plans to begin construction in April on a 1.35 megawatt solar farm.

Designing tomorrow’s wind energy innovations in Collegiate Wind Competition 

Cyclone Engineering’s Wind Energy team is on their way to compete in Phase 2 of the U.S. Department of Energy’s 2023 Collegiate Wind Competition. The Iowa State student group was selected as one of the 13 teams to compete in designing and building a prototype wind turbine, designing an offshore wind farm and presenting about wind energy careers and outreach.

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