Internships

Posted on October 31, 2014 by Cherie

All those applications!!!!

It’s almost that time of year again when internship applications are coming out so preparation of the perfect resume must begin!! Many of our first year students get an internship after their first year at Embry-Riddle so take heed prospective students. There are plenty of opportunities out there for amazing internship experiences. Your resume can also get a good summer job lined up for you so you can still make some cash and get a little professional experience whether or not it is at an internship or at a grocery store.

Embry-Riddle actually has a career services department for students who are preparing their resumes for potential employers. You can get some information on the department here. Please check it out and keep us in mind when you come to choosing your college, Embry-Riddle has so much to offer you in college and beyond. Thanks for reading!!!

Orcad and Pspice Simulations

Posted on October 27, 2014 by Adam

As a student studying Electrical Engineering you will use many different tools to assist you in the learning and application process. So today I will go into one of the AWESOME software tools I use on a daily basis.

One thing that just about all of my professors have told me about using a computer aided design (CAD) is that if you don’t master the software, the software masters you. This may not make sense yet but it will by the time you finish reading this blog.

Although the above picture is not a schematic I have drawn, the Program, ORCAD, allows you to draw a schematic like the one you see above. This is what the interface looks like on your screen.

You need ORCAD to run a simulation with values you set and then will receive data much faster then actually setting up a circuit with discrete components. So before I enter the Electronic Devices lab every Thursday I draw a schematic similar to the one above. I set all the values of Resistors, Capacitors and Sources to receive the data I want. With this data, I have a reference point for the values I should receive when I design the Circuit with discrete components like the one below.

The software is a great tool to master and utilize! I highly suggest buying a text on the software and reading it as you learn to master it. It can be tricky! If you really want a jump start you can check out the link below, if you are a student you may download the free lite version of ORCAD with pspice simulations.

http://www.orcad.com/

Again this ORCAD is just one of many great tools you will learn to use at Embry-Riddle. Thanks for reading.

Everyday Life

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Cherie

For those of our prospective students who may want to know what college life is like, today I am going to give you an overview 🙂

So for one, its kind of like living in a hotel with tons of other semi permanent residents. Since you are all living around each other for 8ish months you get to know people pretty well. So that makes things easy as far as having friends on campus is concerned.

Also, its like your job is going to class. There are some people who really don’t do their job well and there are those who do. It is up to you to choose as you are the boss of your career.

Its not like living at home, no one will do your chores for you and if you are hungry you are responsible for taking care of that. So I suggest learning how to do laundry before you leave home, ironing is a part of laundry as well. There may be times where you need a nice suit for an interview or event on campus. The rest of the time you can dress how you choose but, remember you must make a good impression on your professors or they will not take you seriously as a student. So basically I suggest you dress within reason, no crazy doo’s, shorts are fine but no booty shorts, shirts should NOT show your stomach, also high heels on campus are so ridiculous. At Embry-Riddle you have to walk everywhere so it’s totally not worth the pain. For guys do not wear sweats or athletic clothes to class, it is sloppy and a lot of professors don’t like it. Try to wear jeans, nicer shorts, and a simple T shirt or polo.

Then of course when classes are done you do homework, hang out with friends, relax, attend campus events, and enjoy the many interesting places in our community 🙂

The whole week pretty much goes like this, some days are busier than most but regardless of the work load its a lot of fun!! Hopefully, you will join us here soon!!!

Can You Smell Whats Brewing?

Posted on October 15, 2014 by Adam

Can you smell that…? That’s the sweet smell of coffee brewing in the morning.

As a college student you may experience long sleepless nights, early morning study sessions and lots of homework especially as an Embry-Riddle engineering student. Many choose caffeine to help them through it all. In my opinion and based on my research, the healthiest choice seems to be…. Coffee! That’s right, not soda, or Red Bull, but coffee. Luckily for us Embry-Riddle has a Starbucks in the library!

Unlike soda or energy drinks coffee does not have any added preservatives or high fructose corn syrup. I am constantly working out in the gym or running so drinking soda or Red Bull doesn’t exactly fit my routine. Plus, coffee tastes great once you master your desired coffee flavor! It’s the first thing I make when I wake up every morning and one cup is all I need.

Fun Myth: It is said that a farmer once discovered coffee based on how his goats acted after eating a certain berry. And now we have coffee!

As for the benefits of coffee, my research has found:

1) It actually enhances athletic performance.

2) It increases mental sharpness

3) It assists weight loss

With that being said, I have to say the best part about coffee is waking up to the great taste of it, and how it helps awaken your mind. Thanks for reading, be sure to stay tuned for more fun articles.

Entrepreneurship as Spoken by Dr. Kodimer

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Adam

Entrepreneurship is the process of starting a business or organization. Last week Oct. 7th was IEEE day. And as a member of the student IEEE branch at ERAU I am glad to announce that in celebration Dr. Kodimer at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University gave a speech on entrepreneurship and his professional experience.

Today I will go into a few of the interesting topics he chose to discuss with us which includes goals, marketing, and a few other great discussions.

First and foremost I’d like to start by saying not everyone’s goal is the same, and your goal to be an engineer may change to being an entrepreneur. For many, it may be to own a small company that does good for the community OR, you may want your company to grow as large as Sony, Apple, or Microsoft.

It all depends. Dr. Kodimer stated, ” Remember the prime directive”. No matter what the goal may be, it can be easy to get lost in the ownership of the company and lose track of what may be best to survive.

One of the key things he listed in his speech was what it takes to be an Entrepreneur. Health — a clear mind; Knowledge — in the field of need; Integrity, Courage — higher risks; Compassion — for others on the team; and lastly Marketing! What to say and how plays a large enough roll to severely impact your success. Dr. Kodimer revealed something called a push for market and a pull for market. A push for market is when you design something for a target group that they don’t yet know they need/want. While a pull for market is when a target group needs a solution or item that may or may not exist.

There is much more to discuss so if you have further questions or knowledge that you would like to share please contact me or leave a comment.

Thank you.

olimskia@my.era.edu

The Weekend fun of Octoberwest

Posted on October 11, 2014 by Adam

Hello, I hope you have been enjoying the topics I choose to write about in my blog so for. So, if you don’t already know last weekend at Embry-Riddle in Prescott, Az, we hosted what we call OctoberWest. OctoberWest can be explained in a few short words, Awesome, exciting, and a ton of fun!

Click on the image above for more information.

Octoberwest is full of a lot of different activities, so starting Friday. Small paratroopers are placed/hidden around campus and on each one is a card and with each card is a prize! some of the prizes this year consisted of a thousand dollar scholarship, video game system, laptop. Then in the evening at 4, the festivities begin with a handful of free item like tee shirts, glow sticks, coffee mugs, food! Among this are activities like the RC plane show, pugil sticks and a few other fun competitive activities. Oh I can’t forget the great fireworks show they held!

But fortunately Friday evening doesn’t hold all of the fun, the next Saturday is the airshow! that’s right what could be better then having an airshow in your own backyard. its Amazing! On top of that this year they were offering B-52 rides! For all those that helped out with the events and for those that wanted to pay received a spot to ride.

But I have to say one of the best things about Octoberwest is meeting new people and seeing friends. Its an event that not only brings the school together but the community.

Although there is more, come check it out for yourself next year at Embry-Riddle. Thanks for reading.

Roommate Relationships

Posted on September 2, 2014 by Adam

As of last weekend I took a camping trip at Lake Powell with my roommates, so with the experience I had I feel this is a great time to go into roommate relationships. There are s couple topics at hand but first I will get into what it is like having roommates. Then I will go into how to deal with them whether you like them or not along with some of my personal experiences.

Having roommates, one of two things can happen; 1) You like them and enjoy there company possibly becoming best friends or roommates in future semesters or two, you have serious roommate problems and cannot stand them. Both happen quit often and are very possible. Fortunately for me I have enjoyed my roommates and become very close to them.

Most of the roommates if not all are also new to the scene, just new to college no parents, new friends and a new lifestyle. It is a drastic change that we all deal with, but how you react to it and how you handle your relationships are all variables. In other words no one can tell you how your roommate relationships will turnout. But with a little effort from all parties it ca turn out nicely.

As I have just experienced a camping trip last weekend with my roommates, I hvae some good advice. The tip that you should hold at the top of your list is be PATIENT. yes be patient as you would with anyone else, at the same time if you encounter a problem confront it. Have a normal conversation about whats on your nerve. That is really the only thing to do I you don’t want your relationship with your roommates turning upside down.

You Will experience great moments and sad ones with your roommates, but all in all in the end all the experiences we have together shape our personalities. So take advantage of having a roommate and really get to know the person, I did and it has been one of the best decisions I have made being here at Embry-Riddle.

Junior Year Studying Electrical Engineer at ERAU

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Adam

As you may already know I am currently a Junior at Embry-Riddle, Prescott campus studying Electrical Engineering. Today I will go into the awesome classes I am currently taking to give you an idea of what to look forward to in studying this field of engineering.

First off as Electrical engineers there are many different areas of expertise to get into, which means that as an undergraduate you will get a little taste of everything. so whether you like power or not doesn’t quite matter yet because you will take a power class anyway. This serves to our benefit though as it allows you to better understand what you would personally enjoy as a career.

So as far as I have come today I am currently taking; Signal Processing plus the lab, Electronic Devices plus the lab, Math for engineers with physics, and Computer Science 1 (a.k.a. C programming). Although we have just started the semester I personally enjoy the Electronic Devices class the most, so that is what I will go a little in to depth with next.

In Electronic Devices we will be getting into electronic circuits, such as an Integrated circuit compared to Discrete components. We will also get into Amplifier frequency response, Diodes, Transistors, and Feedback systems, although there is so much more I can talk about this is just a brief description. (Note: if you click on the link to electronic devices, it will take you to Wikipedia, yes I know you may be skeptical about Wiki. but it has a diverse amount of knowledge about the subject so feel free to take a look).

The reason I believe I enjoy this class in particular is because it is taught in a top down design, meaning you see the big picture of each little component first so you can really see how everything comes together.

Dynamics Project Complete!!

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Cherie

Organized Spring Pendulum Motion

19 pages and countless hours later my dynamics project is done!! I am so happy to be finished with it. Overall, I proved that a spring pendulum system is chaotic but, its motion can still be modeled with dynamics. I used two methods, the second one is the most accurate as it shows the chaos in the motion of the pendulum system. The methods are respectively called simple pendulum motion and rigid body pendulum motion. The difference between the two is that rigid body motion takes more “real time” factors into account such as the mass of the spring, its changing length, inertial centers of masses of each object in the system and so on. the system is actually so complex that you can solve for the general equations of motion but, they are unsolvable by hand. The graphs you see here are numerical solutions to the motion of the pendulum. This concept is huge in terms of Engineering, as engineers must be able to predict and describe chaotic motion due to the affects it has on a structure. Dynamics is a fundamental course designed for students to be exposed to the important methods and concepts before they get into upper level courses.

Chaotic Spring Pendulum Motion

Personally, Dynamics is a hard class however, I find it really fun and educational. I learned so much from my project about how to describe motion through mathematics and numerical integrations. I really look forward to the other classes in which I can apply this knowledge.

So my question to our readers is this: Do you want to go to school at a university that challenges you in a way conducive to learning? I did, and that’s why I came to Embry Riddle Prescott. Stop by some time and join us 🙂

Finals Preparation Starts Now!

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Cherie

It is that time of year again, professors and students alike have anticipated but, dreaded the upcoming weeks……FINALS…..again!! Are you going to be prepared? I know that finals are a tough and stressful time for students but, take hope, summer is almost here. Just remember to study hard and all that good stuff while motivating yourself by thinking about your summer plans.

This summer I will hopefully be going to Field Training for AFROTC and while I am nervous about that at least its better than doing hw everyday 🙂 I am also very excited about it too, Field Training is like a right of passage so to speak. It basically allows you to continue in your AFROTC career so that at the end when you graduate you will get a commission as an officer in the USAF. Other than that I will be taking classes and working as usual.

What are your summer plans? If your plan doesn’t include a visit to Embry Riddle’s Prescott Campus then maybe it should! We would love to see you here over summer, it is a great time to see whether this place is where you want to spend the next few years 🙂