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Message from the Chair : Next Meeting : NEWS from IEEE-USA : National Engineers Week : Congressional Visits Day : The Opera Is Almost Over : Editor: Officers
Message from the IEEE-USA President
Earl Bryant
Without Engineers The World Stops By LeEarl Bryant, 2002 IEEE-USA President President's Column, February 2002
The headline for this column is the theme for National Engineers Week 2002 (E-Week 2002) - 17-23 February 2002. E-Week (http://www.eweek.org) allows U.S. members of IEEE and other supporting organizations to take time to recognize members of our profession and their accomplishments, and consider how we can better prepare our young people for tomorrow's technologies. Hopefully, your IEEE Section and/or Chapter will be participating in E-Week 2002 activities.
The National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) established National Engineers Week in 1951. Presently, a consortium of more than 100 organizations, including IEEE-USA, guides and supports E-Week events.
E-Week is celebrated the week we observe George Washington's birthday. NSPE chose that week to recognize our profession because of our first president's background as a surveyor and military innovator, and because of his support for engineering education and the development of technology.
February 21, 2002
Joint Student Section Meeting
Mark Stokes
This months’ meeting will be a networking session with the student section from Clemson University. This meeting will be an informal social atmosphere with an emphasis on introducing graduating seniors to Piedmont section members and industry professionals. A few introductory activities will be presented to encourage the interaction of students and IEEE members. Members are encouraged to bring business cards for distribution to students. We encourage as many professionals as possible to attend. The intention of this session is not a job search for the students, merely a chance to meet and interact with professionals of the same basic interests and to encourage students to continue participation in IEEE after graduation. The meal will be pizza and soft drinks.
The meeting will be held on the campus of Clemson University in the Riggs Hall (ECE department building) room 223.
Meeting Details:
Please email Sally Surver if you plan to attend and especially if you plan to eat. She will be ordering the pizza's and needs to know how many to buy. Sally's email address is: ssally@clemson.edu. Directions to Riggs Hall are on the back page
A Parking pass is needed!!! Park in any valid non-handicapped/non-service vehicle parking space, we will have parking passes at the meeting you can take back down to your car.
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Chris McManes
Marketing Communications/Public Relations Coordinator
IEEE-USA Patent Rights Brief Discussed Prominently in U.S. Supreme Court
WASHINGTON (10 January 2002) - An IEEE-USA amicus curiae brief on patent rights received prominent attention in oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in the Festo Corporation v. Shoketsu Kinzoku Kogyo Kabushiki Co., LTD patent case.
A copy of the brief and other relevant resources are available at http://www.ieeeusa.org/forum/POLICY/2001/01aug31festo.html.
IEEE-USA's brief and the U.S. Solicitor General's were the only two of the more than 20 friend-of-the-court briefs discussed openly in court. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor asked both sides to compare and contrast their position with that of IEEE-USA's, while other justices quizzed the parties on IEEE-USA's proposed "foreseeable bar" standard.
"IEEE-USA was happy to provide guidance to the court," said Lee Hollaar, chair of the IEEE-USA Intellectual Property Committee. "We'd like to be there on future issues, where we hope we can contribute to the debate."
In Festo, the Court is considering to what extent the holder of an amended patent is barred from asserting patent rights against another inventor whose design is substantially the same as the patented invention. As an alternative to the "flexible bar" and "absolute bar" standards advocated by the opposing sides in Festo, IEEE-USA is asking the Court to consider a "foreseeable bar," where holders of an amended patent give up protection for only those things that were foreseeable by persons familiar with the associated technology.
Carlton Fields, P.A. of Tampa (www.carltonfields.com) prepared the brief pro bono. IEEE member Andrew Greenberg served as counsel of record and headed a team of 10 lawyers and legal assistants.
Text of the one-hour oral arguments will be available in about two weeks at http://www.supremecourtus.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts.html. A decision is expected before summer.
Contact Chris at: Phone: + 1 202 785 0017, ext. 8356 e-mail: c.mcmanes@ieee.org
The E-Week Website says that: "On June 9, 1778, at Valley Forge, Pa., General George Washington issued a call for engineers and engineering education. This order is considered the genesis of a U.S. Army Engineer School, which found its permanent home at Fort Belvoir, Va., where Washington had practiced surveying. As President (1789-97), Washington pushed for the passage of the first U.S. Patent Act in 1789, and signed the first official U.S. patent to Samuel Hopkins of Vermont for his process of making potash and pearl ashes. In 1794, President Washington established a Corps of Artillerists and Engineers to be educated and stationed at West Point in New York, which later become the U.S. Military Academy at West Point." Thus, West Point is considered to be our nation's first engineering school.
From Washington's time to the present, our nation has been blessed with a select population of creative engineers who have made us the wealthiest nation in the world and created a lifestyle envied by many. At the same time, we represent one of the least understood professions, and we'll remain that way until a larger number of us become active in communicating who we are and what we do.
So I hope you understand why I challenge you to step out of your cubicle more often to initiate and participate in communicating what you and other engineers do, and how our contributions make a tremendous difference in everyday lives. Whether you closely fit the stereotypical "nerd" image or have an extroverted profile, you can help to create a positive image for engineers. You can also communicate the need to have an increased level of comfort with subjects related to science and math. You might even surprise yourself and enjoy working with teachers and students in pre-college classrooms.
Part of this challenge includes recognizing the work of your peers. Even though E-Week offers perhaps the best opportunity for recognizing engineers and their accomplishments, we should make a concerted effort to do this throughout the year. Most of us know engineers who have made significant technical breakthroughs, have consistently performed above the average, mentor others, practice a high degree of professionalism and volunteer for the benefit of others. In fact, due to the nature of our profession, most of our members deserve more recognition than they receive.
At minimum, take a few moments to pass on words of recognition to your peers. If possible, submit an award nomination or other acknowledgement of an engineer's or group of engineers' accomplishments. IEEE-USA sponsors numerous awards. Go to http://www.ieeeusa.org/awards for more information.
So make sure you get involved with E-Week activities in your area. You'll find it rewarding; the profession and our nation will benefit.
"Without Engineers, the World Stops"
February 17-23, 2002
Nick Pasquerilla
For many years our Section has made visits to schools, usually associated with National Engineers Week. Although National Engineers Week is in February, we must plan far ahead to allow the schools to plan. The Professional Engineering group in this area does most of the coordination with the schools. We then supply Engineers to do a Career Day at a Middle School, Classroom discussion at a High School, judge a Science Fair, etc. If you are interested in participating in such an activity, please contact Nick Pasquerilla by a method listed on this newsletter. For more information please visit the E-week web page: http://www.eweek.org.
MARCH 5-6, 2002
The 7th Annual Science, Engineering and Technology Congressional Visits Day (CVD) is 5-6 March 2002, in Washington, D.C. The IEEE's U.S. members are invited to join hundreds of other engineers and scientists in this two-day annual event that brings scientists, engineers, researchers, educators, and technology executives to Washington to raise visibility and support for science, engineering and technology issues. The objective of CVD is to stress the long-term importance of science and technology to the Nation through meetings with Congressional decision-makers. IEEE-USA has participated in CVD for each of the past six years, sending a contingent of members to the Hill to meet with members of Congress and their staffers. If interested in joining the team, submit the online registration form at: http://www.ieeeusa.org/forum/cvd
Vicki Waldman
On 1 March, the IEEE Transactions/Journals Online Periodicals and Research Area (OPeRA) will be taken down. Members may access their personal subscriptions via IEEE Xplore (TM) at http://www.ieee.org/ieeexplore. An IEEE Web Account is required for access. IEEE Computer Society members must go to its website at http://www.computer.org for full-text access to conference publications.
Directions to the meeting at Clemson:
From Anderson or Greenville: turn left on Hwy 93 (either from Hwy 123 or Hwy 76). Come to the second light past Hwy 76 and make a left. Proceed straight through the stop sign (you’ll be facing the clock tower) and follow the road around a slight left curve. Straight through another stop sign and Riggs Hall is straight ahead.From Seneca: Exit on Hwy 76 from Hwy 123. Follow the above directions from there.
A Parking pass is needed!!! Park in any valid non-handicapped/non-service vehicle parking space, we will have parking passes at the meeting you can take back down to your car.
Mark Stokes
Getting the Newsletter too late to make the meeting? Have an email address? Send it to me. I am usually done with the newsletter more than a week in advance of the meeting, however, because of printing times, USPS, etc., it doesn’t arrive until just before the meeting. I do send the newsletter via email right after I write it! I can email it to you as soon as it’s done! The newsletter will come in plain text. It is also available online at the web page listed above.
CHAIRMAN Mark Stokes (864) 647-2065 m.stokes@ieee.org
VICE-CHAIRMAN
SECRETARY/TREASURER Nick Pasquerilla (864) 886-1771 n.pasquerilla@ieee.org
MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Allen Thomas (864) 228-4322 a.thomas@ieee.org
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES Nick Pasquerilla (864) (864) 886-1771 n.pasquerilla@ieee.org
STUDENT ACTIVITIES Dr. John Komo (864) 656-5916 john.komo@ces.clemson.edu
EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES Lee Stogner (864) 281-8276 l.stogner@ieee.org
NEWSLETTER EDITOR Mark Stokes (864) 647-2065 m.stokes@ieee.org
AWARDS Dr. Randy Collins (864)656-5920 randy.collins@ces.clemson.edu
The Piedmont section of the IEEE is still offering sections of its newsletter for advertising space. If you are interested in supporting this effort, please contact one of the officers listed above.
-Mark