pIEEEdmont potential

A PUBLICATION OF THE PIEDMONT SECTION OF THE IEEE

May, 2000

http://www.carol.net/ieee/

Articles:
Next Meeting : SENIOR MEMBERS : CEU COURSE OFFERINGS : SoutheastCon Theme : Annual Election : Awards : FUTURE TELECOMMUNICATIONS : REVERSE ENGINEERING : UCITA : Opt-In Email Service : Engineering Survey Results : ONLINE COURSES : Meetings Notes : HELP US HELP YOU   :  Editor: Officers

September 21, 2000
Plant Tour to Kemet Capacitor Inc.
Mark Stokes

The Piedmont Section of the IEEE will tour the Surface Mount Tantalum Capacitor Plant of KEMET Electronics on Thursday, September 21,2000. The tour will begin at 4:30 PM and last about an hour. We can eat at any of several restraints after the tour if the group is interested. If not, we'll just leave from KEMET. I've attached a map to the plant (see page 4). Note we have 3 KEMET buildings within a mile of each other. The MAULDIN Plant that I've marked on the map is the one we will tour.
The tour is limited to 30 people. The dress can be casual but not shorts or sleeveless shirts and shoes must be closed type (i.e. no sandals, etc). Safety glasses are required and will be furnished. Please contact Mark Stokes to get your name on the list of attendees.

Map To Kemet

Directions:
Coming from Greenville, Spartanburg on I385 - take exit 30 and turn right at the traffic signal the parking lot is about 300 feet on the right.
Coming from Anderson, Clemson on US 276 - take the Standing Springs Exit. Turn left at the Stop Sign. Turn left at the traffic signal. Go across the bridge to the traffic signal and turn left. The parking lot is about 300 feet.
A carpool will be coordinated for those coming from the Clemson (and west) area at the Ramada in Clemson around 3:30pm. Please contact Mark Stokes to coordinate.

NEW SENIOR MEMBERS ELEVATED
SCOOP - May 2000

A list of courses offering Continuing Education Units (CEU), as well as contact information, can now be found at http://www.ieee.org/organizations/eab/ceucourselist.htm. Listed by date, the courses run the gamut from Advanced Induction Motor Production to XML Technologies.

The SoutheastCon 2001 executive committee is working hard to make 2001 a great conference, but we need your help, we need a theme. If you're feeling creative, please consider submitting a theme to the committee. Need an idea for a theme? Check out past SoutheastCon web pages. There is a list of a few past SoutheastCon web pages that can be found on the SoutheastCon 2001 web page. Oh and by the way, we are giving $25 cash or the chosen theme. Happy designing and good luck! SoutheastCon 2001 web page can be found: http://www.carol.net/ieee/secon2001

The IEEE Annual Election web site identifies the candidates to be placed on the 2000 ballot and the positions for which they are running. As biographical sketches, candidate statements, and rebuttals become available, and are received in total for each of the election categories, they will be placed up on the site at http://www.ieee.org/organizations/corporate/candidates.htm. For questions contact Angela Wyckoff, IEEE Corporate Activities, telephone + 1 732 562 3934; email a.wyckoff@ieee.org.

Here is a great way to acknowledge a colleague's contribution and thank them at the same time: nominate them for one of the most prestigious awards that the IEEE Regional Activities Board (RAB) has to offer. The RAB Awards and Recognition Committee (RABARC) is currently soliciting nominees for five award categories. These awards are designed to recognize outstanding efforts by IEEE volunteers. These are NOT technical achievement awards. The deadline for the submission of all RAB award nominations is 15 October 2000. For more information please visit the Regional Activities Website at: www.ieee.org/RABAWARDS or contact the Regional Activities Staff at rab-awards@ieee.org

IEEE-USA's Committee on Communications and Information Policy (CCIP) presented a panel session on "The Impact of Future Telecommunications Infrastructures" as part of the Internet and Society 2000 Conference at Harvard University on May 31-June 2. Panelists looked at how Americans will be wired in the year 2010, and speculated as to what technologies will dominate the landscape of the future. Several different scenarios involving various broadband technologies were discussed.
CCIP has been exploring the likely evolution of the telecommunications infrastructure over the next decade in order to identify its implications for business, the economy, and public policy. CCIP will use these sessions to develop position statements that will assist policymakers in guiding future technological endeavors.
For more on CCIP's activities, visita: http://www.ieeeusa.org/committees/CCIP/harvard/index.html

As authorized by the IEEE-USA Board of Directors at its June meeting, IEEE-USA's amicus curiae ("friend-of-the-court") brief was filed before the California Sixth District Court of Appeals on 5 July in the case of Brunner vs. DVD Copy Control Association, Inc. Consistent with our approved position, the amicus brief defends the practice of reverse engineering within the boundaries set by federal intellectual property law. Specifically, it argues that a "click" license prohibition on reverse engineering should not be enforceable as it is unconscionable restriction and/or against the public policy interests of the State of California. The brief also argues that reliance on the California trade secrets law to justify a restriction on reverse engineering would be inconsistent with the legislative intent behind the trade secrets law.
You can retrieve a copy of the brief through the IEEE-USA website as a downloadable PDF file at: http://www.ieeeusa.org/forum/policy/dvdamicus.pdf.

You've already seen the introduction of the IEEE Online Catalog and Store in 2000. I'm happy to announce another new electronic service from IEEE. In an effort to keep you informed about the many resources available from the IEEE, we now offer a "What's New @ IEEE" opt-in email service. This service provides you with monthly email updates on IEEE, industry-wide technology news and product information tailored to your specific interests through eight new "What's New" email alerts:
What's New @ IEEE:
Ø For Members
Ø For Graduates of the Last Decade (GOLD)
Ø In Communications
Ø In Computing
Ø In Circuits
Ø In Power
Ø In Signal Processing
Ø In Wireless
In addition to the current:
Ø For Students
Ø For Libraries

By subscribing to one or more of these opt-in email services at http://www.ieee.org/whats-new, you'll be among the first to know what's new at IEEE and in your field. Please understand you will only receive this service if you choose; it's opt-in, not opt-out. You can easily unsubscribe at any time. And you are protected by our PRIVACY GUARANTEE: once you subscribe to a "What's New @ IEEE" email alert service, you will only be sent the information you request and your email address will not be shared with any other party outside of IEEE.
To subscribe, simply log on to http://www.ieee.org/whats-new, select one or more of the email alert services, enter your email address and click "Subscribe". Your first issue will arrive within 30 days.
I hope you'll subscribe today and maximize the rewards of your relationship with IEEE.

The results of a recent ITT Industries/DISCOVER Magazine Engineering Survey were released to coincide with the DISCOVER Awards for Technological Innovation. The survey's predictions were highlighted at a gala awards ceremony and weekend tech "summit" at Disney's Epcot in Orlando, Florida on 23-24 June. The survey reveals that engineering experts see finding new energy sources and supplying the world with clean water as the top challenges the engineering community will face in the 21st century.
Four hundred engineers from various disciplines -- including electrical, civil, chemical and mechanical engineering -- participated in the telephone survey
conducted by Ketchum, the ITT Industries public-relations agency.
According to the respondents, the greatest challenges that engineers will face in the 21st century are:
- Finding new energy sources
- Supplying the world with clean water- Designing products so that they do not harm the environment
- Exploring deeper into space
- Curing diseases and prolonging life with biomedical engineering
- Planning cities and allocating resources to accommodate the growing population
When asked what field of engineering they specialized in, 19.8 percent of the survey's respondents said electrical engineering, second only to mechanical engineering at 23.8 percent.
When the electrical engineers were asked "what will be the greatest challenge solved by electrical engineers in the 21st century?" they responded:
¨ 27.6% Developing new engineering sources
¨ 22.4 Communication
¨ 13.8 Development of computer technology and skills
¨ 10.3 Nanotechnology and miniaturization
¨ 6.9 Integrating technology and human tissue
¨ 5.2 Biomedical Research/Engineering
¨ 3.4 Fair compensation for work
¨ 3.4 Governmental Integration
¨ 1.7 Space travel and exploration
¨ 3.4 Other
¨ 1.7 No response

The ITT Industries/DISCOVER Engineering Survey and the events surrounding the tech "summit" at Epcot underscore the cooperative efforts of industry, academia, government agencies, and the public sector to recognize the ways in which engineers and innovators contribute to a better world.
For full ITT Industries/DISCOVER Engineering Survey results, please contact Dianna Chapman, Ketchum at Dianna.Chapman@ketchum.com.
The majority of the ITT Industries/Discover Engineering Survey sample was provided by the following societies -- IEEE-USA, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, American Society of Civil Engineers, and American Society of Mechanical Engineers -- and was coordinated by the American Association of Engineering Societies. Other respondents were culled from past winners of the Discover Awards for Technological Innovation.
To view the entire news release, visit http://www.ittind.com/new/NEW-PRES.HTM

On 1 June, IEEE members will have access to an expanded choice of Video-On-Demand tutorials and a 10% discount on all Stevens Institute of Technology WebCampus online courses. These are the first in a series of partnerships between IEEE and university and industry content and technical support providers.
Video-on-Demand with anytime, anywhere access, uses SoftCom technology to stream tutorials to your desktop. The ever-expanding catalog titles currently range from Communications to Signal & Image Processing.
Stevens titles include Wireless Communications, Technology Applications in Science Education, and Telecommunications Management. Whether taken for graduate credit or in a slightly shortened version for CEUs, our members and their employers appreciate that the same highly respected Stevens faculty teaches both the traditional on campus courses and the online courses.
To see a list of all IEEE tutorials and co-sponsored Stevens classes or check out systems and registration requirements, visit the Educational Activities homepage at http://ww.ieee.org/organizations/eab/index.htm. For further information contact Alan Trembly at a.trembly@ieee.org or 732.562.5488.

Did you know that the minutes/summaries of IEEE Committee and Board meetings are now posted on the Web for all to read? Of particular interest to IEEE Sections and Chapters would be the Regional Activity Board (RAB) and the RAB/TAB Section/Chapter Support Committee minutes. The RAB meeting summaries can be found at http://www.ieee.org/ra, then select the link for "RAB", then "RAB Meeting Summaries."
For the RAB/TAB Section/Chapter Support Committee minutes, go to http://www.ieee.org/ra/scs and find the link for the RAB/TAB Section/Chapter Support Committee below the contact information.

To enable IEEE staff to provide you with the timeliest information, the member must provide up-to-date information. Please remember to send a note to address-changes@ieee.org if you have changed address, email or phone number.

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.

Officer List:

CHAIRMAN Mark Stokes (864) 647-2065 m.stokes@ieee.org
VICE-CHAIRMAN
SECRETARY/TREASURER Nick Pasquerilla (864) 882-2414 ext.1771 n.pasquerilla@ieee.org
MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Allen Thomas (864) 228-4322 a.thomas@ieee.org
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES Nick Pasquerilla (864) 882-2414 ext.271 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

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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