ASME presents four Early Career Programs at Congress in Seattle

During the first-ever Innovation Showcase (I-Show) at the Congress this year, 10 collegiate teams will present their innovations to a panel of industry experts, venture capitalists, and intellectual property specialists with the hope of gaining both the recognition and the seed money necessary to bring their inventions into the marketplace.

The I-Show is just one of four programs targeting early career engineers that ASME has developed for the 2007 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, which will be held Nov. 9-12 at the Seattle Sheraton Hotel. Besides the I-Show, the conference will also feature the Invention to Venture Workshop, the Early Career Forum and Fair, and the Early Career Development Series.

The I-Show, from 2-6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 9, will feature 10 teams, including students from the University of Idaho, who will present a device that detects breathing abnormalities in sleeping infants, and students from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, who will demonstrate a system that provides a complete analysis and visual readout of a diabetic's foot. Also at the I-Show will be teams from Oregon State University, with its nonintrusive device for determining the liquid/vapor ratio of heat sinks; Penn State University, with a wireless mechanism for monitoring energy usage and building conditions; St. Louis University, with its "Hubless Windmill"; Texas A&M University, with its "First-Incident Response Equipment" for firefighters; and the University of Texas, with its "NANOTaxi" drug delivery system, which targets diseased cells while leaving healthy ones untouched.

Other I-Show competitors include a second team from RPI, with its "Greensulate" insulating material, and two teams from Washington State University introducing their inventions "Plastic Mesocumbustors" and "Retractable Hydrofoil Kits."

ASME's Center for Engineering Entrepreneurship and Innovation is partnering with the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance for a second early career engineering program, the Invention to Venture Workshop (I2V). It will be held on Saturday, Nov. 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The workshop is a one-day entrepreneurship boot camp that will provide participants with basic entrepreneurial skills, help them make contacts, and lay out a framework for moving forward with their ideas.

Topics to be covered at the I2V will include idea validation, intellectual property management, marketing, team building, creating business plans, and financing innovative ideas.

The following day, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., ASME will hold an Early Career Forum and Fair, which will provide an opportunity to learn from industry experts about important career skills, including choosing the right career path, effective workplace communication, and talking to your manager. The Career Fair, which will provide the opportunity for attendees to network and learn about various career options, will feature representatives from Boeing, Toyota, and the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying.

The Early Career Development Series, on Monday, Nov. 12, will offer five 90-minute sessions focusing on such areas as alternative energies, patents and intellectual property, aerospace design, engineering entrepreneurship, and government funding for engineering research.

Registration is required for each of the four Early Career Programs. Advance registration, which can save up to $35, closes Nov. 6. In addition, those who register for the Early Career Forum and Fair by October 8 will be entered into a drawing to win a $100 American Express Gift Card.

For more Early Career Program details and to register, visit www.asmeconferences.org/ECP07.

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