Over the years, Barbie has had many careers, from an astronaut to a race car driver.

This year the public gets to choose Barbie’s next career path: environmentalist, surgeon, architect, news anchor or (our favorite) computer engineer.

Visit http://www.barbie.com/vote/ to make Barbie an engineer. Voting ends Feb. 12th.

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Filed under: Computer, e-News | 1 Comment »

Tags: Computer, Entertainment

Every 15 seconds, one child in the world dies due to contaminated water. This is because approximately 2.6 billion people lack sanitation.

To combat this issue, the revolutionary Peepoo bag was designed to provide people in developing countries with their own portable toilet. The Peepoo bag can be used sitting, squatting, or standing, and can be placed in a small bucket or simply held in your hand (a thin gauze prevents contamination). The bag is clean to handle and remains odor-free for at least 24 hours, making it possible to store in the immediate environment, as well as bury underground.

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Filed under: e-News, Environmental, Materials | 1 Comment »

Tags: Environmental, Giving Back, Materials

When it comes to accurately representing the world in 3D, animators face many challenges. Phenomena in the natural world (think water, plants, fire, clouds, etc.) often move in complex and unpredictable ways that can be difficult to mimic virtually. That’s why software engineers at the University of Bath have developed an animation program that helps animators model the movement of windswept trees. [video after jump]

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Filed under: Computer, e-News | 3 Comments »

Tags: 3D, Computer, Entertainment, Software

This year marks not only the beginning of a new decade, but also the 50^th anniversary of the creation of the laser. Though we tend to take them for granted, lasers have revolutionized the way we live. They allow us to surf the web, watch movies on DVD, and scan barcodes at the grocery store; they also enable eye surgery, study the planet, target weapons, and facilitate worldwide communication. And, of course, can create dazzling displays of light for your band’s next performance (cool laser videos after jump)

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Filed under: Computer, e-News, Electrical, Environmental, Nuclear | 4 Comments »

Tags: Computer, Electrical, Energy, Environmental, Nuclear, Technology

Here’s one everyday (we hope) item that you probably didn’t think engineers were paying attention to: pants.

Boris Smus, a software engineer from Carnegie-Mellon, has fitted touch-sensitive resistors into his clothing to create the Ubiquitous Drums, a pair of pants that doubles as a drum kit. [video after jump]

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Filed under: e-News, Electrical | 1 Comment »

Tags: And Now, Electrical