The American writer William Arthur Ward (1921-1994) once said, "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires."

John Bender, a Penn State alumnus and Colorado physician, feels fortunate enough to have had a great teacher. Bender met Andrew Pytel, professor emeritus of engineering mechanics, in a statics class when he entered graduate school at Penn State in the fall of 1974. Bender also served as a teaching assistant under Pytel. "He was the best teacher I ever knew," Bender said.

The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas will induct Sam Zamrik, Penn State professor emeritus of engineering science and mechanics, into its Mechanical Engineering Hall of Fame on Oct. 24 in Austin, Texas.

Zamrik, an alumnus of both Penn State and the University of Texas, was chosen as a recipient for the award based on his contributions to the profession of engineering, his interest in developing programs in the department, and his activities as a role model for current and prospective mechanical engineering students. The University of Texas developed the Mechanical Engineering Academy of Distinguished Alumni in order to publicly recognize alumni, champion the profession, create a sense of community within the department and facilitate interaction with its student body and alumni.

The department's other award categories include Outstanding Young Mechanical Engineer and Mechanical Engineering Honorary Engineering Award. All awardees become members of the department's Mechanical Engineering Academy of Distinguished Alumni.

Credit: Penn State Live

Dr. Samia Suliman, Assistant Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, will present a paper titled ”Schottky contact on SiC: The effect of barrier inhomogeneity on current- voltage characteristics”, in the Topics in Electrical Circuits and Systems session , of the 5th Congress of Scientific Research Outlook in the Arab World :Scientific Innovation and Sustained Development. The conference will be held in Fez- Morocco, from October 25-30, 2008.

The conference is organized by the Arab Science and Technology Foundation in collaboration with the Morocco Ministry of National and Higher Education Professional Training and Scientific Research, and in partnership and support of Hassan II Academy of Science and Technology as part of the 1200 anniversary of establishment of Morocco and Fez.

To learn more about the conference, please visit their website.

Dr. Abuzar Abid Siddiqui, a lecturer with the University College of Engineering and Technology, B. Z. University, Multan, Pakistan, has concluded a ten-month post-doctoral research visit with Akhlesh Lakhtakia.

Dr. Siddiqui, conducted research on steady and unsteady flows of micropolar fluids (such as blood) though microchannels. His trip was sponsored by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan.

Dr. Cliff Lissenden, Associate Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, along with Dr. Joseph Rose, Paul Morrow Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, are presenting a poster “Structural Health Monitoring of Composite Laminates through Ultrasonic Guided Wave Beam Forming” at the NATO Advanced Vehicle Technology (AVT-157) Symposium on Ensured Military Platform Availability. The conference scheduled for October 13 - 16, 2008 is located in Montreal, Canada. To learn more about the meeting, please visit their website.

Tony Huang's article entitled "Light-Driven Plasmonic Switches Based on Au Nanodisk Arrays and Photoresponsive Liquid Crystals" was recently reviewed by ACS Nanotation as a Nano Picks Article Review. Earlier this year, the article received the coveted spot of cover article on Advanced Materials.

Dr. Lawrence Friedman, Assistant Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, attends the Material Science and Technology (MS&T) conference 2008 from October 5 - 7, 2008 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. During the conference, Lawrence will be serving as the Nanomechanics Committee Vice Chair and hearing student paper presentations. To learn more about the conference, please visit this website.

Dr. Akhlesh Lakhtakia, Charles Godfrey Binder Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, is to present a keynote-invited lecture at the annual Symposium of the American Vacuum Society on October 22 - 23 in Boston, Massachusetts. To learn more about the conference, please visit their website.

Dr. S. Ashok, Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, attended the 40th International conference on Solid State Devices and Materials in Toukuba, Japan on September 23-26, 2008. While in Japan, Dr. Ashok visited the University of Tokyo and Shiboura Institution of Technology to present a seminar. To learn more about the conference, please visit their website.

Dr. Akhlesh Lakhtakia, Charles Godfrey Binder Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, will present a poster at the meeting of Center for Optical Technologies on October 13, 2008 in Bethlehem, PA. The Center for Optical Technologies is a multi-institutional initiative based at Lehigh University with a charter to advance research and applications of optical and optoelectronic technologies. Currently the three primary research focus areas are Optoelectronics, All-Optical Functionalities, and Biophotonics. To learn more about the meeting, please visit their website.

Dr. Lawrence Friedman, Assistant Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, will be attending the Society of Engineering Science (SES) 2008 meeting in Urbana, Illinois on October 12 - 15, 2008. While at the conference, Lawrence will present a paper on “Practical Finite Continuum Modeling with Applications to Film Evolution.” To learn more about the conference, please visit their website.

Professor Bernhard Tittmann, Schell Professor in Engineering Science and Mechanics, presented a paper on “Shear Wave Imaging of Tissue,” and chaired a session on acoustic microscopy at the International Conference on Medical Transducers on September 21 - 29 in Santa Barbara, California. To learn more about the conference, please visit this website.