Case Studies

Case Study and Project Reports will be presented by the assigned Teams. The process is as follows:

  1. Prof. Kimerling will lead a short in-class discussion on the approach for each Case Study or Project. Q&A is encouraged to clarify specific details.

  2. The Instructors and TAs will moderate online Discussion Forums: within this Forum students should post their team's tentative outline, develop concepts, discuss sources and preliminary findings. Instructors and TA will provide feedback within this Discussion Forum.

  3. An optional office meeting with Prof. Kimerling is available if desired by any Group.

  4. On the day of presentations, each Group must present a 20 minute presentation of 5-6 slides. Each member of the Group must present one slide from this presentation. Slides must be posted to the Web site the night before.

  5. Students are expected to bring hard copies of all presentations to class.

  6. Corrected slides and a final 2-page report must be posted to the Web site two days after presentation.

  7. Grade assignment for the Case Studies and Projects will account for the following:

    1. presentation and writing skills
    2. clarity and rationality of the design execution
    3. presentation of background, issues, alternatives and conclusions

All student work is presented with permission of the authors.

Assignments Resources
An Ethical Engineer? (PDF) Pinker, Steven. "The Moral Instinct." New York Times, January 13, 2008.
Big Infrastructure Engineering (PDF)  
Social Construction of TV History (PDF)  
Semiconductors and Learning Curves; Steel Technology and Big Infrastructure (PDF)

Student Work

"Semiconductors and Learning Curves." (PDF)

"Steel Technology and Big Infrastructure." (PDF)