Learn how industrial engineers are fighting human trafficking. Examine robots that fly, drive, and swim. Tour labs in the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex. These are just a few of the events that will take place on Northeastern’s Boston campus from Feb. 16 to Feb. 22 as part of National Engineers Week, which honors the contributions engineers have made to the world.

Here are some of the highlights of the program, which is being run by the College of Engineering.

Designing better sports equipment

Randall Erb, an assistant professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, will explain how he designed carbon fiber composite materials that could be used to manufacture sports equipment, aircraft components, and other products to be lighter than ever but equally as durable.

The talk, titled “Microstructral Design of Ceramic-Polymer Composites for Demanding End-Use Applications,” will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 11 a.m. in the McLeod Suites of Curry Student Center.

Combating human trafficking

Kayse Lee Maass, an assistant professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, is part of a team that is devising ways to use engineering-inspired modeling to support ongoing efforts to combat human trafficking.

She will discuss her research on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 2 p.m. in the McLeod Suites of Curry Student Center.

Inventing amazing products

Russell Morin, the senior principal mechanical engineer at iRobot Corporation, will present the different paths engineers can take to invent incredible products on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. in the Raytheon Amphitheater.  Russell has helped to create many innovative products, including multiple iterations of the Roomba, the autonomous vacuum cleaner.

Tissue Engineering

How can engineers help treat injuries and disease? With tissue engineering, which combines chemistry, biology, and mechanics to create replacement tissues and organs. Join Timothy Lannin, an assistant teaching professor of bioengineering, in Room 333 of Curry Student Center on Wednesday, Feb. 20 at 11 a.m. for a lecture titled “Using Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering.”

Robotics

Students and faculty will showcase the robots that they have designed for land, air, and sea at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb 20 in the indoor pit of Curry Student Center.

Drug delivery

Steven Little, of the University of Pittsburgh, creates drug delivery systems that mimic the body’s own mechanisms of healing and resolving inflammation. He will discuss his work on Wednesday, Feb. 20 at 11:45 a.m. in the Raytheon Amphitheater.

3D printing

Get some hands on experience working like tissue engineers at the Bioengineering Capstone Collaborative. Attendees will spend the activity period creating hydrogels, then observe the 3D printing process that tissue engineers use to create molds for their work. This event will be held in room 057 of Richards Hall at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 20.

PhD expo

Explore the research of more than 60 doctoral students at the PhD Research Expo. Their work spans a variety of fields, including nanomedicine, robotics, and tissue engineering. The Expo will be held in the indoor pit and room 346 of the Curry Student Center from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 21.

Climate change

Coastal communities are particularly vulnerable to climate change. Rising sea levels and increasingly frequent ocean storms threaten residents who depend on the environment for their economy and infrastructure. A panel moderated by associate professor Matthew Eckelman will discuss how civil and environmental engineers can help coastal cities respond to the effects of a warming planet in room 102 of the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex on Thursday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m.

Bioengineering demonstration

Want to learn more about bioengineering? Then observe a live demonstration of the tools that assistant teaching professor Michael Jaeggli uses to characterize the properties of materials on Friday, Feb. 22 at noon in room 255 of the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex. Attendees, who will also get a tour of the cell culture labs in the facility, must adhere to certain clothing requirements in order to watch the demo.  

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