Video The 2015 ASME ISHOW Competition The Full Report

Video The 2015 ASME ISHOW Competition The Full Report Video The 2015 ASME ISHOW Competition The Full Report Video The 2015 ASME ISHOW Competition The Full ReportThe 2015 ASME ISHOW was held across three continents, in Pune, India, in Washington, DC, and in Nairobi, Kenya. Between 9 and 12 teams competed as finalists in each city. Three teams in each drehort won, receiving a share of $50,000 and intensive coaching in Product and Engineering Design.Hardware-based products presented by ISHOW teams were designed to solve problems in water distribution, farming, healthcare delivery, the supply of off-grid energy, and internet infrastructure in remote areas. Teams ranged from student entrepreneurs to seasoned engineers driven by a deep passion to help individuals and communities facing poverty, digital and physical isolation, and shortages of food and clean water.Teams traveled far, and included competitors from Cambodia and Indonesia, and from all across India, Africa and the United St ates.Learn about the winners in each of the three cities.The ISHOW video was produced and directed by Roger Torda, ASME Public Information.

The Flying Coffins of World War II

The Flying Coffins of World War II The Flying Coffins of World War II The Flying Coffins of World War IIAmericas first military stealth aircraft the Waco CG-4A combat glider silently soared into World War II history 70 years ago, powered only by the prevailing winds and the guts of the men who flew them.Under veil of darkness on D-Day and other major Allied airborne assaults, the Waco glider carried troops and materiel behind enemy lines to take out key enemy defenses and transportation links. These humble gliders engineless and unarmed overcame perilous odds to make the first cracks in Hitlers Fortress Europe. Yet their story is an obscure chapter in the Allied victory saga.Their moment in the spotlight of military aviation welches fleeting. But in the pre-helicopter age, combat gliders represented the state-of-the-art in stealth, landing precision, and hauling capacity.Inside the Flying CoffinsFlying coffins. Tow targets. Pilots and glider-borne infantry had colorful and well-e arned nicknames for their ungainly tuchs. But according to at least one veteran flight officer, the most common moniker for the combat glider was way off base Silent Wings.Inside the cockpit of the Waco GC-4A combat glider.For us it was louder than hell, said pilot Donald MacRae, who flew troops into battle on D-Day and in the invasion of The Netherlands. The gliders spartan construction provided no insulation from the roar of the C-47 tow planes engines, the pounding of the natural elements, and the din of enemy anti-aircraft fire, he said.MacRae, who flew with the 37th Troop Carrier Squadron of the 316th Troop Carrier Group, said the glider had few provisions for passengers safety and none for their comfort. There were four basic instruments on the control panel, which the pilots mistrusted. Air pockets and 40-mph winds created violent turbulence. Enemy fire on descent was constant, and many pilots were taken out before they could land.Diagram of the Waco GC-4A combat glider.With no parachutes onboard, glidermen took pain to protect their pilots. According to MacRae, Some of the guys found an extra flak jacket for me not to wear but to sit on. They didnt want anything coming up from underneath the plane to hit anything vital.Expendable by DesignThe CG-4A fuselage was 48 feet long and constructed of steel tubing and canvas skin. Its honeycombed plywood floor could support more than 4,000 pounds, approximately the gliders own empty weight. It could carry two pilots and up to 13 troops, or a combination of heavy equipment and small crews to operate it. The nose section could swing up to create a 5 x 6-foot cargo door of Jeeps, 75-mm howitzers, or similarly sized vehicles.A restored WACO GC-4A.With a wingspan of 83.5 feet, the Waco maxed out at 150 mph when connected to its tow plane. Once the 300-ft length of 1-inch nylon rope was cut, typical gliding speed was 72 mph.The Waco Aircraft Company of Troy, OH, a niche manufacturer of civilian airplanes, won the co ntract to design and build Americas first combat glider. Big names like Ford, along with a dozen or so smaller firms, also won glider contracts, but only if they werent already producing powered aircraft for the war effort. With more than 70,000 parts to assemble and with little or no standardization, some manufacturers produced a few duds, with sometimes tragic results.The wide range of expertise among these contractors, as well as an early lack of standardization of the 70,000-plus individual parts, caused pilots and mechanics no shortage of headaches and more than a few tragedies.MacRae recalls an incident that nearly scrapped the glider program less than a year before its D-Day triumph. In August 1943, a Saint Louis-based contractor invited the citys mayor and other dignitaries to experience the excitement of a glider flight before an airshow audience of 5,000. Aghast spectators watched as a glider abruptly lost a wing at 2,000 feet and crashed in front of the grandstand, killin g all onboard. After ruling out sabotage, investigators traced the cause of the crash to a faulty bolt provided by a subcontractor in the coffin business.It Is a Chastening ExperienceOf the 6,000 men trained as glider pilots, some had washed out of conventional pilot training and were given a second chance to fly. Others, like MacRae, had a civilian pilot license but were passed over for powered flight training. The possibility of officers pay and the chance to fly attracted a particular breed of risk-tolerant trainees, and the glider pilots maverick reputation quickly spread. Gen. James Gavin, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, lamented the pilots demeanor. But he also recognized the audacity of landing a glider in combat. It is a chastening experience. It gives a man religion, he said.Germany was well prepared for a glider invasion of Normandy. Beachheads were guarded by anti-aircraft guns. Likely landing zones were saturated with Rommels asparagus a glider-smashing network of 10-foot poles wired together with explosives.For MacRae, his tow plane lost an engine and threatened to cut the troop-laden glider loose over the English Channel. After tense negotiations, the C-47 pilot agreed to wait until land was in sight. MacRae landed safely, but about 25 miles shy of the intended landing zone. His troops went off to find a fighting unit, and he eventually found his way back to his base in England. I never found out what happened to my squad or the tow plane crew, he said.Every glider pilot had at least one story of that long trip back to safety. After delivering his troops 90 miles behind enemy lines in the famous A Bridge Too Far invasion of The Netherlands, MacRae hit the road through no-mans land with limited rations and no plan. A ramshackle bicycle eased his journey initially, but with his rations gone and his strength ebbing, he readily traded it to a passing soldier for extra K-rations. Refortified, he happily hiked another 35 miles to Brussels.G I s for GutsThe Waco CG-4A glider was the first and last of its kind. Mothballed at wars end, fewer than a dozen restored gliders exist today. The ranks of the pilots are thinning too. MacRae, who died at age 92 as this article was in preparation, was one of only a few hundred living pilots.Glider pilots who participated in the Normandy landings were awarded the Air Medal for their role in the Allies early successes on D-Day. Their role in Operation Market Garden was lauded, even though it was overshadowed by the missions overall failure to take the key bridge at Arnhem. Gliders were also central to Allied invasions of Sicily, Burma, Southern France, Bastogne, and the crossing of the Rhine into Germany in March 1945.Like all Army Air Corps pilots, the glidermen wore wings on their chests. Theirs were special, with a capital G stamped in the center. Technically it stood for glider, but they were quick to tell anyone who asked that it really stood for Guts.Michael MacRae is an independe nt writer.They were the only aviators during World War II who had no motors, no parachutes, and no second chances.General William C. Westmoreland, U.S. Army

Keeping calm under pressure according to a NASA flight director

Keeping calm under pressure according to a NASA flight directorKeeping calm under pressure according to a NASA flight directorAs far as high-pressure workplaces go, its tough to think of a stronger example than the flight department at NASA. Directing shuttle launches and managing flights from mission control dont leave much room for error, and NASA leaders need to keep a cool head and take every step possible to prevent snap decisions made out of stress.In a recent interview with Business Insider, NASA flight director Paul Hill explained his strategies for staying calm when his job stakes elevate, and his tactics can easily translate to other industries.1. Instead of letting emotions distract you, stay focused on the facts at hand.When a work situation becomes tense and difficult, its easy to let your personal feelings and the reactions of others involved influence the way you handle the issue. But according to Hill, the best way to power through an anxiety-inducing harte nuss invol ves honing your attention into data and objective facts.During the 2001 launch of the Discovery shuttle from the grenzberschreitend Space Station, one of Hills controllers realized that one of the shuttles cooling loops which keeps the spacecrafts temperature level and allows the computer systems within to function had malfunctioned. The flight crew needed to solve the problem in a short period of time, lest they risk a faulty launch and the potential loss of human life. With such enormously-high stakes, the mission control team needed a clear and effective strategy to resolve the issue without the complications often prompted by stress. Luckily, NASA trains its employees on thought processes that remove nervousness from the equation.In the aforementioned instance, Hill encouraged his crew to turn their focus toward the data streaming in from the shuttles systems, believing that prioritizing unimpeachable facts would help everyone remain at attention. Everybody tends to become mor e focused and more calm as theyre working through the data, talking to each other, talking to the flight director on the voice loops, and making decisions, he explained. Ultimately, the NASA mission control crew successfully launched Discovery, largely thanks to their ability to keep working through tense circumstances.2. When thinking and talking through a stressful situation, make sure youre asking the right questions.On-the-job stress has an uncanny way of bringing up trains of thought that prove less than helpful. When this problem arises at NASA, leadership urges staffers to focus on a series of questions that get to the heart of the matter without superfluous and distracting tangents. As an old boss of mine said, That first indication that you have a crisis is probably not when you want to go and jump out the window, Hill told Business Insider, following with this piece of advice Get a little bit more information, we can always panic later.In the case of the Discovery launch, Hills list of questions included the followingWhat was everything they knew - and did not know - about the situation at hand?What did the data actually say about the situation at hand?What was the worst thing that could happen as a result of the situation?Keeping the discussion and the thought process impersonal and fact-based proved crucial to finding an expedient solution, and professionals in all fields can use this technique to reduce complications and discover a beneficial answer as quickly as possible.3. Dont assume that past successes will apply to future circumstances.When coaching his NASA team, Hill warns them against making decisions based on past outcomes. Where you get in trouble is some schwimmbad thing starts happening and you feel the urge to start taking action. You say, Hey, Ive been in this situation before. This is what we did the last three times. Its always worked so Im going to do it again, Hill claimed.Rather than blindly using a method youve tried before to solve a new problem, youll be better served by looking at the facts and nuances of the specific matter at hand and designing a new game plan tailored to the needs of this particular issue.A version of this post previously appeared onFairygodboss, the largest career community that helps women get the inside scoop on pay, corporate culture, benefits, and work flexibility. Founded in 2015, Fairygodboss offers company ratings, job listings, discussion boards, and career advice.