Engineering EXPO 97 Bigger Than Ever

More than 90 exhibits and an expanded Robot Triathlon in the UW Field House await visitors to Engineering EXPO 97 “Dreams by Design,” to be held April 18-20.

Engineering EXPO is a biennial, non-profit, student-run event that showcases recent developments in engineering and technology, and demonstrates how they can be applied to everyday life. The event includes student, government and industrial exhibits, including the latest advances from Ford, IBM, John Deere Corporation and others.

The Robot Triathlon has grown so large it will be moved to the UW Field House. With more than $15,000 dollars in prize money at stake, this year’s competition has drawn more than 38 competitors from across the UW campus.

Madison West High School students Phong Mach (left) and Marlon Canlas (center) discuss with engineering teacher Al Gomez the construction of their scale basketball rim. Their project will be entered in the UW Engineering Expo Rube Goldberg competition.

Teams constructing robots got a head start with the creation of a new engineering course, Mechanical Engineering 491 – Competitive RC Design and Analysis, and the help of a few tireless professors and lab assistants. More than 20 teams of robot enthusiasts developed designs through the course. Robots will compete on obstacle courses and in games of soccer each day of EXPO.

EXPO 97 will also feature a LEGO playland and a LEGO scale model of the entire engineering campus. Chemistry Professor Bassam Shakhashiri’s popular chemistry show is also coming to EXPO on Student’s Day, Friday, April 18. Shakhashiri will show the audience how “Science is Fun!” by demonstrating fundamental chemistry principles and their applications. The presentation will be held in 1800 Engineering Hall at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Friday.

In the Egg Toss Competition, individual K-8 students must devise a way to throw an egg over a volleyball net and hit a target without breaking the egg. Students create egg-protecting containers using recyclable materials, such as milk jugs, corrugated cardboard or even old baseballs. The competition will be held in the McClain Center.

EXPO, on the engineering campus north of Camp Randall Stadium, is open to the public on April 18 from 9 a.m.-6 p.m., April 19 from 9 a.m.-7 p.m. and April 23 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Admission is $4 for the general public, $3 for senior citizens and students, and free for children 4 and under.