Good riddance to Summer Session 1

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the challenges and experiences of teaching summer courses, specifically focusing on Statics/Strength of Materials and Thermodynamics. Participants share their thoughts on the intensity of the condensed summer session format and the use of the Engineering Equation Solver (EES) in Thermodynamics.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses frustration with the accelerated pace of summer courses, noting the difficulty of preparing lecture notes for Thermodynamics under time constraints.
  • Another participant mentions the challenges of using EES, describing it as powerful but requiring familiarity with its syntax and features.
  • Some participants share their experiences with the lack of timely access to course materials, which complicated their preparation for classes.
  • There is a humorous exchange about the pressures of teaching and the expectations in professional environments, with references to real-world project management challenges.
  • A participant reflects on the hope of being assigned to teach Thermodynamics again in the future, indicating a desire to improve upon their experience.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the challenges posed by the summer session format and the difficulties encountered with course materials. However, there are varying opinions on the effectiveness and usability of EES, with some finding it beneficial while others express frustration.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention missing materials and the impact of this on their teaching effectiveness, highlighting the dependency on timely access to resources. There is also a noted lack of consensus on the best practices for using EES in teaching Thermodynamics.

Who May Find This Useful

Educators involved in teaching summer courses, particularly in engineering and physics, as well as those interested in the challenges of course preparation and the use of educational software like EES.

quantumdude
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Hi folks,

I haven't been very active lately, and I've missed ya. :cry:

Where I teach we have summer courses that are 6 weeks long, and in Summer Session 1 (just ending now) I had 2 of them: Statics/Strength of Materials and Thermo. I've never taught thermo before, and in the 13 years since I took it they went and came up with this program called EES (Engineering Equation Solver). So in addition to re-learning some long forgotten thermo I had to go through this 300 page instruction manual on EES. After a while I said to the class, "You know what? People did thermo for a century and a half without using EES, and so can you all!" :biggrin:

Anyway, Summer Session 2 starts next week. I'm teaching Electric Circuits (lecture and lab). I've taught this course 3 times now, and it should be a breeze. I'm looking forward to getting back to my old self, both in real life and here at PF.

See you next week! :cool:
 
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Tom Mattson said:
Hi folks,

I haven't been very active lately, and I've missed ya. :cry:

Where I teach we have summer courses that are 6 weeks long, and in Summer Session 1 (just ending now) I had 2 of them: Statics/Strength of Materials and Thermo. I've never taught thermo before, and in the 13 years since I took it they went and came up with this program called EES (Engineering Equation Solver). So in addition to re-learning some long forgotten thermo I had to go through this 300 page instruction manual on EES. After a while I said to the class, "You know what? People did thermo for a century and a half without using EES, and so can you all!" :biggrin:

Anyway, Summer Session 2 starts next week. I'm teaching Electric Circuits (lecture and lab). I've taught this course 3 times now, and it should be a breeze. I'm looking forward to getting back to my old self, both in real life and here at PF.

See you next week! :cool:
We've missed you too! :cry: It just hasn't been the same without you. :frown:
 
*Big hug for Evo*

These summer courses are murder. We cram 15 weeks worth of stuff into 6. I can do it for courses I've taught several times, but preparing that first set of thermo lecture notes at this accelerated pace was almost too much to handle. Ordinarily I work hard to make sure that my courses are more interesting than the norm, but for this I just had to work hard to make sure that there were no errors in my notes! All I can say is, I hope I get assigned to this course again in the future because I would hate to think that all this pain and suffering was just for 6 weeks!
 
EES is one hell of a powerful equation solver Tom. Easy to use, just use the help menu!

I can send you my themro project in EES, it was a bloody pain. :smile:

What's good about it is that it does iterative solutions. So all you have to do is give it enough equations and it will solve for the unknowns. You don't even have to move the variables to one side!
 
Last edited:
Cyrus: I've just sent you a PM. By the way, love the Ali quote and pic.

Thanks,

T
 
Tom Mattson said:
We cram 15 weeks worth of stuff into 6.
Sounds like every day in the professional world. :biggrin:
 
Astronuc said:
Sounds like every day in the professional world. :biggrin:

har-de-har-har :biggrin:

It was actually even worse than I described. I got the thermo homework solutions manual a couple of weeks before the course started, but not the textbook. I didn't get that until the first day of the session, which means I had to whip up my first set of lecture notes mere hours before class. I almost canceled the first day! Then after not too long I discovered that the solution manual I had was for a previous edition of the book, and that the book had been completely redone. I didn't get the correct solution manual until the end of the third week. So in for 3 weeks, in addition to preparing for class and grading papers, I'm sitting there doing thermo homework and thinking, "I thought I was done with this homework $hit! "

Anyway it's over now. I just have to grade the final exams, then I can get back to banning crackpots here at PF. :smile:
 
Good to have you back, Tom
 
Sent you some files from my lectures notes. The code was written by my professor, we did the problems in class.

If you are not sure about the synatax let me know. It's really easy to use once you see it in action, trust me.
 
  • #10
I have to admit tha your previous avatr always scared me of your authorities as a mentor!o:)
 
  • #11
Boo! :smile:
 

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  • #12
Eh, don't try hard to scre me naymor since I feel neutral when I see that at SFN! :-p
 
  • #13
Thought you'd given up on your quality control campaign around here --- good that you'll still be at it.
 
  • #14
Tom Mattson said:
Where I teach we have summer courses that are 6 weeks long, and in Summer Session 1 (just ending now) I had 2 of them: Statics/Strength of Materials and Thermo. I've never taught thermo before, and in the 13 years since I took it they went and came up with this program called EES (Engineering Equation Solver). So in addition to re-learning some long forgotten thermo I had to go through this 300 page instruction manual on EES. After a while I said to the class, "You know what? People did thermo for a century and a half without using EES, and so can you all!" :biggrin:

Sounds deadly. Nice to have you back.
 
  • #15
Hey Tom, welcome back. I was starting to wonder if you had abandoned us for some lesser forum. :biggrin:

Astro said:
Sounds like every day in the professional world

My latest customer decided that a new R&D project didn't need testing. Just build it and it will work. :rolleyes:
 

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