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Methods developed for stimulating interest in the transfer of NASA-originated technology are described. These include: new information packaging concepts; technology transfer via people transfer; information management systems; data bank operations; and professional communication activities.
Described here is the new mobile satcom systems being implemented by Inmarsat. Inmarsat has traditionally provided professional communication to ships and is now actively implementing new systems for use on land, in the air, and at sea. These new systems can provide near global communication for anyone on the move. By 1993, four new systems will provide telephony, telex, data, group call and facsimile at affordable cost to a very wide range of users. A table giving the main technical parameters for Inmarsat Aeronautical, Inmarsat-B, C, and M systems is provided.
The NEO (NASA Earth Observations) web space is currently under development with the goal of significantly increasing the demand for NASA remote sensing data while dramatically simplifying public access to georeferenced images. NEO will target the unsophisticated, nontraditional data users who are currently underserved by the existing data ordering systems. These users will include formal and informal educators, museum and science center personnel, professional communicators, and citizen scientists and amateur Earth observers. Users will be able to view and manipulate georeferenced browse imagery and, if they desire, download directly or order the source HDF data from the data provider (e.g., NASA DAAC or science team) via a single, integrated interface. NE0 will accomplish this goal by anticipating users expectations and knowledge level, thus providing an interface that presents material to users in a more simplified manner, without relying upon the jargon/technical terminology that make even the identification of the appropriate data set a significant hurdle. NEO will also act as a gateway that manages users expectations by providing specific details about images and data formats, developing tutorials regarding the manipulation of georeferenced imagery and raw data, links to software tools and ensuring that users are able to get the image they want in the format they want as easily as possible.
The large and complex aerospace industry, which employed approximately 850,000 people in 1994 (Aerospace Facts, 1994-95, p. 11), plays a vital role in the nation's economy. Although only a small percentage of those employed in aerospace are technical communicators, they perform a wide variety of communication duties in government and the private sector.
Studies indicate that communications and information-related activities take up a substantial portion of an engineer's work week; therefore, effective communications and information-use skills are one of the key engineering competencies that early career-stage aerospace engineers and scientists must possess to be successful. Feedback from industry rates communications and information-use skills high in terms of their importance to engineering practice; however, this same feedback rates the communications and information-use skills of early career-stage engineers low. To gather adequate and generalizable data about the communications and information-related activities of entry-level aerospace engineers and scientists, we surveyed 264 members of the AIAA who have no more than 1-5 years of aerospace engineering work experience. To learn more about the concomitant communications norms, we compared the results of this study with data (1,673 responses) we collected from student members of the AIAA and with data (341 responses) we collected from a study of aerospace engineering professionals. In this paper, we report selected results from these studies that focused on the communications practices and information-related activities of early career-stage U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists in the workplace.
As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of Dutch and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to aerospace engineers and scientists at the National Aerospace Laboratory (The Netherlands), and NASA ARC (U.S.), and NASA LaRC (U.S.). This paper presents responses of the Dutch and U.S. participants to selected questions concerning four of the seven project objectives: determining the importance of technical communications to aerospace engineering professionals, investigating the production of technical communications, examining the use and importance of computer and information technology, and exploring the use of electronic networks.
As part of Phase 4 of the NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, two studies were conducted that investigated the technical communications practices of Dutch and U.S. aerospace engineers and scientists. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to aerospace engineers and scientists at the National Aerospace Laboratory (The Netherlands), and NASA Ames Research Center (U.S.), and the NASA Langley Research Center (U.S.). This paper presents responses of the Dutch and U.S. participants to selected questions about four of the seven project objectives: determining the importance of technical communications to aerospace engineering professionals, investigating the production of technical communications, examining the use and importance of computer and information technology, and exploring the use of electronic networks.
When students graduate and enter the world of work, they must make the transition from an academic to a professional knowledge community. Kenneth Bruffee's model of the social construction of knowledge suggests that language and written communication play a critical role in the reacculturation process that enables successful movement from one knowledge community to another. We present the results of a national (mail) survey that examined the technical communications abilities, skills, and competencies of 1,673 aerospace engineering students, who represent an academic knowledge community. These results are examined within the context of the technical communications behaviors and practices reported by 2,355 aerospace engineers and scientists employed in government and industry, who represent a professional knowledge community that the students expect to join. Bruffee's claim of the importance of language and written communication in the successful transition from an academic to a professional knowledge community is supported by the responses from the two communities we surveyed. Implications are offered for facilitating the reacculturation process of students to entry-level engineering professionals.
In this paper we describe the preliminary analysis of four groups of aerospace engineering and science students -- student members of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and students from universities in Japan, Russia, and Great Britain. We compare: (1) the demographic characteristics of the students; (2) factors that affected their career decision; (3) their career goals and aspirations; (4) their training in technical communication; and (5) their training in techniques for finding and using aerospace scientific and technical information (STI). Many employers in the US aerospace industry think there is a need for increased training of engineering students in technical communication. Engineers in the US and other countries believe that technical communication skills are critical for engineers' professional success. All students in our study agree about the importance of technical communication training for professional success, yet relatively few are happy with the instruction they receive. Overall, we conclude that additional instruction in technical communication and accessing STI would make it easier for students to achieve their career goals.
The educational requirements for future aeronautical engineering students are postulated. The change in aeronautical engineering from increasing aircraft performance without regard to cost is compared with the cost effective aspects of future research. The capabilities of future engineers are discussed with respect to the following areas: (1) problem solving, (2) planning and organizing, (3) communication, and (4) professionalism.
The presentation covers five main topical areas. The first is a description of how things work in the microgravity environment such as convection and sedimentation. The second part describes the effects of microgravity on human physiology. This is followed by a description of the hazards of space flight including the environment, the space craft, and the mission. An overview of biomedical research in space, both on shuttle and ISS is the fourth section of the presentation. The presentation concludes with a history of space flight from Ham to ISS. At CART students (11th and 12th graders from Fresno Unified and Clovis Unified) are actively involved in their education. They work in teams to research real world problems and discover original solutions. Students work on projects guided by academic instructors and business partners. They will have access to the latest technology and will be expected to expand their learning environment to include the community. They will focus their studies around a career area (Professional Sciences, Advanced Communications, Engineering and Product Development, or Global Issues).
The summer research activity at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) aims to introduce the student to the basic principles in their field of study. While at KSC, a specific research project awaits the student to complete. As an Aeronautical Engineering student, my assigned project is to assist the cognizant engineer, Mr. Troy Hamilton, in the six engineering phases for replacing the Ponce De Leon (PDL)4.3M Antenna Control Unit (ACU). Although the project mainly requires the attention of two engineers and two students, it also involves the participation of many colleagues at various points during the course of the engineering change (EC). Since the PDL 4.3M ACU engineering change makes both hardware and software changes, it calls upon the expertise of a Hardware Engineer as well as a Software Engineer. As students, Mr. Jeremy Bresette and I have worked side by side with the engineers, gaining invaluable experience. We work in two teams, the hardware team and the software team, On certain tasks, we assist the engineers, while on others we assume their roles. By diligently working in this fashion, we are learning how to communicate effectively as professionals, despite the fact that we are studying different engineering fields. This project has been a great fit for my field of study, as it has highly improved my awareness of the many critical tasks involved in carrying out an engineering project.
Part of NASA’s Applied Sciences, the DEVELOP Program bridges the gap between NASA Earth Science and potential users through rapid feasibility studies that apply Earth observations to environmental decision making needs. The program conducts 50-60 studies a year that engage participants – students, recent graduates, early career individuals, and transitioning career professionals – in autonomous teamwork with an emphasis on professional development and communication. The experience offers participants a robust opportunity to build their teaming skills (facilitated through programmatic personality assessments and discussions), interpersonal communication, and critical thinking skills which are central to project work in the DEVELOP model. The program also offers leadership opportunities where participants lead their peers within a supportive environment. This presentation will introduce the DEVELOP model for soft skill development, lessons learned, and highlight testimonials of past participants.
We conducted a mail (self-reported) survey of 4300 student members of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) during the spring of 1993 as a Phase 3 activity of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project. The survey was designed to explore students' career goals and aspirations, communications skills training, and their use of information sources, products, and services. We received 1723 completed questionnaires for an adjusted response rate of 42%. In this article, we compare the responses of female and male aerospace engineering students in the context of two general aspects of their educational experience. First, we explore the extent to which women and men differ in regard to factors that lead to the choice to study aerospace engineering, their current level of satisfaction with that choice, and their career-related goals and aspirations. Second, we examine students' responses to questions about communications skills training and the helpfulness of that training, and their use of and the importance to them of selected information sources, products, and services. The cross-gender comparison revealed more similarities than differences. Female students appear to be more satisfied than their male counterparts with the decision to major in aerospace engineering. Both female and male student respondents consider communications skills important for professional success, but females place a higher value than males do on oral communications skills. Women students also place a higher value than men do on the roles of other students and faculty members in satisfying their needs for information.
Case of different sizes and shapes for teaching technical writing to engineers at Wayne State University have been developed. The case approach was adopted for some assignments because sophomores and juniors lacked technical expertise and professional knowledge of the engineering world. Cases were found to be good exercises, providing realistic practice in specific writing tasks or isolating particular skills in the composing process. A special kind of case which narrates the experiences of one technical person engaged in the problem-solving process in a professional rhetorical situation was developed. This type of long, realistic fiction is called a an "holistic" case. Rather than asking students to role-play a character, an holistic case realistically encompasses the whole of the technical writing process. It allows students to experience the total communication act in which the technical task and data are fully integrated into the rhetorical situation and gives an opportunity to perform in a realistic context, using skills and knowledge required in communication on the job. It is believed that the holistic case most fully exploits the advantages of the case method for students of professional communication.
When engineering students graduate and enter the world of work, they make the transition from an academic to a professional community of knowledge. The importance of oral and written communication to the professional success and advancement of engineers is well documented. For example, studies such as those conducted by Mailloux (1989) indicate that communicating data, information, and knowledge takes up as much as 80% of an engineer's time. However, these same studies also indicate that many engineering graduates cannot (a) write technical reports that effectively inform and influence decisionmaking, (b) present their ideas persuasively, and (c) communicate with their peers. If these statements are true, how is learning to communicate effectively in their professional knowledge community different for engineering students educated in the United States but who come from other cultures-cultures in which English is not the primary language of communication? Answering this question requires adequate and generalizable data about these students' communications abilities, skills, and competencies. To contribute to the answer, we undertook a national (mail) survey of 1,727 student members of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). The focus of our analysis and this paper is a comparison of the responses of 297 student members for whom English is a second language with the responses of 1,430 native English speaking students to queries regarding career choice, bilingualism and language fluency, communication skills, collaborative writing, computer use, and the use of electronic (computer) networks.
The Information Center (ISC) at Goddard was created as part of the Goddard reorganization and was located within the Applied Engineering and Technology (AET) Directorate. The creation of ISC was to: (1) focus expertise and leadership in information system development; (2) Promote organizational collaboration, partnerships, and resource sharing; (3) Stimulate design/development of seamless end-to-end flight and ground systems; (4) Enable flexibility to effectively support many simultaneous projects by improved access to critical mass of discipline expertise; (5) Enhance career growth and opportunities including multi-disciplinary opportunities; and (6) to improve communications among information system professionals. This paper presents a general overview of the Information Systems Center as well as the role of the Software Engineering Laboratory within the center.
Studies indicate that communications and information-related activities take up a substantial portion of an engineer's work week; therefore, effective communications and information use skills are one of the key engineering competencies that recent graduates of engineering programs are expected to possess. Feedback from industry rates communications and information use skills of entry-level engineers low. Missing from current discussions of communications and information use skills and competencies for engineering students is a clear explanation from the professional engineering community about what constitutes 'acceptable and desirable communications and information norms' within that community. To gather adequate and generalizable data about communications and information skills instruction and to provide a student perspective on the communications skills of engineers, we undertook a national study of aerospace engineering students in March 1993. The study included questions about the importance of certain communications and information skills to professional success, the instruction students had received in these skills, and perceived helpfulness of the instruction. Selected results from the study study are reported in this paper.