1020QBT Professional Skills | Podcast-Problems In Engineering

Students are required to work in small groups of 3 - 4 students to create a podcast (3 minutes per person) that explains to a non-expert audience a key idea from their discipline area and: 

1.Identify a problem or unresolved issue in the discipline
2.State why the problem is significant for the discipline
3.Offer a solution or solutions
4.Provide arguments for the proposed solutions.

You should be creative with your podcast through the use of music, storytelling, sounds and other techniques that enhance the engagement and interest of the audience.

Identification

• The first and most important part is to understand and define the problem [3].
• This may involve categorization based on research.
• This may take into consideration a complex system of beliefs and opinions, where the interests of all the people, who are directly or indirectly related to the problem, are involved.
• Now, let us try to understand why these problems are so important.  

Significance of the Problem

• In the very first place, it must be mentioned that most of the problems that arise in this discipline are rooted to the real world.
• They are often complicated, lacking any prior illustrations due to their contemporary nature [2].
• Hence, if neglected, it can severely impact a large section of the society in the long run.
• Also, if not combatted at the right time, the problems add on to assume multiple layers, which, later on, becomes extremely difficult to be addressed.
• Now, let us see how these problems can be encountered.

Probable Solutions

• First and foremost, a simplified structure or model of a generalized engineering design process must be built [4]. It would mostly follow a cyclical pattern with the following steps – asking of necessary questions, leading to related thoughts and imaginations, which would give rise to innovative planning, followed by creative implementation of the same, that is, the creation of a prototype; these actions would then go through a process of amendments and improvements after much evaluation, which would again lead to the formation of a different problem statement, based on the contemporary real-life scenario.
• Solving of any engineering or scientific problems may also be broken up into certain simplified steps –
• Determination of the problem statement
• Assessment and accumulation of materials needed to solve the problems.
• Assessment and accumulation of funds needed to solve the problems.
• Making calculated assumptions
• Counter the problems theoretically with equations, analysis and schematic drawings.
• Verification of the results.
• Implementation in real-life.
• Theories like TRIZ Method, which is a process of studying the different patterns of problems and solutions, can also be put to use.

Arguments for the Above Solutions

• However, I am not asking everyone to blindly follow what I just said.
• Let me tell you that the TRIZ method has been widely used by developers around the world to analyse a lot of inventions, which were made after accurately pointing out the source of the problems [1].
• The basic engineering design process stated above, is also widely acknowledged and used by many engineers to solve various problems pertaining to their respective domains.

Conclusion

• Thank you everyone for listening to this podcast.
• Hope you enjoyed and also got to learn something from our show.  
• Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

Reference List