Engineering Eye - May 2015

News, rumours and gossip from the world of engineering

Eye was heartened to learn that the imminent release of the new Star Wars film had inspired an intrepid Essex pair to send a model of an X-Wing fighter into space – with a message to new director JJ Abrams. Matt Kingsnorth and Phil St Pier – dubbing themselves the Essex Space Agency [ESA? – Eye ed] – spent £600 each to send the model spacecraft and camera 100,000ft from the surface of the earth and return safely, tethered to a high-altitude weather balloon. The 30-something Essex lads simply want Abrams to grant them tickets to the premiere of the new film and freely admit to “never having been to university”. With technical nous and entrepreneurial drive such as this in evidence, a lackadaisical Eye, whose alma mater was in the selfsame county, sometimes wonders why it bothered.

The University of North Dakota College of Engineering and Mines doesn’t sound hip – but it is hopping to make a splash in the world of music. Eye has learned that Hesham El-Rewini, dean of the college, has MC’d on a track dedicated to the fine art of engineering in the hope – hop – of sexing up the sector even further. While Eye applauds efforts to promote engineering to young people, it cannot help feeling that El-Rewini’s efforts are destined to fall on ears already deafened by the more scabrous attack of Eminem and mellifluous tones of Kanye. Unless the kids involved are already into maths, physics, chemistry, or another engineering-related pastime. Which they may be, Eye supposes.