Engineering entertainment

???The UB Engineering Council, a group that represents the university's 14 engineering clubs, is in the midst of celebrating National Engineers Week, also known as E-Week. Each day this week, members of these clubs will participate in contests that display their knowledge and skill in the various fields of engineering.???

Engineering Council Coordinator Greg Robbins, a junior business administration major, is in charge of managing the events throughout the week.

???"It is not only fun to come out and check out the engineers working at these competitions, but students have the option of joining in and competing against engineers," Robbins said.

???Several non-engineering students participated in events like the egg-drop event on Monday.

???Each of the teams constructed an apparatus to safely drop an egg from the third floor of the Student Union to the first floor, where spectators stood behind barriers. After three rounds, there was a tie, and the UB chapters of the Institute for Electronic and Electrical Engineers (IEEE) and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) were declared the winners.

???The clubs are now competing to be named the E-Week champion. At the end of the week, points that the clubs earn at each event will be tallied to determine which will win. At every event, winners get 10 points for finishing in first place, eight for second place, six for third, and four points just for participating.

???Elizabeth Uhl, a junior industrial and systems engineering major, is the president of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and assisted Robbins in planning E-Week competitions.

???"E-Week gives students an opportunity to apply what we are learning in the classroom in a fun and competitive environment," Uhl said.

???Dan Snitzer, a sophomore mechanical engineering major, and Rita Groetz, a junior aerospace and mechanical engineering major, were crowned Mr. and Mrs. Engineering at Wednesday's competition.

???Wednesday's club fair gave each engineering organization an opportunity to display its annual featured exposition.

???Additionally, some of the engineering fraternities were stationed in the Student Union in hopes of generating interest and recruiting students.

???The Rube Goldberg machine competition was held on Thursday. In this competition, each club that participated was given a set of tools and objects which were used to create a system or machine that produced a chain reaction leading to a goal stipulated by the judges.

???Despite the spirit of competition, Robbins said he was impressed at how well the clubs have been working together to prepare for E-Week this year.

???Tensions can be especially high at the Bot Wars, which usually draws a large crowd, and consequently creates a lot of pressure for the participating engineers.

???The E-Week competitions can get heated, as clubs are given limited time and building supplies.

???Even though everyone shoots for first place in the Bot Wars, the competition is friendly, and the ultimate goal is to create a fun environment and to generate an interest in engineering.

???"E-Week allows clubs to show student body that the academic engineering clubs have a social component," Robbins said. "They are social organizations and are a lot of fun to participate in."

???Chris Noll, a junior aerospace and mechanical engineering major and president of SAE, said that he thought this week was a great way to branch out and to get a chance to speak to other engineers who he may not see on a regular basis.

???E-Week will come to a close at this Saturday's Academic Engineering Ball, which will be held at the Marriott on Flint Road from 7 p.m. to midnight. Tickets are available at the SBI Ticket Office for $20 and a bus service will be provided to and from the event. The event is open to all majors and minors.

???Students who were unable to attend the events this week and want to learn more about engineering groups at UB can visit 350 Student Union for more information.