When IEEE Student Member Stanley Wang was elected vice president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s IEEE Student Branch last year, he had one goal: to create a stronger connection with the IEEE communities in his school’s Boston area. Likewise, the IEEE Graduates Of the Last Decade group in Boston wants to get more involved with student branches, notes May Wan, its 2006 chair. So it was no surprise that a joint seminar organized by the two groups in November on “Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur” drew more than 40 students and GOLD members to MIT’s Stata Center.

The free seminar offered valuable advice on the skills it takes to be a successful entrepreneur. It also created networking opportunities for the students to mingle with young professionals, while the GOLD group could talk up the value of students staying with the IEEE after graduation. IEEE GOLD is made up of members who received their first professional degree within the previous 10 years.

“The seminar was definitely a good learning opportunity for students, and they got to meet professionals working in different engineering fields,” Wang says.

Such events are important, says Wan, because many students about to graduate don’t know what job opportunities are out there.

The seminar speaker, Kevin Krauss, the director of Suffolk University’s Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, also in Boston, has over 30 years of experience in business and entrepreneurship. He has been CEO of several technology companies, including Teksource Inc., a computer and network service company located in Littleton, Colo. At the seminar, which last with questions and answers and a refreshment period for about 2 hours, Krauss talked about the business skills a typical master’s in business administration course in entrepreneurship should focus on, including problem-solving, and the creativity needed to come up with new ideas. He also spoke of turning failure into success by learning from your mistakes, and discussed the personal characteristics entrepreneurs need, such as self-confidence and ambition.

PARTNERSHIP The two groups became partners last June when Wang was looking for activities that would get his fellow students excited about the IEEE. He contacted Kristen Fitzpatrick, manager of the IEEE University Partnership Program in Piscataway, N.J. UPP works with student branches from some of the country’s best engineering schools, such as MIT, with the aim of boosting student membership. Fitzpatrick put Wang in touch with Wan and the two started brainstorming a topic for a seminar.

They decided on entrepreneurship—a hot topic for both students and young professionals. Wan suggested Krauss as the speaker, whom she had heard at one of his seminars.

The groups divvied up the duties. The student branch provided the sound equipment and found a venue for the event at MIT—and Boston GOLD booked Krauss, who did the presentation for free, and provided refreshments. “We both used our strengths,” Wang says.

The student branch and Boston GOLD found it easy to work together, Wan says, and plan to continue their collaboration by setting up more seminars.

For more information on IEEE Boston GOLD, visit http://www.ewh.ieee.org/r1/boston/gold/webpage/

To learn more about the MIT IEEE Student Branch, go to http://web.mit.edu/ieee/www/

IEEE Boston Section GOLD Carves Up the Slopes in Sub-Zero Temperatures

Contributed by Kheng Swee Goh.

To all ski enthusiasts, snow can only mean one thing – the chance to have some good, clean fun! On January 27th, that was exactly what a small group of us did. Instead of snuggling under toasty warm duvets in bed, we braved the -10F cold and met up at McDonald’s in Tilton, NH at 7.30am. From there, we drove up Cannon Mountain at Franconia Notch, settled down and set up a nice big IEEE sign on a table. I was able to pick up some special discounted tickets and so handed them out to all present. Along with the tickets, we also distributed walkie-talkies, which kept everyone in constant communication. In the meantime, a few members and guests in the group went on to the ski school to learn how to ski.

Boston GOLD members get ready to hit the slope.

At around 9.30am, the rest of the members began to arrive; many needed to drive a good distance away. Soon Wan volunteered to be our guinea pig and bravely went up first to check out the conditions. When he reported a rough granular surface, I went up with him, Uri and Tony and skied down together on steeper runs. Although we tried our best to avoid bad terrain, it was rather inevitable that we encountered some ice and took a few tumbles, luckily with no injuries.

Whoooops! RAB GOLD Chair, Soon Wan, falls down.

After all that fun, we proceeded to the peak where we took a well deserved rest, munched on some French fries and I derived some welcomed warmth from my thermos of hot chocolate. We also spent some time enjoying the winter wonderland view around us, the pristine snow, the snow covered trees…. the view was just magnificent! We captured the view by taking some pictures of course.

Shortly after, we skied down and regrouped with the rest of the members for an IEEE sponsored lunch where we bunkered down and had a great catching up session with each other. Following that was the eagerly anticipated lucky draw where ironically, Rob Vice, the event organizer, won the much coveted free ski ticket!

The rest of the day was spent skiing until our energy levels gave out and we trudged on home, tired but happy.

Malaysia, an active IEEE GOLD Affinity Group in 2006

Contributed by Mohd Hanif Yaacob

IEEE GOLD Malaysia was formed in 2003 by the IEEE Malaysia Section. In 2005, we held 13 activities while in 2006, we managed to increase that to 15 activities. This included eight administrative meetings, two technical meetings, four educational programs and one social activity. Regional GOLD coordinator, Yasuharu Ohgoe recognized us as one of the super active GOLD Affinity Groups in Region 10 for 2006. Over here, I share the main activities that IEEE GOLD Malaysia held throughout the year.

One of the most memorable events we organized for the year was the Seminar on Financial Management which was held on 14^th September 2006. The objective of the seminar was to educate participants on the importance of financial management especially during the early stages of their career. It was also intended to provide unbiased advice and guidance on insurance and personal investment. We contacted National Bank of Malaysia and successfully invited their senior officers to speak at no cost! We even managed to persuade the central bank to sponsor the lunch and ‘goodie bags’ of leaflets and stationery for the participants. The seminar was free and attracted 250 participants, including IEEE full and student members and young professionals. Among the topics highlighted in the seminar were how to do savings, managing credit cards, types of insurance and necessity versus luxury. The response from the participants was very positive and they suggested that we do it again on other important topics in personal finance. Due to the overwhelming feedback, we organized a similar event but at a different place, exactly a week after that!

GOLD organizing committee and the National Bank Officers.

Another GOLD activity for 2006 was the Inter-society Bowling Tournament. The event took place at Putrajaya, the administrative capital of Malaysia on 29^th July 2006. Eight teams, representing various IEEE Societies and Chapters, participated in the tournament. The main objective of this event was to encourage interaction between the senior and young members. Every participant was given a free and exclusive GOLD Malaysia polo t-shirt sponsored by a company. The companies had the opportunity to promote their profiles and services in the program booklets. Some members turned up fully equipped, before unleashing performances that any professional would be proud of! It was also very encouraging for us to see senior members, several in their fifties, taking part in the event and sharing laughter and joy with twenty-something year old members!

A group photo of the members before they unleash their superb bowling skills.

We also organized two educational activities; a career trip and a promotion on electrical and electronic engineering to school kids. Additionally, there were two technical meetings on future electronic and communication technologies.

There are two key factors that contribute to the success of GOLD Malaysia. Firstly, we have a highly committed team of volunteers. They seem to enjoy every minute of their volunteer work. We also have a rotation system whereby each committee member takes turns to manage the events while the rest help in the ad hoc committee. This provides good experience for the event manager, who is given the opportunity to organize and manage resources to run the event. As funds are one of the major requirements to organize events, the committee members have actively sought funding either via corporate sponsorship or through agencies that offer free consultations or programs. Where there is a will, there is a way! Secondly, we have tremendous support from our employers and the local IEEE Section. Our employers allow free access to their facilities for any GOLD activity and recognize staff involvement. The local IEEE section also plays a major role in supporting the group by providing additional funds and actively participates in our activities.

Our vision in the future is to organize events in other parts of the country and to have more industry involvement through activities and relevant representation on the committee. Our funds are also limited at present. Nevertheless, we believe we can overcome these challenges, as long as we keep enjoying what we do! Jumpa Lagi… (See you again in Malay language).

Career Guidance Program and Seminar on Bio-Informatics in Madras

Contributed by Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan

In Madras, the IEEE GOLD Affinity Group and the IEEE Power Engineering Society Chapter co-organized a career-oriented session on “Interview Techniques and Group Discussions” by Dr C.S. Raju, an expert trainer and former general manager of Lignite Corporation. The event was held on 29^th December, 2006. In his introduction to the speaker, Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan, Chairman of the IEEE Madras Section GOLD Affinity Group, promoted the benefits of IEEE GOLD membership and briefed the audience about the activities of IEEE GOLD.

Guest speaker Dr C.S. Raju (third from right) being presented a gift by members of the organizing committee, including Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan, Chairman of the IEEE Madras Section GOLD Affinity Group (second from right).

In the first part of his seminar, Dr Raju discussed techniques to write resumes and covering letters. He also discussed and evaluated various channels for job hunting and presented 100 typical interview questions together with possible answers. Additionally, he gave tips on how to tackle various interview situations – e.g. telephone interviews and panel interviews.

Dr Raju then presented techniques on how to have a successful group discussion. He conducted a mock group discussion on the topic ‘Nuclear Policy for India’ to give the participants a practical appreciation of the techniques presented. The event was a resounding success - it was attended by about 130 participants including GOLD members, students from several engineering colleges, academics and invited industrialists.

BIO-INFORMATICS On 25th November 2006, a technical lecture was presented on “Bioinformatics” by Dr Karthik Srinivasan of the Tamil Nadu Aids Initiatives (TAI) Project.

The meeting commenced with a song of prayer by students of Meenakshi Sundararajan Engineering College. This was followed by welcoming addresses by both the Chairman of the IEEE Madras Section GOLD Affinity Group, Sampathkumar Veeraraghavan, and the IEEE Madras Section Student Activity Chair & Power Engineering Society Chair, Dr P. Suresh Chander Pal.

This was followed by a 90 minute presentation on Bioinformatics by Dr Karthik Srinivasan. The first part of the lecture dealt with the fundamentals of cell and molecular biology. The distinguished speaker then explained the basics of bioinformatics, computational biology and biotechnology and the various core segments of research in these areas. An overview of the various procedures and research areas, such as nucleotide sequencing, proteomics and genomics, were discussed. He also spoke of the various practical applications of biotechnology in areas such as forensic medicine, pharmaceuticals and vaccine development, pathology and evolution, stem cell research, gene therapy and cancer research. The lecture was very well received by the audience, comprising of students, faculty members and invited industrialists, numbering about 50 people in total.

Conference on Information Systems in Calcutta

Contributed by Dr Jamuna Kanta Sing

The National Conference on Recent Trends in Information Systems (ReTIS-06) was held on 14^th and 15^th July 2006 at the H. L. Roy Auditorium of Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India. The conference was jointly organized by the IEEE GOLD Affinity Group, IEEE Calcutta Section, Center for Microprocessor Application for Training Education & Research, Project on Storage Retrieval & Understanding of Video for Multimedia, Computer Science & Engineering Department (TEQIP) – Jadavpur University, and Computer Jagat. It was aimed at bringing together students and researchers from areas such as: High Performance Computing, Image Processing, Information Retrieval, Information Security, Intelligent Systems, Mobile Communications and Networking, Optical Character Recognition and Pattern Recognition.

A total of 108 papers were received for consideration in the conference. After a peer review process, 57 submissions were selected for publication in the proceedings. These papers were presented in 12 technical sessions, chaired by professionals from universities and other institutions. Around 110 people attended the conference, having come from throughout India. Six awards for best student papers were given, following a judging process by a committee of engineers and scientists.

Besides the peer reviewed paper presentations, four distinguished speakers were invited to deliver special talks in their respective fields of research: Prof A. Basu (Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur), Prof A. Bagchi (Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata), Prof S. K. Sanyal (Jadavpur University, Kolkata) and Dr C. Dutta (Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Kolkata). Additionally, an industrial talk was presented by senior professionals from WeP Peripherals Ltd.

The inaugural program of ReTIS–06 was graced by Prof D. K. Das (Honorable Minister-in-charge of Information Technology, Govt. of West Bangal) and Prof. M. K. Mitra (Dean FET, Jadavpur University). The program was also attended by many distinguished guests from several universities and institutes based in India. An evening cultural program also took place during the conference. Sri A. Guhathakurata, an ex-student of the Jadavpur University and an eminent Rabindrasangeet singer, entertained delegates with his scintillating music afterwards. A banquet dinner was subsequently arranged in the University guest house.

The organizers of the ReTIS-06 would like to acknowledge the cooperation and financial support that we received from several institutes and organisations.

Technical visit to Lamma Winds in Hong Kong

Contributed by Dennis Lo

One of the benefits of being an IEEE GOLD member is to meet people from different backgrounds who share similar technical interests. The technical visit to Lamma Winds provided an opportunity for people from different fields to network with each other, as well as acquire knowledge that they do not generally receive in their day-to-day jobs.

In February 2006, Lamma Winds became the first commercial-scale wind turbine in Hong Kong. This 71-meter tall, triple-bladed wind turbine is stationed in a 2,500-square-meter wind station atop Tai Ling on the northern part of Lamma Island. The turbine is co-located with an exhibition area that provides a wealth of information on renewable energy. Lamma Winds has the capacity of 800 kilowatts and is expected to generate about one million units of electricity annually. The project took nearly five years to commission, costing 15 million Hong Kong dollars.

The technical visit to Lamma Winds was organized with two aims in mind. Firstly, it gave members the chance to see the operation of Lamma Power Station, the nerve system for power supply to Hong Kong and Lamma Island. Secondly, it gave participants the opportunity to learn more about the common forms of renewable energy – their strengths, limitations, and applications worldwide.

The visit was made on August 19^th 2006, six months after the commissioning of Lamma Winds. We traveled to the exhibition centre located at the Lamma Power station by ferry and shuttle bus, led by an engineer from the Hong Kong Electric Company Ltd. Over there we were given a background on the wind turbine, the station and renewable energy in general.

After a short walk we reached the wind turbine at the end of a trail atop of Tai Ling. We spent around half an hour near the spectacular landmark.

All in all, the trip was a resounding success as it was very popular among GOLD members. It proved to be an excellent opportunity to learn about renewable energy and for GOLD members to network with each other.

For more details and photos of the activity, please visit Hong Kong’s official GOLD homepage .

Readers can also refer to the Lamma Winds official page of the Hong Kong Electric Company Limited http://www.hec.com.hk/hehWeb/MajorGroupCompanies/TheHongKongElectricCompanyLimited/RenewableEnergy/Index_en.htm).

Articles of Interest

"Where the jobs are:This year’s round up of what’s hot and what’s not”, From IEEE Spectrum

IEEE Spectrum and The New York Times analyze who’s hiring and who’s firing in the technology industry by surveying 752 IEEE members about the past, present, and future technological trends they are seeing. Download the full article by logging into IEEEXplore, http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpls/abs_all.jsp?isnumber=4079220&arnumber=4079235&count=16&index=12.

"Copy-and-paste: Put Profs on the Offensive”, From the IEEE Institute

The Internet may have created a copy-and-paste world for students who
plagiarize, but the reasons more and more of them are lifting material are
complicated, as a number of engineering professors have discovered. To
learn more, visit http://bmsmail3.ieee.org:80/u/5788/41269706

"The Plagiarism Problem: Now You Can Help”, From the IEEE Institute

Plagiarism is on the rise, but the IEEE is not sitting idly by and watching
the problem grow. It has recently developed online tools that explain its
new procedures and its punishment for plagiarism. Find out more at
http://bmsmail3.ieee.org:80/u/5789/41269706

Upcoming Events

April 2007 Region 1 GOLD Conference

Contributed by Soon Wan

Join us for the Region 1 GOLD Conference to be held in conjunction with the Region 1 Student Conference in Fairleigh Dickinson University, Teaneck, NJ, USA. Highlights of the conference include a career fair, resume walk-in clinic, student paper contest, micromouse competition, GOLD competition, GOLD and Women in Engineering meetings, GOLD professional and soft skill seminars, networking with industrial professionals event and an awards and dinner banquet.

For more information visit http://www.ewh.ieee.org/reg/1/gold or download a flyer for the conference at http://www.ewh.ieee.org/reg/1/gold/conference/R1_GOLD_Flyer_1.pdf.

Date: Friday, 27 April to Sunday, 29 April, 2007

Contact person: Soon Wan, e-mail gimsoon@ieee.org

Notices

IEEE Potentials Magazine: Share Your Knowledge with Students!

IEEE Potentials, the magazine for IEEE student members, is looking for
great articles! Technical tutorials and explanations, professional
advice, and research papers are all welcome. For more information,
visit http://www.ieee.org/web/membership/students/potentials/IEEE_Potentials_Magazine_Manuscript_Preparation_Gu.html

Share Your Opinion: Become an IEEE Potentials Reviewer!

IEEE Potentials, the magazine for IEEE student members, is always
looking for article reviewers. Students and young professionals are
welcome and encouraged to apply. Reviewing for Potentials is a great
way to stay current with technical topics, make a difference for
student members, and bolster your resume.

If you would like to become a reviewer for Potentials, please send
your request (including your full name, e-mail and mailing address,
technical areas and a brief resume) to potentials@ieee.org.

Do you want to be a GOLDRush Reporter?

GOLDRush is seeking enthusiastic IEEE volunteer reporters from around the world to write articles for this newsletter. This is an excellent opportunity for you to develop your written and oral communication skills. For further information on what’s involved, please e-mail the GOLDRush editor, Adrian Pais at a.pais@ieee.org.

GOLDRush Call for Articles

GOLDRush would like to invite you to submit articles on any topic related to engineering for publication in this newsletter. For further information on the requirements for submission, please e-mail the GOLDRush editor, Adrian Pais at a.pais@ieee.org.

Find a University

“Find a University” is a service that IEEE provides at www.TryEngineering.org through http://www.TryEngineering.org/find.php. The service allows users to search for a university program in Engineering, Engineering Technology or Computer Science based on criteria such as locale, tuition, and size of the student body. Links are provided to the university, college, and the admissions department associated with each program. On 1 February 2007, the service was expanded to include universities in 13 more countries (having previously been limited to the United States and Canada). The new countries are: Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.

TryEngineering.org is a joint project of IEEE, IBM, and the New York Hall of Science.