So here's the deal - I am applying for this special program at the university I am going to study at, and the next stage is to prepare a 10 minutes lecture about a scientific / technology / engineering subject. The shmucks in charge of this program printed the letters on May 9th but I only got it today, so now I only have a week to prepare this instead of a month. :mad: Even worse, I have three final exams this week (bible, math and physics). So I'm terribly stressed.

Anyway - I read the science fair thread but that's not exactly what I'm after. I need a subject to discuss in 10 minutes, followed by another 10 minutes of Q&A session. The subject needs to extremely small, nothing big like string theory or quantum computing. Just as an example, a friend of mine who did this last year talked about finding the location of an object using a system of several radio antennas. Didn't win him Nobel prize, but he got into the program.

Any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated. The subject should be interesting and intriguing rather than dull and boring, to make it interesting for both the listeners and myself. The sooner I pick a subject the sooner I can go and find books and information about it.

Many thanks,
Chen

Maybe you could talk about the different rocket technologies that various private aerospace companies are using to build privately owned rockets? There's a lot of great technical information available on the web, since most of these companies like to publicize what they're doing.

How about using DNA to construct nano-structures? ...see the latest Scientific American.

why not do your friends lecture, exept in space, a bit like gps but pointing the other way so that comercial spacecrafts (in the future) will know where they are......

How about the reproducibility of technology? Not meaning to be political or anything, but often the scientific community is considered to be to distant and aloof from other people; subjects that can help bring the two closer together can spark interest even it they're not necessarily cutting-edge.

A subject is simple; bring in a bunch of garbage - not spare electronic parts, but real trash like beer cans and stuff. Prepare a brief demonstration wherein you construct some device using this stuff. This will serve to demonstrate several things:

1) You are a cool engineer. Engineers love this kind of thing, making more out of less; this is why engineers are often major practical jokers in college. Anyone who can build something like a crank-operated refrigerator out of junk will seriously fly with these guys.

2) When compared to the technology of 1000 years ago (say), even present-day garbage is an unbelievably high-tech treasure. Trying to build a radio or an electromagnet with stuff you find at the junkyard today is pretty simple; trying to build the same thing with the finest medieval technology is nearly impossible.

MAKE THIS (2) THE THESIS OF YOUR LECTURE. Why?
- Everyone loves "A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur's Court" - there's been threads here on that kind of stuff before.
- This will illustrate the economic support that science requires, and demonstrate your understanding of a broad range of topics up to and including building your own machines out of junk
- State specifically that you want to examine technology with reference to its economic requirements and its reproducibility. In ten years, how much of modern technology could you reinvent given iron age technology as a starting point? How about bronze age? How about bamboo and clay?
- Your purpose in doing this (say this loudly) is to learn to EDUCATE ALL PEOPLE ABOUT SCIENCE and to HELP THE DEVELOPMENT OF POOR COUNTRIES. Finding low-tech ways of reproducing high-tech results is exactly what is needed by the economically underdeveloped. Whether or not you mean this when you say it is up to you, of course.

That would be my suggestion.

Looks like I was too late...

interesting subject?

how about internal combustion engine?

did you know that average Otto cycle is about 25% efficient!
that means from every galon of fuel burned 75% gets wasted as heat going out the exhaust pipe.
lately theres been some interesting inventions out there that look very promising,such as
www.ox2engine.com
www.dynacam.com
www.coatesengine.com

Converting waste heat into energy is pretty tough, especially in something like an ICE which has many points of loss - the engine surface, the radiator/cooling system, the lubrication system, the exhaust. Most energy recovery systems don't take advantage of heat - instead, they're things like the turbocharger, which takes advantage of exhaust pressure to put more air into the cylinder.

Efficiency of the engine has other aspects as well - for instance, part of the power of the engine goes into forcing the exhaust out through the pipe. A larger exhaust pipe (as you've probably seen on some custom cars) and less restrictive air filter in the muffler will give a car slightly more power. (This is why you used to see the big shiny exhaust headers on old hot rods. I assume they're not legal now.)

Now, I remember Toyota had a ceramic air-cooled engine that ran at very high temperatures; recovering usable heat from an engine like this might be easier. The only major problem (usually) is that heat recovery comes most easily from something like heat expansion (as in steam engines), which isn't easy to do in a closed system. Most people don't want to have to refill their water reservoir every time they go out...

Anyway, it looks like Kamo never came back, so that's that.

alternative man made energy....eco friendly and can be produced cheaply.

the higgs quark