iron warrior: volume 11, issue 4

8/14/2019 Iron Warrior: Volume 11, Issue 4

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ACELIFT

By-Election NoticeOn Tuesday, May 22, Engineering SocietyB will hold by-elections for the positions ofPresident and Vice President

I

Nominations: 8:30 am Wednesday,May 9 to3:30 pm Monday, May 4Campaigning: 8:30 am Tuesday, May 5 to I3:30 pm Friday, May 8Election: 8:30-4:30, Tuesday May 22

For further Information please contact the Chief Returning Orflcer at .the Engineering Society Office, CPH 1327, x2323

IRON WARRIOR DATESIssue Deadline Layout Published

2 Fri. May 8 Tues. May 22 Fri. May 253 Fri. June 1 Mon. June 4 Fri. June 84 Fri. June 5 Mon. June 8 Fri. June 225 Fri. June 29 Tues. July 3 Fri. July 6

Submission Guidelinesf you want to write an article, please contact the editorswell before the deadline.Try to edit your own article as much as possible.In order of preference, we accept MacWrite and MacintoshWord files, ASCII files mailed to engsoc@108 on Watstaror on DOS disks, and typed and handwritten documents.


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Page 2

DirectionsTo begin, I'd like to thank a number

of people who made this issue possible.You may have noticed that the first issueof the Iron Warrior is appearing a littleearlier than usual this term. This caused alot of stress, anxiety, and, near the end,panic; but, in true EngSoc fashion,everyone involved did their best to smooththe way for us. Thanks to everyone listedon the right for their extra effort,especially to loge an d Brian for scaring upan amazing amount of advertising in solittle time. Thank s to Paul Well, if it'sdesperate . McKone of the EERC for theuse of his time and resources, and toCheryl, for letting us displace her from theofftce Macintosh. Thanks to Ted Timar,for being a font of wisdom and experience.And thanks to AJ., who managed to getan article to us in the midst of surviving avery trying week.Grown u

t lastDuring the last term, one of thepeople I worked with received spccialrecognition from the company (or havingcompleted thirty years of service. Thirtyyears is a span of time that I cannotappreciate. As well, there was an earlyretirement incentive program while I wasthere. I cannot imagine working for thatlong, nor does the thought of being oldenough to retire often enter my mind.But our perspective on time and agechanges. As a child it took forever to getfrom Christmas to Christmas and fromsummer to summer. We couldn't imaginewhat it would be like to be old enough togo to high school or to drive a car. When

we got to grade 9, it was graduation andindependence that seemed far away: to bean adult. Throughout, the ultimateseemed to be being a grown-up: What doyou want to be when you grow up?Although we realize that there is nomagic age when you suddenly become anadult It didn't happen at 16, 19 or 20, andit won't happen at any other birthday.), weare essentially there.I don't feel grown-up, and it stillsurprises me to be referred to as an adult.But there are several signs that time ispassing. Every now and then I am startledto realize that I am a grown-up in manywa s.

Iron Warrior May 11, 1990Onwards. In the past few months, alot of attention has focussed on certain

practices of Engineering Societies atCanada's universities. One of the mostvisible of these is the traditionalengineering newspaper. Many people hereat Waterloo have derived a lot ofsatisfaction from comparing the IronWarrior to certain other newspapers, andfrom loudly trumpeti ng -the fact that weterminated our traditional paper fiveyears ago (not entirely by choice, though).I'm not going to say that the IronWarrior is the best engineering paperaround, as some have claimed, bUI I dothink it's near the top of the pile. Thereare concerns, though, that this mightchange. The standards and principles ofthe paper are maintained principally bytradition rather than a formal mandate.Without direction, the Iron Warrior mightone day shift its emphasis away fromengineering, and become just anothernewspaper. Worse yet, it might devolveinto another Enginews.So, there's some talk in EngSoc ofsetting a mandate for the Warrior. Itwould be extremely arrogant, though ,' forone set of editors and EngSoc executivesto try to freeze the paper into their idealfor all time. We need feedback from theIron Warrior's reading public. Followingare some of my thoughts about this.Technical and informative articles arethe backbone of the paper. Every issueshould contain a few of these to tellreaders about things they may not haveheard or thought about before. This keepsthe emphasis on engineering and itspractice, and reminds us about what we'llbe doing after we get out of here.

1. I like to sleep. As children, ourparents spend a lot of time convincing usto go to bed at night.and to settle down forour afternoon nap. I like naps now.When I am on vacation or have no plansfor a day, I like to to have a short sleep inthe afternoon. (Naps are also temptingwhen you are supposed to be studying.)All submissions, unless otherwisestated. become the property of the l.mDWarrior. which reserves the right 1 refusepublication of material which it deemsunsuitable. The Iron Wmjor also rescrvers

the riaht 1 edit arammar. spelling andportions of text that do not meet universitystandards. Authors will be notified of anymajor changes that may be required.All submissioDs and advertisingcmquiries shbuld be forwarded to:nm Warrjox

Enaineeri ns SocietyCPH 1327Univenity of WaterlooWA'l PJW')(). laIario(Slt) 62

News and announcements areimportant as well, but the campus has twoother newspapers to keep us informed ofgeneral news. The Warrior should keep itsnews coverage down to items that interestengineers specifica1iy, and items that themore general papers might neglect.Opinion pieces are as important to theWarrior as to any other paper, but areslightly more restricted. Currently,opinion pieces are limited to the editorials,articles from the EngSoc executives,Point-Counterpoint articles where bothsides of an issue are rationally andresponsibly covered, and Letters to theEditor dealing either with previouslyappearing items, or with immediatelyIOpical EngSoc and engineering issues.Then there's humour. One of themost frequently heard complaints aboutthe Iron Warrior is that it should befunnier. I agree. But if you come toexpect humour in each issue, and get tothe point where you have to have it, thenyou quickly find that you're lowering yourstandards and accepting items that may beboth unfunny and, possibly, tasteless andneedlessly offensive. For this reason, it'sunlikely that humour will ever be expectedfrom the Iron Warrio r. We'll still behappy to publish it, though.If you have any comments about this,or something 10 say about the direction ofthe Iron Warrior, or comments onanything else in this issue, please let usknow. As mentione d, we do acceptLetters to the Editor, and we'd love to hearfrom anyone about anything.By the way: have a great summer.f . ~

EDITORSLinda HacheyJohn Kingdon

ADVERTISINGBrian ChampInge Vangemeren

PHOTOGRAPHYLisa AndersonKevin JohnsonMike PerelloPeter Szakaly

CONTRIBUTORSA.J. BaxterDan BIosdaleCatherine BurnsBelinda Elysee-CollenThe DeanRobert GreenwaldElmer Horvath

2. I am becoming more independent. I Lily Junghave a few pieces of furniture, my ownTupperware, and a cheque cashing card for M ~ ~ ~ : f - rie1.angfordth e A&P.3. There are a lot of weddings coming Sandy McKinneyup. When I meet classmates from high Sean Murphyschool, we have to spend time catching upon engagements, marriages and expected Karen Peckchildren. These are people my age, people Dave StampeI grew up with.This time last year, no one close to Harvey Watsonme was gelling married. Now each night Ipray for five couples who are engaged.

M a r r i a ~ e can no longer be discounted assomethmg that happens when you'regrown up and older.All these weddings and plans for thefuture remind me how old I am. I guessthey also remind our parents how old theyarc.)4. I do things that I always associatedwith grown-up, older people. I have acredi t card; I work in an office; I fileincome tax returns. I enjoy walks outside;I like quiet evenings alone or with friends.I can do absolutely nothing for severalhours as a change from the pressures ofthe day.And the final factor - I don't likeMcDonalds anymore. Bul I still like thelittle 69 toys, so maybe I'm not as old asI thought.

LAYOUTBrenda Beal (Manager)Jefferson DarrellSimon LeeJacques MilletteLoui PolicTedTimarDaveStampeHarvey Watson

TYPESETIlNGJamie Caceres (Manager)Glen GagnonTedTimar

CALENDARMartin Zagorsek

CARTOGRAPHERRobDavis


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May 11 , 1990

From theDE N

Dean Bill LennoxWelcome backI hope that you had an enjoyable workexperience and that you are ready to getdown to the rigor of academic life onceagain.There are a number of informationalitems that I will, in future issues, reporton. Obviously a key issue is the vsc.The results of last term's referendum were95% in favour with a vOler turnout of40. I want to use this opportu lity tosay, on behalf of the Faculty, a sincerethank you for your support. Once againthe leadership demonstrated so often by the

Waterloo Engineering students in so manyarea i obvious to everyone.

the leadershipde ;lOnstrated isobvious to everyone

I want to use this first issue of theIron Warrior to draw your attention to thevery serious issue of harassment - sexual,racial and/or other forms. This has alwaysbeen an issue, but the recent tragedy atEcole and the rather stupid events at otheruniversities has brought national focus tothis issues. Unfortunately, all it takes totarnish years of effort in addressing thisissue is the action of a few people.

1 believe Waterloo engineering hasbeen at the forefront of recognizing theseissues, and I am quite proud of the manyinitiatives you have taken. Obviously weneed to continue this and do even more,but I believe it is important to draw your'attention to this issue. Sexual harassmentand racial h r s s m e ~ t are simply illegaland have no place in our society.Also the University Ethic Policystates that it is an offence to interfere withanyone' s right to attend classes. Even a"sit-in" staged as a "fun" event is anoffence according to this policy.I hope that we can use Orientation asan opportunity to make people aware ofthese , and I invite your suggestions andcomments.

Iron Warrior age 3

The Windsof Change

A.J. BaxterVice President

Dur ing the last four months. theprofession of Engineering has had to takea long hard look at itself. Antics andpublications that were previouslyconsidered moderately acceptable (OK, wedidn t get expelled for them) are nowcausing the engineers of Canada to bebranded with a very negative image. Overthe years, most of the blatant sexist anddiscriminatory acts have been removedfrom the Engineering repertoire of "funthings to do" and the Human RightsCommission has removed visibl einequality from the workplace.However, on December 6th, 1989, atragedy occurred that caused many peopleto stop and say "Have we really eliminatedthe inequalities from our society?" Theanswer was a resounding NO. So, yetagain, we set out on the long, tedious (butrewarding) path of social change. Lately,you may have been asking yourself "Howwill these cries for change affect theactivities that we participate in asundergraduate Engineers?" or rather, "Howcome everybody is picking on us?"In response to these enquiries I havethe following thoughts: our activitie swill be re-evaluated by the EngineeringSociety (your representatives) to ensurethat what we do as engineering students isnot construed as sexist, discriminatory, orillegal. One manifestation of this processis the modifications to our mascot, THETOOL. The name has been changedslightly and the bearers are garbed incoveralls, silver hard hats and gold facecoverings. Many have accused Eng Soc ofbowing to pressure and being forced intochange. I prefer to think that we reevaluated our mascot, discovered th atpeople (in the community) did not realizethat RIDGID TOOL was a trademark of aline of tools produced by the Ridge Toolcompany but instead thought of the TOOLas a bunch of crude men glorifying the factthat they had a male sex organ. We knowthat the phallic interpretation of ourmascot is not consistent with the realmeaning behind the TOOL. but it is ourduty to remove the possiblemisinterpretation that the name allows.There is no denying that problemsexist within engineering. What I cannotunderstand is why the entire responsibilityfor the "cleanup" is being placed on thefaculty's and students' shoulders. Weshould playa major role in the process,but there are more factors involved thancan be controlled by the Engineeringfaculty. It is society's responsibility toeducate children in a manner that does notlimit a child's interests on the basis ofgender. The primary and secondaryschools require a .guidance system thathelps encourage all students to maintaintheir maths and sciences along with theirEnglish and history. The profession ofEngineering should be doing everythingwithin its power to promote itself. We,as students, should be involved in thepromotion of engineering as a field ofstudy, and we should not inadvertentlyturn people off with misunderstoodtraditions.The process of correcting the faults ofengineering cannot be carried out by onegroup. It requires the knowledge ,enthusiasm and hard work of all membersof society. So, the next time you hear ofthings happening that you feel underminethe spirit of engineering, sit back, look atthem from the outside, and evaluate thewhole picture.

Money MatterSean MurphyTreasurer

Welcome back to Waterloo foranother great summer term. Since it's thebeginning of the term, it's time for the usual spew from the treasurer regarding theneed for Directors' Budgets.

as well as an oakbar with real barstools,

You may have noticed the reasons forthis. There's a new big screen TV inPOETS, as well as an oak bar with realbar stools. Furthe r improvements willinclude window blinds to allow betterviewing of the screen, and a soundcompressor to improve the sound systemspeaker output

For the first time, budgets are requiredfrom all directors whether they needmoney or not. Frugality and fun are notmutually exclusive, and they will be thewatchwords for the Society this summer.The Orifice has also changed.Cheryl's desk has been moved to allow

freer movement for students in the Orifice.Also, for the first time, a cash registerwill be used l keep track of revenue andexpenditures. Cheryl will personallyeliminate anyone even considering using itwithout her permission. In her words,"It's my baby."A PO TS patio is in the works. bUIit's been bogged down with red tape atPlant Operations. With luck, we' ll sec itby Canada Day; otherwise. it may beshelved unlil A Soc returns to campu s.A number 1 other llems may appearon the scene to enhance the student socie tyatmosphere for enginee ring students.

EngSoc is flcle for your benefit ; takeadvantage of it, and have a great term


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Page4 Iron Warrior May 11,1990

BiathlonConfusionScholarships

vailableTo the Editor:This letter pertains to the WaterlooBiathlon that was run by the EngineeringSociety, and which was supposed tohappen last Sunday, May 6. To mysurprise, I learned from the EngineeringSociety on the Friday afternoon before thatit had been cancelled.This was a minor setback for me,because I wanted 10 use the race to find mybase of physical education before mytraining program this summer. I felt sorryfor the people who wished to go all out inthis competition to put to use all thetraining they had done this year.

EngSoc has run somegreat events therace w s cancelled?

Instead I cycled with a group 1 people1 the Elora Gorge and had a terrific time.While we were riding past Fed Hall at8:30 am Sunday, the registration locationof the biathlon, there was a woman toreceive people at the fronL I quicklyinquired if the race was on, and she saidyes Now was I mistaken, did I hearwrong, or did she misunderstand myquestion? I asked again, and she confirmedagain that the race was on. How frustratedI felt, being told that it was cancelled,only to learn a half hour before the racethat it was on again, when I already hadplans to bike 10 Elora with some friends.And then this morning, Monday May 7, Iphoned EngSoc to hear that it wascancelled and it did not happen. HolyConfusion, .Batman, is this a bad dreamI'm having?

This is not my only beef. I'mdisappointed in the amount of advertisingand promotion done for this event. I onlylearned about it 3 weeks before the racefrom a pamphlet I got off-campuspromoting the biathlon series of Ontario.I did not see any flyers posted acrosscampus at all throughout April and May.

There are no references to the race in lastweek's Imprint, and I don't remember anyarticles or ads in last winter's issues.I can understand that running such anevent requires hours and hours fromdedicated volunteers. EngSoc has runsome great events before, notably theannual Ring Road Classic. I realize that itis a change in the term with new studentsmoving in, and old students moving out,and that last April was exam month.So, honestly, why was the eventscheduled for such an awkward date. Whydidn't you advertise for volunteers ifwere in trouble, including people outsidethe faculty, (we are still one university.)All I wish to say is, I hope we do nothave a repeat performance with the RingRoad Classic, because it is the biggestevent I'm looking forward to competing inthis year. I know last year had some

mistakes. One guy was not allowed torace a minute before the start because hehad handlebars for a triathlon, (where youtuck down very low and nar row, with yourelbows resting on the handlebars.) Formy race, we never did find out if we had apace lap or not, and the start could havebeen delayed 10 seconds to answer ourdesparate questions.Please plan well in advance.Rick Millenaar3B Health Studies

Student Awards OfficeANDERSON CONSULTINGSCHOLARSHIPTwo annual awards valued at $4()()each are given to students entering their3A term in either the Faculty ofEngineering or a Co-operativeMathematics Program. Selection ofrecipients will be based on academicachievement, active participation andleadership in extra-curricular activities,ability to communicate and careerobjectives of implementing changethrough the Application SystemsDevelopment andlor ManufacturingProcess Improvement. Relevant workterm experience will also be considered.Applications should be submitted to theStudent Awards Office during the 2B term.Application Deadline: June 29, 1990BELL CANADA SCHOLARSHIP

The value of these awards is tuitionfor the final undergraduate year plus anoffer of summer employment with BellCanada, although acceptance ofemployment is not a condition of theA ward. The awards are available to thirdyear Engineering students who rank in thetop half of their class, have an interest intelecommunications or related fields andhave been involved in on-campus orcommunity activities.(Special Application)

~ p l i c a t i o n Deadline: June 29,1990

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CANADA PACKERS INC.RESEARCH DIVISION AWARDAn award of 800 is available to anundergraduate in Chemical Engineeringwho has a high academic standing duringthe first and second year and is continuingin tha t progralT . Positive evidence oftechnical ability or superior technicalcompetence in laboratory of work termeffort and evidence of leadership activitieswithin or outside the institution is alsogiven strong consideration.(Special Application)Application Deadline: June 29, 1990

J. P. BICKELL BURSARIESThe Foundation makes available asum of money to be used in providingbursary assistance to Chern ical

Engineering students of good academicstanding who need financial assistance.Application Deadline: May 31,1990

B.P. CANADA BURSARIESTwo bursaries of 500 are offeredannually to two students enrolled in Earth

Sciences, Engineering, Commerce orEconomics at the University of Waterloo.Application Deadline: May 31, 1990

SUNCOR BURSARIESSuncor Inc. offers bursaries annuallyto students in Chemical or MechanicalEngineering which, in support ofemployment equity, will be awarded towomen, aboriginal (native) Canadian s,persons with disab ilities and visibleminorities. Interested students shouldapp ly on the University of Waterloogeneral bursary application and attach aletter indicating their eligibility rorassistance from this source.Application Deadline: May 31, 1990

Applications are available in tlTeStudent Awards Office, 2nd Floor, NeedlesHall.

C SIKaren PeckCASI-UW Chair

Well, we're back...the CASI(Canadian Aeronautics & Space Institute)Spring '90 Exec, that is. Be prepared for afun-filled summer of events. Among thespeakers who will be presenting: Mr.G. Ataman from DOWTY Canada Ltd.,Mr. J. Reid from Canadair's CL-215 WaterBomber Division, and Mr. J. M. Swain,Director of Boeing DeHavilland FlightTest Division. We're organizing anothertrip to the London Air Show, and, ofcourse, another GLIDING TRIP

Most events will be held in OC ]302every Wednesday from 11:30 to 12:30, butwatch our posters for possible changes.We're looking forward to seeing everyonethere


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PageS Iron Warrior May 11, 1990

Engineering and the Eye and then readjusting its response.However, the normal response patternchanges when the image becomes blurred.This project examined the effects ofblurring due to chromatic aberration,where different colours of light refract todifferent degrees.Catherine Burns3A Systems DesignIts separation from the main campusby Ring Road is almost symbolic of themany differences which separate theSchool of Optometry from the otherdepartments of the University of Waterloo.Often forgotten, the School of Optometry

is one of the truly unique disciplines atWaterloo, the only English-speakingschool of Optometry in Canada.By its very nature, Optometry is anapplied science and could arguably beconsidered a form of engineering.Optometry centers around theimprovement and extension of humanvision, possibly the most critical of thehuman senses. Beyond the design oflenses, optometry also encompasses theapplication and design of new equipmentfor improved investigation of the health ofthe eye.The focus of the program is onpractical experience gained through anactive clinic on the first floor of thebuilding which allows the students to gainpractical experience in a real clinicsituation. This clinic is open to thepublic, offering eye examinations, glasses,and contact lenses while, at the same time,providing the students with experience.Optometry and optometry researchtouch a broad range of areas includingphysiological optics, optics of the lensand cornea, and human image processing,which includes investigation of retinalsampling and optical aliasing. Opticalsystem modelling is also an area ofinterest, as is mathematical modelling ofthe lens of the eye. Work is being done in

areas of pathologies of the components ofthe eye, as well as in ocular health andhygiene which is concerned with theprotection of the visual system from such 'hazards as airborne particles and ultraviolet radiation.... new equipment forinvestigation of thehealth of the eye

During my work term with the Schoolof Optometry I was involved in twoprojects. The first studied the propertiesof the lens of the eye. Lasers were shonethrough the lenses and the refraction(bending) of these beams was studied to

yield information on the refractive powerof the lenses. The lens of the eye is acomplicated structure possessing a nonhomogeneous refractive index; beams donot travel in straight lines but tend tocurve as they travel through the lens.Because of this complexity. an exactmathematical model of the human lens hasyet to e developed

In a different direction, another projectinvolved the study of the effects of imageblurring on accommodation. In order toview objects at different distances, the lenscontracts and expands, much like amuscle. This response of the lens toobjects at various distances is calledaccommodation. The lens can e modelledas a feedback system, sensing the stimulus

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The School of Optometry is anuntapped resource at the University ofWaterloo. For engineers, optometry offersa fresh viewpoint in areas from biomedicalengineering and ergonomics to imageprocessing and mathematical systemmodelling. With special permission,students from outside the school may takeoptometry courses, and co-op positions areoccasionally offered with professors fromthe school. The school frequently offersopen seminars and is home to theOptometry Museum, which presents anhistorical review of developments inoptometry.

The School ofOptometry is anunt pped resource

The entire atmosphere within theschool differs from that of regularprogrammes. Even the architecture of thebuilding reflects this difference - the focusof the building is the first floor clinic.While at the University, one should paythe School of Optometry a visit - haveyour vision checked at the clinic, tour themuseum, or altend a seminar.Certainly, optometry is one the gemsof the university; it is regrettable that solittle contact occurs between optometryand the other departments. On the onehand, the School of Optometry mayappear to be isolated; on the other, perhapsit's the rest of us who have been blind.

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May II, 1990 Iron Warrior PageSThe Return oficromouseDave Stampe2B Computer

1990 should be a banner year forMicroMouse at the University ofWaterloo . The IEEE student branch isworking to set up a development facilityfor the use of students who wish to createa MicroMouse as a tenn or extracurricularproject, or just to experiment withrobotics. This fall, both IEEE branchesand the University of Toronto's studentIEEE chapter will be organizing the NorthAmerican MicroMouse Championship, tobe held at the Ontario Science Centre.Fundraising for both projects will becarried out through this term.

North AmericanMicromouse FinalsA MicroMouse is a self-contained,

autonomously navigating robot whichsolves a maze, competing against othermice to travel from start to finish in theshortest time. To explore a maze and findthe goal quickly is as much a matter ofluck as it is of good design in software andhardware. Therefore, a MitroMouse isallowed to make multiple runs: usuallyone or more exploratory runs and onehigh-speed run. The high-speed run is abetter test of motor control and steeringalgorithms. Scoring is based on a fraction(1/30) of the exploration time plus thefastest run time. Bonuses are awarded ifthe mouse can complete all runs withouthuman intervention.

A MicroMouse is a challengingdesign problem. The maze that the mousenavigates consists of walls spaced 18 cmapart and are 5 cm tall. This limits thesize of the mouse's wheelbase to about12 cm by 12 cm. Overall, tbe mousemust be smaller than 25 cm in any

UW Facilities planneddimension. Since the MicroMouse mustbe self-contained, the batteries, computer,sensors, and drive train must all fit intothis space. A low centr e of mass is alsorequired for faster turns, acceleration andbraking.A typical MicroMouse will have twoindependently driven wheels and one ormore cas ter type support wheels. Themotors are driven either by steppingmotors, which are slow but simple, or bya geared DC motor. Batteries(rechargeable NiCd) are mounted as low aspossible, as they can make up one third 10one half of the MicroMouse's weight.The computer is usually mounted abovethe chassis, allowing it to be larger byextending over the top of the maze walls.Steering and wall sensors also go onlOp, extending over top of the maze walls.Sensors are usually optical, as these arefaster and do not cause drag. The mazefloor is painted flat black and the walls redand white 10 simplify the sensor's design.

The software challenge of aMicroMouse is a dual problem, consistingof a maze-solving algorithm and low-levelcontrol routines. DC motor systems make

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for much better performance, but requiremore complex motor servo software anda precision mechanism. Even if theMicroMouse designer has chosen to usestepping mOlors, special care must betaken with acceleration and deceleration toavoid skipped steps. Steering and wall datamust be read from navigation sensorshundreds of times per second and integratedinto the maze model. Navigationdecisions must be made in real time, andfar enough in advance to give theMicroMouse time to accelerate anddecelerate.

Maze solving algorithms may besimple goal-seeking methods that use thefirst path found, or more complex methodsthat try to find the fastest path. Somealgorithms used in the past explore theentire maze before looking for the bestpaths, while others concentrate on sectionsof the maze likely to contain the bestpath. This may not seem important giventhe low weighting of exploration time,but the previous U.S. champion, DaveOtten of MIT, recently lost the titledespite having the fastest run time becauseof his competitor's shorter explorationtime.

To present some idea of thecapabilities of current competition mice,high-speed run times have been as low as8.9 seconds for a path length of 9.2 meterswith 15 turns. The regulation maze sizeis 16 by 16 cells, and the pa.th lengthsrange from 5 to 50 meters. Mice try toimprove their scores by movingdiagonally and rounding comers, and bylooking over walls to cxplore the muzefaster.The MicroMouse facility at UW willinclude a computer and utilities forsoftware development, as well as EPROMprogramming support and a serial port fordownloading code to MicroMousecomputers . A rcconfigurabJe ma:lC will beavailable for debugging and performancetests, as well as for local contests.Fundraising for the maze, parts stock andpower supplies will be carried out thissummer. A contest will be held next Mayfor those learns who have developed miceas a term project.

Because of its multidisciplinarynature, a MicroMouse project should be ofinterest LO student engineers in Electrical,Computer, and Systems Design. As well,team members in Mechanical Engineeringmay be helpful in designing andconstructing the chassis and drive chain.The IEEE student branch has beencollecting MicroMouse related technicaldata, newsletters, and parts supplylocations. Videotapes of past contestsshould be available some time thissummer. For firsthand advice, talk to usabout the MicroMouse that is underconstruction now.

...multidisciplinarynatureThe North American ChampionshipMicroMouse contest will be held at the

Ontario Science Centre, October 11through 14, 1990. At least two Canadianteams and twelve U.S. teams are expected,along with three guest teams fromoverseas, including England, Australia andSingapore. The foreign teams will not beeligible for prizes; instead they will givedemonstrations and compete onInternational Day. U.S. teams willinclude Dave Otten from MIT and a teamfrom West PointDemonstrations and informationaltalks will be given by Susan Rosenbaum,the chairperson of NAMA (NorthAmerican MicroMouse Association) .Contcst runs win be hcld from Thursdayto unday, with the final winncrs to bedetermined the last day. Media response toMicroMou'c conlests has always beencxceptional, and this onc should be noexception.If you wish to help out, St8rt aMicroMouse tcam, hclp find corporatesponsors, or just find out more, drop byan IEEE meeting. Watch for postcrs inthe halls - the meetings arc held everysecond Tuesday at 11 :30 AM. If you wantspecific information, drop a note off at theIEEE office at E2 3359 or caU DavcStampe at 725-0831. And please: supportthe fundraiscrs this summer.

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Page 6 Iron Warrior May 11,1990

Winter Facts with Flavour see if you have an interview by lookingup your last name.Our faculty decided that we should tryand expand ourselves, so, starting soon,there will be 60 more Electrical engineersadmitted each fall and 40 students enrolledin Environmental Engineering. The newprogram has a chairman but no otherfaculty. Students will take a wide varietyof courses from Chemical, Chemistry,Ci viI, Mechanical, EnvironmentalStudies, Management Science, andSociety, Technotogy and Values (STV)plus some technical electives and 5 GSEsduring their five year stint

Harvey Watson3B ChemicalHi. Welcome back to this sullen and

dreary place where you work your fingersto the bone just to get a piece of paperwith a few choice words and numbersprinted by a low grade dot matrix printeron a lower quality piece of paper with thehopes of eventually collecting enoughlines that read 0.5 CR to get a highquality piece of paper that says yougraduated after five years hard labour fromthe University of Waterloo Penal colony.Since last you were here, very little haschanged. Another few hundred convictsescaped believing they had attained theexalted status of owning the high qualitypaper, and if you watch carefully, you maysee one or two return and walk across astage to collect it.The great political machine ground onand mushed more people through its gears :Doug Wright was chosen by BrianMulroney to be his representative to theCouncil of Ministers of Education. Dougnow has another job on top of beingPresident of UW. (As if he wasn't busyenough already.)

Our beloved Dean Lennox decided thatretirement was a good way to go and sowill be leaving us. We cried a Iiule whenwe heard this, and we will certainly misshim as we break in out new Dean:Professor David B urns of the MechanicalEngineering Deparunent.The Feds had another election (theyearly trial) and elected a new cast ofcharacters. The new Fed President is oneof our former EngSoc Presidents, JohnVellinga. Also starring in this cast areVPOF Tess Sliwinski and VPUA Kim

Speers. Don't you just love how theysend out this amazingly arrogant piece ofmail during the term telling you that it isyour most important job to vote byretwning the enclosed ballot and then theydon't even bother to send you a note to saywho won? Now, is that dedication tocommunication with students, or what?

We were finally persuaded to join theCanadian Federation of Students (CFS).A mere $2.00 will be added to your feestatement starting in September for thisdubious privilege.

The Imprint decided that it needsanother dollar a term from everyone butwere told by the Feds that they could onlyhave 65 cents. This is a mere 5% per yearsince the last raise in '86.Fortunately, we were spared anotherdrain on our pocket books because theFeds couldn't organize a referendum toraise fees to pay for the new Student LifeBuilding (it's been put off until the fall).I'm not the most inattentive student oncampus, but when they casuallymentioned this building and the new fundsrequired to build it in the fading days ofthe election, I must admit that I hadabsolutely no idea as LO what they weretalking aboutThe VSC (Voluntary StudentContribution) was ratified by your offterm counterparts, A Soc. Of the 40%who voted, (compared to a miserable 36%for B Soc), 94% were in favour, so younow donate $75 a term to your belovedEngineering Faculty to ensure that theungracious governments of our countrydon't destroy our school through neglect (aproblem that grows more ominous eachterm). This is a tax deductible donation soyou can get an income tax receipt for it.

BREW IT NOW efore it's too late Summer is just around the corner-IDELUXE STARTERI WINE.KIt .

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The Bus Push for the Big Sisterswent off again without a hitch. Lots ofmoney was raised, and everyone had agood time. We even got to see the "newand improved" costumes for the bearers ofThe Tool. The bearers now sportominous black coveralls with brightyellow hard hats and purple scarves overtheir faces. Also, they may not be chainedto our newly renamed mascot becausebondage just isn't in these days.

most important tovote don t tell uswho won

The Co-op department hasn't beencompletely dormant while you were offgallivanting around the country, makingmoney, and having fun. Apparently youguys (plus everybody else going throughinterviews last fall) managed to miss atotal of 515 interviews. Employers gotpeeved (and rightly so) forcing theadoption of a new policy : miss oneinterview and you can't rank any jobnumber one; miss two and you're out.Even if you find a related job by yourselfit doesn't count as far as the university isconcerned. Remember that you need fivesuccessful workterms to graduate. Not allthe news from Co-op is morbid, however.A new and upgraded computer system is inthe works. The pilot run is expected forthe Fall 1991 intervie ws. An interimprogram might possibly be in for thisterm's interviews. You should be able to

Social events sprang up here andthere. Engineering Week and Weekendboth happened. Everyone involved hadfun. (So what else is new?) The regularboring stuff was planned, such as boatracing, human curling and Jello wrestling(well, maybe not so boring).The Arts Lccture Sit in" was anEngineering Weekend event that wasn'tnearly as fun 'as anticipated. A group ofabout twenty students organized by 2A

Systems sat in on a first year Englishclass and proceeded to disrupt it for abouttwenty minutes . Unfortunately,disrupting a class in progress is anacademic offence carrying a punishmentb e t w ~ n a reprimand and expulsion. AsDean Lennox said: [It was] a stupid thing'to have done, and now they'll have to takethe consequences."

Not to be outdone, some of our ownengineers organized "Mega Party" at th ebeginning of the term . It was such asuccess that they held "Mega Party II" atthe end of the term. Now I'm seeingadvertisements for "Mega Party III" onSal. June 2 at 414 Erb. The last one sawwell ovcr 500 people show up.In short, the world of Waterloocontinued on without you and it didn'tblow up. Welco me back, and lets have afabulous summer

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May 11,1990 Iron Warrior Page 9

DiscussYour Co op

Robert GreenwaldAcademics DirectorWho did you work for? What wasyour position? Where was your companylocated? When .. ? Why .. ? And the key:How Much . ..... ?Aren't you sick of these questions?Don't get me wrong - I care about wheremy friends spent the last four months -but it's always the same questions over.and over again. Read on to find out about

a possible solution.After my first work term, I felt asthough an important component wasmissing from the co-op system: there werefew opportunities for students to learnabout other job experiences. To fill thisvoid, Alex Poole (now on A stream), andmyself organized co-op seminars forour class. The seminars providedinformation concerning good and bad coop experiences. Furthermore, they were ameans for 'technology transfer' betweenstudents concerning modem engineeringpractices. This is how it works:

... the same questionsover and over again.At informal get-togethers on a classby-class basis, students discuss anythingthey want to about previous jobs. Theusual format is a five minute presentationabout each job followed by a question andanswer period. The class rep can set up aschedule of six or seven students per hourand let the class know who will bespeaking and about what jobs. A goodtime to hold the seminars is during theclass prof hours two weeks prior to the

ermrelease of the Want Ads, so the studentscan hear about different jobs beforeapplying.The best part of the seminars is thatstudents can really sh oot from the hip.There are no Co-ordinators, professors oremployers to influence the speakers. Theseminars are really an extension of theUnWant Ads but with greater depth andscope.The seminars are not only for studentsgoing through interviews. There is a lot

Ask y'ourself why youare in a co-opprogram.to learn from y our friends (rea lly ),whether you have a job locked up or not.Ask yourself why you are in a co-opprogramme, and the answers will alwaysbring you back to the principles behindthese co-op seminars.Your class rep will be geuinginformation at the first Council Meetiof the term. Soeak to hcr/him about

Learn from th-e jobexperiences o yourfriends.seminars. For even more informationleave a note for me in the Orifice orto somebody from Mechstasy (4Aabout their experiences.Learn from the job experiencesyour colleagues after returning fromwork term - participate in the , " ' ~ . ,seminars this term. It's up to you andyour class to make this idea work.

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10/12

Page 10 Iron Warrior May 11, 1990

Canadian Engineering StudentsSean Murphy2B MechanicalEric Langford4A Civil (offstream)

To quote Donald Cole, the CanadianCongress of Engineering Studentsconference chairman, the goal of theconference was to increase awareness ofthe issues presently facing engineeringeducation. That goal was met andsurpassed as thirty-one engineeringsocieties from across Canada discussedissues ranging from gun control to cellularcommunication.The conference was hosted by Queen'sUniversity in Kingston from January 9 to14 1990. The theme of the conferencewas Canadian Engineering Students:Bridging the Technology Gap.Though not the focus of theconference, the incident which took place

at the Ecole Poly echnique and itsrepercussions were a centre of controversyand debate. As a result, other issues didn'treceive full allention, since the eventremained clearly in the minds of thedelegates. The emotional content of whatwas discussed was overwhelming to those

... workshops,discussions,speakers, ...

not prepared for a full-scale discussion ofthe issues of sexism and gun control.The central theme of the conferenceincluded speeches such as: Today'sEngineering Student: Caught in aCrossfire of Rapid Change by Dr. MarkAbbott, Director for the Ontario ScienceCentre; Canada in a Technology Race by

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Mr. Gerry Dyer, director at the DupontResearch Centre; and Student Ethics:Attitudes toward Science and Technologyby Mr. Morris Chochla, an attorney forBrown & Forbes. There was also a paneldiscussion regarding education and fundingwhich included a mong others Mr.Murray Trask, Vice-President of DowChemical, and Dr. Tom Brzustowski,Minister for Colleges and Universities forthe province of Ontario.In the workshops, Ms. ClaudetteMacKay-Lassonde, Director of Universityand Initiatives at Northern Telecomdiscussed Engineers in Politics ; Dr.Robert Dengler, Chairman of DynatecInternational, discussed EntrepeneurialSkills and Education ; Dr. R.D. Fraser,Vice-principal (Resources) at Queen's,discussed Education and Funding ; Mr.G.W. Piper, President of the APEOdiscussed the Engineering Image ; Dr.Peter McGeer, Director of the OntarioCentre for Materials Research, discussedInnovation and Creativity ; Mr. GaryLindberg, Vice-President of CorporateServices and Research for the CanadianSpace Agency, discussed Canada and

... issues rangingfrom sexism toeducational funding.S p ~ c e ; Mr. Mike Allen, of AdjelianRubeli Allen Consulting, discussed TheSkydome and Mr. Nick Kauser, VicePresident of Operations at Cantel ,discussed Cellular Communications .

Each of these workshops anddiscussion groups was well attended, eventhose early in the morning. Manydelegates compared notes following thediscussion workshops, since delegationswould split up to accumulate as muchinformation as possible . As a result, thedelegations would have greaterbackgrounds of knowledge to report backto their respective schools. Themagnitude of this conference is illustratedby the fact that the above issues could bediscussed simultaneously in English and,

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French using translation service headsets.This conference was truly national in thatall representatives had the right to expressthemselves in the language of their choice.During the conference, each universitypresented itself to the thirty otheruniversities present. It was exciting tofind out that a lot of other universitieswere interested in what Waterloo and otheruniversities were up to. QJestions wereasked about the co-op program offered atWaterloo and how the Society isstructured to allow for co-op. Questionswere also asked about the new Endowment

...banning BrickBeer ..Fund and how it would be applied to theUniversity for the pursuit of newequipment for undergraduate classes andlabs. As well, other universities wereinterested in hearing about POETS, theMacintosh networks, exchange programs,recycling, boat racing, and even the worldfamous Brick beer. (Brick beer was not sowelcome after the Waterloo party the rustnight of the conference.) These items arenot exclusive to Waterloo, but Waterloo isthe most organized in implementing them.It's just another step in striving to be oneof the best engineering schools in Canada.A large number of resolutions werepassed during the plenary session atcongress. Some were silly, such as theresolution banning Brick beer at furtherC.C.E.S. conferences (it was overturned),and others were considerably more serious(Be it resolved that the Congress ofCanadian Engineering Students is opposedto anyone in Canadian territory having inhis/her possession any military orparamilitary weapon, with the exceptionof members of the Armed Forces and lawenforcement officers for the purpose oftheir duties.) Many concerns were broughtup on both sides of this resolution. Mostdelegates were unprepared for such astatement from the congress, and were notwilling to put forward their own opinionsas those of their societies. As a result, theresolution passed but without theunanimous consent of the delegates as thenational executive of the conference hadhoped.

. . some areas still towork on.

The conference revealed a number ofareas still to be worked on by Engineeringstudents all over Canada. The issues ofsexism, educational funding, and thepromotion of engineering for everyonemust be examined by all those whoconsider themselves to be a part of thesolution and not of the nightmare thatfollowed the incident at the EcolePolyleChnique.I'd like to thank the Dean for hisfinancial assistance in allowing Waterlooto attend the conference. The nextC.C.E.S. confernce will be held inSaskatoon in early January 1991. Istrongly recommend that anyone interestedshould attend this or any other conference.For further information, please leave me anote in the Engineering Society Office.


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May 11, 1990 Iron Warrior Page 11

Western emories

Belinda Elysee-Collen3A ChemicalThis past worktenn I found myself

just about as far west as you get inCanada. I was working for Howe SoundPulp and Paper, a pulp mill in PortMellon B.C.. No one lives in PortMellon; it's only a mill set on the watersof Howe Sound amidst snow cappedmountains. The bulk of the populationlives in nearby Gibsons, B.C., home ofthe Beachcombers and Molly's Reach .Gibsons can be reached via a 40-minuteferry ride from Vancouver. r got to knowthe ferry schedule quite well, as thepopulation of Gibsons is about 3000 a farcry from the population I'm used to inToronto. I quickly lear.ned theconsequences of missing the last one ofthe day; the ferry is your lifeline.

The UBC engineeringug was suspendedfrom the bridge

The main industry in B.C. is forestry,and hence pulp and paper. The chemicalengineering program at UBC is gearedtowards pulp and paper, and the bulk oftheir graduates end up working in millsaround the province. The University ofVictoria does not have a chemicalengineering department, and Simon FraserUniversity in Vancouver does not offerengineering as such. The other technicalgrads come from The British ColumbiaInstitute of Technology (B.C.LT.), whichis essentially geared towards pulp andpaper. I came to appreciate the, diversityand choice of education offered to us inOntario.The population of the entire provinceof BC is only 3 million, 2.5 million ofwhich live in Vancouver and its suburbs.And B.C. is covered in mountains, whichdo not lend themselves to the building ofsprawling cities. Despite its size,Vancouver has a small-town mentality.The pace is very slow compared to that ofSouthern Ontario. The local eveningnews is comparable to that of a NorthernOntario community like Thun,der Bay,I


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Page 12 Iron Warrior May 11 990

yPayMore?Support YOUR University

Use the ON CAMPUSDUPLICATING, COPYING and BINDERY facilities.

. , Try the Full Colour Copier inthe Dana Porter Arts Library Copy CentreRoom 218 - Phone 2956.Offset PrintingGraphic Services, hours 8:00 am-4:30 pm

Photocopying We serve at 7 per copy FST included) ,discount on volume copying. Collating,stapling and a variety of paper coloursavailable at no extra cost available at thelocations listed below) Self serve copying at 5 per copy available in the libraries and various locationson campus) Venda card copiers are located in theDana Porter and Davis Centre Libraries

Copy Centre LocationsDana Porter Library - LIB 218, ext. 2956Math Centre - MC 51 04A, ext. 2335Engineering - E2 2353, ext. 2334Arts Centre - HH 370, ext. 2336Davis Centre Library - DC 1501 , ext. 3878

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TypesettingOur Linotronic 300 typesetter will typesetany computer file in PostScript format on aMac diskette, a 5.25 or 3.5 inch PCdiskette, SCRIPT on CMS and TROFF onUNIX.We can translate your PC file to our Macand format into brochures, books, reportsand flyers, etc.For more information about typesetting,call ext. 3540.

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iron warrior: volume 11, issue 4

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