Engineers Make a Difference: Motivating Students to Pursue an Engineering Education

Sustainable Energy Engineering Teacher's Guide

Aerospace Engineering Teacher's Guide

Mechanical Engineering Teacher's Guide

Engineering Principles Teacher's Guide

Engineering Graphics Teacher's Guide

Aeronautical Engineering Teacher's Guide

Civil Engineering Teacher's Guide

Teaching Engineering Made Easy: A Friendly Introduction to Engineering Activities for Middle School Teachers

Engineering medical equipment and life support systems for animal is a big field for engineers. In 2007, NBC news reported that Americans spent $180 billion on their pets. Pet care is a booming industry and a fantastic field for engineers. Many girls are also drawn to the field with the hope of helping both small and/or large animals.

For example, imagine that you are responsible for building a new exhibit for an endangered or rare Tiger. The big cat has to be happy in its new home, you need to make sure that the animal cannot escape from its habitat and that the zoo guests have a nice viewing area without encroaching on the Tiger’s personal space. To be successful, you must collect information such as: How high does a tiger jump? What’s the perfect climate? Do they like other tigers? and then design an exhibit that will make the tiger happy.

Zoo design is a tricky business. It’s interesting to learn about penguins, hippos, rhinos, giraffes, etc. The work is similar to designing building systems but the equipment used in a zoo is unusual. Engineers usually have to go to special training and it’s important for them to keep up with the changes in the industry. Not only do you have to research the perfect environment for each animal, you also have to keep the guests happy by creating something that is aesthetically pleasing on the smallest budget possible. Zoos spend money to obtain new animals and build exhibits in order to attract more guests. If no one comes to the zoo, it will likely go out of business.

Architects usually design the face/aesthetics of the zoo but engineers are required to keep the animals alive and healthy. Engineers that work for zoos are called Life Support Engineers and are usually educated in Civil, Chemical, Biomedical, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering.