Engineering

Aviation is a rapidly expanding sector in developing economies like those in Asia. Aeronautical engineering is the foundation of aviation as a mode of transport. Together with space flight, aeronautics has been a driving force behind many of the modern technological development in the past century or so. This course aims to provide students with a solid foundation in the most important aspects of aircraft design and operation. The underlying science is common with many technological branches in general mechanical engineering, but it also has distinctive features that make aeronautics more challenging and interesting. For example, flow around aircraft is compressible with possible presence of shock waves while ordinary flows in engineering is low-speed and incompressible. The engine has similar thermodynamic cycles like that found in a gas turbine power plant but its main output is not derived from the turbine. Materials used in aircraft design must have the lowest possible weight for a given strength requirement. Specifically, the course will cover the following topics: aerodynamics and propulsion, materials and structures; safety and some aspects of operation and maintenance of aircrafts. Topics include: history of aeronautical science; wing aerodynamics; propulsion; flight mechanics; systems and airframe structures; fatigue-crack growth; crack monitoring; damage tolerance; metallic materials; composites; fibre-reinforced laminates; high-temperature alloys for turbines; creep damage.

This course starts with a historical overview of computer simulations in science and engineering and an introduction to the challenges and opportunities in connecting simulations, theory, and experiments. Students address the core concepts essential to understand and interpret computer simulations in science and engineering, including the fundamentals of statistical physics, interaction potentials, Monte Carlo simulations, equation-based simulations, and the concept of coarse-grained simulations and enhanced sampling techniques. 

From the Internet to the WWW, from wireless communication networks, large power networks to global transportation networks, from the brain in organisms, various metabolic networks to various economic, political, and social relationship networks, people's socioeconomic activities and daily life all take place in a world full of complex networks. Complex network theory studies the commonalities between various complex networks that appear to be different from each other and the universal methods for dealing with them. Since the end of the 20th century, complex network research has permeated many different fields from mathematics and physics to life sciences and information engineering. The scientific understanding of the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of complex networks has become an extremely important challenge in scientific research in the network era. This course will be taught in English, and strives to introduce the basic concepts, basic theories, basic algorithms and practical applications of network science represented by complex network theory in a way that science and engineering undergraduates can understand, including some of the lecturer's own research. The main purpose is to enable students to understand the basic system of complex network systems through the study of this course, master the basic concepts of complex network theory, and cultivate students' interest in network science.

This course introduces the concept "Design for X" (DfX), which is well established within product development. In any product development project, it is essential to ensure that the product satisfies the functions it is designed for. But many other issues are caused by, or affect the properties of the product: is the product reliable, sustainable, is it easy to assemble, and inexpensive to manufacture? In this course, the following "design for Xs" are included: design for manufacturing and assembly (DFMA), design for additive manufacturing (DFAM), robust design, design for environment (DFE), and design to cost (DtC).

In this research course, students chose from a range of research topics in various academic fields and receive one-on-one training from an experienced mentor who helps them refine research ideas, formulate questions, define methods of data collection, execute a plan, and present findings. Students review background information for their project, summarize its key outcomes, write a clear and concise research paper or report, and present results orally.

This course explores various ethical questions related to engineering. Examples include: What is the relationship between ethical and social responsibilities in engineering? What is considered ethical? What is considered legal? Who decides that? etc. It discusses the idea that the essence of ethics is not to set up barriers to technical progress, but, rather, to indicate in which direction progress should move. Key topics include: algorithmic fairness, the rationality of ethics, and strategies for engineers to maintain ethical integrity while working in complex systems and organizations. 

Mechanics of materials is a branch of applied mechanics that deals with the basic behavior of solid bodies subjected to various types of loading. The knowledge of the stress and strain set up within the bodies and resulting deflection is a prerequisite for the structural design of industrial products and infrastructures such as buildings, roads, bridges, and various equipment. In this course, the basic idea of structural design is provided based on the quantitative evaluation of mechanical stress and strain fields in various structures.

This course offers a study of the theory of automata and formal languages. Topics include: automata theory; finite automata; languages and formal grammars; regular languages; pushdown automata; Turing machine; compilers.

This module introduces the various standards and techniques of sketching, how to prepare engineering drawings and specifications, and how to interpret drawings. Students use advanced commercial CAD software to do 3D solid modeling. Above all, this module expands the students’ creative talent and enhances their ability to communicate their ideas in a meaningful manner. Major topics include: principles of projections; isometric; orthographic and isometric sketching; 3D solid modeling; sectioning and dimensioning; drawing standards; and limits, fits, and geometrical tolerances. This module provides the student with the fundamental knowledge to do calculations on design components like bolts, screws, fasteners, weld joints, springs, gears, material selection, fatigue, bearings, and shafts.

This course explores the historical evolution of the aerospace industry and technologies, highlighting the development of various elements of aircraft and the impact on human life.