Wesley Williams

Pretty much sums up why I’ve leaned toward physics over chemistry since high school….

http://smbc-comics.com/comic/laws

We were excited to get the news that WaterBros was selected as on of ten Waves 2 Water ADAPT Stage winners.  This is the 3rd of 5 rounds of competition, and will culminate with deployments at Jennette’s Pier for testing.  We’ve benefited from the great original work done by the SAROS team and are happy that our design and modeling efforts have kept the concept moving forward.  There are some great teams in the top ten, so we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us to make it through the CREATE stage an on to the DRINK stage.

https://www.herox.com/wavestowater/teams

A couple of new (or revamped) portals for industry and research in hydropower have emerged over the past couple of weeks.  They look to be solid resources for marine energy specifically as well as hydropower in general.

https://www.hydroreview.com/ 

https://www.hydro.org/resources/warp/ 

My friend and former colleague wrote a book of essays this past year (in addition to being a mom to two kids and managing her job during the pandemic).  The book was like many of my conversations with Christina in that it was worth every bit of time that I allocated to it.  I recommend it for anyone pursuing or mentoring in the STEM fields, but particularly if you are from a background that is underrepresented in your chosen field or you are mentoring a diverse body of students in your discipline.

Amazon Link

In ‘Knowns, Unknowns, and Solutions’, Christina has chronicled the realistically meandering path she has taken to achieve her professional goals while remaining true to her principles and sense of self. This journey is complicated by the lack of mentors that look like her in the engineering field, but she details her strategies that empowered her progress. Most notably she talks about how those strategies evolved from high school to college to industry and then to management.

I try to be an ally and advocate for those that are underrepresented in engineering, but in reflecting on Christina’s journey, I found instances where my efforts fell short or missed the mark. It is a quick read that allows you to peek into her experiences, but one that leaves a lingering impact as you start to reexamine the counsel you offer students and new graduates on a similar path. With these new insights, I’m hopeful of being a better mentor for fresh batches of Christinas in the years to come.

It’s always good to hear from alumni that are doing exciting, creative, technical things and this past week brought a couple of gems to my attention.

8lincoln30 is a company founded by Jeremy Calamusa (UNC Charlotte alum) and his brother Jason here in Charlotte.  Avid makers, they have amassed an impressive portfolio of interesting projects that they have worked on to date.

https://www.8l30.com/

Longtime research assistant (undergrad and graduate) David Barnett is also offering his design and making skills down in Florida now, so I look forward to see what new projects he brings to life.

https://www.bodacious.design/home-1

For students who are job hunting, this would be a good virtual event to attend.

https://www.hydrofoundation.org/hiring-for-hydro—students.html

Jennette’s Pier has a new SOFAR buoy deployed to give localized measurements in preparation for the Waves to Water DRINK Stage Competition in April 2022.

SOFAR Bouy Dashboard for Jennette’s Pier

https://spotters.sofarocean.com/?spotter-filter=SPOT-0560