This Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education (NUE) in Engineering program entitled, "NUE: Integration of Nanotechnology into the ME curriculum via Energy Efficient Systems and Dynamic Structures",at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), under the direction of Dr. Kam K. Leang, aims to prepare 21st century mechanical engineers at UNR to meet the emerging challenges of nanotechnology using a new top-down 'learner-centered' pedagogical approach where the first important step is to excite them about the technology. Practical, easy-to-relate-to macro-scale applications such as aerospace structures, wind-energy turbine blades, and snow skis will be introduced into sophomore and junior-level courses, the technical engineering challenges and need for improving functionality of these applications will be presented and then linked to solutions offered by nanotechnology. To further reinforce the concepts, a suite of capstone-level design projects which includes nanocomposite-based wind-energy turbine blades and snow skis will be developed for students entering their senior year of study after being introduced to these applications in previous years.
