The Uncommon Engineer

Mass transit options, such as buses and subways, naturally create environments that conflict with social distancing practices. Even ridesharing options – and other sharing economy services - present problems. What does travel look like in a Covid-19 world? And, how do we adapt to those changes?

Our guest on The Uncommon Engineer is Kari Watkins, the Frederick Law Olmsted associate professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Her work focuses on the pairing of technology and transportation.

Mass transit options, such as buses and subways, naturally create environments that conflict with social distancing practices. Even ridesharing options – and other sharing economy services - present problems. What does travel look like in a Covid-19 world? And, how do we adapt to those changes?

Our guest on The Uncommon Engineer is Kari Watkins, the Frederick Law Olmsted associate professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Her work focuses on the pairing of technology and transportation.

In 2020, Covid-19 entered the United States and changed our daily lives. Quarantining, face coverings, social distancing, and working from home have become our “new normal.” The spread of Covid-19 is flattening out and the number of cases in some parts of the country have leveled off. However, experts warn of a second wave in the fall. So, how do we move forward in the face of Covid-19 and its continued impact on our lives? And what should we do to plan for the future?

In 2020, Covid-19 entered the United States and changed our daily lives. Quarantining, face coverings, social distancing, and working from home have become our “new normal.” The spread of Covid-19 is flattening out and the number of cases in some parts of the country have leveled off. However, experts warn of a second wave in the fall. So, how do we move forward in the face of Covid-19 and its continued impact on our lives? And what should we do to plan for the future?

Innovation is one of the core pillars of Georgia Tech’s College of Engineering. And for many engineers, that means becoming an entrepreneur after earning a degree. Our guests today are brothers, often known as the “Tech Twins,” Travis and Troy Nunnally. They both earned graduate degrees from the College, became serial entrepreneurs, and cofounded a business venture called Brain Rain Solutions.

According to IBM, quantum computing could offer ways to create medications that save lives and machine learning methods to diagnose illnesses sooner. It could even create financial strategies to live well in retirement. But what exactly is quantum computing, and what does it take to achieve these quantum breakthroughs? Professor Moinuddin Qureshi is from the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. His research is focused around quantum computing. And he’s here today to explain to us just what that is.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented changes and challenges in our world and nation. With personal protective equipment and other medical devices in short supply, engineers within the College are doing their part to help the healthcare system during this crisis.
Our guests for this episode include Chris Saldana, professor in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and Sam Graham, chair of the School, who are here to talk about the work they are doing to fight the spread of COVID-19. I spoke to our guests virtually, due to social distancing.

AI, machine learning, Big Data.... It's everywhere. So, how do we monetize it? And how is it helping big businesses become even bigger? Our guest is Seth Radman, a Georgia Tech graduate who has started and grown multiple successful startups, a number of which leverage AI.

Employers today are eager to harness the artificial intelligence (AI) and big data captured by the algorithms to speed up the hiring process. But depending on the data used, automated hiring decisions can be very biased. Our guest is Swati Gupta, a professor and researcher in the School of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Georgia Tech. She’s an expert in all things AI.

In the 1920’s, business was booming and the Charleston was all the rage. But what about the 2020’s, our new decade? We have seen some of the greatest technological advances ever made, happening right now, on Georgia Tech’s campus. But what predictions from decades past are informing this new decade? Will we send a man to Mars or cure cancer? No one truly knows, but today, we have three engineers here to weigh in on a few predictions and forecast for the future.

Glenn Lightsey is a professor in the School of Aerospace Engineering. James Rains is professor of the practice and director of the Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering’s Capstone program. And Magnus Egerstedt is the chair and professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.