The biomedical engineering senior capstone design course is probably the most important course taken by undergraduate biomedical engineering students. It provides them with the opportunity to apply what they have learned in previous years; develop their communication (written, oral, and graphical), interpersonal (teamwork, conflict management, and negotiation), project management, and design skills; and learn about the product development process. It also provides students with an understanding of the economic, financial, legal, and regulatory aspects of the design, development, and commercialization of medical technology. The capstone design experience can change the way engineering students think about technology, society, themselves, and the world around them. It gives them a short preview of what it will be like to work as an engineer. It can make them aware of their potential to make a positive contribution to health care throughout the world and generate excitement for and pride in the engineering profession. Working on teams helps students develop an appreciation for the many ways team members, with different educational, political, ethnic, social, cultural, and religious backgrounds, look at problems. They learn to value diversity and become more willing to listen to different opinions and perspectives. Finally, they learn to value the contributions of nontechnical members of multidisciplinary project teams. Ideas for how to organize, structure, and manage a senior capstone design course for biomedical and other engineering students are presented here. These ideas will be helpful to faculty who are creating a new design course, expanding a current design program to more than the senior year, or just looking for some ideas for improving an existing course. Contents: I. Purpose, Goals, and Benefits / Why Our Students Need a Senior Capstone Design Course / Desired Learning Outcomes / Changing Student Attitudes, Perceptions, and Awarenesss / Senior Capstone Design Courses and Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology Outcomes / II. Designing a Course to Meet Student Needs / Course Management and Required Deliverables / Projects and Project Teams / Lecture Topics / Intellectual Property Confidentiality Issues in Design Projects / III. Enhancing the Capstone Design Experience / Industry Involvement in Capstone Design Courses / Developing Business and Entrepreneurial Literacy / Providing Students with a Clinical Perspective / Service Learning Opportunities / Collaboration with Industrial Design Students / National Student Design Competitions / Organizational Support for Senior Capstone Design Courses / IV. Meeting the Changing Needs of Future Engineers / Capstone Design Courses and the Engineer of 2020

The Tibetan divination system called "Mo" has been relied upon for centuries to give insight into the future turns of events, undertakings, and relationships. It is a clear and simple method involving two rolls of a die to reveal one of the thirty-six possible outcomes described in the text. This Mo, which obtains its power from Manjushri, was developed by the great master Jamgon Mipham from sacred texts expounded by the Buddha.

The biomedical engineering senior capstone design course is probably the most important course taken by undergraduate biomedical engineering students. It provides them with the opportunity to apply what they have learned in previous years, develop their communication, teamwork, project management, and design skills, and learn about the product development process. It prepares students for professional practice and serves as a preview of what it will be like to work as a biomedical engineer. The capstone design experience can change the way engineering students think about technology, themselves, society, and the world around them. It can make them aware of their potential to make a positive contribution to healthcare throughout the world and generate excitement for, and pride in, the engineering profession. Ideas for how to organize, structure, and manage a senior capstone design course for biomedical and other engineering students are presented here. These ideas will be helpful to faculty who are creating a new design course, expanding a current design program, or just looking for some ideas for improving an existing course. The better we can make these courses, the more "industry ready" our students will be, and the better prepared they will be for meaningful, successful careers in biomedical engineering. This book is the second part of a series covering Capstone Design Courses for biomedical engineers. Part I is available online here and in print (ISBN 9781598292923) and covers the following topics: Purpose, Goals, and Benefits; Designing a Course to Meet Student Needs; Enhancing the Capstone Design Courses; Meeting the Changing Needs of Future Engineers. Table of Contents: The Myth of the "Industry-Ready" Engineer / Recent Trends and the Current State of Capstone Design / Preparing Students for Capstone Design / Helping Students Recognize the Value of Capstone Design Courses / Developing Teamwork Skills / Incorporating Design Controls / Learning to Identify Problems, Unmet Needs, and New Product Opportunities / Design Verification and Validation / Liability Issues with Assistive Technology Projects / Standards in Capstone Design Courses and the Engineering Curriculum / Design Transfer and Design for Manufacturability / Learning from other Engineering Disciplines: Capstone Design Conferences / Maintaining a Relevant, Up-to-Date Capstone Design Course / Active Learning in Capstone Design Courses / Showcasing Student Projects: National Student Design Competitions / Managing Student Expectations of the "Real World" / Career Management and Professional Development / Conclusion

A preview of one of the team sections is available at
http: //www.900footballlinks.net/2013booksample.htm
Please visit that web page to see the information contained for every team.
Jay Goldberg is the lead analyst for 900 Football Links.
ALL TEAM SECTIONS INCLUDE:
Schedule Depth Chart Season Outlook Write-Up with 2012 Team Offensive & Defensive Rankings Write-Up on Nine Players for Fantasy Football; Each Classified as a Sleeper, Break-Out, Star, or Caution List of Draft Picks (includes top undrafted college street free agents) Workout Numbers for All Players on the Above List (includes the free agents) Notations for Senior Bowl/East West Shrine Game Players That Popped Draft Report Card Write-Up with Grade and Draft Value Index Score College Stats and Write-Ups for Players Drafted or Signed on Jay's Annual List of Players Who Will Have a Better NFL Career Than Many Selected Higher Than Them in the Draft Team Draft Tendency Chart by Workout Drill for the 2012 and 2013 Drafts Note - Throughout the team pages are bonus graphs and charts comparing teams' draft workout strategies, teams' draft value indices, and fantasy football production comparisons between 2011 and 2012
ALSO INCLUDED IN THIS PREVIEW:
Season Projections Article: Despite Experts' Protests - The Draft Is All About the Numbers Draft Report Card Value Index Calculation Explained Article: A Different Approach to Fantasy Football Fantasy Football Categories Explained Week by Week Schedule

People Skills is the third book in DTR Inc.'s series for classroom and on the job work readiness and customer service training. This is the second edition of the book, published in November of 2013.
A complete volume including all four modules with additional instructor tools is now available. Visit www.DTRConsulting.BIZ/workreadiness.htm for more information.
At the end of each book are two workplace scenarios where things go right and things go wrong. Use the scenarios in the books as read and discuss exercises after teaching the material in the book, or to create your own certification tests.
This book covers topics that help employees get along with co-workers and supervisors. A company with employees that understand their relationship to others in the company, and have the skills to deal with everyone successfully, reduces workplace conflicts and provides a workplace where people look forward to coming to work. And a workplace where people look forward to coming to work is a productive workplace with employees that relate to and care about the company.
The book starts by teaching communication skills, both verbal and non-verbal (personal signals). The first goal is to eliminate problems that arise because of poor communication skills.
After this introduction, the book covers how to get along with co-workers (including behaviors to avoid in the workplace such as gossiping about co-workers), teamwork and the role of the team leader, how to get along with supervisors (including rules to follow), how to meet supervisor's expectations, the value and purpose of performance appraisals, and more. One exercise included in the book is a role reversal exercise where the participants are put in a supervisory position, and have to make decisions regarding their employees.
This book is valuable for all and has a couple of team building exercises that a company can use to help its employees get used to working cohesively and productively with each other.

Workplace Skills is the second book in DTR Inc.'s series for classroom and on the job work readiness and customer service training.This is the second edition of the book, published in November of 2013.
A complete volume including all four modules with additional instructor tools is now available. Visit www.DTRConsulting.BIZ/workreadiness.htm for more information.
At the end of each book are two workplace scenarios where things go right and things go wrong. Use the scenarios in the books as read and discuss exercises after teaching the material in the book, or to create your own certification tests.
This book covers topics that help employees add value to their existing jobs and, therefore, provide them with skills that can lead to raises and promotions. A company with employees that continually perform above and beyond expectations will be a very successful company. In addition, a company that has employees that demonstrate advanced skills, can promote from within, and therefore, have a harmonious and industrious workplace.
The topics in this book include: time management, creative thinking, problem-solving skills, report generation, ethics, task completion, using procedure manuals, importance of continuing education, and more. In order to accomplish these skills, the proper use of reading, writing, and mathematics is explored since the way most were taught these topics in school does not apply in the workplace.
Since this book contains topics that can lead to employees increasing their value to their employers so they can get good raises and promotions; it has a component of self-interest for the employees as well as value to the businesses that use it for training staff.
Visit www.DTRConsulting.BIZ for more information regarding DTR Inc.'s work readiness and customer service training program.

Workplace Basics is the first book in DTR Inc.'s series for classroom and on the job work readiness and customer service training. This is the second edition of the book, published in November of 2013.
A complete volume including all four modules with additional instructor tools is now available. Visit www.DTRConsulting.BIZ/workreadiness.htm for more information.
At the end of each book are two workplace scenarios where things go right and things go wrong. Use the scenarios in the books as read and discuss exercises after teaching the material in the book, or to create your own certification tests.
This first book, Workplace Basics, covers topics that all workers need to know, that many employers assume they do know, but that many workers, in reality, do not know. This often leads to supervisors and managers becoming very frustrated with workers who, otherwise, would be top performers.
The book starts by explaining the profit motive of businesses and the relationship between profits and job security and employee compensation. The goal is to clearly demonstrate that employees' life goals are closely aligned to the success of the company for which they work.
After this introduction, the book covers behaviors that employees need to follow help ensure a successful workplace, which in turn, helps keep the company profitable and everyone employed. Topics include: absenteeism, tardiness, use of sick days, proper grooming, safety in the workplace, how life style and habits away from work impacts work, avoiding harassment and discrimination at work, dating in the workplace, being dependable, being responsible, the difference between raises and promotions, and more.
In addition to being valuable for existing employees, this book is ideal to use as part of a company's new employee orientation process.

Customer Service is the fourth and final book in DTR Inc.'s series for classroom and on the job work readiness and customer service training. This is the second edition of the book, published in November of 2013.
A complete volume including all four modules with additional instructor tools is now available. Visit www.DTRConsulting.BIZ/workreadiness.htm for more information.
At the end of each book are two workplace scenarios where things go right and things go wrong. Use the scenarios in the books as read and discuss exercises after teaching the material in the book, or to create your own certification tests.
This book was written by a former Service Director for Citibank, and therefore, is an area of great expertise for the author. This book covers service from two perspectives. The first is to teach the value of providing superior customer service, to both the company's customers and to co-workers who rely on the work of others to complete their tasks. The second is to provide the readers with customer service skills they can take with them and start using immediately at work.
The book starts with the concept of a customer-focused organization. From there it proceeds to identifying internal and external customers, the profit-side of customer service, and the importance and role of service measurements.
After this, the book branches out to teach customer service skills. The skills taught include: improving service attitudes, active listening skills, conquering communication barriers, choosing words carefully, categorizing customer responses, telephone skills, dealing with difficult customers, and more. There are a number of exercises in the book to help illustrate key points.
This book is valuable for all and, when all employees of a business become customer-focused; the result will be an increase in the company's bottom line through positive word of mouth, customer retention, and a growing customer base.

Six Degrees of Separation was originally proposed by Frigyes Karinthy. The theory says that everyone in the world can be connected through a maximum of six steps. Applying that theory to The Beatles, this book shows how 1,550 bands/artists connect back to The Beatles.
This is Volume One of a planned series and examines the Paul McCartney "Rock Tree." The other Beatles will get their own books in the future.
The book contains fifty "rock trees" each with thirty one bands/artists per tree and each with a companion chart showing how the bands are connected.
In terms of six degrees of separation, the Beatles are the base and Paul McCartney is the first degree. The band/artist on the top of each of the fifty "rock trees" therefore is the second degree. The trees then expand two by two down to the sixth degree (resulting in sixteen sixth degree bands/artists per tree).
The goal was not to repeat any band/artist, although musicians can be solo artists and parts of different bands. I accomplished that goal.
Only band members or guest or studio musicians or singers were used to connect the bands/artists. Song writing, production, engineering, etc. credits did not count.
For those of you into lists and/or finding new or unfamiliar music; there are charts listing twelve songs of note from each of the fifty "rock trees." In a few cases I couldn't help myself and threw in an additional song or two.
Also, there is an index in the back of the book listing all 1,550 bands/artists with the page number for the "rock tree" that contains that band/artist.

In its first year, about half of all businesses fail. Five years down the line, depending upon which study you look at, only 1 in 10 to 1 in 3 businesses are left standing. The main reasons businesses fail are no business plan and poor management. That is why this book covers both topics. However, this book goes beyond other books on these topics. The book not only provides a road map for writing a business plan, but also provides a strategy for writing a business plan. A business plan is both a strategic document and a sales document. It also provides the reader with a look into the skills, knowledge and personality of the business owner. Therefore, a good business plan is written to satisfy all of these uses. In addition, this book provides information on how to research and organize the information needed for a business plan, and has worksheets the entrepreneur can use to help make the process easier. Likewise, management topics such as strategic planning (SWOT analysis plus), advertising, branding, project management, customer service management, cash flow management, sales skills, business writing and more are explained, and a method is provided for each management skill that can be implemented and used in the business. There are worksheets for many of the management topics as well. While many business book writers know and cover business writing, it's amazing how few actually apply that knowledge to their business books. I do. The information in this book is presented in bullet points, assuring the reader that he or she does not have to wade through four paragraphs of writing to get a couple of key points. Even the size of the book is practical for the end user. An over-sized book might attract attention in the book store, but would make it difficult to copy and use the worksheets in the book. An under-sized book might demonstrate value by the sheer volume of pages (same amount of information, but more pages), but would mean compressing the worksheets into smaller sizes rendering them less useful. In addition to entrepreneurs, this book was written so that venues teaching entrepreneurship can use it as a text book. In fact, I have been teaching entrepreneurship courses since 1997. This book was written to be a stand alone book, to support my business plan mentoring service (I review the worksheets for clients), and to be a text book for my course, How to Start, Grow and Manage a Business. The book received a very good review from the Midwest Book Review: "Too many businesses are started without the experience needed to keep it alive and going. "Building a Successful Business" is Jay Goldberg's advice manual for those embarking on the entrepreneurial path, with tips on how to avoid the common pitfalls that strike many first time business owners. With advice on strategically planning your business, cautious advertising, business writing, managing the funds and more, "Building a Successful Business" is a strongly recommended pick for any first time business person." Author's personal note: While the review concentrated on new business owners, the book was written for both first time business owners and established business owners. Many people assume that established business owners are utilizing management tools to help ensure success. However, many do not and that is one reason for the high failure rate of existing businesses. My book provides management tools, with associated worksheets, that existing businesses can use to help them achieve or maintain success as well as tools and worksheets for new business owners.