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I am currently a Project Scientist at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the project manager for a multi-million dollar endeavor sponsored by the National Science Foundation to build the U.S.'s largest and first outdoor shaking table. This piece of equipment is being built in San Diego and will allow for testing of full-scale structures (bridges and buildings) on the shake table that can be subjected to real earthquake records. Prior to this project, I worked on the design and testing of components of a cable-stayed bridge that will be built over Interstate 5 in San Diego made out of advanced composite materials. I graduated with a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Michigan and came to UCSD to get my masters and Ph.D. in Structural Engineering, which I completed in 2001. My first exposure to Structural Engineering was in my 7th grade science class, where our big end of the year project was a bridge competition. We were given popsicle sticks and wood glue and under strict guidelines such as the width and length of the bridge, the number of popsicle sticks, and the weight of the bridge, we were supposed to come up with an innovative bridge design. The popsicle bridges were placed in between two tables and a load was applied to the center of the bridges to see how much weight the bridges could withstand before failing. This project was really influential because it was my first experience that integrated the creative side of design with engineering/mathematical principles. It seems that before I even made a decision to go into engineering, I was destined to become an engineer. I have always been good at math and science, my father is an Electrical Engineer, and all of my siblings (there are six of us total) are in some kind of science or engineering field. When I was applying for colleges, my father discussed with me the various engineering fields to help me decide which discipline of engineering I would pursue. When he got to Civil Engineering he said, "Civil Engineers build bridges". My immediate response was "Nope, I definitely do not want to be a Civil Engineer!!!" I went to the University of Michigan and although I was in the School of Engineering, I took my time deciding which discipline to pursue. Ironically, I finally ended up choosing Civil Engineering (Structures) because I was interested in architecture and thought that in Structural Engineering I could combine the creative part of architecture with engineering. Basically, my family played an integral part in my decision to become an engineer and I am very grateful for their continued support and encouragement. In addition to research and project management, I currently teach two Structural Engineering classes at UCSD. The most exciting part of my role as Lecturer is getting students excited about a career in Structural Engineering at a very early stage of their education. Specifically, I enjoy showing the students the creative side of engineering and how what they learn in each class during their academic career fits into the big picture of engineering and real world applications. I also enjoy the variety of work that academics have to offer. Every research project that I am involved in is extremely different from the last one. Throughout my engineering career (including college and graduate
school) I have been one of the few women, and therefore, did not
have a lot of peers or mentors who I could discuss issues that are
relevant to women such as how to simultaneously pursue both a family
and a career. However, as one of the few women, I must admit that
I get noticed more often and have more of a chance to make an impact.
Although I am a supporter of women's liberation, I do believe there
are definite gender differences and that both men and women bring
different attributes to the field of engineering. I have seen other
women colleagues who felt as though they were forced to become more
masculine to "fit in". However, I believe women are an
asset because not only are we technically as good as the men, but
often times we have better personal and communication skills, which
are often lacking in scientists and engineers. I feel that women
should be encouraged throughout their engineering careers. I truly
enjoy being a mentor to all the up and coming women engineers that
I teach.
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