Shows
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastU. Michigan undergrads go to the TMS annual meeting in Las VegasTim and Steve talk with 4 of the Materials Science and Engineering undergraduate students who got to fly to Las Vegas to attend the TMS annual meeting in April 2025. They talked about their experiences and the impact that it had on their education and outlook for the future.You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/BxAqQOSZfuEThis episode is sponsored by the North American Materials Education Symposium, a gift from Prof. Ron Gibala, and the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2025-05-0441 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastChristine Viau Haden and Two Step Performance Indicators to Assess Learning GainsSteve ran into Christina Haden at the 2025 ABET symposium in San Diego two weeks ago. Christina has developed a multi step method of assessing student outcomes using performance indicators that span a period of time across an entire curriculum to gain knowledge of learning growth. She is experimenting with longer times and using her methods to perform longitudinal studies of learning gains. She also talked about of her more exciting projects that is focussed on a new first year in engineering experience that the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering is piloting next term.You...2025-04-2041 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastTaylor Sparks and Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast - on location at the TMS 2025 meetingSteve and Tim ran into Taylor Sparks at the TMS meeting and decided to do a podcast. Taylor is a professor in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at U. Utah. He is also the host of the long running materials science podcast called "Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast". You can find the podcast on Apple Podcasts at the link below or you can just search for it on any podcast platform: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/materialism-a-materials-science-podcast/id1448663986You can find out more about Taylor and his research here:https://profiles.facu...2025-04-1314 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastJerry Floro and the MS&E program at U. VirginiaTim and Steve were at the TMS meeting in Las Vegas and ran into Professor Jerry Floro from the Materials Science and Engineering Department at the University of Virginia. We talk about his efforts to bring active learning into his classes, his work in helping start an undergraduate program at UVa, and lots of other fun things. You can learn more about Jerry and the MS&E department at UVa at the links below:About Jerry:https://engineering.virginia.edu/faculty/jerrold-floroAbout the MS&E department at UVa:https://engineering.virginia.edu/de...2025-04-0642 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastAdam Hope - Thermo-Calc - at the 2025 TMS Annual MeetingSteve and Tim were walking through the TMS Annual Meeting Exhibit hall in Las Vegas and stopped to talk to Dr. Adam Hope at the Thermo-Calc booth. Adam is a member of the TMS education committee. He told us how he became a Materials Scientist and what a materials student might want to do if they wanted to get a job at Thermo-Calc.You can learn more about Thermo-Calc here:https://thermocalc.comYou can find the YouTube video of the podcast here:https://youtu.be/yi6PymT_vK4This episode is s...2025-03-3007 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastChris Gordon and the Wilson Student Project CenterSteve and Tim talk with Chris Gordon, the Director of the Wilson Student Team Projects Center at the U. of Michigan. Chris tells us how the Wilson Center got started and evolved into what it is today. There are 24 competition teams at the Wilson Center and it supports many capstone design projects, our Multidisciplinary Design program, and more. Chris explains why community and safety are at the core of the center and how students and faculty help each other succeed. He also talks about why this kind of engaged learning is a powerful tool for our student to experience.2025-03-1658 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastWenhao Sun: Using Chat GPT to teach students how to use it as a collaborator and solve very hard problemsTim and Steve talk with Professor Wenhao Sun about the way he is using Chat GPT in his thermodynamics and kinetics classes. Wenhao demonstrates how he teaches students to use Chat GPT as a collaborator to solve much harder problems that are usually given to students. He believes that this lets his students experience the higher levels of Blooms taxonomy and shows how he does this in a live demonstration.Here is a link to a short video describing Professor Sun's research: https://youtu.be/cO7jEApzKoo?si=IhcLScABV4H29AeAYou can learn more about Pro...2025-03-091h 18Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastIzzy Jaszczak: The Laboratory Experience at Michigan Tech.Tim and Steve talk with Izzy Jaszczak about Michigan Technological University's metal casting course and the major changes the teaching staff has made to increase the course capacity to 60 students. This was a course that she had taken as an undergraduate. Working with Dr. Paul Sanders, Dr. Dale Dewald, and Peter Jaszczak, she updated the lab curriculum to give students more individual hands-on time with equipment. Izzy also talks about the research half of her role helping students, staff, and faculty collect data using scanning electron microscopes.Here is a link to a Google Slide deck about the...2025-02-2354 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastEnze Chen: Teaching MS&E at Stanford UniversityTim and Steve talk with Dr. Enze Chen, a Lecturer in Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University. We talk about Enze's unique approach to teaching, his computational modules and materials informatics. We touch on topics such as teaching Gen Z students, generative AI, and visualization in materials education. Dr. Chen even talks about his sketching course for MS&E students. You can learn more about Enze and peruse some extra resources at his website: https://enze-chen.github.io/The materials informatics curriculum is further discussed here: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.jchemed.2c006402025-02-0959 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastTim and Steve Recap Teaching Experiences from the Fall 2024 termIn this episode, Steve and Tim reflect on their recent teaching experiences, focusing on Tim's new math course and Steve's grading for growth experiment. They discuss the positive feedback from students, the structure of the math course, and the challenges of integrating AI tools in education. Additionally, they explore innovative grading methods that emphasize student engagement and learning retention, highlighting the importance of feedback and reassessment without penalty. In this conversation, Steve discusses his approaches to enhancing student accountability, revising grading practices, and implementing final exams to ensure true assessment of student learning. He also addresses the challenges posed...2025-01-241h 02Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastEllen Solomon and Multidisciplinary DesignSteve and Tim talk with Dr. Ellen Solomon, one of the program managers of the Multidisciplinary Design Program (MDP) at the University of Michigan. Ellen graduated with an MS&E degree from Michigan and worked in industry before coming back to Michigan to run the research program side of MDP. She talked to us about this very unique program that incorporates not only research projects, but projects from industry as well. About Ellen: https://mdp.engin.umich.edu/staff/ellen-solomon/UM MDP: https://mdp.engin.umich.eduUM MDP research projects for 2025: https://mdp.engin.umic...2024-11-1751 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastTresa Pollock: The 2024 Van Vlack Lecturer in MS&E at U. MichiganSteve and Tim talk with Professor Tresa Pollock from UC Santa Barbara, the 2024 Van Vlack Lecturer in the MS&E department at U. Michigan. Tresa has had a very long and distinguished career in Materials Science and Engineering and has mentored many many graduate students. We had a discussion about graduate student mentoring amongst other things. You can find her website here:https://materials.ucsb.edu/people/faculty/tresa-pollockYou can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/MfANbEKmRUwThis episode is sponsored by the North American Materials Education Symposium (https://java.eng...2024-11-1043 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastTershia Pinder-Grover and CRLT Engineering: How teaching centers help faculty and students improve learningSteve and Tim talk with Dr. Tershia Pinder-Grover, the director of the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching in Engineering (CRLT-Engin) in the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan. This year marks the 20th anniversary of CRLT-Engin, a focused teaching center where the consultants all have degrees in engineering as well as engineering education. CRLT of University of Michigan is the first University teaching center in the nation. CRLT Engin: https://crlte.engin.umich.edu/CRLT UM: https://crlt.umich.edu/You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be...2024-09-2251 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastTim's new math course for Materials Science and Engineering studentsSteve talks to Tim about his new math course. He explains how it is going, what is challenging, and what is better than expected. He also discusses his grading, student input, and other aspects of this new course.You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/3AUgS8cGLhEThis episode is sponsored by the North American Materials Education Symposium (https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/) and the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-09-0924 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastMicah Gendich - MSE Student Association PresidentTim talks with Micah Gendich, the University of Michigan MSE student association president. UM has an organization called the Michigan Materials Society (MMS) that is run by undergraduate students with a little help from the graduate students. They organize weekly luncheons, social events, and also professional development events. They also engage with outreach and recruiting activities for our department.You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/X-SCX86XVjEThis episode is sponsored by the North American Materials Education Symposium (https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/) and the University of Michigan Materials Sci...2024-09-0336 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastGetting Ready for Classes - starting a new class and making major changes to an old oneTim and Steve talk about how they are getting ready for classes - which start next week!Tim is creating a completely new class that has never been taught before - Math for MS&E students at the second year undergraduate level.Steve is making some major changes in his team based intro to materials course by adding in components of Grading for Growth methods.some links: Get the book Grading for Growth:https://www.amazon.com/Grading-Growth-Alternative-Practices-Engagement/dp/1642673811You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/zTsrnLmKUb42024-08-201h 00Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastCindy Anderson and Engineering for One PlanetCindy talks with Tim and Steve about Engineering for One Planet and how she worked with the Lemelson Foundation to launch it.You can find the information talked about in the podcast here:https://engineeringforoneplanet.org/resources/https://engineeringforoneplanet.orgYou can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/CzjC52iytcQThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-08-111h 02Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastMarcus Collins: Marketing Materials Science and EngineeringSummaryIn this conversation, Steve, Tim and Marcus discuss the challenges of attracting students to material science and engineering (MSE) programs. They explore the concept of jobs to be done, which includes the functional, emotional, and social aspects of a product or service. Marcus suggests that MSE programs should focus on the emotional and social jobs that potential students want to fulfill, such as their interests in fashion, sneakers, and tangible experiences. They also discuss the importance of conducting netnography to understand the cultural context and language of potential students. By engaging with influencers and communities in...2024-08-071h 04Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastSeason 2: New guests, new segmentsSteve and Tim talk about the new season for the 2024-2025 academic year. They plan to continue having great guests and add some curricular topics. Please help us with our show! Head over to this link and give us some feedback, suggest guests, suggest topics, suggest yourself!Feedback form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScmi5go4JEjI2msncKTtXznqVv2RQm9a_vsdCr5Bu9wTCHsbQ/viewform?usp=pp_urlWe thank the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu) for their continuing support!2024-08-0507 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastGerard Mourou - A Nobel Prize Laureate talks about undergraduate researchGerard Mourou was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2018 along with his former student Donna Strickland. The Nobel Prize was for developing chirped pulse amplification of femtosecond laser intensity. This led to many important applications including the all laser Lasik eye surgery, a new method to reduce space junk by using coherently combined femtosecond pulses in space, astrophysics research, particle generation and acceleration, and many new advances in radiation therapy and other medical applications. Ever since his first professorial position at the University of Rochester, he has had undergrads working for him in his lab. He talks about thes...2024-06-1643 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastRay DeckerSteve and Tim talk with Dr. Ray Decker today. Ray earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees at the U. of Michigan. He spent most of his career at International Nickel Corporation and has since started several companies as an entrepreneur. Thixomat and Nanomag are his two most recent companies. He has been very active in ASM and especially the ASM Foundation. Ray is especially interested in Materials Education and has worked tirelessly for the ASM Foundation in recent years on the teachers camp and he is on the external advisory board for the U. Michigan Materials Science and Engin...2024-05-1254 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastBlacksmithing with Tim - Student voicesYou can find the YouTube version of the Podcast here:https://youtu.be/7uRI_rE7Nn4We also have a condensed video version that can be found here:https://youtu.be/b--Ddpq6w8YYou can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-05-0517 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastProfessor Aeriel Murphy-LeonardTim and Steve talk with Aeriel about her experience being a student and transitioning to an assistant professor at the Ohio State UniversityYou can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/sYEPBGyi610You can read about the Aeriel Views project here:https://aerielviews.blog/You can read more about her work with SWE Liberia here:https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11837-020-04312-3.pdfYou can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:...2024-04-2855 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastChip Keough - ASM and the ASM FoundationTim and Steve talk with Chip Keough, the former CEO of Applied Process, Inc and the past chair of the ASM Foundation. Chip is a UM Alum and currently and adjunct faculty member of the UM MSE department. Chip explains the difference between ASM and ASM Foundation and why the materials community benefits from both. He has been very involved with the ASM Foundation teachers camps and talks about it in the podcast.ASM:https://www.asminternational.orgASM Foundation:https://www.asmfoundation.orgYou can find out more about the tea...2024-04-2152 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastProjectsSteve and Tim talk about projects they have students do instead of exams.You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/XTRHz2kirbsYou can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-04-1445 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastPeg Jones and the ASM teacher campsPeg and Tim talk about the ASM Foundation teacher camps.You can find out more about the teacher camps at this link:https://www.asmfoundation.org/teachers/materials-campsIf you are interested in attending a camp in 2024 use this link:https://www.asmfoundation.org/teachers/camp-schedule/You can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/zkG58quir8UYou can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/This episode...2024-04-0755 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastJeff Fergus - What is ABET accreditation and how materials programs can easily succeed at their next visitJeff Fergus joins Steve and Tim to talk about ABET. Jeff has been the chair of the Engineering Accreditation Commission at ABET, is currently working on the ABET accreditation council and is very involved in evaluator training. He has previously been the chair of the TMS accreditation committee and has been a longtime organizer of the TMS Judson symposium. Jeff is also a professor of Materials Engineering at Auburn University and is currently the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies and Program Assessment in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering. You can find out more about Jeff here: https://eng...2024-03-311h 03Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastRecruiting Materials Science and Engineering StudentsSteve and Tim talk about how we can convince students to become Materials Science and Engineering StudentsYou can find the YouTube video here:https://youtu.be/wXJZjWOT838You can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-03-2445 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastAssessing ABET Outcomes for Materials ProgramsSteve and Tim talk about how we do our ABET outcomes assessment, analyze the results, and use it as input to our continuous improvement process.Link to the YouTube version:https://youtu.be/VZN5_A3UKysYou can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-03-1756 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastSusan GentryThis week we talk with Professor Susan Gentry from UC Davis. Susan is a teaching professor in the Materials Science and Engineering department. She is very active in education and has been a long time contributor to the materials community. She is currently on the TMS education committee and has recently presented her work at the North American Education Symposium. You can find more about Susan at her website:https://faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu/gentry/You can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java...2024-03-1052 minUndercooled: A Materials Education Podcast30 minutes with Chat GPTA discussion about Materials Science and Engineering education with the Open AI app, Chat GPT - the free voice model.You can find out more about the North American Materials Education Symposium this coming summer in Ann Arbor here:https://java.engin.umich.edu/NAMES24/The YouTube version (audio and subtitles only) of this episode can be found here: https://youtu.be/D7ehmjHL4vk?si=jz01-NSWfiKsm_ayThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-03-0330 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastStudent managed Materials Societies - Michigan Materials SocietyToday we talk with Alexa Goldstein, the President of the Michigan Materials Society - a student run organization. She explains what it is like to manage the events, speakers, professional development opportunities, and her own experiences in our department. The YouTube version of this episode can be found here: https://youtu.be/m84q3PuIDPsThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-02-2540 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastMaterials and math: teaching MSE students the mathematical tools they need to succeedTim and Steve talk about math education at the college level, what engineering students are and are not getting from their math courses, and the math skills MSE students need to have to be successful. We also tease the creation of a new sophomore course at Michigan - Math Methods for MSE! Also a little nerding out about math topics from different levels of infinity to functions as bases of vector spaces.This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-02-1833 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastWillie Rockward talks about how materials programs can best support African American studentsWillie Rockward has been teaching at HBCUs for many years. He is now the chair of the physics department at Morgan State University in Baltimore. Previously he taught at Morehouse College in Atlanta. Today he gives us advise on how materials programs can best support African American students in primarily white institutions. Links discussed in the podcast:National Society of Black Physicists: https://nsbp.org/Morgan State Physics: https://www.morgan.edu/physicsOptics in the City of Light Physics REU: https://java.engin.umich.edu/ParisREU/A video version of this podcast can b...2024-02-1149 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastMaterials and Art Museums with Dave ChoberkaTim talks with Dave Choberka, a curator at the University of MIchigan Museum of Art. YouTube link: https://youtu.be/Oyt_zzz5SMYThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-02-0442 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastTeam Based TeachingTim and Steve talk about their experiences using team based teaching in a laboratory setting and to replace lectures. They talk about how they make their teams, what their teams do, how they monitor the teams, and how the use peer review. Tim uses a tool called Tandem and Steve uses a tool called CATME. They also talk about how others might ease into team based teaching in lecture settings.YouTube link (audio only): https://youtu.be/GDFIjysTMvgThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu...2024-01-2859 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastAlloy design in undergraduate labsSteve talks to Tim about his alloy design module in the undergraduate lab he teaches. He has students use ThermoCal and COMSOL to design an alloy, make the alloy, and then test the mechanical properties to see if they get what they designed.YouTube Link (audio only): https://youtu.be/0TVXCrnXoNAThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-01-2136 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastKevin Jones and the Impact of Materials on SocietyKevin Jones is a professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Florida. He has been working on the Impact of Materials on Society (IMOS) project since 2010 when he was the chair of the department and was looking for a way to expose students to Materials Science and Engineering. You can find the YouTube version of this podcast at this link:https://youtu.be/vXCWvJ3tZJgIf you or your department is interested in accessing the Canvas shell and resources (slides, videos, homework, etc.) for the course you should send him an em...2024-01-1440 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastBosco Yu: Gamification and Social Media in Materials EducationTim and Steve discuss gamification and social media in materials education with Bosco Yu from the University of Victoria.The video version can be watched here:https://youtu.be/rLu_o0kt2rc?si=yqrTlJqfcql3KQ9HBosco is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, specializing in the mechanics of materials. Currently, he teaches an introduction to materials science for a 2nd-year cohort and a 4th-year elective on materials selection for sustainable development.Viewers can find more information about:Taxonomy of game thinking: S. Deterding et al., Gamification: Toward a...2024-01-0744 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastDemonstrationsTim and Steve talk about demonstrations. Why are they important? How to best use them? They also talk about demos for different audiences including K-6, 6-12, Intro to materials courses, recruiting fairs, and teacher camps. The also talk about some of their favorite demos.The video version of this episode is on our YouTube channel:https://youtu.be/ozNUCROk3hQThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2024-01-0144 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastGradingSteve and Tim talk about grading. YouTube version can be found here:https://youtu.be/_yIxWQSd_tA?si=ttA0hHUo3ip4gUIZThis episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2023-12-2455 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastPerry Samson and Learning CluesPerry joins us and talks about his educational journey and his new company LearningClues (https://webdisk.learningclues.com/). We also have a video version of the podcast on YouTube at this link: https://youtu.be/zg-6JfrNzowPerry does a demo of the Gen AI features of LearningClues at 41 minutes into the podcast. Obviously you won't see it in the podcast, but you will on the YouTube video.This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2023-12-1543 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastUM Gen AI: What we learned at the Provost's Seminar on TeachingTim and Steve went to the University of Michigan's Provost's Seminar on Teaching on Friday. The entire day was focussed on the new UM Generative AI. They have developed their own UM GPT engine as well as a scriptable version called Maizey that can scrape Canvas course sites and provide the GPT model a very curated data set that can be queried by students. We discuss what we learned and talk about some of the capabilities we would like to see.This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.eng...2023-12-0932 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastBladesmithingTim talks about the UM Blacksmithing Club and the Bladesmithing team.This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2023-12-0130 min
Undercooled: A Materials Education PodcastWhat should we call our podcast?Steve and Tim talk about what to call our podcast. We also talk about challenges we faced in our classroom this week and how we solved the problems. This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2023-11-0320 minUndercooled: A Materials Education PodcastUndercooled: A Materials Education Podcast - TrailerAn introduction to our podcast.This episode is sponsored by the University of Michigan Materials Science and Engineering department (https://mse.engin.umich.edu).2023-10-2801 min