KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

The Society of Woman Engineers is pleased to present a wonderfully diverse lineup of special speakers for the 1998 National Convention and Student Conference. Join us for the following sessions to celebrate Diversity -- Look How Far We've Come!

Tuesday 11:00am-1:00pm Student Conference Opening Lunch
Wednesday 4:00pm-5:00pm Convention Opening
Thursday 8:00am-9:00am Thursday Opening
Friday 8:00am-9:00am Friday Opening
11:30am-1:00pm Industry Lunch

Student Conference Opening Lunch
FINDING THE DOOR INTO TECHNOLOGY: WOMEN AND ENGINEERING SINCE 1643
Dr. John Lienhard, National Public Radio's Engines of Our Ingenuity, University of Houston
$30 ($15 students)
Tuesday, 11:00am–1:00pm

For more information, check out the Student Conference.

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Convention Opening
THE PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE OF SPACE
Marjorie Thompson, Dr. Bonnie Dunbar, Donna Shirley
Wednesday, 4:00–5:00pm

  • Marjorie Thompson, World War II Bomber Pilot

    • Representing the Past, Marjorie Thompson was the first woman bomber pilot to fly missions in WWII. Ms. Thompson will tell of her ground-breaking experiences.

  • Dr. Bonnie Dunbar, NASA Astronaut

    • Representing the Present, Bonnie Dunbar is an astronaut based at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Dr. Dunbar is a veteran of five space flights and has logged more than 1000 hours in space as a mission specialist and as a payload commander. Prior to becoming an astronaut in 1981, she worked as a systems analyst, a research engineer and a payload officer/flight controller. Dr. Dunbar received her doctorate degree in materials science and physiology.

  • Donna Shirley, Manager, Mars Exploration Program Office

    • Representing the Future, Donna Shirley is the manager of the Mars Exploration Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. She appeared on national television during the July 4, 1997 Mars landing of Pathfinder and its rover, Sojourner. Ms. Shirley managed the team that built the Sojourner rover, as well as the team that built the Microrover. She has held management positions in charge of Exploration Initiative Studies, Automation and Robotics. Ms. Shirley is the author of a book on managing creativity.

    Recently, Donna Shirley was selected as one of Ms. Magazine's Women of the Year. Congratulations to Ms. Shirley!

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    Thursday Opening
    WORKING IN A GLOBAL ECONOMY
    Rebecca Mark, Chairman and CEO of Enron International
    Thursday, 8:00–9:00am

    Rebecca P. Mark is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Houston-based Enron International, the emerging markets arm of Enron Corporation. She is responsible for Enron's project development activities, operating assets and joint venture management in emerging markets and for Enron's interest in Enron Global Power and Pipelines L.L.C. Ms. Mark holds a master's degree in International Business from Baylor University and an MBA from Harvard University. Ms. Mark will challenge SWE members to develop the skills to succeed in a global marketplace and the ambition and attitude to succeed in a male-dominated industry.

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    Friday Opening
    EDUCATING A DIVERSE ENGINEERING WORKFORCE
    Dr. Karan Watson, Assistant Dean of Engineering, Texas A&M University
    Friday, 8:00–9:00am

    Karan Watson is Assistant Dean of Engineering at Texas A&M University and is responsible for Academic and Special Programs. Dr. Watson has been a member of the Electrical Engineering faculty since 1983 and has received many awards for outstanding teaching, as well as the University Multicultural Center Diversity Award for Administrators. Dr. Watson is concerned with the complete education of individuals, how the diversity of individuals' backgrounds can affect their educational opportunities and experiences, and about past and current efforts to achieve equity of access and opportunity in the engineering fields.

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    Industry Lunch
    NANOENGINEERING WITH THE FULLERENES
    Dr. Richard Smalley, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Rice University
    $30 ($25 students)
    Friday, 11:30am–1:00pm

    Nobel laureate Richard Smalley will address the industry lunch. Dr. Smalley's research at Rice University has made pioneering advances in the development of new experimental techniques such as super-cold pulsed beams; ultrasensitive laser detection; laser-driven sources of free radicals, triplets, metals and both metal and semiconductor cluster beams. He has applied these techniques to a broad range of vital questions in chemical physics.

    Dr. Smalley is widely known for the discovery and characterization of C60 (Buckminsterfullerene, commonly referred to as the Bucky Ball). His current research focuses on the production of continuous carbon fibers, which are essentially giant single-fullerene molecules. Just a few nanometers in width, but many centimeters in length, these fullerene fibers are expected to be the strongest fibers ever made—100 times stronger than steel.

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    For convention information, contact the Houston Convention Team.
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