Engineering Open House: The Future Starts Here! March 13-14

“The Future Starts Here” is the theme for the 95th annual Engineering Open House (EOH) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In addition to more than 250 exhibits ranging from concrete crushing to Newtonian fluid demonstrations, this year’s EOH offers a few special attractions including an elaborate dorm room fire demonstration by the Champaign Fire Department, a presentation by Malwarebytes CEO Marcin Kleczynski, robot wars, plus a monster Tesla Coil Concert lighting up the Bardeen Quad on Friday night!

All events and exhibits are free and open to the public. The annual showcase of student projects and engineering marvels runs from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Friday, March 13, and from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 14 (Family Day), on the Engineering Campus.

This two-day event, attracting approximately 20,000 visitors each year, is organized and run by students from the Engineering Council at Illinois. Both interactive and informative, the engaging exhibits offer a fun learning experience for the whole family. A free mobile app, created by Lextech Global Services especially for EOH, includes exhibit details, building information, maps, and more. The app is available for download in the Google Play Store and the iOS App Store.

On Friday, 20 high school teams will compete to see which team can build the most entertaining and wackiest Rube Goldberg machine that erases a chalkboard. The Middle School Design Competition will be held on Saturday for 6th-8th graders to test their skills at solving engineering problems.

The annual Jerry Sanders Creative Design Competition attracts college robotics teams and their creations from across the nation to compete on a large, multi-level skills course inside the Kenney Gym Annex (northeast corner of Wright Street and Springfield Avenue).

On Friday evening, Malwarebytes’ CEO and founder Marcin Kleczynski will give a presentation for students, families, and community members on at 7:00 p.m. in Grainger Auditorium in the new Electrical and Computer Engineering Building (located on the North Engineering Quad; 306 N. Wright Street Urbana). Kleczynski is an alumnus of the Computer Science program at the University of Illinois and is known throughout the tech industry as a gifted entrepreneur and a visionary. The presentation is free, but seating is limited.

Following Kleczynski’s presentation, there will be a giant Tesla Coil Concert at 9:00 p.m. on the Bardeen Quad, just north of Engineering Hall. Be amazed by the electrifying visuals and booming tones of thousands of volts zapping through the air as the operator uses the bolts to recreate well-known musical tunes.

Don't miss the Saturday Engineering for Everyone presentation, "Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Space?" in 1002 Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) building on the north quad. Professor Jonathan Makela will discuss how making observations of the Earth’s
ionosphere and thermosphere — the boundary layers between our atmosphere and space — can be used to study, monitor, and perhaps predict certain aspects of earthquakes and tsunamis. This free event is for the whole family.

Also this year: The Beckman Institute Open House, held in conjunction with EOH, will feature more than 30 exhibits highlighting the work taking place at one of the nation’s leading centers for interdisciplinary research. Visitors will be greeted by Bert, the childlike robot-in-residence, and surrounded by demonstrations of amazing imaging techniques and fascinating explorations of the human mind. The Beckman Café will be open for meals, snacks and beverages. (For more information, visit beckman.illinois.edu).

In addition to the exhibits, the College of Engineering will hold several Dean’s Sessions throughout each day where admitted and prospective students can talk to a dean and learn more about Engineering at Illinois. The sessions will take place in Room 1320, Digital Computer Lab (DCL), on March 13 (11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 3:00 p.m.) and March 14 (1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.). Tours of the engineering campus will be offered immediately after each Dean’s Session. There will also be an Engineering Majors Fair on DCL’s lower level for those interested in learning more about the various engineering disciplines and career opportunities.

Parking is available and is free to the public. Directions for parking can be found on the EOH website. From the parking area, visitors can board a free shuttle that stops at the Visitor Center and the design contest locations, as well as the ExplorACES event. For more information on 95th annual Engineering Open House, visit eoh.ec.illinois.edu.