IRVINE : UCI to Dedicate Engineering Center

UC Irvine will launch its 17th annual Engineering Week today with the formal dedication of the Rockwell Engineering Center and McDonnell Douglas Engineering Auditorium.

Speaking at dedication ceremonies will be Donald Beall, Rockwell International Corp.’s chairman and chief executive officer, and Gerald Johnston, president of McDonnell Douglas. The 15,000-square-foot building cost $4.2 million.

Engineering Week activities include a Rube Goldberg contest in which students build devices designed to perform simple tasks in a complicated way. The contest is scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Engineering Plaza.

Also on Wednesday, some students will grease their hair, put plastic penholders in their shirt pockets and wear tacky clothes in an effort to ridicule the stereotypical engineering student. A panel of faculty members will choose the biggest nerd on campus.

Other events include a campuswide trivia bowl, a water balloon catapult battle and an egg-drop contest in which students build devices to allow eggs to drop from a nine-story building without breaking.